Shunning

Avoidance (also: disfellowshipped ) is the termination of all social relations with a person who has left a religious community ( apostasy ) or excluded from it was ( in a Christian context excommunication ), due to internal rules of the Community.

Avoidance is a much sharper break than social excommunication and can in people who lived for years in such a community, lead to a loss of virtually all family and social relationships. Religious communities who practice avoidance, usually expect also of spouses, parents, children and siblings that they break the relationship with the spillage, or at least severely limit. Therefore, the fact that a community shunning practiced, often referred to as psychological pressure to remain in the community acts.

Avoidance is practiced for example by the Amish, the Hutterites, the brother Höfern, the Raven brothers, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Mormons and Scientology. Even conservative Muslims often practice avoidance, usually combined Al- wala ' wa-l - Bara'a. Some directions of Orthodox Judaism also practice avoidance.