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“Good News” Comes to the Virgin IslandsThe Watchtower—1980 | May 1
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“Good News” Comes to St. Thomas
How did the “good news” proclaimed by Jehovah’s Witnesses reach this area? In January 1947, two missionaries from the first class of the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead, T. E. Klein and his wife, were assigned to proclaim the “good news” on St. Thomas. They really exerted themselves in preaching on the streets and from house to house. In the Virgin Islands, the individual approaching the door usually calls out, “Inside!” The householder answers, “Outside!” and comes to the door.
Working from early morning till after sundown, going through narrow streets and alleys, and climbing steep hills and stairways, the missionaries brought the Kingdom message to all kinds of people. The response was amazing. In just four months, the Kleins obtained 750 new subscriptions for the Watchtower and Awake! magazines. As a result, the post office had to initiate rural delivery service. Soon a number of interested persons joined the missionaries in calling on others from house to house.
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“Good News” Comes to the Virgin IslandsThe Watchtower—1980 | May 1
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In 1948, Jehovah’s Witnesses began to declare the “good news” to the inhabitants of St. Croix. When T. E. Klein and his wife arrived there in 1951, they found a small congregation at Christiansted. Toward the end of 1951, Klein made a number of calls on a native islander. Because the calls mostly ended in arguments, Klein finally told the man: “Now if you want to study the Bible, young man, I came to study the Bible and I didn’t come to argue with you.” This man, Leroy Boyce, then said: “The only way we can have this thing settled is if you meet with my minister and discuss the matter. Then I can decide which of the two I am to believe.” What was the result? During the discussion that followed with T. E. Klein, the minister became angry and left in a flurry. Today Leroy Boyce serves as an elder in the congregation at Christiansted.
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