''Knocking'' is a 2006 documentary film directed by Joel Engardio and Tom Shepard that focuses on the civil liberties fought for by

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co-fou ...

. It focuses primarily on the stories of three Jehovah's Witnesses, and how their lives demonstrate three fundamental Witness teachings that have affected society in general:

Conscientious objection A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of conscience or religion. The term has also been extended to objecting to working for the military–indu ...

, and rejection of

blood transfusion Blood transfusion is the process of transferring blood products into a person's Circulatory system, circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used for various medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood. Early transfusions used ...

s and saluting the flag. ''Knocking'' explored how Jehovah's Witnesses played a major role in First Amendment history, setting Supreme Court precedents that expanded individual liberties for all Americans. In interviews, director Joel Engardio said ''Knocking'' is not about the theology of Jehovah's Witnesses but instead uses the religion as a case study to examine how disparate and disagreeable groups can hold their unique beliefs without marginalizing or limiting the freedom of others. "We may not be each others' cup of tea," Engardio said on NPR, "but tolerance allows a variety of kettles to peacefully share the stove." ''Knocking'' won several film festival awards including Best Documentary at the USA Film Festival and was covered in ''Newsweek'', ''USA Today'' and newspapers across the United States. ''Entertainment Weekly'' named it "What to Watch." ''Knocking'' was broadcast in the United States on PBS. It was also broadcast in Australia, Canada, Greece and Israel. ''Knocking'' was released on DVD in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian and Korean.

Criticism

Critics of Jehovah's Witnesses said the film did not deal harshly enough with controversies surrounding the religion, like the practice of disfellowshiping. Engardio told film festival audiences that ''Knocking'' contained criticism organic to the film's story. Engardio has written ''Washington Post'' essays critical of Jehovah's Witness practices, including shunning and refusal of blood transfusions. Engardio has also written essays for the ''Washington Post'' and ''USA Today'' about civil rights issues involving Jehovah's Witnesses outside the scope of his film. Most notable was the 2010 ruling by a federal judge that overturned California's ban on gay marriage, in which the key legal precedent cited by the judge was a 1943 Supreme Court case won by Jehovah's Witnesses. Another ''Washington Post'' essay by Engardio warns that a ban on Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia is a dangerous precedent that could lead to the loss of freedoms for other unpopular groups in the emerging democracy.

Main characters

;Lillian Gobitas: As a girl in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, she and thousands of other Witness children's refusal to salute the

flag of the United States The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal Bar (heraldry), stripes, Variation of the field, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the Canton ( ...

initiated controversy that led to a pivotal

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

ruling on

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty, also known as freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice ...

. ;Joseph Kempler: Born a

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

, he converted to the Jehovah's Witness faith after observing their integrity alongside Jews in

Nazi concentration camps From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps (), including subcamp (SS), subcamps on its own territory and in parts of German-occupied Europe. The first camps were established in March 1933 immediately af ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After

converting Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''The Convert'', a 2023 film produced by Jump Film & Television and Brouhaha Entertainment * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * ...

, Kempler remained distant from his daughter who had been raised by Jewish relatives. To draw his family closer together, Kempler took them on a trip to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

to see his home country and visit the

Melk Melk (; older spelling: ) is a city in the Austrian state of Lower Austria, next to the Wachau valley along the Danube. Melk has a population of 5,257 (as of 2012). It is best known as the site of a massive baroque Benedictine monastery named ...

and

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

concentration camps. ;Seth Thomas: A 23-year-old Witness who, despite the risk and opposition from non-Witness relatives, refused

s with his

liver transplant Liver transplantation or hepatic transplantation is the replacement of a Liver disease, diseased liver with the healthy liver from another person (allograft). Liver transplantation is a treatment option for Cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease and ...

operation. While initially refused treatment by the

Baylor University Medical Center Baylor University Medical Center (Baylor Dallas or BUMC), part of Baylor Scott & White Health, is a not-for-profit hospital in Dallas, Texas. It has 1,200 licensed beds and is one of the major centers for patient care, medical training and re ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, surgeons with the University of Southern California University Hospital in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

agreed to perform the operation, believing that research in

bloodless surgery is the state of lacking blood. Bloodless may also refer to: * ''Bloodless'' (album), 2025 album by American singer-songwriter Samia * Bloodless surgery, a non-invasive surgical method developed * ''Bloodless'' (video game), a 3D Realms game re ...

is necessary and should be explored.

Film Festival awards

*Best Documentary, Jury Award, 2006 USA Film Festival (Dallas) *Best Documentary, Jury Award, 2006 Trenton Film Festival (New Jersey) *Best Documentary, Audience Award, 2006 Indianapolis International Film Festival *Best First Film, 2006 Long Island International Film Expo

References

External links

Official site''Knocking''
site for

Independent Lens ''Independent Lens'' is a weekly television series airing on PBS featuring documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of ''Independent Lens'' were hosted by Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrenc ...

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

''Knocking'' Study Guide PDF
*{{IMDb title, id=0479939, title=Knocking Documentary films about religion American documentary films Films about Jehovah's Witnesses Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses 2006 films 2000s American films

Criticism

Main characters

Film Festival awards

See also

References

External links