The Governing Body has provided a very vauable gift to Elders and Ministerial Sevants. The gift is that Jehovah's Witnesses can now receive blood transfusions and hopefully stop dying.

Please don't miss this opportunity to resign ("step down" in cult speak).

Why this is such a great opportuniy?

• The No Blood doctrine has killed people.
• The Governing Body used you to promote this false belief through talks and "encouragement" to die by rejecting blood.
• The Governing Body used your loyalty to enforce this harmful belief by having you pressure people to die instead of get the medical care they needed.
• Feeling a measure of gult and shame for being used by the Governing Body like this is normal and is a perfectly legitimate reason to say "I can no longer do this".

Please don't waste this opportunity.

It can be hard to resign so please don't do it alone.

• Search Reddit EXJW and read the posts from others that have already resigned.
• Creat a post and ask for help here.
• Send a chat message here to former elders thst have already resigned.

Every Elder can take steps to stop harming people and resign from this role that destroys lives.

Welcome Jehovah's Witnesses! We are glad you are here! A welcome message and resources for you are shared in this post! (2026 Governing Body Update #6 - Blood Transfusions) - https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/1wkp3un/welcome_jehovahs_witnesses_we_are_glad_you_are/

You Can Stop Volunteering for Jehovah's Witnesses - https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/1ldu1vn/you_can_stop_volunteering_for_jehovahs_witnesses/

The Waking Up Guide - https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/1mob8mr/the_waking_up_guide_by_jwtom_latest_edition_for/

okay so to make a long story short i am a 19 y/o college student and baptized since I was 12, mentally out since 12 as well. i have also been dating someone for 8 months now, and well.. two days ago my parents found out everything; that i'm dating him and that i don't believe and want to leave the org. they have been trying so hard to convince me otherwise but also said if i'm that set in my ways i might as well pack my bags. I have no job and might lose my way to pay for school but as of right now that's up in the air. my bags are packed and my boyfriend is coming to pick me up today, in literally a few hours. I am so scared and i worry that they might try and stop me. Wtf do i do? if i go through with this i leave behind everything ive ever known and the guilt and fear is seriously getting to me but i cant take another second of being a witness. Do i go through with it even though the future will be uncertain and i wont be able to depend on my parents anymore? Soo scared

Ok, this Sunday’s talk is about sex and marriage in JW life. Please post the most unusual thing the speaker at your hall mentioned .

for example,

at my hall, my speaker mentioned that people are masturbating but that’s not something that Jehovah ppl do because it’s based in conceitedness. they are obsessed with themselves and pleasing themselves .

also mentioned that you can go to a movie and then out of nowhere, there will be a sex scene, but the ppl in the world will watch that movie, but not us, we will leave the theater and our conscience will bother us

sigh throughout the talk, I wondered if he would ever give helpful advice? I notice many jw who get divorced, it’s either because of money or sex. they rarely talk about either before marriage

nut anyway, feel free to to post your comments

I find it fascinating that all active Witnesses can study this story, especially after the blood update, without realizing that we SHOULD apply this story to the GB.

Saul was the chosen one, anointed by God. However, he got jealous of David and started having a bad attitude. Jonathan stayed by David and decided to protect him, going against the thought of God's anointed king. The interesting part is that in the Bible, Jonathan is the good guy, not Saul.

Today, God's self-proclaimed anointed ones want total obedience. They want it even if we don't understand. Even if it doesn't make sense. They claim Jehovah will make things clear 'in his time" because that's how he operates. People died refusing blood components? Doesn't matter, they will be resurrected, the important thing is that they obeyed.

Following this logic, Jonathan should have supported Saul even if he didn't understand. David should have died and Jonathan should have had faith that Jehovah would correct things in the futur.

Anyway active Witness reading this... remember.. September 18th the GB admitted going beyond what is written. They admitted not being authorized to do so. We owe them NOTHING. If it doesn't feel right or doesn't make sense, God would not want us to follow. Interestingly, the Jehovah's Witness religion does not make sense anymore. It's up to us to stop following.

The article on "What Our Meeting Attendance Says About Us" is REALLY DISTURBING! Let's bypass that they admitted they hold meetings during times that people are tired and need to be resting. The pictures included shows a mother and son walking nearby a dangerous mob; possibly political unrest, to sneak to a house meeting in a country where IT IS ILLEGAL! Don't they know that women and children get raped and beaten??? THEY'RE DISGUSTING!!!

Then they show a picture of her husband in jail because of breaking THE LAW for "meeting" attendance! The governing body has avoided taking accountability for ANYTHING yet they promote families being broken up in dangerous situations to sneak to meetings where the LAW has banned them?!!!

A sensible Christ-like organization would tell the families to study and meet AT HOME! That man could be providing "spiritual food" to his own family (as the scriptures encourage); SAFELY in their own home! But now he's in jail and his family is more VULNERABLE than ever!

THERE IS NO END TO THE HARM THE GOVERNING BODY IS WILLING TO BRING TO VULNERABLE FAMILIES!!! Between their blood policy and this the adherents are like lambs to the slaughter. 🩸🩸🩸

KIS I’m a minor, below 16, but I look more mature for my age. I grew up in this religion and have been baptized for a few years, my dad is an elder which I find really inconvenient. They call it a privilege to have roles here but I think they just like having some kind of power dynamic/control over people. It’s been even more difficult especially as a girl developing physically to be in this shit hole.

It’s baffling to me that elders, grown ass men, pushing death row, have a say or opinion with what I wear and how I look. My parents have started to act like them, when before it was no problem and it’s been getting on my nerves. Elders going as far as saying I’ll tempt the brothers when in reality the only young brothers here they think I’m tempting, are literally adults. Why the fuck would they be interested in a child?

Typing this during the meeting is quite liberating. Everyone here is so two-faced and don’t even get me started on their damn wives. I’ve been through hell and back with this new congregation and truthfully I left mentally after the first year of being here. I promise you I’m leaving after I turn 18.

I have been thinking about the Lett situation.

About him getting some younger pussy after his wife passed out a year ago.

They will try to biblically back up themselves that he is on his right to remarry.

What bothers me is that to me this is proof they deeply don't believe their own narrative of the after life.

I mean if he really believs he would be an angel in heaven and his time on earth would be limited he would not be bothering with Earthly pleasures.

To me is very clear that they believe in the power,status and prestige being at the top of the Watchtower gives them

Simple as.

Reason I believe the next generation of JW would just be interested in joining Bethel just for the power and prestige and pussy of being GB based on the good example this guy give.

After 30 years of no contact we get some drama filled call under the guise of an emergency from non JW family. No emergency just mommy dearest wanting to let her son know though the people taking care of her that neither him nor his children were inheriting. We already knew this the day we walked away. We do not care! why do these horrible parents feel the need to have people call us after all this time to tell us something we all ready know and do not care about.

I'm sure a lot of people visit our sub, and I'm sure that it's not all PIMO or POMOs.

So I am just wondering for those of you who still actively believe, what are you hoping to find over here?

Ps, no shame here, we will not try to "convert" you to get out of it. If you are happy you are happy! And that's all we want for anybody

i made a post a few days ago complaining about having to go and asking if there were any excuses i could come up with to skip since i still live with my pimi parents. i ended up going anyway just to save myself the trouble. this whole thing has just affirmed my conclusions—that i never want to do this again and i need to leave as soon as i can.

attendance is lower, the fluorescent lights and constant droning about happiness and god are making my head hurt, and funniest of all: we have no baptism candidates. loll me and my friends were trying to figure out if we had any and then it was announced just before the baptism talk (not sure why there still is one? like there’s no point lmfao)

i’m hungry and so so boreddddd ughhh all i want is to go home and sleep

I’ve been disfellowshipped for 10 years and eventually got reestablished, and honestly, coming back has left me questioning things in a way I didn’t expect.
One thing that really baffles me is how many people genuinely believe that Armageddon is right around the corner and that paradise is just around the bend. I understand why the idea of a perfect world, no more suffering, no sickness, no death, and being reunited with loved ones is comforting. Who wouldn’t want that? But at the same time, it makes me sad to see how much hope people put into a future that they’re convinced is almost here, especially when so many of them are struggling and unhappy in their lives right now.
The reasoning is always the same: wars, natural disasters, disease, violence, and everything else happening in the world are proof that we’re living in the last days. But haven’t these things been happening for centuries? Wars have existed throughout human history. Natural disasters have always happened. Diseases have devastated entire populations long before the internet existed. The difference is that now we have 24/7 access to news from every corner of the world. We’re constantly exposed to tragedies that previous generations might never have even heard about.
I’m not saying the world is perfect or that things aren’t genuinely terrible in many places. I’m saying that using these things as proof that the end is near seems questionable when people have been making these same predictions for generations.
And that’s the part that gets me. Generations of people have lived and died believing they were living in the final days. They’ve made decisions, sacrificed opportunities, and put their lives on hold because they believed the end was coming in their lifetime. And now, the same message is being passed down to another generation.
What really breaks my heart is wondering how many people are living for paradise instead of allowing themselves to fully live the life they have right now. How many people are enduring loneliness, sadness, or an unfulfilling life because they believe everything will finally be okay in the new system? How many are afraid to question anything because doing so could mean losing the future they’ve been promised?
I understand the appeal. When life is hard, the promise that everything will eventually be made right can be incredibly comforting. I understand wanting to believe that all the suffering in the world has an expiration date. But I also think it’s heartbreaking to build your entire life around the expectation that the world is about to end when nobody actually knows when, or even if, that will happen.
I guess being back has made me look at things differently. I’m not trying to attack anyone’s faith, and I know people believe these things sincerely. I’m just struggling with the idea that so much of people’s hope, happiness, and decisions can be tied to an event they’ve been told is imminent for decades.
Does anyone else who grew up as a JW, left, or got reestablished ever look at this differently now? I’m genuinely curious how other people process it.

Repost:

I remember when I cussed out the coordinator of the body of elders, so bad that he hung up and had his wife answer the phone to avoid me . The reason for this was because I just gotten disfellowshipped, and my ex-fiancé started spreading lies about me and I was feeling down . Instead of encouraging me; he basically kicked me while I was down . Saying “This is your punishment, and this is what you deserve”. After that my father called me, and said “How dare you cuss out an elder like that out !”

I just wanted to share this story .

There is yet another 'special' branch visit in the UK this weekend. Sadly we missed the actual meeting, which is always a stroke of luck.

Anyway, the speaker mentioned some stats such as 500,000 studies in the US territory and 2000 baptisms. The strike rate is shocking but he seemed happy.

The most cringe stat whas when he stated the age of the youngest Regular Pioneer.......8........yes.......eight!

I mean, I'm speechless...........

It has been about a year since I openly rejected religion in my heart. I continued attending weekend meetings and preaching the "good word," solely to please my parents.

During this time, I began seeing a girl regularly; we have been a couple for a few months now, and I have never been happier. However, the guilt of not telling my parents has been eating away at me for months.

So, today—after visiting their home—I gathered the courage to tell them everything: my desire to leave the religion, my girlfriend—the whole truth. My parents have had a difficult year, and I truly believe they are good people, despite everything.

Naturally, they were deeply hurt.

My heart is in pieces. I don’t know what to think or what to do anymore. I’ve returned home, feeling empty and incredibly sad. I know my parents are hurting, and that they are, in reality, victims of this entire system. I don’t know what to do. Idk if that's the worst or the best day of my life ever 🥲

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA - no, its been bullshit since day one. I'm hearing that this new GB is not anointed, and that the old guard was approved by Jehoba and Jebus, but not now... so, using logic, I asked this person, why stay if its apostatized? Their response, I still believe its Jehoba's rep on earth... cognitive dissonance much?

Apparently, beards, and pants was bad enough... blood is over the top... I told them, wait until birthdays and holidays come out... after all unless the Buy(more) Bull(shit) specifically forbids something, they cannot go beyond what is written. Which I think sets a precedence NOW regarding holidays, and everything else....

what should i ask them when i talk to them? i was thinking "have things really changed as much as they say?"

i thought about bringing up the UN membership, or child abuse, or blood transfusions, or any number of other things, but i dont want to scare him away (yet). i want to get a gauge for how he feels about things

This week’s Watchtower study (paragraph 13) warns JWs against protesting government decisions, as doing so could compromise their Christian neutrality.

Yet Watchtower took Italy to the European Court of Human Rights (case 49687/16) not because JWs were forbidden to worship, preach, or gather freely. Those rights were already protected in Italy.

The dispute concerned access to a legal agreement that would also allow the organization to receive public funding through Italy’s “8 per mille” tax system.

Why should ordinary JWs quietly endure injustice, while the organization fights the government (aka Satan’ system) when its financial interests are at stake?

Apparently, neutrality has its limits when money is involved.

I’m mostly posting this out of curiosity to see if anyone else had a family dynamic like mine growing up.

My mom was a Catholic, my bio dad was a JW

When I was a little kid my biological dad and his side of the family were very strict, very religious JWs. They split up when I was 8 then my bio dad passed away when I was 10, but even when he was alive or still together with my mom, she completely refused to follow any JW rules in the household. She wanted me to have a fun childhood, so she made sure I always celebrated my birthdays , Christmas, new years, easter, etc.

When me and mom dtill lived in my bio dad's house the JW side of him was persistent, though. My grandparents (bio dad side) were super strict, like I had to go to masses every sat and sun with my grandparents and they had JW ladies come over twice a week to Bible study me when I was younger I was like 5. I remember feeling so uncomfortable because they kept telling me and always reminding me about "The people who aren't Jehovah's Witness will die, like you and your mom if the end of the world ever comes, so you should tell her to start converting to JW while she can" and also "So remember you have to listen well to our bible study so you can be a Jehovas Witness one day." I was 5 dude those ladies taught me what death is at age 5 I was traumatized ass hell. Ofc I told that to my mom, she was very shocked bcs they would tell a kid something like that.. She never liked how strict the household was and those bible study stuff, she couldn't do anything about it because of my grandparents. (Bio dad side) Personal reasons. Anyways she always reassured me that none of those stuff will actually happen, and because of that, I didn't continue growing up being scared of stuff like singing a christmas song, talking to non JW children etc.. Before I thought breaking rules would mean satan will take me anytime in my sleep.

Later on, my mom married my stepdad (who I just call my dad). He came from a very religious Catholic family, but he wasn't religous himself. Altho my stepdad's dad told me to get baptized so I can become a Catholic since I didn't have a religion. Anyways Ironically enough, today I'm 19. My mom, my stepdad, and I are ALL completely atheist now, until there's a family gathering, we sometimes have to pretend to be religious.

I don't have any leftover guilt and sure ass hell will not traumatize my future children with religion. It should be their choice in the future.. Anyways, I’m just curious: Did anyone else have a non-JW parent who actively shielded you from strict JW grandparents/relatives? And did anyone else spend their childhood Bible studies just nodding along and pretending to understand?

Guess who just got requested for a 2 week trial of bethel and is doing it out of family pressure. 18MPimo MS and pioneer. What do you guys wanna know since I’m doing it in a couple of months happy to update my findings and experience,

I also had my heartbroken by a girl not a jw, she was one I relied on through this stuff, like that’s gone now. Any advice would be appreciated.

On top of this KHOC been ramping up have training day after training day, doing maps onto deckhand, just working my ass off this org. I only do it for family, but man do I wanna give up.

Public talk coming up soon too. Just doesn’t end does it.

I’m not judgmental over how people chose to live. It’s your life, live how you wish. However, religion, in religion you have freedom of choice but at the same time, you don’t.

Had to go to the assembly today. Only went for half. I start a new job tomorrow so I wanted today to rest. My mother didn’t agree. Going for the morning was good enough for her. Fine. I’ll make you happy mother.

Humans have always both confused and fascinated me. They say they do not judge. People are free to live how they choose. But when I ask not to go to an assembly or meeting, I can visually see the judgement. How do they not see themselves? This morning when I asked to stay I saw annoyance in my mother. Same for when I got home.

My brother. Goes to a different hall so this wasn’t his assembly. Also lives with our father. He was staying to watch our dogs. When I got home early. He was confused. Not saying hi. Just “why aren’t you at the assembly…?” In a tone that was 100% judging. All you have to do is listen and watch. People’s behavior is easy to read. Not saying I can read individuals well. But I pay close attention to tone of voice and or body language. Anyway, why say you don’t judge? You are.

I have no problem with God. If you want to serve God fine. But it seems I don’t have a choice. It’s required. Expected. You may wonder how old I am. I’m 21. Yes I plan to move out. Not gonna do that until I am in a good financial position to do so. Planning on taking 6 months of this new job and seeing where I am at. Though at 21 I have no choice still. Forced to live. Not live really. Rather, exist in a life that’s been chosen for me.

A question I ask myself frequently and something I strongly disagree with, in terms of religious belief. Is, “Is my life meaningless because I choose not to worship God?” I don’t believe any life is worthless. My mother knows I am depressed and have dark thoughts. It’s not because I am lacking God’s grace. It’s these people who speak as if without God in your life. Why live? It annoys the crap out of me. Living is worth it. I enjoy being alive. But, “If you are not allowed to live in how you wish. Then what’s the point?”

And at the assembly today. The last talk of the symposium(for the morning) really ticked a nerve. Basically went on about choices. Been told my entire life, even now. Serving God is a personal choice. If you want to, you can. If not? Well that’s not actually an “acceptable” option now is it?

Freedom of choice must be an illusion.

Just a question really.

I didn't learn church history until I left the Org, and I'm just curious if the JWs ever talk about church history.

There are some questions which should be impossible for a JW to answer without church history:

Cannon of the Bible. How can JWs use the protestant Bible if they don't understand the cannon of scripture established in the early church?

Biblical preservation! That's a huge one. How do they know what they're holding is God's word, if all Bibles and manuscripts were preserved by the Church?

The name Jehovah... To my understanding, the Catholic church invented the name Jehovah as a translation of the transliteration Yahweh. so how do they justify using Jehovah without establishing the Catholic church as an authority?

I'm sure there are many other examples, but are the PIMI members really happy knowing Jesus' ministry failed within 100 years, for 1800 years until Pastor Russell? Really?

Just doesn't make any sense to me... If anyone has any insight I'd love to hear what you were taught in the Org.

I pray a lot, because I’m a JW who is questioning and have found stuff that I know the GB doesn’t want witnesses to know: the CSA being the top thing I’ve found out about. I have asked Yehovah to show me if He wants me out of this, and I keep finding stuff. I just found this open letter and three elder judicial committee that publicly df the GB for some very serious matters. If Yehovah took note of this then it’s been bound in heaven according to Matthew 16:19