Letter to All Bodies of Elders in the USA, 1991-09-16: Information about upcoming Kingdom Ministry School with new textbook-CONFIDENTIAL
SSA September 16, 1991
TO ALL BODIES OF ELDERS IN THE UNITED STATES
CONFIDENTIAL
Dear Brothers:
Arrangements are progressing nicely for the upcoming Kingdom Ministry School, and we are now pleased to provide you with some additional confidential information and direction.
The Society has prepared a revised, hardcover Kingdom Ministry School textbook. Also, lapel cards are being provided for elders and ministerial servants for use as identification upon entry at the school location and during the course. Beginning October 6, the appropriate number of textbooks and lapel cards will be shipped to each congregation with its monthly literature order. Therefore, presiding overseers should instruct all of those caring for literature in the congregation NOT to open any literature cartons received during October or the first two weeks in November. Although the textbooks and lapel cards will be in a separate carton, in order to maintain confidentiality we will not mark this box differently from the rest of the congregation's literature shipment. Therefore, presiding overseers will need to open the literature cartons themselves until the carton with textbooks and lapel cards is found. Then this confidential material should be separated before anyone else sees the contents.
The presiding overseer should immediately give each elder a copy of the Kingdom Ministry School textbook. However, he should keep the lapel cards in a safe place until just before the Kingdom Ministry School. Then he should give the appropriate card to each elder and ministerial servant. This may prevent cards from being lost.
We would like to emphasize the importance of keeping these textbooks secured and confidential, both before and after they are distributed. The textbooks should not be left on tops of desks or in other places where they are easily accessible by family members or other individuals. The information is designed for use by the elders only, and other individuals should not have any opportunity to read the information.
If an elder has moved away and you have an extra textbook and lapel card, or for some other reason you have extra textbooks or lapel cards, the presiding overseer should give these textbooks to the circuit overseer. He should not send textbooks or lapel cards through the mail. If your circuit overseer is a considerable distance away, the presiding overseer may give him the textbook the next time he sees the circuit overseer.
Likewise, if for some reason you do not receive enough textbooks or lapel cards, please contact your circuit overseer for assistance.
We are providing the textbooks to elders in advance so that you will be able to read the book through before attending the school. You will want to concentrate particularly on these sections which will be considered specifically at the Kingdom Ministry School: Units 2(b), 4(b), 5(a), 5(b), and 5(c). In addition to your Kingdom Ministry School textbook, please remember to bring your Bible, Our Ministry book, Reasoning book, Insight (Volume 1), and some note paper. Please advise ministerial servants that they should review Chapters 7 and 10 of the Our Ministry book in advance of the Kingdom Ministry School.
The Governing Body would like for all the elders in each congregation to attend the school at the same time. This is not inflexible, however. If in an exceptional case an appointed elder or ministerial servant in your circuit is not able to attend with the elders and ministerial servants of his congregation, but he could attend at a different time or location, an adjustment may be made. (Please note the indication "-S" for schools in Spanish only.) His presiding overseer should provide him with a lapel card so that he will be able to enter the Kingdom Ministry School in the other location. If he attends the Kingdom Ministry School before other elders or ministerial servants in his congregation, he should be instructed to keep the information strictly confidential until after the other brothers from his congregation have attended the school.
Any brother appointed as an elder or ministerial servant in his congregation may attend the school. If new appointments are made, the presiding overseer should inform the circuit overseer of this so that the brother can receive the appropriate lapel card. If an elder or ministerial servant is in the process of transferring from one congregation to another and comes with a favorable recommendation from his former congregation, and if the circuit overseer has not yet served his new congregation since his move, then the circuit overseer should provide him with a card. If the circuit overseer has served the new congregation and the brother has been recommended for appointment to the Society, then the circuit overseer would also provide him with a card. However, if the circuit overseer has visited the new congregation since the brother moved in, and the body of elders did not recommend his appointment for some reason, then he would not attend the school.
We are looking forward to this special program of instruction, and we pray for Jehovah's rich blessing upon all the arrangements being made for the Kingdom Ministry School and upon your efforts to shepherd his flock in a fine way. We send you our warm love and Christian greetings.
Watertower B. V. Society
OF NEW YORK, INC.