Back on the Streets of Birmingham After Pandemic Pause

If you happen to be in Birmingham, Alabama as the city hosts the 2022 World Games, you may notice that a pre-pandemic fixture is back on the sidewalks: smiling faces standing next to colorful carts featuring a positive message and free Bible-based literature.

Thousands of these carts will be rolling down the streets of communities like Birmingham all across the world as Jehovah’s Witnesses recommence their global public preaching work some 24 months after putting it on pause due to the pandemic.

“It just feels so good to be back in the community, it’s our joy,” stated Dena Manning, a regular volunteer at the carts. Her husband Anthony shares the same sentiment. “You just can’t beat that person to person contact!”

The Christian organization returned to its public ministry for the first time since March 2020 when all in-person forms of their volunteer work were suspended out of concern for the health and safety of the community. Shortly after this global decision, Witnesses in Birmingham began eagerly preparing for the World Games.

“Getting [the] program ready in 36 days seemed impossible from a human standpoint,” said Anthony Manning, a regular volunteer at the carts. “But, with faith we got to work.” Within just a few days, more than 400 Witnesses volunteered for this unique opportunity to share the Bible’s message with the community and international visitors.

The World Games, an international multi-sport event, began on July 7th and will conclude on July 17th. The event will draw an anticipated 3,600 athletes from over 100 countries, as well as an estimated 100,000 spectators.

Carts will have Bible-based publications in multiple languages to appeal to the diverse visitors. Anthony explained, “We want to reach as many people as possible.” The mobile displays can be found at Protective Stadium, Avondale Park, and The University of Alabama at Birmingham from 8 am to 8 pm for the duration of the event.

Local congregations will also resume free in-person Bible studies along with personal visits to those who have invited them back to their homes. This comes two months after the organization began gathering at their Kingdom Halls once again for in-person meetings.

“While we understand that the pandemic is not over, we are entering into a phase of learning to live with COVID,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesperson for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “We are sensitive to the risks that still face our communities and our volunteers, which is why we will not resume door-to-door ministry at this time. Each volunteer will make a personal choice as to whether their ministry will remain strictly virtual or whether they are ready to make in-person visits again. We are excited that we all have a choice!”

Mobile displays of Bible-based literature have been part of Jehovah’s Witnesses' public ministry in the U.S. since 2011. While “cart witnessing” began in large metropolitan areas around the world, the practice quickly spread to the tens of thousands of smaller communities, becoming a fixture in rail and bus stations, airports, harbors and main streets.

The Witnesses feel their public ministry has given them an opportunity to spread a positive message to their neighbors on their own terms. “Face to face contact is so personable,” said Dena. “And I find it makes our neighbors feel comfortable too. It’s their own choice to approach the cart. And when they’re comfortable, we get to have great discussions.”

She continued, “Internationally, the world’s stage is full of disunity and things are so tumultuous. But people want peace and they want to be happy. They can come to the carts and they can find that.”

To learn more about Jehovah’s Witnesses, their history, beliefs and activities, visit their official website jw.org, featuring content in more than 1,000 languages.