I was not in the mood to be a christian, even before reading CoC. Do you think there is a benifit to reading ISCF? Did it solve much about the JWs in your mind?
Atheiests....Did you enjoy the book In Search of Christian Freedom?
by Diest 15 Replies latest jw friends
-
-
flipper
DIEST- I'm an agnostic who really appreciated In Search of Christian Freedom. There are some really good, informative chapters in there about the inner goings on at Bethel, kind of adding more information on top of what was in Crisis of Conscience. Ray talks about the unjustness of disfellowshipping and how that policy came about in the WT society . Very interesting point about Karl Adams calling Knorr on the carpet for insisting field service reports be turned in. So, yes - some very interesting additions I learned which were not in Crisis of Conscience .
That being said- there were some chapters I skimmed over a bit if Ray got too " Jesusy " or talking about God's kingdom somewhat. But I highlky recommend reading it. It's a good read
-
leavingwt
It's a must-read.
Ray provides an alternate, Biblical view of all major WT doctrine.
-
xchange
All it did was to confirm and clarify that this organizations was completely and utterly managed by people and not by any divine entity or 'electrical force" - holy spirit. I did enjoy the book for the most part. I've since recommended it to a few people so they can have the alternative view of the governing body.
-
OnTheWayOut
It taught me many aspects of why WTS is wrong when using the Bible as their standard- how they basically twist the Bible to become the standard they want it to be. That led to being able to see how other groups do that to some degree, how the Bible is not a trustworthy standard and can be made to say anything.
ISOCF also taught me other things about WTS. I am a bit fuzzy on which of Ray's books taught what now, but door-to-door preaching, God's name, good works being things other than recruiting, changing doctrines, etc. etc. etc. Ray helped me learn a bunch of stuff.
I will say this- if you are resolved with the issues with WTS, you don't need to read it. I wasn't an atheist when I read it, but it didn't give me more confidence in any "Christian freedom." I am an atheist now, so it was one of my stepping stones to questioning the Bible and Christianity. It won't hurt to read it.
-
transhuman68
I guess if you were on this forum for 3-4 years you would see all of the points in Ray's book covered here. If you are interested in the Watchtower Society and the Bible in any way it is worth reading- although I only read the first 3/4 of it.
-
Twitch
Never read it, and only read half of Crisis. Good stuff but it was preachin to the choir and I had already left..
-
Rydor
Yes.
The chapter on why the Bible does NOT mandate door to door field service (as practiced by JW's today) is worth the read alone. He lays out the facts in such a simple, clear manner that I don't see how any JW could possibly counter it. And I absolutely LOVED the chapter on logical fallacies and how the Watchtower publications employ them. As a born in cult member, I can honestly say I was never trained to think critically so that chapter was a breath of fresh air.
I am a former Christian, now agnostic. The purpose of ISOCF isn't really to convert you to being a Christian; it kind of assumes you already believe in the Bible. ISOCF is more about how the Watchtower organization oversteps what the Bible says and adds unnecessary baggage to one's belief system. To achieve this goal Ray naturally has to do a lot of "debunking" work, which he does skillfully and without a trace of antagonism.
Even though ISOCF is JW-centric, Ray still brings out a lot of very interesting principles that apply to other religions and secular organizations. For example, he discusses at length a recurring pattern throughout history: As an organization grows larger, regardless of what its original purpose might have been, the number one priority will eventually become self-preservation, even if that means trampling its founding principles. Thought provoking stuff.
-
FlyingHighNow
Because of Ray's writing style and lack of a good editor, I couldn't get through it. Ray usually says something at least two different ways, if not more per sentence. It's tedious reading for me. I did read all of C or C though. I'm not an antheist.
-
Diest
Well thanks for your responses....I guess ill give it a try, I am interested in the part about door to door. I also learned to note start a thread on your way out the door or you spell atheists wrong.