I don't have time right now to read all the posts but as a former Bethelite I believe every word of the guys story and it makes my blood boil.
I had all of my money stolen out of my room while I was a Bethelite and I had my first rude awakening about the supposedly loving organization I had been raised in. I had gone through twelve years of public school and had not so much as one conflict with anyone or anything stolen from me. Within months of being a Bethelite, mixed among some nice well meaning young guys, I met more misfits and mean people that I'd ever known before. Here I was at Bethel, "Gods headquarters" robbed of all my money and flat broke.
Instead of going to the Police ( as I should have), naturally I went to the Bethel office to report what happened . They treated me very strangely, I had expected them to be sympathetic and angry that such a thing could have happened at Bethel. During the conversation they grilled me, not about how the crime happened but wanted to how I had spent the money. I suddenly realized that they thought I was lying and that they had no intention of doing anything about the crime that had occurred within their own walls. I began to get angry that they would think that as a Bethelite I'd actually lie about such a thing. I told them that I had no money in the world and couldn't call home and have my non Witness father find out that I was robbed at Bethel. It was only then that they admitted that someone was breaking into the rooms and then they forked over a whole $10.00 for me to buy subway tokens with so that I could go to the meetings by subway for the rest of the month and instructed me not to tell anyone about this. I knew there was something very wrong with these people and bided my time until my year was up and I could return home. In the coming months I realized that the Sister who cleaned our room and her husband were acting strangely toward me. Whenever I saw them in the dining room or in the hallway, they'd turn away quickly and scurry off. I had been thinking that there was a Bethel Burglar so it didn't dawn on me until years later, the he and she may have been the ones who stole my money.
Anyway,when I returned home, I was asked to speak in front of the congregation and at the Circuit Assembly about my experience at Bethel. The brothers were puzzled why I always declined to do so. I'd make excuses and indicate that I didn't want to bring attention to myself but the truth is, I couldn't honestly recommend that anyone go to Bethel like they wanted me to do.
These people are out of touch with the real world and have become heartless and condescending to anyone who finds themselves in a situation that makes them question their own supposedly noble mission. They remind me of the rich religious guy who steps over a homeless guy in the street and instead of wondering how God can allow this to happen to people, he instead thinks to himself how blessed he is and it's must be the homeless guys own fault if God isn't blessing him too.
