WORLDWIDE – May 10, 2023, After a three-year pandemic pause, one of the largest
convention organizations in the world has, once again chosen Baltimore to host its global three-
day event, the 2023 “Exercise Patience”! Convention.

Prior to 2019, summers in Baltimore were marked by Jehovah’s Witnesses filling hotels and restaurants as they attended their annual conventions at the Chesapeake Employers Insurance
Arena. In 2020, the pandemic interrupted that tradition in Baltimore when the Witnesses canceled their in-person events throughout the world and held their convention programs as virtual events in more than five hundred languages. Beginning June 23, 2023, the Witnesses will bring that tradition goes back to Baltimore.
“As much as we loved the convenience and quality of our virtual conventions, nothing can replace being together in a large group setting,” said Robert Hendriks, spokesman for Jehovah’s
Witnesses. “While our online conventions reached millions around the world and kept our communities safe, we long to get back to our joyful fellowship at these large gatherings.”
Some 6,000 conventions will be held worldwide as part of the 2023 “Exercise Patience”!
Convention series. In the USA alone, more than 708 conventions will be held in 144 host cities.
From Friday through Sunday, six convention sessions will explore the quality of patience,
highlighting its modern-day relevance through Scriptural examples. A live baptism will be
performed following the Saturday morning session and a prerecorded drama will be featured in
two parts during the Saturday and Sunday afternoon sessions.
“Patience is a beautiful quality that all Christians desire to display in their daily lives,” says
Robert Hendricks. “Despite our good intentions, however, maintaining patience in the face of
life’s many challenges can be a daily struggle. Spending three days exploring aspects of this
quality will be very timely for all of us.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses have been holding public conventions in stadiums, arenas, convention
centers, and theaters around the world for more than one hundred years. After resuming smaller in-
person meetings and their public ministry during 2022, the summer of 2023 marks the first time
they will gather at much larger regional events around the world since the lifting of pandemic
restrictions.
The convention is open to the public and no collection is taken. For more information on the
program or to find other convention locations and dates, please go to jw.org and navigate to the
“About Us” tab.