Hi all, I received an email this morning that I was only partially able to help with. Perhaps the group here could fill in the missing pieces.
Here is the email I received:
I have a tape of a court hearing where I am the respondent. An elder came to court and denied the existence of the Organization book and the custody packet. "In all my 25 years as an overseer, I've never heard of either of them." Does anyone have a letter that accompanied the packet to prove its use and availablity to elders? I am pressing perjury charges and the detective needs all he can get to present it to the prosecutor.For the record, Here is my response
Also, he said the word "shunning" has never been used in the JW context. I know it has been in the flock book but am not sure where. Can you help?
Thank you,
[name removed]
I am not familiar with the "custody packet" but I would not be surprised that it exists.===========================
If by "Organization" book you are referring to the elder's manual "Pay Attention", then any elder that denied knowledge of it deserves full charges of perjury!
Are you familiar with the JW discussion board? ( http://www.jehovahs-witness.com)
There are many solid researches & packrats there that may be able to help you. I would be happy to post an enquiry there on your behalf, if you would like. Alternatively, you could post something there yourself, let me know what you want to do.
As to the word "shun"... JW literature/vocabulary generally uses this word to refer to bad "things" and bad "actions" rather than directly to "shunning former members". However, the fact that they usually don't use that particular word in that context does not change the fact that by their actions they do practise shunning toward former members.
Here is my results of a quick searh for the word SHUN from the 1999 CD-ROM of WT literature: (the first one is NOT on the CD-ROM):
*** Pay Attention to Yourselves and to All the Flock (1991), p.103 ***
[Click Here to learn more about this lesser known book]
Proper View of Disfellowshipped and Disassociated PersonsIf an individual is trying to influence others to take an unscriptural course or is trying to deceive others, all should avoid him; he is described at 2. John 9-11.
Disfellowshipped and disassociated ones are shunned by those who wish to have a good relationship with Jehovah.
Basic Scriptural counsel on the proper view of those who have been expelled from the congregation is set out in the apostle Paul's words at 1 Corinthians 5:11- 13.
John counsels against speaking to or associating with a disfellowshipped or disassociated person so as not to be "a sharer in his wicked works." (2 John 11 )
Scriptural and historical guidelines on how to view disfellowshipped and disassociated persons are found in The Watchtower, September 15, 1981, pages 20-31.
Note the following: JWs understand that former members are "sisapproved" by God, so here SHUN is used inderectly with respect to them:
*** it-1 (Insight Vol 1) p.649 Dread ***
A wholesome dread of Jehovah, reflected in a desire to shun what He disapproves, is vital if a person is to remain his servant. This dread made it possible for Job to be blameless and upright. (Job 1:1; 23:15; 31:23) And it enabled the psalmist to persevere in a divinely favored course despite the persecution by princes. (Ps 119:120, 161) Jehoshaphat encouraged appointed judges to have this proper dread so that they would be impartial in rendering just decisions.-2Ch 19:5-7.Here they talk about former desires, that certainly is interpreted to mean association with friends one had before becoming a JW:
*** it-2 622 Peter, Letters of ***
Christians should act in a manner worthy of their wonderful hope"The ones chosen" have been given a living hope, an incorruptible inheritance in heaven (<G<Þ>G>1Pe <G<Ü>G>1:1-5)
They have faith in Jesus Christ for the salvation of their souls-something that the prophets of old and even the angels were intensely interested in (1:8-12)
Hence, they should brace up their minds for activity; they should shun their former desires, be holy, and conduct themselves with godly fear and brotherly love (1:13-25)
Again, here they explicitly say "shun bad associations" which in JW-speak definately includes formber members.
*** it-2 705 Proverbs, Book of ***
Proper attitude toward Jehovah
Trust in Jehovah (3:5, 6; 16:20; 18:10; 29:25)
Fear him and shun badness (3:7; 10:27; 14:26, 27; 16:6; 19:23)
[...]Practical guidelines for daily living
Respond properly to discipline, reproof, counsel (13:18; 15:10; 19:20; 27:5, 6)
Be a true friend (17:17; 18:24; 19:4; 27:9, 10)
Be discreet in accepting hospitality (23:1-3, 6-8; 25:17)
Materialism is vain (11:28; 23:4, 5; 28:20, 22)
Hard work brings blessings (12:11; 28:19)
Cultivate honest business practices (11:1; 16:11; 20:10, 23)
Beware of going surety for others, especially for strangers (6:1-5; 11:15; 22:26, 27)
Shun unwholesome speech; be sure your speech is upbuilding (10:18-21, 31, 32; 11:13; 12:17-19; 15:1, 2, 4, 28; 16:24; 18:8)
Flattery is treacherous (28:23; 29:5)
Avoid quarrels (3:30; 17:14; 20:3; 26:17)
Shun bad associations (1:10-19; 4:14-19; 22:24, 25)
Learn to deal wisely with ridiculers as well as with foolish ones (9:7, 8; 19:25; 22:10; 26:4, 5)
Avoid the pitfalls of strong drink (20:1; 23:29-35; 31:4-7)
Do not envy the wicked (3:31-34; 23:17, 18; 24:19, 20)*** it-2 1108 Timothy, Letters to ***
Counsel to help Timothy stand firm against false teachers
Avoid fights about words and talk that violates what is holy; with mildness, try to recover those ensnared by the Devil (2:16-26)
In the last days there will be critical times hard to deal with because of the wicked attitudes of people; they will be lovers of money and of pleasures rather than lovers of God; shun such people (3:1-7)*** si 250 Bible Book Number 59-James ***
Shun sensual pleasure, friendship with the world (4:1-17).*** si 258 Bible Book Number 62-1 John ***
WHY BENEFICIAL
11 Just as in the closing years of the first century of the Common Era, so today there are "many antichrists" against whom true Christians must be warned. These true Christians must hold fast to 'the message which they heard from the beginning, have love for one another,' and remain in union with God and the true teaching, practicing righteousness with freeness of speech. (2:18; 3:11; 2:27-29) Most important also is the warning against "the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the showy display of one's means of life," those materialistic, worldly evils that have engulfed most professing Christians. True Christians will shun the world and its desire, knowing that "he that does the will of God remains forever." In this age of worldly desire, sectarianism, and hatred, how beneficial it is, indeed, to study God's will through the inspired Scriptures and to do that will!-2:15-17.*** uw 10-11 1 Unity in Worship-What Should It Mean for You? ***
11 Through that organization we have learned of Jehovah's grand promise to replace the present environment with new heavens and a new earth in which "righteousness is to dwell." (2 Pet. 3:13) We thrill at the prospect that soon this wicked world will be gone and the earth will be transformed into a Paradise. But does our own life pattern show that we are sincerely preparing for life in a world where righteousness will be the prevailing practice? The Bible plainly tells us: "Do not be loving either the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." (1 John 2:15) It is true that there are many things about the world that none of us like. But do we dislike mainly those aspects of the world that infringe on our own immediate enjoyment of life? Or do we also shun its spirit-its independent attitude, its excessive concern for self? Are we genuinely making it a practice to listen to Jehovah and to obey him from our heart, despite any contrary inclinations of the flesh? Our entire life course-no matter where we are, no matter what we are doing-should give evidence that our thinking and our motives are God oriented.-Prov. 3:5, 6.*** Song Book 191 191 Make the Truth Your Own ***
By putting God first and him actively praising,
The world and its friendship you'll lose.
To those without faith, it is truly amazing
That God's righteous way you did choose.
Make the truth your own.
Shun the world; leave it alone.
As to God Jehovah you draw near,
You make known that the truth is your own.*** Song Book 213 213 Working Together in Unity ***
We must act together as one.
Independence wisely we shun.
Harmony and oneness of mind
Bring peace of rarest kind.
Unity brings blessings.
This we'll surely find.
If with talents we are endowed,
There's no reason e'er to be proud.
Modestly, with genuine love,
Let's praise our God above.*** rs 35-6 Apostasy ***
Not only do they abandon the true faith but they then "beat" their former associates, using public criticism and other methods to hinder their work; the efforts of such apostates are devoted to tearing down, not building up
Matt. 24:45-51: "Who really is the faithful and discreet slave whom his master appointed over his domestics, to give them their food at the proper time? . . . But if ever that evil slave should say in his heart, 'My master is delaying,' and should start to beat his fellow slaves and should eat and drink with the confirmed drunkards, the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect and in an hour that he does not know, and will punish him with the greatest severity and will assign him his part with the hypocrites."
2 Tim. 2:16-18: "Shun empty speeches that violate what is holy; for they will advance to more and more ungodliness, and their word will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of that number. These very men have deviated from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already occurred; and they are subverting the faith of some."*** w96 2/1 23-4 Trust in Jehovah and His Word ***
8 Has the reading or listening to apostate ideas or worldly philosophy introduced poisonous doubts? Wisely, the Bible counsels: "Do your utmost to present yourself approved to God, a workman with nothing to be ashamed of, handling the word of the truth aright. But shun empty speeches that violate what is holy; for they will advance to more and more ungodliness, and their word will spread like gangrene." (2 Timothy 2:15-17) It is of interest that many who have become victims of apostasy got started in the wrong direction by first complaining about how they felt they were being treated in Jehovah's organization. (Jude 16) Finding fault with beliefs came later. Just as a surgeon acts quickly to cut out gangrene, act quickly to rout out of the mind any tendency to complain, to be dissatisfied with the way things are done in the Christian congregation. (Colossians 3:13, 14) Cut off anything that feeds such doubts.-Mark 9:43.*** w84 5/1 31 Questions From Readers ***
"In the first century, Hymenaeus and Philetus turned apostate and tried to subvert the faith of others. God's standard was: 'Shun such empty speeches that violate what is holy.' (2 Timothy 2:16-19) Christians holding to that standard would not have been interested in listening to apostates, nor in obtaining any poisonous writings that these might distribute 'for the sake of dishonest gain.' Why finance their wickedness by buying their literature? (Titus 1:11) As loyal Christians let us hold to God's standards, feeding our minds on what is true and righteous, and holding appreciatively and loyally to the channel from which we first learned Bible truth.-Compare 1 Timothy 4:16."-Page 15.*** w83 6/15 15 Jehovah's Standards Help Us ***
18 Adhering to God's standard also helps to prevent the spreading of false teachings and views. In the first century, Hymenaeus and Philetus turned apostate and tried to subvert the faith of others. God's standard was: 'Shun such empty speeches that violate what is holy.' (2 Timothy 2:16-19) Christians holding to that standard would not have been interested in listening to apostates, nor in obtaining any poisonous writings that these might distribute "for the sake of dishonest gain." Why finance their wickedness by buying their literature? (Titus 1:11) As loyal Christians let us hold to God's standards, feeding our minds on what is true and righteous, and holding appreciatively and loyally to the channel from which we first learned Bible truth.-Compare 1 Timothy 4:16.*** bw 110-1 7 Aliens and Temporary Residents of Exemplary Conduct ***
27 The time that a Christian may have spent in satisfying his sinful passions and desires while he was ignorant of God's will and purpose certainly should have been enough for him never to want to return to a life characterized by excesses and lack of moral restraint. We never want to forget how empty and meaningless a life of self-indulgence is, and the shame that goes along with it. (Romans 6:21) The vulgar, obscene entertainment, lewd dancing, and wild, passion-arousing music, which have become so prominent in the world, should repel, not attract, us. While it may not be easy to be spoken of abusively by former associates because we shun such things, we surely have nothing to gain by joining them in their wild parties and their unbridled way of life. But we do have much to lose by adopting worldliness. All practicers of what is bad must render an account for their actions before Jesus Christ, the one whom Jehovah God has appointed to judge the living and the dead. (2 Timothy 4:1) Because this judgment is certain, the "good news" was declared to the "dead," that is, to the spiritually dead who needed to repent, turn around and come to life from God's standpoint by having the atoning benefits of Christ's sacrifice applied to them.This one is funny, it puts the shoe on the other foot:
*** w86 7/1 27 Lining Up With Jehovah's Integrity Keepers ***
14 Certainly when a person becomes a Christian witness of Jehovah, he suddenly finds out who are his true friends. Some will perhaps shun or boycott him because he has abandoned his former religion, even though they themselves do not practice any religion properly. But Jesus promised that there would be a compensation for any such loss, saying: "No one has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the good news who will not get a hundredfold now in this period of time . . . and in the coming system of things everlasting life."-Mark 10:29, 30.Another ironic one:
*** w81 5/1 5-6 Make a Success of Your Life Now ***
RELIABLE ASSOCIATION
Josephine was popular at school. She was bright, good at sports and a member of school organizations. For special events, she was usually the one chosen to represent the school.
Then this girl had the opportunity to study the Bible. Because she started to mold her life by Scriptural principles, her former friends began to shun her. This did not disturb her, however, because she had found friends of a different kind. As she said: "Jehovah's Witnesses are true friends, because when you need it, they are always ready to help you." True, her life had been seemingly happy before she became a practicing Christian. But she said: "Even though I was thoroughly spoiled by everyone in those days, I did not feel the happiness that I feel now."
For interesting Watchtower Society literature quotes, complete with references but without any editorial, check out: http://Quotes.JehovahsWitnesses.com
