EXCOMMUNICATION RULES & PROCEDURES DO1323 November 1982
Compilation by Paul Papers,
The following has been compiled to clarify Excommunication procedures:
"I CANNOT FORCE YOU TO OBEY, BUT I HOLD A FEW TRUMP CARDS--& THOSE ARE THE LORD'S LETTERS, which we shall withhold from those who refuse to cooperate & from which we shall excommunicate you if you don't obey & follow Jesus. The choice is yours." (657:1)
A. THESE FIRST TWO ITEMS INVOLVE EXCOMMUNICATION RULES WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF WS REPORTING OFFICES:
1. "God expects at least the minimum required tax of 10%, your tithe, 10% if your income, to go directly to His temple services only (WS) ... if you want our Mag & not somebody else's!" (929:210, 256)
2. Going to certain fields without written express permission from WS beforehand:
a. Puerto Rico: "Remember, any new families arriving in Puerto Rico uninvited after December 1st (1981) will be excommunicated until they move out of Puerto Rico, & any non-WS connected or non-MCV connected families still in P.R. after January 1st (1982) may also be excommunicated." (1060:3)
b. Sri Lanka" "Urgent!--Sri Lanka is already over-crowded! We do not need more Family members there. If you feel called to that area, please go instead to India or Pakistan, Bangladesh or Nepal. Do not go to Sri Lanka. If you go in spite of this notice, we may be forced to excommunicated you. Sorry!" (1086:20)
c. China: "Send in your detailed Clearance Request to Ho & Ruthie c/o your RO to be considered by the Clearance Council." (Advisory from Keda--Aug '82) "Please get clearance or risk excommunication!--Tks!--D." (GN3, Pg.7)
B. FOLLOWING ARE A LIST OF OTHER BASIC RULES, WHICH IF NOT OBEYED, COULD RESULT IN EXCOMMUNICATION:
3. "We don't have very many No-No's--my God, we should be able to keep the few we have, & (sodomy) is about the only sexual one we have." (1110:13)
4. "I would consider that any man who deserts his own child & the (single) mother of his child whom he thereby has made his wife whether he likes it or not, is guilty of desertion & would thereby come under the Scriptural condemnation of 'He that fails to care for is own is worse than an infidel' (1Ti.5:8.) ... & therefore worthy of expulsion from the Family according to the Scripture (Tit.3:10.) He is therefore subject to both expulsion from the Family & excommunication if he refuses to assume the responsibility for his child & its mother, 'if she be pleased to dwell with him'." (1Cor.7:12.)
"If she does not want you for a husband & departs with the child, then they are not your responsibility. But if she desires to remain with you & her child, then they're both your responsibility. If as in some rare cases, she does not want to remain with you but wishes to leave the child with you, then the child continues to be your responsibility as its father, whether you are mated or not.
"In the case of a married woman who already has a mate, the two of whom can be both mother & father to your child, I would consider it both her & his responsibility to care for that child as their own--be it a Jesus baby, yours, or otherwise. It has a home & a mother & a father & it is not necessarily your responsibility to take care of it." (1022:5,6,19 & 14.)
In GN#1, the question was posed: "What about a sister who is the irresponsible one, who likes to fuck & have fun & babies & not be tied down? Let's say she has one baby, or two, & no mate & finds herself pregnant from a sweet single brother who loves her & has been going out of his way to help her & get her to a foreign field & all & now that he finds she is carrying his baby, feels it's God putting them together, but she still wants to stay single. If he must be bound if she so desires, why shouldn't she be required to be bound to him, if he so desires?" Dad's reply to this was:" Amen! It's a two way street. Mat.9:29; 1C0.10:31!" (1254:1)
In GN#9, the question was raised: "My wife has left me now for 6 months with another brother & won't even let me see our children. I'm not going to kidnap them & I didn't want to separate them from their parents. Why can't I see my own kids?" Dad's reply was: "Amen! I agree!--& It's strictly against MO that you don't get to see or share them if you're still in the Family! I have only said for years that any parents of children separating must agree on the custody, splitting, sharing or visiting of the kids. (Divorce #359, Marriage Problems #314B) 'What God hath joined together, let not man not put asunder!' (Matt.19:6) 'For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that He hateth putting (or taking) away.' (Mal.2:16) It is absolutely against our rules, & if the guilty one persists in this violation of the Scriptures & Christian love, they don't belong in our Family! 'A man that is an heretic after the first & second admonition reject.' (Tim.3:10--or they're worthy of excommunication!" (1280:3)
5. "I have said very clearly, any husband who uses violence on his wife or mate, poor weak women, should be put out of the Home immediately if he has been warned even once! If he is violent with his wife, but has been repentant & sorry, we can allow him to stay on to see if he will behave himself. But if he does it even one more time, why, that's too many!" (856:101)
6. "(Maria: What do we do with those who call themselves Family members but who persist in excesses like drinking, taking drugs & smoking!...) Any Home that has this problem, anybody in the Home who is not willing to obey, & be cautious & conservative in their use of wine, & certainly definitely anyone who is not willing to refrain from the use of the illegal drugs or dope, I think that, after sufficient warning, you'll have to ask them to leave. God's Word says that the heretic you are to reject after the first & second admonition!..They should be put out of the Family, excommunicated!" (856:91,95 & 98.)
7. "Non-payment of bills merits an immediate, complete excommunication until they can prove to their VSs that they have paid their bills, or are trying to.[DELETED] Any Home that refuses to pay its bills ought to be reported & excommunicated!" (683:54,34)
In GN#1 the question was asked: "What is the present Family policy regarding Excommunications for failure to pay bills contracted with the System?" ... (Citing a specific example where) "A family owing over $2,000 in rent money [DELETED] is planning on going ... leaving all those debts behind." Dad's reply was: "It's a flagrant violation of Family & God's rules: "Owe no man anything, but to love one another.' (Ro.13:8) Report'm & we'll excommunicate'm!' 1254:46)
8. "So you'd better straighten up & get your hair cut & trim that beard or shave it off & start dressing decently in decent tourist-type clothes & look nice & quit acting like a beggar on the street corner[DELETED]. If our people can't learn how to behave & be good, clean, clean-cut Christian missionaries now, instead of a bunch of wild & woolly harem scare'm revolutionary hippies, ... you local officers are going to have to start lowering the boom on them, cracking down on the regulations & refusing to have fellowship with them if they won't obey.... And if they don't obey & they won't obey, then they're going to be cut off from Family fellowship, absolutely ostracised. Just admonish them in love the first time but if then they won't take the hint, then give them the 'word with the bark on it', if you have to bark at'm & snarl at'm a bit & warn'm! If they still won't take it, God's Word says, 'After the first & second admonition cast them out'." (1202:43,42,46,47 & 55)
9. In GN#1 someone stated: "Our biggest problem: No one wants to get together for Sunday LAFs. Everybody is too busy." Dad's reply was: "Anybody too busy for a LAF is too busy! If I'm not too busy, you're not! Let us know who & we'll threaten with excommunication!" (1254:50)
However, take into consideration Dad's response to this question: "Our area has no fellowship day any more. I know we're not supposed to stay in the U.S. but until we get out, shouldn't we have fellowship?" Dad's reply was: "That's up to you! Seek, knock, ask & you'll find, hearts will open & you'll receive! (Matt.7:7&8) Are you blaming it on others? If you want love, give it & you'll get it!--Love begets love! We have such good fellowship in our own selah Home, we hardly need more!" (1270:9)
C. HAVING LISTED THE ABOVE RULES WE WANTED TO ALSO GIVE A FEW REFERENCES OF HOW TO LOVINGLY CONFRONT ANY OF THE ABOVE SITUATIONS. "In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth." (2Ti.2:25)
1. "The best thing to do is to give them a little time & a few warnings, & then give them the final warning. A one-time failure isn't necessarily a sure flop. If they're a two-time failure, start keeping an eye on them. But certainly if they're a three-time failure you don't have to take a chance on them again." (657:34)
2. "It's just like what the Lord says, if you go to him personally & he won't do it, then you take two or three witnesses & go to him & deal with him, like leadership, & if he still won't do it, then you've got to take it before all. It's God's time-honoured Scriptural law, really, New Testament law! Then you have to take it before the whole congregation & reprove him & pray for him the whole or get him healed or whatever it is before the whole congregation!... The Lord loves united prayer!... It really puts the person on-the-spot to deliver the goods or be a failure, because very often it's up to their will.
3. "You get results one way or the other: ... Either they get delivered or you get delivered of them! And if there is complete unity with all three factors: The problem case, the congregation & the Lord--then you'll get results! That way there's no wondering & questions behind everybody's back, 'Well, why did he leave? Oh, poor so & so, what happened to him?' It is then public knowledge, public united effort & prayer & unity of the Spirit, obedience to God, faith in prayer--or public exposure, if it comes to that." (1090:9,3,14,24,28)
4. "If (they) persist & (they're) defiant & in flagrant disobedience to God & His Word & me, ... (they) should then be cast out of the Home & the Family & excommunicated for (their) defiant violation of God's law of Love!" (1022:8)
5. "(Maria: How would the Family officially excommunicate people like that?) Well, if such people are reported & they are put out of their Homes--or the wife has perhaps left the home of a man, the innocent party should of course immediately report them; in which case, if they report it & the report is substantiated in the mouth of two or three witnesses, then they should be completely excommunicated!
6. "(Maria: What's "excommunicated"?) Cut off from the Family entirely & out of fellowship!--And no more Letters or Magazines! I don't care how much they give, we'll cut them off of the mailing list!... They are too much of a hazard & a danger, & I wouldn't even want them to have the Magazine!... That's it! That's all you can do. I mean, then we'll just have to put them in God's hands & let Him deal with them, & He sure can, I'll tell you!" (856:115,116,117 & 121)
7. ROGUES GALLERY GUIDELINES. "Please remember that requests for excommunication must be accompanied by the signatures of all the local shepherds affected by the problem case or cases, as mentioned in a previous Late News Flash. Also, if you can send a picture of the offender for publication, it might save others from having problems with them too!" (1208:111)
If your local VS or NO did not personally participate in the group prayer for the offender, your Excommunication Notice should first be referred to them, who in turn will forward it to your local area RO, as well as sending a copy to WS.
D. REINSTATEMENT: "You will not be restored to fellowship nor forgiven this dastardly sin until you genuinely repent & ask for forgiveness & promise" (to change &/or resume your responsibilities.) "Only then will you be restored to fellowship & good standing as a bonafide Family member & communicant in the Family community as a whole, & deserving, as a faithful tither, Family communications & publications." (1022:22)
"True repentance is not just being sorry: It is 'metanoia', Greek for a complete about-face, a change of mind & heart & direction--a whole new man--a new personality--a new creature in Christ Jesus". "Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance." (71:43,44; Matt.3:8) Amen!
GB & HELP YOU HAVE LOVE, MERCY & WISDOM--BUT BE FIRM! We cannot have disobedient, defiant, rebellious renegades in our Family who give us unbearable trouble & the Family a bad name & are a detriment to God's work & a danger to His people!--Amen?
"For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, & stubbornness is as iniquity & idolatry." (1Sam.15:23.)
(Read "Mrs. Jesus!")
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family