“How do you get kicked out of church?” These are the words of Suzanna’s brother as he tried to wrap his mind around her shunning. Her journey starts as a 14 year old girl with two real options to get out of her abusive home, joining a local gang or getting involved with Jehovah’s Witnesses. The choice she made would lead to decades of trying to make that choice work. All while living a life outside of that decision as she went back and forth between the choice she made so young and the life she really wanted to live.
The song chosen by Suzanna to represent her story is La Vida Es Un Carnaval by Celia Cruz.
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Music by Fair Voyeur entitled “No Hell Yet”.
Hi Suzanna
Thanks for your testimony. Lately, I have been watching some of these shows about the Witnesses. I attended in the past a kingdom hall, upon the invitation of my brother law, who became a Witnesses with my sister after being in jail for robbery and many other things. As I studied the Bible seriously I was shocked to see how they ask questions and people must answer according to the provided answers of the Watch Tower. There were no real and true questions. I read the Mein Kampf by Hitler ( because I was asking myself how so many people followed him), interesting discovering; propaganda and mind-controlling is also used by the Watch Tower. I say the Mein Kampf is their bible and not the Bible. They just use quotations from the Bible to justify their agenda. Hitler did the same he used the bible to justify the holocaust. How can a bunch of men that did not study ancient languages, Greek, and archaeology pretend to explain the Bible. What I am discovering also how these judicial meetings are sometimes for youngsters are mentally and psychologically very abusive.
Thank you for your testimony
wishing you all the best
Hi Daniel,
That sounds like a good book. Yes it unbelievable how this organization controls people’s lives. It’s sad that so many good people give up control 😪. Good thing you never become a JW. Everything changes once you get baptized and then the real mind control kicks in.
Thanks for your comment. The elders need to be exposed to what they do to people in their back rooms.
Hi Suzzana,
Wow what a story and a life!
You must be extremely proud of yourself to be where you are now in view of your neglected childhood.
And then being in an abusive relationship in the Jehovah’s Witnesses organisation, which is just a business masquerading as a religion.
I also was married far to young as a JW, to someone totally incompatible, that resulted in getting DF twice, like you!
Thankfully I always was career driven, unlike so many JW friends who now struggle financially.
What woke me up was always having doubts and never answers, being told to “wait on Jehovah”. Then I stumbled on Raymond Franz book Crisis of Conscience, and that put the pieces of the jigsaw together. I was then early 40s and went a bit crazy for a few years partying and making up for my lost wasted youth when I was pioneering instead of enjoying life.
Now I am settled, am writing my life story and expose of WT in the hope that it will help others wake up, including my remaining jw family.
Good luck and thank you for sharing your brave encouraging story!
Kind regards
Denis
Thanks Denis. I feel totally exposed. I was very vulnerable and a little vulgar. A bit embarrassed so I am glad to hear you liked it. I wish I had doubts and had questions. I never doubted the doctrine just never could live up to life style. JW’S take advantage of people in vulnerable situations. I am so thankful to be out!
Please keep me posted on your story. I really enjoy listening and reading about other experiences in the organization. Glad to hear Raymond Franz book waked you up. It’s helpful wakeup many. It goes to show how we need more books exposing organization.
yes. very sad the amount of suffering JW go through in the organisation. IF Jesus was made king in 1914. what blessings were their for JW compered to worldly people? nothing = the same for both. INVISIBLE blessings of servitude, no real blessings, as worldly people and JW died and suffered the same. the congregations treated young adults as evil if they did not get baptized. I saw both my daughters treated as evil by other JW because they did not get baptized. I did not pressure them to get baptized. So I feel a lot of pain for JW who are still locked up and suffer who are so mislead by the watchtower. I watched as some committed suicide as 2 good friends of mine did because they couldn’t understand they were being abused and mislead by the GB who are free masons not Jesus disciples. any kindness is undeserved kindness which wipes away the love and kindness itself and leaves only undeserved behind. so much pain and so much suffering by an organisation that says Jesus chose them…can only be a deliberate lie. Love and kindness is unbreakable yet JW have succeeded in breaking love and kindness in the minds and hearts of its followers. much love and respect to you and your brother.
Thanks, Rory for your email
If they are Jesus chosen ones ………………. something is very wrong:
Look through the Gospel, there is not one evidence where Jesus disfellowshipped or shunned a person: Not even Judas Iscariot. He even asked forgiveness for his killers.
Jehovah’s Witnesses mix up old and new testament, according to their agenda. Whatever they decide as law, they must find a biblical quotation somewhere, absolutely insane. The more I study them the more I find closer to Hitler’s ideas, described in his Mein Kampf ( indoctrination and especially control of the people thinking through propaganda) in fact, Hitler too used the bible to justify the holocaust. I hope Jehovah’s Witnesses would really AWAKE, to see the TRUTH. When they quote the Bible it has to match the Watch Tower doctrines. They have no sense of historical situations of when a certain book of the Bible and why it was written. Personally, it is great that for my own sake I select some verses that impact my own life, but as a church, group, or congregation to choose a certain passage to affirm a position or a doctrine without a sound examination of the historical impact, of that passages can be extremely dangerous or even ridiculous. For example, how can one explain why poor Saul fell out of favour of Jehovah because in fear of another king, while David was easily forgiven by Jehovah he committed adultery with his army leader and planned a trick to get him killed in battle.
When I see those leaders like Jackson, Lett, Loche, and others spit out biblical quotations, look like people chewing tobacco and spitting everywhere leaving huge marks and stains rather beauty and truth.
Yes, I can see that your daughters would be treated as evil since they didn’t get baptized. The culture is more noticeable and felt more than the doctrine. I am so glad to hear you didn’t force them. The organization makes people force others. This organization preaches love and yet so far from practicing love. The relationships are so conditional. They prey on people in vulnerable situations. So glad to be out and so gad to feel every one else support, Thank you!
So I have to ask – did your daughters ever get baptized as adults?
Wow Suzanna, wonderful story. I’m sorry if your trials through your early childhood and through your teens. You certainly sound like a well adjusted balanced life. But those trials has made you whom you’ve become.
Welcome to Atlanta.
Bob
Thanks for your testimony and bravery. We need more people to testify how this controlling group is messing up lives. I’m glad you’re out and I’m also working up the courage to completely leave this group.
Thanks Bob! It definitely made me who I am today. Do you live in Atlanta?
Thanks Rob, best of wishes completely breaking away from the group. Glad to hear you are awake.
I do. Except for college, I’ve been in the Atlanta area all my life.
Sorry for the late response
No my daughters and sons were never involved with the JW, they all have university degrees and doctorates. it was my Sister her husband and her daughter.
She was in a very bad marriage and the J W took advantage of her
Promising heaven on earth. But did not help her at all, actually made her life even harder. Unfortunately because of indoctrination, she could not accept the TRUTH.
Because of my sister, I was surrounded by them, a few times I attended the Kindom Hall.
Honestly, I was appalled by the preachers and especially to the questions and answers in Bible studies. It was a joke, at times I wanted to raise my hand and ask real questions about certain passages they were discussing rather than written in the Watch Tower magazine.
After these experiences, the rest of my family too felt very sorry for my sister, we tried to help her, never shunned her at all. No success.
The weird thing is that when they cannot give an answer to a certain interpretation, they cover up by saying that we are only human and only Jahweh knows the real answer and we have to trust Him = which equalled to, we need to trust the governing body and whatever they say, no matter what, even if it is the most mind-boggling and most nonsensical response.
JW’S take prey on the vulnerable. Sorry to hear your Sister fell to that. They come with all the answers and it looks so beautiful on the outside until baptism……. they put your ass to work for Watchtower, you get no help or support others bsc they are sooo busy slaving to put the hours in.. it’s an awful hamster wheel 😢 hope your sister someday gets off the hamster wheel.
I’m so proud of you Suzanna for putting yourself out there and telling your story so as to help others. JW’s are such an awful, judgemental, hypocritical, and greedy organization. I too got out around 6 years ago and I will never go back. Your story is very inspiring and I am very happy for you that you finally woke up completely. I just think that you are an intelligent, beautiful woman. I’ve always wondered why I can’t meet a woman like you. Please keep living your life the way that you want and stay happy and healthy doing the things that make you happy.
Thank you Joshua. It is hard to be vulnerable. If my story helps one person than it is worth it. I am glad you are awake as well. I hate to see good people waste their lives in that organization.
Get real clear with who you are and want you want. You will attract the right woman for you.
Cheers! Thank you!