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Lisa Flynn is the national practice leader . The following graph highlights the consequence of the slowing growth rate of Jehovah's Witnesses. He organized large international assemblies, instituted new training programs for members, and expanded missionary activity and branch offices throughout the world. [105][106] There is no election for membership; new members are selected by the existing body. "[325], Political and religious animosity against Jehovah's Witnesses has at times led to mob action and government oppression in various countries. Peak publishers is an inaccurate figure due to how Watchtower collects this data. [201][202], A central teaching of Jehovah's Witnesses is that the current world era, or "system of things", entered the "last days" in 1914 and faces imminent destruction through intervention by God and Jesus Christ, leading to deliverance for those who worship God acceptably. Women actively participate in the public preaching work and can serve at Bethel. No more than four-in-ten members of the group belong to any one racial and ethnic background: 36% are white, 32% are Hispanic, 27% are black and 6% are another race or mixed race. In 2011, 1.7 billion hours of preaching resulted in around only 130,000 conversions from preaching, or over 13,000 hours preaching per convert. Jehovah's Witnesses have an active presence in most countries, but do not form a large part of the population of any country. This is volume one of a planned two volume work. To be considered one of Jehovah's Witnesses requires being a "publisher." However, they say it is possible for those who have been "anointed" to fall into unrepentant sin. Filter by rating. [303] Members may accept some blood plasma fractions at their own discretion. [148] The Society also teaches that members of the Governing Body are helped by the holy spirit to discern "deep truths", which are then considered by the entire Governing Body before it makes doctrinal decisions. 1 reviews. Witnesses are discouraged from formulating doctrines and "private ideas" reached through Bible research independent of Watch Tower Society publications, and are cautioned against reading other religious literature. There were around 6,000,000 Jehovah's Witnesses in 1995, during which time the global average birth rate was 22.4/1000. There are occasional spikes in publisher growth, such as in 2002, following the 2001 World Trade Centre disaster, and in 2009 as response to the global financial crisis (GFC). [97] Since Knorr's death in 1977, the position of president has been occupied by Frederick Franz (19771992) and Milton Henschel (19922000), both members of the Governing Body, and since 2000 by others who are not Governing Body members. [214], Meetings for worship and study are held at Kingdom Halls, which are typically functional in character, and do not contain religious symbols. Subtracting the increase in average publishers from the number baptised each year can be used to determine the number of Jehovah's Witnesses that stop publishing each year. Since 2006, JWTalk has proved to be a well-moderated online community for real Jehovah's Witnesses on the web. A combination of the growing irrelevance of 1914 and access to information on the Internet reduced growth from 15 million to just 3 million. [156] They consider the Bible to be the final authority for all their beliefs. Jehovah's Witnesses hold meetings for worship twice each week. [260][367][368], Former members Heather and Gary Botting compare the cultural paradigms of the denomination to George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four,[106] and Alan Rogerson describes the group's leadership as totalitarian. In 2022, over 10,000 hours of preaching was required for a single baptism, and due to the number of Jehovah's Witnesses leaving or dying, it took 40,000 hours of preaching for the number of Jehovah's Witnesses to increase by just 1 person. There a plenty of reasons that make Jehovah's Witnesses unhappy, but here are 10 very good ones. ( Hebrews 10:24, 25) At these meetings, which are open to the public, we examine what the Bible says and how we can apply its teachings in our life. Find a meeting location near you. Many of these attendees may be considered fence sitters, hedging their bets that if Armageddon is real and does occur they will jump back on board just in time to be saved. [5] Their official statistics indicate membership according to various territorieswhich they refer to as "lands"many of which are not independent countries. Religious Landscape Survey: Religious Affiliation: Diverse and Dynamic", "A closer look at Jehovah's Witnesses living in the U.S.", "UN investigator: Rights of minorities to worship undermined", "The Global Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses", United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, "CANADIAN WRONGS: QUEBEC'S ATTACK ON JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES", "Jehovah's Witnesses in National Socialist concentration camps, 193345", "Persecution and Resistance of Jehovah's Witnesses During the Nazi-Regime", "Russian court bans Jehovah's Witnesses as extremist", "Exposing the Devil's Subtle Designs/Armed for the Fight Against Wicked Spirits", "Jehovah's Theocratic Organization Today", "Visits from Older Men Benefit God's People", "Will You Heed Jehovah's Clear Warnings? During the 1980s it had risen to 3,000 hours. Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. [317][318] The next lowest retention rates were for Buddhism at 50% and Catholicism at 68%. Participation is voluntary. Had growth remained at 5.63%, the 4,950,344 Witnesses in 1995 would have exceeded 20 million in 2021, instead of 8 million - a difference of 12 million less Jehovah's Witnesses. 3 stars. Due to the large increase in Witnesses leaving the religion, the number of hours preaching required for an additional publisher doubled from 4,000 in the early 1990's to over 8,000 in 2000. [159][160][161] Adherents are told to have "complete confidence" in the leadership, to avoid skepticism about what is taught in the Watch Tower Society's literature, and to "not advocate or insist on personal opinions or harbor private ideas when it comes to Bible understanding. Despite a population of over 4 billion people in Asia/Middle East, in excess of half the world population, the number of publishers increased by only 10,273 in 2016. "[398][en 6] With these interpretations, Jehovah's Witnesses' publications have made various predictions about world events they believe were prophesied in the Bible. were the most widely distributed magazines in the world. 5 stars. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Demographics_of_Jehovah%27s_Witnesses&oldid=1143942849, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 10 March 2023, at 21:26. [98][99][100], Jehovah's Witnesses are organized hierarchically,[2] in what the leadership calls a "theocratic organization", reflecting their belief that it is God's "visible organization" on earth. Up until 1995, the number that stopped publishing (the yellow section) was a small fraction in comparison to the increase in publishers (blue column). If the new system had arrived in 1975, as once expected, there were around 2 million Jehovah's Witnesses expecting salvation, and a global population of 4 billion in line for destruction. Jehovah's Witnesses do not practice infant baptism,[123] and previous baptisms performed by other denominations are not considered valid. 4 stars. [83][84], From 1966, Witness publications and convention talks built anticipation of the possibility that Christ's thousand-year reign might begin in late 1975[85][86][87] or shortly thereafter. Many who do not attend our meetings benefit from our free home Bible study program. Elders maintain general responsibility for congregational governance, setting meeting times, selecting speakers and conducting meetings, directing the public preaching work, and creating "judicial committees" to investigate and decide disciplinary action for cases involving sexual misconduct or doctrinal breaches. They also believe that human governments are controlled by Satan,[185] but that he does not directly control each human ruler. With so few reviews, your opinion of Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witness could be huge. Phone number (305) 253-6305. For example, if a publisher forgets to report in January and lodges their January and February reports at the end of February, the January report is not adjusted. [198] It is said to have been the focal point of Jesus' ministry on earth. Publisher growth tends to spike in times of uncertainty, such as after the events of September 11, 2001, earthquakes or global recession, but these spikes are short lived. About JWTalk.net - Jehovah's Witnesses Online Community. [254] Witness publications strongly discourage followers from questioning doctrine and counsel received from the Governing Body, reasoning that it is to be trusted as part of "God's organization". The following graphs compare 5 year time-frames, showing that over half a million Jehovah's Witnesses leave every five years, more than half the number baptised. In the year 2014, the 100th anniversary of when Watchtower claims Jesus took heavenly rulership, there were less leavers; maybe some doubters superstitiously remained in expectation the anniversary may herald in Armageddon. The meetings are largely devoted to study of Watch Tower Society literature and the Bible. This development will mark the beginning of the "great tribulation". Government census bureaus often determine their figures by asking people which religious group they identify themselves with. Where is Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses located? a A service year runs from September1 to August31 of the next calendar year. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii. These fine ministry supplies for Jehovah's Witnesses also . Statistics show this does not hold true for Jehovah's Witnesses. The Watch Tower Society has made various unfulfilled predictions about major biblical events such as Christ's Second Coming, the advent of God's kingdom, and Armageddon. [64][65][66], Because of disappointment over the changes and unfulfilled predictions, tens of thousands of defections occurred during the first half of Rutherford's tenure, leading to the formation of several Bible Student organizations independent of the Watch Tower Society,[67][68][69][70] most of which still exist. [269][270][271], Witnesses are taught that association with "worldly" people presents a "danger" to their faith,[272] and are instructed to minimize social contact with non-members to better maintain their own standards of morality. The following graphs attempt to identify the number that voluntarily stop preaching. On the one hand, they are increasing mostly in poor countries where birthrates are higher, but this is offset by Watchtower encouragement not to have children. [256] Contact with disfellowshipped individuals is limited to direct family members living in the same home, and with congregation elders who may invite disfellowshipped persons to apply for reinstatement. Show all. [141] Their publications teach that doctrinal changes and refinements result from a process of progressive revelation, in which God gradually reveals his will and purpose,[142][143][144][145] and that such enlightenment or "new light"[146] results from the application of reason and study,[147] the guidance of the holy spirit, and direction from Jesus Christ and angels. [282][283] Although they do not take part in politics, they respect the authority of the governments under which they live. (w2020 jun p.18). Phone number (781) 233-1333. America's Unfaithful Faithful David Van Biema (news.yahoo.com ", "Work to Preserve Your Family Into God's New World", "Korea government promises to adopt alternative service system for conscientious objectors", "Bioethical aspects of the recent changes in the policy of refusal of blood by Jehovah's Witnesses", "How to approach major surgery where patients refuse blood transfusion (including Jehovah's Witnesses)", "Coagulopathy After Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Jehovah's Witness Patients: Management of Two Cases Using Fractionated Components and Factor VIIa", "How Do I View Blood Fractions and Medical Procedures Involving My Own Blood? [378] Sociologist Rodney Stark states that Jehovah's Witness leaders are "not always very democratic" and that members "are expected to conform to rather strict standards," but adds that "enforcement tends to be very informal, sustained by the close bonds of friendship within the group", and that Jehovah's Witnesses see themselves as "part of the power structure rather than subject to it. [63] Significant changes in doctrine and administration were regularly introduced during Rutherford's twenty-five years as president, including the 1920 announcement that the Hebrew patriarchs (such as Abraham and Isaac) would be resurrected in 1925, marking the beginning of Christ's thousand-year earthly kingdom. [38] In June 1879, the two split over doctrinal differences, and in July, Russell began publishing the magazine Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of Christ's Presence,[39] stating that its purpose was to demonstrate that the world was in "the last days," and that a new age of earthly and human restitution under the reign of Christ was imminent. explains; Average Publisher figures are the most accurate way of determining the number of Jehovahs's Witnesses. Currents Shaping Our World: Switched after Birth (ctlibrary.com 1 Jul 2003) They consider the use of God's name vital for proper worship. [207] Most of those who had died before God's intervention will gradually be resurrected during the thousand year "judgment day". ", "Discipline That Can Yield Peaceable Fruit", "Display Christian Loyalty When a Relative Is Disfellowshipped", "Appendix: How to Treat a Disfellowshipped person", "Keep Your Distance When Danger Threatens", "The Educational Identity Formation of Jehovah's Witnesses, Religion & Education", "Parents-What Future Do You Want for Your Children? Discuss a Bible question, or learn more about Jehovahs Witnesses. They feel that these and many other customs have pagan origins or reflect a nationalistic or political spirit. [33], The book taught that God's dealings with humanity were divided dispensationally, each ending with a "harvest," that Christ had returned as an invisible spirit being in 1874[33] inaugurating the "harvest of the Gospel age", and that 1914 would mark the end of a 2,520-year period called "the Gentile Times",[34] at which time world society would be replaced by the full establishment of God's kingdom on earth. Congregational roles such as ministerial servants and elders are exclusively male positions. [24][25] Baptized individuals who formally leave are considered disassociated and are also shunned. The Annual Number Baptised compared to Average Monthly Studies fell from a high of 1 in 5 (22%) prior to 1975 to around 8% during the 1980's and 1990's. This graph highlights the low growth rate proportional to Average Publishers. In 1919, he instituted the appointment of a director in each congregation, and a year later all members were instructed to report their weekly preaching activity to the Brooklyn headquarters. These reports encourage us, just as similar reports encouraged the early Christians.Acts 2:41; 4:4; 15:3. The name was chosen to distinguish his group of Bible Students from other independent groups that had severed ties with the Society, as well as symbolize the instigation of new outlooks and the promotion of fresh evangelizing methods. [210][211], Jehovah's Witnesses believe that Jesus Christ began to rule in heaven as king of God's kingdom in October 1914, and that Satan was subsequently ousted from heaven to the earth, resulting in "woe" to humanity. 0. Based on fresh research into original documents of the era. [158], Regular personal Bible reading is frequently recommended.

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