Why Jehovah's Witnesses Disfellowshipping/Shunning is Unscriptural

Jehovah's Witnesses practice an extreme form of shunning that they call disfellowshipping. When a person is baptized and for whatever reason is disfellowshipped, they are to be completely shunned by their friends and family. No communication is allowed except under extreme circumstances, either verbally or electronically through text messages, email or social media.

Is this practice scripturally sound? Let's analyze it and find out.

 

Justfying Disfellowshipping

Here's the primary passage Jehovah's Witnesses use to justify disfellowshipping, along with a verse-by-verse explanation of what it really says:

1 Cor 5:9-13 (New World Transation)

9 In my letter I wrote you to stop keeping company with sexually immoral people, 10 not meaning entirely with the sexually immoral people of this world or the greedy people or extortioners or idolaters. Otherwise, you would actually have to get out of the world. 11 But now I am writing you to stop keeping company with anyone called a brother who is sexually immoral or a greedy person or an idolater or a reviler or a drunkard or an extortioner, not even eating with such a man. 12 For what do I have to do with judging those outside? Do you not judge those inside, 13 while God judges those outside? “Remove the wicked person from among yourselves.”

First, Paul says in verse 9 and 10 that you can't avoid people who have the traits he's discussing completely. To do that you'd have to take yourself out of the world entirely. So clearly he's not discussing interactions outside of the congregation.

He makes that clear in verse 11 when he says to "stop keeping company with anyone called a brother " who is practicing those things. People who have left the Witness organization or were disfellowshipped and have no desire to return are not "called a brother" (or sister). According to this, if you know that somebody who is "called a brother" is practicing those things, you shouldn't even share a meal with them. But only somebody "called a brother" -- because that would make them a hypocrite living a double life.

Paul makes it very clear that he's only referring to people within the congregation in verse 12, when he says "Do you not judge those inside while God judges those outside?" Inside what? The congregation, obviously. He also says to "Remove the wicked person from among yourself." Remove them from what? The congregation, obviously.

What Paul is saying does not apply to your interaction with people outside of the congregation. It does not apply to a child not being welcome in their parents' home. It doesn't say anything about not speaking to the person or associating with the person who is outside of the congregation -- that's just what Witnesses add to the meaning of the scripture that simply isn't there. He's clearly talking about keeping the congregation clean. A person who has left the congregation of their own will or was disfellowshipped and has no desire to return is not a threat to the "cleanliness" of the congregation anymore.

Also, keep in mind who wrote this: Paul. Paul wasn't on what the Witnesses call the 'first century governing body.' He was a missionary akin to a 'circuit overseer' (a traveling elder/pastor that has authority over a number of congregations). His letter was written to a specific congregation, the one in Corinth, telling them how to handle one specific case of a person who was "called a brother" but was "living with his father's wife" (1 Cor 5:1).

Imagine a congregation getting a letter from a circuit overseer that stated how you should handle one specific case of "wrongdoing" (as Jehovah's Witnesses call it). Would you take that letter from a non-governing body member and then apply it to all cases going forward for every congregation in the world? Obviously that would be a gross misapplication of the letter's intent even if what Witnesses think it says is what it actually says (as I've shown, it's not).

Not Speaking to a Disfellowshipped Person

Now let's look at how Jehovah's Witnesses justify not speaking to a disfellowshipped person. Here's the passage they use:

2 John 9-11 (New World Translation)

9 Everyone who pushes ahead and does not remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God. The one who does remain in this teaching is the one who has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your homes or say a greeting to him. 11 For the one who says a greeting to him is a sharer in his wicked works.

Jehovah's Witnesses claim this passage applies to all disfellowshipped people, but they never quote the context. Look at the previous 2 verses:

7. For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those not acknowledging Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8. Look out for yourselves, so that you do not lose the things we have worked to produce, but that you may obtain a full reward.

So verses 9-11 only apply to the "antichrist." And who is that? Somebody who doesn't believe Jesus 'came in the flesh' (was born and was the Christ). So in order to qualify as a person that a JW shouldn't speak to, you would have to believe that Jesus never existed or wasn't the Christ and you would have to 'bring' that teaching to them (meaning you would have to be trying to convince them of your beliefs).

Again, I've never met a disfellowshipped person who qualifies, though it's certainly possible for somebody to try and do that.

"Do not..say a greeting to him"

2 John 7-11

There's one last point to make regarding 2 John, however. What did he mean when he said "do not..say a greeting to him"? In order to know what John really meant, you have to look at what the word 'greeting' really means here.

Here's the Greek definition:

χαίρω chaírō, khah'-ee-ro; a primary verb; to be "cheer"ful, i.e. calmly happy or well-off; impersonally, especially as salutation (on meeting or parting), be well:—farewell, be glad, God speed, greeting, hail, joy(- fully), rejoice.

Some Bibles render it, "neither bid him God speed" (King James Version) or "do not..welcome them" (New International Version). It's not talking about not saying 'hello' to someone, or even having a conversation with the person. It means not encouraging them in the path they're on. A number of Bible commentaries make this point (Benson Commentary, Barnes Notes on the Bible, Cambridge Bible, Pulpit Commentary, etc).

Barnes succinctly states what the others say more verbosely:

"This cannot mean that no acts of kindness, in any circumstances, were to be shown to such persons; but that there was to be nothing done which could be fairly construed as encouraging or countenancing them as "religious teachers."

Summary

So there you have it. First, the scriptures don't even say what Jehovah's Witnesses claim they say, and even if they did, they don't apply to the people Witnesses claim they apply to, and third, the meaning they ascribe to the words is incorrect.

Bottom line: Shunning is unscriptural.