Impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the religious services of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Ghana

Abstract

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has affected all religious organizations including the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church. The Jehovah’s Witnesses church is a Christian organization practiced in most parts of the world and trademarked for its house-to-house Christian educational campaign. This study sought to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the religious activities of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in Ghana. The study is a qualitative descriptive study involving interviews with 11 valid and active Jehovah’s Witnesses in 11 out of the 16 administrative regions in Ghana. A case study design, and snowball sampling technique were employed for the study. The study revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of Kingdom Halls for more than two years. The house-to-house educational campaign by the church was suspended. There has been a reduction in social bonding among members, deterioration of their infrastructure and a reduction in growth of membership. The study also revealed that Jehovah’s Witnesses had been very innovative by adopting technologies such as zoom and other video conferencing tools for their Christian educational programs.