Disfellowshipped for reading "apostate literature"?

Vanderhoven7

Is reading apostate literature a disfellowshipping offense?

Do you know of people being disfellowshipped for this or for receiving apostate literature?

Vanderhoven7 - I suspect the short answer would be "no". Apostasy is a disfellowshipping offense, but I personally doubt that JUST reading "apostate" literature would be enough to disfellowship someone for apostasy. It really depends on what an individual does with that information. If it was reported to elders that, say, a publisher had been seen with a copy of Crisis of Conscience in their home, I think the publisher could expect a visit from the elders. What comes up in that conversation might form the basis of whether judicial action is taken or not. If the individual expresses agreement with the literature, or a desire to share the information with others (in short, anything other than utter condemnation of the book), then I think the judicial wheels would start to turn.

Whilst not an automatic disfellowshipping offense, I think it would almost certainly be a cause for marking an individual at the very least if they express disagreement with the book but don't agree to destroy it.

Cedars

pontoon

Might come under their new catch-all of "brazen behaviour," depends a lot on the body I think.

cedars

pontoon

depends a lot on the body I think

This is very true.

Cedars

Splash

By it's definition, most of all WT's and other publications are now 'apostate' (teaching incorrect things), since the new GB=FDS bombshell.

That includes some of what's still on the official website.

Splash

NVR2L8

JW's would never consider the old WT publications as apostate even when they contain teachings that have long been replaced by "new light". Over a year ago I moved to a newer house and while we were unpacking boxes I told my wife that I no longer needed all the WT and Awake bound volumes because I had all of them in my PC...she didn't want me to part with the books until I told her that the information they contained was partly why I no longer go to the meetings...I told her that I would be labelled an apostate if I still held to some of the teaching of the past...She then agreed to let me dispose of the books as long as I kept the most recent study books...so 40 years of WT bound volumes found their way to the dumpster...so now I have fewer apostate literature on my bookshelves!

AuntBee

My daughter and i tried to give one page of apostate ( aka "We don't want you to see this") literature to her friend, and i thought he was going to have a nervous breakdown!

james_woods

What Cedars said. They would have to find some actionable offense - saying something against the GB to someone else, for example.

It is obvious that the Bethel people themselves look at apostate literature to keep taps on their opponents. I know for a fact that they had "Forty Years a Watchtower Slave" and probably other "apostate" books in the Bethel Library back when I was an elder.

cantleave

Reading literature is not a DFing offense in itself. The elders will be looking to "pull the erring one from the fire". The reality is however the "erring" one will be interrogated and his / her loyalty to the organisation will be questioned. If there is any evidence of disloyalty, or of disseminating the information contained in the apostate material - they will be DF'd....

BlindersOff1

You can in reality be disfellowshipped for anything 3 elders agree on in a JC. But you can appeal .

Disfellowshipped for reading "apostate literature"?

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