Image Credit: SUBMITTED: JW.org
October 30, 2020 - 7:00 AM
From masks to social distancing to toilet paper stockpiles, we’ve all suffered hardships and had to adapt to COVID-19 — but has anyone stopped to consider the Jehovah’s Witnesses?
The pandemic has temporarily put a stop to their personal doorstep ministries for the first time since the 1800s — but they too are adapting.
They’re about to embark on an "unprecedented campaign" to ensure you get a copy of a special issue of its The Watchtower magazine next month.
"We're no longer going from door to door, nor are we setting up our information stands on the street," Jehovah’s Witnesses Canada B.C. spokesperson Paul Andersen said. "With this particular campaign, we're making an effort to deliver a personal copy via mail or email, depending on the situation, to elected officials around the world.”
They haven’t forgotten about you — they want to get one to every person and business in B.C. in November.
"We are known for our public ministry for visiting people's homes and offering to teach the bible in person," Andersen said. "So we're adapting to making telephone calls and writing letters to our neighbours."
But don't think large scale call centres and sophisticated Internet marketing algorithms, he said, local members are more likely to be using the phone book and email lists.
The church has cancelled its in-person twice-weekly meetings (the Jehovah’s Witnesses version of a church service) and has been holding them via teleconference.
The ministries have actually been quite successful in the past. There are now more than 8.6 million Jehovah’s Witnesses, a Christian denomination, across the globe, and 114,000 in Canada, according to the church. According to the Pew Research Centre, it's actually one of the most racially and ethnically diverse religious groups in the U.S. The late music superstar Prince was also a member.
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