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Note: This is the text from a 1996 image of a website that no longer
exits. The book "Sex In the Sect" was originally published in 1966.
I would not recommend sending any orders to the address below without
first checking if it is still valid.
If anyone DOES know where to get this book, please post the info!
--VM44
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Vicki J.'s new book:
SEX IN THE SECT
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]
Publisher's note
Contents
Read it here...
Reviews
Where to buy it
SEX IN THE SECT
This book has two distinct faces: on the one side it presents hilarious accounts of life as a Jehovah's Witness. More than peeking through the keyhole this story invites you inside the normally closed door to have a look at the whys and whats of the sect: the regular door knocking for God, the thrice weekly sermons which were held through death and despair and much more.
At the same time, Sex in the Sect unfolds into a bizarre and moving story of how one person coped with a remarkable childhood. During the writing of this book Vicki J. was diagnosed with multiple personality disorder, brought about by the subconscious suppression of events she did not wish to remember which clarified why the writing styles and contents changed so markedly. Sex in the Sect is a fascinating view into the mind of a multiple as she recounts the events of her childhood. Later it was identified as having been written from four perspective's: the good girl, who remembers the rosy things: the wicked child who remembers the horrors of her childhood: the adult looking back at the events and the clinical observer who stands away completely and attempts to explain the mechanics of the mind as it switches and changes. Meanwhile the book builds to its shattering climax in the final chapter.
A book not to be missed by anyone who is interested in the power of rigid religious sects over the minds of their members and one persons struggle to free herself and speak out in the face of overwhelming pressure to remain silent.
Publisher's note
This book contains an account of the restoration of suppressed memory, about which there has been considerable controversy.
The idea that memories can be wiped out is not controversial. In extreme cases we call it amnesia, and it quite commonly occurs in those who have suffered trauma. Nor is it controversial that memories can be restored. We all have experience of forgetting some event, and then remembering it again.
The controversy centres on the practice of some psychiatrists of facilitating the restoration of memory: there is fear that psychiatrists not only facilitate the process but may also influence the content of the memories which are restored, both by interpretation and suggestion.
In the present case, however, this is not an issue. Restoration was triggered not by any psychiatric process but by a repetition of one of the forgotten events: rape.
Of more importance to the author is the issue of the power sects have to create an environment where under the umbrella of their own political and social justice system, suppression and denial are the norm and not the exception.
While other members of our society must stand accountable for abuse of human rights, within some religious groups not only are the innocent not protected but their right to be heard is indeed denied.
This penal system should be shunned by all democratic societies yet can exist in the most rigid of religious sects and it is happening here and now, in Australia, on a daily basis.
Contents
Genesis
The show must go on
Sex Education
Training in the art of annoying
Elders' Bar
The Band
Travelling Ministers I have known
The Little Flock
Setting up booths
Marriages made in Heaven
Disfellowshipping
Revelations
Read it here...
1 Genesis
An odd assortment of men, women and children congregate on the street corner. It is nine a.m. Sunday morning. Movement in the street is minimal. The dogs in the neighbourhood stand alert, tongues lolling, ears twitching. The group peels apart to infiltrate the four nearest blocks of homes. The dogs become excited and cavort about the fences, barking. A child on a tricycle stares curiously for a moment then returns to its play.
A slightly balding man in white shirt, nondescript tie and dark trousers accompanies a well fed, middle aged woman in a floral frock to the first door. Ignoring the door chime the man beats at the door. A bleary eyed chap in his late twenties opens the door a crack and peers out.
The conversation is launched without preamble.
"Good morning I'm one of Jehovah's Witnesses..."
"Oh, please go away."
"...and I'm here to talk to you about the Kingdom that God will bring to rule over the earth very shortly..."
"I'm not interested."
"...and anyone who turns on a television or radio in these troubled times cannot ignore the dreadful state politics is in..."
"You got me out of bed on a Sunday morning to talk about politics AND religion?"
"...being one of the few followers of God's righteous order I'm here to warn you that God in His word the Bible at Revelations chapter 16 verses 14 and 16 tells us He will soon destroy the ungodly in His great War, Armageddon..."
"I'm sorry but I don't believe in your twaddle. Go and talk to old Harry down the road. He's always on for a good yarn."
"...it is of vital importance that you listen to the word of God, the Bible I have here and the books He has produced by the Faithful and Discreet Slave Class on earth to serve as food at the proper time...'
"The proper time for you to leave is now. Piss off."
"...and so I am giving you the opportunity of salvation through one of the new publications by The Watchtower, Bible and Tract Society, entitled Revelations, the End Draws Near..."
"Read my lips. N-O NO!"
"How about our informative magazines The Watchtower and Awake?"
"NO."
"A tract perhaps?"
"No."
"Here take these magazines. They are older copies so they are free."
"O.K. O.K. Just GO AWAY!"
"I'll be back in a week to see how you've enjoyed them."
"Oh GOD NO. Here, take them back I've changed my mind."
"I'm sure you will benefit from them as much as I have."
(Groan)
A conversation like this is being held in hundreds of lands, thousands of languages, 365 days of the year, by the almost three million active Jehovah's Witnesses throughout the earth. A triumph for the members. A somewhat dubious pleasure for the householders who, patiently or not so patiently, depending on the circumstances, resist the efforts of these zealous callers to convert them.
But for a moment spare a thought for the thousands of children born to these enthusiastic Christians, taken from the hospital with shining, trusting innocence to live within the same four walls as these tireless evangelists who know it is the measure of their true worth as Christian parents to train up their offspring in the proper way and to convince them that they are in dire need of salvation.
Such had been my life for over thirty years until a strange series of events triggered my memories and led me to question what I had always taken for granted.
Want to read more? You will have to buy the book.....
Reviews
Julian Cress - 60 Minutes Investigator (Sydney).
'A compelling, honest and powerful account of an enormously difficult subject. Vicki J. provokes as many questions as she answers.'
Josette Heininger - Clinical Psychologist (10 years experience with family relationships in New South Wales and Queensland).
'The strong point of this book is that it explores the legacy of abuse within families. It shows the the complexity of childhood abuse, its long term effects and how it affects other relationships in adulthood.'
Alison Rutherford - ABC Broadcaster (Taree).
'The humour is like a light that lights up the shadows. 'Sex in the Sect' is a hard hitting expose. There are at least 7 levels of understanding in the book. I've read it 10 times.'
Marco Moteverde - 'Utopia' Queensland University of Technology Newspaper (Brisbane).
'Vicki J. shows great talent. 'Sex in the Sect' is very well written. It is deep but easy to read.'
Kristine Morgan - Researcher in Northern Rivers and Burnett.
'This book is a must for health workers and indicates the need for greater accountability within cults and sects.'
Ingrid Hall - Mother of three (Bundaberg).
'I couldn't put it down. This story must be told. It evoked a feeling of anger and disgust yet I found myself looking forward to the reactions of the different personalities.'
The book has been nominated for both the Nita B Kibble Literary Award and the Phillia Award.
((( WARNING!! WARNING!! This is an old address from a 1996 webpage
that does not exist anymore. THIS ORDERING INFORMATION MAY BE
INVALID!!! --VM44 )))
Where to buy it
Trade distribution: Millenium Books, Sydney
Direct from the author: Retail price $17-00, packing and postage within Australia included. For delivery outside Australia add $8-00. Send your remittance to Vicki J., P.O. Box 2568, Bundaberg, Queensland 4670, Australia.
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