Grazie Marco, Gianni, Davide e Silvana for your youtube expressions.
As many on this thread have said--I also applaud the fact that educating the public is a better way to go.
Milan Italy Public Demonstration against ostracism practiced by the Watchtower.
by Nick! 37 Replies latest jw friends
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Vidiot
moshe - "Next time invite the local KH to send some elders to the 'event', and set up two empty chairs with a sign on it (KH elders were invited, but refused to come), just so the public knows the JWs aren't willing to publicly refute the charges."
This is a really smart idea.
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Nick!
"" Next time invite the local KH to send some elders to the 'event', and set up two empty chairs with a sign on it (KH elders were invited, but refused to come), just so the public knows the JWs aren't willing to publicly refute the charges. ""
Very good idea Moshe, maybe not applicable when you demonstrate on the road and public squares as we did in Milan and Rome, but very appropriate I would say, when we have conferences and where we can reserve a couple of front seats with a label "Reserved for Jehovah's Witnesses Elder", after having invite them at the talk!
Obviously they will not show up, but this is exactly what we want to demonstrate, that as long as they can play the "teachers" going from door to door and studying with pre-convinced poorly religiously educated people, they do show-off, but when they have to sit and be confronted with well prepared speakers who know whtat they are talking about, they simply fade away, pretending that Jesus' slaves do not need to contend! Whereas this is exactly what Russell seems did, with lots of acclamation by the WT today on how good he was!
Next conference will take place next spring in a town on the Lago Maggiore, not far from Milano and just a few miles from the Swiss border. Will test the "reserved seats" strategy, just to be sure we can talk about it later, on the results of the conference ...
Roberto.
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Nick!
We are delighted to see the results of what many XJWs can accomplish when they team up and protest against the injustice of ostracism (shunning). In this day and age it is outrageous Watch Tower adherents can practice ostracism and that democratic governments are tolerant of such an infringement of human rights.
If we don’t speak up or demonstrate that we have had enough of this intrusion into our civil right to exit a religion without being penalized in a most injurious way, nothing will change and we will only have ourselves to blame.
Factual information to the public will eventually win out against JWs dishonest arguments that they have a God-given right to shun. In reality, shunning amounts to intolerance of others who disagree and this indeed is a human rights issue
Barbara and Joe
Thank you Barbara and Joe for your nice comments.
I have translated your post into Italian and posted on the Italian forum, here: http://forum.infotdgeova.it/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=13390&p=215232#p215232
You know how much we struggle over here in defense of the Human Rights against the policy and teachings of the Watchtower which, outrageously, teaches and imposes shunning on those who abandon their teachings after having been a witness in their life, as granted by article 19 th of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
I have made an application to the ICSA board to participate in their international conference here in Italy on July 4 th of next year in Trieste, in the North-East of the country, on exactly that subject: “Do the teachings and practices of Jehovah’s Witnesses violate the Human Rights?”. I hope I will be given the opportunity to participate with my lecture on the subject which goes through 13 of the 30 articles of the Declaration of Human Rights, comparing them with the teachings of the Watchtower, leaving the answer to this question on each and every one of the 13 articles, to the public. We all know what the only answer can be …, once you go through the analysis of the Watchtower policies and internal regulations!
Roberto.
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mamochan13
Well done, Roberto. I hope you succeed with the ICSA board. It is exactly this type of thing we need more of - educated, logical ways to shine a light on the evil practice of shunning.
The story of the young man who used to post here is so sad. Yet so typical, as is that hateful, unloving response about reinstatement.
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RULES & REGULATIONS
Roberto This is one thread that everyone on JWN should read! It is the most important issue that we need to address to the WATCHTOWER SOCIETY.
The WTS has over the years brought cases to the Supreme Court for their rights to engage in evangelism. They have rights to preach house to house, rights to print books, rights for no-blood transfusions and the rights of not paying any taxes on all their profits on the selling of books, magazines and all real estate property.
The right to leave a religion is a human right. The WTS will not anyone exit without any penalties. The penalties are a heavy burden to carry. You will be called an oppostate,your family and friends inside the congregation will be told not to associate with you. The only way to avoid the shunning is to stay inside the organization and follow all the rules.
I have seen the cruelty of shunning. I have started threads on JWN on how my cousin was made to leave the house when his mother died because fellow congregation members paid a visit to the family. How my cousin was made to stand on the side of the funeral home and not in the front row because he was disfelloshipped. How he was asked to leave his house when lunch was served on the day of his mother's burial. How he was asked to leave his grandfather's hospital room last year when the elders paid a visit. How the elders did not greet him when his mother and granfather died.
Thank you ROBERTO for the work you and others are doing! The shunning policy really does work. It makes me sad that I need to hide behind this JWN site because of the fear of their shunning policy. Hope you succeed in your application to the ICSA board!
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Joepublisher1
There's so many good points here. I like the one where the poster said that her mother insisted the blame for the "shunning" was on her for leaving the religion [and not returning]! How twisted is that? But, that's how the WTS has their rank and file thinking. Look, it's simple. At one time, you could walk away from this religion and not be viewed as an apostate. And, that's reasonable.
However, in the early 80's - when the great apostasy hit Brooklyn - it became apparent to the Governing Body that they can't allow the rank and file to ask too many questions of those who decided to leave the religion. And, that's when they came up with the teaching that if someone leaves, they should be treated as an apostate. Talk about mind-control!
However, the Governing Body was really caught off-guard when the internet came into vogue because many ex-JWs created web-sites (FREEMINDS, JWFACTS, SIXSCREENSOFTHEWATCHTOWER, etc.) that would allow any JW to research why so many one-time loyal and faithful JWs - many who held responsible positions for decades - to decide for themselves whether this previously guarded information would sway their JW religious convictions. (I might add, the fact that so many JWs leave after learning the Truth about the Truth, shows why the Governing Body did not want its members reading this stuff. I find that the web-site JWFACTS to be indisputable - and I love how the owner Paul Grundy humbly/sincerely asks that anybody who notices errors on his site to simply contact him and he'll correct it.)
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flipper
There are so many volunteer groups dedicated to preventing suicide, child abuse and domestic violence which are all major problems in the Jehovah's Witnesses. In our small town there is a Domestic Violence Coalition. I'm thinking of writing to them suggesting that when they have clients who are JW's there is essential information to look into about this cult. That their normal practices are much more harmful than is apparent to the public, and list some websites and articles to look up. Books, too, but they are not as likely to take that much time, to read a book.
Perhaps someone more organized than me and with writing ability could formulate a letter for this purpose which could be signed by several people who are somewhat well known for helping cult victims & abuse victims. Also writers of books on the subject, even some of us as concerned citizens.
Mrs. Flip