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Critics of Jehovah`s Witnesses/Why do the Watch Tower and Awake use the term Christian to mean Jehovah's Witnesses?

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Expert: - 9/28/2006


Question
Thanks for the response!  From your response I gather you think I'm Roman Catholic, which I'm not.  I'm Episcopalian.  The "church catholic" means "universal church" and includes all who consider themselves Christian.  As an Episcopalian, I know very well how it feels when people tell you you're not Christian because you don't believe this or do that and I'm very sensitive to it.  

I can recite a long litany of complaints against JW's because I grew up in an area of Michigan that was heavily JW.  Our neighbors were JW and their life was enough to convince me they were absolutely wrong.  The husband was a raging alcoholic who would beat his wife and children senseless but the wife didn't leave him because her entire family said they'd shun her if she did.  In the end the situation got so bad that the police got involved and the children were taken into state custody and she STILL stayed with him.

Whenever JW's come to the door I have no problem slamming it in their faces.  Whenever someone I know tells me they're JW I politely back off.  If they still persist I can usually get them to leave me alone when I start dropping phrases such as monophysite, non-trinitarian, and the demotic vs. koine understanding of the word "stavros".

Thanks for all your good work.  When people leave the JW's they are usually deeply wounded and need all the help they can get.

Adam.

Answer
Dear Adam,

Thanks for the clarification. You must be a very intelligent man, as some of the words you use are new to me. What I do understand, however, is your objections to the Witnesses. And I share them.

The dysfunctional family you describe suffers from imbalances of many kinds that they are probably not aware of. Awareness would enable them to begin correcting imbalances and making conscious choices in harmony with their core values. This illustrates the vital importance of overcoming mind games which interfere with conscious choice. Tremendous suffering occurs due to unconscious choices, such as the suffering those children experienced because of the unconscious choices the parents made under Witness influence.

I agree that exiting Witnesses are deeply wounded and are greatly in need of support and in need of working to heal their wounds. Not only do they carry all the same mind games as current Witnesses, but on top of that the burden of believing that they are now enemies of God for having left the Witnesses, which means living without hope and grace.

It is tragic that so many just try to "put the past behind them" because this is a kind of wound that does not heal with time. Some wounds require medicine; in this case recovery work. I am glad to help contribute to the recovery work of others because doing so supports me in my own recovery.

Thanks for being aware of your own sensitivities. We all have them, and--once again--it is awareness that helps us make conscious decisions in harmony with our values.

Best wishes,
Andrew

Critics of Jehovah`s Witnesses

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Andrew

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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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