JW's versus RCC on child abuse

TooBad TooSad

It really is good news that the news of the recent settlement on the child abuse cases is coming out. The only

bad news is that probably 99% of the Witnesses will not believe it or put a different spin on it. The Witnesses are

are still in a state of denial. If you ask a Roman Catholic if there was a problem with child abuse in their church

they would say yes and it is being dealt with. If you ask a JW the same question they would say no, that is something

that is a problem that the RCC has. I give Catholics credit for addmitting that there was a problem, their faith

is strong enough to admit that and they deal with it. JW's will hide their head in the sand and point an accusing

finger at other religions. If the JW's do admit that there was a settlement, they will not say that it was an admission

of guilt on the part of the WTBTS but rather a settlement to avoid spending the Lord's money and time on something

that is was not worth going to court for. An example would be the woman who spilt hot coffee on her at McDonald's,

got burnt and sued MCDonald's. She won the case because it was settled out of court. McDonald's was not at

fault and not the blame, it just wasn't worth the time and money to fight the case. I am affraid that no matter how

much news comes out about the settlement it will roll right off the witnesses back and even if there wasn't a gag

order and the victims of these hideous crimes could speak out the remarks would be from the witnesses that they

are just apostates who have turned against Jehovah. It is so difficult being associated with JW's due to family

concerns while being able to know the truth about the truth.

I hear you, as someone who was abused and who's sister knew about it and who's friends knew about it and yet I am the one who is shunned. They cannot/will not admit that there is a problem. When I was in I thought it was not a problem and that I was an exception to the rule in the way my case was dealt with.

dedpoet

I personally believe that the Catholic Church was forced by bad publicity
to deal with its child abuse problem. I suspect the Pope and his Cardinals
would have preferred to keep it under wraps if they could have, but Catholicism
is a major world religion, and the national church in many countries. Any reports
of wrongdoing would be headline news in many parts of the world.

The watchtower is, on the other hand, totally insignificant compared to the RCC,
and its that anonymity that allows them to cover their scandals up as much as
they are able. I would suspect that in some countries, like India and China, a large
proportion of the population has never heard of jws, whereas the major religions
are known throughout the world.

WTWizard

This is just one more nail in their coffin. At least the Catholic church is trying to rectify the problem. What they did was wrong, and they are going to pay for it. But at least now they are trying to make things right so that it won't keep happening again.

With the Witlesses, they will not admit fault. That damn two-witness policy is not going anywhere. They lie in court to make themselves look good and the organization faultless. And the problem keeps going on. Worse, they silence the victims under threat of getting disfellowshipped and the family held hostage. Often they also keep them from finding work, especially if they succeed in getting the victim to start work in a Witless-owned cleaning business. The Witless's whole life structure will fall apart as a result of telling the truth. Do you hear of that in the Catholic cases?

I am hoping that these cases eventually lead to the cult's being totally banned. And not enforced so much by persecution: if they are exposed in all the newspapers and periodical magazines, people are going to see it and not want to join. The Witlesses inside might then ban their members from reading worldly news journals of any kind to preserve the illusion of faultlessness. However, some are going to disobey; others will have no choice as they will work around newspapers or have unvelieving mates that will leave the TV on or the newspaper on the table. And the magazines will be left in the dentists' and doctors' waiting rooms. Exposure to the truth will be inevitable. Instead of being faultless, the Witnesses will then be seen as witless.

poppers

You would think the WT would give the RCC the benefit of the doubt, citing the two witness rule that they use for themselves. But no, they base their reaction on the allegations of the one's who were abused. I guess what's good for the goose isn't for the gander.

DanTheMan

If you ask a Roman Catholic if there was a problem with child abuse in their church
they would say yes and it is being dealt with. If you ask a JW the same question they would say no, that is something
that is a problem that the RCC has.

Also interesting is the fact that, unlike JW's, Catholics who are outraged by the clergy sex abuse scandals are able to freely voice this outrage, and to even organize in groups to protest the church policies that allowed such abuses to occur, with no fear of excommunication.

Sister Concerned: "Hi Brother SocietyMan, I'm really concerned about this two-witness rule and the way that it is applied in judicial matters involving the sexual abuse of children."

Brother SocietyMan: "Oh you are? Well, I'd be glad to discuss your concerns with you. Why don't you come to the Kingdom Hall this Wednesday evening? I'll be here with two other elders."

greendawn

The catholic church did try to hide its problem with child abuse but then it couldn't be kept away from publicity for ever. Also the problem with the catholic priests is that they are forced to remain celibate and this increases the likelihood of such things happening whereas in the JWs most people that abuse children are married.