Kingdom Halls

As was true of the first-century Christians, many congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses initially used private homes for most of their meetings. In Stockholm, Sweden, the few who first held regular meetings there used a carpentry shop, which they rented for use after the day’s work in the shop was done. Because of persecution, a small group in the province of La Coruña, Spain, held their first meetings in a small storehouse, or granary.

When more space was needed, in lands where there was freedom to do so, the local congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses would rent a meeting place. However, if this was a hall that was also used by other organizations, equipment had to be hauled in or set up for each meeting, and there was frequently the lingering smell of tobacco smoke. Where possible, the brothers would rent an unused store or upstairs room that would be used exclusively by the congregation. But, in time, in many places high rents and unavailability of suitable places made it necessary to work out other arrangements. In some instances buildings were purchased and renovated.

Before World War II, there were a few congregations that built meeting places specially designed for their use. Even as early as 1890, a group of Bible Students in the United States at Mount Lookout, West Virginia, built their own meeting place.a Widespread building of Kingdom Halls, however, did not get under way until the 1950’s.

The name Kingdom Hall was suggested in 1935 by J. F. Rutherford, who was then president of the Watch Tower Society. In connection with the Society’s branch facilities in Honolulu, Hawaii, he arranged for the brothers to construct a hall where meetings could be held. When James Harrub asked what Brother Rutherford was going to call the building, he replied: “Don’t you think we should call it ‘Kingdom Hall,’ since that is what we are doing, preaching the good news of the Kingdom?” Thereafter, where possible, halls regularly being used by the Witnesses gradually began to be identified by signs that said “Kingdom Hall.” Thus, when the London Tabernacle was renovated in 1937-38, it was renamed Kingdom Hall. In time, the principal local meeting place of congregations worldwide came to be known as the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

More Than One Way to Do It

Decisions about whether to rent or to build Kingdom Halls are made locally by the individual congregations. They also shoulder any construction and maintenance expenses. In order to conserve funds, the vast majority of congregations have endeavored to do as much of the building work as possible without resorting to commercial contractors.

The halls themselves may be built of brick, stone, wood, or other materials, depending upon cost as well as what is available in the area. In Katima Mulilo, Namibia, long grass was used for a thatched roof, and mud from anthills (which sets very hard) was molded for walls and floor. Witnesses in Segovia, Colombia, made their own cement building blocks. Unhewn lava from Mount Lassen was used in Colfax, California.

With meeting attendance often exceeding 200 in 1972, the congregation at Maseru, Lesotho, knew that they needed to build a suitable Kingdom Hall. Everyone helped with the project. Elderly brothers walked up to 20 miles [32 km] in order to have a share. Children rolled drums of water to the site. The sisters provided meals. They also used their feet to pound the ground, compacting it in preparation for the pouring of the concrete floor slab, all the while singing Kingdom songs and stamping to the rhythm of the music. Sandstone, available from nearby mountains at the cost of fetching it, was used for the walls. The result was a Kingdom Hall that could seat about 250.

At times, Witnesses from nearby congregations assisted with the building work. Thus, in 1985, when Jehovah’s Witnesses at Imbali, a black township in South Africa, built a hall that would comfortably seat 400, fellow Witnesses from nearby Pietermaritzburg and Durban came to help. Can you imagine how amazed the neighbors were when, during those days of racial unrest in South Africa, they saw scores of white, Colored, and Indian Witnesses pouring into the township and working shoulder to shoulder with their black African brothers? As the local mayor declared: “It can only be done with love.”

No matter how willing the spirit, congregations found that local circumstances limited what the brothers could do. Men in the congregations had families to support and could ordinarily work on such a project only on weekends and perhaps a little in the evenings. Many congregations had few, if any, who were skilled in the building trades. Nevertheless, a relatively simple, somewhat open structure suitable to the tropics might be put up in a few days or perhaps a few weeks. With the help of Witnesses in surrounding congregations, more substantial buildings might be completed in five or six months. In other cases it might require a year or two.

Yet, as they moved into the 1970’s, Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide were increasing at a rate of two to three new congregations per day. By the early 1990’s, the rate of increase was up to nine congregations per day. Could their compelling need for new Kingdom Halls be met?

Developing Quick-Construction Techniques

Early in the 1970’s, in the United States, over 50 Witnesses from nearby congregations pitched in to help construct a new Kingdom Hall in Carterville, Missouri, for the group that had been meeting in Webb City. On one weekend they erected the main framework and did considerable work on the roof. There was still much to be done, and it took months to complete the job; but an important part of it had been completed in a very short period.

During the next decade, as the brothers worked together on about 60 halls, obstacles were overcome, and more efficient methods were developed. In time, they realized that after work on the foundation was done, they might almost be able to complete an entire Kingdom Hall in a single weekend.

Several congregation overseers—all from the midwestern United States—began to work toward that goal. When congregations asked for help with their Kingdom Hall construction, one or more of these brothers would discuss the project with them and provide details concerning the preparation that had to be cared for locally before the job could be done. Among other things, construction permits had to be obtained, the foundation and the concrete floor slab had to be poured, electrical service had to be operational, underground plumbing had to be in place, and dependable arrangements had to be made for delivery of building materials. Then a date could be set for putting up the Kingdom Hall itself. The building was not going to be prefabricated; it would be built from the ground up right on the site.

Who would do the actual construction work? To the extent possible, it was done with voluntary, unpaid labor. Entire families often shared. Those organizing the project would contact Witnesses who were tradesmen and who had expressed a willingness to participate in these projects. Many of them eagerly looked forward to each new building project. Other Witnesses who learned about the projects wanted to have a part; hundreds from the surrounding area—and from more distant places—flocked to the building sites, anxious to offer their services in whatever way they could. Most of them were not professional builders, but they certainly gave evidence that they fit the description of those who would be supporters of Jehovah’s Messianic King as set out at Psalm 110:3, which says: “Your people will offer themselves willingly.”

On Thursday evening before the big push was to begin, those supervising the project met to work out final details. The next evening, workers were shown a slide presentation on procedure so that they would understand how the work was going to be done. Emphasis was placed on the importance of godly qualities. The brothers were encouraged to work together in love, to be kind, to show patience and consideration. Everyone was encouraged to work at a steady pace but not to rush and not to hesitate to take a few minutes to share an upbuilding experience with someone. Early the next morning, construction began.

At an appointed time early on Saturday morning, everyone would stop what he was doing to listen to a discussion of the Scripture text for the day. Prayer was offered, for it was well appreciated that success of the entire undertaking depended on Jehovah’s blessing.—Ps. 127:1.

When the work began, it moved swiftly. In an hour the walls were up. Roof trusses followed. Sheeting for the walls was nailed into place. The electricians began running wires. Air-conditioning and heating ducts were installed. Cabinets were built and put into position. Sometimes it rained all weekend, or the weather turned bitterly cold or was excessively hot, but the work went on. There was no competition, no rivalry among the tradesmen.

Frequently, before sundown on the second day, the Kingdom Hall was completed—nicely decorated inside, perhaps even landscaped on the outside. When it was more practical, jobs were scheduled to extend over three days, or perhaps two weekends. At the end of the project, many of the workers would remain, tired but very happy, to enjoy the first regular congregation meeting, a study of The Watchtower.

Doubtful that quality work could be done so fast, several people in Guymon, Oklahoma, U.S.A., called the city inspector. “I told them that if they wanted to see something done right, they ought to visit the hall!” said the inspector when later relating the incident to the Witnesses. “You people are even doing correctly what will be hidden and not seen!”

As the need for Kingdom Halls increased, the brothers who had developed many of the quick-construction methods trained others. Reports of what was being done spread to other lands. Could such construction methods be employed there too?

Quick Construction Goes International

Kingdom Hall building in Canada was lagging far behind the needs of the congregations. The Witnesses in Canada invited those who were organizing quick-construction projects in the United States to explain how they handled it. At first, the Canadians were rather doubtful that it could be done in Canada, but they decided to try. The first Kingdom Hall built in this manner in Canada went up at Elmira, Ontario, in 1982. By 1992, there were 306 Kingdom Halls in Canada that had been put up in this way.

The Witnesses in Northampton, England, thought they could do it too. Their project, in 1983, was the first in Europe. Brothers experienced in this type of construction traveled from the United States and Canada to oversee the project and to help local Witnesses learn how to do it. Other volunteers were on hand from as far afield as Japan, India, France, and Germany. They were there as volunteers, not for pay. How was it all possible? As the overseer of a team of Irish Witnesses that worked on such a project said, ‘It is successful because all the brothers and sisters pull together under the influence of Jehovah’s spirit.’

Even when local building regulations seem to make such projects impossible, the Witnesses have found that, frequently, when details are outlined for city officials, they are glad to cooperate.

After a quick-construction project in Norway, north of the Arctic Circle, the newspaper Finnmarken exclaimed: “Just fantastic. That is the only expression we can find that describes what Jehovah’s Witnesses did last weekend.” Similarly, when Witnesses on New Zealand’s North Island put up an attractive Kingdom Hall in two and a half days, the front-page headline on the local newspaper declared: “Project Close to a Miracle.” The article added: “Perhaps the most mind-boggling aspect of the exercise was the organisation and sheer quiet of the operation.”

The remoteness of location where the Kingdom Hall is needed does not prove to be an insurmountable barrier. In Belize a quick-construction project was done, even though it meant transporting every piece of material to an island 36 miles [60 km] from Belize City. When an air-conditioned Kingdom Hall was put up in Port Hedland, Western Australia, one weekend, it was with materials and a work force that practically all came from 1,000 miles [1,600 km] or more away. Travel expenses came out of the workers’ own pockets. Most of those who had a part in the project did not personally know the Witnesses in the Port Hedland Congregation, and very few of them would ever attend meetings there. But that did not deter them from expressing their love in this way.

Even where the number of Witnesses is small, this has not prevented the use of such methods for building halls. Some 800 Witnesses from Trinidad volunteered to travel to Tobago to help their 84 Christian brothers and sisters there to build a hall in Scarborough in 1985. The 17 Witnesses (most of them women and children) in Goose Bay, Labrador, definitely needed help if they were ever going to have a Kingdom Hall of their own. In 1985, Witnesses from other parts of Canada chartered three planes to take 450 of them to Goose Bay to do the job. After two days of hard work, they had a dedication program in the completed hall on Sunday evening.

This does not mean that all Kingdom Halls are now being put up with quick-construction methods, but ever-growing numbers of them are.

Regional Building Committees

By mid-1986 the rate at which new Kingdom Halls were needed had greatly accelerated. During the preceding year, 2,461 new congregations had been formed worldwide; 207 of these were in the United States. Some Kingdom Halls were being used by three, four, or even five congregations. As the Scriptures had foretold, Jehovah was truly speeding up the work of ingathering.—Isa. 60:22.

To assure the best possible use of personnel and to enable all who were building Kingdom Halls to benefit from experience that had been gained, the Society began to coordinate their activity. As a start, in 1987 the United States was divided up among 60 Regional Building Committees. There was plenty for all of them to do; some of them soon had projects lined up for a year or more. Those appointed to serve on these committees were men who, first of all, were spiritually qualified, elders in the congregations, exemplary in their exercise of the fruitage of God’s spirit. (Gal. 5:22, 23) Many of them also had experience in real estate, engineering, construction, business management, safety, and related fields.

Congregations were encouraged to consult with the Regional Building Committee before choosing a site for a new Kingdom Hall. Where there was more than one congregation in a city, they were also urged to consult with the circuit overseer(s), the city overseer, and elders from nearby congregations. Congregations that were planning major renovation or the building of a new Kingdom Hall were advised to benefit from the experience of the brothers on the Regional Building Committee for their area and from the guidelines that the Society had furnished them. Through that committee, arrangements would be coordinated for assembling the needed skilled personnel from among brothers and sisters in some 65 trades who had already volunteered to help on such projects.

As procedures were refined, it was possible to reduce the number of workers involved in any one project. Instead of having thousands at the construction site either watching or offering their services, there were seldom more than 200 on site at any given time. Instead of spending an entire weekend there, workers were on hand only when their particular skills were needed. Thus they had more time to spend with their families and for activity with their home congregations. When local brothers could do certain types of work in a reasonable time, it was often found to be more practical to bring in the quick-construction group only for those aspects of the work for which they were more urgently needed.

Although the entire operation moved at amazing speed, this was not the primary consideration. Of greater importance was the providing of quality construction of modest Kingdom Halls designed to meet local needs. Careful planning was done so as to accomplish this while keeping expenses to a minimum. Measures were taken to see that safety was given high priority—the safety of workers, neighbors, passersby, and future occupants of the Kingdom Hall.

As reports concerning this arrangement for building Kingdom Halls reached other lands, the branch offices of the Society that believed it would be advantageous in their areas were provided with needed details. By 1992, Regional Building Committees appointed by the Society were helping with Kingdom Hall construction in such countries as Argentina, Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, and Spain. Building methods were adapted to local circumstances. When assistance from another branch was needed for Kingdom Hall construction, this was arranged through the Society’s headquarters office. In some parts of the world, new halls were being put up in days; elsewhere, in weeks or perhaps in a few months. With careful planning and coordinated effort, the time required to provide a new Kingdom Hall was definitely being reduced.

[Box/Pictures on page 320, 321]

Working Together to Build Kingdom Halls Quickly

Thousands of new congregations are formed each year. In most instances, new Kingdom Halls are built by the Witnesses themselves. These pictures were taken during the building of a Kingdom Hall in Connecticut, U.S.A., in 1991

Friday, 7:40 a.m.

Friday, 12 noon

Saturday, 7:41 p.m.

Major work completed, Sunday, 6:10 p.m.

They look to Jehovah for his blessing, and they take time out to discuss counsel from his Word

All unpaid volunteers, glad to work side by side

[Box/Pictures on page 327]

Kingdom Halls in Various Lands

The meeting places used by Jehovah’s Witnesses are usually modest. They are clean, comfortable, attractive in their surroundings

Peru

Philippines

France

Republic of Korea

Japan

Papua New Guinea

Ireland

Colombia

Norway

Lesotho