Awake!, September 8, 1971

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Awake! — September 8, 1971

Source: jw.org

Contents

Inhibitions—Good or Bad?

Genetics—Has It Uncovered the Secret of Life?

Teaching Your Daughter About Housekeeping

What Do You Know About Flags?

I Was an “Aladura”

Constantine “the Great”

Melancholy Music of the Andes

God’s Name and Hebrew Numerals

Flying Dragons of the Sky

Bad Breath—What Can Be Done About It?

“Happy the Peacemakers”

Watching the World

Is Chance a Builder?

Your Children Deserve the Best Teacher

Inhibitions—Good or Bad?

WHAT are inhibitions? The term is used to designate a wide variety of things. As most commonly used, an inhibition is an inner force, an idea, habit or attitude that restrains one’s free expression. An inhibition is also said to be a reluctance to act contrary to one’s principles.

Today the sophisticated, the worldly wise, consider those who have inhibitions in the form of moral restraints to be old-fashioned. Many youths appear to be without any inhibitions. ‘Live! Let yourself go!’ is their philosophy. So, by their dress and appearance, by their profane and obscene speech and by their resorting to all manner of violence they demonstrate their lack of inhibitions.

To be sure, not all inhibitions are good; some are based on ignorance, superstition, religious myths and falsehoods. These doubtless are in large part responsible for the throwing overboard of all inhibitions by so many persons.

And there is also such a thing as being overly inhibited in certain matters. Those persons who are, shrink from giving spontaneous expression to wholesome and natural feelings, sentiments and impulses, which, if expressed, would be a blessing to others as well as to themselves. For example, a person may be afraid to comment at all at a Christian meeting for fear of saying something wrong. This might be due to a sensitive, introverted disposition or even to an overestimate of oneself.

Inhibitions do not exist among animals. They simply follow their natural impulses or instincts. Why is it so different with humankind? Why do humans need inhibitions?

Answers that leave God and creation out of consideration can be but guesses to questions like these. The Bible, on the other hand, gives us an answer that completely satisfies mind and heart. It shows that man alone was created in God’s image, with reason and with the ability to distinguish between right and wrong. In the beginning the possibility of living forever was held out to man if he obeyed God’s law. To disobey was to forfeit life.—Gen. 1:26-28; 2:16, 17.

Our first parents chose to disobey. They followed a selfish course and so reaped the penalty of imperfection, sin and death. (Gen. 3:1-19) Thereby they brought sin and death not only upon themselves but also to their offspring, even as the Bible tells us: “Through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin.” (Rom. 5:12) As a result “the inclination of the heart of man is bad from his youth up.”—Gen. 8:21.

We must, therefore, avoid whatever tends to weaken our inhibitions against doing what is bad. What would tend to weaken them a scientific journal (Scientific American) once noted: “Drinking two or three ounces of whiskey, depresses the uppermost level of the brain—the center of inhibitions, restraint and judgment. At this stage the drinker . . . takes personal and social liberties as the impulse prompts . . . Such a man has undergone an obvious blunting of self-criticism.” (Italics added.) And if that is true about excess use of alcohol, what about abusing one’s body and mind with other drugs? The results of this are often a diseased body, a wrecked mind, sexual frustration, perversion and even suicide.

Among other things that can weaken one’s proper inhibitions are reading pornographic literature and viewing lewd entertainment. How so? Because familiarity with such things sears the conscience. Having bad companions can have the same effect. “Do not be misled. Bad associations spoil useful habits.”—1 Cor. 15:33.

On the other hand, proper built-in restraints, one’s inhibitions against doing that which is wrong, are really for one’s own good. They give confidence and poise. A person is not stunted emotionally because he is not a fornicator or an adulterer. Rather, he gains genuine respect for the opposite sex. The fornicator or adulterer, lacking inhibitions, is the one that is all mixed up. Likewise it is the one who can exercise restraint in the use of liquor that is truly wise. It keeps him from fights, insults, sloppiness and general disrespect for self and for others, not to say anything about the end-of-the-road alcoholism. Yes, inhibitions, thus viewed, serve to make ladies and gentlemen and respectful, wholesome youths.—Prov. 23:26-35.

Among the things that will strengthen our inhibitions is the “fear of Jehovah,” that is, the fear to displease him, the fear to arouse his anger. Thus we read: “The fear of Jehovah means the hating of bad. Self-exaltation and pride and the bad way and the perverse mouth I have hated.”—Prov. 8:13.

To help us further to do what is right, to inhibit these tendencies toward badness, the Creator has given us aids, such as the two great commandments: ‘Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength; love your neighbor as yourself.’ To love our neighbors as ourselves means to do to them as we would have them do to us.—Mark 12:29-31; Luke 6:31.

To increase our love for God and neighbor and reinforce our fear of displeasing God, we must take time from the busy course of life to read and study the Bible and literature that helps us to understand it. Helpful also is our associating at Christian meetings with others who live by Bible principles. Such association provides for an interchange of encouragement, resulting in strengthening our faith as well as our inhibitions based on Bible principles. And not to be overlooked is prayer, talking to God, looking to him for guidance and strength.—Rom. 1:11, 12; 12:12.

Inhibitions? Some are good and some are bad. Happy and wise are we if we suppress the bad and strengthen the inhibitions that are good!

Genetics—Has It Uncovered the Secret of Life?

“WE HAVE discovered the secret of life!” declared scientist Francis Crick to a group of colleagues at Cambridge University in 1953. He and his co-worker James Watson had done a work that won them high acclaim in the scientific world. Had they indeed discovered the secret of life? Over what, actually, was their excitement?

They had constructed a model to explain how a molecule of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) functions in its directing of body building. Their model was a “staircase” or ladderlike structure in the form of a double helix or spiral. Schematically, it represented the functioning of the DNA molecule as a basic factor directing the interaction of other chemicals in the cells of living things. This DNA molecule is thought to play the major part in the transmission of hereditary characteristics from parent to offspring.

The DNA is located principally in the nucleus of the cell. Along its ladderlike structure the DNA contains the “genes.” A gene is a part or section of the DNA molecule that has to do with directing the building of a specific hereditary characteristic, such as the color of the skin or of the eyes, shape of a facial feature, a personality trait, and so forth.

In the model built by Watson and Crick, the DNA molecule is represented as being made up of two chemical strands wrapped in helical fashion around each other. Between the two strands or “banisters” of the “staircase” or “ladder” are “steps” or “rungs.” Each “rung” is composed of two chemicals that complement each other. These chemicals are joined in the middle of the “rungs” by a weak hydrogen bond. One strand is therefore a mirror image of the other.

How DNA Directs the Building of Body Parts

Let us assume that in the body of a living thing it becomes necessary to build a molecule of protein (an essential building block). What takes place? First, the body (of animal or plant) in some way communicates to one of the body’s cells its need for a specific protein. In response to the call, the proper section of the cell’s DNA “ladder” “unzips” or breaks apart down the middle of its “rungs.” One half of the ladderlike part separates from the other half like an opened zipper, so that this section (and only this section) of the long DNA molecule is now like a ladder sawed in two down the middle.

This condition is only temporary, for right away the “half-rungs” of one strand begin to attract to themselves their complementary chemicals from surrounding material in the nucleus. By this means they “rebuild” other halves to the “rungs,” thus forming a new strand called “messenger RNA” (ribonucleic acid). It is so named because it must leave the cell nucleus to carry the pattern of the DNA for making the proper protein.

So the “messenger RNA” pulls away, and the two original DNA strands in the nucleus unite again as before, ready to send out more “messenger RNA” when needed later. The RNA strand goes outside the nucleus, where a body or particle in the cell called a “ribosome” fastens to the strand and seems to “read” it, comparable to a tape recorder playing back words recorded on tape. The proper chemicals are then supplied to match the “half-rungs” on the “messenger RNA.”

What has been accomplished up to this point? The “messenger RNA” has actually carried the message or code from the DNA molecule so that it could be “read” by the ribosome, and chemicals supplied exactly and in the same arrangement as that in the original DNA. Accordingly, with the help of another kind of RNA called “transfer RNA” the “messenger RNA” assembles chemicals called “amino acids” to make the specific protein called for. The protein is then released from the ribosome and goes to do its work as a building block.

In this intricate way a protein molecule that is of DNA-directed chemical composition is synthesized to be used in a part of the living creature’s body. By another comparison, the process can be likened to a doctor (DNA) in his office (the cell nucleus) writing a prescription and sending it by messenger (“messenger RNA”). When the pharmacist (the ribosome) reads it, he takes the prescribed chemicals from his shelf and puts them together as the prescription directs. The medicine (like the protein) thus compounded is used for certain purposes in the patient’s body.

Such things the scientists have learned about these minute things, some of which cannot be seen even under a microscope. Their discovery is an evidence of the amazing ability and capacity of man’s mind. But do you believe that these scientific men have actually discovered “the secret of life”?

Some Unanswered Questions

Before we let ourselves be overawed by the intelligence and research of such men, let us ask a few questions to see whether life’s secrets are fully uncovered:

Exactly how does the body communicate its need to the cell, and how does it trigger part of the DNA molecule to “unzip” at just the right place and later to go back together? What prevents the rest of the DNA helix from “unzipping”? The answer to this latter question might explain the unsolved problem of why, though each body cell has the same chromosomes, only certain parts of them seem to operate in the different cells.

Also, how did not only the right chemicals, but also all the right mechanisms, such as the ribosomes, come to be in the cell for the making of a new strand of RNA? How does the ribosome “read” the RNA and exactly how are just the right chemicals provided at the right places to reproduce the DNA’s pattern and to make the proper protein?

How is the information encoded on DNA transferred to cell enzymes that then control the growth of new cells? This, says Dr. Howard H. Pattee of Stanford University, is the area still presenting the most serious problems to biologists. He says that the simple models (such as Watson and Crick devised) cannot explain the speed and reliability of information transfer. A much deeper study of matter at the submolecular level is yet necessary.

And finally, we encounter the biggest question of all: How did such complex substances, and life itself, get there to begin with? For these questions scientists have no answer, only theories.

The Living Cell Not Originated by Unintelligent Forces

There is another matter that the thoughtful person will consider before giving the science of genetics the credit for having in its grasp the secret of creation, or even, as some would have us believe, the possession of creative power. It is thought that each “gene” (a part of the DNA molecule) is made up of a chain of some 1,000 “nucleotides” (each nucleotide, containing many atoms, is half of a “rung” on the DNA “ladder”). If just one gene is defective, it can kill the cell’s ability to duplicate itself. Or, when the cell divides, the newly formed cell will be defective. How would cell growth or division ever take place if the thousands of parts making up only one gene had to come together by accident, chance or “blind force” as the evolution theory would require? How much less chance of this when there are said to be tens of thousands of genes in the DNA in each chromosome of a human cell!

Even in the simplest forms of life, the DNA chain is still extremely complex. For example, after twenty years of research, biologists have mapped out only about one third of the genes along the DNA spiral in the “elementary” intestinal bacterium known as Escherichia coli.

If man with his intelligence takes twenty years just to map the composition of a few genes, how would blind forces ever gather the needed material, put it together and make it operate in this complex way? If its DNA chain was only, say, three-quarters or nine-tenths complete, not even a one-celled animal could come to life. No, the creature had to appear whole, all together, at once, or not at all. This requires creation and a Mastermind.

Give Praise to Whom It Belongs

All these things illustrate the point that we should not be too ready to give men praise beyond what they deserve. We should use good sense and balance. When observing the extremely intricate, even marvelous makeup and operation of living cells, do we see “blind forces” operating? Or do we see the intelligence of an invisible Super Architect, who gave man the brains to search into and understand some of the things of His creation and the laws governing them?—Rom. 1:20.

The Bible tells us that there is one Creator. This is Jehovah God. Of him those whom the Bible describes as “elders” in heaven, of far greater power and insight into earthly creation than men, declare: “You are worthy, Jehovah, even our God, to receive the glory and the honor and the power, because you created all things, and because of your will they existed and were created.”—Rev. 4:11.

King Solomon, endowed by God with inspired wisdom, expressed the proper viewpoint about the boasts and forecasts of men who make extravagant statements and claims beyond what is factual. He wrote: “I saw all the work of the true God, how mankind are not able to find out the work that has been done under the sun; however much mankind keep working hard to seek, yet they do not find out. And even if they should say they are wise enough to know, they would be unable to find out.”—Eccl. 8:17.

[Chart on page 5]

(For fully formatted text, see publication)

“Gene” or Section of DNA Molecule

DNA strands pull apart DNA strands reunite

Messenger RNA separates

Teaching Your Daughter About Housekeeping

HOW successful have you been in teaching your daughter to be a good housekeeper? Does she know how to handle the laundry? Have you shown her good methods of dusting and dishwashing? Does she know the value of a schedule for cleaning?

Many young brides are totally unprepared for these duties simply because they have not been taught. Will that be true of your daughter when she marries? As we consider some aspects of housekeeping, why not analyze what you are doing to teach your daughter.

Cultivating an Incentive to Help

“Oh, you don’t know my daughter,” some mothers may say. “She just doesn’t want to learn.”

But why does she feel that way? While laziness may be a reason, usually such an attitude is the result of a lack of incentive. Does your daughter understand why housekeeping is vital? Have you explained how the various tasks contribute to the comfort and orderly functioning of the home? Have you really encouraged her to help you?

One mother told how she did this. She explained to her children that the home was theirs too, and that they also had a responsibility toward keeping it neat and clean. With this encouragement, they readily agreed to help. But it took patience on the mother’s part, as well as firm discipline, for the children were young and often failed to follow through on their work assignments. Now, however, they all pitch in and quickly get the work done.

Perhaps more than anything else, your own attitude toward housework will affect your daughter’s viewpoint regarding it. If you consider housework a drudgery, and are grumbling and fussing as you perform your duties, your daughter will probably develop the same attitude. On the other hand, if you regard housework as an expression of your love for your family, and are alert to ways to please them, she will notice your interest and cheerfulness. This will be a real incentive for her to want to help.

It is wise to make work periods as enjoyable as possible. One mother relates that often she and her daughter put on the radio or records while working. On one such occasion, while they were laughing and singing together, her daughter remarked: “You know, Mother, I think God meant for mother and daughter to have fun like this, don’t you?” This mother does not have to nag or cajole her daughter into helping, because they really enjoy working together.

Early Training

When should a mother start training her daughter? Some mothers have said, “I’ll wait until she’s older and can manage things better.” However, mothers who have waited usually regret it. After children start school and become involved with schoolwork and other activities, it is often more difficult to get their help and cooperation.

Thus the ideal time to begin teaching your daughter about housekeeping is before she starts school. When the training is started early it becomes a natural part of a girl’s routine. It is something she continues to do as a matter of habit when she grows older. Girls of preschool age are especially eager to please and copy their mothers. So take advantage of this youthful willingness to help.

A mother who started training her children very early reports on the good results. She says that her children have learned to put their things away each night before they retire. And in the morning they make their beds, and do other regular chores. The mother observes that the work they do causes them to be more appreciative when things are done for them.

It is important for mothers to exercise patience when training very young children. Remember, your daughter is “in training.” This means that she must learn by a certain amount of trial and error. She is not going to become skilled by your doing the work for her. So after showing her how, let her do it herself.

Some mothers, however, are very impatient. They are sometimes heard to complain, “She’s so slow, I would rather do the work myself.” So their daughters never get the knack of doing it. Other mothers find fault with everything their daughters do. This discourages, rather than encourages young ones. It is wise to avoid these tendencies.

Neatness—a Valuable Lesson

For your daughter, housework may seem to be not only monotonous, but also a rather useless activity. “Why make my bed?” she may ask. “I’m going to sleep in it again tonight anyway.” Or, “Why do I need to put away my toys? I’m going to use them again.”

A Bible principle may help your daughter to appreciate why certain activities need to be repeated. It says: “For everything there is an appointed time, even a time for every affair under the heavens.” (Eccl. 3:1-8) And so it is with housekeeping. There is a time to make beds and a time to sleep in them. There is a time to bring out all the necessary tools for the enjoyment of a meal, and a time to wash and put those things away in their proper place. There is a time to use certain clothes, and a time to put them neatly away in their place, and so forth.

Your daughter needs to learn the value of keeping the home neat and orderly. She needs to appreciate, for example, that things are so much easier to find when they are kept in a proper place. You might point out that she does not need to hunt for the toothpaste or milk bottle, does she? No, these items have a place, and everyone in the house knows where they are. So she can be shown that if this simple rule is applied to other items as well, how fine that will be!

You might also point out to her that when toys and clothes are neatly put away or hung up, they last longer and stay cleaner. And how much better a room looks when the bed is made and everything is neat and orderly! Most women agree that it is not the dirt itself that makes them nervous. It is the mess and disorderliness in a house. As one mother expressed it.’ “As long as things are neat and kept in their proper place, you can see more clearly exactly what needs to be done. If the house is in order, you will not feel you have too much work to do and get tired before you start.”

Neatness, of course, need not be carried to the extreme of finickiness. In some homes everything is always in such meticulous order that one is almost fearful of denting the couch when one sits down, or of making footprints on the rug when one walks. A proper balance is desirable, maintaining a home in which things are neat and orderly, yes, but one in which the family can still be comfortable and relaxed.

Other Things to Teach

There are so many other things that you can teach your daughter that will be of real value to her. For example, there is much that she can learn on washday. Have you taught her how to sort out the laundry, get the clothes clean, and fold them when they are dry? Have you shown her how to get spots out of her father’s shirts and collars? She may have to do it for her husband someday. Does she understand the function of detergents and bleaches and the effect each has on certain materials? Have you explained the advantage of drying clothes in the sun in preference to doing it in a machine drier?

You will also want to teach your daughter the avenues by which dirt enters the home, and how to cope with it. The doors, windows and the areas adjacent to them are some of the obvious places to look for dirt. Others are not so obvious: in closets, corners of rooms, under furniture, and in kitchen cabinets and drawers that are used often. These areas should be cared for regularly to prevent a buildup of dirt, which will require a bigger cleaning job later on.

The entry of dirt makes dusting a necessity. Does your daughter know that there is an art to it? One can remove the dirt or one can merely transfer it from place to place. The difference lies in how it is done and with what. If a damp cloth is used, it will actually pick up and remove the dust from the surface of the furniture or floor.

Why not let your daughter experience this herself? Have her use an ordinary dustcloth and see what happens. Then have her dampen it and actually see the dust leave the furniture and cling to the cloth. Once she sees the difference, you will not have to repeat those instructions. She will get the point.

Does your daughter know how to make a bed? People have different ways of doing it, and often one way is as good as another. You can teach her the way you do it in your home. If she is very small and finds it hard to line up the sheets and blankets just right, you might sew a colored thread as a marker in the center of them. This will make it easier for her to get the sheets and blankets on the bed straight.

A fundamental part of housework is daily dishwashing, something that you will want to teach your daughter to do well. Does she realize that soaking dirty dishes can often make the job easier? And does she know how to wash items in batches? Teach her to wash all the silverware and then rinse it together, instead of doing each spoon or fork separately. The same principle applies to other items. It is much simpler and faster this way.

Cleaning the stove is a time-consuming, difficult job that many women dread. Have you shown your daughter an easier way to do it? Have her take all the movable parts and soak them in a sink or a tub of detergents overnight. The next morning the dirt and grime will come off much more easily. When your daughter is older and has her own home, she will be grateful for having learned this lesson.

Learning to Plan and Organize

One of the most important lessons you can teach your daughter is how to plan and organize her work. Train her to think before she acts. Let her know that not all motions mean accomplishment. This is why some women get so much more done than others in the same time and with less stress and strain.

So when she has her own room to clean, help her to analyze what needs to be done. For example, determine what needs to be put away in the drawers or the closet; what items need to be moved to another room where they belong; what things can be thrown out, and so forth. Once she is mentally organized, the work will go more smoothly and she will get done faster.

Perhaps you can help your daughter to see how to save steps. For example, you might observe that as she goes from room to room she makes repeated trips to throw things out. Encourage her to take along a large paper bag as she cleans, and to discard things into it. This will save both time and energy.

Good organization also involves the ability to coordinate several jobs, doing them as a unit. Teach her how to do this. For example, after breakfast the dishes and pans requiring it could be soaking while the beds that have had opportunity to air out are being made. She could then tidy up, using the vacuum or sweeper on the rugs, and afterward do the dishes. The house is now in order and ready for any unexpected company.

Or teach her to care for other jobs around the kitchen while the dinner dishes are soaking. For example, finger marks can be removed from the walls, refrigerator and cabinets; the stove and oven might be checked for drippings and spillage; take out the garbage; line the garbage pail with paper or a plastic bag to keep it free of dirt and odors, and so forth. After the dishes are done, she can finish up by using a damp mop over the floors. Has she as yet learned to do such things?

Managing the kitchen is a particular challenge. A good system is a must. One mother reports that in her home there is a rule that, aside from mealtime, anyone using a dish or glass has to wash it and put it away. In another home the family uses paper plates and cups one night a week when everyone has to get out at a set time. It eliminates dishwashing and also provides a festive mood for dinner. Some large families find it practical to set the table the night before when they must get out early the next morning. The important thing is that whatever system is followed, it should be practical and designed to make the work lighter.

It may not be easy to maintain a neat, clean and comfortable home, as well as train someone else to do the same, but it is rewarding. You will have the pleasure of seeing your daughter develop into a capable and efficient housekeeper.

What Do You Know About Flags?

IF YOU were to stand in front of the United Nations building in New York city you would see 128 multicolored flags waving in the breeze. One is the UN flag, and the 127 other flags represent the member nations of this international body. Their presence in front of the UN indicates the important role flags play in this world.

When a national flag flies over a ship, a building or a piece of territory, it symbolizes the presence of the nation represented by it. At the time Great Britain possessed colonies all around the earth, her presence in these territories was represented by the colorful British flag known as the Union Jack. It showed that the territories belonged to Great Britain.

More recently astronauts implanted the United States flag on the moon, not to indicate territorial claims, but to show that this nation had succeeded in reaching the moon. So a flag has come to be a symbol of a nation, and its design often conveys a certain meaning. This no doubt is true of the flag of the nation of which you are a citizen.

Many persons with strong nationalistic feelings become emotional about their flag. A woman who heads a patriotic organization in the United States was quoted by Newsweek magazine as saying: “When I place my right hand over my heart as that glorious American flag passes by I feel very near to God.” Rear Admiral Robert Peary, who took the American flag on man’s first expedition to the North Pole, is reported by his daughter to have regarded the flag as having “a certain sacred symbolism.”

Manifesting this reverence for the United States flag is the growing demand for flags that have flown over the capitol in Washington, D.C. It is a traditional practice for congressmen to make special gifts of such flags to constituents. To meet the demand for such flags three additional flagpoles have had to be erected and a crew of four men assigned to raising and lowering extra flags. Each flag flies for about ten seconds. Reporting on this, a news magazine of June 1970 said: “So far this year, in a way reminiscent of medals blessed by the Pope, 10,599 flags have been raised, lowered and packed off to the citizenry.”

To a nationalistic person his national flag is more than just a piece of cloth with a distinguishing design. He views it as something special that must be given great respect. Note how the United States law code regarding the flag reflects this feeling. “The flag should not be dipped to any person or thing. . . . The flag should never touch anything beneath it, such as the ground, the floor, water, or merchandise.”

Background of National Flags

Did you know that historical works trace national flags back to the standards used by armies of ancient peoples such as the Egyptians, Persians and Romans? This is noted by The Encyclopedia Americana in its edition of 1969: “Fighting men of ancient times rallied to banners and standards that were symbols having some relationship to the modern idea of flags.”

Going back as far as the ancient Egyptians in tracing the history of flags, The Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, observes on page 454 of volume 10:

“From their carvings and paintings, supplemented by ancient writers, it appears that several companies of the Egyptian army had their own particular standards. These were formed of such objects as, there is reason to believe, were associated in the minds of the men with feelings of awe and devotion. Sacred animals, boats, emblems or figures, a tablet bearing a king’s name, fan- and feather-shaped symbols, were raised on the end of a staff as standards, and the office of bearing them was looked upon as one of peculiar privilege and honour.”

About the ancient Persians, this same encyclopedia says in its edition of 1946, volume 9, page 343:

“The Persians bore an eagle fixed to the end of a lance, and the sun, as their divinity, was also represented upon their standards, which appear to have been formed of some kind of textile, and were guarded with the greatest jealousy by the bravest men of the army.”

Note what this encyclopedia observes regarding the Roman standards:

“The Roman standards were guarded with religious veneration in the temples of Rome. It was not unusual for a general to order a standard to be cast into the ranks of the enemy, to add zeal to the onset of his soldiers by exciting them to recover what to them was perhaps the most sacred thing the earth possessed.”

Thus it can be seen that the forerunners to modern national flags often were religious in nature. The feeling that some people have toward their national flag today is no doubt a carry-over of the feeling manifested by these ancient peoples.

The religious background of modern-day national flags is clearly demonstrated by the Union Jack. It is a combination of three religious crosses—the cross of St. George, the cross of St. Andrew and the cross of St. Patrick. These were the patron saints of England, Scotland and Ireland, and the uniting of these kingdoms into the kingdom of Great Britain is represented by the uniting of these three religious crosses on the flag.

Pointing out how a national flag is often handled with reverence, the book The Flags of the World by F. Edward Hulme makes the following interesting comparison on page three:

“The Roman standards were guarded with religious veneration in the temples of the metropolis and of the chief cities of the Empire, and modern practice has followed herein the ancient precedent. . . . At the presentation of colours to a regiment a solemn service of prayer and praise is held, and when these colours return in honour, shot-rent from victorious conflict, they are reverently placed in stately abbey, venerable cathedral, or parish church, never more to issue from the peace and rest of the home of God until by lapse of years they crumble into indistinguishable dust.”

Are Flags Worshiped Today?

We have seen that ancient-peoples gave religious worship to their standards, the forerunners of modern-day flags. Do you think people today do the same? There are those who sincerely believe they do.

The book Essays on Nationalism by Carlton J. H. Hayes observes on page 107:

“Nationalism’s chief symbol of faith and central object of worship is the flag, and curious liturgical forms have been devised for ‘saluting’ the flag, for ‘dipping’ the flag, for ‘lowering’ the flag, and for ‘hoisting’ the flag. Men bare their heads when the flag passes by; and in praise of the flag poets write odes and children sing hymns. In America young people are ranged in serried rows and required to recite daily, with hierophantic voice and ritualistic gesture, the mystical formula. . . .”

He then quotes the pledge of allegiance. Thus this author views flag ceremonies as a form of worship. So also does the Scottish Professor Denis Brogan of Cambridge University, who says on page 359 of the book The Religious Situation: 1968:

“The civic religion has its rituals. There are many, but one . . . is the ritual of flag worship.”

On the same subject the Finnish writer Arvo Viklund states with respect to the Finnish flag:

“So when we understand what values even our blue cross flag hides in its folds, then our averse attitude towards it must also change to become worship of the flag, which directs its holy anger towards all those who dare to underestimate or offend the most precious symbol of our nation.”

To some people it may seem that these writers are drawing an extreme view. They personally may not regard themselves as engaging in flag worship. But if their actions during a flag ceremony were viewed for the first time by a native from the Amazon jungles, what do you think he would conclude? Would it not seem to him that people standing at attention with faces uplifted to a flag and with arms extended toward it or placed upon their hearts while repeating a memorized formula are worshiping it?

Obedience to Conscience

In the colonial days of America the Puritans objected to the British flag because of its red cross of St. George. According to The Encyclopædia Britannica, they did this, “not from any disloyalty to the mother country, but from a conscientious objection to what they deemed an idolatrous symbol.”

There are Christians today who feel similarly regarding national flags. They are Jehovah’s witnesses. Their position is the same the world over. Being keenly aware of the Scriptural command to “flee from idolatry,” they decline to participate in flag ceremonies.—1 Cor. 10:14.

Their position is comparable to that taken by Christians of the first century of our Common Era. Because of conscience, those early Christians refused to burn incense to Caesar, who, to the Romans, was not only a ruler but a god. Note what is said about this on page 137 of the first volume of the book A History of Civilization by Brinton, Christopher and Wolff:

“To hold this motley collection of peoples in a common allegiance, to give them something like a national flag as a symbol of this unity, the emperor was deified. . . . Simple rites of sacrifice to him were added to local religions and local rites. . . . The Christians, however, were as rigorous monotheists as the Jews; they could not sacrifice to the emperor any more than the Jews of old could sacrifice to Baal. . . . The true Christian, then, could not bring himself to make what to an outsider was merely a decent gesture, like raising one’s hat today when the flag goes by in a parade.”

Because Jehovah’s witnesses have been obedient to their religious conscience in this matter they have been sorely mistreated in a number of countries. In the United States it was necessary for them to fight two court cases clear to the Supreme Court before getting a decision that protected their right of religious freedom.

The first case involved the town of Minersville, Pennsylvania, and its school board, which expelled children of Jehovah’s witnesses for refusing to participate in flag ceremonies. In this case the Supreme Court ruled against the Witnesses. Regarding the case, Professor Denis Brogan states:

“The absurd and odious decision of the Minersville School Board meant that the children of Jehovah’s Witnesses were punished for not performing an act that not only their parents but the Jews of the time of the Maccabees and the Christians of the time of Trajan would also have thought idolatrous.”

Three years later, in 1943, the Supreme Court reversed itself in the second flag case involving Jehovah’s witnesses. Justice Jackson, when delivering the majority opinion of the Court, said:

“The Witnesses are an unincorporated body teaching that the obligation imposed by law of God is superior to that of laws enacted by temporal government. Their religious beliefs include a literal version of Exodus, Chapter 20, verses 4 and 5 which says: ‘Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them.’ They consider that the flag is an ‘image’ within this command. For this reason they refuse to salute it. . . .

“But the refusal of these persons to participate in the ceremony does not interfere with or deny rights of others to do so. Nor is there any question in this case that their behavior is peaceable and orderly. . . . To believe that patriotism will not flourish if patriotic ceremonies are voluntary and spontaneous instead of a compulsory routine is to make an unflattering estimate of the appeal of our institutions to free minds. . . .

“We think the action of the local authorities in compelling the flag salute and pledge transcends constitutional limitations on their power and invades the sphere of intellect and spirit which it is the purpose of the First Amendment to our Constitution to reserve from all official control.”

If a country has a constitution that guarantees freedom of worship, that freedom is not only for the majority, but also for a minority whose conscience does not permit them to participate in popular ceremonies. Constitutional guarantees are worthless if they protect only those who conform to the viewpoint of the majority or to those in power.

Justices Black and Douglas wrote a concurring opinion to the majority opinion of the Supreme Court, saying:

“Words uttered under coercion are proof of loyalty to nothing but self-interest. . . . Neither our domestic tranquillity in peace nor our martial effort in war depend on compelling little children to participate in a ceremony which ends in nothing for them but a fear of spiritual condemnation.”

Regarding the court battles fought by Jehovah’s witnesses for freedom of worship, the book Fundamental Liberties of a Free People by Milton Konvitz observes on page 110: “It is to them that we owe credit for the decision of the Supreme Court that an expression of belief or sentiment may not be coerced.”

While the conscience of some people has never troubled them about participating in a flag ceremony, should that make them feel intolerant toward someone whose conscience prevents him from engaging in it? If one’s flag represents religious liberty, why not grant to others such liberty? Why not respect their conscience instead of viewing them suspiciously as being disloyal?

Some of the flags flying outside the UN building represent nations whose rulers do not believe in liberty for their people, and they persecute persons whose religious conscience prevents them from conforming with the majority in patriotic expressions. It may be that a person who feels strongly against such authoritarian rule is proud that his flag stands for a free country. Should not he, then, be willing to grant religious liberty to people who, for religious reasons, cannot salute a flag? Would not intolerance on his part put him in the same camp as those nations whose authoritarian rule he abhors?

So the next time you look at a national flag think of its colorful background in ancient history. Consider what it stands for and how some persons view the ceremonies that may be associated with it. Show consideration for their conscience just as you want others to show consideration for yours.

I Was an “Aladura”

AS TOLD TO “AWAKE!” CORRESPONDENT IN NIGERIA

IT WAS early one morning. The sun had not yet risen, and I was awakened by the ringing of a bell. The noise of the bell and the message being called out caught my attention. “Wake up and pray! Wake up and pray!”

Outside was a man dressed in a long, white robe with a red band around the waist. An old Bible was in his hand. He was going toward a building that was about sixteen feet square; it was his place of worship. The songs coming from this place stirred something inside me. I wanted to know more about these people, so I began to associate with them. That is how I became an Aladura.

Soon I too was roaming the streets at dawn reminding people of our basic tenet—prayer. Yet, contrary to our urgings, most people just awoke and went about their various occupations. And so we were just like timekeepers for them. Yet we would not be deterred but would lament at their worldliness and pray on their behalf.

Three months after embracing this religion strange things began to happen: I began to see visions and started to utter predictions and foretell events. Soon I became a prophet who could speak and interpret strange languages. I also became spirit possessed. Now I could feel invisible hands and a spirit operating in me and moving me to action. This brought me popularity, and in a short time everybody in Ilesha and its suburbs became acquainted with me. People would come to me to have their future foretold.

Later I moved to Lagos, where I became more prominent. I was held in honor and highly esteemed, and people would bow down and do obeisance to me. What was this religion that I had joined?

Cherubim and Seraphim Church

We were called the Aladuras. Adura is a Yoruba word meaning prayer. The prefix Ala (“one who”) is added to Adura to indicate one who prays. The name Aladura is used by the Yoruba people of western Nigeria, whereas in eastern Nigeria the movement is simply called the ‘spiritual healing church.’ Most are, however, familiar with the longer name ‘The Eternal Sacred Order of Cherubim and Seraphim.’

The man regarded as founder of this religion was Moses Orimolade, who was born in western Nigeria. At about the time of World War I he began to preach, even though he was lame and illiterate. He claimed to see visions. His constant theme was the power of prayer. Later it was decided to form a society, and after three days of praying and fasting a woman claimed to have a vision in which she saw the letters SE. A clergyman offered an interpretation: that this meant SERAFU (Seraphim). Later the additional name KERUBU (Cherubim) was added. So the name Cherubim and Seraphim became the designation of the society.

Popularity and Spread

After I became an Aladura it became very easy for me to see what made this religion so popular. Some, like me, had been attracted by the music and singing. Others are drawn by the faith-healing claims to the revival meetings, which are usually held in public places. Those who have problems or desire to know the future or want help of some kind are told about prayer. In fact, prayers are offered for every conceivable thing: For barren women to have children, for market women to prosper in their trade, for the unemployed to obtain jobs, to call down evil upon ‘enemies,’ and so forth. Many are proud that this is an ‘indigenous’ movement and that it is not affiliated with any foreign faith-healing movement.

This religion spread rapidly. However, it is by no means a united organization. Many splinter groups were formed, so that today it is very difficult to give an accurate number of the different groups of the movement. Some groups have been able to establish branches in other West African countries, such as in Cameroon and as far away as Sierra Leone.

Finding the Bible’s Truth

From time to time there were unanswered questions in the back of my mind. But I did not let this hold me back from my career as a prophet in this religion. Then one day I met one of the Christian witnesses of Jehovah. I was skeptical of what he was saying and never for a moment did I think that he would be able to show me that the Bible would answer all my questions. Yet deep inside me was a yearning to know the truth.

“No,” I told him, “I don’t want to have any of your books.” However, I did agree to meet with him regularly for Bible discussions. During three months I had one shock after another as I discovered that hellfire, the inherent immortality of the human soul, Trinity, Easter, Christmas and many other doctrines of our church were not beliefs of Jesus Christ and his disciples. They were, I found, not taught in the Bible.

Now I had many doubts in my mind concerning the Aladura belief. I met with many of the other prophets, but no satisfactory answers were given to my questions. For example, to one of them I said: “I remember reading in a magazine that one former member of our church had accused us of ‘seducing women worshipers, fleecing the innocent of their money and of all kinds of spiritual deception.’ This same man added: ‘The spirit of God does not worry people, throwing them down on the floor in paroxysms of gyrations.’ I know some of these things to be true. Now what do you have to say?”

My question was answered by vague comments, and no Bible scriptures were given. I became convinced that the Christian witnesses of Jehovah must have the truth.

Contrast in Meetings

What a surprise the first meeting I attended at the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses! For twenty-two years I had been used to prayer sessions at which we would offer prayers, read some portions from the Bible, and then sing, dance, clap hands and beat drums. Then as all of this would reach a crescendo, someone would thunder out in some strange or foreign tongue. He would then go into a frenzy with body contortions. As he shouted “Halle-leeu,” all in the audience would respond “Hallelujah.” Either he would interpret his ‘tongue’ or someone else in the audience would claim to do so. Then would follow a long prayer interrupted at every phrase by a loud “Amin” (Amen) from the audience.

Now at the Kingdom Hall I saw real peace. Here is where I truly learned that God is a God of order and peace, not one of confusion. (1 Cor. 14:33) All who spoke from the platform or commented from the audience did so in our everyday speech. No one was needed to ‘interpret.’ Prayer was offered at the beginning and close of meetings and in a dignified yet honest, humble way. No one interrupted. Nobody was carried away in a frenzy by either the singing or by what was said. Yet how delightful to the ears was the singing of Kingdom songs!

Other Contrasts

As I came to know the Christian witnesses of Jehovah, I found that many had formerly been Aladuras. One experience I was told further illustrates the contrast between the Witnesses and the Aladuras.

Before meeting the Witnesses, a man and his wife were very concerned as they were not able to have any children. They decided to go to see a doctor but were persuaded at the last minute to visit an Aladura prophet. This prophet prayed and said that he saw three stars, which meant that in three months the wife would conceive. Ten pounds ($28) and a bed were given to the prophet, but after three months, no result.

More money was paid, more prayers were said and another three months elapsed. Then the prophet said that he saw in a vision the mother-in-law walking in church with her head upside down. “She is a witch,” he said, “and the one hindering your wife from conceiving.” The man was told that his wife must keep away from her mother. So for two and a half years she did not visit her mother, even though she lived only three hundred yards away! Still there was no child.

Then another prophet told them to move, so they moved to Lagos. More money was spent on getting another prophet to pray with the wife at the beach for seven days every month. After five months the frustrated couple decided that they had been foolish and had wasted their time and money for almost four years. So they went to the doctor they had wanted to see at the beginning. The result was that after three months the wife conceived and later gave birth to a daughter. It was after this that they met Jehovah’s Christian witnesses and learned the Bible’s truth. And they learned it free of charge.

I now felt as if I was coming into light after being enveloped in a dark cloud. I was now free from possession by wicked spirits, for the Witnesses keep free from every kind of spiritism, knowing it is condemned in the Bible. (Gal. 5:19-21; Deut. 18:10-12) It was not difficult for me to break from false religion and to leave the Cherubim and Seraphim church. Even though I received much ridicule from many of my former associates, I was no longer an Aladura.

I was free, and it was the Bible’s truth that had set me free. Then came one of the happiest days of my life when, in 1966, I was baptized in symbol of my dedication to Jehovah. What a privilege it has been since then to serve in the ministry in a proper way as a true servant of Jehovah God!

Constantine “the Great”

● Roman emperor Constantine I, often called “the Great,” made a form of “Christianity” the state religion of the Roman Empire.

Commenting on this emperor, the book History of the Middle Ages says: “The question is much opened to doubt whether Constantine was ever more than a ‘political’ Christian. As for his private life, the execution—not to say murder—of his own son and his wife indicates that he was untouched by any spiritual influence in Christianity. To the end of his life he was a pagan to the pagans, a Christian of one stripe or the other to the Christians. He never broke with the tradition of the Roman religion.”—Page 26.

Melancholy Music of the Andes

By “Awake!” correspondent in Ecuador

ALONG a footpath, high on the slopes of the Andes, an Indian family returns home from market. Father, in the lead, raises his simple flute to his lips and a sweet, sad melody begins to rise on the mountain air. A hundred miles away, in the crowded streets of Quito, a lowly cargador shuffles under his burden, and from somewhere beneath the folds of his poncho a tiny transistor radio pours forth a similar melancholy serenade.

This is the typical music of the Ecuadorian sierra. Fondly called música nacional, its characteristic strains can be heard throughout the Ecuadorian highland, in countless corner cafés, in local plazas on fiesta days, in fields at harvesttime, in buses, in workshops and in homes. Although these mournful and somewhat repetitious tunes are not what one might think of as typical “gay Latin music,” they do have a unique appeal. They also reveal to the listener many things about the land and people.

The native music of this region of South America appears to have changed very little over the centuries. According to one early Ecuadorian historian, Juan de Velasco, when the Spaniards arrived they found the Indians playing panpipes and pingullos, which were different kinds of flutes. To this day the music of the Andean tribes shows only slight effects of four centuries of Spanish influence. The Indian still plays his rondador, or panpipe, and his pingullo. His unwritten melodies are still heard.

Of the instruments typical of this region, the rondador especially has been the object of interest. The Ecuadorian rondador is made by lashing together in a row from eight to thirty or more varied lengths of hollow reeds about one-half inch in diameter. The maker of the rondador arranges the reeds “by ear” into tonal pairs. In musical terminology the relationship or interval between the tones in each pair would be expressed as a minor third. Only in the very small rondadores are the reeds arranged to form a consecutive scale. The delightful rondador melodies are produced by blowing across the tops of the reeds while shifting the instrument back and forth as when playing a harmonica.

The rondador has aroused interest largely because of the fact that identical instruments have been found in the ruins of ancient Chinese and Burmese civilizations and throughout the islands of the Pacific. This striking similarity in musical instruments has been interpreted by some as evidence of early contact between Far Eastern and South American cultures.

Many, upon hearing the music of the sierra for the first time, comment that it reminds them of Oriental music. Others say it calls to mind some ancient Scottish ballad. Their ears have not failed them. The music of the Andes is based on the pentatonic scale, just as was the ancient music of China, Scotland and other countries.

The pentatonic scale is a musical scale of five notes, without semitones. The scale is based on a tonic or grave note such as F, above which are four perfect fifths: C, G, D, and A (the fifth note above F being C, the fifth above C being G, and so forth). The five notes are then rearranged to form the ascending major scale: F-G-A-C-D. In Ecuadorian folk music, the use of the minor pentatonic scale, in this case D-F-G-A-C, contributes greatly to the sad, monotonous quality.

Environmental Factors

Whatever may have been the origin of the Ecuadorian Indian and his culture, when he settled in the Andean valleys his music must have begun to echo the mood of his new homeland. The awesome beauty of the snow-covered volcanoes, the thin air, the cold winds and, above all, the solitude of the mountains—all of these environmental factors seem to have left their mark on his personality and his music.

The obvious differences between the popular music of the sierra and that of Ecuador’s other main geographical region, the tropical coast, would tend to support this idea. Lighthearted and independent, the people of the coastal area generally show a decided preference for lively, rhythmic music. As a rule they shun the doleful melodies that their taciturn serrano countrymen so dearly love. Significant, too, is the fact that the popular music on the coast is likely to be in the major keys, while the Indian of the sierra has chosen the sorrowful minor mode for more than 90 percent of his musical expression.

In view of the oppression suffered by the Indians throughout the last few centuries, some have concluded that the apparent sadness of their music reflects the sadness of their lot in life. Others, however, feel that the melancholy quality is due more to environmental factors and to the limitations of the instruments and musical structure than to a conscious effort to express social grievances.

Indeed, the Indian himself does not consider his music to be particularly sad. He merely plays it as he does because that is the way it suits him and because that is the way it has long been played.

God’s Name and Hebrew Numerals

● It may seem strange that the name of God could have affected the Hebrew system of numerals, but it did. Irving Adler explains in his book A New Look at Arithmetic:

“Some of the peoples who had alphabets used the letters of the alphabet to represent numbers. The ancient Jews, for example, used nine letters of the Hebrew alphabet to represent the numbers from one to nine. They used nine other letters to represent the multiples of ten, from ten to ninety. A third set of nine letters represented the multiples of one hundred, from one hundred to nine hundred . . .

“The use of letters of the alphabet to represent numbers has led to some interesting consequences. Letters used in a compound numeral may accidentally spell out a word. Then the use of the numeral may be affected by the meaning of the word. For example, in the Hebrew system of numerals, the number fifteen should have been written as יה, which means ten plus five. (Hebrew is read from right to left.) However these are the first two letters of the word יהוה which spells out Jehovah. Since it was forbidden by Jewish law to use the name of God in vain, the Jews wrote the number fifteen as טו, nine plus six, instead.”

Flying Dragons of the Sky

DURING hot, midsummer days, the air above fields and ponds becomes the stage for some of the most amazing fliers in insectdom—the dragonflies.

With their two pairs of long wings glistening in the sun, you can see dragonflies flashing back and forth, looping, turning and diving at will. One moment they will be zooming at express-train speed high in the sky, then, the next, swooping down to skim the surface of a pond. These marvels of creation can even fly backward or hover in midair like a helicopter.

But the sun-loving dragonflies do not fly simply for the enjoyment of it. These aerial dynamos ply their skills to feed an insatiable appetite. In fact, Mr. Dragonfly can eat his own weight in half an hour and still be hungry.

When hunting a meal to appease their appetite, dragonflies exhibit distinctive habits. Some species search over large areas. Others have set paths that they follow generation after generation. Larger dragonflies stake out territories for themselves and drive off other dragonflies by wildly clattering their wings. Sometimes if an invading dragonfly is bold and is not intimidated by the clattering, it will be met head to head. Hovering together menacingly, these two will stay in that position while rising straight up into the sky.

Whether they take to roaming or settling in one spot, dragonflies stay alert for their favorite diet: mosquitoes and gnats. They also find tasty meals in moths and horseflies. Because of their long, slender, needle-shaped body, many persons have believed that dragonflies sting, but this they do not do. They are not only harmless to man but also very beneficial because of their devouring mammoth quantities of flies and mosquitoes.

When a dragonfly zeros in on these insects, they are completely outmatched. Equipped with six spine-fringed legs that are bunched together like a basket, dragonflies scoop prey out of the air and suck their bodies dry while racing after another victim. So swiftly do they gobble up prey that dragonflies have been known to eat forty horseflies in two hours. One dragonfly was found with its mouth gorged with one hundred mosquitoes! No wonder these voracious insects have earned the name “flying dragons.”

…

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Awake!, September 8, 1971