The Minister agreed that this was all right for educated people, but not for the people of Malaya, many of whom lack education.

Brother Knorr insisted this is the time for enlightenment and that truth should be allowed free circulation, not to cause disturbance but to help men seek the way of real life.

All in all it was a friendly discussion, and the facts were clearly set before the Minister as to the Society’s position. It was shown that Jehovah’s witnesses never have caused riots or disturbances anywhere in the world. They are not the instigators of trouble but have love for the people they serve in every land. It is the truth that makes one free and any people who want to be free love to allow the truth to enter in.

What the final outcome will be is not known. When Brother Knorr returned to Singapore he sent a letter to the Minister, having put into writing some of the things previously discussed and making a formal request for the lifting of the ban on the Watchtower and Awake! magazines. It may take considerable letter writing and further discussion, we believe, to have the ban lifted. Malaya is a Moslem land and they do not like Christian beliefs to be spread freely.

SINGAPORE ASSEMBLY

The branch servant and Brother Knorr returned after dark that evening to Singapore. From the air, on that clear night, Singapore was a beautiful sight, with multicolored, sparkling lights of the city like a huge treasure chest full of precious jewels.

Friday, March 30, dawned with a clear blue sky over Jalan Besar Stadium where Jehovah’s witnesses began their assembly. The temperature was about 90 degrees, but the slight breeze across the spacious football field helped to keep the speakers and audience relatively comfortable. At 4 p.m. the public meeting was to be held, with the discourse “Making All Mankind One Under Their Creator” to be delivered by Brother Knorr. There were 491 in attendance. It was an international audience with Chinese, Tamils, Sikhs, Eurasians, Indonesians and others, many in their colorful national dress. Some day soon all of these persons of good will will be made one under their Creator.

After this big first day the assembly moved to the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s witnesses. Fine experiences were given at the convention as well as interesting talks. One Ceylonese brother recounted how he was born of Buddhist parents and ran away from home at thirteen to join a Hindu monastery in the Himalayas, where he lived with monks and learned the art of yoga. Not being satisfied after years of this training, he migrated to Malaya, where he met with different “Christian” sects, but still dressed with his long hair and the beard of the Sadhu (Hindu priest). After reading a single tract this brother’s eyes were opened. He soon shaved his beard, cut his long hair and removed his flowing robes and quit using his “miraculous” powers. He is now dedicated to the service of the living God, Jehovah, and preaches the good news of Jehovah’s established kingdom.

The Triumphant Kingdom assembly at Singapore brought abundant rich blessings to all those in attendance. Eleven persons of good will symbolized their dedication to Jehovah by water immersion. Among them were three young sisters from Penang in Malaya, who came into the truth on their own just by reading a book. They have made wonderful progress and during their one hour off at school each day they have gone out witnessing from house to house. It was a joy to have them at the assembly and to see their youthful zeal, as they ranged in age from fifteen to seventeen. The Singapore convention was a real success, and Jehovah’s blessing was upon it.

Brothers Knorr and Adams were scheduled to leave Singapore for Bangkok Saturday, March 31, at 9:35 a.m. The president gave his final remarks to the conventioners at eight o’clock that morning and then learned that the flight was delayed. In fact, it was postponed several times during the day. Finally he spoke a second time, which meant that he had spoken four times in all to the assembly in addition to the public talk. Further delays kept the two brothers there all night and they did not get away until Sunday for the next stop, Bangkok, Thailand.

SIAMESE CONVENTION

Meantime the branch servant at Bangkok was very much excited. Already the travelers were a day late. The president of the Society was scheduled to speak at Chiengmai at four o’clock Sunday afternoon, but because the airplane was a day late it appeared impossible for him to get to Chiengmai in time for the public meeting. Early Sunday morning the branch servant sent a telegram to Chiengmai telling the brothers to put on a substitute speaker. When Brothers Adams and Knorr arrived at Bangkok at 1 p.m. they found that Brother Babinski had persuaded the Thai Airlines to hold up the 1 p.m. plane until they could clear customs and immigration and go through the regular formalities to get aboard. So at 1:20 the plane rolled down the runway and headed for Chiengmai. The three had much to say and, of course, there still was a little hope that should the plane make no stops en route to Chiengmai they might reach there by four o’clock. It proved to be a through plane and the group arrived at 3:40 in the afternoon. A car was at the airport to pick up the passengers and they reached the convention hall at ten minutes to four.

There were 348 in attendance to hear the talk “Making All Mankind One Under Their Creator” as it was interpreted into the Thai language. It was a thrilling day and Jehovah’s witnesses and the missionaries in their midst were overjoyed that the brothers arrived on time for the public talk at least. The convention continued the next day with great enthusiasm and eighteen were baptized. There was an average of 173 of Jehovah’s witnesses in attendance at this convention in the northern part of Thailand.

The day after the convention, while Brother Knorr was having a discussion with all the missionaries on their work and problems that afternoon, the telegram came, saying that Brothers Knorr and Adams would not reach Chiengmai in time for the public talk. It was just as well that the telegram had not gotten through, as everything went according to schedule.

In this country the Buddhist religion predominates, and it is not uncommon to find Buddhist priests in the meetings of Jehovah’s witnesses. The Buddhists are in high hopes that things will take a big change for the better, as they believe that Buddha’s prophecy of 2500 years comes to its fulfillment in 1957. Just what improvements will be made in the world in 1957 is not entirely clear, as there are different ideas put forth by the various priests, but 1957 appears to be their great year. So the missionaries have quite a difficult time convincing the people that the new world of righteousness of which Jehovah’s witnesses speak is different from what the Buddhist priests talk about. But many persons are willing to listen and hear what the witnesses have to say about the kingdom of Jehovah God.

It is a pleasure to witness among these people. Approaching a typical little wooden or bamboo home built up on stilts, one climbs the stairs and then takes his shoes off before joining them on the floor of the porch, where they sit and listen as he talks to them at length, giving the message of hope. At almost every home he has opportunity to talk at length and the people listen with interest as the witness presents the sermon from the Thai Bible and then offers the publications. This is one country where it is possible to use the sermon at almost every home, even though in the next room one may see their Buddhist shrine with flowers and food set out on the altar. Some of the most zealous pioneers in the country have come from such a background to join with the New World society in announcing a real hope to the people.

During the stay in Chiengmai there was a big festival at the Buddhist temple and thousands turned out to enjoy it, with a carnival spirit. Vendors of many different foods appeased the appetites of the crowds while games of skill, music and dancing interested others. Finally in came a long, slow-moving procession from one of the neighborhood wats, bearing gifts for the temple. First came the priests bearing standards to lead the throng, followed by several men beating drums and metal pieces to attract attention; then the gracefully dancing temple girls moving to the rhythm of the drums, with a slow dance step. Prominent in the procession was the money tree with leaves of money—the contribution of the people to their temple. This was followed by a float illustrating an event in Buddha’s life as it was recounted in chanted verse by the singer who followed in a little cart. The float was pulled along by a number of the people who took a place on the rope in front of it while a crowd of others from the wat brought up the rear of this typical religious procession. It would take a long time to convert all these people to Christian belief. It could never be done; for only those with a sheeplike disposition actually will pull away and avoid being slain at Armageddon.

At the next stop, Bangkok, time was spent to check the branch office of Thailand and see what could be done to help advance the work of Jehovah’s witnesses throughout the country. On Wednesday evening Brother Knorr spoke to fifty-seven of the local congregation. Wonderful improvements have been made in the city of Bangkok since Brother Knorr’s last visit there. It is good to see the advancement made by the country in hygiene and living conditions in this short period of time. But it was especially good to see the new peak of publishers in Thailand and to observe that the missionaries were working diligently on learning the language and were able to speak in the tongue of the people. Arrangements were made to open up new territory, sending missionaries in to take care of the interest and establish congregations.

Questions From Readers

● A person I was preaching to insisted that such things as airplanes were here long ago, and as proof she quoted Ecclesiastes 1:9 about there being no new thing under the sun. What is the correct understanding of this text?—D. M., United States.

After years of observation and profound meditation King Solomon wrote under inspiration by God concerning the repetition of natural events: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity. What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains for ever. The sun rises and the sun goes down, and hastens to the place where it rises. The wind blows to the south, and goes round to the north; round and round goes the wind, and on its circuits the wind returns. All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they flow again. All things are full of weariness; a man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; and there is nothing new under the sun.”—Eccl. 1:2-9, RS.

In the above the inspired writer describes the viewpoint, not of exuberant youth or of appreciative servants of Jehovah, but of the aging person alienated from God. It is the outlook that gradually comes over persons of this old system of things as time overtakes them, weakens them, wears them down. They see their generation going out of existence and a new one coming in to take their place on the earth that remains forever. When they were young with their life span ahead of them it looked long, but now that it is nearly spent and they look back on it in their old age it seems to have been no more than a breath. The literal meaning of the Hebrew word translated “vanity” is “breath,” and it is used to proclaim that this life is as fleeting and transitory as a breath and that the toil of the man alienated from God is futile, lacking in any abiding gain for him. His generation is just one of many, preceded by undetermined ones and to be followed by more, just one of a long repetition of generations coming and going on an earth that endures.

As analogies to this repetition the inspired writer points to the sun that rises, sets, and hurries around to where it will rise again; to the winds that blow and circle and return to repeat their circuits again and again; to the streams that run to the sea without filling it because water is evaporated from it and carried inland by wind and condensed as clouds that shed rain to replenish the rivers and keep them running to the sea. Throughout their life persons see this repetition of natural events, and as they become old and energies wane, eyes dim, ears dull, joints stiffen and the other senses fade, they lose the zest for living they had in youth, and the repeating days and nights, worries and toils, fill them with an unutterable weariness, a sense of frustration and futility. Their eye is not satisfied with seeing this endless repetition, nor is their ear satisfyingly filled with hearing it over and over again. It is in this setting of natural events, within the scope of these narrated cycles in nature, that the statement occurs that there is nothing new under the sun. We cannot properly take the statement out of its setting and apply it to everything. There are new things invented and made but they follow the principles which God has already established