Craig Hoyle’s memoir, Excommunicated: A multigenerational story of leaving the Exclusive Brethren, is a powerful and emotionally charged account that will leave readers both moved and enlightened. This gripping narrative takes us on a journey through generations of Hoyle’s family, trapped within the confines of a secretive and controlling religious group known as the Exclusive Brethren. From the very first …
Daniel Allen Cox: Memoirs of a Queer Ex-Jehovah’s Witness
In I Felt the End Before It Came: Memoirs of a Queer Ex-Jehovah’s Witness, Daniel Allen Cox provides an intimate and powerful narrative of his life within the Jehovah’s Witnesses, his awakening to its cult-like nature, and his ultimate escape. Through his story, Cox sheds light on the pervasive influence of the sect and offers valuable insights for others trapped …
Review of the ICSA Conference from the Perspective of a Recent Defector of a High-Control Group
By Monica Velin Rodriguez Stories are powerful. Two weeks ago, on July 2, I was sitting on an aeroplane headed to the annual conference of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA). A local Minnesota philanthropist saw the stories my husband and I had shared on the Stop Mandated Shunning website. He was so moved that he wanted to support the cause. He said, “You’re …
New Research Project on the Harmful Effects of Mandated Shunning
Stop Mandated Shunning (part of The Open Minds Foundation) are thrilled to announce an innovative research initiative in collaboration with the University of Roehampton, London, to study the harmful effects of mandated shunning as practiced by high-control religious groups. This three-year, comprehensive research project, costing approximately $100,000 per year, will be spearheaded by esteemed researchers Dr. Savin Bapir-Tardy and Dr. …
Stop Mandated Shunning at ICSA Annual Conference
July 2-7, 2024, the vibrant city of Barcelona hosted the Annual International Conference of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA). This event stands as a beacon of hope and a platform for change, bringing together experts, survivors, families, and advocates from around the world who are united in their commitment to addressing the harms of high-control environments and psychological manipulation. …
Esther Gebhard: Mandated Shunning at an Early Age
I was five when my parents joined a faith-based group that practised and enforced mandated shunning. At seven, my mother’s good friend was disfellowshipped and everyone in our group was informed that we had to shun this person to be loyal to God. If we didn’t, we’d be shunned. A few months later, I was walking with my mom when …
Luisa Haas: Traumatized By Mandated Shunning
I was a born-in to true-believing members of a faith-based group that practised mandated shunning. At ten years of age, I learned just how inhumane the practice is. And for me, it was a traumatizing event; one that I will never forget. My parents, who were devout Jehovah’s Witnesses, sat down with me and my 5-year-old brother. They told us …
Corina Gabriel: It’s Not Easy, But There Is Life After Mandated Shunning
To say that I was born and raised in the Jehovah’s Witnesses religion does not accurately describe the scope and magnitude of its effect on my life. It was more than a religion; it was my entire existence. It wasn’t just how I worshipped; it was who I was. Being one of Jehovah’s Witnesses was so inextricably a part of …
Monica Velin Rodriguez: Can You Help Me Stop Mandated Shunning?
I was 39 years old when I first realized I was going to die. All my life I’d been led to believe and cherished God’s promise to me that I would live forever on a Paradise Earth. However, I had begun to doubt this was possible. Was I mortal? Had I been misguided? Years of bullying, double standards, and contradictions …
Pablo Rodriguez: Mandated Shunning Hurts People
My story starts in Mexico City, where I grew up in extreme poverty. At age 18, I emigrated to the USA in the hope of a better life, but that’s not exactly how it worked out. After a few weeks in this new country, I was without a job, without money, hungry, and I didn’t speak the language. Worst of …