Alpheta
JoinedI started study in spring of 1993; was baptized in October 1996 at an assembly in Janesville, Wisconsin - never did get what the heck what they were called - District Assembly? Circuit Assembly? Anyway, I was the ONLY one baptized that day, and talk about being a spot! Geez! Of course, no one told me before-hand that I would be the only one being baptized, else I'd not have done it that day! To make a "long story short," I left in October 2003 by a very terse DA letter. What did me in was the WT policies that effectively hid the pedophiles from knowledge of the "rank and file." I had not seen the t.v. show (in USA) that publicized the pedophile issue in JW congregations; and, as remarkable as this may seem to some, I NEVER heard any gossip in my congregation about this t.v. show at all after the fact. And despite having internet access, it never occurred to me to make a search regarding WT and pedophilies until AFTER a certain Tuesday night Service Meeting/Ministry School meeting. I was shocked to my toes when the matter of pedophilia - with vague references to recent publicity - (and I was scratching my head going huh?) - was most seriously addressed and the brothers announced the Organization policy about how allegations of sexual abuse are handled, and delineated it "line by line." Not only did I not know what the brothers were talking about (the t.v. program that had been aired a month or two before, that I never saw!!!), I was absolutely appalled by the Society's position regarding the need for "two witnesses" with respect to child sexual abuse! Say what! How could there ever possibly be two witnesses to such an event when the abuser refuses to confess? Oh, it just made me sick to my stomach. After that meeting I approached my Book Study Conductor and asked him some questions about the issue and I got - no response, actually. It was so frustrating at the time, but I didn't realize I was getting that "blank out" stare that - since I've been reading posts here, has become familiar to me. There's a bit more, but won't go into it here and actually, it's probably not important in the long-term. To round things up, I decided to "leave things to Jehovah" for awhile, but after more than a year and nothing (as far as I could see) in the Organization regarding it's position on the "two witnesses" rule had changed, I decided to leave. And I did. Could see no effective difference between the so-called "biblical" policy of the WTBTS (two-witness rule) and the past policies of the Roman Catholic Church in proactively protecting pedophile priests. The result was the same.