Jehovah’s Witnesses are coming en masse

Tens of thousands of Jehovah’s Witnesses are again descending on Docklands this year when a three-day international convention is scheduled for Marvel Stadium in November.

The “Love Never Fails” event is being conducted from Friday, November 22 to Sunday, November 24.

The last time the event was held here, in October 2014, attendance records were smashed at the stadium.

The previous single event record of 70,000 people, set in 2000 at the Catholic Jubilee Mass, was broken on the third day of the convention, when 70,059 people attended.

The event also substantially broke the record for attendance across a three-day event, with a 201,039 attendance figure over the convention, breaking the previous record of 181,495 people, set by AC/DC for its three concerts in 2010.

This year again, crowds of up to 70,000 are expected each day, with attendees for more than 60 countries flying in. So, it’s probably not surprising that finding enough accommodation has been challenging.

The event’s website (2019mic.org) reports that organisers struggled to find the 5000 rooms needed for participants.

The site said: “Did properties jump at the chance of accommodating some of the expected 50,000 delegates? Surprisingly, no.”

“After approximately six months of persistent efforts, only 700 rooms had been contracted. With a goal of 4,000 – 5,000 rooms and only weeks until the release of the Recommended Lodging List (RLL), the task looked impossible from a human viewpoint.”

“However, with continued effort and much prayer the goal of 4000 contracted rooms was reached by March 18, with a total of 5000 rooms being achieved a week later.”

The website said: “We eagerly anticipate worshipping shoulder to shoulder with you, showing you hospitality, and strengthening our bonds of brotherly love.”

The AFL has pushed back its annual draft event from its usual second-last-week-in-November timeslot as a result.