After pausing their door-to-door visits the last 30 months due to the pandemic, Jehovah’s Witnesses have resumed their trademark in-person ministry, officials say.

The church members will be active with a global campaign to offer a free interactive Bible study program.

“I am happy and excited to interact with people face to face,” Lisa Dermody of Elba said in a press release. “I think it is important to see how our neighbors did during the pandemic and be able to give them a message of hope and comfort and share with them a positive view of the future.”

Jehovah’s Witnesses had been preaching from house to house without interruption for more than 100 years through an economic depression, two world wars and global unrest, officials said, but “COVID-19 demanded a different response.”

“We believe that the early decision to shut down all in-person activities for more than two years has saved many lives,” said Robert Hendriks, U.S. spokesperson for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “We’re now ready and eager to reconnect with our neighbors once again – person-to-person, face-to-face. It’s not the only way that we preach, but it has historically been the most effective way to deliver our message of comfort and hope.”

The new Bible study program is available in hundreds of languages at no cost, and it comes in the form of a book, online publication or as an embedded feature within the organization’s free mobile application, the release states.

For more information about Jehovah’s Witnesses, their history, beliefs and activities, visit jw.org.

Photo:  Donna Burkett (left), of Oakfield and Lisa Dermody, of Elba, engage in a door-to-door ministry. Photo courtesy of Jehovah’s Witnesses