My brother's Jehovah's Witness. Please help.

[confusedsnail]

My brother converted to Jehovah’s Witness a few years ago from a complete lack of faith. He did this in order to marry a Jehovah’s Witness. Slowly but surely he’s become distant from his family, me included. He’s been completely brainwashed and never contacts us. All the morals he was instilled with are gone and replaced but a horrible attitude towards life, people of other faiths and his family. A few years ago we were so close and he was such a sensible person; this is very difficult.

I am not yet a baptized Catholic but know I am moving in this direction and believe in the power of prayer. Please pray for my brother, his name is Ryan. Please pray that he returns to his family and recognizes the power and control those people have over him. Please pray (if it isn’t too much, my God) that he abandons that cult entirely. I feel that the prayers of baptized Catholics were resonate stronger than my own on this issue.

If anyone has suggestions of what Saints to pray to, please feel free to suggest.

 

[Trishie]

Welcome to Catholic Answers Forums.
May I recommend that you place a thread requesting prayer for your brother in the Prayer Intentions forum here, so that more prayers will be offered for your intentions.

God’s kindest blessings to you!

I am sad that your family has suffered the loss of a close and loving relationship with Ryan.
Heavenly Father, for the honor and glory of Your beloved Son Jesus, please draw Ryan into loving understanding of Your truth’
Thank you for the graces which You are giving to our new member, and bless his journey to Catholic faith.

 

[TheRealJuliane]

My brother converted to Jehovah’s Witness a few years ago from a complete lack of faith. He did this in order to marry a Jehovah’s Witness. Slowly but surely he’s become distant from his family, me included. He’s been completely brainwashed and never contacts us. All the morals he was instilled with are gone and replaced but a horrible attitude towards life, people of other faiths and his family. A few years ago we were so close and he was such a sensible person; this is very difficult.

I am not yet a baptized Catholic but know I am moving in this direction and believe in the power of prayer. Please pray for my brother, his name is Ryan. Please pray that he returns to his family and recognizes the power and control those people have over him. Please pray (if it isn’t too much, my God) that he abandons that cult entirely. I feel that the prayers of baptized Catholics were resonate stronger than my own on this issue.

If anyone has suggestions of what Saints to pray to, please feel free to suggest.

You can pray to Mary, to St. Rita (impossible causes), St. Monica (faith of conversion), and St. Jude (lost causes). Say a rosary every day.

Dear Jesus, please send Your Holy Spirit to awaken your child Ryan, who has lost his way and needs intercession to return to You. There are others involved including his wife, she needs intercession as well. We leave this entire matter in Your hands, Jesus.

 

[JustaServant]

Pray the rosary for him.
Distancing himself from family is typical in cults.

 

[couponfit]

My brother converted to Jehovah’s Witness a few years ago from a complete lack of faith. He did this in order to marry a Jehovah’s Witness. Slowly but surely he’s become distant from his family, me included. He’s been completely brainwashed and never contacts us. All the morals he was instilled with are gone and replaced but a horrible attitude towards life, people of other faiths and his family. A few years ago we were so close and he was such a sensible person; this is very difficult.

I am not yet a baptized Catholic but know I am moving in this direction and believe in the power of prayer. Please pray for my brother, his name is Ryan. Please pray that he returns to his family and recognizes the power and control those people have over him. Please pray (if it isn’t too much, my God) that he abandons that cult entirely. I feel that the prayers of baptized Catholics were resonate stronger than my own on this issue.

If anyone has suggestions of what Saints to pray to, please feel free to suggest.

I usually dont recommend any saints. Saints are like heroes, no one can tell you who to emulate and take lessons from.

As for yor formerly sensible brother! I’d suggest that he is still your brother, still sensible, and to be honest shares the message that that we all share. He has free will and not all of his actions are sparked by his faith…maybe his lack of faith is also part of it. What I mean is that even as a jehava he may or may not be a good testimony to other jehovahs. Don’t assume that all caholics, Muslims, jews, Mormons, jehovahs, orthodox’s, etc are of equal faith within and outside their own faiths.

The best advice I can give you is to treat your brother as your brother and let your own love and virtues that you emulate in your life be a testimony to all who meet you. Your brother is given the same life and opportunities to eternal salvation as you are, and it’s really free will. Let the judgement be his only judgement, and do not effort to confess his sins, but only your own.

 

[adf417]

My heart cries for you brother. My mother as well as most of my siblings have left the Catholic Church to become JW and it has torn a big hole in my heart not to mention our family.

On the bright side - their conversion has strengthened my faith beyond belief and what I have learned about the Catholic Church is simply refreshing.

Lord be with my brother in this time of sadness and despair. Strengthen him in the ways you have me and keep him close to you.

God bless you!

 

[the_phoenix]

Hail Mary,
Full of Grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary,
Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

 

[kanzaz]

What I don’t Understand is Catholic Is Such A Beautiful Religion that’s By Jesus & is Universal Why? would anyone want to Convert over to A man made Cult ??? they probably wouldn’t be able to tell you why if one ever ask A Converted Ex-Catholic who’s Now JW.

But I do Believe Our holy father in Heaven will Show This False Cult to its Devout Members & Guide Our Brothers & Sisters to His True Church One universal Church & become One Church .

I Do believe the Demise & Down fall of this False Religion will be Expose to its Members It can’t Continue on & continue teaching unholy False teachings I’m surprise its lasted this long .

 

[T_More]

I would suggest St Athanasius, a tremendous defender of Christ’s divinity. He fought against Arius’s heresy, and since JW’s are a modern form or Arianism (as well as a hodge podge of many others heresies), I think his prayers would be of great help.

In the grand scheme of things, the JW’s have not been around all that long, a little over hundred years. Comparatively speaking, there have been many other heretical movements that lasted much longer.

 

[CMatt25]

I usually dont recommend any saints. Saints are like heroes, no one can tell you who to emulate and take lessons from.

As for yor formerly sensible brother! I’d suggest that he is still your brother, still sensible, and to be honest shares the message that that we all share. He has free will and not all of his actions are sparked by his faith…maybe his lack of faith is also part of it. What I mean is that even as a jehava he may or may not be a good testimony to other jehovahs. Don’t assume that all caholics, Muslims, jews, Mormons, jehovahs, orthodox’s, etc are of equal faith within and outside their own faiths.

The best advice I can give you is to treat your brother as your brother and let your own love and virtues that you emulate in your life be a testimony to all who meet you. Your brother is given the same life and opportunities to eternal salvation as you are, and it’s really free will. Let the judgement be his only judgement, and do not effort to confess his sins, but only your own.

Pretty nice post.

 

[CMatt25]

That’s odd, re what you said about the moral part.
Not sure what you mean, specifically, about how he’s lost his morals…but it wouldn’t be through his new church I don’t think. The JW views on morality are very similar to conservative Christian values in regard to sex, marriage, abortion, modesty, wild behavior, family structure…

Unfortunately, many religions teach that theirs is the “right” one and all others are false or wrong–and that often creates a disdain for all others.

I don’t know a whole lot about JW but I’d have guessed your assessment of their views are about right.

It is sad when folks are so insisting their faith is right and everyone else’s is false that it can lead to disdain for others. Rather than striving to coexist with all whom God created a little better. God bless and peace.

 

[adf417]

That’s odd, re what you said about the moral part.
Not sure what you mean, specifically, about how he’s lost his morals…but it wouldn’t be through his new church I don’t think. The JW views on morality are very similar to conservative Christian values in regard to sex, marriage, abortion, modesty, wild behavior, family structure…

Unfortunately, many religions teach that theirs is the “right” one and all others are false or wrong–and that often creates a disdain for all others.

I don’t think you will find one ex-JW who would agree with all of this and I can assure you, from my experience, it’s not all true.

I have been searching for an ex-JW, w/ JW family members, who would say their family structure is equal to, better off, or anything positive like “it’s not the same but we still get alone” or “at least my marriage is still strong” than before their leaving the JW organization. Conversely, I’m pretty sure you will not find a current JW who would disagree with what you wrote above.

I used to think, and sincerely believed, the same thing you wrote above but I can assure you it’s not actually true at least not until you try to leave or disagree with their Watchtower teachings.

Please don’t let what I am saying be confused w/ simple stubbornness, ignorance, or passionate differences in belief systems. You are either “all in” or “all out”. If you are Catholic, or any true Christian for that matter, and decide to leave the church with or without doctrinal differences, we would still openly welcome you to any family or church function even w/o reconciling w/ the church. Find an ex-JW that can say this. BTW I think this, along w/ the belief in the Trinity is where JW’s confuse themselves w/ Christians.

Peace!!

 

[yellowbird]

I don’t think you will find one ex-JW who would agree with all of this and I can assure you, from my experience, it’s not all true.

I have been searching for an ex-JW, w/ JW family members, who would say their family structure is equal to, better off, or anything positive like “it’s not the same but we still get alone” or “at least my marriage is still strong” than before their leaving the JW organization. Conversely, I’m pretty sure you will not find a current JW who would disagree with what you wrote above.

I used to think, and sincerely believed, the same thing you wrote above but I can assure you it’s not actually true at least not until you try to leave or disagree with their Watchtower teachings.

Please don’t let what I am saying be confused w/ simple stubbornness, ignorance, or passionate differences in belief systems. You are either “all in” or “all out”. If you are Catholic, or any true Christian for that matter, and decide to leave the church with or without doctrinal differences, we would still openly welcome you to any family or church function even w/o reconciling w/ the church. Find an ex-JW that can say this. BTW I think this, along w/ the belief in the Trinity is where JW’s confuse themselves w/ Christians.

Peace!!

As I former JW - I agree. Theirs isn’t simply a “different” Christian faith like Lutheran or Methodist - or even Hindu or Buddist… all of those faiths (I believe) would be able to say something good about Catholics, even if they disagreed with our teachings… JWs would have ZERO good things to say about Catholics or any other faith. JWs teach that every single faith besides theirs is of Satan. There is no common ground - and zero respect for any other faith.

They are a brainwashing cult and I feel very sorry for their members, the vast majority of whom are good people who think they are doing the right thing.

To the OP - I am very sorry this is the path your brother has chosen. I will pray for him.

 

[JustaServant]

That’s odd, re what you said about the moral part.
Not sure what you mean, specifically, about how he’s lost his morals…but it wouldn’t be through his new church I don’t think. The JW views on morality are very similar to conservative Christian values in regard to sex, marriage, abortion, modesty, wild behavior, family structure…

Unfortunately, many religions teach that theirs is the “right” one and all others are false or wrong–and that often creates a disdain for all others.

Until further evidence is presented, shouldn’t we take him at his word? He said nothing about sex, marriage, abortion, modesty, wild behavior, family structure, ect.
He said his brother now has “a horrible attitude towards life, people of other faiths and his family”. Having once been a fundamentalist, though not quite as bad as JWs, I can attest to the dark pit one is thrown into, and the ever shrinking circle one is allowed to roam.
The exclusion usually involves immediate family members.
I suspect that is where the ‘moral’ issue comes in.

 

[yellowbird]

I can attest to the dark pit one is thrown into, and the ever shrinking circle one is allowed to roam.
The exclusion usually involves immediate family members.
I suspect that is where the ‘moral’ issue comes in.

That was 100% my experience as a JW - the only one in my family. During those years, I had very little contact with my family and no friendships with anyone who wasn’t a JW. I was repeatedly told and believed that everyone who wasn’t a JW was a “bad assoication” who would try to lead me out of the “truth.” As soon as I determined that a a non-JW was unwilling to be taught about Jehovah, I was done with them - family or not. And I was praised for this very wise course. The JWs became my family - my friends - my everything, and I loved them all dearly. However, if one left the organization or even spoke negatively about it, I would not hesitate to drop all assoication and not speak a word to him until the elders announced he were in good standing again.

As a previous poster said, can you even imagine NOT speaking to your mother, father, sister, CHILD because he walked away from the Church? For a Catholic, that is unheard of. JWs do it all the time.

Unless you’ve been a JW, I don’t think you can begin to imagine how controlling they are.

 

[Journey322]

As I former JW - I agree. Theirs isn’t simply a “different” Christian faith like Lutheran or Methodist - or even Hindu or Buddist… all of those faiths (I believe) would be able to say something good about Catholics, even if they disagreed with our teachings… JWs would have ZERO good things to say about Catholics or any other faith. JWs teach that every single faith besides theirs is of Satan. There is no common ground - and zero respect for any other faith.

They are a brainwashing cult and I feel very sorry for their members, the vast majority of whom are good people who think they are doing the right thing.

To the OP - I am very sorry this is the path your brother has chosen. I will pray for him.

This is true. I have a cousin who grew up non-Christian (as did I) who is now JW. She is not allowed to maintain contact with her bio family any longer because they are not JW.