I have a friend who speaks Spanish and likes to go to their meetings once in a while. She was visiting a nearby congregation who was having their CO's visit and he mentioned that out of 200 congregations that were formed in the States last year, 150+ of them were Spanish!!
This, of course, was mentioned in light of how fast the Spanish are growing, but all I could think about was that if the Spanish consists of so much of the growth in the US, then the English congregations must really be doing horribly in order to break that 0% growth!
150+/200 New Congregations in US are Spanish
by daniel-p 13 Replies latest jw friends
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daniel-p
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sir82
It would be interesting to compare that "200" number to the count of congregations from the 2006 yearbook, vs. the 2005 yearbook.
If, for example, there was only an increase of 180 in the books, that would indicate 20 congregations dissolved (not a number the Society would like to push).
Even if there doesn't turn out to be such an obvious drop, the number itself is pretty meaningless.
Where I live, there is an enormous influx of people moving in, JWs included. There was a "new congregation" formed here last year, and another likely to follow this year. But that is due to JWs moving in from other states. So you have 2 "new congregations", but 20 congregations from up north are now smaller.
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Finally-Free
I wonder if the "increase" in the number of congregations are a result of more converts or if it's because they are splitting existing congregations and redistributing members into the "new" ones. More congregations might just mean fewer members in each one.
W
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minimus
Why does anyone believe that the Society's numbers are accurate? I believe they fudge them.
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willyloman
I wonder if the "increase" in the number of congregations are a result of more converts or if it's because they are splitting existing congregations and redistributing members into the "new" ones.
It's a redistribution scheme, in my experience. And whenever there's a plan in place, somebody has to plan and execute it. Which tells me the WTS is well aware of their current lack of growth and working hard behind the scenes to create the impression they're booming.
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undercover
Why does anyone believe that the Society's numbers are accurate? I believe they fudge them.
I think so, too. But at the same time, if they're gonna fudge em, hell, why not make themselves look really good?
They could claim 10% growth every year and most dubs ain't gonna know the difference. Anyone who takes the time to figures out that the numbers aren't right, are already questioning other things anyway.
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doinmypart
Two Spanish congregations formed in my circuit last year. I'd estimate that 1/3 of those congregations are made up of English-speaking jws that moved into the Spanish congregation to help out.
My circuit hasn't seen growth in about 8 years. The last two COs that have been through have redrawn the territory lines and shuffled publishers between congregations. This gave the appearance of "something happening" when there really wasn't any growth. If it weren't for the Spanish population in the area they could probably sell a KH or two.
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willyloman
Artificial growth:
In our circuit, two KHs were filled with four congos each. Hall A had 3 English, 1 Spanish. Hall B had 3 Spanish, 1 English, and was in poor condition and in a bad neighborhood.
A well-to-do sister offered to buy a lot to construct a new hall. The quick-build boys and the local elders got together, acquired a lot, and developed plans for not one, but two KHs on it.
The move necessitated a Society loan on the new halls. Into them moved the four English congos. The old, delapidated hall was sold off. I haven't asked who the money went to. The 4 Spanish congos all moved into Hall A, which was paid for a long time ago and came no payments (except of course for maintenance).
Local dubs began to crow about their phenomenal growth: "We had to build two brand new halls because we've grown so much."
The fact was, the same number of congos now share the same number of halls as before. The only difference is that four English congos now all pay about $1,000 a month to the WTS on their loan. During the time this plan was first announced and today, a period of about 4 years, the local population has grown at least 20%. There are no more publishers now that there were three years ago. Recently, the CO came through and shuffled the makeup of the congos because one was so small.
It's all about appearances.
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MinisterAmos
We have seen a huge influx of Spanish speakers after the hurricanes that battered the Gulf. Most Spanish speaking people respect the bible and want to learn more about it. They are also far from home and generally here by themselves. This makes them vulnerable to the Witnesses.
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daniel-p
They are also more of a social culture, and are more likely to participate in social/outgoing activities such as community events and religious services.