Jehovah’s Witnesses Move Ahead in Canada
“AS RELIGION DECLINES, JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES MOVE AHEAD.” This headline in Montreal’s Le Petit Journal aptly describes what is taking place on the religious scene in Canada.
The article accompanying the headline explained: “As traditional religions slowly decline, their churches and temples getting emptier all the time, Jehovah’s Witnesses are experiencing increased membership and are even getting former church buildings and other new facilities in which to gather their new members.”
With an English Protestant and a French Catholic background, Canada was once a very religious country. Many still sincerely attend church services and try to practice their religion. But times have changed.
Today even outspoken advocates of such things as “abortion on demand” may continue as church members in good standing. The steady decline of religion’s influence in Canada is evident from such headlines as “Shortage of Priests Called ‘Panic’” and “Sunday Schools Declining.”
Jehovah’s witnesses, on the other hand, have steadily moved ahead. The Witnesses began their work of Bible teaching here in the 1880’s. At the time they wondered how it would be possible to reach all the people in this massive country, the second-largest in land area in the world. They went to work with diligence and conviction, and by 1914 there were 1,150 Witnesses busy proclaiming Bible truth to their neighbors.
The next thirty years saw a remarkable 690-percent increase in the number of Kingdom proclaimers, with 9,085 reporting activity in 1944. During the three decades since then Jehovah’s witnesses have steadily moved ahead in Canada. By 1974 they reached a peak of 58,542. That means that in just sixty years Canadian Witnesses have grown by 4990 percent.
Of course, with more workers out in the field, additional thousands of interested persons could be reached more quickly. Last year Jehovah’s witnesses in Canada spent 10,582,927 hours at their work of declaring Bible truth to others. They also made 3,689,440 return visits on persons who showed interest, and each week conducted an average of 26,571 home Bible studies with fellow Canadians. As a result, there is now one Witness for every 370 persons in Canada. Clearly Jehovah’s witnesses were not just distributing Bible literature. They were truly making disciples.
Among those who have recently become Jehovah’s witnesses are persons who sincerely prayed to God for aid, but who had been unable to get answers in the traditional churches.
A young man in Timmins, Ontario, for example, became dissatisfied with his religion. Instead of using the rosary he decided to pray directly to God for help. In his prayer he pleaded: “I do not know your name, but enlighten me!” The answer to his earnest petitions came when one day he mentioned to his mother that he had a desire to preach to others. She told him to see Jehovah’s witnesses, since they do that. After a ten-minute discussion with a Witness, this man knew he had found the truth. His wife and parents came to the same conclusion after just one month of Bible study. In two months three of these individuals were sharing their newfound faith with others, along with the local congregation of Witnesses.
MOVING INTO THE FAR NORTH
Beyond the larger cities and towns that hug the United States border from coast to coast are towns and settlements comprising many thousands of persons. In Quebec, in recent years, concerted effort has been made to reach places hundreds of miles north of large centers like Ottawa and Montreal.
In the spring of 1974, for example, Jehovah’s witnesses sent special full-time preachers into Dolbeau and Matane, each of which has a population of more than 10,000. Were these efforts successful? Happily there are now congregations in both of these cities.
Jehovah’s witnesses have indeed moved ahead in Quebec. From June 1973 to June 1974 their number grew by 22 percent. Congregations there have multiplied from 99 in 1970 to 130 now. Rich blessings have resulted from reaching out to help others.
Much farther north, across the continent between the parallels of 55 to 70 degrees north latitude, are more thousands: Indians, Eskimos, trappers, fishermen, miners and some government workers. Here, too, Christian witnesses of Jehovah call by boat, commercial aircraft, “bush” planes and even on foot.
Winter is the best time to get into some of these places; but that means dealing with temperatures of 40 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit below zero. The wind chill makes it feel even colder than that. Common occurrences in such weather are chopping ice off aircraft surfaces and warming the engine with a propane heater before takeoff.
Despite the hardships, it is encouraging to see congregations of Jehovah’s witnesses develop in remote places. Above the 60th parallel, for instance, are Hay River and Yellowknife. And in the northwestern extremity of the country there is a group of interested persons and baptized Witnesses meeting regularly at Inuvik, about 120 miles north of the Arctic Circle!
This past year Jehovah’s witnesses pushed past the 70th parallel, to Sachs Harbour on Banks Island in the Beaufort Sea arm of the Arctic Ocean. A Witness who has been quite active among the Indian and Eskimo population in the northwest made the trip to this small community of about 300 persons. He found that he and his work were already known by some Eskimos there. As he stepped off the airplane, one said: “You finally got here to visit us, Allan!” He reports: “Almost every home received me with warm kindness and I was able to leave Bible literature in every home. . . . I spent much time talking; most nights it was two in the morning when we would go to bed.”
THE CHALLENGE OF THOSE HARD TO REACH
Of course, even in large metropolitan centers there are thousands who are seldom at home. Their situation makes them hard to reach with the good news. But full-time preachers are putting forth determined efforts to contact such persons in giant apartment complexes and in downtown business offices. Some of them will enjoy programs that now appear weekly on three cable television stations in Toronto. To date, scores of shows have been produced. Subjects have ranged from current topics, such as the occult, abortion, homosexuality and drug abuse, to discussions of building a happy family life, Bible authenticity and current events in the light of Bible prophecy. Many favorable comments have been heard from viewers.
Another challenge in large cities was how to reach thousands who are isolated by language. Jehovah’s witnesses were determined to tackle this problem and there are now twenty-eight Italian congregations across Canada, and other groups developing in a number of places. Greek-speaking communities are cared for by eight Greek congregations, and there are two Spanish and two Portuguese congregations to serve the spiritual needs of persons speaking those languages.
ALL TYPES RESPOND TO BIBLE TRUTH
What kind of people are becoming disciples? Persons from all walks of life. Some are professional people (for example, a doctor, a professional hockey star, radio station technicians, nurses, a journalist). Many are young (a student of philosophy, drug addicts, hippies, runaways). Certain ones had been very religious (Buddhists, Mormons, adherents of Hare Krishna, Pentecostals). There were also a political activist and a Communist. But the largest percentage of all were just ordinary people who long for peace, justice and life.
La Patrie, a Montreal weekly newspaper, told of four of those mentioned above. In a front-page story, with pictures, it told how young hippies who had been on drugs were helped by Jehovah’s witnesses. The writer, Andrée Le Bel, observed: “In comparing the pictures of these youths before they became Jehovah’s Witnesses with those showing their present appearance, it is easy to see that the change was a complete one.”
Another youth from Canada had gone to India and had become an ordained Buddhist monk. He enjoyed the adulation of the public, such as that of village folk near Agra, India, who prostrated themselves before him and gave him gifts of money. He found, however, that his meditations and drug use opened up his mind to demonic influences. Back in Canada, when Bible truth penetrated his heart early in 1974 this young man left the Buddhist religion and was baptized as one of Jehovah’s witnesses in August.
“MAKE DISCIPLES . . . BAPTIZING THEM”
Jesus commanded: “Go therefore and make disciples . . . baptizing them.” (Matt. 28:19) Jehovah’s witnesses in Canada have heeded that command. In 1974, 6,612 were baptized by immersion in water in symbol of their dedication to Jehovah God. That amounts to an average of eighteen a day, or more than one person immersed during every waking hour of 1974! In 1973 there were 6,305 who accepted Christian baptism. At present 11 percent of all active Witnesses in Canada are recently baptized.
These Christian disciples do not quit studying the Word of God after they are baptized. Each week they attend Christian meetings for further Bible instruction. Meeting attendance in Canada reflects a robust spiritual appetite, noticeable even to persons who are not Jehovah’s witnesses. In Ontario, to give one example, at their Sunday meetings the attendance is 18 percent more than the total of active Witnesses. At the annual celebration of the Lord’s Supper in 1974, the more than 58,000 Witnesses in Canada were joined by many other interested persons, bringing the total attendance to 110,874.
Growing attendances mean more congregations and larger meeting places. Whereas 1970 saw 25 new Kingdom Halls being built and 27 being renovated, 1974 has required 25 more new halls and 47 have been undergoing renovations. The number of congregations has gone up from 788 in 1970 to 924 now.
The same thrilling progress is seen in the attendances and other results of the recent “Divine Purpose” District Assemblies. Eighteen of these Bible educational conventions were held under the direction of the Canadian branch. Peak attendance swelled to more than 112,000, far in excess of the number of Witnesses. Daniel Rioux, writer for the newspaper Le Journal de Montréal, who was assigned to cover the Montreal assembly, remarked: “In an age when people are less and less interested in religious practices, it is astonishing to note the excellent health enjoyed by the movement of Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
The August 19, 1974, issue of the same paper pinpointed an important reason for such spiritual health: “Jehovah’s Witnesses Have Principles—Real Ones!” La Patrie, noting the same point, commented: “They have a number of principles that not only promote good understanding between husband and wife but also improve communication between parents and children.”
NOT JUST NUMERICAL GROWTH
Surely comments such as these, along with the increases of Jehovah’s witnesses in Canada, indicate not just a rise in numbers but also a spiritual growth. The love of neighbor that Jehovah’s witnesses display is evident in the millions of hours spent in neighborhood evangelizing and in kind deeds from day to day. Here is a zeal born of genuine love for God. Here are a people living their faith. The genuine changes for the better in the personalities of those who have become Jehovah’s witnesses show the value of applying Bible truth in one’s life.
Thus, while traditional religion continues to lose influence throughout the world, it is encouraging to see that the Bible itself has power to refashion the lives of persons who study it, believe it and apply its God-inspired principles in their lives. (2 Tim. 3:16; Jas. 1:22) Jehovah’s witnesses in Canada, as well as in the 206 other lands in which they preach, have personally experienced the truthfulness of the inspired statement: “The word of God is alive and exerts power.” (Heb. 4:12) That is why the Witnesses continue to move ahead, not only in Canada, but around the world.
[Picture on page 41]
Jehovah’s witnesses use any transportation available or walk to reach people in isolated places