Hello,
Well, I have to admit to having sat on far too many JC's, over 80 or so.
They ranged from smoking, that infant of all sins; to multiple incest child abuse, apostacy, and other litanies of personal horror.
My own feeling is that, though I fundamentally disagree with the concept of this disgraceful system, in all fairness more were helped than hurt by the system; at least on the committee's that I sat, and this is the most telling aspect of your question.
How a person is treated, and what results develop from a JC, can vary very widely, dependant on Congregation and personnel. If a person is in the company of a more progressive JC who are a little street-wise, chances are that they will treat a person with kindness and dignify them. If they are with a group of polyster-clad conservatives, then it can be a very rough, seedy, and thoroughly humiliating experience.
I sat on a committee a couple of years ago for example, when a younger elder, began to ask intimate questions, regarding orgasms had where, positions etc. I halted the meeting and sent the individual out asking the elder "What are you doing? You have no right to ask those type of questions. The person has admitted the affair, that is all we need to know". It transpired that he had been in a congregation and trained by the 'old guard', and 'these are the kind of questions that they used to ask'. I would think that most JC's have an element of the 'old guard' within them, but they are fading by degrees.
The system is flawed, and the GB know it, but feel that it is the best that can be offered at present. I know that in recent times, senior members of an overseas Branch sat at Brooklyn with the GB and presented a case for the softening of the whole process. So far little has developed from these meetings, but I have no doubt that shortly we will see a number of minor adjustments. Recently JW's have now been allowed to privately pray for DF'd persons who seem to be trying to return to the clan. Can you think of anything more ludicrous, trying to instruct individuals in what to pray for!
In the 70's I sat in a collective meeting with all the elders in an area of the UK. One elder ran past the DO a situation where he had recently sat on a JC and DF'd a women. After listening carefully, the DO said 'Brother XXXX, you should not have disfellowshipped that Sister'.
I caught him at coffee break and asked what he was going to do about it. He said the WTS could not apologise as the might be sued, an apology being construed as admitting liability. I said 'Yes, but what about this poor women?'. His reply, 'Well, if she truly loves Jah. she will not let this put her off'.
This summed up to me that the JC system, is a politically motivated weapon used entirely to control, but dressed in feathers and spice. If any good results from it, then that is an added bonus!
Putting this sort of power into the hands of generally uneducated group of people, who would amount to nothing outside the cosy confines of their spiritual camp-blocks, is a travesty of justice and a humanitarian tragedy. The GB are well aware of the suicides that have resulted from some of these JC's but do little to interfere with the system.
HS
