Letter writing, phone witnessing: How Jehovah’s Witnesses are reaching out instead of door-knocking during pandemic

Leslie and Darien Hanson

Leslie Hanson (left) and Darien Hanson (right) have been married for 35 years. As Jehovah's Witnesses, they have been letter writing and phone witnessing during the pandemic as opposed to the faith's typical door-to-door ministry. (Darien and Leslie Hanson)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Jehovah’s Witnesses place great importance on the Biblical commandment of ‘Love thy neighbor,’ and it’s why they knock on doors to talk with people about the faith.

But during the coronavirus pandemic, Witnesses have been writing letters and calling instead.

Their outreach is proving successful, says the Christian denomination. Virtual meeting attendance has climbed 10-20% over pre-pandemic meetings in some areas, and letter writing, phone witnessing and virtual Bible studies will be part of the faith’s ministry after the pandemic.

“Because we felt like it would be wrong to be knocking on people’s doors with a message of love because that really in itself would not be an act of love,” said Robert Hendriks, the U.S spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “As much as we want to see each other and reach out to people, the loving thing to do was to stop reaching out to them that way.”

Darien Hanson said he and his wife, Leslie, who have been Witnesses since 1984, see some fellow congregants when occasionally doing maintenance at their Kingdom Hall, the Lee-Harvard congregation on Lee Road. The Hansons live in Cleveland, and they have seen fellow members other times during a weekly food distribution program.

“One of the things that my wife and I have observed is that in some respects, shared adversity has actually drawn us closer together,” Darien Hanson said. “When so many individuals are dealing with a common trial, it really has had a unifying effect.”

Leslie Hanson writes letters and does phone witnessing Monday through Saturday for a couple hours each day. She has found fulfillment from talking with people and offering encouraging messages.

“I love to send out personal cards and give members phone calls to encourage them with a scripture,” she said.

Darien Hanson said Leslie does more letter writing than him, but they both focus on putting thought into the letters, making them personal. They want to make sure they put in as much effort as they would if they met someone in person.

Witnesses have also changed Bible studies. Hendriks said before the pandemic, Witnesses would go to people’s homes or meet in parks to study the Bible. Now, Bible studies are being held virtually through Zoom and other videoconference platforms like FaceTime and Duo.

Darien and Leslie enjoy studying the Bible with others, and they work to make the lessons personal. People have been interested in hearing some positive messages in a time filled with uncertainty and despair.

“One of the things that I think that we’ve heard is that people are scared,” Darien said. “And people don’t know what is going to happen next. The times that we’re living in right now are truly unprecedented. As a result, because so many people have been affected adversely by this pandemic, we found that many people are very receptive to hearing a word of encouragement, a scripture for the day."

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