Tahoe

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Posts by Tahoe

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  18

  144 year-old mystery finally solved

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

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  Tahoe

  
  
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  12

  Article: Spain: Jehovah’s Witnesses Win Important Case Against “El Mundo”

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  link to article .

  a spanish court ordered the newspaper to publish the reply of the jehovah’s witnesses to a defamatory 2022 article.

  the court found the newspaper has been fed false information by an association of disgruntled former witnesses and has uncritically published it.. .

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  Tahoe

  Link to article

  A Spanish court ordered the newspaper to publish the reply of the Jehovah’s Witnesses to a defamatory 2022 article. The court found the newspaper has been fed false information by an association of disgruntled former Witnesses and has uncritically published it.

  
  

  The Spanish Jehovah’s Witnesses won an important case against the Spanish newspaper “El Mundo,” which on November 21, 2022, published a slanderous article based on information supplied by the anti-cult organization Association of Victims of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. On October 2, the Court of First Instance no. 1 of Torrejón de Ardoz dismissed the newspaper argument that responsibility lied only with the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses. It ordered “El Mundo” to publish the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ reply and to pay the litigation costs.

  
  

  
  

  In the decision, which is subject to appeal, the court did not limit itself to recognize the right of reply of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. It also discussed the merit, finding the allegations of the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses both likely to cause damage to the religious organization and inaccurate.

  
  

  
  

  The court found it self-evident that the article “generated verifiable damages” to the Jehovah’s Witnesses. To start with, “the title of the article itself included the word ‘cult’ [‘secta’ in Spanish] that has unquestionable negative connotations with respect to any religion.” The stories coming from the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses are, the judges said, “objectively harmful to the fame and credibility [of the Jehovah’s Witnesses organization], such as referring that it is a religious association (which they call a ‘cult’) with ‘cultic’ practices, stating that it causes ‘social death’ to those who leave it, that it ‘compels’ its members not to report crimes, that it alienates its members, and that it ‘encourages physical and moral suicide,’”and so on. Thus, “from any point of view, the article mentions allegations by third parties that cause undeniable damage to the religious association.”

  
  

  
  

  
  

  Then, the judges examined “whether the allegations in the article are inaccurate,” and concluded that most are. The decision noted that “the first thing that is striking is the title of the article itself, where the plaintiff entity is catalogued as a ‘cult,’ then throughout the extensive text the terms ‘cultic practices’ are used.” According to the decision, “the information in this case is based on a fact that is clearly inaccurate, since the Jehovah’s Christian Witnesses are a religious denomination registered in the General Section (Minority Religions), inscription number 000068 of the Register of Religious Entities kept at the Ministry of Justice, so we are dealing with a legitimately recognized denomination in our country like many others.

  
  

  
  

  Therefore, to classify the plaintiff entity as a cult is legally erroneous since, in the context of the analyzed article, it implies attributing to the plaintiff some pernicious or harmful features as opposed to the rest of the religious confessions legally established in Spain.”

  
  

  
  

  Second, the article refers to “testimonies of alleged victims of sexual abuse within the religious denomination …, alluding to a certain situation in Australia where allegedly ‘they hid more than a thousand cases of sexual abuse.’”

  
  

  The article also mentions a “former Jehovah’s Witness who reports that he was allegedly abused ‘among the Witnesses,’ concluding that ‘they kill you in life,’ and “another former witness who explains the context of some alleged rapes and that ‘they constantly threatened him that if he spoke, they would form a judicial committee…’”

  
  

  
  

  The court concluded that, when carefully examined, “these facts are not accurate and further affect the public consideration of the plaintiff since, on the one hand, there is no certain record of any conviction of the religious entity as a whole for the aforementioned unspecific cases of sexual abuse in Australia, so it is an inaccurate fact that the alleged events were concealed in that oceanic country.

  
  

  On the other hand, with respect to the specific accounts of alleged sexual abuse, it is not so much that the fact is true or not (in fact, no evidence of any convictions arising from such allegations, if any, has been provided), but that at all times the plural and collective number is used when referring to the alleged sexual abuse, to attribute to the religious denomination as a whole the responsibility for ‘sexual abuses perpetrated within the group’ rather than to the persons who in each case had caused the alleged abuses or sexual aggressions.”

  
  

  
  

  Overall, the part of the article concerning sexual abuse should be “classified as inaccurate.”

  Third, the practice by the Jehovah’s Witnesses of the so-called ostracism or shunning, i.e., counseling members not to associate with ex-members who have been disfellowshipped or have publicly left the organization, is qualified in the article as sentencing these former members to “social death” and “a silent hell.”

  
  

  
  

  The court found the description of the practices by the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses as based on “facts that are not clearly proved, since it is one thing to assert the right or freedom to choose to relate with a certain person inside or outside a certain religious confession, and another that, as indicated in the article, ‘when they are inside the cult they are explicitly or implicitly forced to relate only with other faithful’”—which is “inaccurate.”

  
  

  
  

  Worse, the court reports, “the article expressly states that ‘there are double standards, because many elders are either adulterers or pedophiles,’” and that the Jehovah’s Witnesses “encourage physical and moral suicide.” These allegations, the court found, “once again lack a demonstrable objective basis,” and are “inaccurate and extremely damaging to the prestige of the plaintiff entity.”

  
  

  In summary, the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses was caught red-handed spreading false information, and “El Mundo” was caught red-handed uncritically reporting it. “It is not a question here of refuting or censuring opinions—explains the court—, but to legally sanction the erroneous or directly false facts that support such opinions.”

  
  

  
  

  The court also confirms that a media “is responsible for the content of what is disseminated”, including allegations made by third parties. “To admit otherwise— the court argues—would be as much as to legitimize any type of publication based on unquestionably false or untrue facts, just because it is a third party who maintains this erroneous view of the facts.”

  
  

  
  

  It is not the first time that media fall into the trap of publishing slander fed to them by anti-cult organizations, “experts” on “cults” (in this case, the “expert” interviewed was Carlos Bardavío, i.e., the lawyer representing the Association of Victims of Jehovah’s Witnesses in another case), and “apostate” ex-members.

  
  

  It is also not the first time that a media outlet—even one that is a member of The Trust Project—refuses to publish a religious community’s reply to an insulting article. The decision should teach these media a lesson. However, it is unlikely this will happen. Some journalists are like the crow in Aesop’s fable, which kept being deceived by the fox and swearing that it had happened for the last time, only to be duped again at the next opportunity
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  18

  2023-S-147-October-Announcements And Reminders

  by Atlantis in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  2023-s-147-october-announcements and reminders.. page 1. https://imgbox.com/vjct8rt3 .

  page 2. https://imgbox.com/c0tbzgxy .

  grandpa!.

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  Tahoe

  Thank you Mike, Kim and Atlantis!
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  27

  Ernie Fyans, JW elder CSA abuser from "Palmer Leaks" sentenced in Maine today

  by EasyPrompt in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

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  https://x.com/mark_j_odonnell/status/1704588790730256487?s=20.

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  Tahoe

  Will damage control come in the form of claiming Religious Persecution by the ‘Satan’s System of Things’?

  Will they claim these as false allegations created to stumble Jehovah’s true believers in the Last Days?
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  7

  Sunshine Coast Evil Elder

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  from what little coverage i can find, that’s not behind a paywall:.

  this person is the epitome of the evil elder.

  truly evil.

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  Tahoe

  @EasyPrompt Thank you for posting. The more I read, the sicker I get at my stomach. Absolutely vile garbage of a human being.

  Thank you, Jehovah, for protecting the innocent.
• 
  7

  Sunshine Coast Evil Elder

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  from what little coverage i can find, that’s not behind a paywall:.

  this person is the epitome of the evil elder.

  truly evil.

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  Tahoe

  From what little coverage I can find, that’s not behind a paywall:

  This person is the epitome of the Evil Elder. Truly evil.

  

  

  Last year when he was granted bail:

  https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-13/jehovah-sex-charges-gets-bail/101532330
  

  
  
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  11

  A registered sex-offender became a ministerial servant; he’s now in prison for assaulting child

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/a-registered-sex-offender-became-a-ministerial-servant-for-jehovah-s-witnesses-in-springfield-he-s-now-in-prison-for-assaulting-child/ar-aa1h4vjg.

  a level 3 sex offender who moved to springfield and secured a role with the jehovah’s witnesses religious organization is now in prison.

  jay aaron smith, 62, was sentenced recently in hampden superior court to 15 years in prison for several counts of indecent assault and battery on a child.

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  Tahoe

  https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/a-registered-sex-offender-became-a-ministerial-servant-for-jehovah-s-witnesses-in-springfield-he-s-now-in-prison-for-assaulting-child/ar-AA1h4vJG

  A Level 3 sex offender who moved to Springfield and secured a role with the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious organization is now in prison. Jay Aaron Smith, 62, was sentenced recently in Hampden Superior Court to 15 years in prison for several counts of indecent assault and battery on a child. Aaron abused a 13-year-old at his home for months in 2020 and 2021.

  The Jehovah’s Witnesses deny that Smith, convicted late last month of child sexual abuse, was a church elder, the title used by the Hampden District Attorney’s Office to describe his role with the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Springfield.
  

  But the DA’s office says it stands by its statement.

  And both the office and the Springfield Police Department say the church did not report the abuse that Smith inflicted on the victim. According to a court document, a family member went to the organization seeking action regarding the abuse.

  The victim reported to police that Smith told her no one would believe her if she were to tell what he’d done.

  Smith was already a state-registered Level 3 sex offender, the highest category, when the abuse happened because of a rape conviction decades before in Georgia, according to the DA’s office.

  A spokesperson for the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ U.S. branch in Wallkill, New York, said Smith has never been an elder, but did serve for less than a year as “ministerial servant,” an assistant to an elder.

  “We are deeply saddened by these horrible events,” the religious organization said in a statement in response to questions about the case from The Republican and MassLive. “It should be noted that the allegations had nothing to do with any congregation activity.”

  The church reached out to the DA’s office asking that it correct a press release about Smith it published on social media stating his leadership position, according to the office’s spokesperson, Jim Leydon.

  Leydon said the office will not be issuing a correction.

  “Based upon evidence collected through the course of the investigation, we are comfortable with our assertion of his place of prominence within the hall,” Leydon said.

  Role of elders

  In the Jehovah’s Witnesses community, elders are volunteer leaders and “spiritually mature men who take the lead in the congregation and shepherd,” according to its website.

  When asked if there are background checks the church conducts to qualify someone with a criminal history to serve as an elder, the church spokesperson reiterated that Smith was not an elder, and pointed to the Bible for eligibility.

  “The Bible sets forth the requirements for volunteer elders,” the spokesperson said in a statement. Several Bible passages are cited on the Jehovah’s Witnesses website under qualifications for the elder role.

  A victim’s family member “attempted to find resolution within her church,” a court document in the case says.

  When the congregation found out about the abuse allegation against Smith, “it promptly reported the matter to the authorities,” a Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesperson said.

  However, the Springfield Police Department did not get a report from the church, according to spokesperson Ryan Walsh.

  The victim and a parent reported the abuse to Springfield police in February 2021, according to a report filed in court. When authorities investigated, the church had not filed a 51A report, a report of alleged child abuse or neglect, according to the DA’s office. Clergy members are mandated reporters in Massachusetts.

  The Jehovah’s Witnesses spokesperson said its policy in responding to abuse allegations is to first comply with reporting laws, and that it reported allegations against Smith to the state Department of Children and Families in February 2021. The spokesperson said the church believed that DCF reported the abuse to police.

  Around the world, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have been criticized for mishandling allegations of child sexual abuse.

  Apologies for the repost.
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  52

  Two biggest issues for Watchtower right now

  by Teddnzo in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  selena accused tony morris of being involved in child abuse and the pimo bethelite who just got kicked out.

  let’s see how this rolls out.

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  Tahoe

  Thank you so much Easy. I appreciate you.
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  15

  New brochure Make Disciples was it worth the suspense?

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

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  courtesy of reddit.

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  Tahoe

  
  

  Courtesy of Reddit
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  The TV show ‘Evil Lives Here: I Wanted My Father to Die’ is about Freddie Lee Bowen and will air on 9/17/23

  by Tahoe in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  excerpt:.

  freddie lee bowen’s daughter, teresa holman, recounts on the show about her father, who allegedly possessed two identities.

  in a dr. jekyll and mr. hyde fashion, freddie was a respected community member and attempted to be a jehovah’s witness.

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  Tahoe

  Excerpt:

  Freddie Lee Bowen’s daughter, Teresa Holman, recounts on the show about her father, who allegedly possessed two identities. In a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde fashion, Freddie was a respected community member and attempted to be a Jehovah’s Witness. But, at home, the same man unleashed a reign of terror as he abused his eight children and their mother. Teresa recounted how things seemed smooth initially when Freddie made her feel safe, and she used to wait for him to return home from work. She claimed to be proud of her father until the ball dropped.

  Teresa recounted her favorite memories when her father asked her to take his clothes to the laundry and permitted her to take the change in his pocket. However, she recalled things turned worse when the Bible studies began. Freddie started to lose his temper quickly, and during one such episode, he taped the mouths of his young kids when they created too much commotion while he was working. Over time, the severity of the punishments increased, and he started physically abusing them. He brought wooden paddles home to discipline the children.