Posts by MrMonroe

68

Car Full of JW's while I'm at the Car Wash............

by Terry in

i'm sort of angry right now.. no, not angry..... i'm shaky.

at least, when i lift my cup of coffee to my lips, sitting here at starbucks, my hand is trembly.. i hate that!.

the power they have to still reach me on some hidden point that hides in the corners of my very being.... .

MrMonroe

They do catch you unawares. I've encountered them twice, I think, since I left: a guy came to my door to offer me a tract when they were doing some dump campaign to keep them all busy and I just said, "Ah, no thanks."

A few weeks ago I was unloading groceries from the trolley into the back of my car when I heard a woman behind me say, "Excuse me." I thought she wanted my trolley, but she was holding out a pamphlet and I said, "Ah, no thanks."

Both times it took me about 10 seconds to think, "Hey, what I should say now is ...." but it was too late. I'll do it one day. A waste of breath I know, but I'll do it.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

BP, yes, I guess he is talking about the Theocratic Ministry School. I have no idea why he expressed it the way he did, but I guess he was trying to put his point across that they have "school" instruction for JWs who include minors, with teaching carried out by elders who have no WWC checks.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

Steven Unthank reached the point he did with an almost obsessive devotion to legal research to get the point where he could gain the approval of Victoria's Chief Magistrate to take the very unusual step of laying a private criminal prosecution against five corporate entities of a very wealthy worldwide religious organisation.

My take on it is that he did this to pressure, or shame, the Victorian authorities into taking over the case and finishing the work he started. They seem discinclined to do that. Given that, it is ludicrous to think that someone who probably works a 40-hour week on modest income could personally prosecute the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania and its legal offspring in courts, filing briefs of evidence, serving documents, then actually appearing in court to question witnesses and direct matters in the same way a highly-paid public prosecutor would do.

Unthank wanted the attention of the media and politicians to draw pubic attention to the high-handed attitude of the Watch Tower Society and the disinclination of authorities to protect thousands of children in Victoria who are sent door to door by their parents each weekend with adults who have never undergone police background checks. He got that.

I just don't Paypal donations are going to be enough. Either the authorities will let the JWs get away with it or they won't. Unthank is an unusual character, but he has balls.

42

Long Call With Elder: Doesn't Know About "Generations/Overlapping"

by daringhart13 in

jw
friends

i had a call with a good buddy......still an elder the other night.. when i mentioned generations/overlapping.......he had no clue what i was talking about.

such a good man.......... but it doesn't matter.....they don't even realize what is being said to them; what is being done to them.

a high stature elder in their organization....and he had no clue there was another change..... how the hell does this happen?.

MrMonroe

Marking this thread. This is just extraordinary.

52

Racial question about the annointed aka 144,000...

by Joliette in

as an african american associate of jehovah's witnesses (since the age of 5, actually i remember going to the kingdom hall as young as 3).

i've always wondered why most of the annointed were and are white.

i know there are a lot of white people on here so why is it that there are.

MrMonroe

Yes, it's funny how the self-appointed "representative" and "spokesman" for the FDS are male, mostly white and mostly American.

I've met two people who claimed to be anointed: a very old man in Brisbane who always smelt of (ahem) semen, and an elderly lady in Melbourne who was always the subject of gossip in our congregation because she never went to conventions, apparently because she was agoraphobic, but possibly because she was old, had heard it all before and just couldn't see the point.

41

Thanks for your support JWN!!! Dad dies monday, JW family goes to convention on thursday

by Coffee House Girl in

jw
friends

coffee shop guy directed me to his thread...thank you so much everyone for your thoughts of support, it means a lot to have people who understand and show genuine sympathy.

here's my experience so far.... my father dies monday night & my brother (nonjw) calls me to come home, when i arrive my father is still sitting on the couch- all the jw family is sitting in a semi-circle around him, my non jw brother is standing in the next room.

no one is crying, no one is talking.

MrMonroe

Sad events, CHG. I'm sorry.

One of the last JW gatherings my wife and I attended was a funeral for an elderly sister my kids called their nanna (their real grandmothers live a long way and see them only rarely).

This old lady underwent surgery several times for major problems, but doctors eventually decided she should just move into a hospice to live her final months, or weeks, in comfort. She had a big family and almost all were braindead Dubs; she, on the other hand, was often candid about the lazy pioneers who took up fulltime witnessing just to dodge the reality of hard work.

It was obvious the old lady was dying, and a couple of times during the week the family got the call that she was about to pass away .... but she hung on. On Friday night, she finally succumbed. Weirdly, none of the family were there. Did I say it was a big family? None were there on a Friday night to hold her hand, so she died alone.

It was the end of the month, so on Saturday morning her daughter, her husband and their adult kids and family went out witnessing to get their paltry hours in for the month. They worked until lunchtime, then drove to the hospice, where they discovered the old lady's room was vacant. When they asked at reception where she was, they were informed she'd died the night before.

The hospital had made a mistake in failing to contact them on the Friday night, and the family was very, very angry about that. Could their anger have been, in part, because of the guilt they felt that out of a big extended family none had been with her on Friday night, and had put regimented "field service" ahead of genuine human concern on Saturday morning?

We went to her funeral and were saddened to hear the usual recruitment speech, including the blatant lie that the old lady had "loved the pioneers" and admired them for their sacrifice. Absolute bullshit. We went to one more Sunday meeting and never went back. It's just so sad that normal human emotions have to be put aside in order that Witnesses are seen to be doing the right thing -- witnessing and attending conventions -- in order that they escape gossip.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

Reader comments on the website already show his cause has public sympathy.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

Not a cent, BP. He's made an impact already and maybe that's as far as he's prepared to go now. Maybe that's all he was ever going to do. Maybe financial reality has set in, or the realisation that without government support it all becomes futile: one man against a global religious empire with millions of dollars in assets and lawyers in tow.

Unlike you though, I don't sneer at him for pulling out.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

Broken Promises, feel free to send him money. His plan involved laying charges against FIVE corporate entities of the WTS about the failure of elders from ONE congregation to gain WWC checks. The $350 fee would have been just the start. He would have been left to file all papers himself and probably prosecute the case in court himself. As a carpenter.

He was hoping that his actions would prod Victoria Police or the Director of Public Prosecutions into taking over the case. Unfortunately neither has shown much interest.

He has done what he can: gained some publicity and raised public attention about the fact that one religion believes it is above the law. But look, if you think he's failed, feel free to lend a hand or take over. If you think protection for defenceless children of Jehovah's Witnesses is a good cause.

19

Australian campaigner concedes defeat on Working With Children checks

by MrMonroe in

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745.

sunday herald sun, melbourne.

jehovah's witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.. gippsland carpenter steven unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by victoria's chief magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.. mr unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.. he said it was a disgrace that neither victoria police nor the justice department would enforce the working with children act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.. the religion's corporate arm in australia, the watch tower society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.. ``it's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said.

MrMonroe

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/door-closes-on-jehovahs-witness-campaign/story-e6frf7jo-1226095887745

Sunday Herald Sun, Melbourne

JEHOVAH'S Witness children will continue to doorknock neighbourhoods with adults who have failed to gain police background checks after a bid to stop the practice failed this week.

Gippsland carpenter Steven Unthank, a former member of the religion who says he was abused as a teen by a church elder, was given approval by Victoria's Chief Magistrate to take the unusual step of launching a private prosecution of the religion over its refusal to require ministers to gain police checks, but says he cannot afford the $350 fee for filing the charges.

Mr Unthank yesterday said he could not pursue the religion on his own.

He said it was a disgrace that neither Victoria Police nor the Justice Department would enforce the Working With Children Act, which requires ministers of religion to gain police checks before working unsupervised with minors.

The religion's corporate arm in Australia, the Watch Tower Society, says it does not believe its ministers need to obtain background checks to work with children because they do not typically work unsupervised with children.

``It's an absolute beatup,'' a spokesman said. ``We do what we have to under law.''

But Mr Unthank said the religion's stance left thousands of Victorian children of Jehovah's Witnesses unprotected from abuse by adults as they accompanied them in cars, in private homes and in one-on-one religious instruction.

He said police seemed afraid to lay charges against a religion.

Victoria Police say they continue to have contact with Mr Unthank over his allegations and are ``seeking advice regarding potentially investigating the matter''.

A spokeswoman said: ``For any charges to be laid police must have evidence an offence has occurred.''