Others involve internal controversies, including political control of the organization and the handling of dissent within the ranks.Thoroughly revised, the third edition of Penton's classic text includes substantial new information on the sources of Russell's theology and on the church's early leaders, as well as coverage of important developments within the sect since the second edition was published fifteen years ago.

Some of the issues he discusses are known to the general public, such as the sect's opposition to military service and blood transfusions. His book is divided into three parts, each presenting the Witnesses' story in a different context: historical, doctrinal, and sociological. As a former member of the sect, Penton offers a comprehensive overview of the Jehovah's Witnesses. James Penton's Apocalypse Delayed has been the definitive scholarly study of this religious movement. They distribute a billion pieces of literature annually, and continue to anticipate the end of the world.For almost thirty years, M. Ever since that time, Jehovah's Witnesses have been predicting that the world would end 'shortly.' Their numbers have grown to many millions in over two hundred countries.

The first prophecy was not fulfilled, but the outbreak of the First World War lent some credibility to the second. Russell, their founder, advised his followers that members of Christ's church would be raptured in 1878, and by 1914 Christ would destroy the nations and establish his kingdom on earth. ( Jan.Since 1876, Jehovah's Witnesses have believed that they are living in the last days of the present world. James Penton's Apocalypse Delayed, a rare book that seeks not just to discredit and refute the Watchtower, but to understand it. Readers are left with classic studies such as M. (One of the most interesting elements of the narrative is that Noble seems to have transferred the near-divine authority that she once vested in her church to her therapist, whose words are sometimes reprinted here in boldface.) Sadly, few objective accounts exist about the Jehovah's Witnesses little stands in the middle between polemic and apologetic.

Certainly, her story is sad, particularly the part about being encouraged to shun her own daughter for several months, but it is hardly a balanced or even very perceptive book. In Awakening of a Jehovah's Witness: Escape from the Watchtower Society, Noble recounts her quarter-century in the movement, making the usual case that the Society is a cult, that it exercises unhealthy control over the minds and behavior of its members and that it grooms followers to become victims. James: Libros Omitir e ir al contenido principal. James: Libros : Apocalypse Delayed: The Story of Jehovah's Witnesses, Third Edition: 9781442616059: Penton, M. ''The public needs to be warned,'' says ex-Jehovah's Witness Diane Noble about the religion she once embraced. : Apocalypse Delayed: The Story of Jehovah's Witnesses, Third Edition: 9781442616059: Penton, M.

Apocalypse Delayed by M. James Penton