Preaching Slowdown

by cornish 46 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  cornish

  I can remember numerous talks and study articles about how the preaching work would get more and more intense as we near the end.

  One so called prophetic illustration that stands out in my mind was when Joshua and his men marched around the city each day and then just before the city fell they marched seven times signifying a quickening of the preaching work.

  It seems starkingly obvious that the preaching,is in decline amonst JW's,the JW's are seen less and less often in my neighbourhood,it is very rare to see them out street witnesing around the town centres and railway stations,the average JW spends far less time preaching than a decade ago.

  It seems like their chief brag is definately on the wain,in favour of other recruitment methods.
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  blondie

  JWs not being seen in the territory is caused by many factors.

  1. Many (pioneers) go out during the weekdays, mornings or early afternoons when most people are off earning a living, both men and women and children are at school. Even older people are busier, out and about. Even when the CO comes he does not adjust his schedule but still goes out door to door weekday mornings and on Bible studies in the afternoon. It is getting harder and harder for JWs to reschedule their Bible studies to weekday afternoons to accommodate the CO's unrealistic schedule so he goes on shepherding calls. I can remember when the CO scheduled time on Sunday and Wednesday evening, but no more. I'm not surprised that the rank and file imitate him after he leaves.

  2. When JWs do go out, they waste or stretch out the time between doors and RVs. Techniques include not organizing RVs by location but spending a great deal of time driving from one end of the territory to another. Another thing is to do about 5 doors and then start on RVs. Some congregations routinely do RVs on Saturday morning. Then there is the drive by RV where you roll slowly by the house and determine by external signs that they aren't home and drive by.

  3. Then there is letter writing and phone witnessing where 5 or 6 JWs gather and mostly talk and drink coffee as they use one phone. And you must hand write the letter, it takes much longer that way. I remember when pioneers were counseled that writing one letter for one hour and photocopying it 50 times did not constitute 50 hours.

  4. Then there are the phantom hours. If you spent 1 hour doing the above, expand it to 2 hours. Eventually, just thinking about going out can be expanded to 2 hours and reported. Talked to your child for 2 minutes about picking up their room and reflecting on godly cleanliness, 1 hour.

  Blondie
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  ozziepost

  I remember when pioneers were counseled that writing one letter for one hour and photocopying it 50 times did not constitute 50 hours.

  I wish I'd thought of that scam when I was pushing for 'miaows'!!
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  rocketman

  I remember when pioneers were counseled that writing one letter for one hour and photocopying it 50 times did not constitute 50 hours.

  Anything to get those dreaded hours in.

  Blondie hits the nail on the head - this is exactly how things are. Doesn't the WTS realize the folly of having people report time? Obviously not.

  Cornish makes a very good point. Also, the WTS has mentioned that close to the end, the judgement message itself would get very heavy, like the hail in Revelation. However, they have in fact in recent years done just the opposite, softening up on the UN for example while they bedded with that organization.
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  Room 215

  The so-called ``ministry" of JWs is a sham, a ludicrous charade.

  Like an aspirin that blunts the pain of an injury but does nothing to remedy its source, all the desultory shuffling about on Saturday mornings between trips to the donut shop and garage sales really accomplishes is temporary relief from their Society-induced guilt trip.

  In other cases, JWs regard such hours wasted there-- and also at meetings-- as a sort of installment payment for their idyllic New World Homestead, complete with lions and lambs cavorting happily on the front lawn.

  If these jokers conducted themselves on the job as they do out in ``field service", their bosses would fire them in a nanosecond!
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  kgfreeperson

  Do they not have a tiger by the tail? What would happen if they suddenly rescinded the reporting requirement? Would any door-to-door "preaching" get done at all? Could JWs be JWs without door-to-door work?
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  nicolaou

  The door-to-door work is the 'token' by which membership dues are paid. So long as you turn in that report slip at the end of the month you can remain in the 'club'.

  The club, of course, is slightly different from the congregation. Anybody can join the cong', you don't even have to be baptized to be in attendance and making comments. Being in the 'club' though is entirely different. (Okay, I just heard myself typing that. Wipe those childish grins off yer faces lads ) You only have to become 'inactive' or ask the wrong questions or simply not have the right face and suddenly, despite perhaps decades of service, you are out of the club.

  As someone much smarter than me once said; "I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." - Groucho Marx
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  iiz2cool

  There's definitely less interest in the service. The last time I worked with a circuit overseer in service was about a year and a half ago. After going from door to door for about 20 minutes he wanted to go to a donut shop, where we spent the rest of the morning chatting. In places where I used to always see pioneers doing street witnessing every day, they are never there now. When I last went out in service in January of this year, people started talking about which donut shop we'd go to before we even reached the car right after the service arrangement.

  Field service is the last thing on their minds, just coffee and donuts. Hell, I like donuts too, but unlike them, I can go to Tim Hortons without a suit and tie. I think they just go out so they can be seen by the elders, and presumed to be 'spiritual' people.

  Walter
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  reubenfine

  I moved into a new place a year and a half ago and haven't had one house-to-house visit yet, nor have I seen a witness group in my neighborhood or had and literature left at my door. I did have a couple of visits from an elder, once when he brought the CO (Circuit Serpent) with him. I about fell asleep trying to listen to the CO. He is one of the most arrogant people I've ever met. He never once asked why I quit, only talked about "he did this" and "knows this bigwig in the borg." After an hour all he knew about me is that I played golf, only because I have a picture of Ben Hogan on my wall. Then told me it would be my privilege to hear his talk the following Sunday. What a dweeb. I went golfing, of course. I'll take a double bogey over another wasted Sunday, thank you very much.
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  cruzanheart

  I've noticed that too -- not as many out and about. Big Tex is home during the day, I'm home in the evenings, and we're both mostly home on the weekends -- especially Saturday mornings -- and we've seen witnessing in our neighborhood ONCE, and that was two years ago when the neighborhood was being built and we were looking at the frame of our house. Man, I remember the days when the C.O. would get all over the congregation if we weren't going through our territories every six months to a year.

  If you are looking for the total end of Jehovah's Witnesses, it won't happen, but I think what has been accomplished is that it has degenerated to just another piddly fundamentalist religion, nothing more. I don't think their numbers will be increasing substantially except in the minds of the Brooklyn bean-counters.

  Nina