February 8

What Happened to the “Flying Saucers”?

IT ALL began in the summer of 1947 when the pilot of a private plane flying near Mt. Rainier in Washington saw several disk-shaped things moving through the air one after another in an undulating path, “like pie plates skipping over the water.”

This report was printed in many newspapers, and was followed quickly by a flurry of similar reports from other parts of the country. Lights in the sky were said to hover, then to dart away at high speed, making zigzag turns impossible for any known aircraft. A flotilla of oval lights was seen and photographed at Lubbock, Texas. Radar operators in airports and on planes aloft began to notice blips on their screens that did not fit any planes known to be present. They traced out weird courses, and sometimes abruptly disappeared.

Numerous photographs were publicized, mostly of fuzzy lights in the dark, but a few showed sharply defined outlines of saucerlike objects in a daytime sky. A cross-country motorist took a moving picture of a mysterious group of white spots milling about over the desert near Tremonton, Utah.

The first news reports used the term “flying saucers,” and this name has come to be popularly applied to all strange objects seen in the sky. But many of the things seen do not have the form of a saucer; hence, they are more accurately called “unidentified flying objects,” or UFO’s for short.

At times the UFO’s became so numerous that thousands of people were seeing them, almost in a mass hysteria. Newspapers filled their columns with interviews, official reports, rumors and opinions. In July 1952, an avalanche of reports of radar sightings and strange lights around the airport at Washington, D.C., touched off such a scare. In Mexico City in September 1965, rush-hour traffic was jammed for several evenings in a row, and people passed the nights on rooftops to watch moving lights in the sky.

Many of the descriptions of UFO’s implied that they were under intelligent control and moving in response to observers who tried to approach to get a closer look. Sometimes police in patrol cars undertook to track down low-hovering UFO’s. They found their cars unable to keep pace, and returned terrified with tales of having been chased by their intended quarry. Military pursuit planes went up to attempt contact with visible or radar targets. One 1948 afternoon in Kentucky, an unfortunate pilot tried to catch a UFO. It rose ahead of him, and he reported that he was climbing to 20,000 feet. That was the last word from him. He was found dead in the wreckage of his plane.

Speculation

Speculation abounded as to the origin of the mysterious “flying saucers.” Was the United States secretly testing a new type of vehicle, powered by atomic or magnetic or even gravitational energy? Or perhaps some foreign power had mastered such a motive force and was flaunting its newfound prowess in United States skies. Most widely propagated, though, was the theory that visitors from outer space had arrived to survey the earth and study its inhabitants. There is no doubt that this idea is what endowed the “flying saucers” with their chief fascination. The fact that man was just preparing to venture off his earthly home to explore other worlds gave him cause to wonder if intelligent creatures elsewhere had done it before him. On the other hand, the idea was disturbing to those who believed that man is unique in the universe as an intelligent, fleshly creation of God.

Some persons claimed that the flying saucers had indeed landed in out-of-the-way places, and pointed to flattened vegetation or scorched earth at the site of the landing as proof. It was claimed that close encounters with the interplanetary vehicles had put out lights and stopped clocks and even motors of automobiles, leaving the metal magnetic and the surroundings radioactive. A few people testified that they had been taken aboard the “saucers,” one in a California desert, another on a Brazilian farm, and met the Venusian voyagers. Although their testimony was uncorroborated, there were the gullible, ready to believe. A religious aspect was introduced with the springing up of a new cult centered on the godlike supermen from Venus.

Most scientists tended to pooh-pooh the excitement. Astronomers were particularly unimpressed. They pointed out that it was their business to watch the skies, but they had not seen any “flying saucers.” Besides, they asked, where would they come from? Mars? Venus? From what we already knew of these planets it would be quite impossible for any humanlike creature to live there, since there was no air or water. And interplanetary probes, testing the atmosphere of Venus and taking closeup pictures of Mars, reinforced this opinion. Venus was found hot enough to melt zinc, Mars cold and dead as the moon. Few scientists considered the subject of UFO’s interesting enough to devote any research time to it, or even to talk about it in public. It was rarely mentioned in their journals. One astronomer took the trouble to write a book showing how mirages could produce effects like the bobbing “saucers” seen at Mt. Rainier, or the lights at Lubbock.

It seemed likely that most of the “flying saucers” being seen were merely misconceptions of ordinary things like stars, meteors, airplanes, balloons, and mirages, not to exclude hoaxes and hallucinations. But the nagging question remained: Could all the strange sights reported be attributed to such prosaic causes? Or might there be a few genuine “flying saucers,” really beyond the ability of scientists to explain?

What the “Saucers” Proved to Be

WITH so much speculation over the “flying saucers,” the United States government was pressed into starting an official inquiry. Since the government’s concern was to keep unfriendly aircraft out of the country, the task was assigned to the Air Force. A project first called “Sign,” then “Grudge,” and finally “Blue Book,” was headed by an officer whose duty it was to receive the reports and to ask for such investigations as seemed justified.

More than 10,000 cases were filed during eighteen years. Of these, they decided that 94 percent could be explained through natural causes. And in respect to their direct responsibility, they said that the other 6 percent represented no threat to national security.

So the Air Force considered its duty fulfilled. But the 6 percent of cases not explained were understood by some to be unexplainable, and were presented by those who fostered the idea of visitors from other planets as proof of their theories. And it had to be admitted that, logically, 600 people​—or even six, for that matter—​who might have seen a real “flying saucer” could not be proved wrong because 9,400 other people had seen something else that they mistook for a “flying saucer.”

A More Thorough Investigation

This situation continued until 1966, when a research contract was given to the University of Colorado to make a scientific study of the UFO’s. This project was headed by Dr. Edward U. Condon, a highly respected physicist who was formerly chief of the Bureau of Standards and has served as president of the American Physical Society and of the American Association for Advancement of Science. Enough scientists were persuaded to join a staff of experts to handle the various phases of the study, and half a million dollars was allocated to the project during a two-year period.

The report of the Colorado project was released early in 1969 in a 965-page volume. It is replete with scientific information bearing on every angle of the observations and theories of “flying saucers.”

Fifty-nine cases were investigated by staff members, including some of the more sensational cases studied previously under the Blue Book project. This study yielded convincing evidence that the overwhelming majority, if not all, of the “flying saucer” stories were based on mistaken identification of known objects.

Stars and Planets

Many persons, especially among those who have always lived in cities, are unfamiliar with the stars. Some do not realize that the stars rise and set, like the sun and moon. Venus, our nearest planetary neighbor, is alternately an evening star, setting after the sun, and a morning star, rising before dawn. It is so bright that most of the time it can be seen in broad daylight. During a spate of “flying saucer” reports, it has not been uncommon to see groups of people gathered on street corners to stare at a tiny white spot in the sky. Most of them did not realize that it was the planet Venus they were watching, and that it had been there all their lives.

When Venus is rising or setting during a quiet night, still layers of warm and cool air can cause a mirage, magnifying the image of the bright planet and even diffracting the light into various colors. And with what results?

A Colorado farmer in 1967 reported seeing a “flying saucer” land repeatedly in the early evening a few miles west of his house. Through binoculars he could see the dome-shaped structure, large as a two-story house, with rows of lighted windows.

In a southern town later that year, reports of a UFO taking off early in the morning from beyond the river east of town spurred a cruising police car to investigate. They spotted the mysterious intruder and gave chase, but it reportedly fled and easily outdistanced them. When they gave up and were returning to town, they said, the UFO turned and followed them, finally approaching within 500 feet of the car and lighting it up so bright that they could read their watches. On succeeding mornings, police cars in neighboring towns joined the hunt, and even an airplane pilot tried to catch the elusive visitor, all without success.

And what did the investigation reveal? That all these reports, embellished, to be sure, with exciting details supplied by imagination, were based on seeing the planet Venus, keeping steadfastly in its orbit more than 30 million miles away. Jupiter, Saturn, and some of the brighter fixed stars have also been involved in UFO stories.

Balloons, Airplanes, Birds

The United States Weather Bureau releases about 100,000 neoprene balloons a year to measure wind velocities aloft. Visible to an altitude of 20,000 feet, these are often reported as UFO’s. Also, larger polyethylene balloons, called “skyhooks,” are used to carry telescopes and cosmic-ray counters to above 100,000 feet. They are 100 to 400 feet in diameter, easily visible from the ground, and they become very prominent in the early twilight, when they reflect the bright sunlight against a darkening sky.

In 1948 the existence and use of these balloons were not widely known, and it is believed that the pilot in Kentucky was following a “skyhook,” little realizing the impossibility of reaching the extreme altitude of his target. In the excitement of the chase he evidently went too high, lost consciousness in the rarefied atmosphere, and his plane crashed out of control.

Another kind of UFO sighting is of airplanes following flight patterns that are not familiar to the observer. Especially at night, with their landing lights on, and far enough downwind that the motors are not heard, they may not be identified. If a plane is descending toward the viewer, the light may appear stationary, then suddenly it moves off rapidly as the plane turns toward the airport. Practice operations of refueling at night near an air base in California started persistent rumors of UFO’s among nearby residents.

Even birds, if not recognized, can be classed as UFO’s, as happened in the movies taken at Tremonton.

Meteors and Satellites

Fireballs are produced when large meteorites in space enter the earth’s atmosphere, break apart and burn up. A cluster of such objects passed over Ontario and the eastern United States on February 9, 1913, causing a spectacular display. People within fifty miles of its path saw groups of bright lights pass slowly overhead. Many thought that the lights were attached to a giant airship. The variance in accounts, the gross underestimates of altitude and speed, and the imaginary structures enclosing the lights were very like many of today’s “flying saucer” descriptions.

Man-made fireballs have been produced in recent years when satellites or the rockets used to put them in orbit fall into the atmosphere and burn up. A notable case was the reentry, on March 3, 1968, of a Russian satellite that failed to lift out of its parking orbit. This was witnessed by hundreds of people from Kentucky to Pennsylvania. They saw the pieces of the satellite, following along in the same path, burning as they met the atmosphere eighty miles high. But what they said they saw proves how easy it is to imagine a structure connecting or enclosing a string of lights, and how far wrong estimates of distance and speed can be. Of the scores of people who reported it as a UFO, many identified the series of lights as windows in a wingless airplane fuselage or in a saucer-shaped body. Some thought the object was only 3,000 to 5,000 feet high; others said it was just above the treetops. Airplane pilots estimated the altitude as 30,000 to 60,000 feet.

Such reports show the limitations of human perception. When we see in the sky a moving object that we cannot identify, we just cannot tell how large it is, how far away it is, or how fast it is traveling. A six-inch pie plate seen 500 feet away looks the same size as a 100-foot balloon at 100,000 feet. A satellite traveling 18,000 miles per hour at a height of 100 miles across the sky may seem to be going as fast as a 180-mile-per-hour airplane at 5,000 feet. If we have no idea how big the object is, any estimate we make of its distance or speed is worthless.

Radar Reports and Photographs

Many sightings of UFO’s have been made by radar operators. But a study of these unexpected echoes shows that blips may be produced on the screen by a great variety of real objects. Besides airplanes, there are balloons, birds and insects, rain and hail, meteor trails and others. Spurious echoes may also be caused by reflections and mirages, for radio waves are bent through layers of heated air just as light waves are. Malfunctions of the equipment can also enter in. Even with all these possible causes of UFO reports, the fact that there are still cases on record that have not been explained suggests that radar sometimes behaves in ways that are not completely understood. But this is not any reason to imagine that a spaceship is behind every false echo.

Some of the most widely publicized stories of “flying saucers” have included photographs as the key evidence. At first thought we might consider a photograph the best possible kind of proof. But in the case of UFO’s this has not turned out to be true.

In almost every instance where the photographer has been willing to provide the negatives for study it has turned out that they do not back up the story. In some of the not-too-impressive pictures, blobs of light on the film were caused by reflections in the lens; others resulted from defects in the film or in the developing.

On the other hand, most of the likely looking pictures turned out to be hoaxes. It is simple to hang some kind of disk in front of a camera with a fine thread that does not show in the picture. Or a disk may be thrown in front of the camera just as the shutter is snapped. One clue to such falsification is the sharpness of focus of the disk compared with things at various distances in the picture. Another is the contrast, which is greater for objects close to the camera than for distant objects. Lighting and shade may not be consistent. For example, in a famous photo from Brazil a “saucer” is seen lighted from the left side, but the trees below are lighted from the right. Often a series of photos is offered to document the rapid passage of a UFO. But when the serial numbers of the frames on the edge of the film are not in the order in which it was said the pictures were taken, or when shifting shadows show that hours elapsed between one picture and another, the authenticity of the pictures must be rejected.

Conclusions

After two years of scientific study of the UFO’s by a staff of experts, what conclusions can be drawn? First, the great majority of all the reports have their origin in the same kinds of things that Project Blue Book named: Planets, airplanes, balloons, meteorites, mirages.

The more thorough investigation has clarified the part played by physical and psychological distortions. It has explained how ordinary objects, seen in the sky by persons who do not recognize them under the perhaps unusual circumstances, can be misconstrued in perception, magnified in the telling, further exaggerated in the newspapers, and end up as spaceships landing little green men from Mars. Further, the technical analysis of photographs that were previously considered not explainable has brought some of the most notorious UFO’s to earth. Finally, the residue of unexplained reports was shown to consist largely of unconfirmed rumors and vague accounts that were not worth running down.

In summary, probable or certain explanations in natural causes were found for all but a handful of the cases examined. Even those that continue to defy analysis do not offer any basis for the theory that we are being watched by people from other planets. A useful by-product of the study has been to systematize our knowledge of many atmospheric phenomena, common and uncommon, while furnishing a sidelight on the frailties of human perception and reporting.

As for the future, it was not advocated, as scientists often do at the end of a report, that the study be continued. The fact is that the “flying saucer” episode was mainly a psychological affair, which took root and flourished in the soil of man’s deep-felt insecurity in these critical days. It offered a temporary diversion and escape from the real problems that overwhelm mankind. But now it is clear that the “flying saucers” present neither a threat of annihilation nor a messianic hope for salvation.

Many persons followed with keen interest the numerous reports about the “flying saucers.” Really, though, how much more important it is individually to look into and realize the significance of the events now taking place throughout the earth​—the increasing lawlessness, the moral breakdown, the frequency of earthquakes, the general rebelliousness and earth-wide unrest. Why? Because those who have done thorough research into the prophecies of the Holy Bible are convinced of this: That the incredible events that have unfolded in great detail since the outbreak of World War I are a fulfillment of Bible prophecy, indicating we are in the “last days” of this system of things, and that there are tremendous worldwide changes at hand.​—Matt. 24:3-21; 2 Tim. 3:1-5.

This is no figment of human imagination. All creation testifies to the existence of a purposeful Creator. And his Word, the Bible, testifies to his purpose to end wickedness forever, and to bring in a righteous new order. (2 Pet. 3:13; Jude 14, 15) Bible prophecy is not something to be lightly cast aside as rumor or imagination; it has never failed. Would it not be the course of wisdom to look with interest into this matter that so directly affects your life and hope for eternal happiness? Jehovah’s witnesses will be glad to assist you to make this personal investigation.

Living on Pills

By “Awake!” correspondent in the British Isles

“SLIM PILLS KILL BABIES.”

“BIRTH PILL KILLS MOTHER OF FOUR.”

Here in Britain such bold headlines confront us from time to time in our daily newspapers. In a country where we enjoy the benefits of a “free” National Health Service and where many people are living on pills, such tragedies are stark reminders of the dangers of drugs.

A recent survey by the popular motorists’ magazine Drive revealed that one British motorist in seven drives under the influence of drugs. Data published by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry show that in 1967 family doctors in England and Wales issued a total of 271 million drug prescriptions. And apart from doctors’ prescriptions, commonly used medical preparations such as aspirin are readily obtainable by almost everyone.

Reports indicate that not only in Britain but on the European continent, in the United States and in other parts of the world more and more people are resorting to the use of drugs. They are doing so to the extent that drugs have become an accepted part of their daily routine. Commenting on the situation in America, Dr. M. M. Wintrobe, Professor of Medicine, University of Utah College of Medicine, had this to say: “Some members of our modern society behave as if life were a process of existence which can barely be maintained or endured without taking a continuous series of wonder drugs.”

Why Increased Pill Consumption?

It is freely admitted that in the United States and in Britain some doctors are prone to over-prescribe. In a lecture on the “Use and Abuse of Drugs” Sir Derrick Dunlop commented on three of the causes for over-prescribing: “There are the insistent demands of the public . . . Secondly, there are insufficient doctors for the growing population: it is time-consuming to take a careful clinical history, to carry out a thorough examination, and to give wise advice, but it takes only a moment to write a prescription for a symptomatic remedy, and this often satisfies the patient . . . Thirdly, there is the formidable and skilled promotion of drugs by the pharmaceutical houses, some of which is subject to justifiable criticism in violating truth and good taste.” (Italics added.)

Similar factors apply in regard to self-medication. Some individuals have an insatiable desire for pills. They find it easier, quicker and cheaper to go to the drugstore than to determine the cause of their problem and deal with it. Others are undoubtedly influenced by radio, television and magazine advertisements that recommend remedies for every complaint.

Perhaps one of the most important factors contributing toward increased pill consumption today is the tremendous increase in the number of drugs now available for the treatment of disease. Some of these have been beneficial indeed. However, at the same time, the great increase in the number of drugs​—what has been described as the “therapeutic explosion”—​has brought its own hazards.

Dangers of Modern Drugs

Never before has the medical profession been so aware of the dangers that accompany the use of modern drugs as it is today. Largely responsible for this was the disaster of the early 1960’s that brought death or gross deformity to thousands of infants born to mothers who had taken what had appeared to be a safe sleeping tablet containing thalidomide.

Apart from teratogenic (or deformity-causing) effects, modern drugs prescribed by physicians can produce, directly or indirectly, a wide spectrum of adverse reactions and diseases, including skin rashes, bleeding into the skin, bleeding from the stomach or intestines, hemorrhages in the brain, infections of various kinds, endocrine disturbances such as diabetes, hyper- and hypo-thyroidism, gastric and duodenal ulcers, liver disease, kidney disease, diseases of bones and bone marrow, drug addiction, mental illness and even insanity. A truly formidable list!

During a symposium on the subject of drug-induced diseases, Dr. Louis Lasagna of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, stated: “It is apparent not only that a problem exists but also that, despite the fairly high frequency of reported trouble from drugs, the publicized cases constitute merely the floating tip of an iceberg, with much of the difficulty remaining hidden beneath the surface of our awareness.”

In discussing the toxic effects of drugs, Sir Derrick Dunlop gave some idea of the magnitude of the problem in Britain when he said: “It has been estimated that from 10 to 15% of patients in our general hospitals are suffering to a greater or less extent from our efforts to treat them​—from iatrogenic diseases as they are called [that is, caused by the physician], or, more optimistically, from diseases due to medical progress.”

In view of the hazards of modern drug therapy it is understandable why many countries have now set up government organizations that supervise the introduction and use of drugs, as well as publish warnings and recommend withdrawal of a drug where necessary.

But what about those pills that people are taking every day without apparent harm, pills that some doctors are prone to over-prescribe or that can readily be bought without prescription from the local chemist or druggist? Are they to be classified along with those drugs that can induce disease? What would be the proper outlook toward the use of such pills? Let us consider a few.

Pep Pills and Slimming Pills

The drugs most commonly used in “pep” pills and slimming tablets are ones that belong to the amphetamine group of drugs, and which are available under a wide number of trade names. They act on the brain in such a way that feelings of tiredness disappear. The individual becomes mentally and physically more active, more cheerful and more confident, even though work efficiency may deteriorate. They also suppress appetite for a time. Their effect on the heart is similar to that of adrenaline released during bouts of anger, that is, there is an increase in the rate and force of the heartbeat and a narrowing of the blood vessels.

Is it safe to “whip” the heart and brain in this way? Is it wise to deprive the body of the proper care and rest that it really needs? Hardly so, and certainly not at the risk of developing serious disturbances of behavior, insomnia and even addiction. Some who take amphetamines for long periods of time become tense and strained; some have developed high blood pressure and heart failure, and others, an insanity closely akin to schizophrenia. With such risks involved, some medical authorities believe that these drugs have no place in the treatment of obesity.

Hypnotics; Sedatives; Tranquilizers

Drugs to induce sleep (hypnotics), drugs to quiet a patient in acute distress (sedatives), or drugs to reduce anxiety or tension (tranquilizers) are frequently prescribed by doctors and hence open to abuse. They merely provide transient relief of symptoms and can never cure the root cause.

While there are undoubtedly circumstances where the short-term use of such drugs is effective and beneficial, their long-term administration is usually undesirable.

Drugs in this category depress the central nervous system. An otherwise healthy individual can easily become physically and emotionally dependent upon such drugs, resulting in addiction to them. Also, driving an automobile can be very dangerous when the driver is under their influence. In combination with alcohol, some hypnotics and tranquilizers can have lethal effects.

Analgesics

Drugs for the relief of pain are readily obtainable in most countries without prescription, and are probably among the highest on the list of pills that people are ‘living on’ today. The name “analgesia” literally means “absence of the feeling of pain” and is a reminder that pain is a sensation, not a disease. Analgesics include aspirin (or acetylsalicylic acid), as well as other pain-killing drugs such as phenacetin (or acetophenetidin) and paracetamol, sometimes in combination with other drugs.

These drugs raise the threshold to pain probably by acting on a part of the brain called the thalamus. Being antipyretic, they also effectively reduce a raised temperature, hence are widely advertised and used as remedies for sore throats, common colds and influenzal illnesses. Aspirin particularly is regarded by some as a panacea for all sorts of complaints​—indigestion, settling nerves, promoting sleep, and so on. But are these drugs entirely safe?

In recent years it has been discovered that aspirin frequently causes bleeding from the stomach. How frequently? It is reported that oozing of about a teaspoonful of blood per day occurs in 50 to 70 percent of the people taking aspirin. In certain individuals, the blood loss is greater and can lead to iron-deficiency anemia; in a few individuals it can endanger life as a result of massive bleeding. It is believed that aspirin interferes in some way with the mucus that protects the stomach lining. The gastric juices, or the aspirin itself, then damages the lining epithelium and causes small erosions or ulcers that bleed.

That the long-term use of phenacetin, which is commonly found in many pain-killing remedies, can be dangerous due to a damaging effect on the kidney is well recognized. In Sweden, phenacetin is obtainable only on a doctor’s prescription, and in Britain all diabetics and patients with kidney disease are warned to avoid phenacetin.

Paracetamol, a breakdown product of phenacetin, causes neither indigestion nor bleeding from the stomach and in this respect has advantages over aspirin. Even so, it is not yet known whether it has a damaging effect on the kidney.

Analgesics therefore are not entirely safe. Thus, where possible, the wise course is to treat the cause of the pain rather than simply mask the symptom by means of pain-killing drugs that act on the brain.

Balanced, Healthier Outlook

Although modern drugs can be dangerous, their wise use under medical supervision can be beneficial to health. Thus, for some individuals the regular use of drugs helps to maintain a reasonable standard of health. For example, for those suffering from epilepsy, rheumatoid arthritis, heart disease, diabetes or kidney disease, drugs can be a valuable aid. They may even help to prevent disease, as in the case of those on antimalarial drugs in countries where malaria is still rife. For other patients ‘living on pills’ is even more vital and may have to be continued indefinitely because disease has led to some defect in the absorption or metabolism of substances essential to life, such as vitamin B12, thyroid hormone, cortisone or insulin.

However, for many today ‘living on pills’ has become a harmful habit rather than a healthful necessity. Most of these drugs act on the brain and are not without bad side effects. Is it wise to tamper with such vital parts of our body? Is it wise to take risks when it is unnecessary?

We need the same balanced outlook as does the medical practitioner who is truly conscientious and who therefore weighs the dangers of modern drugs against their benefits before he prescribes. By maintaining such an outlook we will restrict the use of drug-containing pills to those occasions when we really need them.

How much wiser it is to give proper attention to our health by providing our bodies with good nourishing food, adequate rest and sleep, rather than make a habit of filling them with unnecessary drugs! Important, too, is regularly feeding our minds with the health-promoting spiritual food contained in God’s Word. This can lead to spiritual health and blessings from God.

Onions and Blood Clots

✔ Time magazine of March 28, 1969, reported an unusual benefit derived from eating onions. A Burmese doctor who conducted tests with twenty-two patients found that the lowly onion contains something that works against blood clots. He found that when fourteen patients had eaten a breakfast containing over three ounces of fat, their blood-borne protection against clotting dropped quickly. On another day when they were given the same breakfast with two ounces of fried onions added, their levels of anti-clotting factors rose instead of falling. This happened despite the extra fat that was used in frying. The tests with the other eight patients were with boiled onions, and the results were much the same.

I Was a Communist

ALREADY as a young boy in the early 1940’s I learned much about communism, since my father was an enthusiastic communist. I was raised in a middle-class home in Sweden, and as is true with most young boys, my father was my ideal. I would help him distribute communistic propaganda leaflets in our neighborhood. And although communism is legal and is represented in the government, it was not popular and I suffered ridicule from my playmates.

As a teen-ager I think I differed in some respects from other boys and girls my age. I took an interest in world problems and had a more serious view of the future. And the more I learned about the communistic ideology, the more convinced I became that communism was the only solution for distressed mankind.

Peace by Means of Communism

Then the time came for me to do military service. The daily contact with munitions and instruments of killing increased my dislike of war and violence. The communist party program in Sweden demanded a substantial reduction of Swedish armaments and in time a total disarmament. This appealed to me. I could see a future communistic world without weapons and war. I became convinced that, mostly by peaceful means, communism would conquer the world.

When I was through with military service I had a fervent desire to improve the world, and I decided that the best way to do it was to support communism’s efforts. I read all I could find about the party program. I learned how the power of capitalism and imperialism was to be broken, how the nations would be united under one form of government, and how the world would become one great collective society without class distinctions or salary gaps.

The communist party promised to work for disarmament, dissolution of military pacts, removing of troops and bases from foreign territories, test-ban agreements, ban on nuclear weapons and destruction of existing nuclear stockpiles. To me this seemed to be the best program in the world. I felt that I had to become an active propagandist for this policy. My first ‘convert’ was my young wife, whose folks were social democrats. We joined a communist youth organization in Sweden called DU, which in Swedish stands for Democratic Youth.

Joined the Party

In the fall of 1959 I applied for membership in the communist party. As the communists are interested in having an elite party and not a mass party, there are certain requirements that one must meet to become a member. However, in Sweden the requirements are rather lenient compared to communist countries or where communism is illegal. I met the requirements and received my membership book after paying my fee, which was forty Swedish kronor ($8) for the first year. My wife was still too young for membership.

As a member of the DU and communist party, I had many opportunities to get acquainted with communists, young and old. Some of them were nice people. However, we were disappointed when we noticed that most of the young people in the DU organization only showed up at the meetings when there was a dance and entertainment on the program. Only a few came on study nights. Few seemed to care about shouldering responsibility.

Another Viewpoint

At our meetings we never discussed religious matters, but party statutes said that each member should always be treated with respect and tolerance, no matter what his religious and ethic values. Thus, when my wife and I were visited one day by a minister of Jehovah’s witnesses we could see no reason why we should not treat him in the same respectful way. Soon we were having fine discussions of topics that interested us, especially about how peaceful conditions on earth will be established.

At first we thought that the prospects of the new order of peace about which he talked so much was very much like the new order the communists promised to establish. But little by little he was able to show us that the means to establish and maintain such a new order must rest with a source higher than man. He noted from history how one man-made political system after another had failed to establish peace.

A Time of Decision

It was at a communist party meeting in the early part of 1961 that I decided to get more familiar with the local congregation of Jehovah’s witnesses. I remember sitting there at that party meeting observing my fellow communists in action, and thinking: How can a righteous human society ever be established and maintained by such imperfect men? On what basis can they guarantee lasting peace, justice and equality? How can they guarantee the honesty required of subjects in a society where all resources of the earth are to be evenly distributed? How can they guarantee the true love that is needed to keep such a society together, when they do not even use the word love in their program? How can they solve the really great problems of mankind, such as sickness, aging and death?

Suddenly I heard my name being mentioned from the platform. I pricked up my ears and heard that they had chosen me for a certain commission in the party executive. What should I do? After the meeting that night I told the chairman that I could not accept the commission.

Soon thereafter I resigned from membership in the party, and both my wife and I resigned from membership in the DU. The chairman tried to persuade us, saying: “You don’t need to leave the party for religious reasons; there are even priests who are members.” We explained that we did not follow the example of priests.

Making Comparisons

Although I had resigned from the party, we still had roots in communism. We were not altogether certain what to do. In July 1961 the so-called Östersjöveckan (Baltic Sea Week) was to be held in Rostock, East Germany. It is an annual international communist meeting with delegates mainly from the countries around the Baltic Sea. My wife and I had been planning to attend. But a mental conflict arose because Jehovah’s witnesses were having an international assembly in Copenhagen that same week. We decided to go to Rostock.

All the time we were there in Rostock we were trying to compare ‘our convention’ with the convention that the Witnesses were attending in Copenhagen. We noticed the conduct of ‘our delegates’ and thought of the conduct of the Witnesses. I must say we were disappointed with many of ‘our delegates.’ They were smoking and drinking heavily and the moral standard was not very high. Sometimes quarrels and trouble occurred. We would say to each other: ‘This surely is not happening among the Witnesses in Copenhagen.’ We had in mind the good conduct of the Witnesses we knew in Sweden. We had noticed that they did not smoke, get drunk or engage in immorality. We also thought of their firm neutral stand as to politics.

The consistent refusal of Jehovah’s witnesses to take part in warfare had made a deep impression upon us. The communists often talked about the horrors of war and especially of nuclear war. But we often asked ourselves: Why do not the communists themselves disclaim any connection with wars of the nations as the Witnesses do? Why all this talk about not killing people with nuclear bombs when the communists themselves learn to kill with guns? What difference does it make to the victims? During the Baltic Sea Week the communists talked much about the Baltic Sea as the “Sea of Peace,” and they claimed that the countries around the Baltic Sea should make up a nuclear-free zone. But why did the Russians at that time accompany this claim with detonations of superpowerful hydrogen bombs up at Novaya Zemlya, just 1,000 miles northeast of the Baltic Sea?

The questions piled up. Of course, we knew the communists had their explanations, but by this time we wanted more than explanations​—we desired evidence that the communist way could help people live together in peace. Such evidence was lacking. On the other hand, we knew of the desirable circumstances that obtained among Jehovah’s witnesses. So on our way home from Rostock we agreed that we had been at the wrong place. We should have been in Copenhagen among Jehovah’s witnesses.

In the fall of 1961 we cleaned from our life and home all political and atheistic literature. The year 1961 was one of great changes for us, and we finished it by symbolizing our dedication to Jehovah God by water baptism on December 31. Since then we have been active in teaching others​—including our little son—​about God’s peaceful new order of things.

For the last five years we have had the privilege of serving as full-time ministers, using most of our time in preaching and teaching the Bible. And in August 1969, when Jehovah’s witnesses had their “Peace on Earth” International Assembly in Copenhagen, Denmark, we were there and learned more, not only about the hope for a better system in which to live, but also about the true means to realize it​—God’s kingdom under his reigning King, Jesus Christ.​—Contributed.

That Colorful Coating​—Paint

By “Awake!” correspondent in Canada

IT ADDS color to rooms in our homes, schools, offices and factories. Automobiles and toys are made attractive by it. It protects buildings, farm machinery and tools from the wind, rain, and heat from the sun. Truly, that colorful coating, paint, is enjoying wider popularity than at any time in history.

Thousands of millions of dollars annually are spent for it; Canadians alone lay out almost 200 million dollars a year for paint. In Canada more than 150 paint plants produce this colorful coating. And in the United States over 635,000,000 gallons of paint are sold by manufacturers each year. That is enough paint to cover some 11,400 square miles, or an area almost the size of the Netherlands!

Thousands of Years of Use

The use of paint is not of recent origin. Ancient peoples, particularly the Egyptians, realized that certain pigments found in the soil could be mixed with a liquid and applied to their buildings. For example, colorful reds and yellows were obtained by mixing ochers (natural-colored earths) with water.

Also, pigments were imported from other countries to supplement those found in the Egyptian soil. From the madder roots, which were imported from India, various shades of red, violet and brown were prepared. And from the indigo plant a deep blue color was produced.

Other civilizations were quick to copy the techniques of paint making developed by the Egyptians. Roman artists made use of the same colors and, with few exceptions, the same methods of producing them. However, after the fall of the Roman Empire of the West in 476 C.E. the art of making paints virtually disappeared.

It was near the end of the Middle Ages that the use of paint for decorative and protective purposes began its reemergence in England. At first paints were used chiefly on churches. Then they were used on public buildings and the houses of the wealthy. Since paint was expensive to produce, it was a mark of social distinction to have one’s dwelling painted.

It was not until the 1700’s that paint was made commercially by a few persons who went into the business in the United States and Europe. These early manufacturers produced only the materials for paint; the painter was required to do his own mixing and formulating. It was not until 1867 that prepared paints were first marketed. The development in the late 1800’s of new machines for grinding and mixing enabled paint manufacturers to turn out large volumes of paint, and soon paint making entered an era of rapid development.

The Ingredients

It is estimated now that most paint manufacturers carry an inventory of almost 1,000 different items. Perhaps as many as 500 of these are in daily use. Great strides have been made in the development of new paints. Indeed, not long ago a popular magazine observed: “Eighty-five percent of the paints on sale today didn’t even exist five years ago.” Yet, paint raw materials might be classified into four main groups: (1) Pigments, (2) vehicles, (3) solvents or thinners and (4) additives.

Pigments are the substances that give color and opacity to paint coatings. The ancients frequently used vegetable and animal matter to color their paints, but these are of little importance in paint making today. Still used, however, are earth pigments, called natural or mineral pigments. These are obtained from certain earths that are mined, finely ground and refined. But the most commonly used pigments today are chemical ones.

The vehicle is that part of the paint that carries the pigment. It may consist of oils or varnishes. Drying oils that are used in paint vehicles have the property of converting from a liquid to a solid state when exposed to the oxygen of the air. The paint vehicle thus dries and hardens when it contacts the air. The resulting hard film holds the pigment on the painted surface.

Perhaps the most common thinners for paint are either water or turpentine. These are added to thin the paint to the proper viscosity or thickness for easy spreading on a surface. Although thinners, too, might be considered part of the vehicle, they function somewhat differently in a paint. They begin to evaporate after application of the paint on a surface, leaving the film-forming material exposed for permanent drying.

Paint additives often include compounds of lead, manganese or cobalt. These accelerate the drying of the paint.

How Paint Is Made

Paint is basically a dispersion of colored pigments in a vehicle or liquid medium. The paint maker prepares a rather heavy paste by mixing together dry pigments and a portion of the vehicle. This process might be compared with what a housewife does when she mixes ingredients with her mechanical mixer, perhaps in preparing cake batter. In paint making the mixing cycle is continued until a fluid but somewhat lumpy paste is formed.

The next step requires what is known as grinding. A roller mill of steel cylinders that rotate against each other is frequently used for this. The purpose of the grinding is to pull the pigment particles apart so that each particle will be coated by the resinous vehicle. Another type of mill consists of a revolving drum partly filled with steel balls. By constantly revolving for many hours, the steel balls are able to disperse the pigment particles throughout the vehicle.

After the grinding process, the balance of the vehicle as well as the solvent thinners are added. Also, driers often are added at this time. But when the enclosed steel-ball mill is used, all ingredients generally are included from the beginning. Of course, with the development of water-base paints new types of equipment are used for dispersing pigments and liquids. Tinting of the batch comes next, adding just the proper amount of color to give the batch the exact shade desired. Finally, the paint is moved to automatic machines that fill, cover and code the containers.

The Colors to Use

Since all of us enjoy pleasant surroundings, it will be of interest to consider how you might add pleasantness to your home by employing that colorful coating​—paint. Home decorators usually choose colors that will complement other articles in a room, such as those in furniture, rugs or draperies.

Light colors in a small room will create an impression of size, a point to remember when decorating apartments. A continuous flow of neutral tints through several rooms adds an air of spaciousness, inviting one to accent these tints with colorful rugs, cushions or pictures. Keep in mind, though, that an excessive number of colors in any one room can give a cluttered look.

Here are additional helpful hints: Tints of yellow, peach and rose are warm colors. They create a comfortable and mellow charm in rooms facing north and east. Greens and blues in their pastel tones are pages from the marvelous creation around us. One can just feel the cool, relaxing atmosphere imparted by these colors in rooms facing south and west. Rich, bright colors, such as reds and oranges, are exciting colors. But a word of caution. One might tire of them easily. They have a stimulating effect, often reflecting youthful personality or that of one who likes change. Therefore, they often can be suited to the bedrooms of children.

When choosing colors, remember that when a paint is spread over a large area it will appear darker than it does on a small color sample. Therefore, select a lighter shade and it will probably be the color you desire when it is applied to a wall. Also, since colors change under artificial light, it is wise to observe color samples both in daylight and in night light.

Selecting the Proper Coating

Paint is made in a number of finishes, ranging from a high gloss to a flat finish. Generally a low gloss or flat finish will give the most pleasing appearance on a large surface. Flat paints have a greater proportion of pigment to binder, hence they have a rougher finish that scatters the light in all directions. Thus, fewer surface irregularities will show when using a flat paint. However, flat finishes have the shortcoming of being more subject to soiling, and are more difficult to clean.

Thus, if frequent cleaning is necessary, as in a kitchen, bathroom, hallway, or in cupboards and on wood trim, it would be practical to apply a semigloss or highgloss paint. Semigloss would seem to be a compromise that will afford ease of cleaning and will not reflect too many surface imperfections.

In living rooms and bedrooms, a pleasing appearance often overshadows serviceability. Hence a home decorator might choose a flat finish. In the closets, though, where there might be a tendency to mark up the walls, a semigloss paint will make for easier cleaning and a brighter appearance. But since a flat paint has more hiding power and thus often requires but one coat, this is something to consider if time and cost are factors.

Important, too, is the exercise of care in preparing the surface to be painted. Walls and wood trim should be clean before painting. And if the old finish is semigloss or gloss enamel, provide “tooth” for the new application by sanding.

Decorating homes with paint has been common for millenniums; the practice even being alluded to in the Bible. (Jer. 22:14) When proper materials are used and appropriate shades selected, paint is indeed a colorful coating that can add protection, beauty and pleasantness to your surroundings.

Inhospitable Antarctica

● This continent at the South Pole is the coldest and most desolate region on earth, with temperatures dropping in the winter at places to minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit and more.

The Language Called “Pidgin”

Awake! correspondent in New Guinea

JUST north of Australia is the island of New Guinea, second only to Greenland as the largest island in the world. Here the common means of spoken communication is by that language called “Pidgin,” or, more correctly, “Melanesian-Pidgin.”

This is a relatively new language, being only about one hundred years old. And it has less than 2,000 words. Thus, one may be inclined to think that it just does not have a word to express the thoughts desired. Yet, by skillful employment of the available words Melanesian-Pidgin can be most definite and expressive.

How did this language develop? What useful purpose does it serve? How are thoughts expressed in this language when there is no specific word for the subject being discussed? What attitude do different ones have toward Melanesian-Pidgin?

Its Origin

Pidgin is a language that developed mainly due to trade, the word “Pidgin” being thought to be a corruption of the English word “business.” Originally a language called “Pidgin” was developed by English traders and natives along the China coast in the seventeenth century in order to transact business. Then, in time, many Pidgin dialects developed in various places, generally for the same purpose.

In 1788 English immigrants reached Australia, and soon afterward an Australian Pidgin developed to facilitate communication with the natives. Regarding its spread from there, The Encyclopædia Britannica notes:

“Since Pidgin developed on the east coast of Australia at the end of the 18th century, considerably before the Pacific islands opened up for trade, Australia must be regarded as the primary source of Pacific Pidgin. . . . The link between Australian and New Guinea Pidgin is naturally close; the New Guinea native’s vocabulary includes many words which were first introduced in Australia.”

The island of New Guinea was virtually unknown to the outside world as recently as about a hundred years ago. But then traders, missionaries and colonizers began to arrive in ever-increasing numbers. It was at this time that the Melanesian-Pidgin language had its birth. This language now includes words of English derivation and borrowings from German, Melanesian, Polynesian and Malay.

Its Value

Due to its unruly, “weed-grown” nature, attempts have long been made to suppress Pidgin. But by the latter quarter of the nineteenth century German traders found it so firmly entrenched in New Guinea that natives refused to speak German. This irked Baron von Hesse-Wartegg, who urged that this “Pidgin nonsense” be replaced “by a sensible German language.” Yet, any attempts in this direction resulted only in a number of German words being introduced into Pidgin.

Even today the use of Pidgin is forbidden in the schools of New Guinea. Powerful forces continue their efforts to suppress the language. But, despite this opposition, it cannot be denied that Melanesian-Pidgin serves in a practical way. How so? Well, consider the circumstances in this remote place.

New Guinea is an island of high mountains, plateaus and hidden valleys, parts of which have never been explored by white men. It is the home of many tribal peoples, who speak over 500 different languages! In some instances there may be no more than 5,000 persons in a single language group.

In earlier times there was very little exchange between the tribal groups on matters of trade. True, there were frequent tribal wars, but few cultural contacts between the tribes. But now times are changing. There is the need of a means of communication that can be quickly and easily learned. Melanesian-Pidgin is fulfilling that need. And as this language penetrates into the most distant and difficult reaches of New Guinea, more and more tribal people can communicate with one another. In a short time they can master this language, whereas a more complex language would be much more difficult to learn.

Skillful Use of Limited Words

The number of words in Melanesian-Pidgin are increasing, but there still are fewer than 2,000 of them. Older languages commonly have many times that number. But even with a limited number of words it is possible to be definite and expressive. One simply needs to learn how to arrange properly the limited vocabulary.

Consider, for example, what is done in connection with the word for bread, which is “bret” in Melanesian-Pidgin. Since there is no word for bakery, one says “haus bret,” literally “bread house.” The baker is “man bilong wokim bret,” that is, “a man who makes bread.” A loaf of bread is simply “hap bret,” which does not mean half a loaf of bread, but “a piece of” bread. A sliced loaf? Well, that is “bret ol i-katim pastaim,” or “bread previously cut up.”

So even though there are things for which there is not an exact word in Melanesian-Pidgin, one can usually express adequately the thought one has in mind. Thus, without a word for “Creator,” one is not at a loss to express what that title implies, namely, “Man bilong wokim olgeta samting,” which literally means, “the One who makes all things.”

Putting the Language in Writing

There are problems that arise in the translating of literature into Melanesian-Pidgin. However, parts of the Bible, which is the best of literature, have been translated into it. These parts include the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles and some of the apostle Paul’s letters. And it is to the credit of the New Guineans that these books are eagerly sought and studied.

More and more reading material is being produced in Melanesian-Pidgin. Public notices and pamphlets now appear in Melanesian-Pidgin, as well as newspapers and a range of books. Also, the internationally distributed journal The Watchtower is published in Melanesian-Pidgin. Some 3,800 copies are printed each issue.

In this day when one of the greatest needs of mankind is to communicate with persons of all races and nationalities without misunderstanding, that language called “Pidgin” is a means to that end.

Churches in Business

IN RECENT years there has been growing evidence that churches are deeply involved in big business, much to the consternation of a great many people. They have invested huge sums of money in a wide variety of business enterprises. Because the profits they receive from these businesses are very often tax exempt fewer taxes come in to all levels of government. This creates a greater burden for the average taxpayer.

An article appearing in Reader’s Digest of March 1969 discussed this tax loss and said: “For federal and state governments, church-owned and church-operated businesses represent a large loss of revenue​—the taxes that would be collected if the enterprises were run by competitive private industry. It is impossible to calculate the loss exactly, but responsible estimates put it at $6.5 billion a year.”

Think how much individual taxes could be reduced if these taxes were paid. This loss is just in the United States. Other countries are also losing from tax-exempt church income from businesses.

The situation in Canada was frankly exposed in editorial comments made over radio station CFRA in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on November 15, 1968. Among other things that broadcast said:

“The churches have been shouting from the pulpits and corridors of the legislative buildings about how they would have to cut back their good works if taxed. . . . But what they don’t tell you from the pulpits, or anywhere else is the fact that the organized church today has become one of the country’s biggest business organizations, and not one red cent of profits from any of those organizations is taxed. Now when I say business organizations I mean just that. Churches in Canada own used car lots, they own bowling alleys, pool halls, apartment buildings. . . . Parliamentary reporter Paul Akehurst claims that the church in Ottawa is one of the city’s biggest slum landlords, raking in profits from the misery of others, and not a cent of those profits taxable.

“The United and Anglican Churches in Canada have more than 100 million dollars invested, 100 million dollars in every kind of imaginable enterprise, yes, even in some of these industries manufacturing arms and napalm to be used against human beings.”

The Vatican is the head of the Roman Catholic Church, and it too is deeply involved in big business. From its position on the Tiber River in Rome it governs a vast business empire that stretches around the world.

Recently a book was published that sheds some light on the size of its business operations. The book is entitled “The Vatican Empire”; it was written by Nino Lo Bello, a Roman Catholic journalist. By careful research the author was able to gather enough evidence to show that the Vatican has business holdings of truly astonishing dimensions. He says: “As one of the world’s largest shareholders, the Vatican holds securities frequently quoted as being worth $5.6 billion. The sum is probably an understatement, for the Vatican has invested in exchanges throughout the world, and even a conservative estimate of its portfolio tends to show that the figure is in excess of $5.6 billion.”

The number of companies it owns or in which it has a heavy interest in just Italy itself is staggering. By using a company that it owns to gain controlling interest in a great many other companies it is able to conceal, to some extent, its ownership. For example, the Vatican is the controlling stockholder of Italgas, which is the sole supplier of gas to homes in thirty-six Italian cities. This company, in turn, controls eleven other companies that are involved in such businesses as tar, anhydrides, iron ore, phosphorus, coke, distillates, drinking water, heating plants, gas stoves, gas appliances and industrial ovens.

The Vatican also owns shares in Italy’s largest construction company, Società Generale Immobiliare, Mr. Lo Bello reports. Recently, however, the Vatican sold the bulk of its 15 percent interest in this huge real estate firm. Why? Time magazine of November 28, 1969, reported: “Social unrest is growing in Italy. Anxious to align the church with the working class, the Vatican wants to escape any onus for closing inefficient plants, laying off workers or sitting on the other side of the bargaining table when unions ask for more pay. . . . Financial men expect the church to invest more funds outside Italy than it has in the past.”

Montecatini-Edison Company has several laymen, who represent the Vatican’s interests, serving on its board of directors. This indicates heavy Vatican stock ownership of the company. It is one of the largest corporations in Italy. In that country it owns or controls nineteen other companies. Outside Italy it has a number of foreign associate companies.

Banking and Insurance

Italy’s three leading banks have close ties with the Vatican. These are Banca Commerciale Italiana, Credito Italiano and the Banco di Roma. A fourth bank, Banco di Santo Spirito, is entirely owned by the Vatican. These four banks “hold more than 20 percent of all bank deposits in Italy,” Mr. Lo Bello claims.

But these are not the only banks that are tied to the Vatican. In northern Italy the Vatican owns seven large banks. Then there are thirteen other banks in which it has heavy investments. In sixty-two further banks it has minimal interest. Besides these banks there are, according to Mr. Lo Bello, “thousands and thousands of small rural banks spread all over Italy” that “are owned 100 percent either by the Vatican or by the local parish church. . . . Many of these small banks are located in the south and on Italy’s two major Mediterranean islands, Sicily and Sardinia.”

In 1967 a financial institution, owned by a cement company in which the Vatican has controlling interest, bought eight banks and merged them into a new company, Istituto Bancario Italiano. With further mergers that are planned this company will become one of the largest banking institutions in Europe.

As might be expected, the insurance field has not been neglected by the Vatican. It owns two prominent insurance companies, Assicurazioni Generali di Trieste e Venezia and the Riunione Adriatica di Sicurtà. In addition to these two there are at least nine other insurance companies connected with the Vatican.

Still other companies that are either owned, controlled or influenced by the Vatican are involved in textiles, ammunition, dynamite, mining, pharmaceuticals, furs, sugar, paper products, publishing, shipping, automobiles, telephone communications, bathroom fixtures, plumbing supplies, paints, plastics, chemicals, spaghetti, buttons, cellulose, cotton, wool, ready-to-wear clothing, tourism, department stores, hotels, and so forth. There seems to be hardly a segment in the business world in which the Vatican has not invested its money.

Lateran Treaty

According to Lo Bello, a Vatican-owned munitions plant “supplied arms for the Italian army” when it invaded Ethiopia in 1935. Just a few years before this, in 1929, the Vatican signed a concordat with the then ruler of Italy, Fascist dictator Mussolini. This concordat is known in history as the Lateran Treaty.

Among other things, this treaty granted payments to the Vatican for the papal states that the kingdom of Italy took over in the nineteenth century. The territory consisted of about 16,000 square miles within the borders of Italy. In compensation Mussolini gave the Vatican $90 million dollars. He also agreed to pay the salaries of the parish priests throughout Italy. To this day the Italian government, Lo Bello reports, is paying the salaries of more than 30,000 priests despite the fact that the Vatican could well afford to pay those salaries itself.

The concordat also granted the Vatican exemption from taxes, and Mussolini extended it to the income of the Vatican’s business corporations. Some effort has been made in recent years by the Italian government to tax the dividends the Vatican receives from its huge investments. But those efforts were not very successful until 1968, when it was reported that the Vatican bowed to the demands of the Italian government that it pay taxes on stock dividends.

After listing some of the many companies in which the Vatican has substantial interest Mr. Lo Bello observes: “The foregoing details provide an uncomfortably sharp realization that the Vatican and its men have indeed carved a niche for their firm in the world of big business.”

The vast business holdings of the Vatican and of other religious organizations bind them inseparably with the business world. How unlike the true Christians concerning whom Jesus Christ said: “They are no part of the world”!​—John 17:16.

The religious organization that truly is serving God, in harmony with the example set by Jesus Christ, concentrates on preaching and teaching the liberating truths of his Word and does not become involved in commercial businesses. Following the Bible’s instructions, it does not involve itself in “the commercial businesses of life.”​—2 Tim. 2:4.

Big Change in Ten Years

● “In 1957, a Gallup poll revealed that 69 percent of Americans felt that religion was on the way up. Only 23 percent held this conviction in 1967; in fact, the view that religion was losing out was held by 57 percent, as compared to 14 percent in 1957.”​—Look, April 29, 1969, p. 55.

Grateful for the Work of Jehovah’s Witnesses

WHAT do honest-hearted people think when Jehovah’s witnesses call at their homes? Yes, what are their sentiments regarding the efforts of the Witnesses to talk to them about the Bible and its lifegiving message? Consider what this couple in Los Angeles, California, have to say about it:

“One Sunday morning an elderly woman called at our door. She was foreign and a little difficult to understand. At that time I did not fully understand her purpose in calling at our home but she did make it clear that she was engaged in a Bible educational work. I listened to her for two reasons. The first was that I admired the fact that she had so much faith in her religion that she went out of her way to share her beliefs with me. I know that it was not easy for her to do this, because she did not speak good English. How could I not listen to her? She cared so much for me, a perfect stranger, that she came to my home just to share with me the things that she had learned. The second reason I listened to her was because I had an interest in the subject.

“My wife was an Episcopalian and I was a Lutheran. We had tried both churches and were not only disappointed but even disgusted. We tried other churches, too, but we were never satisfied. I felt that there had to be more to religion than just congregating, donating, singing songs and once a week listening to half-hour sermons that never taught anything worth while. So when this elderly lady came to our home, we were searching, and we were definitely interested in what she had to say about the Bible. The first visit was short and she left with us a book explaining the Bible. It was only fifty cents. How could I refuse?

“This woman was very kind. She did not forget us. Two weeks after this first visit she returned with the presiding minister of the local congregation of Jehovah’s witnesses. I was so impressed with their interest in us and his knowledge of the Bible that we started to study the Bible with them immediately.

“Our progress was slow, as there were many problems along the way, but we continued to learn. After we were studying for a couple of months my wife came to me and said, ‘Bob, I am very confused and disturbed because the things we are learning are so different from what I have been taught all my life.’ Then she asked me if we could discontinue our Bible study. I had to disagree with her, for I did not share her feelings. I replied, ‘No, Sharon, I will not discontinue our study. I am learning and I am grateful that they are willing to spend their time teaching us the things that they have learned.’ Well, almost immediately my wife’s mind was relieved. Soon she became as eager as I was to continue our Bible study.

“It was not always easy to accept the things we were being taught, even though each point was heavily supported by the Bible. There were conflicts with our family and friends. Many things that we were doing needed changing. It was difficult for us to give up pagan holidays. It was also difficult for my father to understand and accept the changes in our lives, and this made it hard on us, too. But we realized that we were on the right track and we continued studying. Sometimes things came up that we could not understand or fully accept at the time, but we were counseled by the one studying with us not to let any single point become a stumbling block or stand in the way of our progress in learning the Bible. We took his advice and remembered the points that were not too clear. We even wrote them down. Later, through continued study, we found that these points were cleared away, one by one.

“We were invited to attend the meetings of Jehovah’s witnesses, and after a constant flow of these invitations we began to attend them. First, the public talks on Sunday, then the local Bible study on Tuesday evening, then the Watchtower study, and finally the Theocratic Ministry School and service meeting. Before long we were learning more and more. Yes, the more we learned the more we wanted to learn. It was not long after this that we began going out and sharing what we were learning with others as did that kind elderly lady.

“Now there are not enough hours in the week. The truth of God has become a very important part of our lives and no one is going to stop us from continuing our fine progress.”

Hidden Water for a Thirsty Land

BY “AWAKE!” CORRESPONDENT IN AUSTRALIA

CAN you imagine a deposit of water larger in area than Lake Superior in North America, Lake Victoria in Africa and the Caspian Sea in Russia put together, in fact, larger than the world’s thirty-five principal lakes combined? There is such a reservoir of water in Australia.

“In Australia?” you may ask. “Is that not the world’s most arid continent?”

Yes, this is true, yet there is in Australia, hidden underground, such a large deposit of water. The water is in the Great Artesian Basin that covers an area of 670,000 square miles. In all, there are six artesian basins that lie under about a million square miles in Australia.

“But what is an artesian basin?” you may inquire.

It is essentially underground water confined under pressure within a porous bed of sedimentary rocks. The word “artesian” is derived from the Latin Artesium, a Roman name for the French province of Artois, near Calais. It was here, in the year 1126 C.E., that the first artesian well in Europe was sunk, hence the name artesian.

When an artesian basin is tapped by a bore, the water, under pressure, rises. When the pressure is great enough to cause the water to rise to the surface and overflow, it is called an artesian bore or an artesian well. Sometimes the underground water is under such great pressure that it shoots up many feet into the air. If the pressure is not sufficient for the water to reach the surface and overflow, then it is termed subartesian.

Significance of Discovery

The Great Artesian Basin extends from within one hundred miles of the Pacific coast to the center of the Australian continent, and stretches from the Gulf of Carpentaria down to northern New South Wales. Its maximum length and breadth is approximately 1,100 miles. The basin is located mostly in the state of Queensland.

In this hot, arid, sparsely populated land the life of a traveler frequently depends upon water. Recently, an inexperienced traveler died from heat exhaustion and thirst in this area. He recorded his last words on a portable tape recorder. Yet, unknown to him, an artesian bore was only a stone’s throw away. What a difference it would have made if he had known!

In the 1880’s the news that water had been struck in western Queensland was greeted enthusiastically. The plains were ideal for grazing, many persons realized, if only there were a water supply. Thus, discovery of underground water set the stage for rapid expansion by those who were willing to endure the heat, flies, dust and other difficulties.

Bore after bore was sunk until now there are in the Great Artesian Basin some 3,500 flowing bores and about 5,000 subartesian ones. Yields from some of these wells reached as high as two million gallons a day.

Watering Stock

Artesian water is not suitable for use in continuous irrigation on a large scale. This is because of its sodium carbonate content. However, it is valuable for watering stock. Indeed, some 20 percent of Australia’s sheep are reportedly wholly or partly dependent on artesian supplies.

The sodium carbonate content of the Great Artesian Basin is 20 to 120 grains per gallon. But since cattle thrive on water with 1,000 grains and sheep on water with 1,350 grains per gallon or even more, the mineral content presents no real problem for stock.

The water from the bores is channeled in open-earth drains to where it is desired. Some bores supply many stockmen. The greatest length of drain from a single bore is 117 miles from the Wild Horse bore near Bollon, Queensland. It has a flow of 891,000 gallons per day. Unlike in former years, the present-day bores are throttled down or shut off completely when the supply is not in use. In this way it is hoped to conserve water and maintain a degree of pressure.

How Long the Water Supply?

Interestingly, artesian bores continued to produce more and more water until 1914, at which time a peak of over 350 million gallons a day were pouring forth on the soil. From this time on, a gradual decrease in flow began. In spite of thousands of bores being sunk since that time, the total gallons have decreased to the present flow, which is estimated at approximately 200 million gallons daily in the Great Artesian Basin.

Why has there been this decrease in flow? Well, with all the bores being sunk, a great amount of water has been released and with it a great amount of pressure. And the water entering the intake beds is filtering down through the porous rocks slower than the water that is gushing up through the bores. Thus the flow has been diminishing gradually.

What has been happening over the past sixty years or so in the Great Artesian Basin might be compared with what happens when you use a garden hose. If you put your finger over the end of it, the pressure and the amount of water build up within the hose so that when you take your finger away the water spurts out suddenly, but then falls off to a steady flow. Although the falling off to a steady flow only takes a few seconds after you remove your finger from a hose, this reduction has been going on gradually for many years in the artesian basin. The flow of water is still falling off.

Some stockmen express concern as to whether the water from the bores will eventually cease. But it does not seem that it will. The intake areas for the subterranean basin receive water at an estimated rate of 130 million gallons per day, and so it is expected that the decrease in the flow of water will continue until the intake and output are equal.

Thus, it appears that for many years to come there will be adequate water for raisers of sheep and cattle. What a phenomenon a great artesian basin is! Here in Australia it is indeed hidden water for a thirsty land!

[Map on page 25]

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AUSTRALIA

Why the Sky Is Blue

● When sunlight shines into the earth’s atmosphere it is scattered in all directions by gas molecules. Since they tend to scatter blue light more than the other colors, the sky appears to be blue.

“Your Word Is Truth”

Who Are the “Three Witness Bearers”?

FOR many, many years the Bible verses at 1 John 5:7, 8 were used in an attempt to prove the Trinity. This was because they contained the words: “The Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost. And these three are one.” (Douay) According to the doctrine of the Trinity, the Father, the Son and the ‘Holy Ghost’ are three persons in one God, coeternal, and equal in power, glory and substance.

Today, however, these verses are rarely so used. Why? Because, as a recent Roman Catholic version, The Jerusalem Bible, explains in a footnote, they are “not in any of the early Greek MSS [manuscripts], or any of the early translations, or in the best MSS of the Vulg[ate] itself” and therefore “are probably a gloss that has crept into the text.” In other words, they are spurious.

Without the spurious addition these two verses read: “For there are three witness bearers, the spirit and the water and the blood, and the three are in agreement.” Just who are these “three witness bearers,” and on what are they in agreement?

They are in agreement regarding the truth expressed in the two preceding verses: “Who is the one that conquers the world but he who has faith that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he that came by means of water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. And the spirit is that which is bearing witness, because the spirit is the truth.”

What is “the spirit” that is the witness bearer to Jesus as being the Son of God? It is Jehovah’s active force or holy spirit. It bore witness both in giving testimony to Jesus’ sonship and by empowering Jesus Christ to carry out his commission as the Son of God.

John the Baptist reported how the holy spirit was giving witness that Jesus is the Son of God, saying: “I viewed the spirit coming down as a dove out of heaven, and it remained upon him. Even I did not know him, but the very One who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘Whoever it is upon whom you see the spirit coming down and remaining, this is the one that baptizes in holy spirit.’ And I have seen it, and I have borne witness that this one is the Son of God.”​—John 1:32-34.

That this holy spirit would even thereafter testify in behalf of Jesus Christ he himself made clear, saying to his apostles: “When the helper arrives that I will send you from the Father, the spirit of the truth, which proceeds from the Father, that one will bear witness about me.”​—John 15:26.

Especially from Pentecost onward God’s holy spirit bore this witness by helping Jesus’ disciples to understand Bible prophecies that showed that Jesus is the Son of God. This is in line with the words of the apostle Paul showing that God reveals the truth to his people “through his spirit, for the spirit searches into all things, even the deep things of God.”​—1 Cor. 2:10; Acts 2:14-36; Rom. 1:1-4.

Jehovah God’s holy spirit also served as a witness bearer in regard to Jesus as being the Son of God in that it anointed and empowered him to do mighty works proving him to be the Son of God. As he himself said: “If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me. But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works.” The apostle Peter testified likewise: “God anointed him with holy spirit and power, and he went through the land doing good and healing all those oppressed by the Devil; because God was with him.”​—John 10:37, 38; Acts 10:38.

The apostle John also states that “the water” was one of the “witness bearers.” What water is here referred to? Is it the literal water by which Jesus was baptized in the river Jordan? It would seem so. Since the spirit is literal and so is the blood, the water logically would also be literal. These words of John therefore call to mind what Jesus told Nicodemus regarding how one would be born again: “Most truly I say to you, Unless anyone is born from water and spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” The water Jesus here referred to was the water of baptism.​—John 3:5.

The water of baptism testified to Jesus as being the Son of God. How? In that it was at the time of Jesus’ baptism that Jehovah God acknowledged Jesus as his Son, saying, “This is my Son, the beloved, whom I have approved.” (Matt. 3:17) If Jesus had not come to John to be baptized in water, this particular confirmation of him as being the Son of God would not have taken place. The presentation of himself there to do Jehovah’s will was in fulfillment of such prophecies as Psalm 40:8: “To do your will, O my God, I have delighted, and your law is within my inward parts,” even as the apostle Paul shows at Hebrews 10:5-10.

In fact, this was the chief reason or purpose for the coming of John the Baptist and his baptizing in water, as he himself testified: “Even I did not know him, but the reason why I came baptizing in water was that he might be made manifest to Israel.” (John 1:31) Thus we see that in a very literal way the water with which Jesus was baptized at the Jordan, as well as what it stood for, the presentation of himself to do his Father’s will, testified to Jesus as being the Son of God.

What about the third ‘witness bearer’ that the apostle John mentions​—“the blood”? What blood? Whose blood? And how does it bear witness to Jesus Christ as being the Son of God?

The blood to which John here referred without a doubt was Jesus’ own blood. No one else’s blood could so testify. God’s Word time and again shows that it is the blood of Jesus Christ that served as our ransom and cleanses us from sins: “There is one God, and one mediator . . . Christ Jesus, who gave himself a corresponding ransom for all.” “The blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”​—1 Tim. 2:5, 6; 1 John 1:7.

No ordinary human blood could serve as our ransom, even as is made clear from the Scriptures. But Jesus Christ could and did, because he was and is the Son of God. Moreover, for humankind to benefit from the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ it was necessary for ‘Christ to enter into heaven itself, there to appear in the presence of Jehovah God on our behalf.’ (Heb. 9:24) Only because he was the perfect Son of God who shed his blood as a sacrifice did Jehovah God resurrect him from the dead, enabling him thus to appear in heaven.

In view of all the foregoing, who are the “three witness bearers”? They are (1) the spirit or active force of Jehovah God; (2) the water by which Jesus was baptized, as well as what it stood for, and (3) the blood that Jesus poured out as a ransom for the sins of humankind. And all of these three bear witness to the fact that Jesus is, not God the Son, as claimed by trinitarians, but that he is indeed the Son of God.

Watching the World

Buried Under Snow

◆ During the closing days of December a vast storm dumped a record fall of snow over the northeastern part of the United States. The state of Vermont was so paralyzed by a snowfall of up to four feet that a state of emergency was declared. The state capital of New York was also paralyzed by a snowfall of 26 inches. Rescue workers by the hundreds combed the rural areas in search of stranded motorists and marooned families in farmhouses. In dozens of communities shortages of food, fuel and medical supplies were reported.

Prostitutes in Vietnam

◆ Brigadier General David E. Thomas, the top Army medical officer in Vietnam, has suggested that post exchanges throughout the country of South Vietnam offer U.S. troops the service of prostitutes. He said: “If the military were permitted to run houses of prostitution as part of the post exchange system, we could cut venereal disease down to a very, very low figure merely by being able to supervise the operation.” Because of ignoring Scriptural standards of morality approximately 40,000 to 45,000 American soldiers get venereal diseases each year in Vietnam.

Crime Rise

◆ J. Edgar Hoover reported that crime during the 1960’s “outstripped our population growth by over 11 to one.” He believes that this trend will “show no sign of abating in the foreseeable future,” and that “violent crimes, in particular, will continue to show alarming increases.” He found particularly disturbing the gradual “erosion of legitimate authority based on mutual respect, tolerance and understanding.” This very situation is what the Bible foretold, at 2 Timothy 3:1-5, for the “last days.”

Red Faces in the Vatican

◆ One year ago Luigi Carnevali, an eighty-six-year-old Italian painter, saw a photograph of Mao Tse-tung and decided to paint it. It was a picture of Mao as a youth. When finished, the painting was loaned to a friend. Much to his surprise, he recently learned that the painting turned up in the Vatican. Vatican officials thought the young man in the painting looked like a priest because of the long Chinese-style tunic, and so hung it in the Vatican’s pressroom a few yards from a portrait of Pope Paul VI. Although the picture of the Communist leader of China embarrassed church officials, they said that the painting would not be taken down.

Child Poisoning

◆ According to the Toronto Star there has been a 66-percent increase in child poisoning in Canada. This was attributed to the way manufacturers package household cleaning products and medicines. Three hospitals in the Toronto area have treated 1,300 children this year for headache-tablet poisoning. Drain cleaners, detergents and other household chemicals are in liquid form that can be easily ingested by children. Parents, take great care to store dangerous chemicals and medicines in places that are out of reach of small children.

The Religion of Science

◆ During his visit to Canada, England’s Prince Philip warned that there could be an “erosion of the natural world” if the “new religion of science” continued to be in conflict with the religion of God. He observed that science has in many ways taken over from religion in the sense that it claims to have the answers to all the questions mankind has been asking. The prince thus expressed a view that few people have appreciated​—that science has become a god to a growing number of people in this modern generation.

Deluge of Abandoned Cars

◆ In 1961 New York city had to contend with 5,100 cars that were abandoned on its streets. In 1968 this figure jumped to 31,578. It was estimated to be about 50,000 in 1969. Many of the cars were stolen and then abandoned after a wild ride by the thieves. In a few days they are stripped of usable parts and left as derelicts. Other cars are purposely abandoned by owners who report them stolen in order to collect the insurance on them. Still others break down, and if the owners are slow in having them repaired or towed to a garage, they are stripped of parts. So the city has an evergrowing task of removing these automotive derelicts.

‘Imitation Blood’

◆ At a medical conference in Atlantic City, New Jersey, it was reported that successful tests have been made of a man-made synthetic blood. Dr. Leland C. Clark, Jr., said: “You can store it in cans and there could be an unlimited supply. There is no need for cross typing and no danger of it carrying infection like hepatitis.” The doctor’s artificial blood consists of 60 percent saline solution and 40 percent of a fluorochemical called FC-43. It is claimed that FC-43 carries oxygen and carbon dioxide as natural blood does. It is now in the experimental stage, and the doctor does not expect it to be ready for use in man until three to five years from now.

Drop in Smoking

◆ In England there has been a substantial drop in smoking by the general public. As for British doctors, it is reported that just about all of them have stopped cigarette smoking. At the Second International Symposium on Atherosclerosis it was pointed out that cigarette smoking was involved in the 51,000 deaths from throat, lung and mouth cancer last year. It was also involved in atherosclerosis and heart disease. Dr. Knud Kjeldsen of Copenhagen said: “More than 50 percent of all deaths of males during their working years is due to atherosclerosis, and of these the mortality from heart failure is two times higher in cigaret-smokers than in non-smokers.” This doctor said that in Copenhagen the risk of heart failure and death increased in direct proportion to the number of cigarettes smoked and to the amount of smoke inhaled.

Homosexual Clergyman Founds Church

◆ A homosexual clergyman has founded a church in Hollywood, California, that has a predominately homosexual congregation. Seventy percent of the congregation are male homosexuals and 15 percent are female homosexuals. The remaining 15 percent are heterosexuals. How is such a church viewed by God? Regarding persons who practice homosexuality, the Bible states at Romans 1:32: “These know full well the righteous decree of God, that those practicing such things are deserving of death.”

Deadly Decorations

◆ A number of poisonous plants are used as Christmas decorations, and these can endanger the life of a child. Dr. Mary C. McLaughlin states that the milk sap from one leaf of a poinsettia plant could kill a child. The berries of English holly and mountain laurel are also dangerous. The doctor said that the eating of 20 or 30 holly berries could prove fatal. The colorful jequirity beans that are often used in jewelry are so poisonous that one bean could kill a grown man. The leaves of mountain laurel that are used to make wreaths are also dangerous. Thus these decorations that so many people believe are necessary to make their holidays merry can make them a tragedy.

The Fruits of Promiscuity

◆ It was estimated by the Australian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association that venereal disease is rising in Australia at a rate that would, with other diseases, be regarded as epidemic. It is estimated that one thousand new victims of gonorrhea and syphilis appear every week of the year in Australia. This is actually a worldwide problem resulting from sexual promiscuity. As might be expected, another fruit of such immorality is a great number of abortions. It was estimated by Mr. Andras Klinger, an expert on population planning, that there are 30 million abortions taking place every year throughout the world. He thinks that even in countries where abortion is banned, 30 to 60 percent of pregnancies are terminated in this manner.

Dangerous Shelf Paper

◆ Since the mid-1950’s there has been marketed a particular type of shelf paper that is impregnated with long-lasting pesticides. Insects crawling over this paper are killed by the pesticides. However, in recent tests the United States Department of Agriculture has found that the pesticides soak through the cardboard and paper wrappings of food set on the shelf paper. In a matter of five days the food can be contaminated.

Spiritual Stones

◆ Clergyman John W. Meister, executive secretary of the Council on Theological Education of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., acknowledged that churchgoers are leaving the churches because they are not receiving spiritual bread. Reporting on his observations, the Daily News of Springfield, Massachusetts, said: “The thing that’s bugging the man in the pew these days, he writes in Presbyterian Life magazine, is the thin diet being dished out from the pulpit. In Jesus’ vivid metaphor, men are asking for bread​—and getting stones.”

Death Penalty Abolished

◆ It was good news for criminals in Great Britain on December 18 when the House of Lords approved a motion by the government to abolish the death penalty permanently. Two days previously Parliament voted 343 to 185 in favor of the resolution. Since 1957 the death penalty was possible for crimes that involved murder in furtherance of theft, murder of a policeman or prison officer, and murder by shooting while resisting arrest.

New Meat Substitute

◆ A product that tastes like ham and another one like chicken is now being served in selected restaurants and institutions in the United States. The product is made from protein that comes from the soybean. It promises to be a major new source of protein food. Approximately five companies are doing research on the product to make the protein tasty and marketable. The substance is disguised by making it into a batter that is forced through tiny holes of a spinnerette, and the result is fine, colorless, odorless and tasteless fibers. These can be given a meat flavor that makes them acceptable to human taste. The texture can be altered so that the food chews like sliced ham or fish fillet. This meat substitute can be stored easily and is said to require no cooking, only heating.

“Flying” with LSD

◆ After taking LSD, a twenty-year-old college student imagined that he could fly. When he tried doing so from the roof of a four-story building, he crashed to the ground and died. According to the records of the New York City Medical Examiner, there have been about a dozen such plunges to death made by persons under the influence of LSD in just the past three years.

Santa Claus Out as a Saint

◆ The new Catholic calendar, in force as of January 1, relegates St. Nicholas of Bari to voluntary veneration instead of obligatory veneration. He was among the 200 saints that Pope Paul VI either dropped or demoted. This Catholic saint has been regarded by Catholic children in the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland as the bringer of gifts on December 6. Elsewhere he has become identified with the Santa Claus of the Christmas celebration.

‘Absolute Popes Finished’

◆ Dr. Hans Kueng, a well-known Catholic theologian, in his book, The Church, says: “I know every theologian of importance and I never met any who does not want a Pope . . . But we want a pastoral primacy . . . because we are convinced that absolute primacies are finished, even for the Church.”

The Frightening Future

Never before has the future been so frightening. Never before has the need been so great for clear vision and an unrestricted view of what the future holds. The Watchtower provides a vantage point from which the outcome for modern human society can be clearly discerned. Avail yourself of this faith-inspiring messenger. Receive the comforting assurance that only a knowledge of God’s purpose for this present system of things can bring.

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One of the Most Thrilling Mysteries of All Times

Most people are interested in a good mystery, but most mysteries are simple stories that have little or no lasting influence on the average reader.

But . . . did you know that the Bible book of Revelation speaks of a mysterious scroll sealed with seven seals that was of such vital importance to all mankind that the Christian apostle John, who saw it in vision extended in the hand of God, wept because he thought for a moment no one would be found worthy of opening the seals? What could be of such vital importance?

The handwritten scroll set forth what the Almighty God knew regarding the future of heaven and earth and what he himself purposed to do in the face of things that he allowed to occur. But how can we know?

One was found who was worthy to open the seals, the “Lamb of God” himself, although the opening of each seal and the revealing of the corresponding part of the scroll only provided a further bit of mystery. What was revealed was in symbolic language or in images, but the symbolisms are now being fulfilled in actual human history. What John saw was in vision. What we see is in reality, in actual human experience, calling for the breaking of the seals of the scroll once again, in a supplementary way, in our own marvelous century so full of events of universal interest and importance.

You will be held spellbound, as John was, as he watched God’s worthy One break the seals and let the contents of the prophetic scroll be disclosed to view. Read it in the fascinating new book

“Then Is Finished the Mystery of God”

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