This past year was truly outstanding in terms of growth in the work of God's Church. Never has the Gospel been published so extensively or televised so widely as in 1984! Two 100-million-marks were attained for the first time:
• More than 100 million publications were sent worldwide, including magazines, books, booklets, letters, lessons, etc.
• Mail income from the United States surpassed $100 million for the first time. This does not include income from other sources.
Several all-time records were set in 1984, as the following statistics illustrate (figures are rounded off):
• Worldwide PLAIN TRUTH circulation reached 7.5 million in December.
• GOOD NEWS circulation passed 400,000 in the United States.
• 6.1 million booklets, books and reprint articles were requested worldwide.
• 1.7 million new names were added to U.S. files, and 2.3 million were added to The PLAIN TRUTH subscription list around the world.
• U.S. Bible correspondence course enrollments reached 250,000.
• U.S. TV stations increased to 264, with 414 worldwide.
• The Mail Processing Center at Headquarters received 4.9 million letters and cards.
• The number of calls in response to "The WORLD TOMORROW" TV program was 552,000. Total calls, including those in response to radio and other media, were 791,000.
• The number of baptized members passed 56,000 in the U.S. and 21,000 internationally, for a total of 77,000 worldwide.
• Festival attendance around the world reached 126,000 for the first time.
These were all-time records, but a number of other high marks occurred as well. The prospective member count in the United States reached 4,338, the highest in nine years. U.S. donors passed the 95,000 mark, a six-year high. Co-workers in the U.S. numbered more than 55,000 by the end of 1984, the largest count since 1971.
1985 Starts With Record-breaking Weekend!
WATS calls for the first weekend of 1985 reached an all-time high. “The United States and Britain in Prophecy" aired, resulting in 15,836 calls. This total is 71% above the 1984 average, and about 1,900 calls higher than the previous record. The former record was set October 20-21, 1984 when "Revelation: Catastrophic Event" brought in 13,940 calls.
Saturday Night Cable Station Response Continues to Climb
The WATS response from our newly acquired cable station, LIFE, which began airing the telecast on Saturday nights in mid-December, has steadily increased. This past weekend we answered 850 calls from LIFE, placing it among the top three stations. Following are the responses from this station for the past four weeks:
Airing Date - Number of Calls December 15, 1984 - 214 December 22, 1984 - 428 December 29, 1984 - 523 January 5, 1985 - 850
UPDATE FROM MAIL PROCESSING
Worldwide Church of God