Disfellowshipping use to be 6 months- now it’s 1 year

[Jack Ryan]

In previous decades, when someone was disfellowshipped, they were told their time would be 6 months. Now it’s a full year?

Why did that change from 6 mo to a year? and are they getting more ppl to come back with the increased time? With the less members staying in the org, you would think they want to lower the “jail time “

Also are there any other religions that gives you months or years of time out, if you commit a sin, even if you actually want to come back?

Also any former elders here? Why is there a standard set time for everyone? And why can they reject someone’s letter who wants to come back? Don’t they need more members ?

[JOHN BUTLER]

7 hours ago, Jack Ryan said:

In previous decades, when someone was disfellowshipped, they were told their time would be 6 months. Now it’s a full year?

Why did that change from 6 mo to a year? and are they getting more ppl to come back with the increased time? With the less members staying in the org, you would think they want to lower the “jail time “

Also are there any other religions that gives you months or years of time out, if you commit a sin, even if you actually want to come back?

Also any former elders here? Why is there a standard set time for everyone? And why can they reject someone’s letter who wants to come back? Don’t they need more members ?

I never even knew there was a 'keep out' time. I cannot think of any scripture to back that up.

 

[Witness]

Even though I was disfellowshipped for apostasy, I was told I could “return to Jehovah and his organization” if I had a repentant heart.  No mention of time limit after that was given; and no followup for years now, to see if indeed, I have a repentant heart defined by the WT. 

*What methods do apostates use to achieve their aim? They often resort to distortions, half-truths, and outright falsehoods. Jesus knew that his followers would be victimized by those who would “tell all kinds of evil lies against” them. (Matthew 5:11, Today’s English Version)

1 Tim 6:3-5 - If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, ⁴ they are conceited and understand nothing. They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions⁵ and constant friction between people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. 

w13 11/15 p. 20 -  At that time, the life-saving direction that we receive from Jehovah’s organization may not appear practical from a human standpoint. All of us must be ready to obey any instructions we may receive, whether these appear sound from a strategic or human standpoint or not. 

 

w 04/9/1 p. 15,16 - Deceptive reasonings. The apostle Paul states: “Do not be carried away with various and strange teachings.” (Hebrews 13:9) What sort of teachings? Since they can ‘carry us away,’ it is clear that Paul refers to teachings that undermine our spiritual balance. Who are voicing such strange teachings? Paul told a group of Christian elders: “From among you yourselves men will rise and speak twisted things to draw away the disciples after themselves.” (Acts 20:30) 

 

Who acts as the “faithful steward” appointing themselves “from among” God’s anointed household?  Luke 12:42-48

 *Such malicious opposers would tell what is not true with the intent to deceive others. The apostle Peter warned about apostates who would use “counterfeit words,” spread “deceptive teachings,” and ‘twist the Scriptures’ to their own ends. (2 Peter 2:3, 13; 3:16) Sadly, apostates succeed in “subverting the faith of some.”—2 Timothy 2:18.  04/2/15 16-17 

The large majority of Watchtower’s followers will never leave deceptive teachings and their source, such as 1975, 1925, “this generation”; that Zion is a visible organization and not found in the hearts of “living stones” of the Temple of God. 1 Pt 2:5,9,10; Eph 2:20-22; that it is okay for God’s priesthood/Temple to be ruled by men not anointed.  2 Thess 2:3,4; Rev 11:1,2; 13:5-7,18

JWs may question their leaders and their intent when “new light” emerges, but their hearts will be inclined to “wait on Jehovah” to correct teachings that have been revealed as untrue.  The captivating offer of a spiritual paradise and a “thousand years of peace” to come is very difficult to give up, leaving one facing the unknown, outside of the walls of presumed “peace and security”.  1 Thess 5:3; 1 Col 2:8; Rev 13:5-10

 

w86 4/1 p. 31-  Approved association with Jehovah’s Witnesses requires accepting the entire range of the true teachings of the Bible, including those Scriptural beliefs that are unique to Jehovah’s Witnesses.

 

2 Pet 2:1-3 - But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. ² Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. ³ In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

Fabricated stories unique to Jehovah’s Witnesses, are various and strange teachings that use deceptive reasoning, and may not appear practical from a human standpoint , causing an undermining of our spiritual balance.  Each lie robs a JW from the sound reasoning of Christ’s teachings.  This is denying the Christ, which means to “contradict, i.e. disavow, reject, abnegate”, his teachings, through the introduction of destructive heresies by false teachers found among God’s anointed ones.  Rev 13:11,12

And I am the apostate as well as my “brothers” and fellow believers in Christ - those who rely not on men and their falsehoods, but only on the teachings of Christ who is in the Father?

Satan can twist an entire foundation of beliefs by applying what is true, to what is false.  It is called a “delusion”.

2 Thess 2:9-12 -The coming of the lawless one is based on Satan’s working, with all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders, ¹⁰ and with every wicked deception among those who are perishing. They perish because they did not accept the love of the truth and so be saved. ¹¹ For this reason God sends (to “bid a thing to be carried to one”)  them a strong delusion so that they will believe the lie, ¹² so that all will be condemned—those who did not believe the truth but delighted in unrighteousness.

 

Matt 7:24-27 - “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. (John 2:19-21; Matt 16:18; 1Cor 10:3,4) ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. It collapsed with a great crash.”

 

What do you think?  Should we give them 6 months or a year?  2 Pet 3:8,9

 

 

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

If the crime is completely invisible to everyone except the Elders ... and only one or two people who keep their mouths shut outside of the Judicial Committee know of what happened ... or the sinner is obviously mentally retarded, and deserves special consideration (really), expulsion is  usually 6 months.

This assumes that when they "announce", everyone else in the Congregation is completely clueless.

We had a Brother who in a City Park restroom, next to a playground, sexually propositioned an undercover police officer, was arrested for that, had his picture in the newspaper with a full account, and was disfellowshipped for six months. 

My best guess is that he was IMMEDIATELY genuinely repentant ... but his error was openly notorious.

He got six months.

His mental capacity, at best, was less than 40 watts.  I could easily imagine that he could be fully and genuinely repentant, and his genes were the extenuating circumstances.

Otherwise, if there is public notoriety, there is the unwritten and never officially acknowledged "three year rule", for reinstatement.

Officially, it does not exist, but I can tell you from many others' accounts, AND my personal experience ... it does.

Because to be open about it (usually I don't care ..) would open old wounds in others that have apparently healed over, that's all I am going to say about that.

 

 

 

 

[Anna]

@James Thomas Rook Jr. I keep trying to send you a private message and it keeps saying something is wrong. Let me know if you got it!

[Anna]

8 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

if there is public notoriety, there is the unwritten and never officially acknowledged "three year rule", for reinstatement.

Still, this does seem to depend on a few other factors. For example someone who had conspired to marry someone else in the congregation and thus committed adultery with them in order to be scripturally free to re-marry, that usually takes 3 years from when the new couple ask for re-instatement, since it was purposefully planned that way. In a way, when it comes to apparently deliberate sin like this it's difficult to ascertain repentance, and repentance is the criterion for re-instatement. However, if the new couple are at EVERY meeting and there is no other type of sin being committed, then 3 years seems to be the standard applied. Although I have known this to be shorter because BOTH partners (the one wronged and the unfaithful one) were guilty of planning.

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Anna: I have not been getting any private messages.

If anyone wants to email me:

James.Rook@Technik-SA.US.

I am not concerned about any vulnerability to letting out my email address ... I need the target practice, and Luigi from South Chicago, with facial injuries that never heal, owes me some favors.

JTR

[Anna]

39 minutes ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

I have not been getting any private messages.

Is that because you've disabled them or some other reason?

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

I have no idea .... (almost) never use it. It comes, and it goes.

[Guest Indiana]

@James Thomas Rook Jr.

Is this art yours? I've seen several like this,  at  this site, just curious as I find them interesting  

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

23 minutes ago, Indiana said:

Is this art yours? I've seen several like this,  at  this site, just curious as I find them interesting  

No, under U.S. copyright law it is legal to use derivative works if the intent is instruction, or satire, and I am always satirizing something.

It's called the "Fair Use Doctrine".

I extract cartoons from the Internet, and "file off the serial numbers", and modify them with my own text.  This is known as a "mashup".

[TrueTomHarley]

11 minutes ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

No, under U.S. copyright law it is legal to use derivative works if the intent is instruction, or satire, and I am always satirizing something.

Most of the involved cartoonists have said something similar to Einstein: “If I had known, I would have been a locksmith.”