Book review of Alf from Journal of Church & State; Autumn92, Vol. 34 Issue 4, p883, 2/3p
The Evocative Religion of Jehovah's Witnesses: An Analysis of a Present-Day Phenomenon. By Matthew Alfs. Minneapolis, Minn.: Old Theology Book House, 1991. 518 pp. $27.95.
This short work (half consists of notes, references, and asides) deals with the major theological and secular beliefs of the Jehovah's Witnesses within a historical perspective. The author summarizes selected court cases involving Witnesses and describes various persecutions in the U.S., Nazi Germany, and elsewhere. He "mainstreams" the group by stressing its positive elements, often from Witness publications, and is uninformed in sociological and psychological theories. Nor is there any indication that the author talked to Witnesses or attended their services. The discussions of theological beliefs are extensive, though they are based on selective, often old publications. The more embarrassing theological beliefs and prophetic failures are ignored. There is no mention of the stress in recent years on obedience to anonymous and self-selected leaders, nor of the group's schisms and apostasies. While the Witnesses have many admirable qualities, the author strives to ignore any negative information. Nor does he mention the structure of the organization. There is no discussion of members' activities, membership designations, or who joins or leaves. Jehovah's Witnesses have grown 40 percent in the U.S. during the last decade, and almost doubled overseas. Yet there is little analysis of these trends. The group remains relatively small with 893,000 members in the United States and 4,279,000 elsewhere. ~~~~~~~~ By JON P. ALSTON, Texas A&M University College Station, Texas
