Would anyone like to comment on the following observations?
The very large majority of the JWs that I come into contact with on a regular basis are not wealthy and many have very low incomes, yet they still make substantial contributions to the WBTS every month.
Why? Because they are firmly lead to believe that it is an organisation that is struggling for its financial survival.
Following a recent visit from the C.O. my wife returned from the meeting full of doom and gloom regarding the financial picture that the C.O. had painted of the Societies situation. He had told them that the Society was desperate for money to continue printing and distributing the magazines and to build Kingdom Halls and develop "the truth" in the very poorest third world countries. He asked that everyone make every effort to increase their contributions and ensure that everyone who received magazines was aware of the donation arrangement.
Consequently my wife is now almost begging for donations for them.
My questions are: has the C.O. painted an accurate picture of the financial circumstances of the Society and, would it be even possible to find out the combined income and expenditure of all the Companies in the Watchtower Group on a world wide basis? Perhaps not.
I do know that in the U.K. the Charity Commission make the detailed accounts of registered charities available to the public but charge a substantial amount for copies of them. I know that the Societys registered charity "WATCH TOWER BIBLE AND TRACT SOCIETY OF BRITAIN" has an average income well in excess of 15 million pounds per annum and its second charity THE INTERNATIONAL BIBLE STUDENTS ASSOCIATION has an income which is quite similar.
I do not know how many other charities it operates in the U.K. from Ridgeway in London neither do I have any details of income and expenditure for the operation of its American Companies:
- Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York Inc.
* Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania Inc.
* Watchtower Enterprises LLC.
* Watchtower Foundation Inc.
* Watchtower Associates LTD.
* Kingdom Support Services Inc.
* Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses.
* Religious Order of Jehovah's Witnesses.
* The Watchtower Group Inc.
Although I do know that the turnover in the U.S.A. is reputed to be in the order of one billion dollars.
Other countries must operate on similar incomes dependent on size of country.
What is the purpose of all this? What an I saying here?
A very large number of Witnesses on low incomes believe that their organisation is similarly hard pressed. They believe that the money they struggle to give to the Society is used to finance the building of structures like Kingdom Halls. They are not aware that the Society loans the money and it has to be repaid. They are not aware of the level of income of the Society has, either locally or world wide, nor the value of its property and investments.
If all this information could be gathered together and presented in a simple to understand format I believe that many Witnesses would walk away from it in disgust.
In my not insignificant experience, matters like failed prophecy and paedophiles are like water off a ducks back to them but new and accurate light on the financial structure of their organisation would have very real meaning to many of them who I know personally.
Any ideas or comments?
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