A friend sent me a new letter, that should be read to the congregation:
September 18, 2017
TO ALL CONGREGATIONS
Re: 2018 Memorial and Special Talk
Dear Brothers:
On Saturday evening, March 31, 2018, we will gather to observe the Lord’s Evening Meal. (Luke 22:19) To generate enthusiasm for the Memorial, the special public talk, entitled “Who Really Is Jesus Christ?,” will be presented one week before the Memorial, during the week of March 19, 2018. Congregations that have an assembly or the visit of the circuit over-seer the week of March 19 will have the special talk one week earlier. Most congregations will view a talk that has been prerecorded by the branch office, and in many cases, given by a member of the Branch Committee. We hope this advance notice will be helpful to you in pre-paring for these important events.
Your brothers,
c: Circuit overseers
PS to bodies of elders:
Please arrange for this letter to be read to the congregation at the first midweek meeting after its receipt. Thereafter, it should be posted on the information board. However, this postscript should neither be read to the congregation nor be posted on the information board.
In preparation for the 2018 Memorial, please review the direction on selecting a Memorial speaker and selecting Memorial meeting times found in the February 13, 2017, letter to all bodies of elders.
The prerecorded special talk will be available on JW Stream about one month prior to the week it is to be presented. Please assign an elder or a ministerial servant to download the prerecorded talk from JW Stream (using his jw.org credentials) several weeks before the congregation is scheduled to view it. Since there may be multiple recordings available in the same language, in early 2018 the branch office will inform groups and congregations which recording they should use. If possible, a backup speaker should be assigned in case of technical problems with the recording. If a congregation or group does not have the necessary equipment to view the recording or if the recording is not available in the language of the congregation or group, the body of elders should assign a qualified speaker to give the talk in the usual manner.
Is this the beginning of the end of "live" public talks?
