Thursday, July 26, 2007

Book Review: "Crisis of Conscience" by Raymond Franz

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If you want a book that emphatically proves that the Watchtower is an unreliable organization, then this is your book. I can't imagine how any Jehovah's Witness can read this book and yet remain a member.

The author, Raymond Franz, was a Jehovah's Witness for most of his life as well as a governing body member. This is his story. He tells of how he became involved in full time service to the organization all the way up to his being disfellowshipped.

About half of the book is devoted to Franz's personal testimony and what he experienced as not only a full time staff member, but as a governing body member too. These are insights that very few men have chosen to reveal. This includes everything from the Society's scandelous cover-ups to the inner workings of the governing body.

What I found most valuable was Franz's allegations towards the Watchtower as a false prophet. Hundreds of pages were used to deal with the false prophecies of 1914 and 1975, as well as a few others.

Although the book is quite lengthy (over 400 pages), it is not a boring read. If you are interested in Jehovah's Witnesses, then you'll enjoy this book. Raymond Franz is a passionate writer and does everything he can to be fair. Very little is dealt with in regards to theology. In fact, Raymond Franz probably held and continues to hold to the core doctrines of the Watchtower. The entire thrust of the book is to stress the book's subtitle: "The struggle between loyalty to God and loyalty to one's religion." With this, i'll agree that Raymond Franz most certainly accomplished his purpose in writing this book.

1 comment:

Sacchiel said...

On my to read list, thanks!