Jehovah’s Witnesses excited for public ministry

Members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Shawano County have returned back to their public ministry, two years after it was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The key is living with COVID, so that we can continue to be careful and vigilant,” said U.S. Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesman Robert Hendriks III.

Shawano minister Jacob Wheeler said that he is both excited and nervous to bring public ministry back to Shawano.

“Within the past couple of weeks, we were able to visit some of our friends at their work and have nice conversations, so that took away some nervous feelings,” said Wheeler. “It is exciting for the community, because we are excited to help them see the hope from the bible.”

Wheeler said that an exciting part for him is to be able to use literature in public ministry again.

“We have those literature carts every Saturday morning at the farmer’s market in Shawano starting in July,” said Wheeler. “I like using those carts, because it allows those in the community to approach us. It also lets us highlight our website, jw.org, where the public can learn more information.”

Much like appearing at the farmer’s market, Wheeler said that there are some local strategies for how the Jehovah’s Witnesses are getting back to the public.

“We are able to go out and do some businesses and talk to those who are at work,” said Wheeler. “That has been exciting, because we know that we may not be able to contact them at home. It is exciting to just be able to share a brief article. Many have been appreciative of that.”

Wheeler said that throughout the time that ministry was virtual, he came to miss the face-to-face interaction between members and the public.

“We can have a genuine conversation and see their reactions and body language when we talk face-to-face,” said Wheeler. “Being one-on-one helps me to show more personal interest in them and hopefully those in our community can really tell that we are not some stranger over the phone.”

Hendriks said that June 1 was the date that the organization wanted to look at opening back up to the public.

“We, as Jehovah’s Witnesses have spent a lot of time isolated in our homes and not visiting people — in fact, we have not done our ministry on the streets, we haven’t had bible studies,” said Hendriks. “June 1 was that moment in time, where we could say let’s begin to look at other ways to be productive in our ministry and turn the page to this living with COVID-19 phase.”

As of June 1, members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses have begun to appear back in public areas, like airports, subways, street corners and community events.

“It is very gratifying, because being isolated and writing one-way communication has been challenging,” said Hendriks. “We are very much looking forward to being able to reestablish that personal connection with our neighbors in a safe way.”

Public ministry was suspended in early 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic started to ramp up. Hendriks noted that when deciding to go back to public ministry, officials knew it was going to be a slow process.

“On March 20, 2020, when the word went out that there would be no more in-person meetings or in-person ministry, we stopped cold in our tracks,” said Hendriks. “Most of us thought that the only way we would stop our ministry is if we were in jail or if we died. Within just days of the announcement we realized this was a deadly disease. That decision to suspended in-person activities was a wise one and it probably saved many lives.”

Hendriks added that fatigue started to set in with members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who wanted to get back out and resume in-person ministry.

“We were excited to say that we know how to be careful and live with COVID,” said Hendriks. “We need to start our in-person meetings and ministry again.”

He added that the first couple of weeks back in person has been a little bit of a transition.

“The reaction has been careful and non-judgemental,” said Hendriks. “Yes, there has been joy and many have participated 100%, but this is also something that will take time. We are phasing this process, so that we don’t say this is mandatory.”

Hendriks noted that the Jehovah’s Witnesses will continue to hold virtual meetings and ministries for those who feel more comfortable participating that way.

“For many, this will take time and that is okay,” said Hendriks. “We want everyone to make a personal choice. To give people that choice — that is the key. We did not have the choice before.”

Wheeler said that before the COVID-19 pandemic, those strategies of using literature and meeting people at their jobs were successful.

“Many times, we will see people pull out their phone after talking to them and maybe, they are looking up more information,” said Wheeler.

Moving forward, Wheeler added that Jehovah’s Witnesses are continuing to look for more events and opportunities to continue to spread their messages.

“We are always looking for more opportunities to find where the public is,” said Wheeler.

lreimer@newmedia-wi.com