by Joe Rizoli

It all started about 1975 when a particular sex deviate "brother" in the kingdom hall where I was in Framingham, came over my house when I wasn't home, and tried to "get intimate" with my wife. He started putting his hand on her leg and ankle and my wife refused his advances. (This event eventually had big ramifications for my wife some time later and was one of the big reasons why she left the Watchtower and why we got divorced.) We, at an elders direction, got this "problem" with this brother solved by meeting with him, his wife, my wife and me. We talked it out and I forgave him. What eventually happened to the utter surprise of all of us was a few weeks later this brother was made a Ministerial Servant!!! What I eventually found out years later was that this elder, that told us to get together to solve this problem apparently didn't tell any of the other elders in the hall about the incident. Some 15 years later when I was over my ex-wife's house talking to her she still felt the hurt caused by this incident because when this brothers name came up she blurted out "ya he's the one that wanted to ---- me" and "nothing was done about it."

Eventually this sexual deviate brother made it through the ranks and became an elder. I later found out that this brother had done some "sexual" things to his stepdaughters. For some reason the elders protected this brother. I eventually took the elder who counseled us to task and accused him of lying, and not telling the other elders about this incident with my wife. This elder claimed he told the elders. I used some detective work and covered all my bases and got in touch with some key figures in this incident. I actually had the deviate brother’s testimony on my side. What eventually happened was I opened up a can of worms that the judicial committees didn't want to talk about. I didn't shut up about it and wrote many letters to the Watchtower about this and about the elder who had counseled us. I felt quite confident about getting this solved because I told the truth. I even had an elder who had been here in Framingham who moved to Florida, testimony on tape, agreeing with my version of the story. The elder committee, when they heard the tape said it was "hearsay." The judicial committee elder, said that he had talked to this Florida elder and said "that’s not what he told me." So as you can see people were going back on their words, lying, and all other ways to pass the buck.

I was eventually disfellowshipped for "lying and causing divisions." I was NEVER told what my lie was and to this day still haven't found out. It amazes me how easy it is to get disfellowshipped because one questions the authority of the Watchtower. But when one commits sexual sins, sins actually against God’s Word and the Bible, that the Watchtower chain of command, for fear of exposing immorality amongst its elders, chooses to hide it, and sweep it under the rug -- next to the ashes and empty booze bottles of Joseph Rutherford, the Watchtowers prize Christian. (see "Apocalypse Delayed, The Story of Jehovah's Witnesses," M. James Penton, University of Toronto Press 1985. P. 72). They would also find that Mr. Rutherford was divorced from his wife, and that he had his own strange viewpoints, at one point banning singing from the meetings! (see "Divine Purpose" book p. 215.)

The date was April 1991. I sat surrounded by six Jehovah's Witnesses elders thinking to my self, I have nothing to fear, I've just told the truth and followed my conscience. The fact that all constitutional rights of a US citizen to face accusers, and the fact that I was prohibited from taking notes on my behalf of the proceedings while these men were free to do so didn't bother me at the time because I was convinced that God was with these brothers in their judgments, after all, wasn't this Jehovah's Organization, and the truth always reigns supreme? It was not to be. The second group of three men which was my "appeal" committee rendered the same judgment. DISFELLOWSHIPMENT!! I was stunned, but I took it like a man and walked out glancing to my twin JW brother outside the kingdom hall with a sad look that, "I'm out Jim there was nothing I could do." I was disfellowshipped for "lying and causing divisions." Even though I never found out what my lie was, and what individuals beside the elders had the divisions. (Little did I know that 5 years later my twin brother Jim would be sitting across from his appeal committee meeting with a "Troika" times 2 of elders just as I was. In Jim's case my prior judicial experience made him well equipped with the way these corrupt anti-Biblical committees worked but this time with a wireless mike stuck to the underside of his tie and me outside in my car about a hundred feet from the Hall recording his words of these men for all to hear later on).

The next day at home my 15 year old non-JW daughter came over to me and I told her what happened and cried. The emotional toll of one being dedicated to an organization for almost 20 years whom I looked to as "god" in my eyes and now thrown outside into darkness was overwhelming. I continued to go to meetings a few times and then one day thought to my self. A person who gets disfellowshipped from the JWs makes his way back to the group by repenting of his sin. Here I am, booted out for accusations which I deny, trying to come back and show my repentant attitude, when in reality, would be an impossibility. How can you repent when you didn't do what you were accused of? One elder told me "why don't you come back and just fake it" Sure I'll "fake" it and be a real liar, no thanks!

The situation I was in was critical. Being cast off from the spiritual umbilical cord of life, the Watchtower, was taking it's toll on me. Would God help me out of this mess? God did answer my prayers and HE did in many ways. One way was to let me get involved in the local cable company in volunteer work producing my own cable show about our town history. That helped me get my mind off my depression and got me to meet new friends and pursue a hobby that I always was interested in, video production. When I was with the JWs I would have been prevented from getting involved with these "worldly" people. So that was a blessing. It would also come in handy later on for producing programming against cults.

Next came my spiritual affairs. This way I also saw God's Almighty hand. When I was with the JWs I use to do a lot with audio cassettes. In one of my catalogs I saw something that never happened again. In this cassette catalog was an advertisement from David Reed and his Comments From the Friends Magazine asking about information on Jehovah' Witnesses. I quickly sent away for information and personally wrote to David Reed and got help at a very crucial time in my life. I read publications that helped me in my spiritual quest with a few of David's books. Probably the most spiritual help I received was when I got myself a copy of Ray Franz's book Crisis of Conscience. That book did more for me unwinding myself from the almost 20 years of mind control from this diabolical organization. I wrote to Ray personally a couple of times and found him to be a down to earth guy. I also found Steve Hassan’s books Combating Cult Mind Control a very big influence in helping me understand the subtle power of cults.In a round about way I found out through a Jehovah's Witness about this journal by Randy Watters which through its articles and videos and tapes healed some wounds from the Watchtower whips. I found Richard Rawe in Washington a big help also in my spiritual healing by providing me with information not available anywhere else which included news clippings and unique information on the JWs. All this helped me in healing the wounds of spiritual abuse that could have ended up in a situation quite opposite to where I am now.

After solving my spiritual dilemma I started a group called The Cult Information Network here in Framingham with its own phone line dedicated to helping individuals trying to cope with the same issues that I went through in leaving my cultic group. A few months later I was contacted by a woman living in my town through the American Family Foundation, Jackie Miller. Jackie had the unfortunate privilege of being in the Children of God group under the David Berg. Jackie and I hit it off with a similar goal and we both now run the Cult Information Network with the same viewpoints and hope to educate the public about the seriousness of cult abuse. Some time back Jackie and I joined up with Dennis Pollselli the disabilities coordinator at the local college here in Framingham and Dennis got us a room to hold meetings every second Wednesday of the month. Dennis was almost recruited by the Boston Church of Christ. Seeing the need also to warn college kids about cults, Dennis, Jackie, and I have used our experiences and had one cult seminar at the college plus a meeting with one individual college group and church group about the cult problem. Jackie is no longer with the Cult Info Net and we don't have meetings there any more. I do when time permits record cult related material to be played on the local college radio station (WDJM 91.3) with Dennis Polselli.

Another healing takes place through meeting once a month through a group of former cult members called FOCUS. This group meets once a month the first Wednesday of the month at Boston University’s Marsh Chapel. It' s not until one goes to a group like that that one sees the REAL damage that cults can do to individuals. People in groups that I never heard of relating horror stories about the damage these high demand cultic groups have done to them, especially the groups that use mind altering mental control, such as these eastern groups and one of the biggies, Scientology, a group that is a nightmare for those trying to leave because of the coercive nature and dynamics of the group. After seeing individuals whose stay in some of these groups only lasting a few months or years but seeing the damage done to these individuals made me feel like I had no problem at all even though I was in the JWs for almost 20 years. Seeing all of this constantly in front of me made me more determined to expose these cults and give individuals an alternative and choice to what they are being taught.

Probably one of the greatest helps to my spiritual healing has come through the computer and the Internet. I joined America Online and found that Joey Stagnitto (stagnitto@rocketmail.com) put together a group called: Jesus-Witnesses. http://www.jesus-witnesses.com Jesus-witnesses@onelist.com. This groups has done wonders for me expressing myself about issues dealing with cults, mind control, and Jehovah's Witnesses. I had accumulated a vast amount of information from that group and put the best material in a zip file located here. I've been in the group for over two years now and have met some very fine people from all over the world sharing the same hurt and disgust at the notorious Watchtower Society.

I have had some of my writings put up on a web page that Kent Steinhaug from Norway has kindly put up by way of his Watchtower Observer pages for us at this web site: http://watchtower.observer.org "The Watchtower Observer - An Eye On The Jehovah's Witnesses." This is a tremendous resource for those interested in getting information on the Watchtower Society that they would care to keep hidden. Kent’s web page is also mentioned in Que's MEGA WEB Directory p. 787 under Jehovah's Witnesses. For those interested in some of my writings I'd suggest you read my article called The Ultimate Rape located at:

Jesus' Witnesses    and    The Watchtower Observer    and     Here

This article goes more into what specifically happened with me when I was booted out of the JWs. Also a good general information piece about cults. If your not sure whether the JWs are a cult read this article Jehovah's Witnesses: A Cult or Ministers of God?

My brothers account is a perfect example of the cowardice that JW elders display when they get together in these committee meetings. It's a typical example of how mature individuals lose all reasoning faculties in front of the Watchtower altar of sacrifice. Those who are elders in the Watchtower should be embarrassed by what happened here at this meeting. For those interested in the transcript of this meeting you can write me or e-mail me at JoRiz@aol.com The file is 49k. Meeting.txt

Another situation that each and every Jehovah's Witness should be concerned with is this new viewpoint of "loose conduct." My brother was disfellowshipped for this. Even though most all the context of Watchtower articles which deal with it mention it in a "sexual deviant" way. My brother was booted for "not cooperating with the elders". which to them was a "brazen disregard for authority" thus "loose conduct." This accusation should make ALL Jehovah's Witnesses shudder because by being before the elders in the first place would make an individual marked for this "loose conduct" accusation. The effects this "new light" will have on discipline problems in the Watchtower will be catastrophic and devastating on those who are having questions and doubts about this extremist group.

The Watchtower seems to be keeping all the sex s and misfits in and kicking all the "deviate" thinking ones out. So if your kicked out be glad. Pursue some sort of hobby not related to the Watchtower ways and then take care of your spirituality by reading the right material and associate with those who upbuild and truly love you for what you are as a person and not this phony love the Watchtower has showered on us. Don't let others become the guides to your spirituality. Become your own person because when it all comes out in the wash YOU are responsible for you. The Watchtower for all our years in it became our consciences. When you finally end up leaving it you can take your conscience back if you allow it to happen.

For those interested in listening to a "covert" Jehovah's Witness judicial meeting secretly recorded by me of my brother Jim please go here.

Joseph Rizoli
The Cult Information Network
P.O. Box 1632
Framingham, MA 01701-0201
1-508-875-2043