BUFFALO, N.Y. — Thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses from Buffalo, NY have traveled to nearby cities for their summer conventions over the last 50 years. It was a economic boost for the local economy. Hotels and restaurants saw a spike in revenue.
Last year, the pandemic interrupted that tradition, moving the international religious organization to cancel all in-person conventions throughout the world and launch a global virtual event.
The 2021, “Powerful by Faith!” will be on a virtual platform on jw.org. You can watch it on a stream at home. It will be delivered in more than 500 languages.
For more than 100 years, Jehovah’s Witnesses have held in-person conventions around the world, so this is a big change. It will be presented over six weekends during July and August.
The program will be available in six installments. Friday morning’s session is now available for streaming or download.
Fifteen to 20 million people in 240 countries are expected to watch the convention.
The organization has held public conventions in stadiums, arenas, convention centers, and theaters around the world since 1897.
Mabel Pace, 90, of Buffalo, said the first convention she attended was in 1958 in New York City at Yankee Stadium and The Polo Grounds.
Due to the uncertainty of whether it would be safe to bring thousands of people together in cities around the world, the organization opted for a virtual platform for 2021.
“Faith has helped our global brotherhood to continue to thrive even during a pandemic,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses.
The program is free. The schedule for download and global streaming is listed below.
