Canada: UK Branch Rep, Peter Bell’s Visit

During the weekend of February 14th, 2025, a Zone Visit took place in Canada, featuring Peter Bell from the British branch of Jehovah’s Witnesses. His talk, titled “I Want to” covered a wide range of topics.

Published By: Miss Usato, Last updated: February 24th, 2025

Spiritual Leprosy: Identifying and Overcoming “Weakness in Faith”

Peter Bell’s talk began with going into detail on leprosy. He explained the disease by describing, in detail, how the skin deteriorates and peels away from muscle tissue. He also elaborated on their biblical accounts of how individuals with leprosy were treated, noting that they were often ostracized, expelled from communities, and even subjected to violence to ensure they remained isolated. “You know it’s said that ones would even throw stones at them to ensure they would stay away.” He referenced the biblical narrative of Jesus healing a man with leprosy who pleaded, “I want to be made clean.”

In this organization, a spiritually weak person is often compared to someone afflicted with leprosy, someone ‘in urgent need of attention to prevent further harm.’ As ancient Israelite priests were trained to identify leprosy in the bible, the elders today are trained to be responsible for identifying and assisting those “who are struggling spiritually.” This is regarded as what they call an act of love and care. Sound familiar?

Some Background on the Governing Body

Another significant portion of Bell’s talk focused on the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. He asked, “What examples do we have of imperfect humans following the way of Jesus Christ?” and answered by referencing the Faithful and Discreet Slave, a term used within the organization to describe its leadership. Bell provided a brief history of each Governing Body member’s service before they were appointed as one of the Governing Body Members:

Samuel Herd – 32 years as a Traveling Overseer in the deep South.
Jeffrey Jackson – 24 years as a missionary in Tuvalu and Samoa, where he also worked in translation. Bell humorously noted, “A lot of that time, he wore a skirt.”
Gerrit Lösch – Served as a Special Pioneer and spent 13 years as a traveling overseer and Special Courier, operating in secrecy behind the Iron Curtain.
Stephen Lett – Served as a Bethelite, Special Pioneer, and Traveling Overseer for 19 years. Bell claimed that following the September 11 attacks, “the men in charge” permitted only Lett and a few others to be present because “They were the only ministers who gave real hope to the people.” However, no further details were provided regarding who these authorities were or the exact nature of his presence.
Mark Sanderson – “Almost Canadian” Bell said, served as a Special Pioneer in Finland and later worked in Canada before joining the Service Department in the Philippines.
David Splane – “Now he is Canadian-“ Served 19 years in Quebec as a Special Pioneer.
Kenneth Cook – Became a Bethelite in 1984, working in the press department for four years, then became a hairdresser before transitioning to the Bethel office and later the writing department.
Jeffery Winder – Initially worked in the cleaning and writing departments before moving to the Bethel Office, audiovisual department, and eventually the personnel department.
Jacob Rumph – Served in ministry “where the need is greater” in Ecuador before attending Gilead and eventually being appointed to the Governing Body.
Gage Fleegle – Began his service in Bethel’s bindery, later moving into the service and teaching departments.
Jody Jedele – Worked in the cleaning department and office before joining the Local Design Committee (LDC) and later transitioning to Bethel.

Bell emphasized that these individuals had “given themselves just as Jesus Christ did.”

Controversial Data Collection Practices

One of the more contentious aspects of Bell’s talk was his endorsement of a method used by an elderly woman from Greece who is a Jehovah’s Witness, to circumvent data protection laws. According to Bell, this woman would take selfies with individuals she met during public ministry and ask for their contact details before sending them the photograph they took together. However, rather than simply sharing the image, she would forward their personal information to the organization for further religious outreach. Bell commended this approach and encouraged others to adopt similar tactics.

This practice raises serious legal and ethical concerns, particularly under the General Data Protection Regulation- GDPR mandates that personal data must be collected transparently and used solely for the purposes explicitly stated at the time of collection. Misleading individuals into providing their contact information for a purpose they were unaware of constitutes a direct violation of these regulations. Furthermore, passing personal data to third parties without explicit consent is prohibited under GDPR guidelines.

Encouraging members to engage in such deceptive tactics not only disregards individuals’ privacy rights but also exposes the organization to potential legal consequences. Regulatory bodies could investigate these practices, potentially leading to legal sanctions against Jehovah’s Witnesses for breaching data protection laws.

Peter Bell’s endorsement of questionable data collection methods raises significant ethical and legal questions. As privacy regulations become increasingly stringent worldwide, religious organizations must ensure that their outreach practices align with legal standards to maintain credibility and protect the rights of the individuals with whom they engage.

There are two videos of the Zone Visit: the first is Peter Bell’s hour-long talk “I want to,” and the other is Canada’s Reports.

Thank you to PimotoPomo on X who provided us with access to the videos.