How many were brought in the infamous back room?
Survey: How Many Here Have Gotten Into Trouble With The Elders
by minimus 19 Replies latest jw friends
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Nathan Natas
My offense was SO severe there wasn't time to go to the back room. My PO at the time (I was an MS and a Pioneer) told me my sideburns were 1/8 of an inch too long. He was a real manipulative PRICK and loved playing the brothers and sisters against each other. I saw through his evil game and refused to join in. Today Mike Smilnak has his reward - he's dead, with no hope of the resurrection that he hawked as a promise so he could gain more victims. Anyone else who knew Mike can tell of other ways that he showed himself to be a SCHMUCK - I could tell at least a half-dozen stories on him. -
freemindfade
I've only been there for supposed badness that happened often not even with me, or somehow involved me. Never been reproved or DF'd no judicial committees, seen the back room plenty. My favorite was a struggle going on between elders and MS's who didn't like each other and it overflowed onto a bunch of young guys we all had bands we were in, and i would consider myself older (late 20's). Our band was pretty chill alternative and our fiends had a incredibly heavy metal band, some of them were MS's. Anyway we got dragged in all of us at once, why? We had myspace counts (yes this was back about 7-10 years ago). Anyway I got pissed, I had the bible the reasoning book all kinds of stuff and I was the only one (even though I didn't have the crazy metal band) who stood up and called the elders out. I was furious I was sure I was gonna get in trouble because I am so calm and quiet and I went off. Throwing out scriptures I accused one of the accusing elders who wasn't even there or in that hall anymore of being an apostate. I want HAM. These poor bros saw things my way, I was shocked. I was like I don't even know what I am doing here??? lol.
These situation I have only experienced as not some actual wrongdoing but people who wanted to use the big bad elders as their tool to punish someone they didn't like. Total jw cowards. And elders having no clue about the real world and that these people were playing them out like fools but they had to do their due diligence. Never again. Someones wants to talk to me in the back room they can piss off.
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Simon
I committed the sin of talking to my df'd father when I was about 11 so obviously needed a good talking to and a guilt trip about it.
The next time was when I started asking questions about things that didn't make sense: misquotes in the literature, false representations of past beliefs etc...
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Phizzy
I am amazed to think that I was never dragged into the "back room". I got "counselled" by one Elder on a few occasions over the years, one time was about the length of my sideburns too, by coincidence. Being me I promptly grew a full beard, and nothing was said !
I kept that beard for 13 years, all the time serving as a M.S.
After I had been a non-attender for six months or so, I got the two Elder visit, I fobbed them off and they went away shaking their heads, couldn't quite work out how to hang anything on me. They fully expected to get me for Apostasy.
I got in trouble for some things I said a couple of years later, Apostasy again LOL, and I got the "phone call", where it seems one concerned Elder is phoning you, but you can hear the heavy breathing of the other dolt listening in.
I sorted that one, and nothing since, in the way of "trouble", just a courtesy call last August, with a tract to get me to go to the website.
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minimus
I never was disciplined judicially. While I was an elder, the PO asked me about rumors about me talking against The Truth....lol...I got out of that!
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Finkelstein
The one and only time I got pulled to the back room was for having about half an inch of hair over my ears.
This one elder who was lets say follicley challenged look closely on the hair length of all the men who were JWS, ones giving talks, going out in service caliber.
The word was no hair cut, no talks and no service.
This was back in the 70's when young men were all pretty much wearing their hair longer. This hair thing was just one part of myself creating some critical evaluation on what was going on at the Kingdom Halls.
NO beards or long hair What ? Jesus in the pictures of the literature we were passing out had long hair and a beard ?
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20years_to_get_free
Seems like I was always in the back room for a talking to. Usually about something mundane like going to the mall. Yes, really. I was only pulled in the back once for anything serious, which was some basic groping by a young "brother" in the congregation. I was privately reproved, but by then I was on my way out the door, so it didn't matter. -
The Searcher
Been in the back room TWICE in two different congregations - both times at my request, because I was getting the Elders' corruptions brought to the attention of the Branch and the C.O.
Needless to say, each BoE stuck together and I became Public Enemy No.1 in their eyes - as well as their wives!
Don't rat on Elders!
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blondie
Never ever go to the back room. Talk to them out in the open at the KH, bring a friend over. The elders always backed off. If they say some anonymous person has accused you, ask who it is, if they won't name them, don't talk to the elders at all. I would ask if it this was about a df'ing offense; they won't tell you; end the conversation politely.
I had a few elders try to bully me but end up in trouble themselves. I would just set a trap and they would jump in, in front of my friend. Elders lie, lie, lie. And the ones that don't directly lie, support the liars.