The Watchtower Society publication, "Reasoning From the Scriptures," says:

"Jehovah's Witnesses: The worldwide Christian society of people who actively bear witness regarding Jehovah God and his purposes affecting mankind. They base their beliefs solely on the Bible."
Reasoning From The Scriptures, 1985, 1989 Edition p. 199

Founded in the 1870's by Charles Taze Russell, associates of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society's were known then as Bible Students. In 1931, the Bible Students were given the name Jehovah's Witnesses, adopted from Isaiah 43:10.

The Witnesses are recognized and known for their unusual beliefs they stand for, such as:

• Refusing to celebrate birthdays
  
• Refusing to celebrate any and every holiday such as Mother's Day, Father's Day, Christmas and Easter
  
• Refusing blood transfusions
  
• Their door-to-door preaching activities
  
• Refusing to honor their country, the flag and national anthem or celebrate National holidays
  
• Their adamant stand in defending what they believe to be true as interpreted by the Watchtower and Awake! Magazines

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Did you know that Watchtower calls their Witnesses Little Children?

Those expressions which made the Witness an individual before his recruitment into the Watchtower are gone and replaced with child-like dependency – a little child who will be dependent on the Watchtower organization as his parent. Through the process of time, his life will be re-defined. See The Watchtower – February 1, 1961 pp. 80-81

How serious is this taken by Jehovah's Witnesses? One of these Witnesses said, “I have learned to view Jehovah as my father and his organization as my mother." See The Watchtower - November 1. 1995 p. 25

The danger of dependency in an unhealthy spiritual, emotional and physical environment opens the door to control and abuse. The individual's entire sense of what reality is will be re-defined by what he feels and needs: acceptance and fulfillment. In the case of the Watchtower organization, Jehovah's Witnesses need their Father and Mother for validation, how and what to think, emotionally feel and behave because their sense of reality has changed. Is it really safe to entrust emotional, physical and spiritual health to an organization who keeps the identity of the Watchtower writers from the public eye who claims to be the Witnesses' Mother?

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Did you know the Watchtower uses threats to keep
their Witnesses in the Watchtower Organization?

• Stay close to the Watchtower organization, Armageddon is near! See The Watchtower – January 1, 1955 p. 24
• Come to the side of Jehovah's organization, if you want to live in God's new world! See The Watchtower - Nov 15, 1953 p. 702
• Come to Jehovah's organization for salvation! See The Watchtower – November 15, 1981 p. 21

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Did you know that Jehovah's Witnesses MUST conform to Watchtower teaching?

• Obedience is the basic formula from which the Watchtower organization operates! See The Watchtower June 1, 1967 p. 337
• Obedience alone counts! See The Watchtower – April 15, 1956 p. 243
• At first, conformity seems unnatural, but it must be done. There is no other way! See The Watchtower – May 1, 1988 p. 11

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Did you know there are four key components to Mind Control (Thought Reform?)

• Control of Behavior: Because the individual Witness believes who the Watchtower Society is said to represent, he is strongly urged to never question, dispute or believe anything contrary to what the Watchtower Society teaches. There is no room for disagreement. See Watchtower – February 1, 1952 pp. 79-80
• Control of Thought: In his eyes, the organization is perfect; and if any problem were to arise, he would assume responsibility for any imperfection. This is a critical place to be in emotionally. This may force the Witness deeper into the organization's control by self-imposed guilt. He feels he must think and work harder to please God through the Watchtower organization. He will accept blame for the organization to protect its purity and integrity as he sees it.

Because of this, Jehovah's Witnesses are taught to fight and avoid independent thinking. See The Watchtower – January 15, 1983 p. 22, 27

Such emotional control as the Watchtower would have its Witnesses to grow hardens the hearts and minds of those who have dedicated themselves to the Watchtower organization. Their minds are geared to reject outside influence by their commitment to Watchtower authority. In time, the Witnesses view of life and their world is through the lenses of Watchtower interpretation and not their own.

• Control Of Emotion:  There are two forms of control the Watchtower will use to keep their Witnesses in line: guilt and fear. If the Watchtower is successful in creating guilt and fear in the hearts of their Witnesses, they will be able to better manage emotional control.

For example: by using fear as a tool, the Witness will...

• avoid relationships with non-Witnesses
• avoid thinking apart from Watchtower teaching
• avoid behavior the Watchtower has defined for him
• avoid reading non-Witness publications warning him of “demonic influence"
• be reminded of the penalties for violating the Watchtower's policies
• be reminded of how dangerous it is outside of the organization
• be reminded of the penalties for keeping in contact with ex-Witnesses defined as apostates
• be reminded of the coming of Armageddon. It's safer in the Watchtower organization
• Control of Information: Information is the key to understanding the world unless the individual is shielded from the world around him. The control of information, (or lack thereof) is the final tool which serves to isolate and shield the Witnesses from the outside world. This is the tool used to drive the Witness to conformity.

The Jehovah's Witnesses are not allowed to read literature critical of their movement. Exposure to well-documented research may cause the mass exodus out of the Watchtower organization. See Survival Into A New Earth, 1984 pp. 142-143; The Watchtower – March 15, 1986 p. 12

For those Witnesses who ask their leadership questions which can't be answered, the Watchtower calls them “weak ones."

• How can we help such weak ones? See The Watchtower – September 1, 1975 p. 530

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Did you know the Jehovah's Witness has two identities?

• who he was before his recruitment into the Watchtower Society
  
• the second, who he has become in his allegiance to the Watchtower organization: one of Jehovah's Witnesses – an identity totally apart from who he was before his recruitment into the Watchtower organization

The individual who the Witness was before will soon be replaced with what the Watchtower Society will conform him to be: one of Jehovah's Witnesses; not as an individual free to express his individuality, but as one of the Witnesses of Jehovah – a member of controlled thought void of personal expression.

Once his image changes from who he was before his behavior will change toward those who are not part of what he has pledged himself to – regardless of who they are. These radical changes will soon be reflected in his thoughts and emotions as one of Jehovah's Witnesses. Once his thoughts can be controlled by the Watchtower Society his obedience, behavior and feelings will shortly follow.

With this in mind, now the Christian has a much better understanding who the Witnesses are and will need to have a different approach in his witnessing strategy instead of arguing scripture.

The book Winning The Witnesses, (Chick Publications) details effective witnessing strategies in helping the Christian overcome these strongholds holding the Jehovah's Witnesses captive.