Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “jw”
By Monica Velin Rodriguez Q. How does a victim of shunning get a message to their family? A. It’s impossible. Mandated shunning is a social death sentence. In many cases, the shunning is so complete that victims have been blocked on phones and all social media. Any call would be ended; every door would be slammed shut. If a target …
Three years before “Armageddon” was supposed to happen in 1972, my parents became Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW’s). I was only 8 years old and I trusted them to make the “right choices” for themselves, me, and my younger brothers. How could I have known then that I’d become a researcher of cult characteristics and that such knowledge would lead me to …
Translated by SMS from the original language I have spent almost 40 years of my life as an active member of Jehovah’s Witnesses. For 20 of those years, I served as an elder (local congregation pastor), which is a highly respected position in the congregation. In 2005, my daughter was disfellowshipped and decided she would not return to the organization. …
I was born in 1969 to parents who were both Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW) from birth. Their parents were also Jehovah’s Witnesses, so it’s all I ever knew growing up. From a young age, my life was shaped by the doctrines and high-control environment of the religion. I was taught that God’s name was “Jehovah” and that our religion was the …
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 …
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 …
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. …
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 …
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 …
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 …
