July 22

What Has Happened to “Love of Neighbor”?

HOW pleasant life can be when we have neighbors around us who are friendly, warm, kind and helpful! It adds so much to the joy of living and helps to make life’s problems seem smaller. When that is the case, the Bible proverb certainly applies that “better is a neighbor that is near than a brother that is far away.”​—Prov. 27:10.

But how many neighbors like that do you have? Unfortunately, today that kind of neighborliness appears to be fading. People in many places note a change, a growing lack of concern for others. Doubtless you have read newspaper headlines like these recently appearing:

“Bystanders Ignore Attacked Woman”; “Man Is Stabbed to Death as Crowd of 30 Looks On”; “Man Tells How Daughter Died as Drivers Kept Going”; “Cry Ignored So Woman Dies in Mud.” The accounts following the headlines often tell of persons’ explaining their failure to help with the statement, “I didn’t want to get involved.”

And yet it is not so much in such dramatic or sensational events that lack of neighbor love is being felt. It is in the ordinary, day-to-day lives of people. Smiles, friendly greetings, acts of courtesy, consideration and kindness seem to be high on the list of today’s scarcities. In their place, many say that they experience increasing coldness, indifference and rudeness. What is the reason?

Some persons place much of the blame on the modern industrial society. It stresses speed, mass production and often causes people to be looked on as ‘cogs in the wheels’ of giant factories rather than as individuals with individual needs, desires and personalities. Big cities are another feature of modern society. Those living in them often feel lonely even though surrounded by millions of fellow humans. Few persons seem to have or take time to show interest in others. Then, too, cities in the past often had fairly well-defined neighborhoods. Today there is so much shifting about that often the old neighborhoods have disappeared. A professor of human development at Temple University, Theron Alexander, says that ‘some of the root system of our social structure seems to be damaged. Increasingly the city resident finds that in reality he’s without a distinct community. Perhaps for the first time in the world’s history, millions of people lack a real place in the society of man.’

But whether in the city or in suburbs or in rural areas, one thing strongly affecting people’s attitude toward others is the materialism that modern society fosters. Dr. Jerry H. Siegel, director of a psychological center in New Jersey, says of conditions in the United States: “People are definitely living much more for the moment. The state of our society in general has changed tremendously. There is a real lack of values. People are becoming increasingly more self-interested, and the instability of money adds to this growing selfishness.”

Yes, interest is focused heavily on things​—houses, cars, clothes, entertainment devices—​rather than on people. But this does not really satisfy the human heart. It works against having a spirit of generosity or of being “outgoing.” It tends to make one callous, willing to try to satisfy one’s own desires at the expense of others.

Now, spreading economic problems and inflation are revealing how futile it is to look to material things for happiness or security. But, instead of awakening to reality, many only become more preoccupied with their economic problems and thus become more withdrawn, less inclined to take an interest in others, less concerned about contributing to the happiness of others.

The Remedy?

Where does the remedy lie? To appreciate what it is, we first need to realize that the principal blame does not lie with big cities or big factories or similar circumstances. For even in identical circumstances, people do not react the same. They may live in the same city, the same neighborhood, even on the same street, or work in the same factory, and yet some may show neighborly concern while others do not. What makes the difference?

The answer is of more than just casual interest and importance. For it has to do with life itself​—in fact, the hope of life everlasting. Back in the first century, when a certain man versed in the Mosaic law asked Jesus of Nazareth, “Teacher, by doing what shall I inherit everlasting life?” Jesus responded by getting the man to quote from that Law these words: “‘You must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole strength and with your whole mind,’ and, ‘your neighbor as yourself.’” Jesus added: “Keep on doing this and you will get life.” He followed that up by giving the parable about a Samaritan man who showed genuine love of neighbor.​—Luke 10:25-37.

Really, love of God and love of neighbor go together, inseparably so. As Jesus’ apostle John wrote: “if anyone makes the statement: ‘I love God,’ and yet is hating his brother, he is a liar. For he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot be loving God, whom he has not seen.” (1 John 4:20) This also helps us to understand why love of neighbor is becoming so scarce today. How so?

It is because love of God is becoming just as scarce. Christ Jesus foretold that in our time, prophetically described as the “last days” of the present unrighteous system, people would be affected by wars, food shortages and other serious problems, all hitting mankind at the same time. He also said that “because of the increasing of lawlessness the love of the greater number will cool off.” (Matt. 24:3-12; 2 Tim. 3:1-4) Love for God, interest in knowing about him, in reading his Word, the Bible, and learning what his standards and purposes are, have certainly ‘cooled off’ among the majority today. Love of neighbor has inescapably suffered.

Learning about God, learning about his purpose to restore this earth and human society on it to a clean, healthful, righteous state, can make a tremendous difference in our outlook and in our attitude toward others. It can change our set of values, give us a hope far grander and more satisfying than what the materialistic system that is now operating offers. Yes, it can cause us to ‘broaden out’ in our affections so that, like God, we are unselfishly interested in the whole world of mankind. Jehovah’s witnesses will be happy to show neighborly interest by aiding you to learn more about God’s purposes through a free home Bible study, if you so desire.

Global Balance of Power Shifting​—What It Means

HIGHLY significant events have been taking place in world affairs in recent years. Among the many things that have happened, observers have noted a trend of unusual importance. During 1975 this trend has picked up speed.

What many have noted is a shifting in the world balance of power​—politically, militarily and economically. Why is this so significant? Because of its relationship to Bible prophecy for our day. Thus, thoughtful persons are keenly interested in what is taking place, and what the real meaning of it is.

Of course, shifts in balances of power among nations are nothing new. These have been going on for thousands of years. How, then, is the current trend different?

For one thing, the shifting does not affect just a few areas of the globe, as most others in the past did, but affects the entire world. Second, it is being largely accomplished with little influence from an element that the nations previously made great use of​—the religions of this world. A third factor is that this shift comes at a time that Bible prophecy shows to be very significant. All these things together confirm that we are very close to an immense turning point in history.

Struggle for Global Power

At the end of World War II in 1945 the Western world, that is, the United States and its Western European allies principally, stood at the apex of world power. Never in history had such an array of political, military and economic might been seen.

However, at the end of World War II another power was growing​—Soviet Communism. While Communism had taken control of Russia back in 1917, it had been contained there for decades. Only Mongolia had come under a similar form of government, in the 1920’s. But by the end of World War II victorious Soviet armies had paved the way for Communist governments in all of Eastern Europe: Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania and Yugoslavia.

Then, in 1949, China was taken by Communist forces after a civil war, and, a few years later, Tibet. About a decade hence, Cuba entered the Communist ranks. And, in 1975, Communist forces have now engulfed much of Indochina.

Thus, in less than sixty years Communism as a political, military and economic force has come to dominate fully one third of mankind. Under Communist control these lands have made considerable strides in developing power and influence.

Growing Might

Almost two decades ago, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev made his boastful challenge to the United States: “Whether you like it or not, history is on our side. We will bury you.”

Khrushchev, it is reported, meant that in such things as industrial might and scientific achievement the Soviet Union would overtake the United States to become the most powerful and influential nation on earth. At the time many people laughed at the challenge. But today, few consider it a laughing matter.

The power of the Soviet Union has indeed grown to enormous proportions. In 1974, for instance, the Soviet Union produced more oil, steel, coal and cement than any other country in the world. She was also the leading producer of many other products, and is rich in raw materials.

This growth has enabled the Soviet Union to acquire the base for constantly expanding military power, the largest in the world. Former American Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, Jr., noted: “The combination of increasing Soviet military power and declining U.S. force levels has put us at the crossover point where Soviet superiority in military capabilities may become reality.” He added: “Wherever one looks the rate of change on the international scene has achieved dizzying proportions, often with ominous overtones for United States interests.”

In addition to growing Soviet power, Communist China, with her 800,000,000 highly disciplined people, is also growing rapidly in industrial and military might. While having large differences of viewpoint with the Soviet Union, China’s ideology is also a challenge to the West. And these two huge Communist lands have vastly increased their influence with many other countries throughout the world. Scores of these nations are developing nations, or what is called the “Third World.” How do they view global matters?

“Third World” Attitudes

When World War II ended, American and Western European influence among the nations of Asia, Africa and Latin America was huge. This could be seen even in the voting pattern among the then fifty-one nations of the United Nations organization. Consistently the vast majority of smaller countries voted with the Western lands on global issues.

But that has changed greatly in recent years. Now a growing majority of the present 138 members of the United Nations very often side against Western Europe and the United States on matters. Indeed, some Western nations now complain about “the tyranny of the . . . majority.”

Since 1945 scores of these “Third World” nations have achieved independence from colonial rule and have adopted their own forms of government. And more and more of them are taking a course of action that is often at odds with the interests of Western nations. The example of the oil-producing countries in raising prices and controlling oil resources has not gone unnoticed by other “Third World” lands with other natural resources. Since the industrial nations of Western Europe have very few vital raw materials, and the United States has shortages of some, the West is at a growing disadvantage economically.

Also of interest is the fact that the economic and political activities of many “Third World” nations are invariably backed by the Soviet Union and China.

Recently a number of additional countries have stated their intentions to loosen their previous strong ties with the West. Newsweek reports that various “Third World” nations are now saying that their governments will ‘have no difficulties in dealing with a Communist regime.’ A foreign ministry official of one Asiatic land stated bluntly: “We frankly feel that a détente with China is a far better security for the country than relying on American troops.” In another land an ambassador said: “It is safer to be an ally of the Communists, and it looks like it is fatal to be an ally of the United States.”

Of course, others point out that such views may be an exaggeration. But the fact that they are expressed at all shows that there is indeed a change taking place in the thinking of many who were formerly dominated by Western influence.

Setbacks Serious

In recent times the setbacks suffered by the West have been very grave. For example, columnists Evans and Novak, in the New York Post, called the reverse suffered by the United States in Indochina “the worst foreign policy defeat in this nation’s history.”

As a result, an editorial in The Wall Street Journal by Vermont Royster from Paris asks: “Is the United States​—militarily, economically and politically—​now a declining world power? In varying forms this is the question Europeans are now putting to each other in conversation, in the councils of political leaders and in the press.” He added that the reverse in southeast Asia “is hardly the whole cause of the decline of U.S. prestige in Western Europe, only the dramatic event that called it to everyone’s attention. For another harsh fact is that American economic and political power has been crumbling for a long time.”

Observers also point to other recent setbacks for Western policy in various parts of the world. Editorial writer Carl Rowan stated:

“The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) is moribund, and U.S. influence in the Far East seems at its lowest point since World War II. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is in disrepair . . .

“Soviet influence is up and U.S. prestige is down in India and the Arab world . . . And quiet though it has been kept, U.S. relations with Canada and Latin America have deteriorated sharply in recent years.”

One Western official, reviewing the avalanche of troubles that has descended recently, said: “We don’t have enough fingers to stick in all the holes in the dike.”

Political commentator William Safire concluded that “the current of world events is running against” the West. United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger spoke of “a massive shift in the foreign policies of many countries.” C. L. Sulzberger of the New York Times wrote: “The free world situation has become rapidly more critical.” He quoted a leading West European statesman who went so far as to say that “we are witnessing the collapse of Western civilization.” The Wall Street Journal also stated: “It may well be that in the great long-term sweep of history the Western democracies have finally passed their high water mark.”

Shifting attitudes are also illustrated by the fact that a growing number of people in many lands wonder if it is worth while or consistent to fight smaller Communist nations while at the same time improving relations with the giant​—ones the Soviet Union and China. Evidently this includes some persons in the United States too, for the magazine U.S. News & World Report states: “Many in Congress​—especially new members—​think it’s time to revise the whole ‘contain Communism’ policy the nation has pursued since the end of World War II. They see huge risks and expense, few gains in return.” Of course, many other people disagree.

What It Means

While it may be premature to state that world power has completely shifted this way or that, one thing is certain. The relative power and influence once held by the Western nations that make up the leading part of what is called Christendom have diminished.

New rulers who hold the reins of power in many nations are not bound to past links with the Western world and its religions. Many of them are not religiously minded men. When confronted with problems, they answer them in a secular way, not being swayed by religious interests.

Today nationalism and power politics are far stronger than religion. In times of crisis people now respond mostly, not to the appeals of religion, but to the appeals of their political leaders, as well as to labor, social and military leaders. As a Wall Street Journal editorial commented:

“All of us have tended more and more to invest more of ourselves in political leaders. In a sense, they have tended to fill the void left by the decline of religion and other sources of moral authority.”

Also, in nearly every country on earth many people have abandoned the traditional religions. An evidence of religion’s lessening role can be noted in the poll taken among Americans in various fields. When they were asked to rate twenty-four main institutions in regard to influence, religion was rated next to last!

Just what does the shifting world balance of power, the loss of influence of the nations of Christendom and the growing trend toward irreligious thinking and ideologies mean? It means that the time is soon coming when God will call this world’s religions to account for their centuries of political meddling and support of horrible wars, their hypocrisy and misrepresentation of the Creator.

The Bible depicts the world empire of false religion as a prostitute, a harlot. Why? Because it has sold itself to this world instead of seeking true relationship with Jehovah God. In this regard an editorial in Newsweek noted:

“God must have cringed when men invented slavery and called it divinely inspired, or lighted the fires of the Inquisition in the name of Jesus. This God must still cringe when we make a desert [by means of warfare] and call it holy will. . . .

“This has made of religion a faithless thing, subject to the dictates of human pride rather than the truth about God.”

Bible prophecy for our day shows that shortly the member nations of the United Nations will turn on this world’s harlotlike religions in disgust and rage. Describing this event in symbolic language, God’s Word says that these member nations “will hate the harlot and will make her devastated and naked, and will eat up her fleshy parts and will completely burn her with fire.” (Rev. 17:16) That is why those who are yet a part of this world’s religions are warned: “Get out of her, my people, if you do not want to share with her in her sins, and if you do not want to receive part of her plagues.”​—Rev. 18:4.

Further, the beginning of God’s judgment against worldly religion will mark the start of what Jesus Christ called the “great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world’s beginning until now, no, nor will occur again.” (Matt. 24:21) Who will survive? God’s Word answers: “The world is passing away . . . but he that does the will of God remains forever.”​—1 John 2:17.

Thus the current shifting in the world balance of power away from Christendom and the trend away from religious influence is of tremendous importance. It signals the fact that we are nearing the time of God’s judgments against this entire system of things, beginning with false religion. Surely these momentous events of our day and their deeper meaning merit your most serious attention. What you do about them will actually mean your life.

Advance Planning​—Key to Economical Driving

IN A typical American family budget, automobiles and their expenses rank third, next to the cost for housing and food. The cost of gasoline and other automobile products has risen sharply in recent months. New-car costs have skyrocketed. There is little that the individual driver can do to prevent these rises.

However, there are areas where the average car owner can cut back on driving expenses. The secret to saving money on auto expenses is advance planning. This starts from the time you purchase your car.

When Buying an Automobile

Smaller cars are made to use less gasoline than larger ones. Of course, many comforts and conveniences, and even a degree of safety, may be forfeited for the sake of economy. If saving money is a main factor for you when buying a new car, often there are mileage charts published by the government and independent testing laboratories to supply information for you. Check several of such tests, if they are available, comparing one with the other, to gain the most accurate picture of an automobile’s performance. Consider in advance, too, if there is gasoline-saving optional equipment available for your new car.

But advance planning requires that you look at the other side of the picture too. That you now have a large car is no reason to sell it and buy a new one, a smaller model, thinking that you will save money thereby. You may actually lose money. How so?

Well, you know what upkeep expenses are on your present automobile. To buy another car may cost you several thousand dollars, along with the trade-in of your current car. Take time to figure carefully how long you would be able to support your present car with those thousands of dollars. The answer may surprise you; yes, it may be far wiser to keep the car you have.

Proper Auto Care Means Savings

Another major factor in economical driving is overall automotive care. There are a few basic points that can assist you to get maximum efficiency from your car.

For one thing, keep the car’s battery fully charged and the ignition system in top operating order. The car then uses less gasoline to start. Dirty, improperly “gapped” spark plugs can waste 10 percent of your gasoline. Do not let brake linings drag; this not only wears out the shoes but unnecessarily wastes gasoline.

Is your carburetor clean and properly adjusted? If it is checked frequently to make sure that it is not out of kilter, you could earn a 30-percent saving in gasoline. It is best set for a “lean” mixture. The air filter should also be cleaned frequently. Engine timing, too, is very important and, when incorrectly set, is the cause of much gasoline loss.

Often overlooked is the value of keeping one’s car properly oiled and greased. This means less mechanical resistance as the car functions, and that, in turn, can contribute at least to some extent to improved gas mileage.

It has been estimated that you can save about a mile per gallon of gasoline by simply increasing the air pressure in your tires by about four pounds above the around-town levels recommended in your automobile’s manual. Of course, tires should not be inflated above any suggested levels embossed on the side of the tire. Observe, too, the pattern of wear on your tires. If it is uneven, the wheels’may be out of alignment, and this not only damages the tires but also causes the loss of about a third of a mile per gallon of gas.

To Save Money, Watch How You Drive

In order to stretch your gasoline dollar, it is wise to plan your driving in advance. Instead of taking several short trips to different stores, why not line up several stops that must be made and handle all this business in one trip?

The wisdom of combining as many short trips as possible into one trip can be illustrated with one series of tests. A car started cold was driven four miles and went eight miles per gallon of gas. When driven fifteen miles, it averaged eleven miles to the gallon, and, once fully warmed up, it traveled almost thirteen miles to the gallon. In other words, the difference between driving a cold car and a warm one was almost five miles to a gallon of gas!

Car pools are a fine way to make your gasoline dollar go farther. An average of 1.6 persons ride in each automobile in the U.S. If this average were increased to just two persons, traffic congestion would be cut by 20 percent. And there would be a saving of 600 million gallons of gasoline annually. So a few minutes spent on planning with a friend or neighbor could save travel money for both of you.

Forethought is important, too, when you get behind the wheel. When first warming up a car, do not let it idle too long but, rather, just enough so that it will not stall when once put in gear. Then at first you can drive at a light or moderate speed and thereby further slowly warm up the engine.

Then, too, look ahead as you drive. In this way you avoid jerky stops and starts, perhaps the biggest single thief of gasoline. Speeding away from traffic lights can increase gas consumption almost 20 percent. On the other hand, you can save over 7 percent on gasoline by keeping your speed fairly constant. Anticipate problems that might come up, such as curves to be rounded or lanes to be changed; these can be negotiated gradually rather than by sudden stops and starts.

Perhaps you can do much of your driving during off hours when traffic is light and there are fewer stop-and-go situations. It has been estimated that two stops per half mile uses over 20 percent more gasoline than one stop per half mile.

It is wise to beware of the claims of some advertisers about gadgets that will save gasoline. Some of these may work, but caution is in order. The best way to find out if such an attachment can help your mileage is to ask somebody that has had success with it. Most users report that a vacuum gauge is a fine investment and will result in gasoline savings. This instrument is calibrated to show the best operating range for the car’s motor.

Alertness when buying gasoline can save you money too. If you plan a longer trip, gasoline will often cost more on the highway than it does in cities. So fill the tank before you begin the trip. Prices vary from state to state due to taxes, and so you may be able to plan your trip in such a way that you purchase gasoline in a state where it is cheaper.

Taking advantage of a few such hints will undoubtedly save you money. There are many other equally effective suggestions. But when all is said and done, the key to economical driving is planning ahead.

Why Do the Tajin Flyers “Fly”?

By “Awake!” correspondent in Mexico

MAYBE you were among the thousands at the World’s Fair in New York city in 1964-1965 who saw these Tajin flyers in action. Or perhaps as a tourist you have been entertained by them in the famous resort city of Acapulco, or while staying at an elegant hotel in some other city in Mexico. Or have you witnessed this daring and breathtaking performance by descendants of the Totonacos in the native setting where it began, in the vicinity of Papantla, about two hundred miles to the northeast of Mexico City in the state of Veracruz?

If so, you may wonder how this strange spectacle ever got started and why it is perpetuated down till now. It seems to be a combination of acrobatics and religious ritual.

Long before the Spaniards invaded Mexico and brought with them their European religion and culture, the Totonacan empire flourished, some say as long ago as 739 C.E. And, like so many other ancient people, they, too, greeted the arrival of the spring equinox, corresponding to March 21, with a celebration. A special feature of this annual event among the Totonacos was the festival of the Tajin flyers. It was held at a time when the sun was closest to the earth and so this fact was thought to be responsible for awakening renewed energy in men, animals and plants. It was a time of year when more marriages were held among the Totonacos. Actually, this celebration of the Tajin flyers was one of the main features of a fertility festival.

A Hand-Me-Down of Sun and Sex Worship

The ceremony began when these people went out and looked for a tree of strong wood and very tall, approximately 115 feet (35 meters). Upon finding an appropriate tree, they would dance around it while their chief spoke to Oluhuicalo, the “god of the mountain,” asking his forgiveness for cutting the tree down​—the prayers and dancing being accompanied by rhythmic flute and drum music.

Four days later they would cut down the tree, trim off the branches and bring the pole to the site of the festival, where it was planted in a hole about six feet ( two meters ) deep. But before the actual planting, they would place in the hole a turkey (later they used a black hen), four eggs, some alcoholic beverage, flowers and incense.

Dancing around their newly planted tree, they would invoke special favors of Cahuimin, the “wind god.” Then five chosen men would climb to the top, these men previously having been purified by special rites. Today this preparation on their part includes going to the Catholic church and taking Communion. They begin their climb at high noon, first the four flyers, and then the chief, who serves as the priest.

The rope in olden times was made of rattan called rabo de coyolite, but now heavy Manila rope is placed around the tree to form a ladder to the top. Scholars say that the meaning is similar to Hindu beliefs, namely, that the rope wound around the tree represents the succession of the vertebrae of the spinal column through which the sexual energy ascends to the cranium​—in this case, to the top of the tree where there is placed a platform called manzana, meaning “apple.” This platform is constructed in such a way that it will turn around on the top of the tree. At the four corners of this platform are four ropes that are tied to the four flyers, who are launched into space at the right moment.

In pre-Spanish times the flyers were dressed like birds. Today their costume has been modified somewhat, and is embellished with embroidery and with spangles and glass beads. They have a headpiece that is designed and colored to represent the sun.

The fact that they are four in number means that they represent the four cardinal points of the compass and also represent the four primary elements​—earth, water, air and fire—​considered by them to be the four basic parts of everything.

The chief, acting as priest, stands in the center of the platform. He is the soloist, and, as such, invokes the sun with his flute and dancing for about fifteen minutes. When the flyers take off, this priest, seemingly oblivious to the danger, continues his song and dance at the top of the pole in a most precarious position more than a hundred feet in the air, bowing in all four directions, starting with the east, where the sun is born. He greets the sun with elevated face, since the sun at the moment is at its zenith, and in this way he feels closer to this superior force that he deifies, all the while playing his flute and beating his small drum made of deer leather.

As the platform is rotated, the four flyers are launched into space head first, flying downward toward the earth. But not before the long ropes reaching nearly to the ground have been securely fastened around their ankles. As they fall earthward they must make thirteen turns around the tree. Thirteen multiplied by four is fifty-two, the length of their traditional cycle of years and which marks the start of a new sun and the rekindling of the sacred fire in their temple. As part of their sex worship, every fifty-two years fire borers presumably cause male and female wood to have “intercourse,” resulting in the birth of new fire. All such traditions go back to the practices of ancient Babylon on the banks of the Euphrates, the common cradle of many forms of Babylonish religion that are found in so many false religions today.

Changes in Keeping with the Times

At the present time, racially speaking, there are very few pure-blooded Totonacos still living, since the great majority are mixed with other races. And with the mixture the new generation has forgotten many of their old traditions and have acquired new ones, or they have mixed the old with the new.

The flight, for instance, is performed not only from cut-down trees more than a hundred feet high, but often from steel poles of lesser height. Spotlights with colored filters add glamour and showmanship to the spectacle. Also, they do not fly just once a year as it used to be with their ancestors, but they perform as many times as they are requested during the year. This is in connection with other religious dances in a “ritual to the sun,” or to give color to some other pagan celebration, such as the Catholic Corpus Christi celebration in the month of May. Or, just as entertainment, they perform for the money.

In short, the flight of the Tajin flyers today is not limited to fertility rites connected with sun worship, but is also staged to enhance other pagan celebrations and for commercial gain.

“A Time to Laugh”

ANIMALS cannot laugh. The enjoyment of laughter is reserved exclusively for humans. For centuries research has gone on to find out why people laugh, but it is still largely a mystery.

Do you enjoy a good laugh? Is it beneficial to laugh?

There are different views about humor. Some stress the negative side, viewing humor as “aggressive,” tending to belittle other people. On the other hand, laughter has been called “a prerequisite to a well-rounded personality,” “wonder drug for depression.”

But there is a need for balance with regard to humor, for it has often been misused. The Bible wisely states that there is “a time to laugh” and, consequently, a time to refrain from laughter.​—Eccl. 3:4.

Humor’s Many Benefits

Humor is helpful in coping with difficult situations. The Encyclopædia Britannica says concerning laughter: “One might call it a luxury reflex. Its only function seems to be to provide relief from tension. . . . The explosive exhalations of laughter seem designed to ‘puff away’ surplus tension in a kind of respiratory gymnastics.”

Laughter can play an important part in promoting peaceful family life. Illustrating this is the experience of a father who became provoked at his young son for leaving a new bicycle out in the rain overnight.

“Put it out in the driveway and let me run over it,” the father said bitterly. “We might as well finish it off.” As his anger flared, the father grabbed the bicycle and wheeled it onto the driveway.

Then the boy’s younger sister and mother made some remarks to provoke laughter in the angered father. What happened? The man explains: “After a moment I smiled. Then I laughed. The moment I laughed, I could sense the tension ebbing away. A feeling of relief took over. Sanity had returned. Everyone joined in the laughter.” Reflecting on the benefits of humor in trying situations, this man stated:

“More and more I am convinced that humor is a sixth sense, as important to our enjoyment of life​—even to our survival—​as any of the five physical senses. And if there is any place it comes in handy it is in the home. Ours, anyhow.”

Humor can brighten up even an apparently hopeless situation. Readers Digest of May 1973 relates an experience of psychiatrist Viktor E. Frankl, who was imprisoned in a German concentration camp during World War II:

“Piled on top of malnutrition, exhaustion and disease, suicidal despair was the big killer in these citadels of degradation.

“As a psychiatrist, Frankl knew that humor was one of the soul’s best survival weapons, since it can create, if only for moments, aloofness from horror. Therefore, Frankl made a rule that once each day he and his friend must invent and tell an amusing anecdote, specifically about something which could happen after their liberation.”

Doing this helped to make the torturous experience of life in a concentration camp more endurable. The article concluded: “If humor can be used successfully against such odds, what can’t you and I do with it in daily life?”

Does your occupation require you to persuade others of the value of some product, of the need to take a particular course of action, or of the reasonableness of certain arguments? How can you convince your hearers to act upon what you say? William J. McGuire, of Yale University’s Department of Psychology, writes concerning persuasion: “The use of humour in the message can enhance yielding; apparently it puts the recipient in a more pleasant, agreeable state.”

But laughter may be a warning sign too. The Bible, at Proverbs 14:13, states: “Even in laughter the heart may be in pain.”, Concerning children a psychologist noted: “A sensitive parent can learn a great deal from observing when and why his child laughs just as we learn from observing in our clinical work. . . . Relaxed laughter is healthy, but distorted, artificial laughter can be a cover-up for troubled feelings.”

Aid to a Healthy Mind and Body

An article entitled “The Sense in Humor” points out that some psychologists and psychiatrists “have begun to explore the possibilities of using humor therapeutically. They are attempting to encourage their patients’ sense of the ridiculous as an antidote to emotional distress.”

On the other hand, persons with no sense of humor often show symptoms of emotional disorders. Dr. Margaret Prouty, a retired pediatrician, made an interesting observation concerning children who developed ulcers due to stress:

“Years of observation have convinced me that one of their chief personality defects is an almost total lack of a sense of humor. Life is indeed real and earnest, and they have no ability to laugh at themselves or at others.”

You probably know some persons who take themselves very seriously, walking about with a ‘chip on their shoulder,’ so to speak. Are such people happy? Do they contribute to the happiness of others? The solution may be no more involved than learning to laugh at themselves. Psychiatrist Smiley Blanton stated: “I’ve seldom been called on to help a person who had a sense of the ridiculous, and I’ve never had to treat anyone who could really laugh at himself.” Can you see the humorous side of your life?

The Bible makes an interesting observation on mental health, at Romans 12:3: “I tell everyone there among you not to think more of himself than it is necessary to think; but to think so as to have a sound mind.” Yes, “a sound mind” goes hand in hand with a modest view of oneself. You will more easily develop that view if you learn to laugh at yourself.

What about the effect of humor on physical health? Dr. James J. Walsh, in his book Laughter and Health, explained that the up-and-down movement of the diaphragm in laughter affects internal organs in a manner similar to exercise.

Laughter gives a gentle massage to the heart, improving circulation. A like effect upon the liver and intestines aids digestion and elimination of wastes. Dr. Walsh points out that persons with blood-pressure problems would do well to “keep laughing.” Results of experiments revealed that people with blood pressure of 180 or above experienced​—through laughter—​a drop of 10 or more points; those with low blood pressure (below 120) showed a rise of 10 points or more.

But there are times when laughter is out of place.

Times NOT to Laugh

The Bible makes an interesting observation about laughter at Ecclesiastes 7:2, 3: “Better is it to go to the house of mourning than to go to the banquet house . . . Better is vexation than laughter, for by the crossness of the face the heart becomes better.” Does this mean that God disapproves of laughter and of having a good time? No, for the Scriptures encourage rejoicing on proper occasions. (Phil. 4:4) But there is also a time to be serious, to reflect on how quickly life can end and how important it is to use our lives wisely to build up a good “name,” or reputation, with the Creator. (Eccl. 7:1) “Exclusive reliance on humor,” notes the recent book Family Communication, “is a defensive reaction to unbearable anxiety.”

An example of when not to laugh is if a friend or an acquaintance becomes grief-stricken due to some unfortunate turn of events. In such a case the Scriptures admonish: “Weep with people who weep.”​—Rom. 12:15.

What should a person do when confronted with one of the seemingly endless stream of “dirty jokes” that feature sexual immorality as their theme? Here, too, is a time to refrain from laughter, for the Word of God commands: “Let fornication and uncleanness of every sort or greediness not even be mentioned among you, . . . neither shameful conduct nor foolish talking nor obscene jesting, things which are not becoming.”​—Eph. 5:3, 4.

The Scriptures, at Proverbs 26:18, 19, warn about another type of unbecoming humor: “Just like someone mad that is shooting fiery missiles, arrows and death, so is the man that has tricked his fellowman and has said: ‘Was I not having fun?’” This would rule out for Bible believers “practical jokes” that could cause harm to others. An example of the folly of such misdirected humor is the case of a teen-age boy who faked a phone call to his home saying that he had been kidnapped. The boy’s father collapsed and later died of a heart attack. The mother and aunt required medical attention.

The magazine Science Digest observes: “Like a coin, humor appears to have two sides. . . . Sometimes wit is used either consciously or unconsciously as a weapon. There is a saying, ‘Laughter kills.’” This is particularly true with regard to young children. Never should a child be the victim of derisive “humor.” Nor should children be allowed to use such a “weapon” on other youngsters. This is a sign of insecurity and parents should be quick to correct whatever is wrong. To avoid hurting another be sure you laugh with him, not at him.

A fine principle to keep in mind with regard to humor is found in the Bible at Matthew 7:12: “All things, therefore, that you want men to do to you, you also must likewise do to them.” Following this “golden rule” of Christian conduct precludes use of caustic humor or sarcasm.

Indeed, there is a time to laugh. Hearty, relaxed laughter can benefit you mentally, physically and emotionally. But be careful not to engage in laughter at the wrong time, or to use your sense of humor to hurt others.

Heart Attack​—Coping with Our Modern Plague

A young woman describes how this great killer struck her mother, and how knowledge helped her to cope with the situation.

MY MOTHER, like well over a million other Americans each year, experienced a heart attack. This is the way she described it:

“On the way to work in midtown New York, I suddenly felt something in the center of my chest. Grabbing my chest, I thought, ‘What is happening? Did I eat something that disagreed with me?’

“I felt very weak, and had to stand still a long while. I was trying to breathe, but I couldn’t breathe deep, because of the intense pressure. It seemed to be coming from my stomach, but it was different from any sensation I had ever experienced before.”

Mother is certainly fortunate to be alive​—over quarter of a million victims die suddenly from such attacks. Heart disease kills some 750,000 Americans annually. All, together, well over half of all deaths in the United States are caused by heart and blood-vessel disease!

But the problem is not limited to the United States​—heart attack plagues industrialized nations throughout the world. I read where Dr. Jean Mayer, Harvard University professor, said: “We are in a new age of pandemics, since nearly half of the men of the Western countries (and an increasing proportion of the women) are dying of a single ailment.”

‘What,’ you may ask, ‘is causing this? What can I do to prevent a heart attack? Or, if I suffer one, what can I do to increase my possibility of surviving?’

At the time I did not know, and I have since discovered that few people understand what is involved. My mother’s experience led to my finding out.

Another Attack

Mother did not realize that she was having a heart attack that Friday morning back in May 1972. She thought it was indigestion, and that she was simply overly tired. So, when she rested a few minutes, she caught the subway and went to work.

The following week mother consulted a doctor, but he did not identify her trouble, and so she continued to work. She told me what happened that Wednesday:

“The heavy pressure in my lower chest occurred again. I doubled over in pain. A coworker got scared, and brought a glass of water, asking, ‘What happened?’

“I answered: ‘I don’t know​—maybe some gas from something I ate. I feel like I’m choking.’

“She said: ‘You’d better go to the doctor.’

“I agreed. The union clinic is only a couple of blocks away. When I got down the elevator, the pressure on my chest increased. I could hardly breathe, and my arm was so weak it was difficult to hold my pocketbook. I staggered like a drunk person, but nobody offered to help. I prayed to God, ‘Help me to get to the clinic.’ I opened the door and collapsed, for a moment losing consciousness.

“The doctor examined me, and wanted to put me in a hospital. But I told him: ‘I feel much better now. Let me go home. My daughter will take me to the hospital.’ When I insisted, he let me leave. I was so weak I was barely able to make it home.”

Remarkable Survival

Mother was standing there doing some washing when I came home. I said, “Mama, something is wrong!” She looked so pale and so yellow. We live together, as we have ever since we came from Europe when I was a little girl. My father and other relatives died during the second world war.

Mother went to bed, saying very little to me. At about two in the morning I was awakened by her call. She had severe chest pains and could hardly breathe. Frantically I called our family doctor. He said: “Give her a little bit of whiskey. Keep her warm and quiet and when she feels better take her to the hospital.”

The next morning I called a taxi and took her to New York Infirmary. Still mother did not believe that it was her heart, and she wanted to leave. But then she had another attack, falling to the floor gasping for breath. Doctors and nurses came running.

Tests confirmed that it was mother’s heart. Myocardial infarction is what the doctors called it, and it was very serious. They could hardly believe that she had survived. She was kept in the hospital for twenty-four days.

When mother came home she was still extremely weak; she hardly moved from her bed for two weeks. What should I do for her? Myocardial infarction, coronary occlusion, coronary thrombosis​—all these terms were confusing to me. What was wrong with mother’s heart? What caused these attacks? I went to the library and got some books to try to find out. Learning how the heart works is what began to help me to understand her trouble.

An Amazing Organ

I discovered that the heart is basically uncomplicated in physical structure. It is a large hollow muscle, which is divided into two parts. Each part is, in turn, divided into two chambers, one to receive the blood, the other to deliver it. The receiving chamber is called the atrium, and the delivering chamber, the ventricle. So there is a right atrium and a right ventricle, and a left atrium and a left ventricle. Thus the heart is composed of two separate pumps that pump simultaneously.

The heart, I learned, works like this: The right atrium receives blood from the body. The blood is squeezed from there into the right ventricle, which pumps it to the lungs, where carbon dioxide is removed and oxygen is absorbed. The freshly oxygenated blood then goes from the lungs to the left atrium. From there this life-sustaining blood is squeezed into the left ventricle, which pumps it out to the body.

Amazingly, the heart’s millions of cells each have the independent ability to contract and relax. This contraction is coordinated by electrical impulses coming from something called the sinus node, located in the right atrium. This ensures that the muscle cells contract in the proper sequence and at the proper rate​—about seventy times per minute. With each contraction about two and a half ounces of blood are pumped​—some seventy-five gallons an hour. But during exercise an athlete’s heart may pump hundreds of gallons of blood an hour!

The staggering strength of the heart surprised me. Doctors say that it produces so much energy that if its lifetime output could be concentrated into one burst of power it could lift a battleship several feet out of the water! It was encouraging to learn of the heart’s amazing capacity.

I found that one cardiologist even went so far as to say that if the entire right ventricle is destroyed by disease or injury, readjustments can be made in the circulatory system and the heart continues to do its work. He even said that if over 75 percent of the muscle tissue of the left ventricle is destroyed, the remaining muscle can compensate and continue supplying the entire body with blood!

But did this mean that mother’s heart had, in some way, been almost totally destroyed? What caused her heart nearly to fail?

Source of the Problem

Lack of nourishment, I learned, was the problem. ‘But how can that be,’ you may ask, ‘since the heart is literally bathed in blood, tons of it flowing through the heart chambers daily?’ It is because the heart is not nourished by this blood in its chambers.

A comparison might be to a gasoline truck, and its source of fuel. The truck may be carrying thousands of gallons of gasoline to customers, and yet run out of gas and stop. This is because the truck does not run on the gasoline it hauls, but must stop at service stations to get its own fuel. Likewise the heart receives nourishment, not from the blood in its own chambers, but from blood that is pumped out of the heart and then returns to the heart muscle by way of the two coronary arteries.

The blood is pumped from the heart into the body’s huge artery, the aorta, but a supply is almost immediately channeled off from it into the coronary arteries, so named because they encircle the top of the heart somewhat like a crown. These two arteries divide into a network of smaller branches and eventually into capillaries, bringing oxygen and chemical nutrients in the blood to all parts of the heart muscle. About 5 to 10 percent of all blood that the heart pumps is channeled into these coronary arteries to feed the heart. Trouble in these arteries, I discovered, is what causes heart attacks.

The source of the problem is a buildup of fatty deposits in the coronary arteries, resulting in a condition called atherosclerosis. To help visualize the problem, doctors may compare the process to the accumulation of rust in a hot-water pipe, which, in time, interferes with the flow of water.

In a blood vessel, however, atherosclerosis does not cause a uniform narrowing. A buildup of deposits occurs intermittently along the blood vessel, while the diameter of the rest of the vessel may be normal. Thus the effective flow of blood is not necessarily decreased, since the blood flow may merely speed up as it passes each obstruction. Yet I began to see how this condition of atherosclerosis can set the stage for a heart attack.

How so?

The Blockage Causing an Attack

When blood is forced through an unusually small opening, substances in the blood are triggered to form a clot or thrombus. Normally, this reaction protects us from bleeding to death from wounds, and helps wounds to heal. But should the clotting substances in the blood be activated in a severely narrowed blood vessel, the thrombus formed could block the blood flow. Sometimes a piece of the fatty buildup itself breaks loose and blocks a vessel. When the blocked vessel is in the heart, it is called a coronary thrombosis, or a coronary occlusion.

The result of the blockage, I learned, is what is referred to by myocardial infarction. “Myo” refers to muscle, “cardial” to heart, and “infarction” means the area of tissue that has died because of the interrupted blood flow. If the blocked vessel is a major one that supplies nourishing blood to a large section of the heart, the resulting death of muscle tissue usually causes the heart to stop​—it is a fatal heart attack.

It was interesting to me that atherosclerosis can cause this vessel blockage in other parts of the body, although the coronary arteries for some reason are most frequently affected. However, if blockage occurs in a vessel in the brain, one has a stroke. But in the heart it causes myocardial infarction, that is, a heart attack.

Heart Attacks Without Blockage

I found out, however, that in many heart attacks​—perhaps the majority—​a blood clot is not involved; there is only narrowing of blood vessels due to atherosclerosis. In fact, fatal attacks may occur when there is only minimal damage to the heart muscle. Why do essentially healthy hearts stop?

It seems that in such cases the heart needs more blood to meet some physical or emotional emergency, and the blood reaching it through the narrowed vessels proves inadequate. Then, when only a small portion of the heart muscle is temporarily starved of blood, electrical patterns somehow become disturbed, upsetting the beating rhythm. The heart then goes into what is called ventricular fibrillation​—an unusual and serious complication in which it twitches chaotically and stalls from the lack of a driving force. Death follows within a few minutes unless proper pumping of the ventricles is restored. Thus thousands of essentially healthy hearts stop each year.

Unrecognized Attacks and Healing

I was amazed to learn that many heart attacks occur with only minimal symptoms. In fact, heart specialists estimate that perhaps 20 percent of initial attacks occur without any awareness by the victims. This may be because a blood vessel in the heart is closed off gradually over a period of weeks or months, instead of abruptly. Later the resulting damage to heart muscle is often detected by the electrocardiogram in routine physical examination.

Then, again, the symptoms may simply not be recognized as a heart attack, as illustrated in the case of my mother. She thought it was a severe attack of indigestion, as do many others. Vomiting may occur, along with fatigue and an ashen appearance. This is a typical case I read about:

A man in his mid-seventies consulted a doctor when he finally began suffering from advanced heart disease. Electrocardiograms showed two old coronary occlusions​—a clot had resulted in death of heart muscle. The man remembered about an attack of what he thought was acute indigestion about twenty-five years before, and then another attack two years later. He had not consulted a doctor, yet lived to a ripe old age! Doctors say there are thousands of such cases.

Actually there is really little that doctors can do to heal the area of involved heart muscle. If the heart survives the infarction​—or does not go into fatal fibrillation—​the area of dead muscle simply must be given time to be replaced by scar tissue. Restricted activity is important to permit the formation of a tight, effective scar. This will draw the living muscles as close together as possible so that they can function properly without the useless part.

The doctor showed us mother’s electrocardiogram, pointing to the evidence of the coronary clot and the resulting death of heart muscle. All that could be done now, he said, was to rest the heart by minimal activity to give it a chance to heal. Mother did not appreciate how critical this recuperative period is for a heart patient. However, this was soon impressed on her in a frightening way.

Another Crisis

Mother could hardly stand the inactivity; she was anxious to get back to work. She appeared to be doing well; in fact, we enjoyed a week-long vacation in the country. But apparently she overdid it.

A few days later I returned home one night to find her in tremendous pain— her left arm and whole left side were paralyzed. I called the doctor who had attended her in the hospital. He said that I should immediately get her to the hospital. But mother felt that it was useless. I could not force her to go, so asked if the doctor could come to our apartment. He said he could not come.

“What can I do?” I wanted to know.

“Just wait and see, and get prepared,” he said; “she may remain paralyzed, have a stroke or even die. There’s nothing you can do.”

I called another cardiologist who had examined her before. He was more sympathetic, but apologized for not being able to come. I was really frantic. I was in such an emotional state that I couldn’t think.

But then I got down on my knees and prayed, asking God to give me strength and guidance. When I got up I was not panicky anymore. I immediately consulted one of the medical books I still had.

Emergency Treatment

First, it said to eliminate all solid food for at least three or four days​—just give liquids. So I fed mother two ounces of freshly squeezed grapefruit or orange juice every two or three hours. Several days later I gradually began to give her a little bit of cooked, mashed vegetables for lunch.

Also, the book said to keep the patient warm, give cleansing enemas, and twice daily to give hot mustard footbaths. And, particularly, the patient should not be permitted to move, not even to go to the bathroom. Looking back, mother and I feel that attempts that night to get to a hospital might well have killed her.

I took off from my job for a week and nursed her day and night. Then, when I returned to work, I arranged for a friend to be with her. For three weeks we did not permit her to get out of bed. Gradually she began to feel better, and to move around.

Thankfully mother’s heart did not go into fibrillation. If it had, I would not have known what to do. Since then I have learned about cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a combination of external heart massage and artificial respiration. Awake! discussed the technique in its July 22, 1973, issue. And last year a doctor with the New York Heart Association estimated that its use could help to avert up to 4,000 of the 14,000 yearly heart-attack deaths in New York city.

But I wondered, as I am sure others personally affected have, What is behind this modern plague? What causes the buildup of deposits in arteries that result in heart attacks?

Uncertain, Conflicting Views

Authorities are not sure, I learned. This is evident from their differing conclusions based on continuing research. However, cholesterol and fats (glycerides) are somehow involved in the deposits and hardening of the arteries. A variety of foods contain cholesterol. Yet, at the same time, cholesterol is also manufactured by our liver and other organs. But in many people deposits of the fatty substances build up in arteries, with disastrous consequences. Why?

A popular view, the one endorsed by the American Heart Association, is that a diet high in saturated fats and cholesterol causes elevated blood cholesterol levels, which, in turn, are responsible for atherosclerosis in addition to arteriosclerosis, commonly referred to as “hardening” of the arteries. But evidence now also seems to indicate that blood-cholesterol levels may be determined just as much by emotional stress. For example, a study of public accountants revealed that their blood-cholesterol levels were higher prior to April 15, the tax deadline, than in May and June when their sense of time urgency had almost disappeared.

But there are other views. Excess sugar in the diet is said to trigger abnormal production of certain hormones, notably insulin. This is believed to result in blood-level increases of fats called triglycerides, which are said to cause the buildup of fatty deposits in arteries. Another view is that chlorine in water supplies is a principal factor in the precipitation of fatty deposits.

Certain factors are generally accepted by most medical authorities as contributing to heart attacks. In addition to emotional stress and a diet high in fats and cholesterol, these factors include: heredity, smoking, high blood pressure and today’s sedentary life-style. Yet, admittedly, the cause of atherosclerosis, which is responsible for most heart attacks, is still actually unknown. No doubt a combination of factors is involved, and perhaps different ones in different victims.

What We Can Do

Nevertheless, from what I learned, there are sound, common-sense preventive measures we can take. “What is required,” the famous heart specialist Paul Dudley White said, “is a widespread change in established habits of overeating, physical lethargy, and heavy smoking.”

Since neither mother nor I smoked, no change was needed there. But we have adjusted our eating habits, in accord with what I have read on the subject. Principally this involves eating small meals. Also, no longer do we use salt or sugar or drink coffee. And we only infrequently or never eat foods rich in cholesterol, including whole milk, butter, ice cream, eggs and fatty meats.

Another important measure to prevent heart attacks is exercise. Regular brisk walking is one of the best. This apparently establishes collateral circulation in the heart. When a person is sedentary the arteries supplying blood to muscles may become narrower in size, and many small vessels perhaps even disappear. Thus the blood to muscles is less, and, hence, so is oxygen.

However, regular exercise apparently causes a person’s arteries to become larger, so they can carry more blood. Also, more blood vessels open up in muscle tissue, providing new routes for delivering more oxygen. Particularly in the heart muscle is this an advantage, for then, even if one artery becomes “clogged,” blood supplied by auxiliary routes may be sufficient to keep the heart muscle from starving for oxygen and stopping.

Very slowly, over a period of months, mother increased her physical activity. Now she cooks, does the housework and is quite active. I am convinced that this care is largely responsible for what doctors consider her remarkable recovery.

I believe that other contributing factors to my mother’s heart attack were lack of sufficient rest, poor eating habits, but, particularly, worry. So after her heart attack I got a little parrakeet and taught him to say, “Don’t worry, mommy. Be happy.” Such a disposition is important, as God’s Word the Bible also shows: “Anxious care in the heart of a man is what will cause it to bow down,” but “a heart that is joyful does good as a curer.”​—Prov. 12:25; 17:22; 14:30.

I know that with all the distress in the world today it is difficult for many to find much to be joyful about. Yet I have discovered that there truly is reason now to be happy. For the sure Word of God shows that these present wicked conditions are certain evidence that we are living near the time when Almighty God will completely remove this system of things, and preserve alive those who serve him.​—Matt. 24:3-14; 1 John 2:17.

Then will be fulfilled God’s sure promise to humankind to “wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” (Rev. 21:4) Truly how grand it will be to live completely free from any threat of this dreaded plague​—heart attack!​—Contributed.

[Diagram on page 17]

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THE HUMAN HEART

(Viewed from the front; arrows depict direction of blood flow.)

To entire body

Aorta

Pulmonary Artery

To lungs

From body

From lung

Right Atrium

Left Atrium

Right Ventricle

Left Ventricle

From body

[Diagram on page 18]

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ATHEROSCLEROSIS

1. Normal artery

2. Beginning atherosclerosis

(fatty deposits)

3. Advanced atherosclerosis

(fatty deposits nearly blocking artery)

[Diagram on page 19]

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CORONARY THROMBOSIS

Thrombus, or clot, in artery

Area deprived of blood (infarct)

Shell Money​—Its Influence Still Evident

By “Awake!” correspondent in Papua New Guinea

ON April 19, 1975, Papua New Guinea introduced its own currency, replacing the Australian currency used previously. This new currency has an interesting relationship with the shell money long used in the islands of the Pacific.

Whereas the currency of some peoples is based on dollars and cents, ours is now based on kina and toea. Kina is what the gold-lip shell Pinctada maxima is called in the Melanesian-Pidgin language. This shell is actually a valve of the pearl oyster. Toea is a word in the Motu language for the arm shells long worn by natives in southern Papua New Guinea.

Our largest coin is the one-kina piece, which has the value of one Australian dollar. On it are pictures of two crocodiles, the one on the right side being the freshwater species, and the other, the saltwater variety. But why use a coin rather than a paper bank-note?

The government reasoned that an average coin has a much longer life than a bank note. Thus considerable savings would be achieved in using one-kina coins. However, we have two-, five- and ten-kina bank-notes.

Some persons have asked why the one-kina coin has a hole in the center. This makes it lighter in weight, cheaper to produce and is familiar to people in Papua New Guinea. From 1929 to 1945 certain coins were minted for New Guinea, each with a central hole. Local people often threaded them on pieces of fishing line and hung them around their necks. It was the easiest way for persons who had no pockets in their clothing to carry them.

The kina is made up of one hundred toea, each toea being equivalent in value to an Australian cent. There are one-, two-, five-, ten- and twenty-toea coins. Each bears a picture of a different and fascinating species of animal life found in Papua New Guinea.

The one-toea coin shows the bird-wing butterfly, one of the largest and most colorful butterflies in the world. The two-toea coin has on it a picture of the butterfly codfish, a fish that often changes color to camouflage itself when in danger. A turtle is represented on the five-toea, and the cuscus, a small tree-climbing animal, is on the ten-toea coin. On the twenty-toea coin is the cassowary, a large flightless bird.

Although modern currency is used by most persons, shell money is still in use by some island peoples. In Papua New Guinea, for instance, the gold-lip shell, or kina shell, is made into currency by polishing and carving it into a crescent shape. Then a hole is made in each tip of the crescent so that the shells can be strung and worn across the breast.

The kina shells have been used mainly in payment of bride prices, or to buy pigs. They were particularly prized in the highlands.

Toea, or arm shells, also are still used as currency. These shells are cut from the trochus shell, and form an armband about an inch wide. As only one toea can be cut from each trochus shell, this makes them quite expensive. A large one may cost twenty Australian dollars, or twenty kina.

The shell money long used by peoples in the British Solomon Islands Protectorate is produced on the island of Malaita. There are two main forms of it, known as “red money” and “white money.” The red money is made from a cone shell with a red interior, and the white money is made from a white cone shell. From these shells, small pieces are cut and a hole is drilled through them.

The pieces of shell are then strung, a number of red ones, then a white one. Six or ten strings together make up one piece of money, equivalent in value to twenty kina. Today both shell money and Australian money is used in the British Solomon Islands.

In recent years, however, island peoples have tended more and more to use Australian currency, although some of the older generation still prefer to store their wealth in the form of shell money. Now in Papua New Guinea we have a new currency, one that not only emphasizes our fascinating animal life, but also reflects our longtime use of shell money.

I Was a Fetish Priestess

As told to “Awake!” correspondent in Dahomey

MY PARENTS called me Agbodémakou when I was born more than fifty years ago in Porto-Novo, capital of Dahomey, West Africa. We were of the family of “Hazoumé,” which means “king’s servants.” The gods we worshiped were represented by fetishes.

Do you know what a fetish is? This term comes from a Portuguese word feitiço, meaning “made by art.” The term has come to be applied to a material object in which a god or spirit is believed to dwell, giving it a sort of magical power. Many fetishes are made with human features, requiring a skillful artisan; but others may be merely rocks, mounds of earth or some similar thing in its natural state.

My family worshiped two gods, Sinuloko (protector of children) and Avesan (owner of the town). The fetish for Sinuloko was a mud heap covered with the leaves of the sacred tree that we call Deslé in our Gun dialect. The fetish of Avesan was a forged-iron “asen,” which looks like a miniature umbrella on the end of an iron pole, but without the cloth.

Of the two gods, Avesan was considered more powerful. Even before I was born, my mother would go regularly to the temple devoted to his service to make offerings of yams, chickens and sometimes even goats in order to assure my safe arrival and future.

An “Omen” Directs My Life

Fetish religion is very superstitious. It seemed significant, therefore, when one day my mother found a python in her room. We have a saying that the python never visits without leaving a message. Therefore my parents consulted an “oracle priest” about this.

He explained that the python appearing in our house was an omen that meant that I should serve Avesan as a fetish priestess. But I did not do that right away.

My Decision to Become a Fetish Priestess

When I grew up I married a priest of Avesan. My parents strongly disapproved of our marriage and did everything in their power to break it up. Difficulties increased when we continued childless.

In an effort to reverse my ill fortune, I obtained many charms, objects that supposedly repel evil. But these did not help me. It seemed certain that my parents would succeed in breaking up our marriage. I became desperate, for I truly loved my husband. Then it occurred to me that perhaps all these trials were coming upon me because I had not become a fetish priestess in fulfillment of the oracle.

After consulting with my husband and obtaining his encouragement, I began training as a fetish priestess.

Training in a “Convent”

Training to become a fetish priest or priestess takes place in a “convent” and lasts about seven months. During our schooling our group was confined to the “convent,” where we were not allowed to have visitors. Our family and friends, including my husband, brought gifts of food, which were presented to the “Douté” (the chief priest or director). This food would not reach us until the priest had taken his share.

Throughout the entire training period we wore exactly the same clothes and we neither washed them nor bathed ourselves. We would simply use a rag to wipe off the dust and perspiration. And we certainly did perspire from vigorous activity while learning to sing and dance in honor of our god.

During this time we also learned to weave raffia, a fiber from a type of palm tree, into costumes that we would use after graduation. These costumes included multicolored skirts, a halter top and pointed red hats. We also made for ourselves copper anklets and necklaces of red beads. For the finishing touch, each of us women had a white wrap-around cloth tied with a colored sash to go over the raffia skirt.

As our graduation drew near, we received special marks on our bodies identifying us as priestesses of Avesan. If you take a close look at me, you will notice two half-moons on either side of my face next to my eyes, and a single half-moon on each of my cheeks. On the upper part of my body there are fine pockmarks. All of these were made by the chief priest with a small, sharp knife. Ground charcoal was rubbed into the wounds to assure that they would fester and leave clearly defined marks. The chief priests make these incisions on each candidate accompanied by the beating of tom-toms, to drown out the victim’s screams.

My Faith in Fetishism Weakens

One of the duties of a fetish priestess relates to charms that are supposed to protect or relieve a village from some impending calamity, such as a fire, a flood or an epidemic. The charms are made by the chief priests and placed in locations unknown to the populace. Fetish priests and priestesses must go out amidst much singing, dancing and beating of drums to look for these charms. When located, they are carried in a large pirogue, or dugout canoe, to the middle of a lagoon, where they are dumped. Supposedly this frees the village from evil influence.

It was while performing such a rite that my faith in fetishism began to weaken. I realized that these charms were only man-made objects of clay, wood or iron that easily fell apart when I touched them. I wondered: “How can these lifeless objects protect anyone?” But the deathblow to my faith in fetishism was yet to come.

This happened when my husband, himself a fetish priest, suddenly became ill and died. In fact, the very day that he died he had performed a service to Avesan by painting his temple. How could Avesan allow his priest to die like that? Why did the fetish not serve to heal and protect my husband? Then and there my faith in fetish worship died. I buried my newly made and seldom-worn fetish garments with my husband.

Learning About the True God

I moved from Porto-Novo to Cotonou with the determination to search for a new religion. Shortly after my arriving at Cotonou, Jehovah’s witnesses called on me. Using the Bible, they told me of an entirely new system of things that will soon spread throughout the earth. Among the scriptures that they read to me that day was Revelation 21:3, 4, which says: “God . . . will wipe out every tear from [mankind’s] eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”

How sweet that sounded to me! At last I saw a hope for my dead husband. I stormed the Witnesses with questions, listening attentively to their logical Bible-based answers. I had never heard anything like this before. When these people left they gave me a copy of the booklet “This Good News of the Kingdom,” and promised to return in a week. The booklet could not help me, however, as I was unable to read and write.

Not content to wait a full week for the Witnesses to return, I went looking for them after only two days. With love and patience they began to teach me to read and write. Within just a few months I could understand enough in my own copy of the Bible in Gun to verify the scriptures that had meant so much to me on my first contact with Jehovah’s witnesses.

The Witnesses returned time and again. Once they even brought along a woman who had the same marks on her face and body as I had. She, too, had at one time been a fetish priestess. However, when she got to know the true God through a study of the Bible, this woman gave up the worship of man-made idols that can neither see, nor feel, nor speak. I determined to do the same.​—Ps. 115:4-8.

My progress in true worship was not without obstacles. I soon learned that Jehovah God has a chief adversary, Satan the Devil, who tries to prevent people from serving Jehovah. (1 Pet. 5:8) I experienced opposition from my parents and former associates in fetish worship.

A God Mightier than Fetishes

Fetish worshipers prepared a number of jujus against me. These are fetishes that are sometimes used to destroy people through black magic. This procedure has been known to result in someone’s death within just a few days. But in my case it did not work.

The fetish worshipers would send eyewitnesses to determine whether I was still alive. Whenever they would see me, I was in good health, whereas some who had tried to murder me with the aid of fetishes became ill, and one of them, the director of the fetish “convent,” died. This amazed many who knew me and opened up opportunities for me to tell them of the true God, Jehovah. He is mightier than the gods who attach themselves to fetishes and who are actually wicked spirit creatures, or demons, under the control of Satan, the ruler of the demons. (Eph. 6:12) I pointed out what is written at Proverbs 18:10: “The name of Jehovah is a strong tower. Into it the righteous runs and is given protection.”

In 1959 I symbolized by water baptism my dedication to serve Jehovah God, and by God’s undeserved kindness I have been able to devote my full time during the past nine years to sharing with others the Bible truths that have filled my life with so much joy. In this way I have helped a number of others to break free from enslavement to false worship. How happy I am no longer to be a fetish priestess to a false god, but to be a willing slave of the true God, Jehovah!​—Rom. 12:11.

What Is the Bible’s View?

The Taking of Oaths

AN OATH has been defined as “a solemn appeal to God, or to some revered person or thing, to witness one’s determination to speak the truth or to keep a promise.” How do you feel about oath taking? Some religious groups, such as the Mennonites and Quakers, refuse to take oaths. And because certain individuals have conscientious objections to oath taking, affirmation often is accepted as an alternative.

It has been contended that remarks made by Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount forbid his followers to take oaths. Jesus stated: “Again you heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You must not swear without performing, but you must pay your vows to Jehovah.’ However, I say to you: Do not swear at all, neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne; nor by earth, because it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Nor by your head must you swear, because you cannot turn one hair white or black. Just let your word Yes mean Yes, your No, No; for what is in excess of these is from the wicked one.”​—Matt. 5:33-37; compare James 5:12.

Did Jesus mean that it is wrong for his followers to take oaths of any kind? No, we cannot draw that conclusion, for various reasons. Consider: Upward of fifty times in Scripture, Jehovah God himself is referred to as making oaths. For instance, the Christian writer of the letter to the Hebrews pointed out that “when God made his promise to Abraham, since he could not swear by anyone greater, he swore by himself, saying: ‘Assuredly in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply you.’” (Heb. 6:13-18) The Bible shows that humans also have taken oaths acceptable to Jehovah. Abraham swore by God, and under certain circumstances the Mosaic law required that individuals take oaths. (Gen. 21:23, 24; Ex. 22:10, 11; Num. 5:21, 22) Even Jesus Christ raised no objection, but answered when the Jewish high priest declared: “By the living God I put you under oath to tell us whether you are the Christ the Son of God!” (Matt. 26:63, 64) So, how are we to understand Jesus’ words about swearing?

Please notice that Christ mentioned swearing by heaven, earth, Jerusalem and even one’s head. Apparently, many persons living during Jesus’ earthly ministry emphasized every declaration with an oath. It was as though a statement had to be sworn to in order to be believed. Such oaths were unnecessary if people were truthful and meant what they said. Hence, in saying, “Just let your word Yes mean Yes, your No, No,” Christ meant that individuals should be straightforward in their speech. It does not appear that his words were directed against the taking of solemn oaths in courts of law.

Thoughtful Christians weigh the matter in the light of Bible principles before taking any sworn oath. In doing so, they find that some oaths are Scripturally unacceptable. For example, in the days of the Third Reich, every German soldier was required to take this oath: “I swear by God this holy oath that I shall render unconditional obedience to the Führer of the German Reich and people, Adolf Hitler, the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and that as a brave soldier I shall be prepared at all times to risk my life for this oath.” A person dedicated to Almighty God cannot bind himself unconditionally to a sinful human, for Jehovah exacts “exclusive devotion.” (Deut. 5:9) Moreover, would it be proper for a true Christian, who Jesus said would be “no part of the world,” to get involved in the controversies of the world? (John 15:19; Jas. 1:27; Isa. 2:4) Hence, despite severe persecution, faithful Christian witnesses of Jehovah in Germany would take no oaths binding them to Adolf Hitler.

A true Christian, then, would not take an oath that would involve him in the controversies of the world or that would subject him unquestioningly to the will of another human. But what if a nation required that such an oath be taken by those desiring to become citizens? Could a person dedicated to God take an oath of that kind with mental reservations, reasoning that sex, age or other factors would make it unlikely that what had been sworn would ever be required? The individual must decide, but it would not be Christian to make a false oath of any kind, even if refusal to do so resulted in being denied the rights of citizenship.​—Eph. 4:25; compare Hosea 10:1, 4.

A citizen of the United States of America who desires to travel abroad will find the following oath on a passport application: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations, or purpose of evasion: So help me God.” If an applicant finds this objectionable, he is permitted to strike this oath from the passport application, and he will not be denied the document on that basis.

A godly person also appropriately weighs matters from the standpoint of Jesus Christ’s statement: “Pay back Caesar’s things to Caesar, but God’s things to God.” (Luke 20:25) If anything conflicts with God’s law, the Christian cannot conscientiously swear to it. Yet he might take an oath to ‘support and defend’ the provisions of the law of the land that are not out of harmony with the law of God. Enlightened nations that grant citizens freedom of worship do not require Christians to do things contrary to their Biblical beliefs and obligations to Almighty God.

But how might a Christian ‘support and defend’ the law or the Constitution of a land granting religious liberty? By engaging only in proper and legal conduct that also harmonizes with the law of God. He can also do this by his spoken word, including the giving of truthful testimony in a court of law. No one can reasonably object to a Christian’s swearing to do something that God expects him to do, and relative subjection to governmental authorities is required of Christ’s followers.​—Rom. 13:1.

There are numerous oaths, of course. For instance, some unions require members to swear: “I will bear true allegiance to it and will not sacrifice its interests in any manner.” As usually applied, this means that the member will not engage in strikebreaking or similar activities considered detrimental to the union. If a godly person decided that complying with such an oath would not conflict with his Christian activities, he might choose to take it.

Individual conscience, then, enters the picture when any oath is being considered. Of course, a person devoted to Jehovah would take Bible principles into account. This, after all, is vital if such an individual is to keep a close relationship with God.

Watching the World

Fear of Next Inflation

◆ In many parts of the world, the rampant, double-digit inflation of the past year appears to be subsiding. Recovery from the recent recession is also said to be expected soon by some economic spokesmen. However, some observers foresee the next inflation as being the really devastating one. Two British economists state in their new book The Second Great Crash: “As the next expansion gathers pace, inflation is sure to accelerate. There Is a grave danger​—indeed, a near certainty,” that the next boom “will see a number of major countries lose control of their currencies.”

Venereal Disease Rampage

◆ The “permissive generation” is paying the price. Venereal disease is on the rampage in most countries. Yet, authorities say that the problem is much worse than official figures show. The World Health Organization notes that the number of venereal disease victims is from three to ten times the number actually reported by doctors. In some nations with poorer health services, from 6 to 10 percent of the people aged fifteen to thirty are infected. In several Asian countries, from 20 to 55 percent of the university students contracted venereal disease in a one-year period. In the United Kingdom, a recent survey showed that a chain reaction beginning from just one source infected 1,639 people!

Can Sahara Be Halted?

◆ Each year huge areas of Africa become engulfed in the expanding Sahara Desert. One estimate is that it devours an area the size of Connecticut every two years. Now experiments are being made with vast “green walls” of newly planted trees to see if the desert’s march can be halted and some parts reclaimed. In Algeria, a desolate area was planted with 1,000 tree seedlings, of which 800 survived with irrigation. Eventually many more were planted, and 130,000 trees are flourishing there, nourished by underground water that their roots can now reach, plus any rainfall. It is reported that the fertile area they created grows vegetables, grain and citrus fruits, while at the same time the trees stop sandstorms, cool the surroundings, and increase surface humidity.

Dangerous Firetraps

◆ Some apartment windows in big cities have covering iron gates that are locked. The purpose is to keep out burglars. However, officials in New York city warn that, in an emergency, an apartment can become a firetrap if the gate key cannot be located quickly. Fire killed a Brooklyn mother and her two sons in this very situation. Instead of a lock, fire prevention officers urge the use of a gate that has a latch on the inside that cannot be opened from the outside.

Saving Jobs

◆ Because of slackened business conditions, many companies and government agencies have cut back the number of people employed. One company in New York solved its problem in another way. Instead of dismissing 400 of 2,000 employees, labor and management representatives agreed to keep all the workers, but to put them on a four-day week. It meant a cut in pay for each worker, but none became unemployed.

Unkind “Kindness Day”

◆ The National Park Service sponsored a “Human Kindness Day” on the Washington, D.C., Mall. A crowd of 125,000 attended, listening to “rock” music. The Washington Post tallied these results: 500 robberies reported to police, many involving assault; at least 86 people taken to hospital emergency rooms with injuries; and an official of the agriculture department lost the sight of one eye as a result of a stabbing. Police were unable to stop assaults by roving bands of youths. Thousands of bystanders looked on and offered no help.

Babies Born Drunk

◆ A University of Washington researcher says that alcoholic mothers can give birth to drunken babies who later may show mental deficiencies. Dr. David W. Smith said that it is not uncommon for an infant to come into the world with the smell of alcohol on its breath. Alcohol consumed by a pregnant woman easily passes into the bloodstream of her unborn baby. One newborn baby had a blood-alcohol level 50 percent higher than the level considered a legal presumption of drunkenness. The pediatrician said: “The baby was stone drunk.”

Low Scores in Science

◆ After the Soviet Union launched its first “Sputnik” satellite in 1957, schools in the United States made strenuous efforts to increase the quality of science education. Yet new test scores revealed that only about half the students from ages nine to seventeen could answer relatively simple science questions. Science knowledge actually declined significantly during a three-year period. A director of a science teachers’ association says: “Too many laymen have lost faith in science,” and, as a result, youthful enthusiasm has cooled too.

Wrong Figures

◆ Only 30 percent of the seventeen-year-olds sampled in United States schools could solve a simple multiplication problem involving decimals. In England, the London Daily Mail says, “Alarming evidence that children are no longer being taught even how to multiply properly is revealed in a new report.” Of the thousands tested, more than two thirds the children eleven and twelve years of age could not multiply 7 by 8. Among fifteen-year-old boys, more than half came up with the wrong figure.

What Concerns Americans Most

◆ In the past year there have been many crises competing for attention. Which concerned Americans the most? Members of Congress find that not many people are especially concerned about world affairs. As one congressman said, people “couldn’t care less about ‘sweeping reassessments’ of the U.S. role in the post-Vietnam world,” or other broad international matters. He said: “Most of my people are worried about their jobs.”

Trash Indicator Down

◆ The volume of trash that people throw out is another indicator of hard times. During the first part of 1975 garbage collections dropped steadily because consumers bought fewer goods and had less to throw out. In the first three months Chicago sanitation workers picked up 200,000 fewer tons than in the same period last year. New York city had 1,000,000 tons less during 1974, and the drop continued this year.

Nuclear Blasts for Oil

◆ The Soviet Union reports an unusual use of nuclear energy. That country has exploded underground nuclear devices for the purpose of increasing oil production in marginal wells. It claimed a yearly increase of 100,000 tons by this method.

How Many Can Be Fed?

◆ World population growth has alarmed many food experts. Indeed, hunger and starvation have become growing worries. However, the director of the United Nations Office of Inter-Agency Affairs and Coordination says that, if the earth’s agricultural potential were maximized, at least 38 billion people could be fed, even without using the seas for food. For that to happen, though, the nations would have to demonstrate a degree of cooperation not in evidence at this time.

Housewife Climbs Everest

◆ A Japanese housewife became the first woman to climb Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak. Mrs. Junko Tabei, 35, only 5 feet, 92 pounds, was accompanied by her Sherpa guide. Her group spent three years preparing for the climb.

Beyond Reach

◆ The average American family can no longer afford to buy an average-priced house, which now costs $34,000, according to the president of the American Bankers Association. In addition, costs of repair and maintenance, property taxes, fuel, utilities and insurance have gone up sharply in recent years. This official concludes that the average family could no longer afford such a house even with an interest-free loan. In Japan, much the same is true. Tokyo’s Daily Yomiuri notes: “To most ordinary people, being able to purchase their own land for their own home is still a dream beyond their realization.”

New Lubricant

◆ Oil from sperm whales has long been used as an industrial lubricant. But with this species of whale being nearly wiped out, there is a great shortage of sperm oil. Now a desert shrub found in Mexico and in the United States holds promise of being an adequate substitute. The 7- to 10-foot shrub is called the “jojoba.” Its seeds contain 50 percent oil and this is similar in chemical makeup to sperm oil. Users are hopeful that it can be cultivated to resupply diminished stocks of this type of oil. Only recently an automobile company complained that the removal of sperm oil from its automatic transmission fluids led to serious corrosion problems.

Delinquent Parents

◆ Officials in England say that over 500,000 children are absent from school every week. But they estimate that about 40 percent of the notes from parents to teachers, excusing the absences, are “partially or wholly untrue.” They feel that parents who tell lies in such notes are “a national disgrace, with long-term harmful effects on the national character.”

Forgetful Passengers

◆ The Japanese National Railways reports that about 1,800,000 items were lost in trains in one year, an increase of 67,000 over the year before. Included were 441,000 umbrellas, 369,000 items of clothing, 72 sets of false teeth and 7 urns containing human ashes. Unless owners turn up within a year, the items are auctioned.

Lock Your Car!

◆ Since locked cars mean fewer thefts, police in Kassel, Germany, have a novel way of teaching the local citizens the need to lock their cars. They confiscate all articles that can be seen on the seats and floors of those that are unlocked. They then leave behind a card of the Kassel police. The owner must report to the police station and pay a fine to get his possessions back.

Sharp Attendance Decline

◆ There has been a drastic drop in attendance at functions of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. The National Catholic Reporter states that only 50 percent of Catholics attended Mass weekly in 1974, compared to 71 percent in 1963. In the same period, the number going to confession every month dropped from 38 percent to 17 percent. The greatest declines were noted among young people.

“Dirty” Money

◆ The Journal of the American Medical Association recently reported the results of tests taken to determine the disease-carrying capacity of money. It was found that of 150 randomly taken coins, 13 percent carried disease-causing germs, including Staphylococcus. A similar test on 50 paper bills turned up three times as high a level of contamination.

Trapping Eagles

◆ Golden eagles are trapped in southwestern Montana in order to protect spring lambs. This year, at least sixty-four of the birds were removed to other areas of Montana and Colorado. Ranchers claim that in 1974 eagles killed from 22 to 35 percent of their lambs. In one study of 58 lambs that had been killed, 44 were said to be eagle victims.

Richest Country

◆ Which country is the richest in the world, where average income per person is considered? According to the Union Bank of Switzerland, it is Kuwait, the tiny oil-producing country in the Middle East. In 1974, the average income per person was $11,000 a year. Next in order in the top ten were Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, the United States, Canada, West Germany, Iceland, Norway and France.

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A Great Mystery That Involves You

It is a mystery that affects the whole world of mankind. The mystery is described in the prophetic Bible book of Revelation.

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