Shunning
Shunning can be the act of social rejection, or emotional distance. In a religious context, shunning is a formal decision by a denomination or a congregation to cease interaction with an individual or a group, and follows a particular set of rules. It differs from, but may be associated with, excommunication.
Social rejection occurs when a person or group deliberately avoids association with, and habitually keeps away from an individual or group. This can be a formal decision by a group, or a less formal group action which will spread to all members of the group as a form of solidarity. It is a sanction against association, often associated with
Social rejection was and is a punishment in many customary legal systems. Such sanctions include the ostracism of ancient Athens and the still-used kasepekang in Balinese society.
In religion
Christianity
Anabaptism
Certain sects of the
Catholicism
Prior to the
In 1983, the distinction between vitandi and others (tolerandi) was abolished, and thus the expectation is not made anymore.[6]
Jehovah's Witnesses
Sociologist Andrew Holden's research indicates that many Witnesses who would otherwise defect because of disillusionment with the organization and its teachings retain affiliation out of fear of being shunned and losing contact with friends and family members.[8]
Judaism
Baháʼí faith
Members of the
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology asks its members to quit all communication with suppressive persons (those whom the Church deems antagonistic to Scientology). The practice of shunning in Scientology is termed disconnection. Members can disconnect from any person they already know, including existing family members. Many examples of this policy's application have been established in court.[15][16][17] It used to be customary to write a "disconnection letter" to the person being disconnected from, and to write a public disconnection notice, but these practices have not continued.[18][19]
The Church states that typically only people with "false data" about Scientology are antagonistic, so it encourages members to first attempt to provide "true data" to these people. According to official Church statements, disconnection is only used as a last resort and only lasts until the antagonism ceases.[20] Failure to disconnect from a suppressive person is itself labelled a suppressive act.[21] In the United States, the Church has tried to argue in court that disconnection is a constitutionally protected religious practice. However, this argument was rejected because the pressure put on individual Scientologists to disconnect means it is not voluntary.[22]
See also
- Al Wala' Wal Bara'– Islamic concept of friendship toward fellow Muslims, and distance from non-Muslims.
- Anathema
- Apostasy in Islam
- Cancel culture
- Criminalization
- Damnatio memoriae – practice of destroying evidence for the existence of a person
- Dima Yakovlev Law
- Ghosting (behavior) also known as simmering or icing
- Interdict
- Magnitsky Act
- Mark and Avoid – a practice of The Way International
- No platform
- Passive-aggressive behaviour
- Persona non grata
- Silent treatment
- Social exclusion
References
Citations
- ^ Ojeda, Almerindo (September 30, 2006). "What is Psychological Torture?" (PDF). humanrights.ucdavis.edu. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2011.
- S2CID 6161377. (read online) Retrieved June 15, 2015.
- ^ "Flat Earth Society". Archived from the original on November 13, 2009. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ "Why do the Amish practice shunning?". Amish America.
- ^ Carl F Bowman (1995). Brethren Society: The Cultural Transformation of a Peculiar People. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 90-91.
- ^ Boudinhon, Auguste (1909). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company. . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).
- ^ Holden 2002, pp. 32, 78-79.
- ^ Holden 2002, pp. 250–270.
- ^ Ultra-Orthodox Shun Their Own for Reporting Child Sexual Abuse The New York Times, 9 May 2012
- ^ Rabbis' absolute power: how sex abuse tore apart Australia's Orthodox Jewish community The Guardian, 18 February 2015
- ^ Stomel, Rachel. "A prying shame: The public scrutiny of get refusers". The Times of Israel. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
- ^ Lefkowitz Brooks, Jacob Joseph (August 29, 2019). "Rabbis, others demonstrate against 'get refuser' while he is sitting shiva". Shalhevet Boiling Point. Retrieved January 11, 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-88920-272-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-85168-184-6.
- ^ Judgement of Mr Justice Latey, Re: B & G (Minors) (Custody) Delivered in the High Court (Family Division), London, 23 July 1984
- ^ "Judge brands Scientology 'sinister' as mother is given custody of children". The Times. London. July 24, 1984. p. 3.
- PMID 5294085.
- OCLC 310565311.
- )
- ^ What is Disconnection? (Accessed 5/29/11)
- ISBN 978-1-4031-4684-7.
- ^ California appellate court, 2nd district, 7th division, Wollersheim v. Church of Scientology of California, Civ. No. B023193 Cal. Super. (1986)
Sources
- ISBN 0-8103-6904-4.
- Friesen, Patrick (1980). The Shunning. Mennonite fiction. ISBN 0-88801-038-9.
- Holden, Andrew (2002). Jehovah's Witnesses: Portrait of a Contemporary Religious Movement. ISBN 978-0-415-26610-9.
- Kraybill, Donald (2001). On the Backroad to Heaven. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press.
- Scott, Stephen (1996). An Introduction to Old Order and Conservative Mennonite Groups. Intercourse, Pennsylvania: Good Books.
Further reading
- McCowan, Karen, The Oregon Register-Guard, Cast Out: Religious Shunning Provides an Unusual Background in the Longo and Bryant Slayings, March 2, 2003.
- D'anna, Lynnette, "Post-Mennonite Women Congregate to Discuss Abuse", Herizons, March 1, 1993.
- Esua, Alvin J., and Esau Alvin A.J., The Courts and the Colonies: The Litigation of Hutterite Church Disputes, Univ of British Columbia Press, 2004.
- Crossing Over: One Woman's Escape from Amish Life, Ruth Irene Garret, Rick Farrant
- Delivered Unto Satan (Mennonite), Robert L. Bear, 1974, (ASIN B0006CKXQI)
- Children Held Hostage: Dealing with Programmed and Brainwashed Children, Stanley S. Clawar, Brynne Valerie Rivlin, 2003.
- Deviance, Agency, and the Social Control of Women's Bodies in a Mennonite Community, Linda B. Arthur, NWSA Journal, v10.n2 (Summer 1998): pp75(25).
External links
- Disfellowshipping amongst Jehovah's Witnesses
- What Shall We Tell the Children
- Spiritual Shunning
- Article on "Avoidance"/Shunning in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online
- The Amish: Technology Practice and Technological Change, (see shunning)
- TV Movie "The Shunning" (US 2011) at imdb about the practice in an Amish community
- Stress and Conflict in an International Religious Movement: The Case of the Bruderhof (Hutterite)
- Ritual and the Social Meaning and Meaninglessness of Religion (Mennonite)
- Rituals, Communication, and Social Systems: The Case of the Old Order Mennonites