Bethel Jehovah’s Witness (Why is Bethel important to Jehovah’s Witness)

Last year one of my mentees asked about Bethel. Since I had lived with with my Jehovah’s Witness uncle who had worked at Bethel and I had learned more about it in theology school, I gladly shared everything I knew.

Seeing the great curiosity among my mentees, I decided to write an article about it. So, of what importance is Bethel Jehovah’s Witness?

In this article, I will discuss why Bethel is important to Jehovah’s Witnesses and whether it is hard to get a job at Bethel for a Jehovah’s Witness.

Continue reading to learn these and more.

Where is Bethel located?

Bethel is located in various places across the world because each Jehovah’s Witnesses branch office is a Bethel.

Here are some of the countries and locations of Bethel as of 2023 (The locations may change with time):

Country	Location	Country	Location
Albania	Autostrada Tiranë – Durrës, Km 1 Rruga Vidhëgjatë Nr. 8	Germany	Am Steinfels 1 65618 SELTERS (TAUNUS) DEUTSCHLAND – GERMANY
Angola	Avenida Talatona No. 1 LUANDA	Greece	Μπουδούτση 5 GR-186 48 ΔΡΑΠΕΤΣΩΝΑ ΕΛΛΑΔΑ Mpoudoutsi 5 GR-186 48 DRAPETSONA
Argentina	Boulevard de la Plaza 255 NORDELTA C. P. 1670 TIGRE, BUENOS AIRES	Haiti	Santo 20, No. 9 Route de Croix-des-Bouquets PORT-AU-PRINCE
Armenia	Քեռու 38 0028, ԵՐԵՎԱՆ ՀԱՅԱՍՏԱՆ 38 Keri Street 0028 YEREVAN	India	The Arcade at Brigade Orchards Brigade Orchards Spinal Road DEVANAHALLI, KAR 562 110
Australia	12-14 Zouch Road DENHAM COURT NSW 2565	Ukraine	вул. Львівська, 64 79491 ЛЬВІВ-БРЮХОВИЧІ УКРАЇНА Lvivska Street 64 79491 LVIV BRIUKHOVYCHI
Brazil	Rodovia SP-141, km 43 CESÁRIO LANGE – SP 18285-901	United Kingdom	1 Kingdom Way West Hanningfield CHELMSFORD CM2 8FW
Canada	13893 Highway 7 GEORGETOWN, ON L7G 4S4	USA	Warwick 1 Kings Dr. TUXEDO PARK, NY 10987 100 Watchtower Dr. (2891 Route 22) PATTERSON, NY 12563 Wallkill 900 Red Mills Rd. WALLKILL, NY 12589

Why is Bethel important to Jehovah’s Witness?

Based on Jehovah’s Witness teachings, Bethel is important because it facilitates the work of preaching in the region where it is located.

They say that Bethel houses volunteers who facilitate the preaching work and provides offices and facilities that they need for the work.

Some of the work that is done in Bethel include video and audio production, printing, book bidding, translation, warehouse management, and distribution of gospel preaching materials.

Additionally, they say that Bethel is important because it gathers together individuals who are dedicated to ensuring the spread of the Gospel.

They claim that people living in Bethel are family and they share meals and study the bible together, thus it is a place of spiritual nourishment.

Do all Jehovah’s Witnesses have to work at Bethel?

Based on their teachings, and my interaction with many Jehovah’s Witnesses, not all have to work at Bethel.

According to a Jehovah’s Witness discussion forum, Jehovah’s Witnesses do regular jobs except those that are political and those that involve the use of deadly arms such as police and army.

Based on their statistics, the number of Bethels cannot accommodate the huge number of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

According to their 2022 estimations, there are 8,699,048 Jehovah’s Witnesses, and their less than 500 Bethel locations cannot accommodate them.

How hard is it to get a job at Bethel for a Jehovah’s Witness?

Considering the requirements for the job, it is not hard to get a job at Bethel for a Jehovah’s Witness.

According to the Watch Tower Society, a person can apply and get a job as a volunteer at the Bethel if they are aged between 19 and 35, are healthy and physically strong, have been baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness for at least a year, are willing to do any work and are willing to do physically challenging work.

However, the Watch Tower Society says that many Jehovah’s Witnesses consider working at Bethel a privilege, hence many volunteers may apply for the few opportunities.

Those who qualify for the job are encouraged to apply.

Can you leave Bethel as a Jehovah’s Witness?

According to the Jehovah’s Witness application requirement, one should be willing to work faithfully at least one year, which means that one can decide to leave or stay after the one year.

Additionally, they consider the workers as volunteers because they do not receive wages or salary, except for an allowance.

Based on that requirement and the terms of work, a person may leave if they no longer want to be a volunteer or their priorities have changed.

Is Bethel the same as Watchtower

Jehovah’s Witness writings indicate that the Watchtower and Bethel are not the same. They describe the Watch Tower as a non-profit corporation that is registered under the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, USA laws and whose work is to govern and support the worldwide work of reaching the gospel.

On the other side, they describe Bethel as a regional branch or office headed and governed by the Watchtower. Based on this description, the Watch Tower is the governing body while Bethel are the branches or regional offices.