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Question
Hello I'm working on research about the Jehovah's Witnesses.
I would like to ask you if you can help me and answer my guestion. If you are in this religion and recieve blood from somebody else in surgery, are you automaticly excluded of the religion? Does anyone control it?
Dear Tatiana,
Exclusion or expulsion among Jehovah's Witnesses is almost never "automatic". It is almost always contingent on your emotional response when confronted by congregation elders regarding the supposed wrongdoing.
If the accused thoroughly submits to the viewpoint of the elders and expresses regret for the supposed sin, he is generally not expelled, regardless of how "grave" the "sin". On the other hand, if the accused shows any resistance to the viewpoint of the elders, or declines to participate in their inquiry, even in the most private personal matters, he generally is expelled, regardless of how trivial the "sin".
So expulsions among Witnesses are not really for the supposed "sin" the individual is accused of. Rather expulsions are really for failure to accept humiliation, which the Witnsses call "independent thinking". In all cult organizations, thinking for oneself is the gravest of "sins" because this would undermine the absolute control of the hierarchy; and this holds true among Witnesses as with other cults.
In the case of blood transfusions, a Witness could easily accept a blood transfusion and subsequently not disclose it to his congregation elders. There are spies everywhere. Even your wife or best friend might turn you in among Witnesses, so a person who secretly accepted a blood transfusion would have to keep this secret for the rest of his life, as long as he remains a Witness, which probably does happen. Since he could never confide in anyone, and since he could never reveal what happened to anyone, even a spouse, and medical records are kept confidential, there is no way to estimate how often this happens.
If a person accepts a blood transfusion willingly then later expresses regret and the elders believe his regret is sincere, he is unlikely to be expelled, although he would lose any position of privilege in the congregation. This means if he were an elder or "ministerial servant" (deacon) or had another privilege of service such as reading aloud at meetings or working behind the counter to dispense literature, or was recognized as a "pioneer" (a canvasser spending a larger amount of time in local door-to-door preaching), these privileges would be revoked even though he showed regret, because they would feel he could no longer be held up as an example to the rest of the congregation.
If a person declines a blood transfusion, but it is administered against his wishes, he would neither be expelled nor lose any position of privilege.
There are travelling teams of Witness lawyers and elders who can be called upon to intervene with hospital administration and local government if called upon by the patient because a blood transfusion against the patient's will is proposed.
Personally, I agree with a patient's right to decide, but not with deception and mental gymnastics that interfere with the patient's right to decide as practiced by cults such as Jehovah's Witnesses.
Such a visiting team of Witness lawyers & elders would not visit the hospital to exercise "control" over the situation unless called upon by the patient or the patient's spouse or a local elder on behalf of the patient.
But such local elders would never become aware of the proposed transfusion unless the patient voluntarily disclosed it. Due to the nature of cult mind control, patients, especially in the weakened state of their medical condition, may in some cases "voluntarily" disclose to a visiting elder things a free person normally would not.
When a person is hospitalized, it is common for that to be announced at Witness meetings, and for any member of the congregation community to visit the hospitalized person, including local elders, although they would not stand vigil for an extended period at the hospital except for close family members.
Witnesses are taught that if they become hospitalized and a blood transfusion is proposed against the patient's wishes, they should physically fight to remove the IV apparatus to the extent they are able. Ultimately no physical force is ever used except by the patient himself.
Witnesses rely on deception and mental manipulations, never physical force, to control their members.
Best wishes,
AndrewXJW
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Andrew
Expertise
I don't object to Witness theology, but rather their use of social pressure & deceptive manipulations to undermine family ties and control minds. (This may seem contradictory to Witnesses, who draw no distinction between spiritual belief and organizational policy.) I do not engage in theological debate. I support persons impacted by an experience with the Witnesses and advocate early education for everyone so that they can protect themselves from cults by understanding what to watch out for. (It's not what most people think.)
(Ex-)Witnesses: I know how upsetting it is to experience doubts (or anger) about your experience. Time does not heal this wound until you first remove the splinter, which takes more time and effort than you may realize. So, unless you have already put in that time and effort, don't be surprised if you are deeply affected long after the experience. But there is good news! You're NOT an enemy of God for doubting or for failing to meet the requirements of a human organization. An organization that lies cannot be the exclusive spokesman for the God of Truth. Tell me where you're at. I'll understand. I can show you how to begin or continue your recovery and make a life for yourself worth living.
Non-Witnesses: Describe your experience with your friend/relative who is (becoming) a Witness. I can help you understand the Witness indoctrination and social dynamics that are affecting him or her. I can help you put your options into perspective. Keep in mind that people do make their own choices (even though they may sometimes do so under outside influence) and you may not be able to affect this person's choices, even though they impact on you. After all, you do not have the arsenal of tactics that a cult does (and wouldn't want to). A few people manage to save their friend/relative, but don't count on it. What you can count on is navigating the maze more successfully by becoming more informed about your own options.
Experience
I was a Witness for 30 years, and a volunteer at their headquarters in Brooklyn, New York, for a year. I have attended meetings with many Witness congregations across the United States, a thorough cross-section, carefully observing patterns of behavior. Although being a Witness was difficult, and I gradually had more and more doubts about Witness teachings--I was a true believer, so I kept trying to make it work somehow. I stopped attending meetings in 1997 only after receiving an answer to a prayer about doing so, and have since been actively involved in recovery. This includes both my own and supporting others in theirs. Recovery can include reading books, communicating with others in recovery, and participating in support groups and/or therapy. It always involves reclaiming one's own mind and discovering the other sides of the issues that you have been blinded to in the past.
My gradual awakening was socially, psychologically, and spiritually tumultuous. I lost everything from my former life. My suffering was substantial.
But I have gained everything, so it was worth it. Only after beginning my recovery did I gain social, psychological, and spiritual healing and growth, peace of mind, and self-respect. Only then did I discover who I am; and--for the first time--the meaning of real brotherly love.
For more resources on this topic, try these web sites:
http://freeminds.org/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freedomofmind/
Education/Credentials
Like most Cult Recovery Counselors, I am a cult survivor. I have life experience, not professional training. Also I feel no need to apologize for that. People with professional training cannot understand what it is like to survive a cult unless they have been through it themselves, which few professional therapists have. Understanding what really happened and what works in this unusual social context is as important as psychological training. Most professional therapists are not specifically trained to support cult survivors. Those who are represent a rare and precious resource.
I sometimes refer people to professional therapists regarding deep personal issues. But surviving a cult is a broad experience with other dimensions. Professional therapy can be very helpful as part of your recovery process, assuming that you choose the right therapist. When choosing a therapist, remember that you are the client and they are a service provider. You are the one who holds authority about the relationship. You get to interview the therapist and decide which one to employ.
Be sure to ask what specific training and experience they have around recovery from cult mind control. Most therapists do not have relevant training. Some carry serious misunderstandings about what cult mind control is; and therefore will misunderstand your struggle. So it pays to be selective as a consumer of professional therapy services.
Past/Present Clients
The Witness organization is not like other churches. Most non-Witnesses really cannot imagine what it is like to be a Witness. The organization has unimaginably extensive rules and monitoring that affect every aspect of life, so there is no privacy and no sense of personal independence. "Independent thought" is considered their greatest "sin".
The organization insists on absolute conformity, and claims to directly represent God; so dissent is not tolerated, and authority is totalitarian. Being a Witness is more like living in China or the former Soviet Union than being a member of a religion as you know it. It was the research of Robert J. Lifton, who was studying--not religions--but totalitarian governments, who first began to illuminate the problem of religious cults around the world, which employ exactly the same tactics as totalitarian governments. His work remains a cornerstone for Cult Recovery Counselors still today. (This may be why many governments are tolerant of cults, to avoid exposing their own control tactics.)
Witnesses often experience unusually dysfunctional lives and an extensive array of personal problems stemming from broken family ties, stunted social development, inner unrest resulting from repressed doubts, inability to defend boundaries, and an extreme, persistent feeling of irrational shame. I can help people impacted by an experience with the Witnesses by revealing in detail the policies and social dynamics in the Witness organization that cause these problems.
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