It seems to me that in the battle of the Internet versus the Watchtower Society the Internet is winning. Additionally, the Internet is strengthening the power of some other religions, especially Buddhism, which seems to be popping up everywhere I look these days. The reason is simple… humans have an existential need in their lives, even geeks and Gen X kids like me. Religions that are threatened by reason and open discussion are getting their butts handed to them daily all around the world in chat rooms and forums while religions that operate on an open, experiential foundation are gaining the respect and admiration of people who would previously have never even encountered them.
I know quite a few people now who have left the Witnesses and almost all of them have turned to Buddhism even though none of them had a previous education in it.
I predict that we are living in the last days of American religious ignorance. More and more, kids of the succeeding generations, those being raised digital in a world where knowledge is based on peer-review and reasoned debate instead of authority, are going to discover their own paths instead of just following those laid out by their parents. Religious movements will adapt to attempt to stay relevant. This will involve a lot of reinterpretation of scriptures and traditions that are not historical or scientifically accurate. I’m not predicting the end of religion or faith, just that the authoritarian religious traditions will be put in a tighter and tighter squeeze as time goes by.
What this means for the Watchtower Society in the short run is already clear.. slower growth or decline, lower rates of retention of next-gen members, most growth taking place among information-deprived sub-populations (third-world countries, immigrant and refugee populations, any group with little Internet/computer usage) and a restructuring of it’s message to be fuzzier, less prone to debatability.
One way to avoid the negative impact of reasoned discussion is to get really vague. To see an example of what I’m talking about simply compare the 1985 Creation book with the more recent Creator book. The earlier publication uses tons of quotes and references and arguments to attempt to prove that creationism is true and evolution is false. The newer publication, on the other hand, quotes some “intelligent design” people, makes some vague claims and shows some pretty pictures to illustrate “geepers that’s complicated… guess God did it, eh?”. When I read it I was shocked at just how content-free it really was. It contains very little factually to argue with. The book itself basically acknowledges as much by referring the reader to the earlier publication if they want an in-depth discussion of the topic.
The thing is, though, the average Joe Witness probably doesn’t even realize the softening of the message that is happening because parts of the message are not softening, they are becoming harsher… those parts are the messages aimed at retention of existing members. Not surprisingly, avoiding the Internet and former members has become a fairly major theme.
This alteration of the Watchtowers approach will become even more pronounced in January 2008 when they begin publishing two different versions of the Watchtower magazine, one for the flock the other for the world at large. They will be free to soft peddle a marketable, reasonable sounding message to the information-savvy public while taking a harsher, more militant and insular tone with current members.
Will this new strategy pay off? I doubt it. There comes a point at which information a nd reason overthrow just about every authoritarian system, if history is any guide, and the Watchtower can only maintain it’s authoritarian posture for a finite length of time in the face of new generations of knowledgeable Internet users. The Watchtower of 20 years from now (if it still exists) ought to have changed radically from the one I grew up in. Maybe someday they will have changed for the better. I can only hope. Until then I hope a few more Witnesses I know get out… Like maybe my family. 20 years is a long time…
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