In Episode 6 – Part 1, you will get to know David a bit.  This episode builds and will take you through David’s upbringing and right up into the beginnings of adulthood.  You will learn a lot about him and if you aren’t familiar with the cult of Jehovah’s Witnesses you will learn about it as well through this process.  There is no mention of the abuse in this first part, so no trigger warning is necessary.  That will come in Part 2 and the way these things are handled in the cult will be discussed there.

For episode information and resources, or to leave a comment of support for David, visit:

http://shunnedpodcast.com/episode-6-part-1-sexual-abuse-and-jehovahs-witnesses-davids-story/

Sometimes young people have to make very difficult decisions in order to stand up for what is right. We normally think about it terms of peer pressure, but what if it was the pressure of pretty much everyone that means anything to you? What if you woke up and realized that most of what you were taught was a lie and that by merely saying something about it everything could come crashing down on you. Would you be strong enough at 18 years old to take a stand even if it meant losing your family and all of the people that you thought were your friends, potentially forever? This is Caleb's story. The song that Caleb chose to represent his journey is "A Little More" by Machine Gun Kelly.  Click the song info to see the lyric video. Download

Sometimes young people have to make very difficult decisions in order to stand up for what is right. We normally think about it terms of peer pressure, but what if it was the pressure of pretty much everyone that means anything to you? What if you woke up and realized that most of what you were taught was a lie and that by merely saying something about it everything could come crashing down on you. Would you be strong enough at 18 years old to take a stand even if it meant losing your family and all of the people that you thought were your friends, potentially forever? This is Caleb's story. The song that Caleb chose to represent his journey is "A Little More" by Machine Gun Kelly.  Click the song info to see the lyric video. Download

In this episode we explore Mike's story of being shunned at an early age while still living at home, and how even today although he isn't officially "shunned" he's still treated that way as an inactive Jehovah's Witness. Not all who are "shunned" are disfellowshipped or disassociated from the organization. Shunning is in the DNA of Jehovah's Witnesses, something that really marks them as a high control religion, also known as a cult. The song chosen by Mike to represent his journey is "Addiction" by Kanye West, in particular the hook: "Why everything that's supposed to bad make me feel so good? Everything they told me not to is exactly what I would" [podcast src="https://html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/6029739/height/90/theme/custom/autoplay/no/autonext/no/thumbnail/yes/preload/no/no_addthis/no/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/f40a0a/" height="90" width="100%" placement="bottom" theme="custom" Download

In this episode we explore Mike's story of being shunned at an early age while still living at home, and how even today although he isn't officially "shunned" he's still treated that way as an inactive Jehovah's Witness. Not all who are "shunned" are disfellowshipped or disassociated from the organization. Shunning is in the DNA of Jehovah's Witnesses, something that really marks them as a high control religion, also known as a cult. The song chosen by Mike to represent his journey is "Addiction" by Kanye West, in particular the hook: "Why everything that's supposed to bad make me feel so good? Everything they told me not to is exactly what I would" [podcast src="https://html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/6029739/height/90/theme/custom/autoplay/no/autonext/no/thumbnail/yes/preload/no/no_addthis/no/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/f40a0a/" height="90" width="100%" placement="bottom" theme="custom"

Download

There are many ways to be shunned as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Emily's story highlights a path that many take, a path of personal growth with stumbles along the way that result in ostracism, a path that deviates from the prescribed path of a cult that requires everyone to walk the same or face the consequences. This story shines a light on the spectrum of the JW experience. Download The song that Emily said signified her journey is Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson:

There are many ways to be shunned as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Emily's story highlights a path that many take, a path of personal growth with stumbles along the way that result in ostracism, a path that deviates from the prescribed path of a cult that requires everyone to walk the same or face the consequences. This story shines a light on the spectrum of the JW experience. Download The song that Emily said signified her journey is Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson:

Download Imagine growing up in a very tight knit community where everyone is sheltered from the outside world. Your personal business is the business of the community and they feel that it reflects upon them. What if your mistakes were brought to the light in front of everyone that you knew and they had to vote right in front of you on whether you would be shunned or not. What if you tried so hard to be "good enough" but just couldn't make it no matter how hard you tried, no matter how much you relied on your faith. This is Jerry's life story, a story of struggle and eventual freedom. Jerry's chosen song is This Is The Time by Superchick:   Other Resources Mentioned: John Eldredge - Wild At Heart John Eldredge - The Journey Of Desire Michael John Cusick - Surfing For God Henry Cloud - Boundaries Song: JJ Heller - What Love Really Means Song: Jesus Culture - Your Love Never Fails Podcast: The Mental Illness Happy Hour

Download
Imagine growing up in a very tight knit community where everyone is sheltered from the outside world. Your personal business is the business of the community and they feel that it reflects upon them. What if your mistakes were brought to the light in front of everyone that you knew and they had to vote right in front of you on whether you would be shunned or not. What if you tried so hard to be "good enough" but just couldn't make it no matter how hard you tried, no matter how much you relied on your faith. This is Jerry's life story, a story of struggle and eventual freedom. Jerry's chosen song is This Is The Time by Superchick:   Other Resources Mentioned: John Eldredge - Wild At Heart John Eldredge - The Journey Of Desire Michael John Cusick - Surfing For God Henry Cloud - Boundaries Song: JJ Heller - What Love Really Means Song: Jesus Culture - Your Love Never Fails Podcast: The Mental Illness Happy Hour

Download Follow Jenny's story from being raised as one of Jehovah's Witnesses, the only thing she had ever known, to her awakening to the realities of the cult and eventual shunning. Jenny's song that helped her through the process is by Rise Against - I Don't Want To Be Here Anymore