If a JW girl falls pregnant to a 'worldly person'...before marriage??

Lantana

Hi everyone, this is my first post.

I've had many encounters with JW's throughout the years and I've found them to be decent, caring people. I've attending meetings, read a number of Awake! and Watchtower publications and so on and so forth.
The book 'Crisis of Conscious' by Ray Franz was really eye-opening for me and served as a strong warning for those about to enter the organisation...its easy to fill in the blanks from there -- I never became a JW. 10 years on, I'm not positive where I'm at spritually. I'm just relieved my family was not involved. Being as I was, young and naive, desperate for life's answers, I took notice of anyone preaching truth...and well, I'm sure this story has been told thousands of times.

To my question: If a JW girl falls pregnant (say aged 16) to a worldly person before marriage, whats the process in place for her set by the Governing Body? I hail from Australia, so the legal age here is 16.
Any responses are appreciated,

Cheers,
Jim

nomoreguilt

No doubt she'll be Disfellowshipped. Probably be extremely discouraged from marrying the worldy boy, or encouraged for him to become a dub. Unless she has a supportive family, she'll have a life of hell. If she is repentant after the baby is born, she'll probably be re-instated into the cogregation, if that's waht she wants.

I have seen this scenatio re-inacted many times in the over 40 years that I was a jw.

NMG

nomoreguilt

Lantana.... Welcome to JWD.

NMG

scotsman

She'll have to be baptised to be disfellowshipped. I take it she is....

greendawn

Welcome and how fortunate you were in having the sense not to get too deeply involved with the JWs and become lost in a maze of strange doctrines and never ending deceit.

A JW girl of any age that becomes pregnant without being married will be in serious trouble with the JWs and will almost certainly be expelled. Given that pregnancy out of marriage means fornication (not likely to be due to artificial insemination) which is a serious disfellowshipping offense and any show of repentance is unlikely to be heeded.

Mr. Majestic

Oh dear…., Jim..!! What have you been up to….

If it was something like a one night stand then she may not get D’fd. There was a case like that in the hall that I used to go to. She did go onto marry the person she got involved with and they are still together. He never became a JW but she was a talking point for a long time, severely frowned upon. But if it was an ongoing thing, and she got in the club that way then she would be put out for sure.

But if she is 16 then she might not be baptised, and therefore would not come under those rules as such, although it might damage the fathers position, if he is in any standing.

Big hello to you BTW. You did well not to become a JW. Well done.

Lantana

interesting insights all, and thanks for the warm welcome :)

I take it being baptized determines whether you are ousted or not. Amazing, just amazing. I've been out of touch with the Witness camp for 2 years now and I started the wonder recently what would happen in this case. It's a delicate issue, not for me personally, but rather the people who must adhere to a certain set of rules. I couldn't do it.

By the way, is the minimum age to get baptized still 12 years old? I'm not sure if it was 12 or 13... so long ago.
Back to my example, suppose this girl of 16 was Baptized, told her parents she was pregnant and was disfellowshipped by the organisation. Are there examples of parents overriding the organisation, or is it simply get disfellowshipped -- have the baby -- then get reinstated if repentant? If the parents wish to control it instead and rail against the rules, are they given the boot too?

It seems there's a question inside a question here.

dinah

Lantana,

There is no set age when a child can be baptised. I've seen it happen when a kid was 10 years old.

In my old congregation, there was an 18 year old girl who got pregnant. She was just reproved, but I think she had to promise not to see the guy anymore. I figure they would rather reprove a pregnant girl in hopes of retaining her child. ***shudder***

Nathan Natas

Lantana asked,

I take it being baptized determines whether you are ousted or not. Amazing, just amazing...

By the way, is the minimum age to get baptized still 12 years old? I'm not sure if it was 12 or 13... so long ago.

If a person isn't baptised as a JW, they are not a member, and if they are not a member, there isn't anything to kick them out of.

As for baptism, we know the WTB&TS condemns infant baptism, but they've never stated a minimum age that I am aware of (20+ years in). I have heard rumors of 8 year olds being baptised.

Edited to add: Rumor confirmed! 1971 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses:

Also, within four months she conducted a study of her own with her very keen eight-year-old son. Now, we are happy to relate, just seven months after being contacted, the woman is a sister, having been baptized at the international assembly last November, and one of her companions at that baptism was her new "brother," the youth who commenced the study with her!

Nathan Natas

and nine:

During the first year, our seven-year-old son became a publisher, and at nine he was baptized. - The WATCHTOWER, March 15, 1975

If a JW girl falls pregnant to a 'worldly person'...before marriage??

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