This is the email I have just sent to Mr. Stewart Angus, who has been conducting the questioning of the JW leaders during the Australian Royal Commission dealing with child abuse cases among the Jehovah's Witnesses, concerning the claims made that a jehovah Witness who wishes to walk away from the organization can simply become inactive and avoid being shunned:
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Dear Mr. Angus Stewart,
I have followed with interest the videos of the ARC regarding the
Jehovah's Witnesses in Australia. You are extremely knowledgeable in
your interventions and I praise you for your level of preparation.
I have seen that lately it seems to be a strategy of the Jehovah's
Witnesses leadership to argue that a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses
can chose to become inactive, rather then formally disassociate from the
cult; this way they give the impression that it's a matter
of choice that former members get shunned. More revolting even - it is
suggested that it is the disassocoated member who has chosen to shun the
Jehovah's Witnesses (!!), thus reversing the burden of blame
upon the victim of shunning. Those who leave may indeed want nothing to
do with the religion, but in most cases, certainly they don't want to
sever ties with their friends and relatives who chose to remain as
members. Those are two different things, but dishonestly the leadership
of the Jehovah's Witnesses attempts to conflate them.
Allow me to suggest you this line of questioning:
A publisher of the congregation isn't considered "inactive" until 6
consecutive months have passed without reporting any ministry service
hours. If someone wishes to no longer be an active member of the
congregation, with immediate effect, must he wait 6 months until he is
consider such? What is his (her) status during those first six months?
According to the Watchtower literature - especially that whose audience
are the congregation elders - if someone doesn't formally disassociate
from the Jehovah's Witnesses, but makes a public claim (can simply be
during a conversation with friends that gets reported to the
congregation elders) to the effect that he ino longer considers himself
(herself) a Jehovah's Witness, that person is considered as having
disassociated himself (herself) from the congregation, thus resulting in
shunning. Therefore, it is NOT TRUE that a person can simply become
inactive in order to leave the Jehovah's Witnesses and avoid shunning.
Accordingly, if a Jehovah's Witness who has become inactive, but is
found to have engaged in some "sinful" behavior (such as sexual
misconduct or apostasy), that person is still under the disciplinary
jurisdiction of the body of elders of the local congregation and may be
subject to a judicial committee and be disfellowshipped and subject to
shunning. This proves that an 'inactive' is still considered a member
and has no freedom of behavior or speech. Many years may pass (and
eventually it must require a change of town) until the elders may decide
to not take disciplinary action against an inactive member who is known
to have adopted a behavior that would normally result in
disfellowshipping of an active Witness.
Let me tell you something that happened in my family, in Portugal,
Europe: My son, who was baptized as a Jehovah's Witness at age 11,
became inactive at age 15, and stopped going to the religious meetings
and report ministry service hours. More than two years later, he was
summoned for the National Defense Day (NDD), which is of mandatory
attendance for all citizens. It is customary that Jehovah's Witnesses'
apply for Conscientious Objector status to avoid attending that one-day
event, given their objections to participate in warfare, military
service and their claims of neutrality in political affairs. However, in
Portugal, failing to attend that event precludes someone for applying
for a job as a civil servant later in life. So, my son decided he
shouldn't give up that option, and he attended the NDD. In a letter
written previously to the congregation body of elders, it was stated
that he felt that he was simply complying with the secular law and that
by complying with the law of the country he absolutely meant in no way
to disassociate from the Jehovah's Witnesses. A couple of weeks
following the NDD, two elders from the congregation came to our door, to
inform us that our son had disassociated himself from the congregation
by attending the NDD. The announcement was made to the congregation
later that week, and he has been shunned ever since, including by
members of his own family. Consequently, both me and my wife wrote
letters of disassociation from the congregation of the Jehovah's
Witnesses.
It is also a fact that the culture among the Jehovah's Witnesses is to
informally shun those who become inactive, in what can be described as
"soft shunning". The inactives are considered a bad example, bad
influence, and association with them, even in the family context, is
strongly discouraged. They become progressively left out of all social
interaction with congregation members. That happened with me and my wife
as well while we were inactive.
In conclusion, Mr. Angus Stewart, it is a flat out falsehood the claim
that a Jehovah's Witness can simply become "inactive" in order to
separate himself (herself) from the Organization and avoid being
shunned. The "inactive" status doesn't grant the person the liberty to
act and speak freely without becoming subject to disciplinary
jurisdiction of the body of elders of the congregation which, depending
on the "sin", may either disfellowship (even in absentia) or decide that the inactive member has
disassociated himself. The result, in either case, is shunning. A victim
of child sex abuse who becomes inactive doesn't have the freedom to:
a) Say "I'm no longer a Jehovah's Witness" because, if reported to the
congregation elders, it will be decided that such person has
disassociated himself (herself), and an announcement will be made to the
congregation to that effect and the person will thus be shunned.
b) Attend another religious group's service. (Disassociation)
c) Accept a blood transfusion (Disassociation)
d) Attend the compulsory military service or join a political party or
run for a political position (Disassociation)
e) Have sex outside marriage, be it pre-marital, adulterous,
homosexual... (Disfellowshipping)
f) Publicly criticize, in speech or writing, the Watchtower
Organization, its leadership and its policies or doctrine. (Apostasy -
Disfellowshipping or disassociation)
g) Smoke, gambling or buy a lottery ticket (Disfellowshipping)
Please take the above into consideration the next time a member of the
Jehovah's Witnesses attempts to disingenuously claim before the ARC that
someone can simply chose to become inactive to avoid being shunned.
Best regards,
XXXXX XXX XXX XXXXXX
