Is the JW org big business?

Originally posted by Agerg
But doing that would spoil the value of the eternal prize devout followers are promised for spreading the sacred word of the [have yet to give my upcoming Holy book a name]

an eternal supply blow up dolls! (double eternal supply if they're ugly)

an eternal supply blow up dolls,

you could promise your inflatable Christians that as an incentive, just think inflatable lads, everlasting blow up dolls for you!

Originally posted by divegeester
This is allegedly from a source from over a decade ago - look at the bottom, line. Where does this money come from?

"A few financial figures that happen to have fallen into my sweaty palms. While only a small piece of the WT's financial jigsaw puzzle, they effectively illustrate the level of $ under the society's control."

Watchtower Bible a ...[text shortened]... ...0 / 8,402,426

NET ASSETS AT END OF PERIOD............[b]$634,223,848 / 557,404,351[/b]

In all fairness, I do not think that these statistics show any avarice on the part of the JWs. Galvo is right. There are significant costs for any religious organisation. Although, given the small number of JWs, these revenues are quite unexpected. I don't think the Vatican draws that much from its worldwide collection.

Perhaps JWs are just more generous. Or, more likely, most JWs are just working middle-class with the money to spare. JWs do seem to target only particular neighborhoods.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
considering we dont sell magazines but they are distributed without charge how is it
possible that the more we hand out the more money we make? are you fronting
another big fat lie? again?

I think he was suggesting that if you give out magazines, you get new members who donate. But then I could be wrong, he might have thought that you sell the magazines.

As for the actual figures, I have no idea what a typical Church has in terms of finances. Does anyone here have anything to compare it with?

Originally posted by Conrau K
I don't think the Vatican draws that much from its worldwide collection.

But the Catholic Church, probably does. The Catholic Churches books would certainly have much higher figures than that, but then they run hospitals, schools and many other organizations.

Originally posted by twhitehead
But the Catholic Church, probably does. The Catholic Churches books would certainly have much higher figures than that, but then they run hospitals, schools and many other organizations.

There isn't really such thing as 'Catholic Church books'. The Catholic Church has nothing comparable to the Watchtower magazines. Nor does the Catholic Church have an official publishing house. There are certainly many publishers affiliated with the Catholic Church in some way; there are definitely many Catholic publications and many books which bear the imprimatur of a bishop. But no revenue is collected centrally. The Daughters of St Paul, for example, who run many Catholic bookshops (Catholic in the sense that they sell Catholic-associated literature), keep the profit entirely to themselves. I suspect too that most Catholic books run at a loss. The Catholic Truth Society, for example, which publishes a number of tracts on traditional Catholicism around the world, cannot exist off the sale of its books but rather relies on charitable donations.

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
considering we dont sell magazines but they are distributed without charge how is it
possible that the more we hand out the more money we make? are you fronting
another big fat lie? again?

reading comprehension isuues? or did I hit the nail on the head again?

Originally posted by twhitehead
I think he was suggesting that if you give out magazines, you get new members who donate. But then I could be wrong, he might have thought that you sell the magazines.

As for the actual figures, I have no idea what a typical Church has in terms of finances. Does anyone here have anything to compare it with?

the people who give out the magazines pay for them, hence they are encouraged to give out as many as possible.

nvm

Originally posted by robbie carrobie
considering we dont sell magazines but they are distributed without charge how is it
possible that the more we hand out the more money we make? are you fronting
another big fat lie? again?

I think that Doward's argument as twhitehead points out goes as follows:
Alice wants to donate £100 to her favourite kingdom hall, but then she thinks better of it and reasons that if she purchases 100 watchtower books from Bob the watchtower publisher, and then distributes these to 100 people; the chances are that
a) More money will be denoted to said kingdom hall on aggregate should she succeed in converting enough people (such that they donate)
b) Some of them will copy Alice and generate even more money for Bob, and the Kingdom Hall in the long run (at their own expense)


Whether this is what actually happens I don't know.

Yeah this is one I don't have a problem with per se they have to make revenue some how to keep the Kingdom Hall open ect





Manny

Originally posted by Doward
the people who give out the magazines pay for them, hence they are encouraged to give out as many as possible.

Where do you get this info from? Whoever it is, is lying to you as we do not pay for the magazines at all never ever.

Originally posted by Doward
reading comprehension isuues? or did I hit the nail on the head again?

yeah thats right the more free literature we give to interested people the more money
we make. Perhaps you have figures for a particular area, lets say Sweden, which has
a revenue deficit of the number of books, magazines, tracts, bibles and brochures
distributed to the amount of revenue generated through donations? feel like a total
idiot yet? dont worry, you will if you keep it up.

Originally posted by galveston75
Where do you get this info from? Whoever it is, is lying to you as we do not pay for the magazines at all never ever.

why do simple facts evade them continually? they have asserted that the more magazines we distribute the more money we make from the more persons that respond (Doward). I have been a witness for fifteen years, i have literally distributed thousands of magazines and not one person that i know of has become a witness as a direct consequence of one of those magazines. When confronted with this FACT his lie is once again exposed. What is so hard to comprehend that the upkeep and building of Kingdom halls, the printing of Bibles, books, magazines, brochures, tracts etc is accomplished through voluntary contributions? Is it so hard to understand? You have divesgeester who it seems cannot read a balance sheet, indeed, a balance sheet is the last place one should look for if one is looking for a profit to loss ratio, for a balance sheet is merely a list of assets and liabilities, not of profit and loss. He then from his inability to read one makes a statement that we may encourage tithing??? how does that figure?

Originally posted by menace71
Yeah this is one I don't have a problem with per se they have to make revenue some how to keep the Kingdom Hall open ect





Manny

Well well the great light shining in a dark place has spoken. What is so hard to
comprehend that the upkeep and building of Kingdom halls, the printing of Bibles,
books, magazines, brochures, tracts etc is accomplished through voluntary
contributions? Is it so hard to understand?

Originally posted by Doward
the people who give out the magazines pay for them, hence they are encouraged to give out as many as possible.

another big fat lie! why is it so hard for you to understand that our whole organisation
works upon voluntary donations, please note that word, voluntary, as of ones own
violation, as in not coerced by anyone? Is it really so hard for you to grasp?