₦airaland Forum

I am the author of jwfacts.com and here is my story:


I was raised a Jehovah's Witness by loving parents. My grandmothers, an aunty and uncle and some cousins were Jehovah's Witnesses. After I left home, my father spent twenty years as a Circuit Overseer and my sister and her husband spent time in Bethel prior to having children. I grew up in a congregation where many older Witnesses expressed the strictly fundamental viewpoint that Jehovah personally directed the Organization and soon would destroy anyone that was not a Jehovah's Witness. As promoted in the Watchtower, I thought I was never going to die; I did not even expect to finish school prior to Armageddon. However, Armageddon had not arrived by the time I matriculated so, unusually for Witnesses in the 1980's, my parents were open-minded enough to encourage me to obtain a University degree. I felt I was able to justify obtaining a higher education by studying part-time whilst regular pioneering. I did not end up doing a professional year, as after university I went straight to Bethel.

Being gregarious, I came to know personally over a thousand Witnesses. What always bothered me is that many of these Witnesses were doing shocking things, and many "worldly" people I met were very nice. I could not reconcile why God will kill the worldly ones and save the Witnesses simply for a label. The worldly people generally knew nothing of Jehovah's Witnesses, so they could hardly be judged evil rejecters of Jehovah.

It was my time at Bethel that convinced me that the Watchtower Society does not have Jehovah's direction. In 1994, a Bethelite friend of mine became an elder, whilst he was committing adultery. It was later discovered that this had been going on for 7 years. This proved to me that God's holy spirit is not involved in Watchtower congregational appointments. Though weakening my faith, I did not know enough about Watchtower history or alternate doctrinal viewpoints to know whether the Watchtower at least taught the closest truth about the Bible. I was too afraid to find out, afraid that if I read anything not from the Watchtower I would be influenced by apostates, afraid that if I left I might be wrong and would die at Armageddon, afraid of being shunned by my family and friends and very afraid of entering the world knowing no one, and believing that the world is an evil and depressing place to live.

In 1994, I left Bethel feeling that the Watchtower may not contain truth. I started to wonder what would happen to the Organization in 20 years time when the last of the 1914 Generation died out without Armageddon coming. I could not imagine the Watchtower shutting up shop in 2014 saying, "well the last one has died, we were wrong", so expected a new Generation doctrine would be formulated. It was still quite a shock when this occurred in 1995, and I took this to indicate that the Governing Body are not confident that the end is really just about to happen. However, out of fear of the loneliness of leaving I still chose to attend meetings. The constant derogatory statements about the world and worldly people began to irritate me and I started to miss more meetings, until by 2004 I was almost inactive and could see no point in life either.

It was at that time that the elders started to pressure me to reactivate myself, wanting to know what my problem was. I told them that I had little faith so they told me to prove the truth to myself by studying more. It finally dawned on me that I already knew more about Watchtower doctrine and policy than most people did yet I had never properly studied the Bible outside the single point of view of the Watchtower. I started to research from numerous sources. This all happened at the time of the Tsunami in December 2004, so one of the first subjects I looked at was earthquakes. I cannot express enough the shock I felt at the deception in the Watchtower in this regard, as the (so-called) increase in earthquakes was one of the foundation points of my faith.

The next few months I became consumed by research and the shock and disappointment with the Watchtower Society was well compensated for by the amazement I felt at finally being able to think and learn. Most Witnesses question the validity of at least some Watchtower doctrine, but as they cannot openly question any Watchtower doctrine cognitive dissonance arises. I had spent my entire life suppressing contrary thoughts and regurgitating prescribed Watchtower beliefs. To finally be able to evaluate information rather than blindly input it was quite literally mind blowing and I now see freedom from mind control as vitally important.

I stopped attending meetings early 2005 and attempted to slip out. Leaving was exceptionally difficult. I went through post-traumatic shock, becoming very emotional and finding it difficult to concentrate, losing my job in the process and experiencing two very difficult years financially. I continued to devote myself to researching Watchtower doctrine, feeling the need to prove I had not been "blinded by Satan" or misled by my own sinful ulterior motives. The more research I did the angrier I became, and determined to help my family see through the manipulation and falsehood. I did not understand the power of mind control, and rather than assist them, all that occurred was to create alienation and resentment.

I started to locate or find out about all my childhood witness associates. I found that of 40 people over half were disfellowshipped. Some had barely been contacted by their parents for 20 years. Others were racked by fear of Armageddon. An examination of Watchtower publisher records identifies that Witnesses have one of the highest turnover rates of any religion, with 100'000's adversely affected through shunning. Other statistics show that Witness divorce rate is on par with the general population, they have the lowest level of education and lowest income levels of any established religion in developed countries.

I posted jwfacts.com, wanting to assist people find objective and factual information in an easy to follow format, in the hope of helping other Witnesses avoid the confusion I felt for the 10 years prior to leaving. I have found many that leave need help to get over the ingrained guilt and fear that results from being raised a Witness. It is also important for Bible studies to have both sides of the Watchtower story prior to baptism. It was difficult teaching myself to present objective information. However, I believe to be most effective the information I have presented must be accurate and honest and I always look forward to emails from people that help me rectify any errors.

Originally, jwfacts.com was anonymous, but about 6 months after my last meeting and the site going live the elders found out about it. They arrived one night at my doorstep, advising that I was to attend a meeting on the charges of apostasy. I wrote a letter requesting that instead my baptism be annulled; presenting that as a minor I was not in a position to make such an important commitment to an organization, one with lifetime ramifications. They refused to accept my reasoning and went ahead with forming the judicial committee. This meeting was traumatic and eye-opening. In my request for annulment were a number of points outlining why I could not accept Jehovah's Witnesses taught truth, but throughout the meeting, they refused to discuss a single issue raised. It was readily apparent that there was no concern about whether I still believed the Bible or God, rather "did I accept the Watchtower Society to be Jehovah's Organization?" It was announced shortly afterwards that I was "no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses."

The next six months became even more emotionally traumatic. Overnight, I was cut off from my family and network of friends. Yet at the same time, I experienced an incredible high. I was 36, and for the first time finally felt real, alive - Free! I had not understood how depressed I had been for many years as a Jehovah's Witness. I could now see beauty in the world around and in "worldly" people. I now felt connected, rather than an observer. I was free from the perpetual negativity the Watchtower instills, needing to reconcile everything as the evil Last Days, filled with evil people God must destroy. However, I could not overcome the deep hurt of losing family or stop my mind constantly replaying what I could do to change things. The only way I was able to control my thinking was to spend time with a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist.

Another difficulty with leaving was that I realised that I could not trust any of my beliefs. Virtually everything I believed had been dictated from birth. In my research, I had come to understand the way the Watchtower presents fallacious logic to manipulate the conclusion readers' draw. It became necessary to learn how to evaluate information, and then overtime re-evaluate every belief, moral and ideal.

I am strongly against any religion that manipulates its members and look forward to a time when atrocities are no longer done in the name of religion, whether they are in the form of terrorist acts, religious wars, violence, shunning family members, refusing medical treatment or just control of beliefs and emotions through fear and guilt. I am optimistic for the minimisation of injustice in the name of religion through education, seeing the Internet as the tool to increase availability of education over the coming decades.

During the years that I was questioning things I had no desire to bring children into this world. Since moving on I now see family as an important part of life and so after 10 years of marriage and at the age of 38 I had my first baby - Zac. Looking after a baby and watching him change daily has been the greatest joy of my life.

UyiIredia: from JW to what? I have actually been involved with JW's in my area and can relate to some extent with what you've said BUT I think it's important to note there are good and bad JW's. I won't read your site yet. Especially given that I agree with at least some of the tenets of JW's as a Christian; other beliefs I differ with.

UyiIredia: from JW to what? I have actually been involved with JW's in my area and can relate to some extent with what you've said BUT I think it's important to note there are good and bad JW's. I won't read your site yet. Especially given that I agree with at least some of the tenets of JW's as a Christian; other beliefs I differ with.

paulGrundy: I am the author of jwfacts.com and here is my story:


I was raised a Jehovah's Witness by loving parents. My grandmothers, an aunty and uncle and some cousins were Jehovah's Witnesses. After I left home, my father spent twenty years as a Circuit Overseer and my sister and her husband spent time in Bethel prior to having children. I grew up in a congregation where many older Witnesses expressed the strictly fundamental viewpoint that Jehovah personally directed the Organization and soon would destroy anyone that was not a Jehovah's Witness. As promoted in the Watchtower, I thought I was never going to die; I did not even expect to finish school prior to Armageddon. However, Armageddon had not arrived by the time I matriculated so, unusually for Witnesses in the 1980's, my parents were open-minded enough to encourage me to obtain a University degree. I felt I was able to justify obtaining a higher education by studying part-time whilst regular pioneering. I did not end up doing a professional year, as after university I went straight to Bethel.

Being gregarious, I came to know personally over a thousand Witnesses. What always bothered me is that many of these Witnesses were doing shocking things, and many "worldly" people I met were very nice. I could not reconcile why God will kill the worldly ones and save the Witnesses simply for a label. The worldly people generally knew nothing of Jehovah's Witnesses, so they could hardly be judged evil rejecters of Jehovah.

It was my time at Bethel that convinced me that the Watchtower Society does not have Jehovah's direction. In 1994, a Bethelite friend of mine became an elder, whilst he was committing adultery. It was later discovered that this had been going on for 7 years. This proved to me that God's holy spirit is not involved in Watchtower congregational appointments. Though weakening my faith, I did not know enough about Watchtower history or alternate doctrinal viewpoints to know whether the Watchtower at least taught the closest truth about the Bible. I was too afraid to find out, afraid that if I read anything not from the Watchtower I would be influenced by apostates, afraid that if I left I might be wrong and would die at Armageddon, afraid of being shunned by my family and friends and very afraid of entering the world knowing no one, and believing that the world is an evil and depressing place to live.

In 1994, I left Bethel feeling that the Watchtower may not contain truth. I started to wonder what would happen to the Organization in 20 years time when the last of the 1914 Generation died out without Armageddon coming. I could not imagine the Watchtower shutting up shop in 2014 saying, "well the last one has died, we were wrong", so expected a new Generation doctrine would be formulated. It was still quite a shock when this occurred in 1995, and I took this to indicate that the Governing Body are not confident that the end is really just about to happen. However, out of fear of the loneliness of leaving I still chose to attend meetings. The constant derogatory statements about the world and worldly people began to irritate me and I started to miss more meetings, until by 2004 I was almost inactive and could see no point in life either.

It was at that time that the elders started to pressure me to reactivate myself, wanting to know what my problem was. I told them that I had little faith so they told me to prove the truth to myself by studying more. It finally dawned on me that I already knew more about Watchtower doctrine and policy than most people did yet I had never properly studied the Bible outside the single point of view of the Watchtower. I started to research from numerous sources. This all happened at the time of the Tsunami in December 2004, so one of the first subjects I looked at was earthquakes. I cannot express enough the shock I felt at the deception in the Watchtower in this regard, as the (so-called) increase in earthquakes was one of the foundation points of my faith.

The next few months I became consumed by research and the shock and disappointment with the Watchtower Society was well compensated for by the amazement I felt at finally being able to think and learn. Most Witnesses question the validity of at least some Watchtower doctrine, but as they cannot openly question any Watchtower doctrine cognitive dissonance arises. I had spent my entire life suppressing contrary thoughts and regurgitating prescribed Watchtower beliefs. To finally be able to evaluate information rather than blindly input it was quite literally mind blowing and I now see freedom from mind control as vitally important.

I stopped attending meetings early 2005 and attempted to slip out. Leaving was exceptionally difficult. I went through post-traumatic shock, becoming very emotional and finding it difficult to concentrate, losing my job in the process and experiencing two very difficult years financially. I continued to devote myself to researching Watchtower doctrine, feeling the need to prove I had not been "blinded by Satan" or misled by my own sinful ulterior motives. The more research I did the angrier I became, and determined to help my family see through the manipulation and falsehood. I did not understand the power of mind control, and rather than assist them, all that occurred was to create alienation and resentment.

I started to locate or find out about all my childhood witness associates. I found that of 40 people over half were disfellowshipped. Some had barely been contacted by their parents for 20 years. Others were racked by fear of Armageddon. An examination of Watchtower publisher records identifies that Witnesses have one of the highest turnover rates of any religion, with 100'000's adversely affected through shunning. Other statistics show that Witness divorce rate is on par with the general population, they have the lowest level of education and lowest income levels of any established religion in developed countries.

I posted jwfacts.com, wanting to assist people find objective and factual information in an easy to follow format, in the hope of helping other Witnesses avoid the confusion I felt for the 10 years prior to leaving. I have found many that leave need help to get over the ingrained guilt and fear that results from being raised a Witness. It is also important for Bible studies to have both sides of the Watchtower story prior to baptism. It was difficult teaching myself to present objective information. However, I believe to be most effective the information I have presented must be accurate and honest and I always look forward to emails from people that help me rectify any errors.

Originally, jwfacts.com was anonymous, but about 6 months after my last meeting and the site going live the elders found out about it. They arrived one night at my doorstep, advising that I was to attend a meeting on the charges of apostasy. I wrote a letter requesting that instead my baptism be annulled; presenting that as a minor I was not in a position to make such an important commitment to an organization, one with lifetime ramifications. They refused to accept my reasoning and went ahead with forming the judicial committee. This meeting was traumatic and eye-opening. In my request for annulment were a number of points outlining why I could not accept Jehovah's Witnesses taught truth, but throughout the meeting, they refused to discuss a single issue raised. It was readily apparent that there was no concern about whether I still believed the Bible or God, rather "did I accept the Watchtower Society to be Jehovah's Organization?" It was announced shortly afterwards that I was "no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses."

The next six months became even more emotionally traumatic. Overnight, I was cut off from my family and network of friends. Yet at the same time, I experienced an incredible high. I was 36, and for the first time finally felt real, alive - Free! I had not understood how depressed I had been for many years as a Jehovah's Witness. I could now see beauty in the world around and in "worldly" people. I now felt connected, rather than an observer. I was free from the perpetual negativity the Watchtower instills, needing to reconcile everything as the evil Last Days, filled with evil people God must destroy. However, I could not overcome the deep hurt of losing family or stop my mind constantly replaying what I could do to change things. The only way I was able to control my thinking was to spend time with a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist.

Another difficulty with leaving was that I realised that I could not trust any of my beliefs. Virtually everything I believed had been dictated from birth. In my research, I had come to understand the way the Watchtower presents fallacious logic to manipulate the conclusion readers' draw. It became necessary to learn how to evaluate information, and then overtime re-evaluate every belief, moral and ideal.

I am strongly against any religion that manipulates its members and look forward to a time when atrocities are no longer done in the name of religion, whether they are in the form of terrorist acts, religious wars, violence, shunning family members, refusing medical treatment or just control of beliefs and emotions through fear and guilt. I am optimistic for the minimisation of injustice in the name of religion through education, seeing the Internet as the tool to increase availability of education over the coming decades.

During the years that I was questioning things I had no desire to bring children into this world. Since moving on I now see family as an important part of life and so after 10 years of marriage and at the age of 38 I had my first baby - Zac. Looking after a baby and watching him change daily has been the greatest joy of my life.

honeychild: @paulGrundy

I am always saddened when I read accounts like this. It's sad when human imperfections or organizational issues cause people to stop being one of Jehovah's Witnesses.

I don't know about every witness. But I have always viewed our organisation as an imperfect one, made up of ordinary people trying to do their best to serve Jehovah.

I have never felt the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses is led or inspired by the Holy Spirit in the same way the writers of the Bible were, for instance. So I know they have made mistakes in the past, and will probably make a lot more in the future.

Perhaps because I was not raised a witness, I have an advantage. I made a conscious thought to become one, having carefully compared what they have to offer me as against other denominations. I became one of Jehovah's Witnesses because they taught me these truths from the Bible.

For me, the key tenets of being one of Jehovah's Witnesses is this.

1. Jehovah is the Most High God. He has no equal. Jesus is his second in command.

2. Jehovah is not going to destroy this earth. He is going to transform it into a paradise earth.

3. When people die they do not go to heaven or hell. They lie unconscious until the resurrection.

4. It's the sacred obligation of every Christian to evangelize .

For me that is all. The Governing Body are imperfect humans. My local elders are imperfect humans. I didn't become a witness of Jehovah because of them. Until I am convinced from the Bible that the above tenets are unscriptural I will remain one of Jehovah's people.

BERNIMOORE: @honeychild



you will be surprised to know who you are talking with!

honeychild: I know na

our resident JW troll!

I just respond sometimes for the sake of some people who may think he has something to say!!

jared007: 8:11am On Sep 13th ....don't be silly winsomeX the pharisee. The gospel and d church is to convert a sinner and not a holier than thou hypocrate like u. Do not dwell on d past deeds of yooguyz. Do u know if he has repented? Yooguyz my advice is dat u change ur nairaland monicker.

BERNIMOORE: https://www.nairaland.com/1892195/truth-behind-christ-embassy-healing/13#26264055


Gender: (m)
Time registered: September 24, 2014

honeychild: @paulGrundy

I am always saddened when I read accounts like this. It's sad when human imperfections or organizational issues cause people to stop being one of Jehovah's Witnesses.

I don't know about every witness. But I have always viewed our organisation as an imperfect one, made up of ordinary people trying to do their best to serve Jehovah.

I have never felt the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses is led or inspired by the Holy Spirit in the same way the writers of the Bible were, for instance. So I know they have made mistakes in the past, and will probably make a lot more in the future.

Perhaps because I was not raised a witness, I have an advantage. I made a conscious thought to become one, having carefully compared what they have to offer me as against other denominations. I became one of Jehovah's Witnesses because they taught me these truths from the Bible.

For me, the key tenets of being one of Jehovah's Witnesses is this.

1. Jehovah is the Most High God. He has no equal. Jesus is his second in command.

2. Jehovah is not going to destroy this earth. He is going to transform it into a paradise earth.

3. When people die they do not go to heaven or hell. They lie unconscious until the resurrection.

4. It's the sacred obligation of every Christian to evangelize .

For me that is all. The Governing Body are imperfect humans. My local elders are imperfect humans. I didn't become a witness of Jehovah because of them. Until I am convinced from the Bible that the above tenets are unscriptural I will remain one of Jehovah's people.

paulGrundy: The motive behind the OP is not to attack any group, he is trying to dispel the prejudice that jehovahs witnesses have towards other christian groups by highlighting the flaws in their doctrine, and within their own rank and file. Just like what the bible says, "remove the beam in your eyes, before removing that of your brother".
The OP is trying to expose the watchtower leaders for who they truly are: humans. And just like christian leaders of other groups, they make mistakes.

The OP is trying to make witnesses follow the bible only, rather than dictates of their organization.

paulGrundy: Wow! That was a sincere, honest heart warming reply I have ever gotten from you it melted my heart, I couldn't stop starring at it

No human is perfect just like you said, I also believe no christian group monopolizes the truth, our differences in doctrine is largely due to conflicting understandings of the sacred scriptures. That's why I think denominations should focus on our common passion: evangelism, rather than pointing accusing fingers at each other.


As of me being a troll... Well people change, sometimes it takes a kind honest common like yours to make a moniker more tolerant of a Jehovah's witness.

I would still be coming up with topics from time to time, but it would be in a respectful non-confrontational manner. To help me understand the society through her lens.

I hope we would continue to have dialogues like this in future in a respectful manner.

Efere701: WATCHTOWER has never claimed to be infallible or perfect. JW's too do not feel that their earthly leadership is perfect.

jared007: 8:11am On Sep 13th ....don't be silly winsomeX the pharisee. The gospel and d church is to convert a sinner and not a holier than thou hypocrate like u. Do not dwell on d past deeds of yooguyz. Do u know if he has repented? Yooguyz my advice is dat u change ur nairaland monicker.

Efere701: WATCHTOWER has never claimed to be infallible or perfect. JW's too do not feel that their earthly leadership is perfect.

paulGrundy: Thank you Mr Efere701 for honoring my thread,

I guess you are suprised at the calm and polite manner I respond to JW's. Well people change, maybe I just realized that JW's are honest and sincere people, maybe my ideologies are changing. But one thing I have learnt is to be respectful to other peoples religious views even though you don't agree with them.

However I would like to throw questions related to what you wrote:
If the JW earthly leadership is not perfect, do you think they deserve your unquestionable loyalty? Why?

honeychild: @OluT

If you read the OP, which we were responding to, you would have noticed that he never called into question any particular doctrine. What he said was:

1. While he was at Bethel (our branch office where we print books) a friend of his was appointed an elder. Later it came to light that this man had been committing adultery at the time he was appointed. So PaulGrundy concluded that since he was appointed an elder despite his adultery that means that the Holy Spirit was not with Jehovah's Witnesses. Because if the Holy Spirit was there, then the people who appointed him shouldn't have.

So he didn't call into question any doctrines. If you feel you have any particular questionable doctrines in mind, please feel free to raise them and get Biblical answers.

honeychild: @PaulGrundy
you would be better off asking questions of real witnesses you meet in real life (that is if you aren't an apostate or a disfellowshipped witness) than feeding yourself off the garbage on sites like JWfacts. Some of the things stated there are nothing but junk and poorly constructed lies. I actually took some time to read the site, especially the experiences. What you would discover is

1. Almost all of them were disfellowshipped for wrong doing. There major complaint is that the practice of 'shunning' disfellowshipped witnesses is too harsh!

2. A lot of them had issues with family members or congregation members who were not nice. e.g. Áll time Jeff' who had a harsh, domineering wife:

''Anyway, in short, thought I was a pioneer, appointed an elder at 26, assmembly parts all the time, it was never good enough for her. One thing I did wrong, and she would yell, treat me poorly, and give me the silent treatment. My typical schedule was FS 5 days a week for3-6 hours, then spend the rest of the evening and night cleaning buildings, get home after 11:00, work on talks, etc. Yet, she was never proud of me. She was the one who suggested Gilead to me, esp after listening to talks on the need to set "spiritual goals". I wanted to be a CO, but she wanted to go to another country, and what she wanted, she generally got.''

Okay tell me na, how does this concern Governing Body? Did they choose your wife for you?

or ''Disfellowshipped wife'":
''When I was 19, I met my husband. I was young and so incredibly naive. Whilst I was dating my husband he hit me for the first time. I told my parents and they advised me to split up from him, which I did for about a week. But he came back crying and begging me to take him back. And so I did, because I felt guilty for making him cry. Great reasoning!
I married him just after turning 21. I knew on the day of my wedding I shouldn't have married him, I knew I should have stopped it, but didn't want to cause controversy in our perfect little life. So I went ahead. I knew my dad didn't want me to, but he didn't say anything''

I read another account about one slowpoke (sorry to use that word) who says while he was a witness he used to plan which of the houses he would take over after Armageddon:
''Judging at the door was our inside joke. "Well, shake the dust off of your feet." "Well, that's a really nice house. Seeing as there are only goats inside, I think I'll take that one after Armageddon''

You and whose army are practicing such stupidity? . I just couldn't stop laughing. Then eventually he stops being a witness because of a girl! .

So my point is, the people who give you all these information you come and post here on nairaland are angry, bitter people. You can never get the truth from them.

paulGrundy: I am the author of jwfacts.com and here is my story:



It was my time at Bethel that convinced me that the Watchtower Society does not have Jehovah's direction. In 1994, a Bethelite friend of mine became an elder, whilst he was committing adultery. It was later discovered that this had been going on for 7 years. This proved to me that God's holy spirit is not involved in Watchtower congregational appointments.

honeychild: This was what he said.

paulGrundy: Ok ok seen it, thanks for the correction.

paulGrundy:
Whilst these are true, I think I understand the point you are trying to make, you are trying to say that their grieviances towards the watchtower would cause them to distort the truth, isn't it?



Yes you are right. But remember that you cannot get true information about JW's from JW's. Information maybe extreme right sided. Reminds me of my school days, when we were asked to write an essay about our selves, I wrote that I was Queen Elizabeths cousin and that I spent the holiday at Great britain. [size=14pt]Hehehe[/size]

The point is we tend to over emphasize our strenghts and downplay or ignore our weaknesses/errors altogether.

to know the truth, you have to investigate anything you hear, to see if those things be so

A simple man believes anything he hears, a wise man investigates what he hears. Jwfacts.com has a myraid of references and links that are easy to verify.

Yooguyz:
[size=14pt]hehehe[/size]....lol...hahahaha. It is paining you abi! It pained you that someone got healed by God's power! Wel dis is small u havent seen anything yet! I only pray that the scale falls off your eyes! Who knows you may be the athiest i will be saved in NL who knows?