For every 100 Jehovah's
Witnesses more than 1 is
disfellowshipped each year; over 70,000. Two out of every three are never reinstated.
Being disfellowshipped can result in serious emotional side affects because:

~those that continue to believe Watchtower doctrine are told
that whilst disfellowshipped they
are condemned to everlasting destruction.

~those who become unbelievers, with no intention of returning to
the Watchtower Society, realise they are unlikely to freely associate with Witness family and friends for the remainder of their lives.
The Watchtower explains:


"Thus "disfellowshiping" is what Jehovah's Witnesses appropriately call the expelling
and subsequent shunning of such an unrepentant
wrongdoer." Watchtower 1981 Sep 15 p.22

"… a simple "Hello" to someone can be the first step that develops into a conversation and
maybe even a friendship. Would we want to take that first step with a disfellowshiped person?"
Watchtower 1981 Sep 15 p.25


It was not until 1952 that the Watchtower introduced disfellowshipping as now
practiced and the following review of the Scriptural principles
involved shows that there is no Biblical justification for the extent
to which the Watchtower
practices this unchristian form of manipulation. Though there is
Scriptural precedence to limit association with brothers practicing wrongdoing, the
Watchtower application of disfellowshipping seriously deviates from Bible guidelines in
a number of ways;

2 John 10 says not to greet the Antichrist. The Watchtower uses
this single scripture to support not saying hello to a disfellowshipped person.
At Scriptures such as 1
Corinthians 5, Paul outlined limiting association with
Christians that practice
wrongdoing, not strict shunning.
The Watchtower disfellowships for practices never discussed in the Bible such as smoking, gambling and having a blood
transfusion.
Disfellowshipping is extended to prevent immediate family
members associating with their disfellowshipped relatives.
The punishment applies forever, or until the Watchtower Society
formally reinstates the person. It is considered irrelevant whether
the person no longer practices the wrongdoing they were disfellowshipped for.

Watchtower Rules on Treating those Disfellowshipped

The Watchtower divides
punishment of wrongdoers into
two categories, those deserving of marking and those deserving of disfellowshipping
(or "disassociation". Marking is applied to mild wrongdoing,(not yet gross sin for which they
might be disfellowshipped w82
2/1 p.31), and the person is not named. On the other hand, a
disfellowshipped person is publicly named and must be avoided by all Witnesses in almost all circumstances. It is
important to note that the Bible never uses the term disfellowship and makes no such
distinction from marking.
The Watchtower Society is very clear on how a disfellowshipped
person is to be treated. A
disfellowshipped person is not to be associated with under any
social circumstances; in fact the word "Hello" should not even be
uttered to these ones, even in the kingdom hall. This treatment is far harsher than how a Witness would treat a person of the world. Yet, as discussed later in
this article, the Bible only said that it is the Antichrist that one
should not say a greeting to. This type of treatment was not to extend to other wrongdoers
such as fornicators. The Society is bundling all forms of wrongdoing as the same, and treatment is to be of the same
harsh standard for all
disfellowshipped people
regardless of the wrongdoing that was done. Hence, a
disfellowshipped Witness must not be greeted regardless of whether their "sin" was murder,
changing beliefs or simply
smoking cigarettes.
Total avoidance of the member is extended beyond members of
the congregation and to ones immediate family. Few people could consider it acceptable that a religion demand parents shun their own child, and it is
incomprehensible that the following quote was written in the twenty first century.

[b]"What if we have a relative or a close friend who is disfellowshipped? Now our loyalty is on the line, not to that
person, but to God. Jehovah is watching us to see whether we will abide by his command not to have contact with anyone who is
disfellowshipped.—Read 1Corinthians 5:11-13.
Consider just one example of the
good that can come when a family loyally upholds Jehovah’s decree not to associate with
disfellowshipped relatives. A young man had been
disfellowshipped for over ten years, during which time his father, mother, and four brothers
“quit mixing in company” with him. At times, he tried to involve
himself in their activities, but to their credit, each member of the
family was steadfast in not having any contact with him. After he was reinstated, he said
that he always missed the
association with his family, especially at night when he was alone. But, he admitted, had the
family associated with him even a little, that small dose would
have satisfied him. However, because he did not receive even the slightest communication
from any of his family, the burning desire to be with them became one motivating factor in
his restoring his relationship
with Jehovah." Watchtower 2012
Apr 15 p.12[/b]

In reading the supporting
Scripture, 1 Corinthians 5, one cannot help notice that it does not mention the word disfellowship, does not indicate
strict shunning, nor imply
application to family members. Further, the concept that a son
should be bribed back into the religion is a thinly veiled attempt
at increasing membership
numbers and hardly seems of spiritual value.
The same experience appears again in the Watchtower 2013
Jun 15 p.28. Here the person states,

"Had my family associated with me even a little, say to check
up on me, that small dose of association would have satisfied me and likely not allowed my
desire for association to be a motivating factor to return to God."

This shows how absolute
the shunning of family is
expected to be.
The Watchtower 2013 Jan 1 p.16 even denies family
communication by email, stating;

"Do not look for excuses to associate with a
disfellowshipped family member, for example, through e-mail."

Interestingly, whilst the
translation into most languages is the same, the Spanish edition
extends this to "email, phone or text messaging."

The following quotes span a number of decades regarding the treatment of disfellowshipped members and how they are to be viewed. Due
to these articles, there are former Jehovah's Witnesses that have
been shunned by Witness family members for decades.
The current standard on how to treat the disfellowshipped was
set in the Watchtower 1981 Sep 15. The rules in this article have been quoted in the Kingdom
Ministry 2002 Aug and the 2008
book Keep Yourself in God's Love.
The discussion on
disfellowshipping in Keep
Yourself in God's Love shows that there has been no softening
in recent times.
Further quotes outlining how the Watchtower Society expects
Jehovah's Witnesses to treat disfellowshipped members are as follows.

"Really, what your beloved family member needs to see is your
resolute stance to put Jehovah above everything else -including
the family bond. … Do not look for excuses to associate with a
disfellowshipped family member, for example, through e-mail."
Watchtower 2013 Jan 15 p.16

"And all members of the
congregation need to be
determined to avoid the
company of disfellowshipped
individuals."
Watchtower 2011 Nov 15 p.5

"Suppose, for example, that the only son of an exemplary Christian couple leaves the truth.
Preferring "the temporary
enjoyment of sin" to a personal relationship with Jehovah and
with his godly parents, the young man is disfellowshipped. … the
Bible says "to quit mixing in company with anyone called a brother that is a fornicator. …
They also realise that the word "anyone" in this verse includes family members not living under
their roof. … Our hearts go out to those parents. After all, their son
had a choice, and he chose to pursue his unchristian lifestyle
rather than to continue to enjoy close association with his parents and other fellow believers. The parents, on the
other hand, had no say in the matter. … But what will those dear parents do? Will they obey
Jehovah's clear direction? Or will they rationalize that they can have regular association with the disfellowshipped son and call it, "necessary family business"? In
making their decision, they must not fail to consider how Jehovah
feels about what they are doing.… Today, Jehovah does not immediately execute those who
violate his laws. He lovingly gives
them an opportunity to repent from their unrighteous works.
How would Jehovah feel, though, if the parents of an unrepentant wrongdoer kept putting Him to the test by having unnecessary
association with their
disfellowshipped son or
daughter?" Watchtower 2011 Jul 15 p.31, p.32

"By cutting off contact with the disfellowshipped or disassociated one, you are showing that you hate the attitudes and actions that led to
that outcome. However, you are also showing that you love the wrongdoer enough to do what
is best for him or her. Your loyalty to Jehovah may increase the likelihood that the disciplined one will repent and return to
Jehovah." Watchtower 2011 Feb 15 p.32