[Freedom]

Originally Posted by Terry

It wouldn't be the first time numbers or statistics would be inflated or manipulated. The following is from John So's 1990 Testimony in Manila on page 6

I wasn’t opposing or anything fermenting within me. I’m sorry to say, dear saints, I think there is a plot, a conspiracy, there, not on our part, but on somebody else’s part to bring the churches in Europe and myself under a certain leading—under the, sorry to say, the hidden function of the office. That I must confess I do not, I just cannot fully agree. But that doesn’t mean that if I don’t agree, I oppose. I went to Taipei. I went to Taipei. I joined the door knocking. Okay, I enjoyed it. You might not believe me, but I really enjoyed it. In fact, I fully submitted to the group. You can ask my group leaders, I baptized a few people, really. And I am quite fond of that whole group. But when I was there, listen, one major leading brother in Taipei every time he saw me, he told me that the statistics were manipulated. That’s the word I think he used. I said, “Are you sure brother?” He said, “Yes.”

I believe one of Nigel's writings addressed the issue of statistics also.

I've never felt comfortable with the way the LC presents statistics. Even when statistics are left intact, it seems the brothers tend to exaggerate the significance of numbers presented. Even when they talk about what could happen, they have no realistic expectations. I've been to meetings where the brothers find some excerpt from WL's ministry where he said things like "so such and such and the church will have a 100% increase in a year". Everyone knows stuff like that isn't going to happen, yet the brothers can say it with a straight face.