JW Census

GapingMouth

The WTS claims membership of somewhere in the region of 6 million if I am not mistaken. Is this true, or have they embellished the facts? Including those hiding or fading, technically how many JWs are there really? On a similar note, a friend of mine put a report in for 98 hours. He didn't do 1. Just how accurate are the reports? Aren't the reports supposed to be confidential, because the smelder who does the reports told my friends mother in law and possibly others what he had reported.

wantstoleave

I think the numbers are only baptised publishers? BUT, they don't count inactive baptised publishers. Hmmm. Good question! I think the statistics would be active publishers.

teel

They count you're a Jehovah's Witness if you have done field service hours in the last service year, and include that number in the column "Peak witnesses". Here is the most recent report: http://www.watchtower.org/e/statistics/worldwide_report.htm peak witnesses in 2007 was over 7 million - I believe it to be true. If you're hiding, fading then you probably don't turn in hours, so you're not in the statistics. On average the dropout seems to be around 1% per year - you can calculate this from the yearly reports.

For example in 2005 the peak witnesses was 6.613.950, and there were 247.746 newly baptized. The mortality is calculated at 1%, so about 66.139 witnesses died. So in 2006 there should be 6.795.557 witnesses. In 2006 the peak witnesses was reported to be 6.741.444, so the dropout was 54.113, a bit shy of 1% - this number is only those who absolutely disconnected themselves from the organization, but there are many who do go out in field service now and then, and some report teaching their children although they never go to actual FS at all (I know one of this kind), and then some report bogus hours, so technically the number of actual dropouts should be higher.

Taken this into account, I'd say there are roughly 1 million or so living persons who were baptized above the 7 million active witnesses.

wobble

Thanks Teel for your analysis. Figures are always difficult to interpret,especially when info. is not included.

For example,they used to give a figure for the % increase or decrease for each country and then one for the world, it is no longer given.

A rough estimate,by me, says they baptise,into the Organization,not into Christ, about 5,500 people a week, but 1,000 Baptised people are leaving every week.

These are people who were active witnesses, they have found "The Truth" to be wanting, I said to my super-dubby Bro in law the other day :

"Does that not make you think, that great big hole in the bottom of the bucket ?" I doubt if anything will make him think.

Love

Wobble

p.s I would love to see a census of JW's with the question, "Would you leave if there were no actions, no shunning, not even gossip, against you ?"

How many would walk ?

GapingMouth

So there actually are as many JWs as they proclaim? Thanks by the way for your answers, and don't forget my other questions!

teel

p.s I would love to see a census of JW's with the question, "Would you leave if there were no actions, no shunning, not even gossip, against you ?"

How many would walk ?

Good question, however that would be such a different organization, that I might even consider going back

Out at Last!

The reports are supposed to be confidential, but with all the people who handle them, word can easily get out. Usually MS are told so they know who can get the "privileges" of handing around the mics, be attendants, work behind literature and mag counters. And of course, all elders wives know more about what's going on in the cong than their husbands.

WTWizard

At last I have heard, it was something like 7.13 million (which is way too high). Out of that, I would doubt that even half were sincere, and likely less than 10% of them are "doing enough to get everlasting life" (maybe even less than 1%).

steve2

Whenever governments conduct a nation-wide census, there are alway more people who identify themselves as JWs compared with the Watchtower's official statistics for that country. For example, the Watchtower reports that in 2007/2008 there was a peak number of about 14,100 publishers in New Zealand while a concurrent government-based census reported that 17,500 New Zealanders identified themselves as JWs. Of course, this number would also include inactive JWs and pre-schoolers. There is no hard evidence that the Watchtower "doctors" the numbers, although there has been a lot of - in my opinion - crazy speculation on this topic.

dissed

When I was a Book Study conductor, I was encouraged to examin the publishers records in my particular group.

JW Census

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