Bill Bowen has appealed to the decision to Disfellowship him for speaking out on sexual abuse among Jehovah’s Witnesses.
7-29-02

Draffenville Congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses

Judicial Committee Elders of:

Murray Congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses
Central City Congregation of Jehovah Witnesses

Any other congregations in which elders have been appointed to my judicial committee

Dear Brothers,

I wish to appeal the decision made to disfellowship me. The reason is because of an error in judgment due to the deceptive manner which the judicial committee operated in the face of my flat denial of any wrongdoing. I have not committed any sin against God or the organization. The judicial committee failed to produce any eye-witnesses to back up their allegations, thus they have no case against me. As you will note from previous correspondence over the course of the last 19 months I have endeavored to communicate extensively to the organization regarding the need to change WT policy when it comes to abuse and also to request apology and/or explanation for sanctions that have been directed against me by the Governing Body of Jehovahs Witnesses. I find it despicable that any elder would cooperate with such wicked actions at their direction. For your review I offer the following:

Placing restrictions on me within the congregation without any charges of wrongdoing to make it appear to the congregation I had sinned in some way.

Watchtower representatives giving numerous talks in which it is inferred I am a liar and all allegations are false on the deficiencies of WT policy regarding child abuse.

WT Public Information distributing a video to media in which my father is coerced to call me a liar along with Earl Norman and JR Brown.

Forbidden to have assignments on the Theocratic Ministry School and withdrawn as Watchtower reader to put forth the appearance to the congregation a judicial committee had offered sanction.

Instructing the Draffenville Congregation to go door-to-door and tell the public that I am liar.

Forbidding me to work with the congregation in field service.

Instructing brothers and sisters in my congregation to treat me as disfellowshipped.

Deceptive comments to the media to create an impression to the public that myself and other advocates have committed other “sins” against God. (a bald-faced lie)

Pressuring fellow witnesses to stop working in my candle business due to negative comments by representatives of Watchtower leadership.

Deceptively saying you cannot find a KM, personal literature orders and magazines when I have requested them.

Elders informing me I was not welcome at meetings.

Supporting the local child molester by awarding him privileges in the congregation.

I made numerous requests in writing for assistance in resolving the above matters but the Governing Body instructed you to ignore my cry for help.

As you brothers are well aware I base my comments on matters that I have dealt with personally, that is, actions I have seen with my own eyes and heard with my own ears. If you happened to watch Dateline and BBC Panorama you of course can see on national television the truthfulness of my statements backed up with factual evidence from the abuse survivors themselves. If these programs were all lies as Watchtower has informed many brothers and sisters, why have they not moved to sue these programs to protect their good name? Jeff Steen is well aware that what I have stated locally is the truth as he participated in the investigation as well as telephone conversations to Service Department. Yet he sits on a judicial committee to disfellowship me? What kind of spiritual man does he prove himself to be?

In a court of justice for a judgment to be fair and impartial certain protocols must be met. Within the Jehovah’s Witness court certain protocol is outlined in the elder book, “Pay Attention to Yourselves and All the Flock”. The judicial committee in following the directions of the Governing Body, failed to follow the written guidelines in the course of my hearing, therefore the judgment was unfair and partial. I offer the following examples:

Arranging a hearing in writing and the judicial committee not showing up.

Refusing to communicate answers to clarifying questions for the hearing by ignoring all correspondence.

Failure to provide eye-witnesses to rebut my denial of any wrongdoing.

Conducting a secret judicial hearing without informing me.

Ignoring a second arranged in writing meeting without any communication.

Repeated harassment by not following my respectful request to have all communication go through my attorney.

Failure to provide description of the charges against me in the latest hearings.

Failure of the chairman to provide correspondence to the accused as instructed in Flock book.

By the actions of the committee I was denied my right to present witnesses in my behalf.

Failure of the committee to provide suitable and convenient arrangements for the time of the hearing by using deception and short notice.

I believe these actions of ignoring all protocol for this “kangaroo” hearing has been personally directed by the Governing Body in order to silence the call for proper actions to be ta in behalf of children. The local judicial committee has not acted for the sake of righteousness, but instead as men without morals or ethics who simply obey as instructed. It is a similar process followed when child molesters are exposed in the congregation as directed by the Governing Body.

When these matters began I held hope that righteous men would rise up to protect the children in our organization. I hoped some of those men would be found on the Governing Body who would stand up and stop policies that allow children to be raped. In the course of the last nineteen months instead of proving themselves righteous the Governing Body has committed actions that prove them to be wicked men.

In the illustration of the Faithful and Discreet Slave it is interesting to note the comment made in Luke 12: 43-45;

“Happy is THAT slave, if his master on arriving finds him doing so! 44. I tell you truthfully, He will appoint him over all his belongings. 45. But if ever THAT slave should say in his heart, My master is delays in coming, and should start to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink and get drunk.”

You see brothers in the illustration the slave is one man with an option, to be good or to be wicked. The Governing Body as appointed leaders of the FDS has instituted actions that have “beat” the children of this organization. When anyone speaks out about this, they are “beaten” by the threat and use of disfellowshipping as a way to silence proper action in behalf of children. “THAT slave” has become evil when it hurts children. Since 1992 the Governing Body was clearly informed by a written report to each member, that children are being raped as a result of negligence in WT Policy. With great wickedness and 23,000 child molesters later, to this day they have refused to act. My June letter to the Service Committee requested a solution to this by following theocratic guidelines within organizational arrangement on September 27th. Result?The Governing Body appoints a judicial committee to disfellowship me ignoring all protocols for doing so. Do you really believe you can have Jehovahs spirit and follow the bidding of wicked men? If I am wrong in this reasoning I invite you brothers to prove otherwise.

This proceeding has to date been completely partial, unfair, deceptive, and unjust. Will you as an appeal committee stand for righteousness? I await your communication for a hearing. I also request sufficient time to bring eye-witnesses and agree to face any witnesses who may wish to testify against me. Please provide a weekend time frame and a specific meeting time in writing to my attorney.

Very truly yours,

[Bill Bowen] silentlambs