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Out of the Cocoon: A Young Woman's Courageous Flight from the Grip of a Religious Cult (Paperback)

~ Brenda Lee (Author)
Key Phrases: loving assistance, Jehovah's Witnesses, Kingdom Hall, Jesus Meeting (more...)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)

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Product Description

At this very moment, there are millions of cult members world-wide. Do you think you could never become one of them? Think again. Brenda Lee has written a heart-wrenching, yet inspiring tale about her battle to escape from a religious cult after enduring decades of dysfunction and abuse. "Out of the Cocoon" is a remarkable story about how a single visit from two seemingly "nice" strangers nearly cost her everything, including her life. This story begins at the pinnacle of the author's desperation, by relaying a chilling fantasy she created when she was twelve years old. After accomplishing her grisly, murderous task within the security of a dream, she poses a disturbing question that sets the stage for the rest of her story: What could make a child so angry that she would fantasise about taking away the lives of the two people who gave her life?To understand Brenda's fragile emotional state, we have to go back to the beginning, when her childhood innocence reigned and unconditional love was abundant - when she didn't feel all alone in the world. In subsequent chapters, author Brenda Lee transports the reader back in time to relive the innocence of her childhood on a 100-year-old farm in rural Pennsylvania, where her carefree days were filled by swinging from vines, raising farm animals as pets, romping through the forests with her cousins, and plunging from the hayloft.Once "The Friends" knock on the door, however, her childhood and innocence dramatically disappear. But Brenda Lee refuses to become a victim and, like a butterfly, she learns to change the world within her when her external world becomes unbearable. After surviving years of stifling oppression and isolation, Brenda emerges from her cocoon and struggles to take flight. As she tries to fit into society as a young adult, she learns some startling things about her family, this "wicked world", and herself. In time, she learns to forgive not only those who tormented her, but also the mother who disowned her.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 238 pages
  • Publisher: Robert D. Reed Publishers; illustrated edition edition (January 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1931741654
  • ISBN-13: 978-1931741651
  • Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #674,854 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
loving assistance
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Jehovah's Witnesses, Kingdom Hall, Jesus Meeting, Colorado Springs, New Order, Sorry I'm Late Again, Divine Being, Finding Meaning, Honorable Stand, Mother's Day, Neon Signs
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46 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (46 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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37 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The Courage to Leave a Cult, January 23, 2006
I have to admit that I'm not quite through with this book, but as a member of Jehovah's Witnesses for over four decades, I have to say that it was quite chilling reading Brenda's account of her childhood...because it could have been me writing the same thing. Many people are unaware of what Jehovah's Witnesses REALLY teach and how they enslave you once you are baptized, usually without complete information about this cult. Both my husband and myself and our two sons were able to break free from this cult...but even after 5 years of freedom, we are still feeling the effects of shunning and psychological damage.

I hope that by reading this well written account by Brenda, that those who may be contemplating joining Jehovah's Witnesses as a baptized member, will realize how deceptive and cruel this religion is. I applaud the author for coming forth and speaking for all of us who have been devastated by the unloving and UNCHRISTIAN actions of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Yeah...it's a good read!!

Catherine Laszewski
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42 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Do not be misled - the cult of Jehovah's Witnesses is evil and sinister, February 26, 2006
DO NOT BE FOOLED BY HOW NICE AND CARING JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES SEEM TO BE WHEN THEY KNOCK ON YOUR DOOR WITH A SMILE. I was raised as a JW and spent over two decades of my life in this hateful, negative cult that masquerades as "the only true religion". This religion/cult was forced upon me as a child with the usual JW parental tactics of guilt, fear, threats and coercion, under the guise of "we are Jehovah's happy people!" (What a joke). I had no choice in the matter, as it was made clear to me that my fellow JWs (the only social/emotional support circle I was permitted to have) would completely shun me and abandon me if I did not stay in the group. I finally found the courage and strength to walk away in disgust from this dangerous, high-control, mind-control cult, and started my life anew at the age of 26. I saw myself in Brenda Lee's book, and stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to read it. There were many parallel experiences that we both had. I feel much sadness regarding the people I used to know as witnesses, who are now raising their children to be prisoners of this cult, and thus continuing the dysfunctional, hateful cycle of servitude to the men of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. This organization is nothing more than a financially successful publishing company, who keep their membership tightly under their control by brainwashing them to believe that they have to remain in the religion, and loyal to the "faithful and discreet slave", in order to be approved by God. As Brenda Lee relates, and the rest of us who have escaped can attest to, JW parents have been brainwashed to choose loyalty to their warped, twisted religion, over loyalty to their own children and family members. This is not love, and this is not Christianity. The public at large needs to be made aware of how truly dangerous this cult is. They are not "just another religion". Do not allow them to destroy your family, as they have destroyed countless other lives and families. Read Brenda Lee's book and find out for yourself how sinister, evil and sick this religion really is.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Compelling and eye-opening, March 6, 2006
By Sophie (Idaho USA) - See all my reviews
Although I was not raised as a Jehovah's Witness (I became a Witness in my mid-twenties and disassociated myself approximately ten years later), I remember how young children were expected to sit and behave like little adults during the most tedious, boring meetings! What on earth they could possibly have actually benefited from those meetings I'll never know. They were enough to drive adults up the wall let alone little children! Brenda tells it like it is for children in this religion and what it is like for people when they leave it. Young children getting baptised into this cult (actually, shouldn't baptism be about Jesus Christ, NOT the WTBTS???) before they even really know THEMSELVES is crazy! If they discover in their teens that this JW religion is not for them and they want to leave, then they are really getting into a can of worms. The damage is done, because the WTBTS makes life very, very hard for them. If they leave, they might lose their families and friends! How could a decent, loving, caring religion let this happen to people? Brenda Lee tells so well what happens to families in this cult if a family member or members leave it. What happens is so bizarre and cruel, it is unbelievable! I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about the Jehovah's Witnesses religion or to anyone in the religion who is struggling. Brenda Lee conveys so well the ludicracy behind this cult. I want to add that she brings much insight, wisdom, and also humor to her book!
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"Out of the Cocoon: A Young Woman's Courageous Flight from the Grip of a Religious Cult" by Brenda Lee is a memoir... Read more
Published 21 months ago by RebeccasReads.com

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