The Witnesses were even able to arrange secret assemblies at isolated farms or in the woods. The largest of these gatherings was in 1943 in a forest outside the village of Ski. About 180 brothers and sisters assembled from the area around the Oslo Fjord. During one of the intermissions, when the delegates were enjoying a meal, suddenly three German soldiers on horses appeared. What should the brothers and sisters do?

A German-speaking brother approached the soldiers and found out that they wanted to go swimming but had lost their way. Of course, the brothers were eager to show the soldiers where to go.

“What kind of gathering do you think that was?” one of the soldiers asked the others as they departed.

“Probably some kind of choral society,” his companion replied. The brothers and sisters were not about to correct the soldiers but heaved a sigh of relief as the horsemen disappeared into the forest.

[Picture on page 124]

A secret assembly in a forest near Ski