{"id":6465,"date":"2022-10-16T09:05:21","date_gmt":"2022-10-16T06:05:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/?p=6465"},"modified":"2022-10-16T09:06:04","modified_gmt":"2022-10-16T06:06:04","slug":"jehovahs-witnesses-back-at-the-chicago-marathon-for-the-first-time-in-three-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/jehovahs-witnesses-back-at-the-chicago-marathon-for-the-first-time-in-three-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses Back at the Chicago Marathon for the First Time in Three Years"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">As athletes raced past iconic skyscrapers and well-known landmarks during the 44<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0Chicago Marathon, they also ran past another familiar sight: Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses standing next to mobile carts featuring colorful literature in a variety of languages.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6466\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6466\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6466\" src=\"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/ND4yX9d.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/ND4yX9d.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/ND4yX9d-768x513.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/ND4yX9d-300x200.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6466\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">More than 800 Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses volunteered next to mobile displays of Bible-based literature along the race route and throughout the city during the 44th Chicago Marathon.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">More than 800 volunteers participated in this unique work at more than 40 locations throughout Chicago this week, including spots along the marathon route on race day, Sunday, Oct. 9.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Marathoners enjoyed sunshine and autumn temperatures as they ran the 26.2-mile course, which took them through 29 Chicago neighborhoods, culminating at the finish line in Grant Park. An estimated 1.7 million spectators cheered on some 40,000 runners from all 50 states and more than 100 countries.<\/p>\n<div style=\"text-algn:center\"><span style=\"display:inline-block;text-align:center;\"><iframe allow=\"autoplay\" class=\"youtube_embed_iframe\"    allowFullScreen=\"true\" style=\"width:900px; height:500px\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/d-Rf3jEFlBI?autoplay=1&theme=dark&loop=0&fs=1&showinfo=1&modestbranding=0&iv_load_policy=3&color=red&autohide=1&disablekb=0&enablejsapi=1&version=3\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Homewood, Illinois, resident Julia Macklin observed the excitement firsthand. She and her husband Brandon were two of the hundreds of volunteers standing next to cart displays throughout the city this week. \u201cIt\u2019s very high energy,\u201d she said. \u201cThere are people from all over the country, all over the world, people that I would never get to meet otherwise. Being able to talk to them at the marathon is really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cThere\u2019s such a buzz in the city,\u201d said Naperville resident Laura Barth. \u201cEach story is so personal. The things that they\u2019ve gone through, what made them start running, the family that\u2019s there to support them \u2014 everyone is so interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWe are here to help people,\u201d added her husband, Neal. \u201cWhen we can learn about them and what\u2019s going on in their life, it gives us the ability to give them something that will benefit them in their unique circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses in Chicago shared in this work during the 2017, 2018 and 2019 marathons; then, in early 2020, the Christian organization suspended all in-person forms of their ministry out of concern for the health and safety of the community. The in-person marathon itself was canceled in 2020, with organizers shifting to a virtual experience.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Earlier this year, Witnesses all over the world recommenced their public preaching work.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWe believe that the early decision to shut down all in-person activities for more than two years has saved many lives,\u201d said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesperson for Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses. \u201cWe\u2019re now ready and eager to reconnect with our neighbors once again \u2013 person-to-person, face-to-face. It\u2019s not the only way we preach, but it has historically been the most effective way to deliver our message of comfort and hope.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Sfiso and Nthipi Mthethwa of Aurora, Illinois, who have participated in \u201ccart witnessing\u201d during past marathons, enjoy sharing that hope with international visitors in a variety of languages featured on the official website of Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/jw.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">jw.org<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s exciting to get to show people that they can get information that can help them in the language that they\u2019re comfortable with,\u201d Sfiso said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Mthethwa family and other volunteers feel the message they\u2019re sharing \u2014 a message of hope, peace and joy \u2014 is especially timely. \u201cOver the last two years, we have seen so much turmoil, not only in the world, but personally, people have experienced a lot of trials,\u201d Nthipi Mthethwa said. \u201cAs students of the Bible, we\u2019ve seen the joy we can have despite the challenges that we face.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Volunteer Frank Rivera of Plainfield, Illinois, shared similar thoughts. \u201cIt\u2019s possible to be joyous in a joyless world.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6467\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6467\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6467\" src=\"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/CjVKnMv.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/CjVKnMv.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/CjVKnMv-768x513.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/CjVKnMv-300x200.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6467\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Interested ones can learn more about a free, interactive Bible course on the official website of Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jw.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">jw.org<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">2022 marks the 10-year anniversary of Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses\u2019 use of mobile displays of Bible-based literature on the streets of Chicago, the local program having kicked off in 2012. Those traveling to and from the city this week may have also noticed carts at O\u2019Hare International Airport, Midway International Airport, and at CTA and Metra stations throughout the area.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWe feel good doing this volunteer work, giving back to the community,\u201d Chicago resident Paul Schmidt said. He invites any who might be curious to take a closer look when they see Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses out and about with mobile displays. \u201cTake a little time to stop by our carts and see what it\u2019s all about,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">To learn more about Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses, their history, beliefs and activities, visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.jw.org\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">jw.org<\/a>, the organization\u2019s official website, which features content in more than 1,000 languages.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As athletes raced past iconic skyscrapers and well-known landmarks during the 44th\u00a0Chicago Marathon, they also ran past another familiar sight: Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses standing next to mobile carts featuring colorful literature in a variety of languages.&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6466,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6465","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6465"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6470,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6465\/revisions\/6470"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwforum.net\/portal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}