Governing Body to all former members “Please DA (disassociate) yourself!”
In the organization of Jehovah’s Witnesses there is a practice of shunning labeled as Disfellowshipping and Disassociation. The JW community use shunning as a form of emotional blackmail in order to control members and prevent anyone within from being influenced by those that are leaving. Shunning means that to all members you no longer exist and are doomed to be killed by God at any minute as the end of the world is imminent. A mother will disown her children and not have any contact with them to such an extent if they meet in public they will be ignored as if they were never known. This happens to grandparents, siblings, parents, children, as well as friends you may have known for your entire life.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are anti social to anyone outside the religion believing as the true followers of God they will be the only ones preserved alive when God brings forth Armageddon to destroy all non members on earth. Some refer to this belief system as a “dooms day” religion and in the most simple of terms the JWs have been teaching the end of the world is imminent for close to one hundred and fifty years. If you research their publications terms like “just around the corner” and “the end is near” have been used over and over again to create a sense of urgency and used as a way to require all members to sell their materials as the only people that will survive the impending world holocaust. The methodology is extremely successful as members work as slave labor and move over one billion pieces of literature on an annual basis to well over one billion dollars in tax free income to their Worldwide Work Fund. JWs are one of the wealthiest religions per capita on earth. Each congregation of the Jehovah’s Witnesses functions as an ATM for the home office generating monthly remittances that are sent to the home office. Anyone that might in anyway impede book sales must be demonized and isolated to stop any interaction that might stop sales from the “faithful” collective.
Disfellowshipping occurs when a member commits an infraction that the home office has determined to be a sin against God. This can include such things as smoking one cigarette,looking at porn and masturbating, reporting child abuse, disobeying any directive an elder gives you, joining the YMCA, and about any action of asexual nature outside of marriage, etc… The elders form a committee of three or more elders and sit in judgment, grilling the person that commits the infractions for detailed information about the extent of their perceived “sin”. If the individual is determined to be “unrepentant”then an announcement is made to the congregation that the person is no longer recognized as a member of the organization. At the moment of the announcement the former member ceases to exist to all active members. If they attend meetings they are expected to sit in the back and be ignored for a period of at least one year. At that point they can apply for reinstatement and that can only be given at the discretion of the original Judicial Committee that kicked you out.
Disassociation caries the same penalty but there is no meeting. It is defined as by your actions you have ceased to become a member. These infractions can include celebrating Christmas, attending another church, joining the military, willingly taking a blood transfusion, etc… The elders do not meet with you but have to confirm your infraction so they can proceed with the announcement expelling you as a member. Another way to DA is to write a letter of resignation as a member. This letter needs to have the date, a simple statement saying you no longer wish to be a member and your signature. When the elders receive this document it provides them the legal basis to expel you as protected by the first amendment.
Many former members may fade away and then the elders discover they have committed some infraction to establish a judicial committee. The elders start pursuing the former member to establish a meeting for the judicial procedure. To avoid this process of being interrogated and harassed by the elders most former members choose to DA as there is not a meeting and they are quickly expelled with an announcement and shunned.
The DA arrangement is greatly preferred by the Administration of Jehovah’s Witnesses as it provides them a legal basis, using the first amendment, to assassinate your character, slander you to the public, isolate you from your member family and friends and fabricate negative gossip to be spread among members openly and freely. Often former members write lengthy letters of disassociation to define and explain their reason for leaving. They secretly hope those that read the letter will wake up and leave as well. This seldom if ever happens. Typically the elders just jump to the last paragraph to get confirmation of your expulsion and file the letter indefinitely in the confidential file of the congregation. If you ever choose to apply for reinstatement every detail of the letter will be recalled and you will have to retract every sentence to even be considered for reinstatement.
The theology of Jehovah’s Witnesses defines Disfellowshipping as a person who through personal failing has disqualified themselves but there is hope that through shunning they can be sufficiently punished to come back and be a member. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that those that are DF at least have hope. On the other hand a member that DAs is without hope as by their actions they have willfully rejected God. They are deemed as guilty of committing the unforgivable sin and are without hope to surely be killed by God at Armageddon that is due to happen at any minute. Former members that DA are considered the worst of all humanity, agents of Satan, and on the front lines of those that is to be hated and killed by God. For those reasons administration want former members to DA as a way to write them off and prevent any members from interacting with them in any way. When a former member DAs they give Administration exactly what they need and want to get rid of you.
There is a syndrome I refer to as “scared rabbit syndrome”. This is when elders are calling and trying to establish wrongdoing to establish congregational action. Former members often panic and file a DA letter to get the elders to leave them alone. The elders will stop as you have given them everything they need to move against you. If you do not wish to DA there is a simple course of actions that can be an alternate to writing a DA letter. They are as follows:
Do not answer the door when elders call.
To not communicate in any way with elders about your personal life.
If an elder confronts you in public calmly state for them to leave you alone or you will call the police for protection from harassment.
If you start getting phone calls do not answer and block the numbers if you know it is the elders.
Remember what convicts you is what comes out of your mouth. Say nothing and if pressed by an elder say you will only communicate through an attorney.
If you receive a letter demanding a meeting never say you will not meet just respond and say this week is not convenient for whatever reason you wish to provide.
Do not discuss with any members your conduct or any uncertainties about teachings of the organization. Even if you are asked just say that it is personal and you do not wish to discuss it.
If it is possible move to another area where you are not confronted by members you know on a regular basis. If you cannot do this just remember your personal life is personal and is not to be discussed or shared with any member or elder.
The actions above will insulate you from most harassment unless you are caught red handed doing some infraction and even with that you can vastly slow down the judicial process and may even keep it from being enacted indefinitely.
The point for anyone to consider that has been baptized as a Jehovah’s Witness is this; if you no longer believe, why do you feel any need to cooperate with their slander campaign against you? Live and learn your new life, seek counseling to help you move past the mind control. Accept that your family and friends within are completely lost to you unless they choose to leave and be part of your life. If not they will try to work against you and gather information to have you expelled, you simply cannot trust them at any cost.
So in conclusion if you wish to make the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses happy, disassociate yourself as a member. You give them exactly what they need legally to use the first amendment to destroy your character to members in any way they see fit.