Awake!, September 8, 1962

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Do You Know Your Creator?

PAGE 5

Slaughter in the Woods

PAGE 8

Can You Prevent Motion Sickness?

PAGE 16

Superhighways of the Sea

PAGE 20

SEPTEMBER 8, 1962

THE MISSION OF THIS JOURNAL

N«w> saurce* that era able to keep you awake to^heMtal issues of our times mutt be unfettered by censorship and selfish interests. “Awake!” has no fetters. It recognizes facts, faces facts, is free to publish facts. It is not bound by political ambitions er obligations; it is unhampered by advertisers whose toes must not be trodden on; it is unprejudiced by traditional creeds. This journal keeps itself free that it may speck freely to you. But it does not abuse its freedom. It maintains integrity to truth.

“Awake!” uses the regular news channels, but is not dependent on them. Its awn correspondents are on all continents, in scares of notions. From the four corners of the earth their uncensored, on-the-scene$ reports come to you through these columns. This journal's viewpoint is not narrow, but is international, it is read In many nations, in many languages, by persons of all ages. Through its pages many fields of knowledge pass in review—government, commerce, religion, history, geography, science, social conditions, natural wonders—why, its coverage is as brood as the earth and as high as the heavens.

“Awake!” pledges itself to righteous principles, to exposing hidden foes and subtle dangers, to championing freedom for all, to comforting mourners Ond strengthening those disheartened by the failures of o delinquent world, reflecting sure hope for the establishment of a righteous New World.

Get acquainted with “Awokel" Keep- awake by reading "Awake!"

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contents

Why Take It Easy?

Do You Know Your Creator?

Slaughter in the Woods

Heavy Dustfall

Reaction to Your Letters

About Spanish Oppression

Moving into Expanded Facilities in Finland

Can You Prevent Motion Sickness?

At Christian Assemblies

Superhighways of the Sea

A Scientist's Disappointment Do Wakes Honor God? “Your Word Is Truth”

144,000—Literal or Symbolic.'

Watching the World

WHY take it

wrpAKE it easy!” is A a very common expression. In fact, so common is it that even bums and others who hardly ever raise a finger to work bid each other adieu with an encouragement to take it easy. Rut why take it easy when life is by far more enjoyable and healthier when the body and mind are vigorously active?

The late English historian Robin G. Collingwood said that he believed that great happiness could come from “the knowledge that one is free to go on doing, day by day, the best work one can do." Former Supreme Court Chief Justice of the United States Charles E. Hughes declared: “I believe in work, hard work and long hours of work. Men do not break down from overwork, but from worry and dissipation.” So why take it easy?

Today Americans over sixty-five years of age are retiring at the rate of 3,000 a day. However, over four million of these have not stopped but have gone on working. They have learned that vitality and ability are not entirely governed by age. Work holds rewards for them. Of this, Science Digest, April, 1960, had this to say: For those “who get most of their satisfaction and practically all of their sense of worth out of their occupations, retirement is a trying experience. Work for these people has \ been a fulfillment of the need for social participation. It has provided ... a chance to achieve or be creative, or a chance to be of service to others.” So these persons want to go on .working. They do not want to take it easy, nor should they for their health’s sake.

Loafing on the job or elsewhere may suit some people, but it does not suit those who are accustomed to responsibility or the stimulation of work. They enjoy doing things.

Annually untold work hours are lost simply because both men and women take it easy when they should be working. They look upon work as a curse, an enemy— no't a friend. It is also true that most of these clock watchers and loafers seldom, if ever, get enjoyment out of their work, mainly because they refuse to give of themselves and put their heart into their work. Therefore, they miss not only the joy of exhilarating exercise, but also the thrill of accomplishment. The happiness that comes from a job well done is never theirs. What they usually reap are long hours and days that drag on, because of their lack of enthusiasm for work. So why take it easy? Throw yourself into your work and enjoy it.

Admittedly, some employers are not the best sort of persons in the world to work for, but that does not justify loafing, holding back and taking it easy. Your halfhearted service not only makes your employer miserable but you as well. What is more, you reap the effects of his irritation. Thus you heap trouble on your own head by taking it easy. So why do yourself injury? Work.

By turning to the Bible we can learn there the proper attitude that man should have toward his work. The apostle Paul admonishes Christian workers: “Do not loiter at your business. Be aglow with the spirit.’’ “Whatever you are doing, work at it whole-souled as to Jehovah, and not to men, for you know that it is from Jehovah you will receive the due reward of the inheritance.” (Rom. 12:11; Col. 3:23, 24) No taking it easy for Christians, but whole-souled work! In turn, this has a wholesome effect on all concerned.

People who love life crave activity. And faithful servants of God were and are such people. Take for example Noah. He reared a family, became a preacher of righteousness and built an ark after he was five hundred years old! Abram was seventy-five when he left Haran to take up a whole new life in Canaan. Moses at eighty became leader of the children of Israel. Caleb at eighty-five said of himself: “I am today as strong as on the day of Moses’ sending me out. As my power was then, so my power is now for the war, both to go out and to come in.” (Josh. 14:7-11) Paul, after many years of full-time ministry, told the Thessalonians about “working night and day,” so as not to put an expensive burden upon any one of them. (1 Thess. 2:9) And at Revelation 7:15 we read of those who come out of the “great tribulation” rendering God “sacred service day and night in his temple.” Nowhere in the Bible do we read anything favorable about one that says, “Take it easy!” Industriousness, not slothfulness or idleness, is what is praised. So, then, why take it easy?

Since life is not without purpose and time is precious, we should do well to take stock of how We spend our time. Not to waste time takes planning. For leisure or free time operates on the principle of the vacuum; as soon as it is created, something has to move in. To have something worthwhile move in, plan your evenings and weekends. Instead of being a viewer, become a doer, and you will be happier for it. Some may build their own garage. They plant their own flowers and lawn. Others create toys for their children and repair their own ear. Energetic housewives, instead of cooking the same dishes over and over again, enjoy planning new dishes. They may set the table differently, rearrange the furniture or sew their own wardrobe. They know that the most rewarding use of'time is not taking it easy, but using it well. This calls for attention, not only to the home, but to the spiritual welfare of those who live in it as well.

Free time may provide an escape from secular work, but never let it be an escape from God and your responsibility to God. Use free time to cultivate the mind and renew the spirit. Schedule time for good reading, especially the Holy Scriptures. Set aside time for reflection, meditation and contemplation. Also, there is so much good to be reaped by carrying the lifegiving message of God’s kingdom to people of goodwill. Buy out time for this. Use your time wisely to grow spiritually, for from within you will draw great satisfaction and happiness. So why take it easy when there is so much good to do and so much pleasure in doing it?

YOUR

that the hu

man body was

made by an in-

telligent Creator are the order, design and wisdom so evident in it. Your brain and spinal cord, for example, are so masterfully designed that the most complex circuitry in man-made computers appears crude in comparison. When a surgeon uncovers the spinal cord, he looks at an impressive sight. Remarking about this, Dr. Joseph P. Evans, a professor of neurosurgery, said; “There is also a fine tracery of blood vessels that is beautiful to behold. But overshadowing everything, is the great order apparent in all this. If one reflects how orderly this is, and how much more elaborate is the brain, whose secrets are even more deeply hidden than those of the spinal cord, the reality of great order is almost overwhelming.”

What do you know about the One who designed this complex spinal cord? What do you know about the One who made your remarkable body so that all its complex parts function smoothly as a united whole? What do you know about this One whose amazing creations are a cause for ceaseless wonderment by man? Do you think of this Creator as being the God that all people worship no matter what their religion may be? If you do, you do not know your Creator.

Many Goda

Throughout the world men direct worshipful devotion to a vast number of gods. Some are animals, birds,

What ore his purposes?

reptiles and other things of creation. Still others are idols made by the hands nt men. To imagine that this worship goes indirectly to man’s Creator is a misconception that is just as great as the thought that such things are gods worthy of worship. Your Creator rightly expects you to worship him rather than the things he has created or the things made by the hands of men. That he requires exclusive devotion is made evident in the second of the Ten Commandments he gave to the nation of Israel: “You must not make for yourself a carved image or a form like anything that is in the heavens above or that is on the earth underneath or that is in the waters under the earth. You must not bow down to them nor be induced to serve them, because I Jehovah your God am a God exacting exclusive devotion.”—Ex. 20:4, 5.

The repeated warnings that the true God gave to that nation about not going after other gods confirm the fact that not all religious worship goes indirectly to him. He cannot be represented by an image of a human or a beast and worshiped through such representations, as was pointed out by the apostle Paul: “Although asserting they were wise, they became foolish and turned the glory of the incorruptible God into something, like the image of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed creatures ana creeping things. Therefore God, in keeping with the desires of their hearts, gave them up to uncleanness, that their bodies might be dishonored among them, even those who exchanged the truth of God for the lie and venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the One who created, who is blessed forever.” —Rom. 1:22-25.

If you profess to be a Christian, do you give your Creator exclusive devotion or do you venerate created things such as living and dead humans? Do you venerate religious objects made by the hands of men? Do not imagine that such worship is acceptable to the Creator. If you think it is, you do not know him.

Do you make the gaining of money of greater importance in your life than godly devotion? Is your chief concern the finding of pleasure? Do you adulate science? If you do, such things become your gods. These are the gods you worship although you may be a regular church attender and profess to be a Christian. This was admitted by Presbyterian clergyman William S. Meyer, who said: “We worship other gods, made by our own hands, such as science, education, progress, money, power, prosperity, pleasure, reason, success, dividends and investments. We should ask ourselves this question, ‘In what do I place most deeply my soul’s reliance?’ ” Persons who worship such things, whether knowingly or unknowingly, manifest ignorance of their Creator although they may be good church members.

By becoming a part of this corrupt world and venerating the things that it honors and holds in high esteem, a person unwittingly renders devotion to the chief adversary of the Creator. That enemy of righteousness is identified as the god of this world by the apostle Paul. “The god of this system of things has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, that the illumination of the glorious good news about the Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine through.” (2 Cor. 4:4) No wonder this world brings forth the Devil’s wicked fruits! No wonder James says that whosoever “wants to be a friend of the world is constituting himself an enemy of God.” (Jas. 4:4) Are you certain that you are not unknowingly worshiping or serving the wicked god of this world?

The True God

If you think that your Creator is a trinity of three gods in one, you do not really know him. The trinitarian Hindu view of three gods in one—Brahma, Vishnu and Siva—is not the accurate view of the true God. Neither is Christendom’s trinity. The true God stands alone as a single Being Without equal. “Is it not one father that all of us have? Is it not one God that has created us?” (Mal. 2:10) Jesus Christ viewed the Creator properly as One who is superior to all living creatures, including himself. He said: “The Father is greater than I am.” (John 14:28) This majestic Being who, as Creator, is the source of all life is the One whom Jesus Christ worshiped as his God. “I am ascending to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God.” (John 20:17) He appreciated the need for accurate knowledge about God.

It is only by taking in accurate knowledge of the true God from his written Word that you are able to get the proper view of this One who sent Jesus Christ to the earth. “This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.” (John 17:3) As one who is sent, Jesus recognized his inferiority to the one supreme Being. Pointing out this Christian view of the Creator, the apostle Paul said: “There is actually to us one God the Father, out of whom all things are, and we for him; and there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things are, and we through him.”—1 Cor. 8:6.

Not Nameless

Regarding the name of the Creator Canadian clergyman G. Stanley Russell said: “The name that people give to God is also unimportant. He is not. likely to listen to their prayers less carefully because they address him as ‘Allah,’ or even, like the North American Indians, as ‘Manitou.’ ” If this is your view, you do not know your Creator. He has made it evident in the Scriptures that he is particularly interested in being identified by name.

As the true God, his name is set apart from those of all other gods, and that exclusive name distinguishes him from those gods. Jesus acknowledged this when he opened his model prayer by saying: ‘'Our Father in the heavens, let your name be sanctified.”—Matt. 6:9.

The importance that the Creator places upon his distinguishing name is made evident repeatedly in the Hebrew Scriptures. To the nation of Israel, who brought reproach upon his name by going after other gods, he said: “I shall certainly sanctify my great name, which was being profaned among the nations, which you profaned in the midst of them; and the nations will have to know that I am Jehovah.”—Ezek. 36:23.

The name “Jehovah” distinguishes your Creator from all the things that men venerate as gods. He is the Most High, to whom all worship rightly belongs. This is what people must come to know: "That you, whose name is Jehovah, you alone are the Most High over all the earth.” (Ps. 83:18) If you know your Creator you will know his name and will direct your worship to him by that name and net imagine that this can be done by the name of some other god.

Purposes

Do you know what Jehovah’s purposes are? How can you be acquainted with your Creator if you do not? Acquaintance with his purposes is essential to being acquainted with him, for those purposes reveal his characteristics. They show that he is loving, long-suffering with man, kind and forgiving. They reflect his unmatched wisdom, his immense power, his love for righteousness and his great sense of justice. To really know him, it is essential to know what he has purposed for this earth and for man as well as what he requires of you.

Three of his purposes that should be of the greatest interest to you are the vindicating of his name of the reproaches heaped upon it by this world, the establishing of righteous rule over mankind by means of his kingdom and the redeeming of obedient humans by means of Christ’s sacrifice so they may have eternal life. Having knowledge about these purposes gives you a better understanding of your Creator and increased appreciation for him. Such knowledge should create a burning desire to do what he requires of his worshipers. His requirements are set down in his written Word.

Study the Scriptures and take in the knowledge that will make you acquainted with Jehovah, the true God. Through his written Word come to know the One who is the Designer of your wondrously-made body. Learn the marvelous things Jehovah has purposed for those who love him and who worship him in the manner he wants to be worshiped.

UGHTE

in

the'^c^&sli

not limited co animals. No, the wanton slaughter of animals by thrill-seeking hunters is but one aspect of this slaughter in the woods. Each year, worldwide, thousands of persons are shot in hunting accidents. The situation is serious enough that many local authorities have sponsored safety training campaigns to reduce the slaughter of hunters themselves. Though the greater number of hunting accidents are not fatal, many hunters are seriously injured. In the United States about 1,500 persons are shot each year; of these about 300 persons die from their wounds. Of the several hundred persons hit last year in Canada, eighty-seven died. About 20 percent of all gun mishaps are fatal. The death rate in rifle accidents is almost double that with shotguns.

What accounts for most of the accidents? About 70 percent of them result from careless or trigger-happy hunters, some of whom shoot at whatever makes a noise. They foolishly make what they call “sound shots," not really knowing whether the target is a horse, a cow, game on which the season is open, game on which the season is closed or even another hunter.

Some of these hunters fire away at first glance of something that moves, and then they take a longer look afterward. In the

■

Big Horn Mountains of the United

States a hunter shot a buck deer and was bending over the carcass. This hunter was wearing a red coat and a red hat. How could another hunter mistake that scene for live game? Yet it happened; another hunter only a couple hundred yards away viewed the scene and immediately opened fire. The shot hit the man right in the hip pocket. He probably would have been another fatal casualty of the slaughter in the woods had it not been for the fact that he had a box of brass cartridges in that very pocket, which stopped the bullet. But the hunter did not escape without reminders of the near tragedy, since he was cut with fragments of brass and was speckled with smokeless powder.

A smaller number of hunting accidents, about 30 percent, are self-inflicted. Teenagers account for a higher percentage of casualties resulting from unintentional discharge of a gun. These self-inflicted wounds result from all manner of carelessness. A gun discharges because it toppies over from some insecure prop. Though there are widespread laws against carrying a loaded rifle or shotgun in an automobile, accidents occur every year because of this folly. Despite warnings about crossing fences with loaded guns, many hunters are wounded while fence-crossing. Some accidents are hard to imagine. Can you imagine anyone being so foolhardy as to use a loaded rifle as a cane with the hand over the muzzle? It happens. Each year numerous persons lose various parts of their anatomies, mostly Angers, because of holding guns by their muzzles.

Anyone doing hunting with firearms should be well familiar with the vital rules. Foremost, of course, is the rule to shoot only when the game is clearly visible. The value of this rule is obvious. Its observance would eliminate many hunting accidents. It would eliminate shooting at a noise, which “noise” might turn out to he another hunter.

Hunting accidents do not just happen— they are caused, almost all of them, by the failure of some to respect the simple principles of hunting safety. One of those principles is never to trust a safety lock. One hunter thought it was safe to keep a loaded gun in his car as long as the safety lock was on. But one day he saw some game, rushed for the gun, and in his eagerness accidentally released the safety lock, causing the gun to discharge. The result was a hole in his car, but it could easily have been worse. Another good rule is never to hand a loaded gun to another person. Never take a loaded gun into a car, tent or house. “Empty” guns kill scores of persons every year throughout the world.

Wanton Slaughter tor Fun

The wanton slaughter of animal life was recently spotlighted by Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, at a dinner of the World Wildlife Fund in New York city. After telling how Noah brought animals into the ark to save them from the flood, he said: "Today a different kind of deluge threatens the earth’s creatures,” the flood of “thoughtless actions of mankind.” The prince noted that in 2,000 years about a Hundred species of animals and a hundred species of birds had become extinct. He spoke of the famous passenger pigeons that once darkened skies in North America and yet were exterminated in end generation, and “for fun.”

The fun seeker, the thrill seeker, the status seeker and the trophy seeker— these have all multiplied the slaughter in the woods. For these hunters it is not a matter of food. It is a matter of testing their skill, of having fun or of getting prestige. One noted hunter has said: “I like this shooting thing, stalking some relatively large animal or, even more enjoyable, shooting birds. It's like the pleasure of hitting a ball.”

Each year thousands of birds are slaughtered for fun. Telling what happened near the Swiss-German border, Time magazine of February 2, 1962, reported fifty hunters closing in for the kill of a flock of plump, brown-black Belchen (coots) that were paddling across Lake Constance:

'The few Belchen that tried to escape were blasted out of the sky or cut down before they could finish their flailing, loonlike takeoff. The rest of the birds were slaughtered where they sat. ... At least 600 Belchen. were bagged within the two-hour legal hunting limit, for a few bloodthirsty hunters were still dissatisfied. Groused one: ‘There’s no fun unless you shoot lots of them.’... The duckbilled, chicken-bodied coots that the gunmen slaughter . . . are worthless as trophies, and dead birds are usually given to the nearest garbage collector. . . . Still, more than 7,000 are shot each year. Explains one enthusiastic hunter: ‘They aren’t good for anything, and there’s lots of them. So why not shoot them?' ’’

How evident that the motive of these hunters is the mere thrill of shooting the birds’ Other hunters seek to experience this thrill by shooting whatever they can find, especially larger animals. A reporter for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner tells of what went on a few years ago during a caribou hunt in Alaska:

“Perhaps 30 or 40 hunters in cars, or sitting on the ground with binoculars yell and keep firing at the caribou. The frightened herd runs this way and that to escape. Down go several big bulls and dainty cows. Some struggle to rise and fall back on broken bones. The white moss is stained scarlet with blood. Several caribou are very dead, most of them gut shot.

“One hunter rushes up, cuts off a head and yells ‘look at these antlers.’ He doesn’t dean the animal. He has the trophy. . . . [The hunters] were out to kill anything that ’moved. Oftentimes it didn't have to move. High-powered gluts with telescopic lens cracked. Bullets whizzed far and wide. . . . One young woman was deliberately firing into the milling herd [of caribou] with a .22 automatic. She was shaking and screaming. ‘I never had so much fun in my life,' she said. Two men brought out a machine gun. Fortunately the game wardens were able to take the gun away before tragedy struck.

“Not only were caribou and moose shot down relentlessly, but small animals near the highway were shot just for fun. By the roadside we saw a mother porcupine and two babies all shot. Marmots, gay little rabbits, timid grouse, all met the same fate. A little mother . . . duck, a Victim of a hunter’s whim, lay dead beside the road. We saw the duck’s mate return again and again to the dead female uttering mournful cries, bereft of its loved one.”

What was the motive of many of these hunters? Was It food or was it thrills? What about the man whose sole purpose was trophies? the woman who screamed ecstatically as she pumped bullets into the herd of caribou? the men who came with a machine gun? Were they there for food or “fun”? Such accounts of wanton slaughter could be multiplied ad nauseam, indicating that many persons take up the slaughter of animal life for thrills. As one writer has said: “Make no mistake, the pursuit of wild food induces a primitive and pleasing glandular disturbance, remotely akin to falling in love or winning a fist fight.”

Christian View of Hunting

How is the Christian to view this slaughter in the woods? Can he participate in hunting without displeasing God?

The Christian must take the Bible view. Hence he does not oppose the killing of animals for the purpose of food. He knows that after the great Flood God said: “Every moving animal that is alive may serve as food for you. As in the Case of green vegetation, I do give it all to you. Only flesh with its soul—its blood—you must not eat.”—Gen. 9:3, 4.

But what If a Christian does not need to hunt or can obtain all the food he requires without hunting? Would it be wrong for him to hunt? Not necessarily. Some kinds of food are not readily available at meat markets or other stores. If a person likes venison and is willing to pay the cost for obtaining it by hunting, there is nothing wrong in that. That God-fearing man Jacob had a taste for venison. Once he told his son Esau: "Take, please, your implements, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt some venison for me. Then make me a tasty dish such as I am fond of and bring it to me and, ah, let me eat.” (Gen. 27:3, 4) The only way many persons can obtain certain dishes today, Buch as Venison, rabbit and pheasant, is by hunting.

Where, then, could a Christian err in regard to hunting? By going hunting really for the purpose of thrills or for trophies rather than for food. One might salve his conscience and say to himself: ‘Well, I’m really going hunting for the thrill of the chase and the shooting, but what I kill I will take home and eat, so that will make it all right.* But does it? Is it safe for a Christian to cultivate such desires? God gave animals to man and they can be killed for food. BUt killing animals just to test human skills or to give men “kicks" -and thrills is not the proper motive. Each Christian should remember he is preparing for life in God's new world, where thrillseeking Nimrods will not exist. Hence each Christian must examine his own mofives in regard to hunting. If he really wants the food and that is his true motive, then there is nothing sculpturally wrong. The fact that the hunter enjoys being out In the ©pen, breathing the fresh air, and that he may get relaxation out of hunting does not make it Wrong anymore than it would for a fisherman who seeks not only good food but the sunshine, the fresh air and relaxation. A fisherman too could have the wrong motive. If he fishes merely to test his skill against the fish, to haul fish in for fun and have a big thrill out of catching impressive specimens, he is not cultivating the right desires.

So the Christian who desires to please God could not join in wanton slaughter of animals, reveling in the thrill of shooting living creatures. Nimrod displeased God; he was “almighty hunter in opposition to Jehovah.’’ (Gen. 10:9) He hunted wild animals for thrills, prestige and self-glory; his cultivating such things led to his becoming a hunter of men. He cultivated wrong desires.

God gave man dominion over the animal creation, but man was not to chase and terrify the animals. He was to associate with them and delight in their presence. God made exceptions, in that animals could be killed for food, for sacrificial purposes or for clothing. Also, animals that injured humans or destroyed man’s domestic animals or property could be killed.—Ex. 21: 28; Cant.2:15.

Hunting Attire, Rules and Laws

If a Christian wishes to obtain food by hunting, what about attire? There is nothing objectionable about wearing a hunting costume, say a red cap and a red coat. Such attire is largely for safety and does not transform one into a thrill-seeking Nimrod, Whflt counts Is the hunter’s motive. Killing animals for the purpose of sport ©r amusement does not have the approval Of God.

Any Christian who obtains food by hunting should take all necessary precautions and obey all rules governing hunting. If one finds himself trigger-happy, shooting at mere noises, and so forth, one’s motive should be carefully examined, A Christian seeking food would shoot only when the game is clearly visible. He would not risk injuring or killing his fellowman by carelessness. Moreover, he would observe Caesar’s regulations governing the taking of game. He would not be guilty of killing more than the daily legal limit. Fishermen are said to violate daily bag limits more frequently than do individual hunters; but Christians will obey such regulations as the authorities in the community lay down.

Not only are there human laws to consider, but the Christian who goes hunting for food will be most careful to obey God’s law on blood, which requires taking the precaution to bleed the animal property, since a bullet wound is not enough to effect adequate drainage of blood.—Lev. 17:13, 14; Acts 15:28, 29; 21:25.

Let all who go hunting clearly understand their motive, especially since “the heart is more treacherous than anything else and is desperate.” (Jer. 17:9) If any find themselves cultivating wrong desires, it would be better to refrain from hunting. Let no Christian be responsible for the wanton slaughter in the woods, the shooting that also claims many human lives.

HEAVY DUSTFALL

Measurements made by United States and Russian rockets and satellites indicate that at least 10,000 tons of dust fall to the earth every day.

j reaction to

your letters

about

SINCE the article “Spain Sup

presses Religious Freedom” appeared in the April 8 issue of Awake!, there have been literally thousands of letters that have come to our attention in answer to your protests against the trampling underfoot of religious freedom on the part of the Spanish government. Over five hundred of these letters were written by United States senators and almost four hundred by congressmen and State representatives. British and 'Canadian government officials likewise responded, and clergymen, lawyers and school officials have added their voice in protest. No doubt you would enjoy knowing what some of these had to say. Herein are excerpts from a few of the letters received.

“The suppression of religious freedom in Spain is an old, well-known and sad story.” —A newspaper editor in chief, London, England.

“I am unalterably opposed to all sorts of restraints upon the minds of men by whomever and wherever imposed and you may be sure that I will be ready to do anything I can in advancing the cause of religious freedom.”—An attorney, Memphis, Tennessee.

"Publicity concerning these areas of repression is a valuable public service.”—Professor of law, Newport, Rhode Island.

From members of the Canadian House of Commons came these expressions: “I am shocked. . . . Freedom of religion is very far from any conception of the Spanish people. You may remember that that was the state that was responsible for the viciousness of

the Spanish Inquisition and, under a dictatorship, the people have not come very far since that time.” “I am appalled at what appears to be taking place in Spain today.”

From the British House of Commons: “Probably, publicity which is given by such articles is the best means of combatting this intolerance.” “I will most certainly make a protest on your behalf.” “You can rest assured the British Ambassador is behind you in this issue.”

“I agree with you that the persecution taking place in Spain is to be deplored and resisted vigorously by outgo vernment.”—Member of the United States Congress.

“Suppression of religious freedom anywhere is to be deplored. If we supply foreign aid to any nation, it seems to me that our government has a perfect right to insist upon religious freedom.” —Member of the United States Congress.

“As a general rule, the United States Government has no basis for any official protest or action against the suppression of religious practices by another sovereign nation. But In the case of Spain, we have large numbers of American forces stationed there at the American air bases, and therefore we have every right to ask that they be accorded the rights and privileges of American citizens,”—United States senator.

However, the United Stateff*State Department has taken another view of matters. It excuses pressure from the Catholic Church, and explains that, regardless of what the Spanish government may be doing to freedom, they would rather have Franco in their camp than lose his support in the fight against communism. Having made inquiry on the matter, a congressman made these remarks: “The Catholic Church plays a fairly large part in the functions of the Spanish Government, and there is a natural tendency to thwart any attempt on the part of other religious groups to proselytize. It was also explained to me by a State Department official, that our Government hesitates in condemning the Spanish Government for the reason that it is a non-Communist country, and there is no desire to lose the support of this country in our struggle with Russia. The United States has a number of air bases strategically located in Spain, and in order to insure their retention, all caution is used to avoid any possibility that they will not be retained.”

Of course, not everyone agrees that that is the best policy. “I am not entirely satisfied with the reply of the [State] Department,” said one senator. “Frankly, I feel that the reply of the Department leaves something to be desired."

“It is a lamentable fact that, in times of peril like these, we must necessarily ally ourselves with all those who will oppose our common enemy, even though our allies may themselves be unsavory.” “The use of our foreign aid money to keep a despot in power in a country seems most objectionable to the ideals on which this country was built and presently advocates.” —Members of U.S, Congress.

“There is, of course, a growing feeling in many circles that we are making a great mistake in sendin’g our dollars to support dictators. I share this view.” —United States senator.

Spanish Authorities Remark

What did Spanish officials have to say?

“There is no ban forbidding anyone to change his religion,” answered the Spanish embassy in London. “This is established by the ‘Fuero de los Espanoles’ or Spaniards’ Charter (Article 6), which states that ‘nobody shall be molested for his religious beliefs nor in the private practice of his form of worship.’ ”

“In Spain there is complete freedom of worship. —The Consulate of Spain, Los Angeles, Calif.

But the on-the-scenes report published in Awake!, which cited names, dates and places where persons have been jailed simply for admitting that they were Jehovah’s witnesses or for reading the Bible together in their private homes, belies their replies.

Religious Leaders Speak Up

There are ministers of many religious organizations who are concerned about the suppression of freedom in Spain, and they too voiced their views:

“I have tried to help some of our missionaries in Spain the past 15 years who have undergone as cruel treatment as what is described in your magazine."—Pastor, Presbyterian Church.

“I was in Madrid three years ago, and was able to observe first hand the difficulties faced by several religious faiths as they endeavored to worship.”—State director, Baptist Convention.

“This is the same story we get from most of the countries where the Catholics are dominant. And this certainly does bring concern to all God-loving people.” —Bishop, Brethren in Christ Church.

“We are on your side of the fence.” —Chairman, Bahai.

“We are greatly concerned about the suppression of religious freedom that is taking place in many countries including Spain. . . . We realize that this threat is coming ever closer to America as well as the world.”—Pastor, Evangelistic Center.

“We behold you as among God’s victorious.”—Minister, Unity Church.

"I share your alarm.”—Minister, First Presbyterian Church.

“I am thoroughly convinced that unless something is done in the next few years, the Roman Catholics will take the world.” —Minister, Church of Christ.

“America stands in the gravest danger of its whole history. Not only from Communism, but also from Roman Catholicism and from a third sinister element, namely, an apostate Protestantism.”—Minister, Baptist Church.

“If your group is suppressed by Spain and/or the Catholic Church, that means that every other religious group in the world is in danger of suppression.”—Minister, Trinity Methodist Church.

"Above all I think it is important that American people be informed as to the kind of tyranny, both religious, political, and otherwise that exists there, and I think your magazine is doing a real service.”—Rector, Christ Episcopal Church.

“It cannot be denied that such suppression does exist.”—Minister, First Methodist Church.

Roman Catholic Comments

Response from the Catholic clergy, however, was somewhat different: “As far as actual persecution is concerned I found no evidence or 11 in Spain.”—Roman Catholic priest, Portland, Oregon.

“Objective evidence does not support any of your claims.”—Roman Catholic priest, Sioux City, Iowa.

“Too bad there is no official suppression of J.W.’s in this country!”—Priest, Lancashire, England.

"We might not want a man like Franco for our country, but they are very much satisfied with him” in Spain.—Roman Catholic pastor, Durand, Wisconsin.

“You have the effrontery to call on Catholic priests to voice a protest to our Government and to the holy Father against an official [Franco] who has dared to speak the truth of history.”—Roman Catholic priest, Pennsylvania.

“Never mind this religious freedom business. No man has the right to propagate error and heresy. . . . Anyhow, in Spain there is an ideal situation* existing between Church and State. And if you among others are not careful, you are going to arouse the sentiment of the rightthinking American people against you— possibly leading to the suppression of what you call religious freedom in this country. The more you and Protestants advocate Birth control—the greater the chances of this Nation some day becoming a Catholic country. That will be the day. Then maybe what is going on in Spain might be compared to a Sunday school social.”—Roman Catholic pastor, Livonia, Louisiana.

But far greater in number are those persons who want to be free to hear what others have to say and choose for themselves. They speak out on behalf of freedom, not only for themselves, but for all men. They are of the opinion that safeguarding freedom for others is a good way to preserve it for oneself.

■ —■”*-----------"

By “Awake!” correspondent in Finland

IATURDAY, June. 9, was a memorable day in the history of Jehovah’s witnesses in I Finland, On that evening 1,543 Witnesses

from all parts of the country gathered at Tikku-ri la, near the capital city of Helsinki, to attend the dedication of a new branch office, home and factory, which had been built by the united efforts of the Witnesses.

An architect who is a Witness designed the new structure; and in September, 1961, the Witnesses began to dig the foundations, the work going ahead quickly. Working very hard and willingly, this force of Witnesses contributed 12,000 hours of work. Finally the new partly three-storied, red-brick Bethel home and factory, situated on a large rock mass overlooking the beautiful countryside, came to completion,

The dedication program included a review of the work of Jehovah's witnesses in Finland. It all began in the summer of 1909, when a Finnish businessman set out to make a pilgrimage to Palestine, Because of travel connections he was obliged to wait over in Gothenburg, Sweden. There a colporteur, as the full-time preachers of Jehovah's witnesses were then called, happened to call at the hotel in which he was staying. In room-to-room work the Witness met this businessman, who accepted some books and began to read them as a means of passing time.

The Bible explanations that these books contained were so revolutionary to this man that he abandoned his trip to Palestine and returned to Finland. There he began a systematic study of the Bible with one of his friends, using the Society’s series of books known as “Studies in the Scriptures.”

These two men saw the need of preaching these Bible truths to others. A depot was needed, and in 1911 a small room was rented. On Sunday a public talk was usually presented in a nearby park and interested ones were invited to the office, where study meetings were held. By the end of the year there were five dedicated workers.

The following year, 1912, the first convention was arranged, in connection with the Memorial of Christ’s death, with thirty-six persons In attendance. At the end of this year the first Watch Tower appeared in Finnish. That same year the Society’s first president, C. T. Russell, visited Helsinki, and 140 persons attended a convention in connection with his visit. The next year, 1913, a branch office was opened.

By 1928 there were 305 Witnesses in the country. Some of these considered the possibility of going to serve where the need was still greater, in Estonia. The Estonian radio, in 1930, unexpectedly agreed to broadcast the Kingdom message over the Tallinn radio station in Finnish, Swedish, Estonian and Russian. The broadcasts were continued without interruption for five years. Since the Estonians proved to be very receptive to the Kingdom message, many Witnesses went across from Finland to work there as full-time preachers.

When Finland entered the second world war, there were about 500 Witnesses in the country. During the war the Branch servant was arrested, literature confiscated and the magazines banned. Yet the Witnesses pressed on, and when the war came to an end, there were 1,420 publishers in Finland, an increase through those troublesome years of 185 percent.

Since 1945, the Kingdom work has moved forward, so that in April 1962, there was a new peak of 8,939 Kingdom ministers in Finland.

In his dedication discourse Branch servant Erkki Kaiikaanpaa discussed this growth and showed the need for the expanded facilities, In 1938, for example, 73,313 Watchtower and Awake! magazines were printed in Finland, but last year more than two million were needed. Further, the Kingdom Ministry School for overseers is now being held in the new building.

Jehovah’s witnesses in Finland are determined to make full use of these expanded facilities to do all in their power to carry the message of God’s kingdom to all corners of the land.

Gan,ywyaAvtentr

ALL too familiar to many ocean trav- , elers is the sickening feeling that r comes when a ship encounters heavy I seas. As the ship goes up and down, rolling at the same time to the right and to the left, a passenger’s stomach seems to rise into his throat and then drop into his shoes. The walls of his cabin seem to swim about his head. He breaks out into a cold sweat and takes on a greenish pallor. Wave after wave of nausea sweeps over him. He retches until his insides feel as if they are tearing apart. Feeling violently ill, he loses interest in everything about him, including life itself. The torment of motion sickness transforms what could have been a delightful trip into a nightmare.

A traveler flying in a plane high above the ship passenger might feel like congratulating himself for not being on the rough ocean below and prostrated with seasickness. But when his plane encounters turbulent air, he may not feel so selfsatisfied. As the plane is tossed about, dropping suddenly like an elevator and rising just as suddenly, he feels the same sickening up-and-down pressure on his stomach that the traveler on the ocean liner feels. A feeling of nausea can come over him and grow worse as the plane banks suddenly. The cabin seems to spin about him. Before long he frantically reaches for the special paper bag kept in the seat pocket in front of him. Airsickness can be every bit as unpleasant as seasickness. Whether on the ocean or in the air, the traveler can be made miserably ill by motion, but people to it.

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Sensitivity fo Motion

Some persons are so sensitive to motion that they get sick when riding in a train or a car or even when sitting in a swing. Others may not be affected until they begin reading while they are moving. Still others can get sick when sitting still in a movie house watching a motion picture taken from a plane or a roller coaster. Motion sickness can be triggered by what the eyes see as well as by what the body feels. For some unknown reason it affects women more than men.

Women travelers are five to ten times more sensitive to motion sickness than are adult males. This is especially true with airsickness. Half-grown children have about the same sensitiveness, whereas children under two years of age do not appear to be affected at all. Young men between the ages of seventeen and nineteen seem to be three times as sensitive to it as males over thirty years of age. This does rjot mean that adult males do not succumb to motion sickness; they do, but not as readily as other persons. In fact, 90 to 100 percent of all people are subject to some form of this sickness. Immunity to one form does not necessarily mean immunity to other forms of it.

Cause

There is uncertainty as to what actually causes motion sickness. Those who think it is psychosomatic are faced with vehement denials by persons who have suffered it. The use of sugar-pill placebos has not stopped people from, getting sick. In one test on military fliers 20 percent of those taking sugar-pill placebos got sick. While there are instances of people becoming sick because they thought they would, evidence points to something more than imagination as the cause. The cause appears to lie in the central nervous system.

The nerves of the eyes, nose and internal organs contribute to the squeamish feeling associated with the various forms of motion sickness. The principal contributors appear to be the nerves associated with a person's sense of balance. These are connected with the labyrinth in each ear where semicircular canals filled with fluid play a major role in the mechanism of balance. Confirming the relation of motion sickness with the labyrinth is the fact that persons whose ear labyrinths do not function never suffer motion sickness.

Some motions of a plane or ship are more distressing than others. Pitching and heaving movements, for example, are more likely to cause sickness than rolling movements. The same is true when the craft makes repeated moves in more than one direction. Motion in the walls, floor and ceiling of a cabin is especially sickening when the passenger is unable to orient himself by looking at a distant object through a window or porthole.

During World War II it was found that 80 percent of the airsickness suffered by bomber crews was among men in the navigators’ compartment. These men usually occupied compartments where they could not orient themselves by looking outside. When they went to another part of the plane where they could see the horizon or distant objects on the ground, they often felt improved.

Other aggravating factors can be the reading of fine print in a moving vehicle, indigestion, too much alcohol, hunger, overeating, lack of ventilation, a cabin that is too warm, noise and vibration, the smell of food or engine fumes, and so forth. Just the sight of a person who is sick can make an uneasy feeling in the stomach become worse.

Prevention

Motion sickness is not necessarily inevitable for you when you travel. There are ways you can prevent it. On a plane, for example, be careful about choosing the location of your seat. Remember that a seat near the front or tail tends to have more motion than near the wings. Select a window seat on the right side near the wings.

Seats on the left side of a plane are bad for sensitive persons. The plane usually banks to the left when it turns because the pilot sits on that side and can see better by banking in that direction. The ground dips and swirls past the eyes of the passengers on that side whenever the plane banks. This aggravates any feeling of nausea.

Sitting next to a window has an advantage over sitting next to the aisle. It allows you to keep yourself oriented by permitting you to look out the window. When you look out fix your eyes on distant objects that appear to be fixed. These might be distant mountains, cloud formations or even the horizon. Avoid looking at the nearby landscape or clouds, allowing them to swim past your field of vision. That will make any tendency toward sickness much worse. Perhaps you have noticed this sickening effect from an automobile when telephone poles flashed by at a blurring speed.

It is wise to avoid overeating before taking a trip. Food in itself will not cause motion sickness, but too much food ir the stomach can contribute to it. On the other hand, it is equally unwise to fast. An empty stomach can have just as bad an effect as a stomach that is too full. The best course to take is to eat the food you normally do, in a moderate amount. Start your trip with a comfortable stomach.

If you feel a bit upset, recline your seat as much as you can and rest your head on the headrest. Keep it in one position. The fewer head movements you make the better off you will be. Oftentimes a feeling of nausea will pass away when the head is kept steady against a headrest. If the up-and-down motion of the plane makes your stomach feel as if it is sliding up and down inside of you, take a deep breath and hold it when the plane hits a downdraft. That will tend to compress your abdominal organs and reduce the feeling of movement. These suggestions will also prove helpful to passengers on an ocean liner.

When you begin to feel sick on a ship, get out of your cabin and go out on deck. Recline in a deck chair, keeping your head steady. Do not look at the moving deck and waves in the foreground. Fix your eyes on the distant horizon. Very likely this will cause the sick feeling to pass. In the event that you finally succumb to seasickness, you can figure on about three days of lessening misery before you become adjusted to the motion of the ship. After that you should be all right unless the sea becomes rougher. Only about 3 to 5 percent of the pass sr gers on ocean liners fail to make this adjustment.

COMING IN THE NEXT ISSUE

• The Trinity—Mystery or Falsehood?

• The Road to Degradation, (Narcotics)

• Insect Architects at Work.

• Why a Fever?

Drugs

It was not until motion sickness incapacitated large numbers of fighting men during World War n that medical science began deep research on the problem. In 1943, Canadian researchers produced a drug that worked satisfactorily in preventing motion sickness. A few years later an antihistamine accidentally proved effective when it stopped carsickness in a patient who was being treated for something else. A number of drugs for motion sickness are now available.

As might be expected, the drugs have some bad side' effects. They sometimes cause blurred vision and drowsiness, .depending upon how much is taken. To be most effective in preventing motion sickness, it is necessary to begin taking one of these drugs from a half hour to one hour before you start your trip and then at specific intervals thereafter. Usually the effect of one pill will last for about four hours. When taken after you have become sick, it is less effective. Injections of sodium bicarbonate were discovered to be helpful by Dr. Minoru Muta of Japan. The injections can provide immunity for up to one month. This treatment, however, may not be available to you.

Whether you will use one of these drugs or try the less certain methods for preventing motion sickness is something you will have to decide for yourself. You know your own sensitivity to it. In any event, there is no reason to fear a delightful trip by train, ship or plane when ways exist for you to prevent motion sickness.

WELCOMED BACK

in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Jehovah’s witnesses recently used a high school for holding a Christian assembly. The school board had been somewhat reluctant to grant permission for use of the school facilities because they had been improperly cared for by other religious groups. The facilities included a cafeteria equipped with the latest machinery. What did the school officials say about the Witnesses’ use of the facilities? “This building is cleaner than it has been for eight years,” and, ‘‘If you ever want to use these facilities again, you are welcome.” The principal, impressed with the cafeteria organization, called his wife to come and see for herself. The county manager of cafeterias was likewise impressed with the cleanliness, so much so that he offered the head cook a job supervising one of the county school cafeterias. This Witness had come to serve where the need is great for Kingdom ministers and needed a job. The superintendent of the county school was so pleased with the report from the cafeteria manager and the principal that he welcomed the Witnesses to come 'back anytime.

CLERGY OPPOSITION

In Mexia, Texas, the efforts of the clergy’s Ministerial Alliance to prevent Jehovah’s witnesses from holding an assembly in the city failed. Public reaction showed disapproval of the clergy’s action. Many businessmen remarked that they did not favor the efforts of the clergy. Almost every business place that had a window display accepted a sign advertising the public talk. Though the contract for the auditorium was rent free, there was to be a charge if It was necessary to turn on the heat for the three days. Saturday evening it got chilly and a man from the fire department came over, turned on the heat and said: “This is on the fire department. There will not be any charge for this service for you people.” The public lecture was broadcast over the local radio station, the manager being most cooperative. He said he did not like the way the clergy went about things, and he went on the air with an editorial stating that the Ministerial Alliance was out of place in trying to pressure the'clty commissioners into denying a minority group the freedom to assemble.

After the assembly, the Watchtower Society’s representatives in charge of the awem-bly were approached by one of the city commissioners. He stated tha< he attended all the program Sunday and enjoyed it very much. He said that the conduct of the Witnesses in the city was very good and that he would certainly recommend to the city commissioners that they be invited back anytime. Attendance at the assembly was 10 percent over the total number of Witnesses in the area, indicating that many local people were present to hear the public talk, plus the many who listened to the broadcast.

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY IN COLOMBIA

Colombia's national assembly was set for March 23-25, 1962, in Barranquilla, and how the Christian witnesses of Jehovah appreciated the privilege of coming together! Some came from mountainous regions where they had to travel on foot or by horse or burro for great distances, then by bus, train or riverboat to the assembly city. Some buses filled with Witnesses traveled upward of thirty hours and over some roads that were thick with dust.

To provide for the arrival of the delegates a unique arrangement was made in some cases: A special busload of delegates would arrive. The rooming department had already made arrangements for the entire group to be assigned in the same section of town. So they would drive to the Kingdom Hall in that section, unload and then be guided to their rooms by local brothers. Some thirteen special buses were handled in this way.

Baptism, which had been a problem due to the distance from the beach, was handled easily: The brothers dug a small pool about ten feet long, four feet wide and five feet deep in the sandy patio of the branch office of the Society. They then lined this with less than $4 worth of plastic, and there the baptism of 179 persons was held.

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You may have wondered why the climate of England is mild, while Labrador, in the same latitude, has a climate that is far more rigorous. And why is it that Norway, located largely above 6CF latitude, has ice-free harbors into the Arctic Circle while Greenland and Siberia are so forbiddingly cold? How do you explain the fact that tiny Uruguay is famous for its beautiful Atlantic beaches, while Chile with nearly 3,000 miles of Pacific coastline has nothing to boast about in that regard? These are some of the results produced by millions of tons of warm and frigid water

…