Most Jehovah’s Witnesses consider the Watch Tower Society to be almost synonymous with “God’s organization.” As such, they are to be obedient to all instructions passed down from it as though they are receiving these words from Jehovah himself.
But at least one prominent Jehovah’s Witness now claims he does “not answer to Watchtower,” and has even declared that Watchtower “does not, and never has had, any authority over me.” Who is this bold man? None other than Governing Body member Gerrit Lösch!
Regular visitors to this site will recall the recent lawsuit in which Watchtower received a $13.5 million judgment for its part in the abuse suffered by Jose Lopez at the hands of Gonzalo Campos, who was allowed to molest multiple victims in San Diego in the 80s and 90s without the organization’s intervention.
One of the reasons why the lawsuit went so badly for Watchtower was due to its failure to comply with court orders requesting, among other things, the organization to produce the most senior Governing Body member, Gerrit Lösch, for a deposition.
When this and other reasonable requests of the court were flatly refused by Watchtower, they had restrictions placed on them barring them from responding to the evidence put forward by Irwin Zalkin on Lopez’s behalf.
Now, the personal “declaration” of Gerrit Lösch, in which he gives his reasons for refusing the court order, have been made available online. The signed three-page document is viewable below…
It is more than likely that Lösch’s comments about Watchtower were a means of distancing the Governing Body from Watchtower, and insulating Governing Body members against any court action incurred by the organization.
Even so, at best Lösch is splitting hairs by suggesting he is ONLY answerable to the Governing Body, of which he is a member. At worst, he is seriously misrepresenting his personal relationship with the organization, and that of Jehovah’s Witnesses in general.
One can only imagine what fate would befall an ordinary Jehovah’s Witness who stood up before a packed kingdom hall and uttered the words “I do not answer to Watchtower,” and “Watchtower does not have, and never has had, any authority over me.” Undoubtedly, the back room would beckon! And yet such an individual could point out that he is only repeating the words of an exemplary Governing Body member.
Lösch’s statements about his power over the organization are similarly evasive and disingenuous. While it may be true that he does not have “any authority as an individual to make or determine corporate policy for Watchtower,” the statement is worded in such a way as to distract from the fact that Lösch is very much a decision-maker for Watchtower provided these decisions are met with the approval of his fellow Governing Body members.
All things considered, sincere Jehovah’s Witnesses will be dismayed at the lengths one of their leaders (a member of their “highest ecclesiastical authority”) has gone to in order to avoid taking a stand in defense of the organization.
It was Jesus who purportedly said, “People will hand you over to local courts, and you will be beaten in synagogues and be put on the stand before governors and kings for my sake, for a witness to them” (Mark 13:9, New World Translation) – and yet rather than take his place on the stand to give a “witness,” Lösch has done everything in his power to distance himself from ‘God’s organization’ – denying almost any affiliation with Watchtower.
It is becoming increasingly apparent that, in order for a Jehovah’s Witness to respect the Governing Body members, and give them the reverence they crave, they must know as little as possible about their words and actions.
Further reading…
- Watchtower ordered to pay $13.5 million in sex abuse case as Gerrit Lösch fails to testify
- Link to court documents on Imgur
- License to harm: Predator Gonzalo Campos was allowed by elders to prey on children
- JWpodcast interview with Irwin Zalkin
- The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses – Explained
Related video…
When a PLC is found guilty of malpractice then the CEO and/or some members of the board are usually forced to walk the plank.
If this guy is not answerable to Watchtower, why does Watchtower pay his wages?
Or is he an employee of some distant nominal subsidiary?
The Watchtower print what Jehovah Witnesses believe.
Everything in the Watchtower is approved by the Governing Body. If something has been printed by the Watchtower that the Governing Body is not happy with then it is an internal problem. If Governing Body members are not answerable to the Government who approve of tax free Corporations then why set up a Corporation. It may mean a deletion of a member. But fix it they must. Child abuse and the failure to act on behalf of the Governing Body is a public issue.
The watchtower have a public problem.
Why would anyone want to admit that they think the GB has any credibility?
They are like slugs that come out at night and do the damage, leaving a trail of slime as they go and then hide undercover in a cold, dark, place.
Folks,
Does this mean that individual governing body members’ talks have no authority? After all, they’re up there on the platform as individuals.
Faciiciousness aside, what a chilling response this is! I can well imagine a room full of lawyers coming up with this wording. It’s clever, I’ll give them that.
Of course, Mr L is an ASSOCIATE of the WTBTS, as any baptised Witness is. It states that clearly in the baptism questions. Oh, but Mr L was baptised before the questions were changed, so he has NO connection at all!!!
I commented on another thread about the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Does this deposition contain any of that good fruitage? No, it does not.
I encourage anyone who is feeling depressed over this issue to listen to JWpodcast.org’s latest podcast that has a very encouraging interview with Mr Zalkin on it. Although there are harrowing details, as can be expected, Mr Zalkin offers hope through attrition that the policy will change. In other words, the tremendous cost of settlements will eventually force a policy change. In effect, we have already won. The sad thing is that many more victims could suffer in the mean time.
Thank you, Lloyd, for this update. It is a fine thing that you do, sir.
Peace be with you,
Excelsior!
What he really meant when he said he doesn’t have to answer to Watchtower and Watchtower doesn’t have any authority over him is Watchtower has to answer to HIM and his buddies and he is the one (with his corporate buddies called the other Governing Body members) that have authority over Watchtower, not the other way around. In other words, they don’t have to answer to anybody for anything except God.
He has only been on the gb since 1990 and he is the longest serving. I didn’t realize how quick the turnover rate is.
When I was appointed a Pioneer in 1978 I had to sign a statement that I recognized the Watchtower Society as, “God’s channel of truth”. Are such signed statements no longer in use?
Thing is the WT is different to the organization, the WT is just a publishing company, the org is all the congregations united to make up the organization of JW, on many forums the JW will state that the WT is not the same as the organization, so when any one refers to the WT as JW they rebuke and say the WT is just a publishing company.
Hi Lloyd!
This statement is not really surprising. In 2001, The Governing Body clearly indicated they were not to be associated with an administrative board i.e. Watch Tower Corporations _ cf W15/01/2001.
Have a nice day,
A simple and elusive side step. Legal trickery.
A point well make Lloyd . . Try saying that in the KH.
I wonder about the competence of the firm Irwin ?
Who is advising him ?
No matter what people say and think, the ball is now in the court of the Zalkin Law Firm to find the more appropriate smoking gun to reduce to silence those flooding shamelessly with so-called “new lights” their co-domestics.
LOL! I sit here laughing. Why?
Because the GB is delusional! They think that a court of law is going to fall for their smoke & mirrors tricks! It is called “piercing the corporate veil”. And, it does not matter if he is not an “acting officer”. The court and appeal court will look at all the proof that the attorneys will provide showing that the GB approved all matters within the organization. Gotta love how the GB thinks their old tricks will work. They are just delaying the inevitable and making themselves look ridiculous.
Locsh is completely separating himself from the WT. He says that he was not on the GB when Lopez was abused. So what?
He also says he has no authority t make decisions. That is a blatant lie. Any who have read CoC know that voting on policies goes on during GB meetings and changes are made if there is a 2/3 majority.
To see this declaration is eye opening indeed, thank you Cedars for your article and PDF.
Kate xx
Interesting slippery slope. I bet if pressed further, He would have said he answer directly to God. One huge problem with that is Jesus is between Man and God. He could also be saying the Watchtower is from God(thus he still could say he answers to God), also a slippery slope since a lot of teachings in the Watchtower have had to be change over the years(God does not change). Or they could say this is spiritual warfare and the truth is not required…like when Rahab said she did not see the men(Israelites) who had stayed at her house when asked.
And he is right. He’s all powerfull with his colleagues of the Governing Body.
The Watchtower (corporation) and is affiliates (JW) have to respond and be submissive to them.
It’s why he is personnal responsable to all the organizational politics of the religion he leads!
I wonder how the Watchtower is going to spin this?
to whom was this said? was this recorded for the public to view the script? who else was present?
how is this made known?
we would all love to have the proof of this to pass on if need be. the house of cards is loosing a card….
The W,T, set up is almost a carbon copy of the way the Mafia
operates. Up until the 30s, it was controlled by one man, the
“Boss of Bosses”. Now it’s ruled by the “Commission”, —
made up of 5 Bosses from 5 Mafia families.
Any replacement of a member is by invitation of the “Commission”,
this is exactly how the W,T, Gov, Body appoints new members.
Although the Bosses are from separate families, If one stepped
out of line, you can be sure the Commission would see to it that
he was “Retired”.
The W.T, society is synonymous with J,Ws, and though now
divided into several corporations. This is on paper only and is a
“Legal Ploy” to protect their assets.
Losch claims he’s not answerable to the W,T, but you can bet
that if he became a liability, he also would be retired,
maybe not Mafia style . But some “Debilitating Illness” would
suddenly arise, causing a step down for health reasons
Losch was appointed a GB member in 1994. So he was a GB member in 1997 when they sent out a BOE letter to all Congregations requesting information on all known child molesters. And then they did a follow-up letter in 1998.
They also refused to produce those documents that resulted from the 1997 survey.
chatpal
“to whom was this said? was this recorded for the public to view the script? who else was present?
how is this made known?
we would all love to have the proof of this to pass on if need be. the house of cards is loosing a card….”
– Am I missing something? You have copies of a three-page legal document at your disposal that details everything. Where is the ambiguity?
being dumb here, lol, sorry, but , i cant read it any way too small to see, and i doubt its legal to print it up.
I can really see this impacting allot of witnesses, they put so much emphasis into the governing body that they will follow them blindly and yet here is a member of that body stating that the watchtower or “the words in the publications from Jehovah” that every member in the organization is to follow doesn’t apply to him therefore isn’t this just another example of an organized religion “tickling the ears” of their members but not truly following the instructions themselves? Or similar to the false teachers praying out loud in public areas with a scripture in a box tired to their foreheads to show off their own faith and yet not following the scriptures? He will certainly be removed from his place as governing body member once this comes to a head. Many times as I was growing up, I asked my grandfather questions about his faith and how he knew he was one of the 144000 and how he got to be a member of the governing body (Guy Pierce who passed back in march) and he would either evade my question or not answer at all and redirect the conversation. That alone was enough for me to begin questioning his position and the organization as a whole. The article published about him still doesn’t answer many of my questions, especially about my birth grandmother of whom I saw once in my life as she was passing away in the hospital when I was very young as well as if he was scripturally free when he married my step grandmother Penny. The validity of the governing body needs to be assessed and not just by the other men on the governing body but by all followers. How can the entire organization follow these men blindly without first having them prove the validity of their position as representatives of God? They shouldn’t, and this just proves that they shouldn’t if one of the members is making a statement that the watchtower does not govern him.
Would this be considered new light?
He squirmed his way out of appearing in court by distancing himself from The Watchtower and at the same time throwing the Legal Dept. of The Watchtower and The Watchtower’s local elders, who enunciate and enforce the governing body’s edicts, under the bus. What a cowardly act!
Thank you Lloyd for using your time, energy and resources to expose these imposters for their lies, cowardice and narcissism.
The simple fact is Losch does not answer to the Watcher, nor does any Jehovah’s Witness. All of them purportedly answer to the Christian Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses as directed by it’s Governing Body. With one huge glaring difference. The Watchtower answers directly to Losch and the GB. The Watchtower is under the direction of the Governing Body. It is simply a play on words.
As for justice. It was obvious Watchtower had a play all along. Just consider one fact, the National Conference of State Legislatures said U.S. states and territories passed more than 40,000 bills and resolutions into law in 2011 alone. Every year before and after their were tons of new laws as well. Who could even read this litany of laws and keep track? Corporate Lawyers, that’s who. They especially stay current on the subjects that impact due process. They can challenge that part of any case, they do not have to challenge the actual crime, especially in civil cases brought against corporations. Judges are there to adjudicate based upon law, often not facts nor their own view of the amount of injustice in a case. In many cases the judges hands are tied, no matter how much they believe a person deserves the damages awarded. No matter how much they are certain that a horrible person is escaping penalty. That is simply how it works. If you doubt that fact, look at what happened on Wall Street. Literally over a $1,000,000,000,000.00 of fraud. That is right a TRILLION and a huge majority by the banks and not one banker served any time. For a great article on the subject and fantastic reading, look at what a Senate Investigator told Rolling Stone Magazine. http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/why-isnt-wall-street-in-jail-20110216
Will Watchtower ever answer totally for their crimes? Not likely at all. Will they ever answer the Cedars challenge? Does the Pope have to prove he is infallible and his authority comes from God? Not a chance. The Watchtower’s abuse stories mirror the Catholic Church and have way less press than the Catholics. Yet the Catholic Church is alive and well in spite of all of this. They have an estimated 1,200,000,000 members worldwide in spite of the enormous amount of evidence that proves all of their shame.
Here is the simple undeniable truth. Religion is the place the average person goes to hear things like, God will make all thing right in time. This allows them to believe that they are better than the people who take advantage of them and do nothing to correct matters. It is simply an excuse for inaction against tyrants and tyranny. People are afraid, they are afraid of standing up, of change, of looking stupid for taking a stand.
Governments and big business have long known this. Religion is a great means of allowing people to still feel good about themselves while they are being taken advantage of. Happier people are more productive people and therefore pay more taxes. “Religion is the opiate of the masses” As humans we simply want to work and feel good about ourselves and be loved by our families and close friends. Basic human needs.
As for my personal truth. I have found that, the more I studied human behavior and society the harder it was to find my place. Do I blindly follow the masses? Do I oppose the masses? My conclusion is to chart my own path and make a difference in the world where I can. Always starting with my own family and with my few friends. I choose to love them intensely, value their opinions and even their religion (drug of choice) If they find solace in the belief that god will make things right. I choose to respect their right to believe what makes them feel good. I choose to act in as fair and just manner as my knowledge and ability are capable of.
I will always reserve the right to stand up to tyranny and abuse, whether against children or families by shunning. As humans I believe we should protect our basic needs and make sure they are the right of every living human.
If all of us narrowed our discussion just to the simple topic of what hurt us the most. The loss of our families and the inability to protect our children in the organization, perhaps we could create enough bad press to force Watchtower to adopt new policies. When we have the opportunity to speak outside our small forum to the public, we could expose these violations of our basic human rights. Then the social pressure that is brought will in time bring about change.
A huge thanks to Mr. Zalkin for continuing to bring things to light.
Everyone. From Gov, Body members, down to the
newest baptised publisher, is under the control and
answerable to the “Organisation”
I don’t want the Watchtower forced to change it’s policies. I want it destroyed from the top down just like Jim and Tammy Baker were exposed as frauds. The Watchtower organization is a fraud. If all the people who are shunning me now and looking down their noses at me, when I haven’t done anything wrong, then I want an apology from them and that will only happen when the Watchtower is exposed as the fraud and child molesters that they are and the organization is dissolved.
They are child molesters because they protect them in order to make the organization look clean and they will destroy anybody to do it. They are detestable. What will happen though if they ever did get found out for what they really are and the organization is dissolved, is that they’d walk away with more money in real estate than anyone can imagine. They have nothing to lose.
He’s not the only one.
Precisely Anoynomus On.
@Heather Bennett (Pierce)
(Apologies for deviating from the main topic of this thread, Lloyd.)
In relation to your statement, Heather:
“Many times as I was growing up, I asked my grandfather questions about his faith and how he knew he was one of the 144000 and how he got to be a member of the governing body (Guy Pierce who passed back in march) and he would either evade my question or not answer at all and redirect the conversation. That alone was enough for me to begin questioning his position and the organization as a whole.”
I find that interesting. I’m curious to know as to when precisely Guy Pierce started partaking of the Memorial emblems as a professed anointed. Any idea? Even a “narrow-down” if you lack specifics.
Thanks.
Lorraine
Tiger123 – we think alike. Having read this post from Cedars this am, I had some time to think before responding and a number of things ((many of which you addressed (wall street 2008 usa, religion the opiate of the people, abuse in mainstream religion)) and what my thinking is , is that it all boils down to human nature. Its human nature that people (obviously even the gb) will do and say whatever they need to.
Just like Abraham , who claimed Sarah was his “sister” when he needed to (a clear lie) (but always referred to by JW as theocratic strategy ) So Mr. L , invoked the same strategy, denying the WTBS authority over him because it serves a convenient theocratic strategy. This has always been the case and it will always be the case. Usually, when you are pending default in litigation , you have been informed that you are pending default, this gives you the last chance option to respond. But being a MAN, who desperately believes he’s of the few chosen to rule the millions , you just ignore it. Well, not here in the US of A. Just like a kind invitation by the IRS to a pay up that’s ignored, your life will never be the same if ignored. The judicial system here in the US does not appreciate ignorance. So Mr. L , response that he’s not under the auspices of the WTBS was actually the death Nell. Wouldn’t we all just once like to see anyone on the gb have the humility of Jesus or any of the biblical characters we have always been admonished to replicate. Meaning , accept the truth of the matter and move forward , correctly) Sadly , they didn’t, haven’t , and now , its time to pay (in more than one way). My thinking is , its far worse than we know !
Loesch has disassociated himself. He needs to be immediately removed from Bethel and ritually shunned.
Loesch is NOT answerable to the organization? Really? If ANY Jehovah’s Witness were to say this he would be disfellowshipped for it! What’s good for the goose is good for the gander, he needs to be disfellowshipped! LOL, fat chance of THAT happening, but he may suddenly grow ill and may have to ‘retire’ from the governing body? It will be interesting to see if Any Jehovah’s Witness becomes aware of what he has said, and has any opinion about it. I agree with Anthony Mathenia, he has disassociated himself.
Ray Franz, Was answerable to the “Organisation”.
Haha! In the Lopez-14 exhibits 2-6 (on watchtowerdocuments.org) page 21 (23 in pdf) the Watchtower attorney (Mr. McCabe) says: “Blue envelopes are sent in by congregation so women in the office do not open them.”
Heh what did they think? Those pesky women always gossiping and spreading rumors and lies! LOL
It’s the religious Mafia. Even the Big Guys, the
“Made Men” are taken care of if they step out
of line. “It’s just business”.
This is a bit like the Pope or a member of the College of Cardinals at the Vatican trying to distance themselves legally from the Roman Catholic Church.
Cedars I think you’re reaching here…
Obviously no JW will say they answer to Watchtower or the Governing Body. Obviously every JW will say they answer to Jehovah, not Watchtower or the Governing Body.
‘ we will excommunicate you if you don’t accept our authority’. If your religion, in word or action, tells you that then they have placed themselves above the scriptural authority to use your conscience.