If you could choose one book to suggest to a JW... (page 3)

Cadellin

This might be too subtle, but I might suggest Neither East Nor West by Christiane Bird. It's about one woman's travels, by herself, through Iran. I read it before I woke up w/respect to the "truth," but I have to say that it jarred me.

At one point, Bird is visiting an ultra orthodox Muslim city in the north of Iran (Qum, IIRC) and she has a lengthy discussion with a cleric. The reasoning he uses to support Islam, as well as his general world view, was so similar to JWs that it gave me a jolt. I remember thinking something like Moslems think they have the truth but they're wrong--yet their epistemological support structure is virtually identical to ours. So if it's possible for them to be deluded, then what about us... The cleric's rationale regarding believers and non-believers could have come from an assembly part, no kidding. If I had to pinpoint one moment where I started to wake up, it was then.

Then, of course, I started discovering all the quotes taken out of context in the Creation book and my whole world fell apart. But that's another story...

SweetBabyCheezits

Cadellin, that's the kind of book I'm looking for. Nothing 'in your face' about it, yet it subconsciously plows the ground for critical thinking.

BTW, great experience. I'll have to look back and find other posts about your "awakening". Very interesting.

blondie

Actually, I started having doubts when I started reading the whole bible and wondering

How could Lot offer his daughters to be raped by the mob

How could Lot have sex with his daughters, how did they happen to get pregnant with just one incident of intercourse

Why was the concubine offered to be gang raped until she died

Why was Joseph a good guy for avoiding adultery even though there was no law against it; why was his brother Judah excused for having sex with a temple prostitute because there was no law against it

Why did Abraham send Hagar and Ishmale out into the desert to die

Why was Miriam punished with leprosy and Aaron was not although guilty of the same sin

Why was Aaron not punished for making the golden calf

(and we are hardly into the first 2 books)

unshackled

A "worldly" relative gave me "Under the Banner of Heaven" around 15 years ago and I never got around to reading it. I wonder if he was trying to wake me up...Maybe I'll pull it off the shelf and give it a read.

Absolutely Mad Sweeny...I found it a fascinating read, although definitely chilling at times. If you haven't read any Krakauer before I'd also suggest his most popular ones: Into Thin Air and Into the Wild (book movie was based on).

@SweetCheezits....yes the recounting of the murders is not something he'll relate too of course. It is the extreme focus of faith. But the book does cover all aspects of devout faith...including the mainstream LDS, how it started, how it is structured, how they changed some doctrines to get mainstream acceptance, etc. Also digs into the Fundamentalist LDS splinter groups and polygamist communities. I could see many JWs willing to read it as it appears to be scouring the mormons....BUT possibly plant some seeds of the dangers of blind faith.

Mad Sweeney

I am fairly certain Combatting Cult Mind Control has no mention of Jehovah's Witnesses whatsoever unless there was a revised/updated release I don't know about. It is Hassan's "Releasing the Bonds" that refers to JWs fairly often throughout.

As for Mistakes Were Made But Not By Me, it is a really good book. I don't know how well it would lay the groundwork for waking up a JW but it couldn't hurt. It pretty much shows the lengths people go to in order to maintain their beliefs and justify behavior, no matter what those beliefs or behaviors are.

Here is the website for that book, with summary, podcasts, etc:

http://www.mistakesweremadebutnotbyme.com/index.html

wannabefree

I am fairly certain Combatting Cult Mind Control has no mention of Jehovah's Witnesses whatsoever

I ordered and read this in 2010 and there was no reference to JW's. The followup, Releasing the Bonds, does have JW's mentioned a few times.

wannabefree

This is a good question, I have been looking for books to suggest to my wife and kids. I am sure you will not get the same results in every situation. My wife read 1984 years ago and it had no effect on her.

If the individual isn't questioning, will anything work? If they are questioning, you need to find out their hotpoint. If they aren't and you suggest a book, you probably will have to probe subtly after they read the book, getting them to think about issues that will start them questioning.

I got my teenage daughter "The Secret to Teen Power", after asking here several months ago for suggestions, I have had progressive positive results.

Whatever book you offer to read, you will have to be ready to ask questions to try and create a spark, apply a gentle breeze to get it to burst into flame, and hope there is enough fuel to keep the fire going. (or plant, water, and let God make it grow)

willyloman

Another vote for Under the Banner of Heaven, because it's about the disconnect in the Mormon faith and dubs will eat that up. But no dub could read the book without seeing some disturbing similarities between the two religious teachings.

Generally speaking, I think a dub has to be doubting, or at least wondering about, his faith before any book will make a dent.

Ding

I like Zoiks' suggestion of the WTS' own The Finished Mystery.

Even by WT standards, that book is filled with such total gibberish (the archangel Michael is the Pope; the Great Pyramid of Giza its measurements are the Bible in stone; etc.) that for a JW to realize that this was published as "truth" by "God's spirit-directed organization" ought to shake him to the core. Of course, the genuine Kool-Aid drinkers wouldn't be fazed by any "old light," but wouldn't be fazed by anything.

Orwell's 1984 would be another good choice, but I fear a lot of JWs wouldn't see any connection between Big Brother and "Jehovah's happy organization," especially younger ones who haven't seen the multitude of doctrinal flipflops and false prophecy excuses.

t33ap80c

The two books I would suggest to a JW would be (1) God's Kingdom of a Thousand Years Has Approached, and(2) "Jehovah's Witnesses- Proclaimers of God's Kingdom."

The reason being is because the former book provides the most detailed explanation of the Society's interpretation of the most important Scripture in their theology (Matthew 24:45-47), and (2) the latter book provides the most detailed explanation of the Society's history that relates to their interpretation.

What Witnesses don't realize is that their interpretation and their history don't agree. And they also don't realize that means that according to the Society's own their interpretation the Society must not have ever been "God's organization."

Unfortunately, just having the above books doesn't help Jehovah's Witnesses realize what they mean. They need to come to know what to look for and where to find it.

That's where books like Crisis of Conscience and Captives of a Concept, etc. can be helpful to those who would like to help Witnesses come to know what things to look for and where to find them.

Don Cameron

If you could choose one book to suggest to a JW...

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