by jwfacts 34 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Your reference to Lifton's Criteria of Thought Reform and Totalist Psychology is interesting but you may want to do more research before you try to apply it to the culture of Jehovah's Witnesses (or even subscribe to it at all).
Eight Marks of a deadly Mind Control Cult applied to Jehovah's Witnesses
Oroborus21,
You are coming from a very biased viewpoint, but as Hassan says, no one in a cult thinks they are in a cult.
Lifton was done on brainwashing, which is different than mind control. Brain washing is where the person knows that they can not trust the brainwasher as they are the enemy, where as mind control is much more subtle as the person trusts the people doing it. That is why mind control can be more subtle and pervasive.
In most ways the doctrinal structure of the WTS is identical to what Hassan prescribes, and what can be more blatantly cultlike than stopping a person speaking to their own family.
On point that really hit me was that cults almost always say that the leader or leaders are the mediator between God. What did Russell teach, that Jesus was our mediator. What did Rutherford teach, that the anointed are the mediator, as represented through the GB and the president at the time. So when did the WTS become a cult? I think that most of the damage of this religion was introduced by Rutherford,
Another thing that I had to think about was the financial aspect. A cult pushes to make money, and at first i felt that aspect does not apply to the WTS. Yet on second thought, the WTS is a multi billion dollar empire. Why? The end has always been about to come, so why do they have to amass properties all over the earth?
I was at Bethel and if being a JW is like being in a cult, than being in Bethel is doubly so. Meaningless work, too much work, incredible amount of pointless rules.
The other thing the Moonies did is have time prophecies that did not come true, so they kept changing them, hoping most people would not look back to the past failures.
Hassan's books are great.
I'm not sure if the dubs are a cult but they definitely are a High Control Group.
From the Best of section: http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/12/78149/1.ashx
If asked, Jehovah's Witnesses will insist that they are not part of a cult. This is a lie.
The information I use below is based on the book Combatting Cult Mind Control by Steven Hassan. JWs are not mentioned in this book. But their mode of recruiting, indoctrination and mind control are clearly defined. I will ask 8 questions and answer them from JWs own publications. The questions are paraphrased from the book (chapter 8) and provided as a simple test to determine if you are being recruited into a destructive cult. Shall we see how they rate?
JWs will never automatically say yes to this - but they are. In fact, when knocking on doors they rarely even mention they are "Jehovah's Witnesses". Instead they use diverting statements such as those recommended in the Reasoning Book (none of the introductions mention JWs):
"We're endeavoring to share with our neighbors a positive view of the future"
"I'm calling to offer you a free home Bible course"
"We are asking our neighbors a question. We'd appreciate your comment on it"
"We are showing this Bible study aid to our neighbors"
Can you tell me about the names of all other organizations that are affiliated with this group?
Very few JWs will be able to give you this answer:
*** km 1/02 p. 7 New Corporations Formed ***
Such entities or corporations are necessary to conform to local and national laws, as required by God?s Word. (Rom. 13:1) Because of the diversity and scope of our work, the Governing Body has approved the formation of additional corporations to care for certain needs of Jehovah?s Witnesses here in the United States. The new corporations are as follows:
Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses
Religious Order of Jehovah's Witnesses
Kingdom Support Services, Inc.
These will operate along with Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania and Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc.
The real reason for so many corps is to compartmentalize and protect the group from lawsuits and charges tax evasion (see http://www.watchman.org/jw/jwreorg.htm for more details).
Who is the top leader? What is his background and qualifications?
A JW will tell you no one person runs the organization and that it is lead by a "Governing Body", although very few can list all the members of the GB. The official JW website offers no listing, only a brief mention of the "GB" http://www.watchtower.org/library/jt/article_07.htm. I wonder why it is so easy to get the roster from a non-JW site? http://www.freeminds.org/history/listofgbmembers.htm Needless to say, the background and qualifications of these men are even more mysterious.
Does your group believe that the ends justify the means? Is deception allowed in certain circumstances?
A JW will tell you "the Truth" is a way of life and that JWs are known for their honesty, however...
"Cautious as Serpents"
Of course, being truthful does not mean that we are obligated to divulge all information to anyone who asks it of us. ?Do not give what is holy to dogs, neither throw your pearls before swine, that they may never . . . turn around and rip you open,? warned Jesus, at Matthew 7:6. For example, individuals with wicked intent may have no right to know certain things. Christians understand that they are living in a hostile world. Thus, Jesus advised his disciples to be ?cautious as serpents? while remaining ?innocent as doves.? (Matthew 10:16; John 15:19) Jesus did not always disclose the full truth, especially when revealing all the facts could have brought unnecessary harm to himself or his disciples. Still, even at such times, he did not lie. Instead, he chose either to say nothing or to divert the conversation in another direction.?Matthew 15:1-6; 21:23-27; John 7:3-10.
Find out how this strategy was tried (and failed) in a paticularly political and anti-Semite letter to Hilter in 1933: http://watchtower.observer.org/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040306/JWANDHITLER4/10810004
Once I join do I have to cut myself off from family members and friends who might oppose my membership?
"Of course not!" will come the answer. This is decetful answer. If your JW family/friends are disfellowshipped, you are required to shun them.
*** km 8/02 p. 3 Display Christian Loyalty When a Relative Is Disfellowshipped ***
The Watchtower of September 15, 1981, page 28, points out regarding the disfellowshipped or disassociated person: ?Former spiritual ties have been completely severed. This is true even with respect to his relatives, including those within his immediate family circle?states The Watchtower of April 15, 1988, page 28. ?It might be possible to have almost no contact at all with the relative. Even if there were some family matters requiring contact, this certainly would be kept to a minimum,?
If people are critical of your group, what are their main objections?
An honest answer will include: refusal of blood transfusions; neutrality in war; disfellowshipping; and unreported child abuse (http://www.silentlambs.org/). But JWs are told that unfavorable news reports are actually false attacks from Satan:
*** w04 9/1 p. 17 Beware of the Voice of Strangers ***
While we certainly do not distrust all secular information, we do recognize that ?the whole world is lying in the power of the wicked one.? (Italics as printed)
Have you ever sat down to speak with a former member to find out why he left the group? If not, why not? Does your group impose restrictions on communicating with former members?
The JW may mention "disfellowshipping" and "apostacy", betraying one of the strongest forms of mind-control practiced by the group.
*** w86 3/15 p. 12 ?Do Not Be Quickly Shaken From Your Reason? ***
Now, what will you do if you are confronted with apostate teaching?subtle reasonings?claiming that what you believe as one of Jehovah?s Witnesses is not the truth? For example, what will you do if you receive a letter or some literature, open it, and see right away that it is from an apostate? Will curiosity cause you to read it, just to see what he has to say? You may even reason: ?It won?t affect me; I?m too strong in the truth. And, besides, if we have the truth, we have nothing to fear. The truth will stand the test.? In thinking this way, some have fed their minds upon apostate reasoning and have fallen prey to serious questioning and doubt.
What are the three things you like least about the group and the leader?
What a great question for a cult member! But if a JW says, "Nothing", this is a big warning sign. Hassan writes, "I suggest you watch his face very carefully. The pupils in his eyes will dilate, and he will act momentarily stunned. When he does answer, he will likely say that there is nothing he can think of that he doesn't like. Cult members are simply not permitted to talk critically" (pg 110) You mean like this?
*** w96 6/15 pp. 21-22 Blessings or Maledictions?Examples for Us Today ***
But what if we were to develop a negative attitude that manifested itself in critical discussions among an intimate circle of friends? We would do well to ask ourselves, ?Where is this likely to end? Would it not be far better to stop murmuring and pray humbly for wisdom?? (James 1:5-8; Jude 17-21) Korah and his supporters, who rebelled against the authority of Moses and Aaron, may have been so convinced that their perspective was valid that they did not examine their motives. Nonetheless, they were completely wrong. So were the Israelites who murmured about the destruction of Korah and the other rebels. How wise it is to let such examples move us to examine our motives, dispel murmuring or complaining, and allow Jehovah to refine us!
There you have it. If you have not already, I encourage you to read Combatting Cult Mind Control exposing Jehovah's Witnesses' methods as a destructive cult.
There is no doubt that the JWs are a cultic organisation though at the same time there are out there cults that are far more aggressive and harmful than the dubs.
On the other hand the JWs milder methods give them a degree of respectability that no doubt can help in deceiving people into thinking they are a serious proper religion.
On the other hand the JWs milder methods give them a degree of respectability that no doubt can help in deceiving people into thinking they are a serious proper religion
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/12/109491/1.ashx
This is a list I put together from this book. I e-mailed it to every JW I had in my address book. Not surprisingly, I got some nasty replies and
even threats of a lawsuit!
jw facts,
Yes, I finally ordered and am reading this book also. I read the later Releasing The Bonds. That book does explicitly mention the WT. Combatting gives a much better description of mind control. RTB gives a much better description of the process by which a person helps another leave a cult.
I would recommend reading both.
I also would recommend making sure your local library has a copy of Combatting and Crisis of Conscience.
I am currently reviewing Rick Ross's Abusive Relationships video. It doesn't appear to mention the wt, but it does compare abusive relationships to cults. This could be a good non-threatening way to introduce the concept of mind control under the guise of educating someone about abusive relationships.
Also, people are more likely to watch a video then read a book. Especially when they are so busy reading all that mind control garbage the wt puts out.
CYP
Back on the discussion of Combatting:
I have had several conversations with jw's in informal settings over the years when they have incredulously mentioned how some folks call them a cult.
I think an excellent response to make when this subject comes up is to say:
"What is a cult anyway? I mean, what does that word even mean? How could you say the WT is a cult, unless you really know what that word means. I read an excellent book on the subject, called Combatting Cult Mind Control by a guy named Steven Hassan. I think if you read that book you would really be well equipped to refute someone calling the WT a cult. It would help you to articulate what a cult is and why the definition doesn't apply to the WT."
In the course of the converesation, mention the name of the book as much as possible so they can't forget it.
CYP
