The ultimate insult: Grieving mother who lost her 20-year-old son to suicide finds a Jehovah's Witness pamphlet about eternal life on her boy's grave

[Jack Ryan]

A grieving mother broke down in tears after she found a Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlet asking 'Can the dead really live again?' left at her son's grave.

The woman and her daughter were visiting the 20-year-old's grave at Penrith Cemetery in western Sydney during the first Mother's Day since his suicide when they found the pamphlet.

'Can the dead really live again?' the pamphlet read on the front cover, with the options 'yes', 'no' and 'maybe'.

The man's sister said her mother was already struggling to cope with her son's absence on Mother's Day before they found the flyer.

'My mum had been trying to hold it together all morning. It was always going to be a hard visit (to the cemetery) that day, but the flyer was a bit of salt in the wound,' the man's sister, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

'It's harder to console your mother in tears on Mother's Day who just misses her son than it is to pick up a piece of paper and throw it in the bin.'

The woman said there were flyers left at every grave in her brother's section of the cemetery.

'Overall the whole situation was inappropriate... being that it was Mother's Day... there's no scenario you could have in this situation that makes it any ''better'' it's just horrible from all directions,' she said.

'That and also the choice of words. Leaving a flyer is a bad move regardless, but posing a question to friends and family members of ''Can the dead live again?'' is just so morbid.

'But even then, if they left a flyer saying ''We're sorry for your loss'' would it make the situation any better? It's still preying on emotionally vulnerable people.' 

The woman said she called the Jehovah's Witness head office in Sydney, where someone acknowledged leaving flyers at the cemetery was inappropriate.

'But I wasn't given an apology... they referred to it as ''passing on the enquiry'',' she said.

'What annoys me is that no one seemed to notice these people coming in - with a bag full of rocks to place the flyers under - and leaving all these flyers around.

'Plots in that cemetery are going for up to $4000 plus, you expect some kind of security in this place.

'One of the graves I removed a flyer from had the flyer underneath a little dog statue that was sitting beside the tombstone. 

'All I thought was, imagine if that little dog was a family heirloom that meant something to the decease and was damaged because it was being carelessly handled by a church that wanted to get their sales numbers up? You'd be pretty livid.'

A Jehovah's Witnesses spokesman said the choice to leave the flyers at the cemetery was 'an individual matter' and would have been carried out by someone from 'one of the local churches there'.

'Some write letters, some do it over the phone,' he said.

'It's probably just an individual doing the work... It's an individual, personal choice when it comes to preaching.'

The spokesman said he could 'understand' resistance to their message, as they sometimes receive the same feedback when they go door-knocking to preach.

A Penrith City Council spokesman said the flyers were an 'isolated incident'.

'Council was advised on Monday afternoon of leaflets that were left in the cemetery and a sweep was conducted to remove the material,' he said. 

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Penrith Central Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses church for comment.

A Jehovah's Witnesses spokesman said the choice to leave the flyers at the cemetery was 'an individual matter' and would have been carried out by someone from 'one of the local churches' in Penrith

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7025371/Grieving-mother-lost-20-year-old-son-suicide-finds-Jehovahs-Witness-pamphlet-grave.html?fbclid=IwAR10jCf4Tqhfxghfz7UGde07X-hazU4ErQQc5TMEfDt17MNftaVlzsQPiwk

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO SYMPATHY FOR THIS WOMAN WHATSOEVER.

There is nothing you can do with Snowflakes.

It's even worse with GRIEVING Snowflakes.

Grief will make you completely irrational ... and because she is a Snowflake to start with she has a half-mile head start.

The only problem is identifying the Snowflakes, and if you can, stay away from them, but ...

"STUFF HAPPENS".

... LEARN TO LIVE WITH IT.

 

[Evacuated]

7 hours ago, Jack Ryan said:

A grieving mother broke down in tears after she found a Jehovah's Witnesses pamphlet asking 'Can the dead really live again?' left at her son's grave

This is an old chestnut complaint that raises it's head every now and again.

The messgae of Scripture remains powerful and true, and will, if understood and applied correctly, enable the bereaved one to not "sorrow as the rest do" 1Thess.4:13.

But....I think it is entirely insensitive and lacking in empathy to try and exploit bereavement.

Presenting this information in an insensitive manner is equivalent to slaking a parched man's thirst with a water cannon. It just hurts!

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

A brochure laying on the ground is hardly a fire hose.

...except for Snowflakes, who are mortified that they have to pee and poop.

[TrueTomHarley]

Is it overzealous and crass? Of course. You never know the emotional state of grieving persons. But overzealous and crass people are to be found everywhere and we all must deal with them

Still, nobody seems overly concerned about it other than Jack and his co-irreligionist.

10 hours ago, Jack Ryan said:

A Jehovah's Witnesses spokesman said the choice to leave the flyers at the cemetery was 'an individual matter' and would have been carried out by someone from 'one of the local churches there'.

 

 

10 hours ago, Jack Ryan said:

A Penrith City Council spokesman said the flyers were an 'isolated incident

My guess is that 8 out of 10 people would roll their eyes at this and dismiss it as well-meaning but the work of somewhat kooky people. 1 out 10 would actually appreciate it, for it is not as though the question is irrelevant. For the sake of the remaining 1 out of 10, deeply grieving who will take it wrong—perhaps atheists, which anyone has the right to be—one ought not do it—blanketing the cemetery.

However, I have obtained a rare copy of the Ryan Bible Translation that addresses some of Jack’s concerns.

”Jesus said: “Roll away that stone.” Mary was offended that he should have the nerve to prey on her when she was emotionally vulnerable...

10 hours ago, Jack Ryan said:

But even then, if they left a flyer saying ''We're sorry for your loss'' would it make the situation any better? It's still preying on emotionally vulnerable people.' 

With that, they rolled it away. Jesus peered inside, shrugged, and said to Mary: “Sorry about your loss.”

It is all very well for you to renounce God, Jack, That doesn’t mean that the whole wide world must do it also. It is as though he would chastise Ponce de Leon for searching for the fountain of youth. The idiot. Why didn’t he search for the fountain of death instead?

[Anna]

What gets me is the constant mention of "mother's day" as if that day was somehow more significant to the death of the son than any other day. People get so weirdly sentimental over stuff that has been made up by people anyway. Folks arn't real anymore, it's all a facade and drama.

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Sometimes we get upset over imagining the silliest things.

I get depressed, walking along with a hunched over look, staring at the sidewalk, depressed, as if looking for loose change ... possibly even a nickle ... when I think about Kingdom Hall restrooms, with condom machines.

[TrueTomHarley]

6 hours ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

as if looking for loose change ... possibly even a nickle ... when I think about Kingdom Hall restrooms, 

In the late 70s, my Bible student spotted instantly what nobody else had ever noticed.

The dressed-up gentleman pictured on the sign for the men’s room was smoking a pipe.

[Space Merchant]

Looks like someone is trying to stir someone's beans here.

[Srecko Sostar]

On 5/17/2019 at 4:49 AM, TrueTomHarley said:

However, I have obtained a rare copy of the Ryan Bible Translation that addresses some of Jack’s concerns.

”Jesus said: “Roll away that stone.” Mary was offended that he should have the nerve to prey on her when she was emotionally vulnerable...

On 5/16/2019 at 6:16 PM, Jack Ryan said:

But even then, if they left a flyer saying ''We're sorry for your loss'' would it make the situation any better? It's still preying on emotionally vulnerable people.' 

With that, they rolled it away. Jesus peered inside, shrugged, and said to Mary: “Sorry about your loss.”

John 11:1-44

So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” 4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death......  and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.” ... 7 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.....19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. ......23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 

24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping,  , he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. 35 Jesus wept. 36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!....40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”...43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 

Dear TTH, JW member who left pamphlet on grave, i guess to a person he/she not know personally, was not imitate Jesus and was not showed, looks so,  "appropriate" personal state of mind and heart to someone who lost dear family member.  

How not?

First, JW member not made personal contact to grieving person. Even if you not know somebody from before, IF you are interested in his/her  well-being than you will make personal contact. In Jesus example we see how he was; deeply moved, troubled and wept. JW member who left pamphlet expressed NOTHING of this. JW member was just routinely made his/her Volunteer PUBLIC SERVICE aka PUBLISHING for Companies (WTJWORG and Congregation). 

Second (something that no one expecting from JW :)))), in Jesus's case, he made more than showing compassion and sadness. He HELPED them in a miracle way!

Of course, grieving people will react on pamphlet in various ways. Some will come to be JW because of that. I knew one late JW brother who was (his son just died at 20 year of old) found JW material on grave and join the organization before cca 50-60 years.  

I think that scripture say: ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.

Well, it  seems how particular JW member failed to did both of this. 

 

 

 

[TrueTomHarley]

20 hours ago, Srecko Sostar said:

Dear TTH, JW member who left pamphlet on grave, 

Look, I am trying to put lipstick on a pig, here. I think you have to be nuts to do something like this. Having said this, there are plenty of nuts in the world, and we have our share.

Maybe even more than our share. Jesus said he did not come to call upon those who do not need a physician, but on those who do. ‘Spiritually sick’ is how it is usually spun, but if people are sick in one way they are often off-base in others. I feel no discomfort in speculating this. The people who have to shake your head at in wonder are the ones who can navigate the atrocities of today’s world without displaying some sort of disturbance.

As a personal matter, I agree with almost everything you said about how this sort of ‘witnessing’ comes across. The only substantial thing I disagree with is 

20 hours ago, Srecko Sostar said:

. JW member was just routinely made his/her Volunteer PUBLIC SERVICE aka PUBLISHING for Companies (WTJWORG and Congregation)

The only reason that you split people up in this way is so you can further the ridiculous meme of JW member being exploited by WTJWORG company. It is the victimization culture on steroids, and nobody plays the victim card more than anti-cultists. The JW member IS the WTJWORG company.

Other than that, yes, it is a terrible way to “give a witness,” and mostly for the reasons you say. It leaves a favorable impression on few, an unfavorable impression on many more, and a violently unfavorably impression on some others. 

Still, as the Bethel brother (and town) said, it represents someone’s individual choice. I have never seen such a suggestion in print. Nor have I ever heard of anyone doing it. Maybe it is one of those persons of whom it was said that when new they ought to be locked up for six months until they learn some discretion.

Or maybe they are not new and the sentence should be extended.

[James Thomas Rook Jr.]

Sometimes life is filled with difficult decisions,  and unexpected opportunities.

As Caleb and Sophia would tell you, this is true in cemeteries, and in the cartoon world.