After watching Dateline I am left with many emotions. Firt, sincere empathy for Erica. What a beautiful brave young women. She came across, not an evil apostate that Watchtower wants to portray, but someone like a victim who has become a survivor. My heart goes out to her and her family. My second emotion, is disappointment. I had known Barbara Anderson had much more that could have been said. And we did also. Dateline spent 10 hours at our home last July filming me, and the rest of our family. They filmed me describing the painful experiences we dealt with from the Watchtower, they filmed my daughter speaking of her abuse, they filmed our family sitting together watching the Rapist go door to door on the T.V, and our faces as we watched in disgust, they took the video of our son, Justin, his wedding and Bill performing the ceremony because the Watchtower Society ordered the elders to withdraw the Bethel Speaker, my daughter in law's cousin from performing the ceremony. They filmed my daughter walking saying she would never raise a child as one of Jehovah's Witnesses after going through what she had gone through. I didn't expect so much would be cut. It hurt to see the image of the rapist, a once trusted grandparent, groping at his victim, my daughter, just prior to her coming forward in 1988. The third emotion is grateful that the rapist, my father-in-law was portrayed in his usual arrogant attitude. That was his demeanor in the courtroom when he accused our daughter and the other victims who testified in her behalf of lying. Erica's experience in court with elders sitting with her rapist was exactly what we experienced in 1999 during the civil trial. Finally I feel relief that after seeing JR Brown on that video, I am so very relieved we are no longer a part of such a cruel, and cultlike religion. I thank God for directing our path. And I thank him for bringing new and good people into our lives. Starting with Bill, Barbara Anderson, and all on this DB who share these feelings.
Barbara Pandelo
ARoarer
JoinedPosts by ARoarer
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IMAGES OF A SERIAL RAPIST
by ARoarer inafter watching dateline i am left with many emotions.
firt, sincere empathy for erica.
what a beautiful brave young women.
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About Daniel Fitzwater-Exposed on Dateline
by LFitzwater inthis is a very long story that i will try to condense.
it will still probably be too long.
life is good for us now that we know the real truth.
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Hi Laurie, I read your story, and you are very brave, and I commend you. I noticed you are from Bradenton, Fl. My niece went to Bradenton Congregation. She dealt with abuse there, and her family are actually co-dependant family members who support my father-in-law, the Pedophile seen going to the door on Dateline. My niece has suffered much because of her parents' loyalty to my in-laws and for other reasons related to her experiences. Did you know the Pandelo family in Bradenton?
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Is Blood Thicker Dan Water
by non_trias_theos insome people in this place think that jws break up families.
they say that since jws df unrepentant baptized members and insist on jw family members restricting association with df members that jws try to break up families.
what do you think about this charge?.
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Non, regarding Korah, I used the scriptures quoted from the Reasoning Book under "Apostasy" and looked them up in the NWT, then read the same scriptures from the "Easy Reader Version" , which is the Bible the Society uses to study with the deaf, and also the "King James" which the Society mentions in their own publications. You seem distracted with "Bill Bowen" calling it the "Bill Bowen Version". It is obvious that the Reasoning Book has erroneously used the book of Jude to elevate humans to the glorious ones, and to speak against them is equal to what Korah did. Are you a "glorious one" and do you feel that we are going against your position as an appointed one from Jehovah? Because if that is what you believe, then you have followed the false teaching of the Watchtower, by speaking abusively of the angels and bringing in false teachings into the congregation. So in effect it is you who are like Korah.
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I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!!
by DazedAndConfused inwhile i was sexually abused as a child, 4 years old,...all of this has almost driven me over the top!.
no...it has driven me over the top!!!.
please, please, stop this insanity...
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((((((((((((((((DAZED))))))))))))))))))))
Your post speaks alot. I read your experience on a previous post and the pain you endured. I know how you are feeling about not being able to take anymore. I too have been previously diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from my own experience within the Watchtower. Yes, everything that has been happening is also bringing up a lot for me as well as my husband. We had begun to make a life for ourselves after distancing ourselves from WT. Now with all the media attention and dealing with Judicial Committees and Watchtower Headquarters, the anxiety levels have come back. Hang in there.
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My Silentlamb/Benton KY experience.
by Yerusalyim inwe all know the big news that came from the news conference and candlight vigil (candle light at 7:30pm?
i arrived at the benton courthouse at 9:30 am, i guess i was expecting to see a lot of people there.
i walked around and around and around the courthouse looking for someone that looked like they were there for the press conference.. finally, at about 9:55 i saw several cars with folks in suits drive by and figued "that must be them" i was correct.
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Hi Yeru, You decribed your experience in Ky so beautifully. I was glad your wife and daughter were there for you. I wish we could have been with all the roaring lambs. Yes, Bill and Barb are truly remarkable. They are both very special. Tonight when Dateline airs it will be a culmination of all they worked hard to accomplish. It is not easy to give up so much at the hands of the Watchtower, but it is rewarding to know that doing something has made a difference for so many.
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Revised Post
by silentlambs inin view of the seriousness of the upcoming topic to be covered on dateline i thought about this post and decided to revise it.
i think it is important to not be too lighthearted as the dateline program seeks to bring out the truth about a serious matter.
therefore i decided to remove the post.
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Do they do return visits??
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Record, North Jersey
by ARoarer inhttp://www.bergen.com .
the record in north jersey has an article on the front page about the sexual abuse issue facing the watchtower.
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I thought the article in the Record was a little disappointing. It never touched on the issues we talked about with the reporter. The article was bland, non commital and did not communicate what all of the victims faced when they depended on elders to be truthful during court proceedings. We spent days and hours answering questions everytime the Record called. Our lawyer took time out to provide court documents at their request. My husband took calls on his cell phone and was interrupted during a business meeting at a trade show. We were under the impression the Record wanted to do an in depth investigation. They quoted the elder saying we moniter pedophiles. They never mentioned our issue with that. So what if elders moniter pedophiles. They only do it on Kingdom Hall property. The Pedophile can molest children outside the Kingdom Hall, as in my father-in-law's case. The record neglected to mention that we chose to appeal not because we are so hurt that our friends can't talk to us. The bottom line people stopped talking to us over a year ago when we first talked to the Courier Journal in Kentucky. The appeal is based on the fact that we are not "apostate", have not left Christian teachings, and the disfellowshipping issue is done to abuse the members and control them, and threaten them from carrying on any relationship they once had with the person being kicked out. The disfellowshipping issue gives the message that we are held on the same level as an adulterer, fornicator, greedy, person, drunkard etc...... I can guarantee many elders I have known should then be disfellowshipped. Me and my husband are none of these. As for Pedophiles being expelled from the congregation, yes they should be kept out at all cost. They cannot be cured, they are opportunists looking for an opportunity to grab. Preaching? Would you want to listen to one at your door with your little child by your side. And in my father-in-law's case, telephone witnessing is just another opportunity to find children who answer the phone. Part of is MO is luring children by phone. And what about victims who have been raped. Is is normal for a victim to want to be in the same room as her rapist. The world does not expect that. So why would a mother of a victim want her childs rapist to be sitting across the Kingdom Hall because the "brothers" believe he is "repentant". Let God decide that. Until then keep them out. Another issue the Record did not mention is that the Kingdom Hall that harbors my father-in-law, is contaminated with family members who protected him. His own nephew is the Presiding Overseer, who threatened members discipline if they spoke about his uncles' perversion, which by the way affected his own immediate family, who also chose to protect the family name under the guise of protecting the congregation. Incestuous family members protecting the pedophile in the congregation. I just would have liked to have seen the Record be more accurate in portraying the issue of the coverup that occured in that whole County in North Jersey where countless victims came forward in the surrounding congregations. My father-in-law enjoyed the protection of family members silenceing the victims, many who left the Watchtower decades ago. This man had victims that spanded the 50' 60' 70' and 80's in the surrounding congregations. As for victims in the world, there also were several. Who really knows how many he did have. The fact that he is "in good standing" and can enjoy a greeting is a travesty while we are labled by the leaders who protect him.
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FRONT PAGE NEWS!
by Silverleaf ini'd just like to say congratulations to all those who've worked so hard and suffered so much at the hands of the wtbs to bring the pedophile scandal to the forefront.
i was thrilled to see the front page headline in my newpaper this morning [the record] .
"a battle rises within jehovah's witnesses".
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I just posted it.
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Record, North Jersey
by ARoarer inhttp://www.bergen.com .
the record in north jersey has an article on the front page about the sexual abuse issue facing the watchtower.
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ARoarer
The Record in North Jersey has an article on the front page about the sexual abuse issue facing the Watchtower.
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Is Blood Thicker Dan Water
by non_trias_theos insome people in this place think that jws break up families.
they say that since jws df unrepentant baptized members and insist on jw family members restricting association with df members that jws try to break up families.
what do you think about this charge?.
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ARoarer
The argument that Jehovah's Witnesses use about the example of Korah is really getting old. This is part of the Watchtower thought control. If you do your research and use other Bibles other than the NWT, you will see that the example of Korah in the book of Jude and in the context that it was written was about speaking out against the angels, not human leaders who the Watchtower likes to elevate as the "glorious ones". As far as Jehovah's Witnesses dividing families, yes that is true.Our religious community should prove to be a source of spiritual refreshment for families, not a punishing, jungemental, lawyer run, hypocritical force to be dealt with. Our youth are precious to us and a religious community must always be there for them in there typical rebellous years that all teens go through. A religion that ousts it's youth, and expects parents to do the same is not a Christian community, it is a destructive cult. As far as the Bible example of Korah rebelling, he was punished by God for protrating himself to a golden image of an animal, rather that keeping to his worship to Jehovah. I hardly think when Jehovah dealt with Korah, he had in mind families being divided and punished for speaking out about criminal behavior tolerated by the religious leaders of our day. In all of Biblical history, Jehovah never hid the lawelssness of the leaders. Their sexual sins, and the tolerating of sexual sins against children was never condoned by Jehovah. In fact he used his prophets to expose the lawlessness of the leaders tolerating it and covering it. These leaders tried to kill them for speaking out. They were not being like Korah when reporting about gross wrongdoing. You have gone along and consented to the Watchtower hiding and covering up sexual perverision against children, and expelling of family members who speak out against it. You have become like what Jesus warned about when he said those loving their father or mother......... more than me are not worthy of me. Obviously the Watchtower leaders and family members who cover up sexaul sins against children and women for the sake of keeping the secret in families, and in the religious community have gone against Christ's teaching by loving family members more that Christian law regarding not tolerating sexual sins and those who speak out. You deliberately try to confuse the members with the Korah argument and telling victims who speak out that they are worthy of death like Korah. It is you and those in Watchtower who have prostrated YOURSELVES to worship the GOLDEN DOLLAR ANIMALISTIC relplacement for God, WATCHTOWER. You bow down to the Golden Cow, an Oranization that is made of dollars and gold, and real estate holdings, and investments and you call it Jehovah. It is you who will recieve the judgement of Korah because you have spoken abusively of the angels, Christ, and God himself. Yes, when it comes to a child, your damned right blood is thicker than water. I will stand by my child any day when it comes to the sexual perpetration of her molester and the religion he hides behind.