Awake!, January 22, 1966
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Christianity's Unique Requirements
Tire Care May Save Your Life
Worldwide Lawlessness of Youths—Why?
Fertile Soil—A Miracle or Creation
JANUARY 22, 1966
THE REASON FOR THIS MAGAZINE
News sources that are able to keep you awake to the vital issues of our times must be unfettered by censorship and selfish interests. "Awakel" has no feiters. It recognizes facts, faces facts, is free to publish facts. It is not bound by political ties; it is unhampered by traditional creeds. This magazine keeps itself free, that it may speak freely to you. But it does not abuse its freedom. It maintains integrity to truth.
The viewpoint of "Awake!" is not narrow, but is international. "Awake!" has its own correspondents in scores of nations. Its articles are read in many lands, in many languages, by millions of persons.
In every issue "Awake!" presents vital topics on which you should be informed. It features penetrating articles on social conditions and offers sound counsel for meeting the problems of everyday life. Current news from every continent passes in quick review. Attention is focused on activities in the fields of government and commerce about which you should know. Straightforward discussions of religious issues alert you to matters of vital concern. Customs and people in many lands, the marvels of creation, practical sciences and points of human interest are all embraced in its coverage. "Awake!" provides wholesome, instructive reading for every member of the family.
"Awakel" pledges itself to righteous principles, to exposing hidden foes and subtle dangers, to championing freedom for all, to comforting mourners and strengthening those disheartened by the failures of a delinquent world, reflecting sure hope for the establishment of God's righteous new order in this generation.
Get acquainted with "Awake!" Keep awake by reading "Awake!"
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CONTENTS
Be Wlesly Generous 3
Christianity's Unique Requirements 5
Helping Others to Learn
the Teachings of Christ 8
Tire Care May Save Your Life 9
The Pilgrimage to the "Virgin of Verdun" 12
Those Amazing Sleepers 15
Worldwide Lawlessness of Youths---Why? 16
Injurious Passion 19
Fertile Soil—A Miracle of Creation 20
Our Complex Atmosphere 23
Dhows—A Look at Living History 24
"Your Word Is Truth"
Purgatorial Suffering? 27
Watching the World 29
BE WISELY Generous
BEING generous is usually defined as being liberal in giving, openhanded. It is just the opposite of being petty, mean, stingy, niggardly and parsimonious.
Strictly speaking, however, generosity is not synonymous with liberality. Generosity goes farther and is a more noble quality than liberality. Thus, as has been said, 'generosity seems to be superior to liberality, for it refers more to the internal disposition or heart condition and therefore implies a completer triumph over selfish impulses.'—Century Dictionary.
It follows, then, that the liberal American people are not necessarily more generous than others, even though it has been said of them, "You couldn't stop Americans from giving even if you wanted to." And by the same token, notwithstanding popular opinion to the contrary, it cannot be said that the Scots are ungenerous. They as a people have had to practice extreme thrift because of the nature of their land, but those who have come to know them well will testify that as a people they are truly generous.
True generosity is not only noble but also the course of wisdom, even as King Solomon long ago wrote: "There exists the one that is scattering and yet is being increased . . . The generous soul will itself
be made fat, and the one freely watering others will himself also be freely watered." "Send out your bread upon the surface of the waters, for in the course of many days you will find it again."—Prov. 11:24, 25; Eccl. 11:1.
Jesus Christ made the same point when he said, in his sermon on the mount: "Practice giving, and people will give to you. They will pour into your laps a fine measure, pressed down, shaken together and overflowing. For with the measure that you are measuring out, they will measure out to you in return." Expressing the same thought but slightly different, the apostle Paul said: "He that sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; and he that sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." —Luke 6:38; 2 Cor. 9:6.
However, to no small degree the above-noted principles depend upon our being wisely generous. They would not apply if we acted foolishly in our giving or had been victimized. So it is not enough that we want to be generous in our giving, but we should give wisely, be wisely generous.
To whom or what shall we give? To the truly needy ones, to those who are deserving. Emphasizing that our giving should be to the ones in need, Jesus once stated: "When you spread a dinner or evening meal, do not call your friends or .
. . rich neighbors. Perhaps some time they might also invite you in return and it would become a repayment to you. But when you spread a feast, invite poor people, crippled, lame, blind; and you will be happy, because they have nothing with which to repay you. For you will be repaid in the resurrection of the righteous ones." Not that there is anything wrong with reciprocal social entertaining; but can it be said to be an evidence of generosity? Much of Christmas giving has such lack of generosity connected with it. People give to those from whom they expect to receive and even measure the size of the gift they give by the size of the gift they expect to receive!—Luke 14:12-14.
Then again, it does not necessarily follow that when a shabbily dressed man asks for money he should be given a coin. His pitilable appearance may be purposely assumed for the sake of appealing to people's sympathy, or his appearance may be due to laziness or indifference. He may be asking money for food or carfare but just as likely he may be wanting money for liquor or tobacco. So the merits of each appeal have to be appraised so as not to reject the worthy and not to be taken in by the unworthy.
That the same principle applies to contributing, showing generosity to organizations claiming to be philanthropic, is also apparent from an article that appeared on the front page of the New York Times, December 13, 1964. It told, among other things, that the giving to philanthropies in the United States had increased in the last thirty years from 1 billion a year to10 billion, about half of this sum going to religious organizations, making philanthropy one of America's ten top "businesses." It also reported that some $300 million each year is collected by questionable
groups and even more is wasted by wellmeaning incompetents.
Among questionable groups are those who pocket for themselves from 80 to 90 cents of each dollar collected, whereas a reasonable amount would be around 15 cents. A board that supplies information on the worthiness of various philanthropies, for approval requires that an organization maintain "a responsible unpaid board, a legitimate purpose, reasonably efficient programs, ethical promotion and solicitation," and so forth. In view of these requirements it is indeed of interest that the president of one of the world's most respected charities receives an annual salary in excess of that received by the president of the United States.
Among other things, the Times quoted recommendations that one contribute only to solicitors whom one knew personally. It said that "the biggest share of the charity pie goes to those who shout the loudest and use the best techniques . . . People give to the things that have the greatest emotional appeal." Surely this is food for thought. Do you contribute on the basis of need and merit or because of the loud shouting, the technique used, the emotional appeal?
One of the most widespread philanthropies in the world today is carried on without any solicitations and yet spends many millions of dollars in financing the preaching of the good news of God's kingdom in obedience to the prophetic command found at Matthew 24:14. Those interested in this philanthropy, however, do not limit their support to money but give that which is even more valuable, their time, their energies and their personal influence. And this may be said to be the most deserving of all philanthropies, because it works toward the sanctifying of God's name and the everlasting life of those willing to listen and to heed. And what is more important than these things?—Matt. 6:9; John 17:3.
Christianity's unique
WHAT are Christianity's unique requirements? Ask that question of the average person in Christendom who professes to be Christian and he might answer something like this: 'Believe in God. Keep the Ten Commandments. Do to others as you would have them do to you.'
Good and important as it is to believe in God and to do good to others, this is not what distinguishes Christianity from all other forms of worship. They are not its unique features. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, did not need to come from heaven to earth to teach these things, for they were taught the Jews through the law of Moses.
Yes, long before the Son of God came to earth the Israelites had given to them the 'two great commandments of life,' namely, to love Jehovah with all one's heart, mind, soul and strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself. (Deut. 6:5; Lev. 19:18; Mark 12:28-32) Jesus said that the teaching of the Law and of the Prophets, which they had had for centuries, was this: "All things, therefore, that you want men to do you, you also must likewise do to them." (Matt. 7:12) So, too, they had long had that fine epitome of God's requirements for man as found at Micah 6:8: "He has told you, O earthling man, what is good. And what is Jehovah asking back from you but to exercise justice-and to love kindness and to be modest in walking with your God?" These noble things were required of the worshipers of the true God Jehovah before the inception of Christianity, even though now they correspond with its requirements.
What are they?
Who are meeting them?
Since these requirements had been laid upon the Israelites long before Jesus Christ ever came to earth, just what are some of the requirements that he laid upon his followers that are unique, and so unique to Christianity? Among the foremost are recognizing the part Jesus Christ plays in Jehovah God's purposes, the preaching commission he laid upon his followers and the new commandment he gave them to love one another as he had loved them.
Recognizing Jesus Christ
What is the part Jesus Christ plays in Jehovah God's purposes? In the beginning, as the Word, he was with God his Father and he himself "was a god." His Father used him in bringing all things into existence and without this Son of God "not even one thing came into existence." He came from heaven to earth, as he himself testified, not to be ministered to or to be served, "but to minister and to give his soul [life] a ransom in exchange for many." He came as "the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world." On the third day after he gave his life for the sin of the world God raised him from the dead and thereafter "exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him the name that is above every other name, so that in the name of Jesus every knee should bend .
. . and every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." —John 1:1-3; Matt. 20:28; John 1:29; Phil. 2:9-11.
Jesus Christ claimed to be God's Son in a unique sense, for he told Nicodemus: "God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life." As
begotten Son of God, the long-promised Messiah and the ransomer of mankind.
A Congregation of Preachers
Another unique feature of Christianity as introduced by its Founder was that of making all his followers, all those that believed in him, preachers and teachers. They were to be his followers, not only in accepting him as the Messiah, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, but also in imi-
the apostle Peter, in reply to Jesus' question, "Who do you say I am?" answered: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."—John 3:16; Matt. 16:15, 16.
As faithful Jews, Jesus' disciples were already, at least in effect, witnesses for Jehovah. (Isa. 43:10-12) But now they were to be also witnesses for Jesus Christ, as he himself told them: "You will be witnesses of me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the most distant part of the earth."—Acts 1:8.
In keeping with that injunction we find
tating him by spreading this good news to others. There had been nothing like this prior to Jesus' coming to the earth. The law of Moses made no provision for the Israelites' preaching to the Gentiles and trying to convert them to the worship of Jehovah. Nor did the prophets, from Samuel, to Malachi, appeal to their hearers to become preachers of the Word of God, to endeavor to spread the worship of Jehovah beyond the confines of the nation of Israel. Of course, later the Jewish scribes and Pharisees did "traverse sea and dry land"
that, when the apostle Peter was sent to the Gentile army officer Cornelius, Peter gave him a witness regarding Jesus Christ, saying: "God anointed him with holy spirit and power, and he went through the land doing good and healing all those oppressed by the Devil; because God was with him. And we are witnesses of all the things he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem; but they also did away with him by hanging him on a stake. God raised this One up on the third day and granted him to become manifest, not to all the peo
to make proselytes to Judaism, but not with good results.—Matt. 23:15; Acts 2: 5-10.
But Jesus Christ did institute a preaching campaign in which all his followers were to share—truly something unique with Christianity. He set the example, pioneering the way. In the next year after his baptism in the Jordan River he began to preach: "Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near." And so we further read that "he went around throughout the whole of Galilee, teaching
him to become mankind, not to in the people, but . . . to us, who ate and drank with him after his rising from the dead. . . . To him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone putting faith in him gets forgiveness of sins through his name."—Acts 10: 38-43.
True Christianity requires belief in these truths regarding Jesus Christ as the only-
throughout the whole of Gainee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news of the kingdom." Not content to have just one group of preachers, he sent out the twelve apostles in two's, and later the seventy evangelizers, all to follow his example by preaching the good news of God's kingdom.—Matt. 4:17, 23; 10:2-7; Luke 10:1, 9.
No question about it, as regards Jesus' activity while on earth, preaching and teaching came first. The Gospel accounts put the emphasis on Jesus' preaching, as in his sermon on the mount, in his giving of many parables and then in his explaining of them. In fact, such was the emphasis on teaching in his ministry that both those who opposed him and those who followed him addressed him as "Teacher," or "Rabbi," which terms mean the same thing. Matt. 5:1-7:29; 13:1-53; 18:1-35; 22:16, 24, 36; 23:8; John 1:38; 3:2.
So also with Jesus' disciples. The first ones he called he invited to become "fisher's of men." How? By preaching, of course. And among his final instructions to his disciples was the command to make disciples of people of all nations. How? By "teaching them."—Matt. 4:19; 28:19, 20.
Then after Jesus ascended to heaven and the holy spirit was poured out upon his followers at the time of Pentecost, what did the gathered 120 in that upper room in Jerusalem do? They at once spoke out and preached, causing people to say: "See here, all these who are speaking are Gallleans, are they not? And yet how is it we are hearing . . . them speaking in our [own] tongues about the magnificent things of God?" And they kept on preaching, so much so that they were arrested and commanded "nowhere to make any utterance or to teach upon the basis of the name of Jesus." In reply the apostles said: "We cannot stop speaking about the things we have seen and heard." And when, after the stoning of the discipline Stephen, persecution scattered the early Christians, we read that "those who had been scattered went through the land declaring the good news of the word."—Acts 2:7-11; 4:18-20; 8:4.
Not only that, but underscoring the importance of this preaching ministry are the inspired words of the apostle Paul: "If you
publicly declare that 'word in your own mouth,' that Jesus is Lord, and exercise faith in your heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one exercises faith for righteousness, but with the mouth one makes public declaration for salvation." Speaking, preaching, witnessing to others, making public declaration, was not one of the requirements of the law of Moses and is not required of each one practicing the religions of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism or Shinto, but it is uniquely one of the main requirements of true Christianity.—Rom. 10:9, 10.
All of this calls to mind what the archbishop of Canterbury, Arthur M. Ramsey, sald of the late Albert Schweitzer: "Schweitzer was one of the great Christians of our time or of any time." Now, undoubtedly Schweitzer was a dedicated man. Because of his talents he could have lived in material luxury, but he did not choose to do so. After having become an ordained clergyman, he went back to school and studied medicine and then chose to serve as a medical missionary in one of the most inhospitable sections of Africa.
Why did he change from preaching to the practice of medicine? He is quoted as saying, "I wanted to become a doctor, that I might be able to work without having to talk." But why did he no longer want to talk? Because he had lost his faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and in the inspiration of the Bible. As he himself admitted, he was in a quandary: "Was I to teach what I myself had been taught but which I did not believe? How could I, as the principal of a seminary, accept the responsibility for teaching young men that which I did not believe? But was I to teach what I did believe? If I did so, would this not bring pain to those who taught me? Faced with these questions, I decided I would do neither. I decided that I would leave the seminary.
Instead of trying to get acceptance of my ideas, involving painful controversy, I decided to make my life my argument."
However, true Christians accept Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah, the Son of God, the Ransomer of humankind, and make the preaching of his kingdom their chief concern.
"Love One Another"
To mention but one more of Christianity's unique requirements, we have the one Jesus gave his followers on the last night of his life on earth as a human. On that occasion, among other things, Jesus said: "I am giving you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love among yourselves." John 13:34 35
John 13:34, 35.
No question about this being a unique requirement of Christianity, for it was to be one by which all his followers could be identified. This went far beyond the love of neighbor as oneself; it meant loving a fellow Christian even more than oneself. As Jesus further observed on that same evening: "This is my commandment, that you love one another just as I have loved you. No one has love greater than this, that someone should surrender his soul [life] in behalf of his friends." This is the very thing, let it be noted, Jesus himself did.—John 15:12, 13.
What a far cry this standard of Christianity is from what we see practiced in Christendom by ever so many of those professing to be Christians! They sling mud at one another in political campaigns, engage in cut-throat competition, defraud one another as to marital right and in time of war kill one another. Truly this unique requirement of Christianity to love one another as Jesus loved his followers is overlooked by the vast majority of those professing to be Christians.—1 Thess. 4: 3-8; Jas. 4:1-5.
Clearly, Christianity is not to be confused with any other religion. It has unique requirements, foremost of which are (1) recognizing the part that Jesus Christ plays in the purposes of God as revealed in the Christian Greek Scriptures, (2) preaching his kingdom at every opportunity and (3) manifesting the kind of love that Jesus himself showed, being willing even to die for a fellow Christian. It might be said that these requirements are so high that few professed Christians are interested in meeting them.
There is a class of people, however, that, by their fruits, show that they are meeting these requirements. Known as the Christian witnesses of Jehovah, they stand ready to help all others who are interested in meeting the unique requirements of Christianity, and this they do by conducting Bible studies in the homes of interested persons free of charge. If you would appreciate such help, then the next time one of the witnesses of Jehovah calls at your door, welcome him in so that he can begin to give you this help; or write to the publishers of this journal, requesting to have someone call for that purpose.
HELPING OTHERS TO LEARN THE TEACHINGS OF CHRIST
♦ In the past year, in 197 different lands, Jehovah's witnesses conducted, on an average, 770,595 Bible studies in the homes of interested persons, free of charge. Under the direction of 92 branch organizations of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, they also made 59,165,475 return visits during the year to help others learn the teachings of Christ.
EVERYONE helps to load the automobile, the family piles in, and you nose the car out onto the highway. Anticipation of a pleasant vacation creates a festive mood. But as you accelerate to the speed of the fast-moving traffic something you recently read has a sobering effect: 'Every month, thousands die in automobile accidents, and many more thousands are injured.' It causes you to wonder, "Have I checked everything to make sure the car is in the safest possible operating condition?"
Often the most obvious item, and the one of perhaps greatest importance, is overlooked: The tires. Think about it. Your tires are what support the whole automobile and everyone inside. You are riding on about a six-to-eight-inch cushion of air held within the rubber that is mounted on about a fourteen-inch-in-diameter wheel rim. These tires make it possible to start the car moving. And all four of them must stay properly inflated to carry you and the automobile safely down the highway. At increased speeds your life actually depends upon them!
Did you ever stop to think what happens when a tire suddenly goes flat at high speed? The section of the automobile riding on that air cushion instantly falls about seven inches, or approximately 50 percent of the height of the wheel rim. This abrupt
drop twists the wheels, often sending the car off course and, at times, completely out of control. If there are oncoming cars, even a slight twist of the wheels may throw you right into their path. No wonder defective tires are considered by traffic experts as one of the greatest hazards to motorists.
The Killer Tire
Major Singleton Sheaffer, head of the state police patrolling the Pennsylvania Turnpike, believes that tires cause more accidents than even the experts may realize. "Police are trained investigators," he stated, "but too often this killer slips through the net of blame, masquerading under the names of 'Too fast for conditions,' or 'Lost control on curve,' or 'Hazardous highway conditions.' We need to strip off these disguises and identify this killer once and for all."
Writing in Traffic Safety, Sheaffer calls the worn tire "a public enemy," and explains: "My stomach turns over when I see a worn tire. It brings sickening mental pictures of the many dead and injured I have seen, spewed over the highways in their grotesque and ludicrous resting places, pinned in torn and jagged metal, horribly festooned with baggage, canned goods and children's toys."
New York Thruway authorities have ranked tire failure highest in all vehicle-caused accidents. Pennsylvania Turnpike officials have placed it second only to driver fatigue as a cause of accidents.
And the Indiana Turnpike reports that 15 percent of its accidents are directly traceable to defective tires; the Ohio Turnpike, 10 percent; and the New Jersey Turnpike, over 9 percent.
Who is to blame for the tire failures that have caused such terrible carnage on highways? Are the tire manufacturers and suppliers at fault? Are new tires of sufficient quality to stand the long-distance high-speed driving to which they are often subjected today? Or is the negligence of the driver the primary offender? To what extent is ignorance of proper tire care responsible?
Tire Quality and Legislation
Automobile tires have mushroomed into a multibillion-dollar business, an estimated 12.5 million of them being sold in the United States in 1965, compared with only 3,850,000 as recently as 1957. Many discount merchants and department stores have entered the lucrative field, offering tires of lesser quality at lower and lower prices. From 1958 to 1963 tire prices dropped 17 percent.
There are now some 150 brands and nearly 1,000 different models on the market, without adequately enforced legal standards for tires to meet. For example, it is not illegal to label an inferior tire as equal in grade to a better one. One company may label a tire "first-line," but it may be only equal in quality to another company's "fourth-line" tire. Bottom-grade tires may be named "champion," "deluxe" or some other fancy name; so names cannot be depended on as a guide to quality. Even price is not always a reliable guide, although it is generally a good indication of relative quality within one company's line of tires.
The bewildering situation facing the average motorist buying a tire has been aptly likened to entering a jungle with a blindfold. And just as entering a strange jungle can be dangerous, so using an inferior automobile tire can be lethal. Recently there have been many complaints about new tires blowing out on highways.
Such complaints have been instrumental in the introduction of a large number of bills in state legislatures and in the United States Congress. By mid-July 1965 one tire trade journal counted 113 bills relating to tires pending in state legislatures. Bills before Congress would require that all new tires meet minimum safety standards, and that a uniform system of grading and labeling be established. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, who introduced such a bill this April, claims that tires "are . . . intentionally mislabeled. As a consequence thousands of motorists are traveling on tires that are a threat to their lives and the lives of other motorists."
In an effort to head off federal legislation, the tire industry has recently taken action to raise its own standards. But will their measures be sufficient to hold in check the greed for gain that has given rise to the problem?
It is readily apparent that the manufacturers and suppliers of low-quality tires must bear a portion of the responsibility for the terrible carnage on the highways. Many new tires simply are not made to carry a fully loaded car at sustained high speeds. Nevertheless, a measure of protection can be realized by purchasing a tire of proved quality, one recommended by reliable authorities, even though it may cost a few extra dollars.
Negligent Motorists
Undoubtedly a greater part of the responsibility for tire failure must rest on the negligent motorist who continues to run on bald tires or on those with little tread.
These are "killer" tires. It is claimed by the tire industry that 90 percent of tire failures occur during the last tenth of tread life. To protect motorists from this "killer," New York state passed a law making it illegal for tires with less than one-sixteenth of an inch of tread to be on the highways.
The value of periodically checking the condition of your tires is illustrated by the safety achievement of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. At entrance points and other strategic locations spot checks are made and drivers with questionable tires are warned, while those with bad tires are banned. Three years after introducing this practice, accidents due to poor tires dropped from 26 percent of the total to less than 5 percent.
Do your tires have sufficient tread? Have you checked their condition lately, looking for cuts, bulges or objects stuck in the tread? That many motorists are woefully negligent in this matter was revealed by a tire safety check made in Wichita, Kansas. Of the 36,284 vehicles examined, 40 percent had one or more defective tires.
Safe Tire Inflation
Whereas outright negligence is perhaps the major reason for tire failure, ignorance regarding safe tire inflation is probably responsible for more accidents than most people realize. For example, it is not unusual for a family of five or six to pile into a heavily loaded automobile for a vacation trip, and fail to be concerned that their tires are underinflated. "What is wrong with that?" they may ask. "Is it not better to start out on a trip with a little less air pressure so that the tires will not become overinflated when heat causes the pressure to build up?"
Not just a few persons reason this way, and some have paid with their lives for
such erroneous reasoning. When you are driving, the tires are constantly flexing with each rotation and bump. Flexing and friction against the road build up heat, and excessive heat ruins tires. Underinflated tires, because they flex more, build up greater heat, which can result in the fatal high-speed blowout that safely inflated tires would have avoided.
For safety, therefore, auto experts recommend increasing the air pressure several pounds beyond the suggested pressure. Some car manuals advise this effect: 'For considerable high-speed driving, heavy loads, or for maximum fuel economy, add four to six pounds.' True, the added pressure will give you a little bumpier ride, but the greater safety afforded by cooler running tires is worth it. Increased pressure will also give you better steering and control of your car, particularly on curves. Besides, it will boost tire life considerably, as well as save on gasoline. At the same time, avoid too much inflation, for this will cause the center of the tread to wear excessively and increase the chance of fabric breaks.
It is important to check the air pressure of your tires regularly, every two weeks or so. Be sure to take your readings while the tires are cold; before you start out in the morning is a good time. And do not worry if during a long, hot drive your tires build up several extra pounds of pressure. They can take it. By all means do not "bleed" air from them! This will only cause them to flex more, building up greater heat, and increasing the danger of a blowout.
So the next time you nose a heavily loaded automobile out on the highway for a trip, do not neglect to examine your tires. Are they of good quality, "first-line" tires of a reliable brand? Do they have plenty of good tread, without bulges and cuts? And are they safely inflated? It is a truth: Tire care may save your life.
THE PILGRIMAGE TO THE
"Virgin of Verdun"
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MINAS is an inland city of about 30,000 inhabitants that lies some one hundred kilometers northeast of Montevideo, the beautiful seacoast capital of Uruguay. About six kilometers outside the city rises the large, brush-covered hill of jagged rock called Verdun. Although it is not a particularly beautiful hill, every year tens of thousands of persons from far and near make a pilgrimage to climb it. A look at its top reveals the reason why.
There a towering steeplelike concrete structure rises some forty feet into the air, and at the top of it is a life-size image of a woman. She is standing erect, gesturing with both hands toward her heart, and encompassing her head is a halo of sixteen stars. This is the "virgin of Verdun."
This image is said to be an approximate representation of the famous statue of Mary at Lourdes, France. In 1858 the young peasant girl Bernadette Soubirous claimed to have seen a vision of the virgin Mary there, and, a short time later, the location was made a Catholic shrine. Ever since then Lourdes has been visited regularly by many thousands of pilgrims.
In Uruguay it was in 1901 that the Roman Catholic Church arranged the first pilgrimage to the "virgin of Verdun" outside of Minas, and more than 3,000 participated. Now the pilgrimage is a popular event. It is held each year, usually sometime in April or May, and some
70,000 to 80,000 persons are present for the occasion from all
over Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil.
Arrival at the Hill
The day for the pilgrimage finds people arriving at the foot of the hill of Verdum by every conceivable means of transportation. What excitement there is! Look at all the people milling around the wooden gateway entrance that leads to the ascent to the image! Many of them are either coming to or going from the nearby large Spanish feria (outdoor market) that has been set up.
Here you can buy almost anything. There are clothing of all descriptions, leather goods, baskets, jewelry, pets, plants, and so forth. There are things for the children too—comic books, balloons, Kewpie dolls, pinwheels and many other toys. Refreshment stands also have been set up, and many persons are enjoying parrilladas (outdoor barbecues) with cold drinks. Every vendor must pay the Catholic church a designated fee for the privilege of selling here.
Surprising to many visitors, perhaps, is the festive mood that exists. You might think you were visiting a carnival. Everywhere, it seems, there is someone trying to sell you something. This atmosphere prompts many Catholics to lament: "Most persons come just to pasear` (for a good time)."
While this may be your impression too, it is obvious that this is, at the same time, a religious occasion. Loudspeakers carry the traditional church organ music and are interspersed with announcements of mass services.
The Climb to the Image
Leaving the outdoor market and wanting to see the image, you have to climb the hill, which means walking over a path of loose pebbles and sharp, jagged rocks. It takes the average person about twenty minutes to a half hour to reach the top. Along the way you notice some religious devotees painfully climbing or descending the rocky hill barefooted. But many others, you note, are walking with the aid of rough bamboo walking canes that are offered for sale around the bottom of the hill. The commercialized atmosphere, however, is not left behind as you progress upward toward the "virgin."
All along the winding path there are vendors selling miniature replicas of the image, white candles, religious postcards and other religious objects. Either going up or coming down the hill, religious devotees make a brief stop at each of the ten small altars called 'stations of the cross.' According to tradition, some place a pebble on each of these altars, while others think this is unnecessary and meaningless.
At the top of Verdun, many kneel at the foot of the concrete pedestal and offer prayers to the image. Some just sit or stand there looking up at the image, while others enjoy the mountain scenery. The candles bought from the vendors are either lit individually or thrown into a fire created by the melting wax of thousands of candles deposited there.
Young and old alike participate in this pilgrimage, and an interview with some of
them reveals a variety of attitudes. Some persons are serious and somber. Others seem interested only in sight-seeing or enjoying an outdoor picnic with family and friends. Youths in general are indifferent to the religious aspect of the occasion and admit that they have come out of curiosity or just to have a good time. Most adults, especially the aged, say that this is an act of faith and an expression of thanks to the "virgin" for her protection. Others say they have come to pray to God in front of the image.
Requests are generally made to the "virgin" regarding personal matters, including health and business. Although no cures have been certified and are recognized by the church as miraculous, Catholics believe that the "virgin" hears their requests, and some promise that they will make another pilgrimage to the image if their requests are granted.
This brief visit to the "virgin of Verdun" may cause you to wonder where this form of religious worship originated. Should Christians make such pilgrimages and worship before images of Mary? Is it pleasing to God?
Its Origin
Interestingly, there is no place in the Holy Bible where God's people are commanded to make religious pilgrimages in honor of deceased humans, nor is there any evidence that such pilgrimages were ever made by His servants. In fact, when the famous Israelite leader Moses died, God buried him in an undisclosed location so that no tomb or image would be made that might become an object of worship. —Deut. 34:6.
On the other hand, concerning demonworshiping Egypt the historian Alexander Hislop writes: "There were great and pompous pilgrimages at certain seasons of the year, and these often attended with gross excesses.
Herodotus tells us, that in his time the multitude who went annually on pilgrimages to Bubastis, Egypt, amounted to 700,000 individuals." It may be surprising to some persons to learn that religious pilgrimages to honor a deceased, deified human or to worship images have a pagan and not a Biblical or Christian origin. But they will probably be even more surprised to learn the origin of the worship of the virgin Mary.
The booklet La Virgen del Verdun (The Virgin of Verdun) acknowledges that the image of Mary outside Minas represents the "Queen and Lady of Heaven." The Bible, however, does not bestow such a title upon the virgin mother of Jesus, but it does describe the worship of the ancient goddess called "the queen of heaven." Note Almighty God's indignation at his people for worshiping her: "The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to offer libations to strange gods, and to provoke me to anger."—Jer. 7:18; 44:15-19, Roman Catholic Douay Bible.
Who was this "queen of heaven"? Harper's Bible Dictionary explains under the heading "Queen of Heaven": "An ancient Semitic deity, the Babylonian Ishtar (Venus), popular in Jerusalem and Egypt in Jeremiah's time and earlier." It further observes, on page 47: "Many scholars believe that the beginning of the fertility cult was Babylonia, whose Queen of Heaven was . . . Ishtar." And The New Funk & Wagnalla Encyclopedia "under the heading "Ishtar": "As a goddess, Ishtar was the Great Mother (q.v.), the goddess of fertility, the queen or mistress of heaven." This celebrated "Queen of Heaven" was worshiped by many ancient peoples.
Christendom, as the historian Hislop explains: "Instead, therefore, of the Babylonian goddess being cast out, in too many cases her name only was changed. She was called the Virgin Mary, and, with her child, was worshipped with the same idolatrous feeling by professing Christians, as formerly by open and avowed Pagans."
In time this very Babylonian goddess came to be worshiped even by peoples of
For Christians?
Although Mary was a faithful servant of God who was blessed with the privilege of bearing God's own Son, the Bible does not instruct Christians to worship and adore her. The Holy Scriptures make clear that all worship should go to Almighty God. Humans are not to be given reverence, not even a prominent apostle such as Peter. When the Italian centurion Cornelius bowed down to adore him, the Bible says: "Peter lifted him up, saying: Arise: I myself also am a man." And even when the apostle John bowed before a living angel he was reproved: "See thou do it not . . . Adore God."—Acts 10:25, 26; Rev. 19:10, Dy.
In view of what God's Word says, is the adoration of Mary pleasing to Almighty God? Does God approve of worship that is carried on in imitation of pagans who long ago provoked him to anger by worshiping the Babylonian goddess, "the queen of heaven"? Is it proper for Christians to bow down and say prayers before an image?
Some persons may claim that when they prostrate themselves and pray toward an image, it is not the material image itself to which they are praying but the person represented by the image. Yet God's straightforward commands clearly bar even such relative worship of images. He says: "Thou shalt not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath . . . Thou shalt not adore them." "You shall not make to yourselves any idol or graven thing: neither shall you erect pillars, nor set up a remarkable stone in your land, to adore it."
"Little children, keep yourselves from idols."—Ex. 20:4; 5; Lev. 26:1; I John 5:21; see also Isa. 44:9-20; 46:5-7; Ps. 134:15-18, Dy.
These God-given commands also apply to images of Mary, including the one on the hill of Verdun outside of Minas. Such worship is certainly not pleasing to God. It is in direct violation of the Christian principle stated by the apostle Paul: "We walk by faith and not by sight."—2 Cor. 5:7, Dy.
Consider, for a moment, the helplessness of images. They are lifeless. They are merely works of men's hands. They cannot reason as a person does. They cannot speak to you any more than a doll can converse with a child. Like a stone wall, they cannot hear your petitions, nor see impending dangers and then cry out and warn you. Therefore, do not put your trust in them! Instead, trust in God. Learn the truth about Jehovah God by studying his Word the Bible. Then pray to Him in the name of his Son Jesus Christ; not before an image.—John 14:6.
THOSE AMAZING SLEEPERS
ANY people have marveled at the ability of some animals to react to the cold of winter in temperate areas by going into a deep sleep called bibernation. But equally amazing is the fact that a similar state, termed estivation, is experienced by varied forms of life in response to prolonged periods of heat or lack of water. Yes, in fact, they are often called the 'summer-sleepers.'
The chipmunk, sometimes called the striped squirrel, goes into a deep sleep during the hot month of August in parts of North America. While this normally active animal is not a true estivator, you might be able to find him rolled up in his leaf-lined bedroom enjoying a sound sleep while humans are trying to beat the heat with fans and air-conditioners. As he sleeps, his body is cold to the touch, for his body functions have slowed almost to a halt. You might think he is dead. But in a few weeks, when the climate has cooled down, he will be active again.
Some forms of aquatic fishes and reptiles go into forced estivation when the water they live in or around dries up. Crocodiles and alligators can bury themselves in mud and remain there inactive for many months until released by the coming of water. Under the hard, dry surface of the "clay pan" of central Australia frogs have been found buried at a depth of one foot.
Into the mud to await the return of his liquid habitat. He prepares a cocoon of dried mucus and lives by slowly absorbing stored fat or even part of the muscle tissue of his tail. But how does he breathe? The cocoon has an opening at his mouth, and he leaves an air hole running up to the surface. Lungfish have been known to survive up to four years in this state. In fact, Dr. Homer W. Smith of the New York University School of Medicine estimated that "if the animal has a maximal store of fat when it goes into estivation, and if it gets the breaks from nature . . . it might survive for seven years." But chop him out of the mud, put him in water and he will shortly be awake and active again.
But few 'summer-sleepers' compare with the African lungfish. When the water disappears, so does Mr. Lungfish, burrowing down
Water and land snails also demonstrate amazing abilities to remain alive. Some specimens of one type of snail found in Australia were put in a tin and forgotten for fifteen months. When they were later found and put in water, they all perked up and appeared none the worse for the experience. One shell from an Egyptian desert snail was taken to the British Museum and attached to a card. Of course, it was assumed that the shell was empty. Four years later some slime was noted on the card. The shell was placed in water, and presently the shell began to crawl about.
It is evident that much has yet to be learned about the living creatures around us. It is evident that the adaptability of the 'summer-sleepers' demonstrates great creative wisdom.
WHEN 4,000 youths rioted in Stockholm, Sweden, last August it was not something new for Sweden. On a previous fled the police during a riot in Massachusetts. Crime
occasion 3,000 of them had rioted in this same city and overturned a number of cars. In the Swedish town of Karlskoga another riot involving 500 Swedish youths took place during an auto race. They set fire to a building and then threw bottles at the firemen who tried to put out the blaze.
Such lawlessness is a worldwide problem that is especially puzzling to sociologists because many of the youths involved come from middle-income and upper-income families. No longer can juvenile lawlessness be regarded as the product of
Terrorizing towns by means of destructive riots is only one feature of the lawlessness of modern-day youths. In steadily growing numbers they are turning their hands to crime of every kind. Of all the prosecutions for serious crimes in Hong Kong during September 1964, 18.4 percent involved juveniles. An even higher rate exists in Japan, where 21 percent of all crime is committed by teen-agers. Of the 1,572 acts of violence occurring in the Korean city of Seoul from January to March of 1964, teen-agers are reported as commit-
poverty and slum living. In country after country young people from all levels of society seem to be going wild.
Riots such as experienced in prosperous Sweden occurred also in England last summer when mobs of teen-agers battled one another at the beach town of Margate. Such battles have been repeated occurrences at British beaches and dance halls in recent years. In Norway 2,000 young people rioted when their favorite club was closed.
teenagers are reported as committing the greater portion of them. In the Philippine city of Manila more than one-third of the prison population is made up of criminals between the ages of sixteen and twenty-one.
Smuggling, burglary, car theft, arson, vandalism, mugging, senseless brutality, rape, narcotics addiction, drunkenness and murder are some of the many vile activities now being engaged in by a growing tide of lawless young people. Frequently, when a young delinquent is asked why he
At Weirs Beach in New Hampshire several thousand American youths threw rocks and beer bottles, swung bicycle chains and clubs, overturned cars, set on fire an overturned car from which a family barely escaped in time, and set buildings aflame. The local police, state police and national guard fought the mob in an effort to restore law and order. A few days earlier another crowd of drunken teen-agers de-
committed a vicious cruelty or vandalized a home or school, the answer is, "I don't know why." Or he might claim he did it "for kicks." It seems they act on impulse without making any effort to exercise self-restraint.
Crimes by children under sixteen are becoming commonplace. A Philippine child of eight was charged with homicide in 1983 and a fourteen-year-old was charged with rape.
During the first nine months of 1964, the city of Dallas in the United States had seventy-nine major crimes committed by children under ten years of age. These crimes included murder, robbery, assault, burglary and car theft. In Canada, the city of Vancouver arrested three boys, ages thirteen and fifteen, for burglarizing 127 homes.
And so the sordid reports read from all over the world. What is wrong with today's youth? Why is the incidence of crime among them constantly rising? Why are they committing so many violent and wantonly senseless acts of violence? A number of factors seem to be involved.
Atmosphere of Materialism
Although poverty and slum living do contribute to juvenile crime, there are other factors that undoubtedly bear greater responsibility. This is evident from the number of lawless young people who have been reared in comfortable homes without ever having wanted for food or clothing and from the fact that during the depression years, when one-third of the people In the United States were in want of material things, juvenile delinquency was declining.
Prosperity seems to contribute to juvenile lawlessness. This surprising fact has been noted by Japan's leading criminologist, Taro Ogawa, who has pointed out that there is a definite relationship between the amount of prosperity in a country and the amount of juvenile delinquency. The experience of West Germany seems to confirm this view. There unparalleled prosperity for that country has been experienced since 1954 and also unparalleled juvenile delinquency.
In itself prosperity is not bad, but the inability of some parents and children to cope with it produces bad results. They seem unable to realize that there are more
important things in life than material things. Consequently, they become consumed with the love of money, which, as God's Word says, "is a root of all sorts of injurious things." (1. Tim. 6:10) Juvenile lawlessness is one of those injurious things. Reared in an atmosphere of materialism, many children tend to become selfish and lacking in a sense of values.
Mental Diet of Crime and Violence
Not to be overlooked as a cause of juvenile lawlessness is the constant diet of violence, crime and horror fed to children through television, movies, comic books and novels. Referring to a United States Senate investigation of juvenile delinquency, Senator Robert Hendrickson observed with regard to comic books: "Many experts advanced the belief that this kind of printed, visual suggestion had led to some of the more violent and incredibly vicious youth crimes that had so shocked our nation."
In one of these Senate hearings Dr. Frederic Wertham stated: "It is my opinion . . . that comic books are an important contributing factor in many cases of juvenile delinquency. There arises the question: What kind of child is affected? I say again . . . it is primarily the normal child. . . Everywhere they see this where women are beaten up, where people are shot and killed and finally they become . . . unconsciously delighted." A Texas police chief expressed a similar view when he said: "We are careful to see that the silverware and glasses are sterilized, but we let their minds feed on garbage."
Murder mysteries vividly portrayed in novels and movies have a strong suggestive influence upon young minds. There have been numerous instances in which young, imaginative minds have put into action the violence contained in such stories. An example in point is that of a college student who read a murder mystery and then proceeded to try out the slaying described by the novel in vivid detail.
The eighteen-year-old boy bought a rifle, selected two victims at random, and murdered them. In another instance four teen-agers followed a pattern of sadism minutely described in a horror magazine when they beat and burned derelicts, even drowning one, and horsewhipped some teen-age girls.
With regard to movies and television shows that constantly depict violence, Dr. Mary I. Preston of Stanford University concluded that "the repeated exposure to the suffering of others, for the purpose of entertaining, stunts such desirable emotions as sympathy and compassion toward those in distress; and that such exposure results in a scarred tissue of hardness, intense selfishness and even unmercifulness."
Lack of Parental Supervision
Possibly the chief cause for juvenile lawlessness is the failure of many parents to fulfill their role as parents toward their children. The father that is too busy with a prosperous business, dinner engagements, club and committee meetings, golf games, and so forth, to spend adequate time with his children contributes to their delinquency. Usually such a father tends to substitute gifts of money and other things for the time he should be giving his children, but the love and respect of children cannot be bought.
It is especially difficult on children when both parents are working or mother is busy with card parties and committee meetings. No one is home to welcome them when they return from school and there is no one to supervise their activities. A fifteen-year-old girl who became a promiscuous delinquent because her mother was always away working when she came home said: "You don't know how empty and cold a house may be when Mother is not there to talk to you."
Lack of parental supervision of what children are doing accounts for many of the disgraceful incidents in which some young people have become involved. Regarding a riot at Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, involving 10,000 teen-agers, a newspaper asked: "Where were the parents of these 15- and 16-year-olds when they were tearing up the beach? . . . These are not responsible adults. They are children and should be supervised as such."
The failure of parents to discipline their children, their toleration of insolence and disobedience, their failure to teach good ethics and Bible principles, their failure to set a good example and their failure to show loving interest in their children are factors that contribute to juvenile lawlessness. So great is parental responsibility for it that juvenile delinquency is often regarded as parental delinquency. On this point the Canadian Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police observed: "It is not juvenile delinquency I want to speak about—it is parental delinquency—because, in my humble opinion, the group which is creating the troubles I have referred to is, for the most part, a product of irresponsible homes and irresponsible parents. I think the trouble begins in the home, and ultimately it will have to be corrected in the home."
We are living in a rebellious era in which people are rejecting long-established moral codes, flagrantly violating laws by acts of civil disobedience, fighting policemen trying to maintain law and order and, under the influence of atheism, rebelling against the supreme Lawgiver, Jehovah God. This spirit of rebellion has infected the youth and is encouraged by parents and teachers who place ever fewer restrictions and limits upon them.
In recent years students at a number of American universities displayed this rebellious spirit. At the University of California a student rebellion against campus restrictions in 1964 resulted in the arrest of hundreds of demonstrating students.
They resented restraints placed upon their freedom by school authorities. Many even demonstrated in March 1965 in resentment when a nonstudent was arrested for parading on the campus with an obscene sign. To grant young people all the freedom they demand would result in anarchy. Realizing this, Dean Joseph O'Meara of the Notre Dame Law School said: "I venture to suggest it's time to get tough when violence erupts . . . on the campus."
How to Prevent Delinquency
The preventing of juvenile delinquency must begin in the home while children are young and pliable. A loving and peaceful relationship within the family is essential for helping a child to avoid developing a lawless spirit. The well-known criminologists Professor and Mrs. Sheldon Glueck stated with regard to love in a family:
"What is really required is great firmness, administered with love. . . . Love is the essential element. We think that it is even possible for a parent to be overstrict at times or too lenient at other times, yet be an effective parent if he really loves the child—because the child then will accept these variations. . . . Now, the earlier in the child's life he senses parental love and guidance, the sooner he will acquire self-discipline—and the less of a disciplinary problem he's going to be as he grows up."
Teaching children to obey rules and to respect authority is an important way to show them love. Children need someone
older to tell them what they can and cannot do, someone to make rules for them and enforce those rules, someone to establish boundaries for them. Children growing up in a warm family relationship where there are rules that are enforced are better able to accept the rules in a community when they are older. They are then less likely to allow idleness and boredom to get them into trouble.
Religious training by parents that instills respect for the high moral principles of the Holy Bible is very necessary for building in the children a defense against the degenerating influence of the present system of things. If parents give them good moral standards and teach them to respect such standards, the children are better able to exercise self-discipline when they are on their own and not in the company of their parents. It is wisely written: "Train up a boy according to the way for him; even when he grows old he will not turn aside from it."—Prov. 22:6.
The reasons for worldwide lawlessness among young people are many, but the chief responsibility can be laid at the feet of permissive parents who, while the children are growing up, have failed to manifest loving affection for them, to discipline them, to supervise them, to instill in them respect for good moral standards, to set a good example for them and to establish a cohesive family relationship. Children trained by good parents to exercise self-discipline and to hold fast to the high moral standards of the Bible are not likely to be participants in the destructive rlots and criminal acts of lawless youths.
Injurious Passion
♦ In his book The Paper Economy, David T. Bazelon writes: "Money is a dream. It is a piece of paper on which is imprinted in invisible ink the dream of all the things it will buy. . . . Most of us who are not outright losers in the Great American Scramble love money much more than any of the things it will buy. It is not a means to an end for us, it is a passion." This passionate love of money is called in the Bible "a root of all sorts of injurious things."—1 Tim. 6:10.
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