More Elders than MS's For First Time in WT History

FrankWTower

Have you heard the good news?

I heard from a reliable source that for the first time in Watchtower history, there are more elders now than ministerial servants. This is not just a regional issue either, it's worldwide.

pirata

In my circuit assembly this year, they annouced the statistics of the circuit, and there were more MS's than elders.

This especially accelerated after the governing body anounced a push for younger elder appointments.

It does not necessarily mean there are less men reaching out (one would need to look at the total of MS + elders and the growth trend over time). It seems now that all the "spiritual" men reaching out are going to spend just a few years in M.S. state before coming elders. The rest who have something of concern (not enough field service, bad attitude) will probably stay M.S's.

cantleave

We had 3 MS's in our congregation to 9 elders.

Not many younger guys "reaching out".

sir82

In the US that's true - don't know about the rest of the world.

Between the kids (shoot, not even kids - age 40 & under) who don't want to "reach out", and the limited capacity of even those who currently are MS, well...

As I've said before - in about 15-20 years there's going to be an elder shortage so severe it will dwarf the Catholic "priest shortage" that the magazines used to gloat about on every opportunity they had.

In our congregation, of 9 MS, I can see 2, maybe 3 eventually becoming an elder, maybe a decade or more from now.

The rest are "career MS". Heaven help the congregation if standards are lowered enough to let any of them serve as elders.

leavingwt

Jehovah is speeding up the work in these Last Days*.

* Since the 1870's.

DesirousOfChange

Yes, they are appointing MS as elders earlier and earlier.

But I disagree with the statement that younger guys are not reaching out. 15-30 year olds are doing well in this area. The ones who are not doing anything are the burn-outs. Many congos have more ex-elders than elders. So many who have "been there, done that" and are not interested in putting up with the BS again. Now multiply that by the ones who are not even visible anymore. But a lot of effort is being put into retaining the youth.

sir82

But a lot of effort is being put into retaining the youth.

Uh-huh.

If printing "you can make Jehovah's heart happy by serving him" a dozen times a year, and doing absolutely unequivocally nothing else, counts as "a lot of effort".

Gayle

3 mos ago, a poster, stated: http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/child-abuse/203961/1/WTBTS-Elder-Ministerial-Servant-Problems

that in the U.S. there were 88,500 elders and 65,000 ministerial servants. With 12,900 congs. in U.S., average cong. has 7 elders and 5 m.s.

What Now?

In the 3 years that I have been in my current congregation, there has only been one ministerial servant appointed - actually, a reappointment of a former Bethelite that moved back into our hall. There are a significant number of younger, single brothers as well as brothers with families all of whom are perfectly capable of being appointed ministerial servants. Im not sure if they are just not "reaching out", or if the brothers that do the picking and choosing just have impossibly high standards.

sabastious

I always observed the MS position as being an expected stepping stone to elderhood. If you were a MS "too long" people started wondering. Did this happen in anyone else's hall too?

-Sab

More Elders than MS's For First Time in WT History

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