List of family/friends lost to the Watchtower cult? (suicides)

by hubert 90 Replies latest jw friends

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  xeracia

  My sister was engaged to a young brother when she was 19/20. My father called his congregation to see if he was 'in good standing' and apparently the brother had been lying to my sister. My father forced her to break it off. He commited suicide the next day. His name was Patrick Riley II. I was 12 or so at the time. He was like a brother to me.

  I also had a friend who was schizophrenic. He would tell me stories of the things he saw and I was one of the few who would not accuse him of being demonized. He told me the elders were constantly pirvately reproving him for things he had no control over due to his illness. I found out that just a few years ago he also commited suicide.
• 

  Dold Agenda

  Hi, Sweden here.

  I have not seen this thread before here but i actually asked this question in the swedish xJV forum we have a few weeks ago.

  Our betel have, when asked about it from a Journalist, stated that "-JV sweden dont have or has had any suicide connected to Jehovas Witnesses"

  Sweden have about 22.000 witnesses... we have heard about some suicide case here and there, but when we (xJV:s on the forum) collected those we knew about toghether in the first post for the topic, we did really fast (little over one week) came up to over 60 cases in sweden.

  http://www.hjalpkallan.org/forum/showthread.php?t=8861
• 

  jookbeard

  2 very close friends in our congregation of Wimbledon London;

  1) Steve Alexander; I believe he was in love with a teenage sister in our cong, car exhaust fumes. Died mid 80's age late 20's

  2) Gary Hartup, bitter divorce after his JW wife had an affair, left 3 beautiful kids, car exhaust again. Died approx early 90's age early 40's.

  both great guys Steve worked with my father for some years.
• 

  AdaMakawee

  My nephew Alan Swyers shot himself to death at age 16 because he was gay and the WT, his family, and general society told him he was a devient.
• 

  troubled mind

  Jake 25 hung himself just recently .

  Suffered from depression and a ton of pressure from his super dub family that is large and over-bearing . Jake grew up with my sons and had always been the fun guy that made everyone laugh . Every one that knew him has a funny story to tell about him .It was so sad at his witness memorial that none of those stories or memories were shared ....just the JW informercial as usual .

  Personally I think he felt repressed by the witness life and saw no other way out .
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  Dold Agenda

  Three more to the swedes list today..
  http://www.hjalpkallan.org/forum/showthread.php?t=8861Yes, they had kill them self, because they couldn't stand't anymore..
• 

  ninja

  my wifes uncle jim hughes did the "swinging on the rope by the neck" trick.......
• 

  yellow

  I had suicide thoughts all day whilst with 40 of the "friends" on a trip to bethel. Despite the assurances of some who knew I was unwell. On the return journey I was desperatly trying to open the door of a speeding train No friends to be seen I cried and sobbed my heart out for hours on that train. A sis in our cong committed suicide a few years back plus their are others I know of who have had suicidal thoughts and attempted it. Im out now and extremely happy.
• 

  Hopscotch

  At the moment I don't want to give out names but here are the details of some I can remember.

  Brisbane 2000 - 19 year old girl (active JW), car exhaust fumes, distraught after elders talked her into breaking up with boyfriend (JW - not in good standing).

  Brisbane c1999 - teenage boy (brother of the above girl), active JW - can't remember how but think it was car exhaust

  Brisbane 1994 - 17 year boy, ran in front of truck on highway. It came to light 3 years later that he was a victim of witness pedophile. See my post about this pedo here http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/184540/2/New-sex-offender-in-my-hall

  I know of some other JW suicides in the area - sister around 40 years - hung herself. I think it was in the late 1980's but can't remember all the details.

  There was another young teenage boy (17) in the early nineties. It came out that he too was a victim of the above mentioned pedophile. I think he hung himself - again can't remember all the details.

  I'm sure there were others that I knew about but I can't remember them at the moment.

  Hopscotch
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  ziddina

  This is a bit ghoulish, but I'm going to list my brother's name here because he's been hospitalized on suicide watch more than once, so I'm afraid it's just a matter of time...

  My brother Daniel - he got the Biblical name, I got the 'pagan' name - very fitting...

  Has been a JW practically since birth. Has never been allowed to date - let alone marry - due to my parents' parasitic attachment to him for financial security. This is the hidden cost of keeping people from going to college... My parents were always frivolous - stupid, even - when it came to money. As he grew up and began to earn more money, my father and more specifically my mother - how do I explain this? They 'psychologically attached' themselves to him in such a way as to prevent him from feeling he had a right to a life of his own... Which was reinforced by the WTBTS' exhortation - especially before 1975 - and possibly since then, that JWs refrain from marriage in order to focus on doing 'god's' will during the 'time left remaining before Armageddon'.

  So, here's a memorial to my poor brother Daniel, whose death by suicide will probably occur sometime in the near future. At the very least, here's to the death of his wasted youth and co-opted life... Zid