by misocup 23 Replies latest jw experiences
Am I being persecuted by the WTS for my choice of beliefs?
No. People decide what they want to do and live with the consequences. You are free to join and free to leave. You have to live with the known consquences of both actions. Is being shunned fun? No but eh... its all good. Make new friends and family.
Is it criminal?
Far as I know it aint agin the law... but Im just a country lawyer.
It is a little bit like joining the army and becoming a deserter..........you have the freedom to do that but you know there are consequences.
Actually, I think it's a bit more like joining the army and being gay...or then discovering you're gay......the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy and the homophobic, hostile environment it engenders. It is wrong, and it wreaks unnecessary havoc for the lives of members and close associates/ loved ones in both organizations.
I have to agree with miscoup on this one. I DO consider it religious persecution.
Any given person, JW or not has the freedom of choice to associate with you. If they choose not to based on religious belief's they have the freedom of choice.
I don't agree, fifi40. Jdubyas pretty much hafta do what they're told or they suffer the consequences, too. Fear is a big tool wielded by the WTS heirarchy. Jdubyas shun either to please everyone else and make themselves look good or because they're afraid not to. Depends on their individual character. Either way, the WTS gets what they want.
Frannie
hafta do what they're told
Nobody hazta do anything.
or they suffer the consequences, too.
Big whoop. Suffer the consequences and do the right thing. If everyone suffered the consequences there would be no such thing as shunning.
hafta do what they're toldNobody hazta do anything.
or they suffer the consequences, too.Big whoop. Suffer the consequences and do the right thing. If everyone suffered the consequences there would be no such thing as shunning.
IP_SEC, I think it's that they're afraid of those consequences and the upheaval in their lives that prevents them from thinking for themselves as you do, chere. That fear overshadows a lot of people's gumption.
Frannie
It's not that simple to say that nobody has to do anything they don't want. As a kid you are taught to obey - and the methods used by those in control might be guilt, shame, fear and physical punishment. The roots are set deep inside you as a child. It's interesting how lightly we treat the depth of the mental and emotional abuse suffered by many JW children and how little empathy we have for them as they become adults. Its as if we should snap our fingers and suddenly become whole, healthy people. It is after all only a religion. The distresses many JW children face are in many ways on the same level as any abused child - isolationism, emotional withholding, guilt and shame - in some way believing that they are to blame for all the things that happen to them and feeling guilt and shame at not being good enough, the feelings of not being loved for who they are and the lack of support available to them if they step outside the boundaries created for them by the organization. In that way - one cannot say 'nobody has to do anything they don't want'. They are conditioned to act out of emotion and within boundaries set by the watchtower.
I believe that it is very criminal to baptize children into this religion and then hold them to a contract that they do not fully comprehend. The act of shunning as punishment is invasive, destructive, slanderous and tragic and IF this is going to be the sentence passed upon dissolution of the contract, there should be no person under the age of 21 allowed to enter into it. At that time, the contract should clearly stipulate, that any action deemed unworthy of the organization, will not only result in explusion from the organization, but will also result in expulsion from the individuals family. In this way, it would become clear to all JW's what kind of agreement they are entering into and the punishment they would receive.
sammieswife.
It's not that simple to say that nobody has to do anything they don't want. As a kid you are taught to obey - and the methods used by those in control might be guilt, shame, fear and physical punishment. The roots are set deep inside you as a child.
Ya it really is.
I was one of those children as maybe you were too.
Is it cool to say the SS had to obey hitler because they would be killed if they didnt?
Personal Sovereignty.
That's so true, Sammilee. Without such a contract, there really is no informed consent; and even with such a contract, the abuse victims just don't recognize they are setting themselves up for more abuse. For the adults who stay in, it is familiar pain.
Courts do not get involved in church disciplinary matters. Its has previously been ruled 'Because the practice of shunning is a part of the faith of Jehovah's Witnesses, we find the 'free excercise' provision of the United States Constitution......precludes (a person) from prevailing. The defendants have a constitutionally protected privlege to engage in the practice of shunning.'
Whatever the reasons a JW agrees with the practice of shunning, be it fear or any other reason, they have the right to continue.
You never know it may be the 'wake up' call they need.
When I quit blaming the Watch Tower Publishing Corporation for the shunning and started holding the people doing the shunning and snubbing personally responsible, my life changed and I immediately went into a position of power.
Witness parents, adult children, siblings, and extended family members are the cause of the problem of shunning their relatives. There's absolutely no one else to rationally blame. Those same people drive 75 in a 55 mile per hour zone. They only obey rules they want to, and the reason they shun you is they want to.
