by TR 21 Replies latest jw friends
Here is a quote from R. Franz on page 8 of Crisis:
"What do you do when you see mounting evidence that people are being hurt, hurt deeply, with no real justification? What obligation does any of us have- before God and toward fellow humans- when he sees that information is withheld from people to whom it could be of the most serious consequence?"
This seems to be the dilemma of several JW's of late.
TR
I have no issues yet, but my book is arriving maybe tommorow.
I'll let you all know how i feel about it as I read it.
__
zev
Sitting on the Wrong Side of the Fence Class
I though Franz' books were pretty good. A little too much hand wringing at the end of Crisis for my taste. The "I just don't understand why you're doing this" business seemed a little put on but other than that I found it to be good stuff. I did form the impression that Franz was a rather weak character.
normie,
I think the JW's in your area who said that Ray is full of himself are very biased. I have met him and he is as kind and helpful in real life as he is in his books.
Xandit,
Any man who could start life over at the age of 60 with no financial resources and write two books does not have a weak character. "Hand wringing" can be found among people of high morals who are bothered by crass decisions at the top and the "grain of salt class" at the bottom. Of course, those who don't care about the fate of others never wring their hands now do they - how macho of them.
Hi Gang,
I would recommend both 'Crisis of Conscience' and 'In Search Of Christian Freedom',having read both of them.The arguments are well supported by a plethora of material,including much of the WTBS's own literature.Also,James Penton's 'Apocalypse Delayed' is a very good history into the roots of the WTBS.
Any doubts about leaving will quickly dissipate into the air...
Regards Welshman
I too have read Ray Franz crisis book. It's a good read, I would recommend it to anyone, except of course Right said Fred, it takes more than one brain cell to tackle a grown up book.
The photocopies in the book add to the authenticity of the points he raises. It is the tesimony of a sincere and humble man.
Trevor
For the most part, Franz is not critical of the individuals who make up the WTS leadership. He talks about their kind, considerate characters an so on. But his criticisms only start to bite where those men act as part of the organisation. So for instance, Albert Schroeder comes off symapthetically in personal exchanges, but in his actions as the head of the Chairman's committee he is shown up as a scoundrel. This is how Franz criticises the organisation. He examines his own heart, too, and motivations and those that have been imposed by the organisation.
He also traces the WT traditions, which account for so much of the organisation, back to the Russell and Rutterhoof time.
philo (elaboration type)
Hi TR,
I was an active Witness when I read both of Ray's books. They were an opener for me. As a defendant of the WTS up to that time I could find no inconsistancy or lies in Ray's writings. My feeling at the time was these were not the writings of a man with an axe to grind. He seemed to me to be a reluctant exposer of the Society and hesitant to bad-mouth the present body overseeing the organization. We all have our reasons why we do anything. I don't think he had any other agenda other than to explain why he, a prominant member of "God's Organization on Earth", was being portrayed as the "Evil Slave". And, perhaps, to help free others from the guilt they have carried because of the slander from the one true Organization.
I would classify the books as elementary material in the school of cult recovery for former JW's. It's very satisfying to learn that your doubts have foundation. That opens the way to further questioning and can lead to a full recovery from the mind control of the organization. Whatever else are Ray's beliefs are not important in these books. Each one will find his/her own way out of the society and formulate their own beliefs. I think Ray's books were exceptionally helpful to me in getting started.
Sean
Larc
The reason I mentioned that about Ray was because,even in the book COC, he seems to be trying to be just as important as his Uncle Fred was. I know that doesn't sound right. Having grew upnear the Covington KY area(Freds home Cong) you hear different things, thats all.Ray seemed to be trying to compete with Fred all the time........
normie
I was at the annual meeting in 1978 at the Assembly Hall Buckingham,Pa. Ray Franz was the only GB to apologize over the 1975 cruel joke.He seemed like a humble guy to me.
At Bethel I'd miss breakfast every so often,Ray was the only guy I hated to miss,as I knew I was going to learn something from him. The rest could read from the Wt. so well.
Edited by - Tanalyst on 11 March 2001 5:10:17
Edited by - Tanalyst on 11 March 2001 5:12:13
