shunned

"I had these huge dreams and aspirations of what I wanted to do, where the attention was all on me. But in my actual life I was so afraid to be noticed because, in my experience, being noticed wasn't necessarily a good thing. You want to fit in with the mold… standing out in that context can be dangerous."

Listen to find out what Trevor is referencing in his quote above. A young man with big dreams, he didn't fit in with a cult that had keeping him small as one of its primary goals. Jehovah's Witnesses want to keep you small and at the Kingdom Hall. This is one man's story of finally beginning to realize parts of his big dreams as he realizes that those dreams are not only achievable, but far more real than anything he was promised by his former faith.

The song that Trevor chose to represent his story is One Five and Four by Hospital Socks, a song that he gets to sing second vocal on.

Support today's guest by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our *NEW* Private ExJwHelp Coaching & Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Whether it was giving his first talk or becoming an unbaptized publisher or getting baptized, Nate knew what was expected of him as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. With a desire to please his parents and a desire to get them off of his back, Nate did what he had to do to get by, hoping that it would alleviate the pressure. But every step just leads to the expectation of yet another, as nothing is ever good enough for the cult. Ultimately it never mattered what Nate did, however, because Nate knew something about himself that would never be accepted.

The song that Nate chose to represent his story is Rainbow by Kesha.

Support today's guest by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our *NEW* Private ExJwHelp Coaching & Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

During a meeting with the congregation elders about her abusive husband, JoHannah asked the question that is the title of this episode. Trying to get the elders to understand the severity of the abuse in her home, words that fell on deaf ears, she would take the courageous step of leaving her marriage only to be looked down upon for doing so. Such is life when you've been conditioned to tolerate abuse from an early age to endure the cult of Jehovah's Witnesses. In this episode you will learn JoHannah's story, sadly full of abuse in a cult that protects abusers (her dad was shunned for smoking while her childhood abuser ran free), but more than that you'll learn about the indomitable person and spirit that is JoHannah and her path out.

You can learn more about her on her own YouTube channel at A is for Apostate Here

The song that she chose to represent her journey is Forgiven by Alanis Morissette

Support today's guest by leaving her a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Harrison lived a life full of change and drama growing up. A mother that was dependent on alcohol and disfellowshipped from the cult of Jehovah's Witnesses twice, move after move after move, including living with a grandmother that was also eventually disfellowshipped, there was a lot of chaos at times. Having not really been interested in "The Truth" as JWs call it, a chance month of field ministry around the age of 16 with a young couple that showed him interest would change everything. Well, not quite everything, as Harrison was gay and knew it, but he would end up serving at the headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses, Bethel. You'll learn about Harrison as a person, as a JW, and as a Bethelite, along with some insights into the culture of Bethel, a place that is idolized by members of the cult.

Support today's guest by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

After a night spent with her boyfriend talking, a relationship that as one of Jehovah's Witnesses she wasn't supposed to have because he wasn't in the cult, a phone call comes in from Elizabeth's father wanting to know where she is. After replying that she was at Waffle House planning a wedding with her friend and that she just lost track of time, she told her boyfriend that now they had to go to Waffle House. Why? Because she had to "make it be true". If those four words aren't the epitome of what it is to be one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I don't know what is. The desire to "make it be true", to ignore all evidence to the contrary, to continue to uphold a dedication coerced through cult influence often as children, and to justify the sunk cost at all costs, is what leads so many to stay in something that isn't good for them. It leads to people living an inauthentic life because they're in so far that they have to "make it be true" because the cost of leaving is so high although they've already lost so much while being in. Elizabeth has such a story of her own to share, including a harrowing experience with a predatory cult member that she was saved from just before it got much worse.

Support today's guest by leaving her a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Amanda travels the United States but is not allowed to have friends as a kid, both outside OR inside of the cult of Jehovah's Witnesses. Amanda isn't home schooled to further her isolation but is sent to school because her dad teaches. Amanda can't play sports at school but her dad coaches some of them. Amanda's dad screams and even gets physical but everyone outside of the home sees a different side of him and loves him. Amanda is forced to hide her body with oversized clothes yet is called a slut at home. And when Amanda is starting to get in trouble with the cult as an adult, her dad does something that is perhaps the most confusing in a life of contradictions.

The song that she chose to represent her journey is Conqueror by the Empire Cast.

Support today's guest by leaving her a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

To participate by donating to the cause, you can donate here (I will personally match the first $200 dollar for dollar): https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/shunnedrecovery You can also Venmo to @michael-shemwell-1 (last four digits of phone are 3279 if needed) To learn more about this day and how you can go out and participate on your own visit: https://exjwhelp.com/exjwhelpday/ To watch this on YouTube, go to: https://youtu.be/HgX1ApWPl5s

The cult of Jehovah's Witnesses has some interesting takes on life and death. On one hand, as today's guest puts it, Jehovah's Witnesses give up on life before it even starts because to them this world is going to end and this life is but a means to that end. On the other hand, they believe that they have the "real life" talked about in scripture, even sporting the hashtag bestlifeever on some of their social media posts. And when someone no longer believes in the doctrine of their group, that person is viewed as dead to them. They are shunned and treated as though they are no longer living. In a 1952 Watchtower magazine, a question from the readers was answered as follows: "● In the case of where a father or mother or son or daughter is disfellowshiped, how should such person be treated by members of the family in their family relationship?—P. C., Ontario, Canada.

We are not living today among theocratic nations where such members of our fleshly family relationship could be exterminated for apostasy from God and his theocratic organization, as was possible and was ordered in the nation of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai and in the land of Palestine. "Thou shalt surely kill him; thy hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him to death with stones, because he hath sought to draw thee away from Jehovah thy God, . . . And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is in the midst of thee."—Deut. 13:6-11, AS.

Being limited by the laws of the worldly nation in which we live and also by the laws of God through Jesus Christ, we can take action against apostates only to a certain extent, that is, consistent with both sets of laws. The law of the land and God's law through Christ forbid us to kill apostates, even though they be members of our own flesh-and-blood family relationship. However, God's law requires us to recognize their being disfellowshiped from his congregation, and this despite the fact that the law of the land in which we live requires us under some natural obligation to live with and have dealings with such apostates under the same roof."

As you can see, Jehovah's Witnesses almost lament the fact that they can't kill apostates, people that leave their cult. Today's guest, at just 19 years of age, is very much on death row, so to speak. He is PIMO, or physically in the cult but mentally out. Because he no longer believes what he was brought up to believe, he knows that eventually he will be disfellowshipped, executed as it were. In fact, doing this interview could be that very death knell for him. His bravery in speaking out shows the depth of his desire to live free from the bonds put upon him as a child by his family. He hopes to inspire and encourage others to live free too. Everyone deserves that chance.

The songs that he chose to represent his journey are In The End by Linkin Park and The Nights by Avicii.

Support today's guest by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Chris comes from a large family of Jehovah's Witnesses in the Montgomery Alabama area. Being from a big family can result in big family drama though, especially when everyone is in a cult that dictates behavior and divides families. In this episode you'll learn about Chris, his family, his story, and how his story overlaps other things going on in the family as well.

The song that Chris chose to represent his journey is I Wanna Live by Fifth featuring P. Black

Support Chris by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.

Sitting at a meeting of Jehovah's Witnesses, during the circuit overseer's visit, a young Dylan was facing a crisis of disconnection. As he realized that he did not belong there once again, and as he felt this darkness in the Kingdom Hall, Dylan would do something that would change the course of his life. On the congregation's wifi while the meeting was going on, Dylan took a chance on Dylan for the first time. He took a chance to open a door that would lead him to eventual freedom even while sitting in a mental prison with everyone else. Listen to his story to learn about his family that was a constant in the congregation, his mother that married an ex-Scientologist and ended up in Africa, and what pushed him to have the courage on that fateful day to do something unthinkable for most in the cult of Jehovah's Witnesses.

The song that Dylan chose to represent his journey is I'm Not Okay But I Know I'm Going To Be by Raleigh Ritchie.

Dylan has his own music single on Spotify as Gem Fresh, entitled Bluefin, found HERE

Support Dylan by leaving him a comment HERE

Support the show by donating to the cause on our Patreon page, Patreon.com/shunned

Are you struggling in some area of life? Feeling stuck? Need an accountability partner or some encouragement? Need to talk to someone that understands cult life? Reach out and let's talk. I have affordable programs to help as a certified life coach. Click HERE for more information.

Want more resources? Go to my other website exjwHelp.com

Join our Shunned Podcast Facebook Support Group HERE

Leave us a review on iTunes

Find shunned podcast on Youtube, including new VIDcasts here.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

You can listen to the Shunned Podcast Spotify playlist here for all of the songs chosen by guests of the show.

This podcast was made possible by my original podcast This JW Life. You can find it on any podcast app or on YouTube. It is a 9 part series about life as Jehovah's Witnesses designed to help you understand how it worked in one comprehensive story and to help you process your own if you came from that environment.

Music provided by Jane and the Boy, entitled Save Myself.