Jehovah's Witnesses' handling of child sexual abuse

In recent years, Jehovah's Witnesses, in common with other religious organizations, have been obliged to develop child protection policies to deal with cases of child abuse or pedophilia in their congregations. Like most people, Jehovah's Witnesses find child abuse repugnant. The Church's leaders believe they have a "strong, Bible-based policy on child abuse." Details of the policy have been published in Witness publications and Press Releases issued by their Office of Public Information, Some details are found only in letters to elders, which, while confidential, have been available on the internet for some years.

Jehovah's Witnesses' Child Protection Policy

Unlike many religious organizations' policies, which concern only church employees or voluntary youth workers, Jehovah's Witnesses' policy does not apply solely to those holding appointed positions, but to everyone associated with the organization. A letter about child abuse to Witness congregations stated: "Everyone in the organization is expected to meet the same requirements, namely, to be clean physically, mentally, morally and spiritually."

On numerous occasions, Jehovah's Witnesses have published information on how to protect children from sexual molestation. This includes articles such as "Protect Your Children" in the October 8, 1993 edition of Awake! magazine, the article Help Your Children to Thrive in Awake! of August 8, 1997 and the series "Keep Your Children Safe" in the November 2007 edition of Awake! magazine and chapter 32 of a book for children entitled Learn from the Great Teacher. These articles focus on prevention by helping children understand what sexual abuse is, to say no to molesters and to tell their parents about attempted abuse.

In this regard, Rodney Stark, Professor of Social Sciences, commented: "[Jehovah's Witnesses] have some ... very well-designed articles telling parents how to teach their children to deal with the molestation situation and in ways so that the child will feel secure about coming home and reporting it."

Helping the Victim

Elders have specific direction to follow if a child reports abuse. A letter to elders stated: "Do not ask probing or intimate questions. This is very important and has legal implications. However surprising the allegations, the elder should not indicate disbelief in any way. Nor should he express any criticism of the complainant. Elders are spiritual shepherds but are generally not qualified to evaluate the genuineness or the seriousness of an allegation of child abuse."

Child victims are not required to face their abusers to make an accusation. Instructions to elders state: "When the witness is a victim of the wrongdoer, as in cases of incest or rape … two elders may discuss the matter with the accused." In 1998, elders were advised that if children are victims of molestation, they should not be required to confront the accused. Even adult victims may make their accusation by letter or telephone if they prefer.

Whether to seek help from a counselor or other mental-health professional is considered to be a personal decision for the victim (or parents) to make. Victims are advised to ensure that any counselor consulted will respect their religious views. Likewise, elders are instructed that "there are times when an emotionally distressed Christian may seek professional help. Whether or not a brother or a sister pursues treatment from psychiatrists, psychologists, or therapists is a personal decision as long as the therapy does not conflict with Bible principles."

Congregation Discipline

Unlike most religious bodies, Jehovah's Witnesses have a disciplinary system that applies to all congregation members who commit child abuse, not merely to employees, full-time workers or youth workers. Elders are instructed to investigate promptly all allegations of child molestation. A letter to elders stated: "Victims urgently need to be protected from further abuse, and abusers need to be prevented from finding additional victims." This would involve having two elders investigate allegations of child abuse and, if these are deemed to have a sound basis, forming a judicial committee. At this point, the accused is relieved of all positions of responsibility in the congregation.

Anyone found to have sexually molested a child and failing to demonstrate repentance is to be disfellowshipped (excommunicated) from the congregation. Numerous Jehovah's Witnesses who have committed child molestation have been subjected to disfellowshipping, a strong sanction that is virtually unknown in most other faith-based groups. – See cases of abuse below.

Those judged repentant by a committee of elders are given "public reproof". Their names are announced to the congregation (although what they did is not announced). Some time later, a talk is given to the congregation, discussing the type of sin and the need to be on guard against it, although this time nothing is said to connect the person to the type of sin committed. For a considerable period of time those reproved in this way are not permitted to participate in meetings by commenting in group discussions or making presentations from the platform. They are immediately debarred from serving in any appointed position in the congregation, usually for life (see below for exceptions).

Basis for Congregation Action

As a safeguard against false or malicious accusations, the formation of a judicial committee requires either (1) a confession, (2) statements by two eyewitnesses or (3) strong circumstantial evidence (DNA evidence presented in a court of law would likely be accepted). If proof is established by two witnesses, it is not necessary that both have been present at the same instance of child molestation. In other words, statements by two victims could be accepted.. One Witness spokesman says: "If two persons are witnesses to separate incidents of the same kind of wrongdoing, their testimony may be deemed sufficient to take action." This is corroborated by instructions given to elders in their 1991 textbook: "If there are two or three witnesses to the same kind of wrongdoing but each one is witness to a separate incident, their testimony can be considered. Such evidence may be used to establish guilt."

Testimony based on "repressed memories" is not considered reliable enough to form the basis for judicial action. Repressed memories are not viewed as true or false, simply as insufficient proof. Elders are encouraged to treat persons reporting this type of memory with kindness.

Even in cases where there is no second witness to an allegation of child abuse, elders are instructed to monitor the accused very closely. The Watchtower magazine stated: "If there is some valid reason to suspect that the alleged perpetrator is still abusing children, a warning may have to be given. The congregation elders can help in such a case."

The requirement for two witnesses is applied solely to congregational discipline and has no bearing on whether the matter is reported to the secular authorities.

Precautions Concerning Former Molesters

Former child molesters, including those who molested children before becoming Jehovah's Witnesses, those eventually reinstated into the congregation after being disfellowshipped and those who were deemed repentant are subject to a number of restrictions, which normally remain in place permanently. The Watchtower stated: "For the protection of our children, a man known to have been a child molester does not qualify for a responsible position in the congregation. Moreover, he cannot be a pioneer or serve in any other special, full-time service." According to an internal document sent out in 2002, they are not assigned to read paragraphs during congregation studies, and are not assigned even minor responsibilities in the congregation, such as practical duties in the Kingdom Hall (looking after microphones, supplying members with books or magazines) and not offering public prayer. The person's home may not usually be used for congregation meetings.

Commenting on the effect of these restrictions, Witness representative Mario Moreno is quoted as saying that "because of the church's structure, the fact that such a member, if male, who would have fewer rights in the congregation, would not be serving in a leadership role would alert members that 'he obviously lacks spiritual maturity.'"

Those known to have engaged in child molestation in the past are not permitted to participate in the congregation's house-to-house preaching, unless accompanied by a responsible adult. According to Watch Tower representative J. R. Brown, they "are restricted from working with minors and must also be with a well-respected church member when they go door to door." Similar instructions were provided to elders at a school held in 2002 for elders: "When they work in the field service [Jehovah's Witnesses' preaching] they are not to work alone. They should always be accompanied by an adult. These factors are in the best interests of children and the former abuser."

Occasional exceptions to the above paragraphs have been made when the abuse happened many years ago, especially if the offence was borderline (for instance, a sixteen-year-old boy with a fifteen-year-old consenting girl, illegal in some jurisdictions). A fax sent by the Witnesses' Office of Public Information to the producers of the BBC's Panorama program stated: "Our policy over the past several years has been that at least twenty years must have passed before an individual who committed an act of child abuse could even be considered for appointment to a responsible position in the congregation, if ever."

If a former child abuser moves to another congregation, elders from the previous congregation send a letter to the new congregation's elders, outlining his background and providing needed cautions. The above-mentioned restrictions apply with equal force in the new congregation as the previous one.

Civil Authorities

The general principle followed is that stated in a letter to Jehovah's Witness congregations: "Our position is that secular authorities deal with crime while elders deal with sin.". The direction given to congregation elders may be summed up as follows: Always ensure child abuse is reported if required by law. If there is no mandatory reporting requirement, never discourage the victim or anyone else from reporting it. This same position is stated in publications such as The Watchtower, Press Releases and internal instructions to elders.

A Jehovah's Witness Press Release stated: "The elders may be required by law to report even uncorroborated or unsubstantiated allegations to the authorities. If so, we expect the elders to comply."

The Watchtower magazine gave the following direction: "Depending on the law of the land where he lives, the molester may well have to serve a prison term or face other sanctions from the State. The congregation will not protect him from this."

Congregation elders receive written direction to contact the organization's legal department in such cases to establish whether there is a legal duty to report. The elders' manual states: "Though it is not the responsibility of the Christian congregation to enforce Caesar's laws, yet the very nature of some crimes demands that they be reported to secular authorities." A 1995 circular to elders stated: "When a member of the congregation is accused of child molestation, the elders should contact the Society's Legal Department immediately. Many states make it mandatory that elders report an accusation to the proper authorities but other states do not. In those states where such is required, oftentimes the parent, the guardian, or the accused person himself can do the reporting. In this way the confidentiality protected by ecclesiastical privilege is not violated."

In Great Britain, elders have been instructed that "all in the Christian congregation will want to consider their personal and moral responsibility to alert the appropriate authorities in cases where a serious criminal offence of this type has been committed or there exists a risk that one may be committed."

In Canada, the following advice is provided to elders: "There is a duty to report when one has reasonable and probable grounds to believe that there is abuse or a substantial risk of abuse and parents have failed to protect the child. The report shall be made forthwith to the local child welfare authorities. […] Elders must be aware, however, that once they have knowledge, they have an obligation. They cannot just hope that someone else will report. They must follow through quickly, and be sure that it is done."

To date there have been no known cases where Witness congregations have been found by a court to be in violation of reporting laws.

Even when there is no statutory requirement for elders to report the crime, they are instructed not to discourage the victim or other complainants from reporting it. Thus, regarding rape, The Watchtower stated: "The victim has every right to report the matter to the police. In this way the proper authorities can punish the offender. And if the victim is a minor, the parents may want to initiate these actions."

This policy is confirmed in a letter to Jehovah's Witness elders in 2002 stated: "Child abuse is a crime. Never suggest to anyone that they should not report an allegation of child abuse to the police or other authorities. If you are asked, make it clear that whether to report the matter to the authorities or not is a personal decision for each individual to make and that there are no congregation sanctions for either decision. That is, no elder will criticize anyone who reports such an allegation to the authorities". This has been the Watch Tower Society's position since at least 1993, when a circular to elders stated: "It is also a personal decision if the alleged victim chooses to report such accusations to the secular authorities."

In Great Britain, elders are instructed: "The elder approached must encourage the complainant to consider his or her responsibility to report the matter to the authorities without delay and should also explain that he himself might have a duty to report the matter to the proper authorities."

The Biblical injunction against taking fellow believers to court (1 Corinthians 6:1-6) has consistently been explained in Watch Tower Publications as having to do with civil or business disputes, and has never been applied in any publication or letter to criminal cases, such as child molestation.

Watch Tower headquarters requires all local congregations to submit details of child abuse allegations and maintains a database on all cases of child abuse reported to them. Watch Tower representative J. R. Brown states: "We do not apologize for keeping such records here in the United States. Apart from being legally needed, they have been very helpful to us in our efforts to protect the flock from harm. (Isaiah 32:2) Christian parents can rightly feel secure in the knowledge that such efforts are made to screen out possible child abusers from appointment to responsible positions within the congregation."

Criticism of the Policy and Witness Reaction

Particularly since around 2000, the Jehovah's Witnesses organization has been accused of covering up cases of child molestation committed by their members.

In February 2001, Christianity Today – an evangelical journal that also disagrees with the theological perspective of Jehovah's Witnesses - printed an article reporting allegations that Jehovah's Witness policies made reporting sexual abuse difficult for members, and did not follow legal norms on the issue. The article also included a response by Jehovah's Witness representatives.

The BBC reported on the controversy around Jehovah's Witnesses child abuse in July 2002, in the Panorama program "Suffer the Little Children". Jehovah's Witnesses headquarters published their response to many of the allegations made in the program, the substance of which is found in the article Jehovah's Witnesses and Child Protection on their official website.

Frequent Criticisms

It has frequently been alleged that Witnesses are told to report the abuse to the elders, not to the secular authorities. However, written instructions to the congregation elders, cited above, show that this is not the case. According to Witness spokesman J. R. Brown, "Witnesses are not required to report crimes to elders before calling civil authorities. Victims and their families are free to call police at will, he said, although some don't choose to." In fact, it is apparently preferred that victims or their relatives report the abuse, rather than the elders doing so. A circular sent to elders in the USA stated: "In those states where such is required, oftentimes the parent, the guardian, or the accused person himself can do the reporting. In this way the confidentiality protected by ecclesiastical privilege is not violated."

Some criticize the organization for not having a policy of reporting all' child abuse cases to the authorities automatically. As demonstrated above, elders are instructed that reports should always be made if required by law and there are many cases on record where the elders have either reported the crime or ensured that the victim or the perpetrator made a report to the police. On numerous occasions, Witness elders have encouraged perpetrators to hand themselves in to the police.

An automatic reporting policy would entail reporting abuse that took place decades ago, even before a person's conversion to Jehovah's Witnesses and when the former molester had obviously been rehabilitated. It would also involve reporting abuse over the objections of the victim and reporting cases when what happened, while technically illegal, was consensual and between teenagers, one of whom had reached the age of majority. It is also felt to violate the confidentiality of confessions made to the elders. However, the principle of obeying secular laws is considered to take precedence over these considerations.

Another common criticism is the insistence on having the testimony of two witnesses to establish a perpetrator's guilt. This requirement is based on a number of passages of scripture that refer to matters being established at the mouth of two or three witnesses. The two-witness requirement concerns only how the congregation handles the sin and not whether the matter is reported to the authorities (see above). Two witnesses are required to form a judicial committee, which could potentially lead to the disfellowshipping of the accused. Witnesses point out that most other religious organizations do not have a policy of disfellowshipping unrepentant pedophile members, regardless of the number of witnesses to their sin, so the Witness policy is still, in fact, stricter than that of other churches. The requirement of two witnesses to establish an accusation is felt to be a protection against malicious accusation, which could cause untold suffering to persons falsely accused of pedophilia and their families.

Many Jehovah's Witnesses feel that the criticisms of their child protection policy are religiously motivated rather than intended to help their children. They take exception to isolated cases of child-abuse being used to tarnish the reputation of their entire religious community. Many feel that some critics are taking advantage of child abuse victims to further their own theological agenda. Further, they vigorously dispute the criticisms of their child abuse policy, taking particular offense at what they consider inaccurate and inflammatory statements that reinforce a negative view of an already oft-persecuted religious group.

Lawsuits Against the Watch Tower Society

Although numerous lawsuits have been filed in recent years, to date there has been no court decision against the Watch Tower Society or any other legal agency used by Jehovah's Witnesses for negligence in a child-abuse case.

In one case, however, a woman named Vicki Boer was awarded $5,000 against the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Canada, after a local elder advised her to confront her father, who had abused her. (This was actually a misapplication of official Watch Tower policy). However, the court did not accept the majority of Boer's allegations, and was also ordered to pay $142,000 legal costs to the Watch Tower Society (although the Society agreed to waive the payment).

In 2002, Erica Rodriguez filed a suit in the US District Court in Spokane, Washington. Manuel Beliz was convicted of abusing her and was sentenced to eleven years' imprisonment for his crime. (He was also disfellowshipped from the congregation.) In her suit, Rodriguez sought unspecified damages from Beliz for her abuse, and also from the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. The case against the Watchtower Society was dismissed on September 17, 2003.

In 2003, Heidi Meyer alleged that her pleas concerning sexual abuse were dismissed and that this is a widespread problem. However, her case against the Watchtower Society was summarily dismissed by the court.

Cases of abuse

In a press release dated November 21, 2007, Jehovah's Witnesses' Office of Public Information states: "In the United States, over 80,000 elders currently serve in over 12,300 congregations … During the last 100 years, only eleven elders have been sued for child abuse in thirteen lawsuits filed in the United States, In seven of these lawsuits against the elders, accusations against the Watchtower Society itself were dismissed by the courts"

Some cases reported in the media:

• December 19, 2006 - Marcel Simonin, a Jehovah's Witness, was found guilty of sexual aggression. Removed as an elder. It is not known whether he was disfellowshipped.

• November 12, 2006 - Enrique Bahena Robles, an elder, was arrested for the crime of aggravated rape of a minor. The articles do not state whether he is still a Witness or has been disfellowshipped.

• August 22, 2006 - Curtis Thompson, a convicted rapist, claimed in court to have embraced the Jehovah's Witness faith, subsequently charged with murder. Whether he was actually a Jehovah's Witness is not stated.

• July 19, 2006 - Zuri McGhee (raised a Jehovah's Witness but not a member) is charged with multiple counts of sexual assault on a child.

• June 26, 2006 – Jesus Cano Dismissed from Bethel, Disfellowshipped.

• November 17, 2005 - Former elder disfellowshipped from congregation, convicted on sex charges.

See also

• Roman Catholic sex abuse cases
• Controversies regarding Jehovah's Witnesses

External links

Supportive of Witness Policy

• Jehovah's Witnesses' Response on child abuse, from official site (video)
• Further Information
• Jehovah's Witnesses Official Policy on Child Protection, from official site
• Articles in Awake! about child protection
• Jehovah's Witnesses Child Abuse Policy--Exposing the Myths

Critical of Witness Policy

• Vleugel, Rado, "Jehovah's Witnesses & (sexual) child abuse",
• 2001 Christianity Today article by Corrie Cutrer

News – Other Articles

• Article of Erica Rodriguez's suit
• Robinson, B.A. (2003), "Jehovah's Witnesses and child sex abuse", ReligiousTolerance.org. Retrieved 29 July 2005.
• "Child Abuse Among JWs", Investigator Magazine, Volume 93.
• Tubbs, Sharon (22 August 2002), "Spiritual shunning", St. Petersburg Times.
• U.S. Department of Justice (September, 2004) "A National Protocol for Sexual Assault Medical Forensic Examinations (Adults/Adolescents)" (PDF format)
• Transcript of interview Connie Chung had with Heidi Meyer regarding being molested by a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses.