The Reluctant Apostate Leaving Jehovah Witnesses Comes at a Price edition by Lloyd Evans Hemant Mehta Religion Spirituality eBooks
Download As PDF : The Reluctant Apostate Leaving Jehovah Witnesses Comes at a Price edition by Lloyd Evans Hemant Mehta Religion Spirituality eBooks 
Jehovah's Witnesses, well known for their enthusiastic evangelism, are a global religious movement boasting over 8 million members. Despite being a familiar sight on doorsteps and street corners, little is known about their doctrines and practices. What are their expectations regarding Armageddon, and who do they believe will survive? How do they justify their ban on blood transfusions? What happens to members who decide to leave?
In this remarkably candid part-memoir, part-history guide, former Witness Lloyd Evans comprehensively explores the religion of his upbringing, charting the organization's metamorphosis from unassuming 19th Century brethren to global brand in the modern age.
The Witness rules on sex are dissected, as are their far-reaching ramifications on the private lives of millions of devotees. Evans also delves into the controversies surrounding child abuse and the prohibition on blood transfusions with the aid of first hand accounts from those who have been personally impacted.
Intertwined with the historical narrative and commentary is the story of the author's journey from devout Witness youth to outspoken ex-Witness activist and atheist.
Evans lays bare the circumstances leading to his "awakening" with startling honesty and reveals how the heartbreaking loss of his mother played a profound role in keeping long-held doubts suppressed.
In the final chapters, the author discusses the various means by which Witnesses are controlled by their leadership. Evans analyzes the role of shunning (disfellowshipping) and the stigmatization of "apostates" in enforcing loyalty among Witnesses, and reflects on the indifference of society in general to human rights violations by high-control groups. The phenomenon of fundamentalist brainwashing, or "undue influence," is also scrutinized, and those in search of a new life free from its pervasive effects are given reasons for hope.
Rather than being a sensationalist rant by an embittered ex-member, The Reluctant Apostate offers a relaxed, good-humored tour of Witness history and teachings supported by extensive references (to be found in the "Notes" section).
Though written predominantly with the non-Witness reader in mind, special boxes are also provided for Jehovah's Witness readers.
Reviews
"Both memoir and reference book, Lloyd Evans' work is an extensive compilation of Jehovah's Witness history and theology. In his honest and exhaustively researched expose, Evans has written what is sure to be the most important book on the religion in this century. The Reluctant Apostate is a must-read for Jehovah's Witnesses and anyone else who has been touched by the faith."
—Scott Terry, author of Cowboys, Armageddon and the Truth
"Insight only an 'insider' can bring to a subject difficult to understand for those who have never been part of this world, and unthinkable to contemplate for those inside its bubble. Lloyd does a magnificent job of speaking to both audiences and everyone in between. Compassion for the plight of those still held captive bleeds through every page."
—Mike Rinder, former senior executive of the Church of Scientology, as featured on the A&E series Leah Remini Scientology and the Aftermath
"A compelling and informative window on the world of the Jehovah's Witnesses that will be a vital and life changing resource for former members and many others too in forming an authentic understanding of this group, its beliefs, methods and effects on individuals and families."
—Professor Rod Dubrow-Marshall, Ph.D.
Co-Editor International Journal of Cultic Studies and co-founder RETIRN UK
Dr. Linda Dubrow-Marshall, Ph.D. Co-founder RETIRN UK
The Reluctant Apostate Leaving Jehovah Witnesses Comes at a Price edition by Lloyd Evans Hemant Mehta Religion Spirituality eBooks
This is where my disclaimer always goes. Usually it says something like, I got this book from Netgalley, or the publisher sent it to me. However, this book needs a disclaimer that is a little more … involved . I was already a fan of this author’s YouTube channel, I am no stranger to the information in this book, and I am myself an ex-Jehovah’s Witness. That being said I guess I’m not exactly an impartial reviewer. However, I feel that what Mr. Evans has to say is of significant import and so it deserves an honest, forthright review. A loooong review. Here’s mine.This book is of interest not just to fellow ex-JW’s (what we call ourselves), but also to those outside the faith. Maybe you have JW relatives. Maybe you pass a nice, smiling couple standing next to a literature cart on your way to work every day. Or perhaps, like most people, JW’s have come to your door in order to start a pleasant conversation with you about the bible. The Reluctant Apostate provides a comprehensive overview of the religion, it’s history and the issues surrounding it. There is a great deal of information in this book, and the author did extensive research into the facts presented. I’m impressed with the depth of understanding it displays. Even though I have spent 40 years As a JW, there are many facts about the religion that I have never known about. That is one of the problems.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are a cult. There I’ve said it. I know that Jehovah’s Witnesses do not fit the idea we all have in mind about what a cult is. I wrote a post not long ago about another book Combating Cult Mind Control by Steven Hassan which goes into more information about the ways to identify a cult. Mind control is the way that a cult gets it’s fingers into you. I will list the 5 identifying marks of a cult, and give a brief overview of how Mr. Cedars shows that Jehovah’s Witnesses should be recognized as one.
Behavior – The lives of JW’s are highly controlled. Their dress and grooming, what jobs they perform, their entertainment, the amount of time they spend studying Witness publications and witnessing to outsiders is all highly controlled. And then there is about their prohibition of holidays and their stand on blood transfusions (JW’s cannot have one even if they may die).
Information – JW’s are not allowed to listen to any information about the Jehovah’s Witnesses unless it comes directly from Watchtower. This includes anything on the internet or from the news media. JW’s are not allowed to speak with people who have left the organization. You cannot even acknowledge that persons existence. Needless to say, lack of un-biased information is dangerous.
Thoughts – All thoughts are to be regulated. Doubts about the religion are not tolerated. You can be brought before a Judicial Committee and expelled from the congregation for holding a different opinion from the Governing Body who controls everything. If you voice that opinion then watch out!
Emotional – Guilt and fear figure mightily in this religion. No matter what you do in service of this religion, it is never, ever enough. JW’s are encouraged to spy and tattle on each other to the elders in the congregation for even minor offenses. JW’s are not allowed to speak with anyone who is expelled (disfellowshipped or disassociated), even if it is an immediate family member.
Lloyd’s book delves into the history of the religion, from it’s infancy in the mid to late 1800’s and the makeup of the men who founded it. The book tracks the development of it’s belief system as well as the source of it’s greatest perversions of faith. Including it’s inherent misogyny, it’s disgraceful refusal to address a serious problem with child molestation in it’s ranks, and using emotional blackmail to keep people in line by holding family members hostage to an publishing organization. I have to admit, seeing how these things came together over the years is fascinating to an outsider, and harrowing to anyone who has spent years inside. People have quite literally died in service to this organization. In the 1940’s Nazi Germany, in the 1970’s in Malawi, and in recent times due to the ban on blood. All of which is touched on in Mr. Evans book.
Leaving a cult is no easy thing. Mr. Evans details his own journey with painful honesty. You don’t just decide one day to do a thing like this. I woke up from my own indoctrination just a few months ago. It was a completely awful experience. Your mind tries so hard to force you back into your cocoon of indoctrination. The fight continues. I’m quite sure that no one ever really comes away from it without scars. I’m so much happier now, but it is an excruciatingly painful process. Thankfully, we have activists like Mr. Evans who is generous about his time, his compassion and his pain. He works to shed a light on the road, as we open our eyes and start to stumble out of the darkness. Because of this, and because of how much I’ve directly benefited from his activism, I cannot be a fully impartial reviewer of this book. But I can say read it. If you’re an outsider read it and wonder at how these things are possible. If you’re a JW, read it and weep, and then start living.
Bonus Link: Visit Lloyd Evan’s website, JW Survey for tons more information about Jehovah’s Witnesses and videos.
Song for this book: I Get Out by Lauryn Hill
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The Reluctant Apostate Leaving Jehovah Witnesses Comes at a Price edition by Lloyd Evans Hemant Mehta Religion Spirituality eBooks Reviews
I really enjoyed reading this personal account of Lloyd Evans life and journey out of the Jehovahs Witnesses. Being raised
a JW myself, I can relate to many of his experiences and feelings. I appreciate Lloyd Evans honesty, detailed explanations of Watchtower doctrine and personal experiences of others inside the organization. This book is, in my opinion, one of the best written pieces of literature since Crisis of Conscience, by Ray Franz, and it along with Lloyds website will continue to be instrumental in helping Jehovahs Witnesses awaken from their indoctrination.
I have learned so much about the religion I was born into. It has helped me educate my inactive father and drop knowledge on my JW mother. It is an easy read. Lloyd's writing style is very casual and keeps you interested. The Jehovah's Witnesses are so full of s**t. Their leadership - the governing body - is frighteningly controlling over their 8 million believers. I was a third generation JW on my mother's side and can't believe how much bs has been made up along the way called "new light" that comes from the governing body. The members eat it up unquestioningly. And if you disagree, you are an apostate and lose your friends and family by being disfellowshipped, as Lloyd has been. He intertwines his story perfectly. I highly recommend this book for people who want to know about the JW's, current JW's who want the truth about "the truth", and ex-JW's who want to know all about the cult they were in and be ever more grateful for leaving.
A fantastic journey for a former jehovah's Witness. Expertly written and easy to follow. The author writing about things most people refuse to discuss. Keep in mind that there are a good number of exJWs who hate this guy. They hate him because he speaks out against aggressive activism (Kingdom hall crashing) and he's also an atheist. So when you read the negative reviews realize the true bias going on.
Just finished reading Reluctant Apostate. It is an imposing 800 pages but well worth the effort. Llyod tells us his story from his early memories of growing up in the Jehovah's Witness religion or as he has come to realize the Cult. Like Lloyd I escaped this same cult after 60 pluse years. His story is an interesting read and he mixed it with his reasons for leaving the religion. There is a rather complete history of the religion along with its many scandels. Much of this I had read before in other books but he has a way of incorporating this into his awakening from the cult. The story gets somewhat personal at times but he holds nothing back in helping us to understand what it is like to grow up with the repressive rules and regulations of the JW's. We are taken through his teenage years and his early 20 and possibly to most trajic part of his life the death of his mother. His work of activism has been responsible for many ex
jw's waking up. This includes my wife and myself. There are some very practical suggestions for those who are waking up from undue influence namely his 3 R's.see page 667. I have read more than half of his recommend books for ex jw's and find something new and valuable in all of them. When you have been influenced by a controlling and destructive cult for most of your life you can never do enough reading and research. Good read Lloyd Evans looking forward to that pint someday.
Excellent and enjoyable read that hits close to home for me. Well-reseached and a book I couldn't put down once I had read the first chapter. Writing a book is no small task, I'm sure, and to make it fascinating and to keep the reader hooked throughout is an even bigger task. Lloyd Evans has accomplished that well with his first venture at book writing. Any one with a reasoning mind can easily see the fallacies of the Watchtower organization over many years as presented here. Well done!
This is where my disclaimer always goes. Usually it says something like, I got this book from Netgalley, or the publisher sent it to me. However, this book needs a disclaimer that is a little more … involved . I was already a fan of this author’s YouTube channel, I am no stranger to the information in this book, and I am myself an ex-Jehovah’s Witness. That being said I guess I’m not exactly an impartial reviewer. However, I feel that what Mr. Evans has to say is of significant import and so it deserves an honest, forthright review. A loooong review. Here’s mine.
This book is of interest not just to fellow ex-JW’s (what we call ourselves), but also to those outside the faith. Maybe you have JW relatives. Maybe you pass a nice, smiling couple standing next to a literature cart on your way to work every day. Or perhaps, like most people, JW’s have come to your door in order to start a pleasant conversation with you about the bible. The Reluctant Apostate provides a comprehensive overview of the religion, it’s history and the issues surrounding it. There is a great deal of information in this book, and the author did extensive research into the facts presented. I’m impressed with the depth of understanding it displays. Even though I have spent 40 years As a JW, there are many facts about the religion that I have never known about. That is one of the problems.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are a cult. There I’ve said it. I know that Jehovah’s Witnesses do not fit the idea we all have in mind about what a cult is. I wrote a post not long ago about another book Combating Cult Mind Control by Steven Hassan which goes into more information about the ways to identify a cult. Mind control is the way that a cult gets it’s fingers into you. I will list the 5 identifying marks of a cult, and give a brief overview of how Mr. Cedars shows that Jehovah’s Witnesses should be recognized as one.
Behavior – The lives of JW’s are highly controlled. Their dress and grooming, what jobs they perform, their entertainment, the amount of time they spend studying Witness publications and witnessing to outsiders is all highly controlled. And then there is about their prohibition of holidays and their stand on blood transfusions (JW’s cannot have one even if they may die).
Information – JW’s are not allowed to listen to any information about the Jehovah’s Witnesses unless it comes directly from Watchtower. This includes anything on the internet or from the news media. JW’s are not allowed to speak with people who have left the organization. You cannot even acknowledge that persons existence. Needless to say, lack of un-biased information is dangerous.
Thoughts – All thoughts are to be regulated. Doubts about the religion are not tolerated. You can be brought before a Judicial Committee and expelled from the congregation for holding a different opinion from the Governing Body who controls everything. If you voice that opinion then watch out!
Emotional – Guilt and fear figure mightily in this religion. No matter what you do in service of this religion, it is never, ever enough. JW’s are encouraged to spy and tattle on each other to the elders in the congregation for even minor offenses. JW’s are not allowed to speak with anyone who is expelled (disfellowshipped or disassociated), even if it is an immediate family member.
Lloyd’s book delves into the history of the religion, from it’s infancy in the mid to late 1800’s and the makeup of the men who founded it. The book tracks the development of it’s belief system as well as the source of it’s greatest perversions of faith. Including it’s inherent misogyny, it’s disgraceful refusal to address a serious problem with child molestation in it’s ranks, and using emotional blackmail to keep people in line by holding family members hostage to an publishing organization. I have to admit, seeing how these things came together over the years is fascinating to an outsider, and harrowing to anyone who has spent years inside. People have quite literally died in service to this organization. In the 1940’s Nazi Germany, in the 1970’s in Malawi, and in recent times due to the ban on blood. All of which is touched on in Mr. Evans book.
Leaving a cult is no easy thing. Mr. Evans details his own journey with painful honesty. You don’t just decide one day to do a thing like this. I woke up from my own indoctrination just a few months ago. It was a completely awful experience. Your mind tries so hard to force you back into your cocoon of indoctrination. The fight continues. I’m quite sure that no one ever really comes away from it without scars. I’m so much happier now, but it is an excruciatingly painful process. Thankfully, we have activists like Mr. Evans who is generous about his time, his compassion and his pain. He works to shed a light on the road, as we open our eyes and start to stumble out of the darkness. Because of this, and because of how much I’ve directly benefited from his activism, I cannot be a fully impartial reviewer of this book. But I can say read it. If you’re an outsider read it and wonder at how these things are possible. If you’re a JW, read it and weep, and then start living.
Bonus Link Visit Lloyd Evan’s website, JW Survey for tons more information about Jehovah’s Witnesses and videos.
Song for this book I Get Out by Lauryn Hill
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