Awake!, May 8, 1975

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Awake! — May 8, 1975

Source: jw.org

Contents

Life with a Satisfying Purpose

The High Price of VD

The “Opium War”—A Lesson for Our Day

Are You Looking for a Job?

Do Big-City Schools Face Collapse?

Inadequate Education

How to Endure the Loss of Loved Ones

Gilead’s Fifty-eighth Class—Willing and Appreciative

The Controversy over Priestly Celibacy

Watching the World

Read the Bible with Understanding

The Churches Bless War

Life with a Satisfying Purpose

Life with a Satisfying Purpose

“WHAT a fool I was.” Reportedly, a former officer of the imperial Japanese Army expressed that sentiment after thirty years of hiding in a Philippine jungle. He had been ordered to stay on Lubang Island when the Japanese withdrew toward the close of World War II, and says that he thought of ‘nothing but accomplishing his duty.’ Persons who spoke with him after his return to Japan early in 1974 said he apparently felt that spending three decades in the jungle had been a waste of life.

This experience is unusual. Not so extraordinary, however, is the frustration felt by many persons because their life appears to have little or no purpose. Their struggle for survival is interspersed by only brief periods of enjoyment.

God’s Word, the Bible, takes note of this very situation, saying: “What does a man come to have for all his hard work and for the striving of his heart with which he is working hard under the sun? For all his days his occupation means pains and vexation, also during the night his heart just does not lie down. This too is mere vanity.”​—Eccl. 2:22, 23.

People need to feel that they have a real purpose in life, for that results in satisfaction. Likely, the desire for a purposeful, satisfying life moves many to select careers involving service to their fellowman. Yet, even seemingly successful persons often find life unsatisfying. In fact, some apparently have viewed it as an intolerable burden. For instance, consider a very prosperous American manufacturer whose estimated philanthropies exceeded $100,000,000. Surely, one might conclude that this man would have a sense of accomplishment that would make him satisfied with life. However, he committed suicide after leaving a statement saying he was ill and tired of life. Another example is that of a British actor who died by his own hand. Why did he take his life? “Because I am bored,” he said.

What Is Missing?

Jehovah is a loving God and he desires that humans enjoy life on earth. (Eccl. 2:24; 3:12, 13; 1 John 4:8) So, why do so many persons find life unsatisfying? What is missing?

If one is to have a happy life with a satisfying purpose, God cannot be left out of the picture. Humankind was created with an urge to worship God. Significantly, Ivar Lissner wrote in the book Man, God and Magic: “One can only marvel at the perseverance with which man has striven, throughout his history, to reach outside himself. His energies were never directed solely toward the necessities of life. He was forever questing, groping his way further, aspiring to the unattainable. This strange and inherent urge in the human being is his spirituality. It is constantly leading him on toward a goal which is just beyond his reach. And that goal is God.”

Originally, mankind rendered acceptable worship to Jehovah and had a close relationship with him. Through human sin, though, this status was lost. (Gen. 3:1-7; Rom. 5:12) Ever since then humans have been groping for God. Thus the Christian apostle Paul declared: “The God that made the world and all the things in it. . . made out of one man every nation of men, . . . and he decreed the appointed times and the set limits of the dwelling of men, for them to seek God, if they might grope for him and really find him, although, in fact, he is not far off from each one of us.” (Acts 17:24-27) Like others, those who “really find” Jehovah God by becoming his dedicated worshipers must cope with problems common to humanity. Nevertheless, they enjoy life with a satisfying purpose.

By way of illustration, consider this account from Lebanon:

“I was formerly a well-known singer and actress. I had fame and honor and wealth. But in spite of these things I was not happy. I hated the atmosphere in which I lived and many times thought of taking my own life.

“In 1969 my sister became one of Jehovah’s witnesses and hastened to tell me the good news. . . . When my sister spoke to me about the truth [of God’s Word], I was overjoyed and took it in like a hungry person who had found food.

“This annoyed my family greatly because they stood to lose much materially if I stopped singing and acting. In fact, I did soon leave my career as an actress and singer and moved from my extravagant house to a reasonable one. I got rid of my expensive, inappropriate dresses and replaced them with modest dress, and was baptized in symbol of my dedication to Jehovah. My family tried in many ways to get me to go back to acting, but I was through with all of that. All of this caused quite a stir among my former acquaintances and there was considerable comment in movie magazines and on television, which only served for a witness.

“Today I am happily married to a man who is zealous in his love for Jehovah and serves as an overseer in the congregation of God’s people. Now my life is a happy one.”

Life’s very meaning puzzled a man in Switzerland, who states:

“Several years ago when I was especially dissatisfied with world events, I often pondered on the meaning of life. . . .

“The books on philosophy that I read left me empty, as I had to admit they were only human thinking after all. I came to the logical conclusion that there must be a God, and so one evening, in my desperation, I opened my heart in prayer to him in this sense: ‘Dear God, please lead me to the right way, to the way that leads to you. Hold my hand fast in yours and do not let me go astray.’

“This I prayed most sincerely for several evenings, and shortly thereafter it happened that an elderly married couple of Jehovah’s witnesses spoke to me in town. I had the feeling that they understood me and slowly a warm friendship developed which led to a home Bible study . . .

“Often I think of the wonderful way in which Jehovah heard my prayer and led me to him.” And now this man and his wife are using their lives to aid others to know the Creator and his loving purpose for mankind.

The Holy Scriptures assure us that to the man good before God, Jehovah gives “wisdom and knowledge and rejoicing.” (Eccl. 2:26) This has been experienced by hundreds of thousands who now worship God “with spirit and truth.” They have a satisfying purpose in life​—doing the divine will and preaching the good news of God’s kingdom to their fellowman. (John 4:24; Matt. 24:14) Persons who acquire and act upon God-given wisdom and knowledge from the Scriptures do not feel that their life is being wasted. Nor do they become bored with life or tired of it. Instead, theirs is a truly happy life with a satisfying purpose.

The High Price of VD

The High Price of VD

A 19-DAY-OLD baby was admitted to a hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. The infant had not been eating well, was lethargic and had a yellowish discharge from her left eye.

Doctors made strenuous efforts to help the baby with antibiotics; but she continued to get worse. What was wrong?

More than two weeks were spent in search of the cause of the child’s illness. Finally doctors discovered an infection by a virus​—herpes simplex Type 2, a form of venereal disease (VD). The baby is now in a home for children with brain damage.

VD has become a household word for millions of persons throughout the world. Dr. Ralph Henderson, who heads the VD branch of the U.S. Center for Disease Control, explained that, “next to the common cold, VD is our most communicable disease.”

What is venereal disease? How serious is it? Is there a reasonably sure way to avoid VD?

VD can refer to any of a number of contagious diseases. The most common are syphilis and gonorrhea. Why are these maladies termed “venereal”?

The Encyclopædia Britannica (1974 edition) answers: “The venereal diseases are linked not because of similarity of causative agents, tissue reactions, and symptoms produced but because the principal means of spread of each disease is by sexual intercourse, as implied by their group name, venereal, derived from the name of the goddess of love, Venus.”

“It’s like Fighting a War”

Venereal disease has spread like wildfire in recent years. Concerning gonorrhea in the United States, the April 1974 issue of Life and Health remarked: “One new case occurs every 16 seconds, 7,000 a day. That’s 2 1⁄2 million a year!” And syphilis is growing at the rate of some 85,000 new cases a year. A United States government-funded study termed VD the “most serious and fastest growing epidemic” in the country.

VD is no respecter of age either. While teen-agers and persons in their twenties make up the vast majority of those who suffer from it, some cases are reported among people over sixty. And it afflicts even the very young. Life and Health, quoted above, points out: “In one Eastern city 50 of 13,000 annual cases of reported gonorrhea occurred among children under 10 years of age!”

Efforts to control VD with penicillin and other antibiotics have been disappointing. Dr. Ralph Henderson lamented: “It’s gotten out of sight. The harder we work, the more cases we find. It’s like fighting a war.”

Why So Much VD?

What is responsible for the enormous increase in venereal disease in recent years? Writer Douglas Colligan observes in Science Digest of June 1973: “The answers vary according to who is quizzed, but the most popular formulized answer is ‘the three P’s’​—the pill, promiscuity and permissiveness.”

The highly contagious nature of venereal disease contributes to its rapid spread. Indicating how easily one can become infected is a letter received by a medical doctor and columnist:

“I am an 18-year-old girl. It has been detected in a pre-college physical examination and blood test that I have VD. I am still in a state of shock. I am at a loss as to how I could have cont[r]acted this. A kiss goodnight has been the limit I have ever let a boy touch me, much less have a sexual contact with one.”

The doctor replied that germs of gonorrhea and syphilis thrive in the linings (mucous membranes) of human body openings, adding: “The mouth and lips, for example, are openings, and an infected lining (a little, painless syphilis ulcer, for instance) could pass on the disease by a kiss. Do you see?”

Another factor in the spread of VD is that infected persons often show no symptoms; they may not even know that they have the disease.

The High Price of Syphilis

The Bible plainly states: “He that practices fornication is sinning against his own body.” (1 Cor. 6:18) The high price paid by persons who suffer from venereal disease amply confirms that statement. Take syphilis, for instance.

Syphilis results from infection by a microscopic “spirochete,” a spiral or corkscrew-shaped germ called Treponema pallidum. It enters the body through breaks in the skin or mucous membranes. Within hours after entry the spirochete begins multiplying and spreads throughout the body by way of the blood and lymph systems. Medical authorities have defined three stages of syphilis. However, an “incubation period” of ten days to ten weeks often follows infection before any evidence of the disease appears.

The first indication of “primary” syphilis is a “chancre,” an open sore at the place where the germ entered. This is usually painless and may be so slight as to go unnoticed. Untreated, it heals of itself in two to six weeks, which can deceive a person into thinking that all is well. Ordinarily syphilis in its chancre stage is accompanied by enlargement of nearby lymph nodes.

Signs of “secondary” syphilis show up from four weeks to several months after the appearance of the chancre. Evidence of this stage of syphilis may persist for from a few days to several months and then disappear without treatment. About half of infected persons develop symptoms such as headache, vague pains in bones and joints and sore throat. There may also be sores on the genital organs and a skin rash that does not itch, as well as some continuance of symptoms of the primary stage. The book Preventive Medicine and Public Health explains:

“Other more or less common manifestations of secondary syphilis are a moth-eaten type of loss of hair from the scalp, external or internal inflammation of the eye, pain from bone involvement, jaundice from liver involvement, . . . and syphilitic meningitis with severe headache, convulsions, deafness, partial paralysis, and sometimes coma.”

While not all people develop these severe symptoms, does this sound like a price you would like to risk paying for a few moments of immoral pleasure?

The third or “latent” stage of syphilis is even worse, though symptoms may not appear for years. In this stage, according to Life and Health, the spiral-shaped germs “attack the brain, causing insanity; the spinal cord, paralyzing portions of the body; the heart or major blood vessels, weakening them; or the optic nerve, causing blindness. The victim can only guess whether he will become crippled, paralyzed, or insane! Many of these will die early.”

Syphilis often escapes detection. Its evidences are so like other illnesses that it has been called “the great imitator.” Many people do not suspect that they have syphilis, and some persons may reach the third stage of this disease having never exhibited external symptoms of primary or secondary syphilis. Persons with syphilis indeed pay a high price.

The Price of Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea results from infection by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, also called gonococcus, a microscopic organism that frequently lodges in the mucous membranes of the reproductive organs. It, too, is highly contagious, and, as with syphilis, gonorrhea may display no symptoms. There are now thought to be 800,000 females in the United States unknowingly carrying gonorrhea.

For those who do show symptoms, early evidence of gonorrhea may be painful urination or a discharge of pus from the genital organ. In males, gonorrhea affects the urethra, the canal that transports the urine from the bladder out of the body. Gonorrhea also involves sacs that store sperm and can, therefore, lead to sterility.

In females, this disease often produces a large painful abscess near the opening of the vagina. Gonorrhea spreads to the uterine tubes and, here too, can lead to sterility. During a recent year, in just one country, more than 100,000 hysterectomies were performed for conditions directly related to gonorrhea. And it can also result in blindness, heart disease and crippling arthritis. Do you feel that a few minutes of sexual pleasure are worth the high price of gonorrhea?

Of course, many feel that gonorrhea is easy to get rid of. Just a shot of penicillin, they think, and everything is all right. To such persons, Dr. Harold T. Hyman sounds a serious warning:

“Smart alecks of both sexes and of any age do not realize that gonorrhea can no longer be prevented or cured with certainty by sulfa pills that used to be 100% effective. Many strains of gonococci have become ‘fast,’ meaning that they are now resistant to the sulfas and/​or to penicillin. Self-treatments may merely mask the infection and result in later transmission to coital partners of a ‘treatment resistant’ strain of gonococci.”

It is now reported that even viral hepatitis may be sexually transmitted. And as for Herpes VD, mentioned at the beginning of this article, two doctors write in a fall 1974 issue of a journal published by the American Cancer Society:

“A review of the data suggests that there is some relationship between herpesvirus type 2 and the development of cervical cancer. Indeed, recent evidence points to an even more widespread association between herpesviruses and cancer.”

The High Price Others Pay

Persons who already have VD, however, are not the only ones who pay its high price. Most serious is what often happens to newborn infants and even to those not yet born.

A pregnant woman with syphilis, for example, can transmit the disease to a child developing in her womb. This may result in spontaneous abortion, miscarriage, a stillborn fetus, or a fatally ill infant. If the child survives, it may suffer from a number of deformities. “These include,” according to the Encyclopædia Britannica (1974 edition), “thickening of the shins, notching of the teeth, collapse of the bridge of the nose, and eye defects.” Congenital syphilis can affect the infant even when the mother can no longer pass on the disease by sexual intercourse. During 1973 some 3,000 cases of congenital syphilis were reported in the United States.

Gonorrhea, though it is not passed on during pregnancy, may infect the infant as it passes through the birth canal. This can cause the newborn to develop severe inflammation of one or both eyes and of the delicate membrane that lines the eyelids. And we have already seen the tragic effect of Herpes VD on a newborn infant.

Can You Avoid Paying the Price?

The price of VD is indeed high. But there is a way to be reasonably certain that you will not pay that price. Not, however, by looking to penicillin or other drugs. You must get at the basic cause of transmission of venereal disease. How?

Since becoming infected in ways other than sexual intercourse is extremely rare, the wisest course is that recommended by Dr. Harold T. Hyman: “Avoid promiscuous intercourse.”

But how can one follow that advice in a world that lays so much stress on “free sex”? The Bible helps by pointing to the root cause of immoral acts:

“From inside, out of the heart of men, injurious reasonings issue forth: fornications, . . . adulteries, . . . loose conduct . . . All these wicked things issue forth from within and defile a man.”​—Mark 7:21-23.

The remedy, therefore, is to change one’s pattern of thinking, to remold one’s desires. That is what the Bible encourages, saying: “Deaden, therefore, your body members that are upon the earth as respects fornication, uncleanness, sexual appetite, hurtful desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” (Col. 3:5) Such things should “not even be mentioned” as topics of entertaining conversation among persons who wish to please God.​—Eph. 5:3.

The motive for such a change, however, should not be merely the fear of VD; nor should it be simply because persons who practice sexual immorality ‘will not inherit God’s kingdom.’ (1 Cor. 6:9) The motivation should be as the apostle Paul expressed it: “For this is what God wills, . . . that you abstain from fornication.” (1 Thess. 4:3) It is not fear of adverse consequences, but love of God and an earnest desire to meet his approval that has helped millions of persons throughout the world to clean up their lives from sexual immorality. It can do the same for you.

The price of VD is a high one. It can bring untold physical and mental anguish and even cause death. But you will do much to avoid paying that price if you heed the Scriptural advice: “Keep abstaining from . . . fornication. . . . Good health to you!”​—Acts 15:29.

The “Opium War”—A Lesson for Our Day

The “Opium War”​—A Lesson for Our Day

TAKING an honest look at the past often helps us better to understand the present. This is certainly the case with many of today’s world events.

There are broad trends in our time that are the direct result of past history. Among the many examples of such history that could be noted is the “Opium War,” fought in China more than a century ago.

How are events like that connected with our time? To understand this, let us first note just what the flow of world events is now.

World events are causing much concern to the leading nations of what is called “Christendom.” Of course, for decades several Communist nations, led by the Soviet Union, have presented a growing challenge to the West. But another trend has also been taking place.

In various parts of Asia, Africa and even Latin America now, many leaders and their peoples are displaying a growing opposition to the economic, political and religious practices of Western nations. Invariably, the actions of these lesser developed lands have the support of Communist China.

For example, many of them with valuable natural resources are now demanding much higher prices for their raw materials​—usually with Chinese backing. This works to the disadvantage of Western industrial lands.

Also, much of the West’s “culture” is being rejected in other countries. This is especially true of the religions represented by Christendom, her churches. Missionaries of such churches are often expelled from developing nations, or at least restricted in their activities. In China this has been almost total.

The trend against the interests of Western nations can also be observed within the United Nations. More and more of its members are speaking, and voting, against the domination previously exercised by Western countries. Here, too, Communist China backs this growing majority of opposing countries.

This trend has prompted deep concern by the United States and various European lands.

Why Is It Happening?

Why this turn of events, even within the ranks of the United Nations? Why have the major powers of Christendom lost so much influence?

Basically, it is as the Bible principle says: ‘You reap what you sow.’ (Gal. 6:7; Job 4:8) It is the consequence of alienating, not people and leaders only, but, more importantly, God Almighty himself.

Nor is the trend of world affairs something that has happened suddenly. It has been building up for a long time. For several hundred years before World War II, the nations of Christendom carved up most of Asia, Africa and Latin America. Although those places already had large native populations with their own cultures, they were forcibly subjected to the rule and culture of their conquerors.

True, the European nations did some good in those lands. But they also did much bad, often exploiting the native peoples and their resources. So, most of those people, in time, came to regard Europeans as undesirable outsiders.

Since World War II especially, many of those lands have gained independence. And they remember the humiliations of the past. Most have resolved to be masters of their own destinies instead of being colonies to European powers.

Hence, today we see 138 nations, the largest number ever, represented in the United Nations. Most of them are fiercely independent and demand control over their own resources, culture and politics.

An Example

China is an example of how foreign domination has soured various nations against Christendom. For thousands of years, China had its own culture. It developed its own economic and political systems. At times China reached a degree of civilization unsurpassed by any other nation during the same period.

The rule of China’s imperial dynasties lasted for centuries. At times their rule became ironfisted and corrupt, causing great suffering. In any event, the Chinese largely kept to themselves. Thus, until the last two centuries China had very little contact with the outside world, and almost none with Western nations.

But then, about two hundred years ago, Western powers began their penetration of China. These countries, principally those of Europe, exerted growing pressure to try to gain a foothold in China during the 1700’s. They gained that foothold, so that by the 1800’s their influence was a serious problem to the Chinese. The Encyclopædia Britannica states:

“Under regimes that often proved to be inefficient and corrupt, [China] remained helpless as foreign powers nibbled at its territory and resources and as its humiliated people struggled for bare subsistence.

“Although it was called an ‘independent country,’ its status and condition resembled that of a foreign colony.”

At first, Western penetration amounted to only a trading post established by Great Britain in Canton in 1715. Later, Britain was joined there by French, Dutch and American traders.

Western merchants wanted the riches of China. They also wanted to sell European products to the Chinese. In this way, the traders would have the money to purchase China’s goods. But, generally, China expressed little interest in Western goods. In a letter to Britain’s King George III, the Chinese Manchu emperor in the late 1700’s is said to have remarked:

“As your Ambassador can see for himself, we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country’s manufactures.”

But then the Western traders found something they could sell to the Chinese: opium, a narcotic drug. It soon came to be one of the chief articles sent into China.

Seeing the bad effect that opium had on her people, China’s government banned its importation. While this made the drug illegal, it did not stop the traffic. Many traders began smuggling the opium into China, since they found it very profitable.

By 1839 the volume of opium being smuggled into China had increased vastly. What had once been a volume of only a few tons of opium a year now became a flood of several thousand tons a year. Who was doing this illegal importing? The book A History of the Far East in Modern Times states:

“The value of the opium imported alone exceed[ed] that of all of the commodities exported. Most of the opium came from India, some from Persia, and, toward the last, some Turkish opium was imported by the Americans.

“All of the nationalities represented at Canton . . . participated in the traffic, although here as in the general trade the English occupied a leading position.”

This publication adds: “It may be pointed out here that opium smoking was not a natural vice of the Chinese, but one that had been introduced into the country. . . . The foreign responsibility for the fostering of opium smoking by the Chinese cannot be overlooked, nor should it be minimized.”

It is not difficult to see why the Chinese regarded Westerners as barbarians. While the Europeans claimed that they were introducing a superior culture into China, along with missionaries of their churches, the Chinese viewed such as foreign conquerors.

All the events that had already taken place were enough to sour their Oriental mind against the nations of Christendom and their systems of culture, economics, politics and religion. Yet, there was more to come​—much more.

War Declared

The Chinese government now took further steps to try to halt this illegal opium traffic. They dispatched troops against the foreign merchants. Millions of dollars’ worth of opium was seized from British and other traders, and various restrictive measures were imposed on the foreigners.

These steps angered the traders, especially the British. They could see their very profitable opium trade, and others, being lost. Hence, in 1839 one of history’s most bizarre wars began. Britain declared war on China, demanding the right to sell opium to the Chinese people. Other privileges were demanded as well.

The war went badly for China. She was not equipped to defend herself against the weapons of the British. Hence, Britain easily won the “Opium War.” It ended in 1842 with the signing of the Treaty of Nanking.

The treaty was the first one to be imposed by force on China. But it was not the last. It started a chain of what the Chinese call the “unequal treaties.”

The Treaty of Nanking gave Britain trading rights at various Chinese ports. It gave to Britain the territory of Hong Kong, which became a British colony. China was also forced to pay Britain the cost of fighting the war. It even had to pay back the value of opium seized from the British.

Other European nations, and the United States, soon demanded concessions. The Chinese were powerless to resist. More warfare against China by outside nations led to new treaties. More ports and more privileges were given up: Britain added Kowloon to Hong Kong; Russia received territory to the north; other nations carved out their own areas of privilege.

Thus, Chinese sovereignty over its own land, cities and peoples was diminished. One treaty provided that the taxes that China could collect from foreigners on their trade would be very small, and could not be increased except by the consent of the foreign power involved, which was not very likely to be given. Also, there was a loss of judicial authority. For instance, if an American citizen committed a crime against a Chinese, he could be punished only by American authorities.

In all of this, what was the attitude of the missionaries and other representatives of Christendom’s churches? In the Roman Catholic magazine America, published by Jesuits, it is admitted that the churches failed the Chinese people. It spoke of their “mistaken alliance, in the missionary past, with the imperialist powers and their gunboat diplomacy, and unequal treaty rights.” It concluded: “The failure of the China mission has been in large part the responsibility of the missionaries and/​or Western Christians themselves.” Yes, the churches often had dealt arrogantly with China, and had supported the abuses of Western power.

More Losses

It is little wonder that The World Book Encyclopedia comments as follows regarding China’s attitude toward foreigners:

“By the 1890’s, many Chinese violently disliked all non-Chinese persons and nations, blaming them for the unequal treaties. Chinese rebels formed secret societies and pledged to end Western influence in China. These societies gained much support among the Chinese people.”

In 1899 these societies began a violent campaign against Westerners. This campaign also was directed against Chinese who had been converted to the churches of Christendom. It was known as the “Boxer Rebellion,” since, it is said, one of the leading secret societies, the Boxers, practiced ceremonial exercise that resembled shadowboxing.

However, the next year an international army, including American troops, moved in and crushed the “rebellion.” Heavy penalties were imposed on China. For example, in the heart of Peking a huge section was confiscated for use by foreign legations. No Chinese had the right to live there. The area was to be permanently garrisoned by foreign troops. In addition, China had to pay thirteen foreign countries hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties.

A Bitter Experience

To a large degree, what happened to China as a result of the “Opium War” and related events shaped the direction that China has taken in modern times. The Chinese hostility against the West today is directly related to the way Christendom behaved toward her in past times.

Many of the other radical forces now growing in strength and number within the United Nations organization are similar examples to Christendom of the truthfulness of the Biblical principle that ‘you reap what you sow.’ Such nations are taking a road of political and economic development that is unfavorable to Christendom.

Also, the moral and religious values coming from the West and its churches are largely rejected, linked inseparably in the minds of many people in those nations with the bitter experience of colonialism. As Creighton Lacy says in Christianity amid Rising Men and Nations:

“The whole heritage of Western colonialism has suddenly risen up to smite its perpetrators as nationalistic self-consciousness has burgeoned in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

“As a result there is a widespread tendency to separate the technical advantages of Western culture . . . from the spiritual and ideological factors which determine ‘a way of life.’ . . .

“It is widely held that Western social and moral principles​—and thus the religious faith in which they are rooted—​are not superior to those of other societies. In fact, they may be held to be inferior.”

Christendom has indeed alienated hundreds of millions of people. Sadly, this has caused them to turn away from Christianity. They do not realize that what Christendom represents is not true Christianity at all but is hypocritical, detestable to God. In the case of China, this alienation has caused a nation of 800,000,000 people to turn against Christianity.

For all of this, Christendom will have to answer to God. And the clear evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy as seen in today’s world events shows that the time is fast approaching when God will demand that accounting.​—Matt. 7:15-23; Revelation, chap. 17.

Are You Looking for a Job?

Are You Looking for a Job?

NOT since the Great Depression have so many people been looking for a job. In West Germany, France, Australia, Denmark, Canada, Japan​—practically everywhere—​startling surges in unemployment have occurred. Only 12 million of an Indonesian work force of 44 million are said to be fully employed. Some 7.5 million Americans are looking for work.

Are you one of the increasing millions of unemployed?

In many industrialized countries temporary provisions are made for the jobless. In the U.S. alone, more than 6.3 million persons have been drawing unemployment benefits. But these payments last only a few months, or perhaps a year.

As their unemployment benefits run out, many thousands of jobless are now becoming desperate. In a letter to the editor published in the New York Times, one unemployed man wrote: “Every night for the past four months at 4 A.M. I have been waking up in a cold sweat with my stomach in knots. After looking into my wife’s sleeping face for an hour, I manage to fall asleep.”

Those in desperate need in the U.S. may be eligible for welfare assistance. But fear exists that, with so many receiving unemployment and welfare assistance, government funds for such programs may run out. Already nearly a million persons in New York city alone are on welfare, and the number is expected to increase dramatically in the next year.

To cope with the urgent need for jobs, the U.S. government recently created a public service employment program. But its inadequacy was illustrated in Atlanta, Georgia, where some 3,000 jobless lined up, many before dawn, to apply for 225 public service jobs. When a single door was opened at 8:15 a.m., the surging crowd smashed two plate-glass doors, and several persons required medical attention. Similar desperate rushes for few available jobs occurred in other cities.

Are there any jobs to be found?

Jobs Available, But—

Unemployment in New York city is even higher than in the nation as a whole. Yet many jobs there were going begging. One of the city’s largest employment agencies in January was even offering premiums such as radios, watches and hair dryers to anyone recommending an applicant who eventually was placed in a job by the agency. Why do available jobs go unfilled?

One reason is that the jobs do not pay enough. The owner of an employment agency, who said that he had many jobs but no takers, explained: “People tell me, ‘How can you live on this kind of money? I get more on unemployment insurance and I don’t have to pay carfare and buy lunches.’” However, when unemployment benefits start running out, people will be forced to take such lower-paying jobs and adjust their life-style accordingly.

Pointing to another reason why certain jobs go begging, a youth in Boise, Idaho, said: “People just don’t want them. Most of them are hard manual jobs.” Also, some persons consider the available jobs demeaning, beneath their dignity.

Perhaps the major reason, though, that jobs go unfilled is that applicants do not qualify for them. A worker at a New York employment placement center noted that there were openings for skilled machinists, auto-body repairmen, auto mechanics, furniture finishers, glaziers and screw-machine operators. Another placement center representative said: “There are still shortages of secretaries, stenographers and bookkeepers.”

However, simply hearing that jobs are available may be of little comfort if you are having trouble finding one. What can you do?

Be Willing to Learn, Be Flexible

The solution may be to learn another trade or skill. If the one for which you have been trained is affected, why not train to do another type of work?

There may be some course that you can take that will equip you for jobs that are available. Or the training may be received in another way, as a California man explains: “Usually persons in a certain trade don’t know anything else. However, friends can teach them their own trade. Thus those in janitorial work can teach ones who know only the construction trade and help them to earn enough to feed their families.” Such loving assistance is being given by many persons today who are truly interested in the welfare of their friends.

There is need, also, for those looking for work to be flexible, and to use initiative. What needs do persons have in your community? Can you offer a service that can fill those needs? This is something to consider, as a married couple in California observed:

“We have found that when some are saying that work is hard to find, or that there just isn’t any, they are generally referring to one type of work. We have found that we can find work to support our family by making ourselves available for any type of handyman work, such as painting, cleaning indoors and out, janitorial work, landscaping, and so forth.”

If your job hunting has not been successful in your own community, what about elsewhere? When a family man was laid off his job last November in Rapid City, South Dakota, he immediately applied at the state employment office. But he did not sit at home and wait for them to call. He returned, checking to see if they were considering his application. An opening was located in Pierre, South Dakota, over 150 miles away. What should he do?

The man, one of Jehovah’s witnesses, asked a local Christian elder: “Is there a congregation in Pierre?” He learned that there was a small one, and that it would appreciate help. Next the man discussed the matter with his wife. Then he traveled to Pierre, applied for the job and was hired.

How to Find Jobs

A key to finding a job is to keep looking. Regularly check the help-wanted ads in your local newspaper, and follow up prospects promptly. Also, visit employment agencies often. A California employment official advised: “The job hunter should be revisiting both public and private employment agencies so . . . often that the people there are sick of his face. Otherwise there’s little chance your name would even be pulled for an opening.”

But particularly, get the word around that you are looking for a job​—to relatives, friends, business acquaintances, everyone you can think of that may be of help. They may know of openings in the firms where they work or with other companies, or have acquaintances who know of job prospects. Check out any leads you get. Try to contact the person who is in position to hire you. Usually this is the best way to get a job. Why?

Because most job vacancies never get listed through traditional sources of information, such as classified ads or employment agencies. In fact, studies indicate that about 80 percent of all job openings are in the so-called “hidden job market.” So search out this “market.” Welcome any opportunity for a job interview that you can get. Then prepare for it carefully.

Learn beforehand as much as you possibly can about the business or company with which you seek employment. Determine how your abilities and skills can best be used in its operation. Then let these be known. Be prepared to show your prospective employer the value of your assets to his operation. Your knowledge of the company and interest in its operation will no doubt impress him, and perhaps get you a job.

Remember, you are trying to sell something​—yourself, your services. And so, besides your general intelligence and special aptitudes, your personal appearance also means a lot. The fact is, a person is not necessarily hired because he is the best qualified but because the employer likes the way he looks and what his attitudes are. So give attention to this.

Get sufficient sleep so that you are rested, alert and friendly when appearing for an interview. Your clothing, too, is important. It should be neat and clean. A conservative style of dress is usually best, rather than one that may detract in some way. Be confident, yet, at the same time, avoid a superior, know-it-all attitude.

During the interview, speak distinctly, directly and slowly. Do not look down or mumble, and do not chew gum. Be prepared to answer such questions as, Why are you out of work? Were you fired? Why? Be courteous and cooperative at all times.

Maintain Optimism, Hope

Repeated disappointments in your job search can be disheartening. But do not give up. Keep searching. The more contacts you make, the better chance you have of success.

While job hunting, many persons have also found it wise to avail themselves of all provisions to which they may be entitled, such as unemployment insurance or other benefits. “I made the mistake of waiting five months to obtain food stamps,” noted a jobless Utah man. “We should not have allowed pride to prevent us from taking advantage of this government service that we have paid for through taxes.”

True, times are difficult. But there is sound reason for optimism, even should unemployment grow much worse. For these critical times are evidence that soon now God will wipe out this unjust system and usher in his righteous new one. This hope can sustain us.​—2 Tim. 3:1-5; 2 Pet. 3:13.

“Have you beheld a man skillful in his work? Before kings is where he will station himself; he will not station himself before commonplace men.”​—Prov. 22:29.

Do Big-City Schools Face Collapse?

Do Big-City Schools Face Collapse?

A veteran New York city high-school teacher tells about school problems that should concern everyone.

THE trouble with our schools, I believe, is more serious than you probably realize. Time and again I have seen school principals gloss over or even deliberately conceal problems. Why? Because they want to give the impression that they are doing a good job​—that they have everything under control. But some more honest administrators are speaking out.

Neil V. Sullivan, as Massachusetts State Commissioner of Education, said: “Our public schools are not working. . . . The system itself is literally coming apart at the seams.” And former Philadelphia Superintendent of Schools Mark Shedd warned: “Urban education everywhere is on the verge of collapse.”

These conclusions may seem extreme, but I can vouch that they are true. For the past fifteen years I have taught in about a dozen New York city high schools as both a substitute and a regular teacher. And really, the situation nearly defies description. You have to see it to understand it fully.

Obstacles to Teaching

There has been an extensive breakdown in classroom discipline. I am not talking simply about behind-the-teacher’s-back throwing of spitballs, bits of chalk, and sundry other missiles. There is open rebellion against authority. Children commonly do whatever they like, and teachers are often helpless in maintaining order. The shouting and din in some classrooms are shocking.

In one class about which I know, the teacher, in desperation, devised a gimmick to gain attention. It was at an all-girls high school, where the girls would sit around manicuring their nails, combing one another’s hair or sharing wallet pictures of boyfriends. The teacher resorted to writing the longest words he could think of on the blackboard, and offered to pass any girl who could later spell them correctly. This became the daily class routine.

Because most students have little or no interest in the subject matter, class-cutting is common. Often a third or more of a class is unlawfully absent. Many students show up only a day or two in a semester. They are maintained on school rolls, however, so that tax monies, accorded on the basis of the number of students enrolled, are received by the schools.

As a result of the common policy of advancing students regardless of academic achievements, many seniors hardly know how to read or write. Literally thousands of students are being advanced grade by grade to eventual graduation as functional illiterates. To try to teach such pupils and, at the same time, help the others is virtually impossible.

The physical surroundings are another major obstacle to teaching. School buildings are often in a terribly uncared-for and dilapidated condition, far from conducive to teaching or learning..

Yet these are only part of the conditions that contribute to the near collapse of many big-city schools.

Crime and Violence

Gangs of youths roam hallways, forcing teachers to teach behind locked doors. Students wield guns and knives. Vandalism of school property, robberies at knife point, smoking and “shooting” of drugs in bathrooms and stairwells​—all of these and more have become an integral part of student activity in big-city schools.

Unbelievable as it may sound, many youths are transferred directly from jails or mental institutions to classrooms, including my own. Over 20,000 New York city children fifteen years old and younger are arrested annually. But senior-grade teachers like myself teach older students, who are often more sophisticated at crime.

In 1973 almost 10,000 reported crimes were committed in schools or on school property in the city. Many others, even serious ones, go unreported. Some 900 teachers were assaulted in 1973, half the assaults occurring right in the classrooms! Just a few weeks ago a youth who had raped a girl in another school was transferred to ours, and the faculty was not even warned about him. No wonder self-defense handbooks have been prepared for New York city teachers!

In an effort to control the situation, some 950 security guards, an average of about ten per school, patrol the city’s high schools. This is in addition to teacher’s aids and many regular police officers. But still rapes, assaults and other crimes increase. So an additional $8.4 million is reportedly being sought for over a thousand more elementary and high-school guards!

Another tragedy is arson. Fires are common in a number of schools, where they are usually started in hallways. However, in one high school where I taught, bonfires of textbooks on the school steps seemed an almost daily occurrence.

Moral Climate

Some persons may consider the students’ dress (or state of undress) and morals “normal,” but I consider them a contributing factor to the near collapse of many schools. Last year we even had a totally naked student streaking around a high school where I now teach. Also, necking and extreme petting go on in hallways in full view of everyone. Regardless of what some may say, unbridled sexual passions are hurting our schools.

To me this is evident in the unwed pregnant students who no longer have an interest in school studies. It is also evident in the disturbed, anxious girls who wonder whether or not to have abortions, and in the troubled ones who have already had them. And then there is the less visible but more widespread epidemic of venereal disease, which, according to one health official, threatens to infect 50 percent of U.S. teen-agers with gonorrhea in just five short years.

If I could have imagined fifteen years ago what it would be like to teach teenagers in the inner city, I might never have pursued such a career. At the time, however, teaching seemed a logical choice for a mother with a child to support. Armed with the necessary degrees, I obtained a teaching license and accepted a position in Brooklyn.

How Teachers Feel

It was with confidence and optimism that I started teaching senior English in the fall of 1959. But, surprisingly, my more experienced colleagues did not share my outlook, often talking about the “good old days.” Soon I began to understand why.

I expected the lack of respect for authority, as well as such pranks as the putting of gum or thumbtacks on the teacher’s chair. But what really jolted me was when, in full view of the class, two boys stole my pocketbook from my desk. Out in the hallway they pilfered its contents before leaving it behind a radiator. Yet it was I who was portrayed as guilty because I reported the incident. You see, some principals try to cover up such crimes, even as United Federation of Teachers President Albert Shanker has acknowledged.

About the same time, a student in my class seized another’s throat. Unable to break the grip, I called, without response, for assistance. So I begged for someone to run for help, but no one budged. In that moment I realized that I was dealing with persons bred in a culture with far different values and rules of conduct than I had ever known. And I began to understand why my colleagues were so demoralized.

Those were my first weeks’ initiation to teaching. But because I needed a job I held on, hoping for improvement. Yet worsening school conditions have only further demoralized teachers, and this, too, has clearly been a major factor in the near collapse of many city schools.

The Teachers’ Plight

I know that teachers have recently been severely criticized, particularly for striking for more pay. Typical was the comment of New York narcotics undercover agent Kathleen Conlon, who worked in city schools: “They’re only in there for the money.”

While this is certainly not true of all teachers, it is of many. But do you understand why? Admittedly, it was not always this way. Why is it now?

For one thing, an incredible number of good teachers have quit; they could not stand it any longer. “I am going to run away from the problem instead of sacrificing myself to it,” is a typical teacher’s response. The nerves of many teachers have been shattered by classroom experiences; I know of one who was literally carried from school to a psychiatric ward.

The remaining teachers, who daily face such a challenging situation, feel that they should be better compensated. Detective Conlon herself indicated what we face when she said that at one city school half the students were on heroin. (New York Times, June 22, 1972) Do you realize what such conditions mean?

To relate just one personal experience: While I was teaching behind locked doors one day, a gang of youths in the hallway threateningly pointed a knife at me from outside the window. I ignored them, attempting to continue to teach. A girl, noted for her bad behavior, and who seldom attended class, slowly and very dramatically rose from her seat and proceeded to open the back door. At the moment she did, I ran out the front door to the chairman’s office two doors away. As I entered and closed the door, fortunately it locked, right in the face of the pursuing gang.

Most of my colleagues laughingly admit that they live from day-off to day-off. Without the summer vacation, few believe they could survive. Thus, totally demoralized, many teachers endure simply for their paycheck. They find it very difficult, in many schools of the city, to help the core of teachable students who brave the dangers to seek an education. As a result, teaching has deteriorated, essentially, to a baby-sitting function​—an attempt to keep relative classroom order until the students are released.

“How tragic,” you say, “for the children!” Indeed it is! And my heart goes out to the sea of beautiful young faces that I see daily​—some sad, some tortured, others full of expectation and hope. Often it is with deep-felt anguish that I ask: “What are these schools doing to our children?” I know that others feel as I do.

I recently read about teachers in San Francisco who, because of the deterioration of the school system, bluntly advised a mother to take her daughter out of class. “It’s the ultimate in despair,” the mother noted. “The teachers have already given up.” Sadly, this is so often true. Yet when you see the condition in many of our big-city schools, can you blame the teachers?

“But what is it,” you may ask, “that is responsible for these conditions that threaten many big-city schools with collapse?”

Look at the Community

Racial problems seem to be a major reason. Nowadays we regularly hear about schools’ being shut down due to racial troubles, including even schools in smaller cities. But are the children responsible? Rather, it is the adults who are the fomenters of racial prejudices and the resultant conflicts. And these spill over into the schools, tearing many of them apart!

I know that many parents will say that they are not prejudiced, but that they simply fear to send their children to certain schools because of the dangers there. It is for this reason, many parents, both white and black, say, that they resist the “busing” of their children to schools in other neighborhoods to achieve racial integration. And I can understand their concern. Often it is simply not safe to send white children into black neighborhoods, or blacks to white schools. But what is the source of the problem? Is it the schools?

No, the problem originates in the community, and the schools simply reflect the problems already existing there. Most other school problems, too, can be traced to the community and the family, including the lack of respect for authority, poor academic achievement, vandalism, drug addiction, crime, violence and sexual immorality. Therefore, one cannot expect these problems suddenly to disappear when children enter a school. The forces that lead youths to take drugs, break windows, start fires, assault teachers, and so forth, do not originate in the schools!

Schools Bear Responsibility

Do not get me wrong. I am not trying to say that the schools or the teachers are without fault. They have directly contributed their share to the problems. But this is to be expected since teachers, principals and other school administrators are themselves products of a society steeped in prejudices, ineptitude and selfishness.

Thus, as I mentioned at the outset, some school principals will dishonestly gloss over or even conceal problems, for they are more concerned about their own “image,” or preserving their jobs, than they are with the welfare of the children. And many teachers manifest a similar attitude. Yet, to a considerable extent, the school system itself is responsible.

It often puts too great a demand on teachers, sometimes requiring them to teach more than twice the number of students that can be properly taught. So teachers compromise by cutting corners, and the children suffer.

Also, there is a failure to provide adequate school facilities. According to one study, 200,000 New York city pupils are affected by overcrowding in schools; 40,000 have makeshift classroom accommodations. It makes me heartsick! There is money to go to the moon or to make weapons for destruction, but not to educate the young!

Further, school programming often is poorly planned or thought out. One program that has widely attracted attention is the so-called “new math.” At first teachers themselves often did not understand how to teach it properly. And parents are generally at a loss when it comes to helping their children with their lessons. The problem is similar in the teaching of reading skills. Teachers at a single elementary school may use several different experimental teaching methods, and so, as children progress from grade to grade, they are completely confused. Many hardly learn to read.

It is understandable why Decker F. Walker, Associate Professor of Education at Stanford University, lamented: “As things now stand, educational policy flays in the wind. And the direction of the prevailing wind continually changes. The schools are saved from complete chaos only by their inertia.”

Yet there is, I believe, an even more basic cause of the frightening conditions within big-city schools.

The Effect of Example

I am convinced that adult misbehavior is particularly responsible for the misbehavior of youths. When teachers come to school braless with see-through blouses, as I have personally seen, students are surely not encouraged to dress modestly. When miniskirts were in vogue, some teachers wore the shortest ones. Surely such examples contribute to the moral problems in our schools!

Also, the filmstrip “Lovemaking,” which shows various types of oral sex (homosexual) techniques, has been recommended and shown in school by adults. When there were complaints, an investigation was started. But it was soon dropped, for, as District Attorney Mario Merola noted, “you can legally show in a school” pictures that “you can be locked up for showing to youths in a public theater.” When adults are grossly immoral, and even blatantly promote such immorality, should we be surprised that children are the same?

But the immoral example of adults goes beyond sexual matters. Why, just this last October 31 the front page of the New York Times had the bold heading “COVER-UP CHARGED TO SCHOOL BOARD.” The article pointed to “out-and-out stealing of money” and “wide-ranging corruption.” Is it any wonder that children vandalize schools in a more open manner?

It is not just certain school officials who have set an immoral example; many top men in government have too. Columnist Harriet Van Horne expressed it very well, I thought, in her New York Post column. “I have no idea,” she wrote, “how teachers in this cynical age can set about teaching morality. . . . ‘Look at Washington!’ the littlest voices will cry. They know . . . that the dirtiest cheating in history has gone on under the roof of that big white house.”​—June 17, 1974.

The fact is, to teach proper moral values in school is considered indoctrination beyond what we have the right to do. Attempts to build moral character is no longer the concern of teachers, as it once was.

So, can you see why conditions are bad in big-city schools, and why many of these schools are on the verge of collapse?

What Can Be Done

Educators have been trying desperately to initiate programs to correct problems, but there is little unanimity as to what should be done. Most teachers are simply trying to endure in the midst of a decaying situation.

I know many parents think that, since teachers are paid to educate their children, the teachers should be able to do it. Yet, surprising as it may sound, the quality of a child’s education depends more on its parents than on the teachers or the school. Experience has shown this to be true.

I have observed that when parents instill in a child a desire to learn, and the ability to sit quietly and pay attention, the child learns much better than does the undisciplined, unmotivated child. “Families make the difference,” is how a Harvard professor put it when paraphrasing the voluminous findings of an educational survey. And never has this been more true than today, when many big-city schools face collapse.

So if parents expect their children to become good learners, they need to take a real interest in their education. This involves more than simply seeing that their children get safely to and from school. It also means taking a genuine interest in their progress in class. Those children, I have noted, whose parents fail to respond when a teacher asks to speak to them are almost invariably the most undisciplined and poorest students in class.

Parents, you can help your children in a number of ways. First, by starting to read to your children when they are infants. Then, as children grow a little older, let them pronounce the words along with you. Reading skills are vital to learning, and many children four and five years old have learned to read in this way.

As your children grow older, create a climate in the home that cultivates a respect for knowledge and that places high value on learning. When children are helped to use and appreciate such publications as encyclopedias, dictionaries, and especially the Bible and Bible study aids, they usually become good learners.

It is a real challenge, I know. Teaching is not easy. But if you really love your children, you will do whatever you can to help them to learn. In view of the conditions in today’s schools, this is more important than ever before.​—Contributed.

Inadequate Education

Inadequate Education

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