Jehovah's Witnesses in Davenport Return to In-Person Meetings

Worshippers in Davenport and the Quad Cities area, including 70-year-old Bettendorf, Iowa resident Derryl Moore, were elated to begin meeting in person once again with their congregations.

Moore has attended thousands of meetings of Jehovah's Witnesses over the past six decades. But the first meeting he and his wife, Joy, attended back in person with their congregation last month was extra special.

“It was thrilling to be part of something historic,” Moore said. “The singing touched my heart. It was loud! Everyone was just as excited as we were. Some had tears in their eyes.”

For most of the last two years, buildings for worship were closed globally due to the risks associated with meeting in person. Jehovah’s Witnesses in the U.S. also suspended their public ministry on March 20, 2020. Since that time, they have carried on their ministry through letters and phone calls while holding twice-weekly meetings in a virtual format. Average attendance at these meetings exceeded 1.5 million each week in the U.S., even though there are fewer than 1.3 million Jehovah’s Witnesses in some 13,000 congregations.

“There is a collective shout of joy among Jehovah’s Witnesses around the world right now,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “While we have prospered in many ways as individuals and congregations using technology to bring us together, nothing can adequately replace being together in person. We have longed for this moment for the better part of two years.”

The move back to in-person meetings coincided with two global events held in all
120,000 congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses during the month of April. A special
lecture titled “Where Can You Find Real Hope?” was given early in the month. Additionally, the annual commemoration of the death of Jesus Christ was held on April 15, 2022, the very day he sacrificed his life 1,989 years ago.

“The timing of resuming in-person meetings could not be better,” Hendriks said. “Bringing everyone back together for these special events will have a powerful effect on the worldwide congregation.”

Guidelines for holding “hybrid” meetings have been sent to all congregations in the United States. Over the past six months, many Kingdom Halls have been equipped with the required technology to hold a productive meeting that allows for in-person and remote attendees, all of whom can participate in the discussions. A pilot program was held in October and November in countries around the world to assess how this could be done most effectively. The lessons learned in these pilot meetings helped form the plan to move forward with reopening all Kingdom Halls, where the law permits.

“It has been heartwarming to see the peace and unity among Jehovah’s Witnesses during this very divisive time,” Hendriks said. “We know resuming in-person meetings will bring us even closer together.”

For Jehovah’s Witnesses in the Davenport area, the much-anticipated milestone of
meeting in person again didn’t disappoint. “I especially enjoyed greeting the young ones and meeting new visitors,” Moore said, adding, “We were excited to see how the congregation had grown during those two years!”

As of now, Jehovah’s Witnesses have no plans to resume their public ministry, though their “alternative” ministry continues. In fact, since the start of the pandemic through November 2021 in the U.S. alone, Jehovah’s Witnesses spent more than 400 million hours in virtual Bible studies, writing letters of comfort to their neighbors and making phone calls. They have released 77 new language translations of the Bible and held two global virtual conventions in more than 500 languages.

“No time was wasted in the past two years,” Hendriks said. “Our congregants have been busy and productive helping each other and their neighbors through this most
challenging time. That’s what love and unity are all about.”

For more information on Jehovah’s Witnesses, go to jw.org.