The Triumphant Kingdom Assemblies of 1955
Stockholm, Sweden, August 17-21, 1955
For the many foreign delegates it was now a choice of the Scandinavian assembly at Stockholm or the Dutch assembly at The Hague, Netherlands, or parts of both. Those assembling at Stockholm represented twenty-three distinct lands, including such places as Lapland and the Philippine Islands. Five thousand of the Danish brothers came over from Denmark, and two thousand four hundred brothers from Norway came also, and nearly one thousand from Finland. About 2,000 were from overseas.
The holding of a large-scale international assembly in Sweden’s capital was good for the interests of the New World society in that land. The Swedes, who have a national state church, have fallen away from the churches, incline to ridicule the religious clergy, and lean to worldly intellectuality, becoming very materialistic. So the exalting of spiritual interests as displayed in the preparations for the Stockholm assembly and in the advertising of it by Jehovah’s witnesses and, finally, in the assembly itself with all its features and activities, was an eye opener for the Swedes. The Stockholm newspapers broadened their attitude to give over 2,860 column inches of space to news about the assembly. Reporters interviewed officials of the Watch Tower Society shortly after their arrival. For the first time in Swedish history the radio news broadcasting came out with reports of the assembly: the first day’s gathering, the baptism and the public meeting on the last day.
On the southern outskirts of Stockholm lies the big football and runners ground, the sports place known as the Johanneshovs Idrottsplats, owned by the city government. Here everything was made ready for the assembly. On the grounds to the south were located the cafeteria and other installations for supplying needed services and conducting the field witnessing. The cafeteria had twelve feeding lines, and there was an overhead bridge for delivering needed supplies of food to the lines, without any blockade. The food trays, for the manufacturing of which the tools had first to be made, were slotted, so that they could be shoved over a monorail past each attendant who put on an item of food, so that the tray was delivered with the full meal, a plenteous one, on it to the eater. Though the military authorities had not been allowed by the government to let Jehovah’s witnesses hire some equipment for their cafeteria, the way the feeding was done so impressed the authorities that they had a committee of military officers, in civilian clothes, there to study the arrangements.
Near the southeast corner of the stadium stood a white tower flanked by portions of a wall, where the Guards’ and Attendants’ department was stationed. To provide shade for the seats on the east, north and west sides of the stadium, canopies made of a heavy grade of bed linen were run out on stout poles. Over the speakers’ platform itself there was such a canopy that spread out overhead like a white sail. Designed by a brother who was a sailor, they were firmly tied with sailor knots that withstood the tugging winds. In front of the platform five rows of potted flowers ran out like a spray onto the green playing field. The grandstand to the south was uncovered.
The entrances to the stadium were marked with large letters of the alphabet. As stated in the instructions on the printed program, those speaking or understanding Swedish were to use entrances A to H and O and P, seating themselves in those sections; those speaking Danish, entrances J to M; and those speaking English, entrances I and N. This located all the Swedish-speaking to the east and south, and all the Danish-speaking to the west and north, and the English-speaking in between. There was a purpose in this, for this was a trilingual assembly. Accordingly on the platform stood three microphones. The center microphone the English speakers used; the one to the left the Swedish speakers, and the other to the right the Danish speakers. The left microphone served the loud-speakers that were directed to sections occupied by those understanding Swedish. The right microphone served the loudspeakers directed to the Danish sections. When English speakers addressed the assembly, the center microphone was connected by direct wire with earphones on the heads of the Swedish and Danish interpreters to the English speaker’s left and right, and the two interpreters gave the Swedish and Danish translations simultaneously, so reducing the time consumed in translation. Thus each section of the audience heard the speeches, each according to its own tongue. This system worked well, without an undistinguishable babel of sounds. A special interpreter served the deaf and dumb.
Harvest was going on in Sweden as well as in other parts of Europe, but it was spiritual harvesttime also. In April of this year Sweden gathered out a new maximum number of Kingdom publishers, 7,350, which denoted a 27 percent increase over the preceding year. There had been no rain for six weeks, and the Stockholm assembly opened Wednesday with a warm day under clear blue skies. The afternoon address of welcome on “Responsibility and Stewardship” was delivered in Swedish by the Society’s Swedish branch servant and simultaneously in Danish by a Danish district servant. The afternoon sessions were capped by the address of the Society’s president before an audience of 13,151. After this stirring address on “The Triumphant Message of ‘The Kingdom’” he brought them further happiness by announcing that henceforth the Swedish edition of The Watchtower and Awake! would be printed with covers in two colors. The Swedish branch was now equipped with a press for doing this work. Tonight the sessions finished with a nice flourish when Brother A. H. Macmillan, over fifty years in the service of the Society, gave the answers to Bible questions. Brother Macmillan recalled how he had been in Stockholm back in 1920, when he spoke in a high school to an audience of some 175. It was now an overflowing pleasure to be back and behold how the organization in Scandinavia had grown since then.
Thursday morning hundreds of conventioners went out by bus, train and car to Jakobsberg, a suburb of Stockholm, to visit and inspect the Society’s branch offices there. The building is quite new, it having been occupied only since April, 1954. Touring the building, the conventioners were highly pleased to see how modernly in all respects the place is equipped, with a neat, comfortable Bethel home, offices, a Kingdom Hall and a printery outfitted with presses from Switzerland, Germany and America, one of them being the two-color press.
In the afternoon the Society’s president greatly encouraged the conventioners for their further Kingdom service by his invigorating talk on “Qualified to Be Ministers.” For the Scandinavians he had a pleasant surprise, the booklet Basis for Belief in a New World, in Swedish, and also the second or revised edition of the book “Let God Be True” in Danish. The brothers were very glad to get these new publications for their further, expanded ministry. As the president was to depart that day for the assembly in Holland the 14,052 in attendance requested with applause that he take along with him their love and greetings for those assembled at The Hague. The assembly attendance rose to 15,169 tonight, when the president’s secretary addressed them on “Be Filled with Accurate Knowledge.”
Friday morning’s event captured a prominent place in the Stockholm papers. Never had such a mass baptism been witnessed in Scandinavia. The candidates numbered 854 and included an eleven-year-old girl of African extraction from New York city. The baptismal talk was given in Swedish and Danish simultaneously, and after the two questions the affirmative answers “Ja!” rang out across the field, not quite simultaneously from both groups of candidates. The baptism itself took place five and a half miles away from the stadium, at Skrubbasand. Adjacent to this lake and its beach or Sand is a large woods and here there was a tent city where about 4,000 delegates slept in their own tents. As no transmission line served this woodland camp, it was necessary for the brothers encamped here to attend the sessions at the stadium or idrottsplats; they had fine cars and motorcycles for doing so.
There were six roped lines of entry into the waters at the small beach where the baptism was carried on, and so about “thirty every minute” were baptized, each one by one immerser, except in extraordinary cases. Some candidates had to be carried out into the waters. How satisfied their faces looked as they came out of the waters! Hundreds witnessed the baptism, and overhead a helicopter circled, taking a picture that was published in the evening edition of Expressen. But all the papers had numerous pictures of that event. Said one daily: “It was in every respect the most remarkable baptism that has ever been performed in Stockholm.” Said another: “The solemn act took place without either hymn singing or prayer. What was said at the preceding meeting at Johanneshov was considered sufficient. The whole procedure, however, was impressive and dignified.” For the first time the temperature climbed to 90 degrees Fahrenheit today.
During the night it had rained, but the rain stopped before the Saturday sessions began and then the sun came out. People had been saying that Jehovah’s witnesses would bring rain, and about 1 p.m. down came a soaking rain. But the conventioners found ample shelter under the saillike canopies around the stadium, and the rain stopped before the afternoon sessions began. Throughout the day there was quite an array of speakers, and Brother Knorr got back from Holland in time to finish off the day with his speech to 16,034, on “Jehovah Is in His Holy Temple.” An international trio of releases followed: the book “This Means Everlasting Life” in Swedish; “Make Sure of All Things” in Danish; and What Has Religion Done for Mankind? in Norwegian. What rejoicing there was over these provisions from Jehovah’s table! Brother Knorr rejoiced to behold their joy of appreciation. Sunday morning he served them again with his talk on “Triumphing over Wicked Spirit Forces.”
The public meeting was indeed a grand climax to a very enthusiastic convention. The stadium was so packed that a few hundred listeners were sitting on the green playing field. This great audience there comprised mainly those who listened in Swedish, besides those who listened in English. What about those speaking Danish? They were obliged to meet separately in the tents of the cafeteria to hear the talk. The combined audience totaled up to 21,708. May the appreciation with which they listened to the talk signify that “world conquest soon—by God’s kingdom” will mean everlasting life to them in God’s new world. They received the booklet on the public lecture in Swedish with much joy.
Of this public audience 15,804 remained to hear the president’s “closing remarks” and were further refreshed thereby. They were given greater incentive to press on in the service of God’s established kingdom after this assembly.
THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS, AUGUST 17-21, 1955
The five-day Hague assembly ran concurrently with the assembly in Stockholm. This famous city in the Netherlands is the seat of the permanent court of arbitration for the peaceful settlement of international disputes, the jurists of which court nominate a list of persons from which the members of the United Nations International Court of Justice are elected. In view of what this international body serves and of what Jehovah’s witnesses serve, it seems quite striking that one of the series of “Triumphant Kingdom” assemblies should be held at The Hague. This city, too, is at present the location of eight congregations of Jehovah’s witnesses. These and other congregations surrounding were privileged to engage in the rooming work from April 28 onward. This resulted in obtaining 6,931 accommodations, of which 5,250 were in private homes and 1,681 in hotels; and 20,000 pieces of literature were placed during this canvass for rooms.
The site obtained for the assembly was the spacious Houtrusthallen, a low building, square, measuring about 325 feet each way. A great part of its roof is glass, so that the lighting of the “Woodland Rest Halls” is good. To the right low evergreen trees cover the grounds, but to the left is a large playing field. There a tent city of 3.7 acres offered nearly 65,000 square feet of space, and the cafeteria, first aid and others of the twenty-seven departments were put up. In all the tents good sound equipment was installed. Another tent city outside The Hague served as a camping site for 600 conventioners.
Inside the auditorium of the Houtrusthallen the platform was bedecked with flowers and above was hung the 1955 yeartext in Dutch. The floor was filled with movable chairs and to the far rear there was a tier of seats. Here for the five assembly days milled thousands of delegates from twenty-five different lands, Africans in native dress, Filipinos, West Indians and others.
Wednesday afternoon the address of welcome was received by a sizable audience of 5,433 and they were favored with the release of the booklet After Armageddon—God’s New World in Dutch. The Society’s legal counsel, Brother Covington, was here for the first part of the assembly and held an interview with fifteen news reporters. At the close of the day he gave a rousing speech on “Activity and Life versus Inactivity and Death.” By then the audience had grown to 6,560. It was very much alive and alert to hear God’s Word and to respond.
Thursday afternoon the convention was pleased to receive a new instrument for God’s service, another booklet in Dutch entitled “This Good News of the Kingdom”. This was released by one of the Society’s directors after his speech on “Qualified to Be Ministers.” By the close of the day the audience had grown more numerous, being now 7,399, and everybody was feeling the glow that the sense of growth imparts within the New World society of Jehovah’s people. They had also been well fed spiritually throughout the day.
The talk “What Dedication Means to Me” given as the last thing Thursday night prepared many for the symbolizing of their dedication to God on Friday morning. There were 445 that presented themselves for baptism. Their immersion took place in the North Sea nearby, at Scheveningen beach. There the brothers witnessing this mass baptism formed a great V down to the sea and sang songs while the candidates marched in between to their baptism. Many of the public were on the boardwalk as observers, and till well along in the afternoon there were little circles of conventioners discussing the Bible in Dutch with questioners.
In the afternoon the Society’s president, who had flown down from Stockholm, made his first appearance on the platform, and there was a fine audience of 7,996 to welcome him. To the blessing of hearing his speech “The Triumphant Message of ‘The Kingdom’” there was added the joy of having released to them at his hand the new book in Dutch entitled “What Has Religion Done for Mankind?” The president favored the assembly that night with another address exposing spiritism and explaining to them how to triumph over the wicked spirit forces with which we have to carry on a theocratic warfare. This being his final speech to them before his return to Stockholm, Brother Knorr spoke words of farewell to them, but words inspiriting them. The 8,208 there especially rejoiced when he told them of the Society’s plans for constructing a new and larger branch office and Bethel home for Holland. The work in the Netherlands has outgrown the present branch building in Amsterdam, the parliamentary capital. The assembly appreciated the president’s visit, though brief, very much.
At the assembly hall a fifteen minute recording was made for the radio. It contained an interview and the questions asked were about the theocratic organization and the mass baptism. This was later broadcast. For the third time since World War II Jehovah’s witnesses were on the Netherlands radio.
Saturday evening the Society’s vice-president arrived by air at Amsterdam and motored to The Hague, to follow up other members of the Brooklyn Bethel family and Gilead graduates and native Dutch speakers on the day’s program. His speech on “Avoiding the Wine Press of God’s Wrath” was translated into Dutch and was concluded with his releasing the new Dutch publication Basis for Belief in a New World. This was received with warm appreciation by the 9,604 in attendance. Throughout the day 2,272 of the conventioners engaged in the field service.
Sunshine and warmth bathed the final day of the assembly. There was a goodly Sunday morning audience of 8,844 out for the program of four talks, preceded by a half hour of the discussion of the day’s Bible text, songs and experiences. Also messages from other lands, South Korea, etc., were read, thrilling the audience.
Excitement heightened, however, as the big public event drew near. The lecture “World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom” had been well advertised. Twelve daily newspapers carried advertisements Thursday and Saturday, besides ads in four weekly papers. There were thirty-two overhead car signs, thousands of window cards, large and small, 120 being very large (about 2 by 3 feet), a thousand small window signs for streetcars and buses, 750 placard walkers, 450,000 handbills, and 180 bicycles with placards that paraded through The Hague in groups of five to ten, 500 car-bumper signs, and eighteen street banners, four of which were suspended at strategic points in the outside cities of Amsterdam and Rotterdam. There were 60,000 of the first personal invitation letter and 95,000 of the second invitation letter, for mailing. Eight theaters in The Hague and nearby Leiden showed the advertisement of the public talk for one month, with an estimated total audience of 453,000. Another thing that was organized for the first time in the Netherlands was a press conference. Notification was given to thirty-eight different papers and representatives of about fifteen papers came. This press conference was no doubt the reason why several articles about the assembly appeared also in papers in other big cities of the Netherlands, something that had not happened before. Then, too, there were the badges worn by the thousands of conventioners.
The 4 p.m. public meeting had been well advertised; it was well attended. Attending were not merely the estimated 12,000 but a total of 15,360 crowded the great hall and filled even the cooler cafeteria tents. They followed the lecture with intelligence and keen delight. Applauses rang out periodically. These reached a climax of applause when the lecture itself in booklet form was announced and released as a gift. During the brief intermission that followed some thousands departed, but 11,642 eagerly waited for the “closing remarks” of the Society’s vice-president. Throughout these the audience were very expressive of their stirred feelings and there was an extended applause at the close. It is always good to see such an overflow of appreciation and gratitude to Jehovah God at the very close of such an assembly. It denotes that those assembled have been satisfied with His goodness and are filled with strength-giving joy.
Never had there been so many comments in the Netherlands press as during this assembly year of 1955. There have been at least 128 articles published, and the total newspaper space reached at last 533 column inches, a figure that may need some revising as clippings continue to come in. A tremendous witness was given by the presence of so many of Jehovah’s witnesses from abroad, and especially because they wore those badges. For some weeks after the assembly many newspapers were commenting on the strangers from abroad who were seen walking along the streets with their badges.
Indicative of how much good the European assemblies have done for the brothers alone comes this letter, dated September 11, from Haarlem, Netherlands:
“We, 1,055 witnesses of Jehovah, at our circuit assembly in Haarlem, just having gone over all the experiences we had this summer at one or more of the series of international conventions, feel we ought to assure you and through you the Society and all those of the New World society who thought good to use their means to visit the European conventions, how much we appreciated the lovable association and brotherly fellowship with all our brothers from abroad. We want to assure all those that we received much encouragement out of their mere presence in our midst, and more so when we were able to speak a few words with them. In addition to our gratefulness to Jehovah for the many new and wonderful releases and the spirit He gives His people, we want to express our thankfulness to all those who supported Jehovah’s organization in Europe in this way.”
HOMEWARD BOUND
The homeward trek now began for most of the foreign delegates. The good ship Arosa Kulm had already departed with its more than seven hundred joyful, convention-filled passengers on August 16, from the Columbus Pier at Bremerhaven, Germany. But the following week the Arosa Star pulled away from Gothenburg, Sweden, on August 22. Among the flights in chartered planes homeward were the thirty-five that left from Schiphol, the airport near Amsterdam. Many of the flights were postponed; in fact, most of them. One of the newspapers, De Telegraaf, of August 31, made the following comment under the heading “Without Complaint”: “The witnesses of Jehovah who in large numbers have come from America to the Netherlands are without competition the most obliging air passengers in the world. Frequently it happens that they have to hang around for hours because the departure of their plane (belonging to a chartering company abroad) has been delayed for some plausible reasons or not, which cannot be held against the direction of the airport. No complaint is heard from their lips.”
Two air passengers, members of the Brooklyn Bethel family, flying from Amsterdam Sunday, August 21, stopped off in Newfoundland to participate in a three-day assembly there. This was held the following week end, August 26-28, at Corner Brook, some 150 miles to the west of Gander airfield and near the Gulf of St. Lawrence. About sixty Newfoundlanders had attended the European assemblies, still they enjoyed this provincial assembly with its program borrowed from the series of international assemblies. The public talk, delivered by the brother from the office of the Society’s president, was heard with enthusiasm by 475, the rain during the talk not dampening their high spirits at all. Also twenty-three were immersed.
HELSINKI, FINLAND, AUGUST 25-28, 1955
The final assembly of the entire series of thirteen was held in Helsinki, Finland, northeast across the Baltic Sea from Stockholm. This four-day assembly was held in a great hall that had been built for exhibitions. Outside the hall a kitchen was built on a field, and big cooking utensils rented from the army were installed. B-Messuhalli was reserved for the assembly cafeteria and for refreshments. This, their biggest feeding arrangement yet, proved adequate for offering 2,500 meals three times a day. Among the cake specialties offered was one decorated with the 1955 yeartext, Psalm 112:7.
This Finnish assembly witnessed a change in the attitude of the newspapers as far as Jehovah’s witnesses were concerned. By using the sample copies of the newspapers from other European conventions brothers made personal calls on the newspaper editors. They were shown how these newspapers wrote good articles about the assemblies of Jehovah’s witnesses. As a result, at the first day of the convention Helsingin Sanomat Uusi Suomi and Hufvudstadsbladet sent their reporters to interview the president, Brother Knorr. Many questions were asked by them about the purpose of our work, how extensive it is, and about the beliefs of Jehovah’s witnesses differing from other religions, our reaction to communism and to the state, etc. We judge from their writings that they received a satisfactory answer to the questions from Brother Knorr.
Every day there was delivered to the biggest newspapers an epitome of Brother Knorr’s talks. This news material was delivered to the editors personally with an invitation to the next day’s sessions. At the baptismal service reporters from Hufvudstadsbladet and Nya Pressen and also the editors and photographers from the weeklies Kuva-Posti and Viikko-Sanomat were present. In addition to taking pictures these reporters interviewed Jehovah’s witnesses.
One witness was asked about taking part in the military service. He told the reporter that he has five brothers and that four of them have been in military service. Hence he had not spread any propaganda against military service, not even to his own brothers, and, of course, not to the ones who are in the age to be drafted. He especially stressed that this matter is a personal decision of each one and no one can or has the right to influence others in their personal opinion. The answer seemed to satisfy the questioner, for he was so much interested that he promised to come to Messuhalli himself to listen to the assembly program.
As a special feature the newspapers were very favorable to the assembly at this time. Even such papers as Suomen Sosiaalidemokraatti, which earlier had strictly refused to write anything, this time published very well all their news material, and they even searched out material about the baptism themselves. All the newspapers added pictures in their articles; especially Nya Pressen published big pictures about the baptism in the important places, both in the front and back pages. The amount of news material that the newspapers gave in covering the assembly amounted to 4,750 column millimeters.
As an example of the tone that the newspapers used in covering the assembly we quote the columnist Serp from Helsingin Sanomat Sunday, August 28:
“Jehovah’s witnesses are here in a conference, and placard carriers are their messengers, who bear witness to their beliefs to the world, defying wondering looks, smiles and even ridicule. Brave people, indeed. I do not know for what ideal I would dare to make myself such a spectacle.
“But I hope that some personal critic would say who could worthily and orderly carry such a placard, that not every willing person could hang them on himself.
“There was an old woman, who from the upper part of her body was quite flat, but around the stomach she was rather round, with the result that the placard folded in half and rested on the stomach in a position of a seat of the chair.
“All honor to this old woman, for seeing and publishing about her could inspire hardly anything but uplifting thoughts.”
At the assembly 645 brothers applied for voluntary service, wanting to serve brothers in this convention. The greater part of these served in the kitchen and cafeteria.
The high points of the program were the talks of Brother Knorr and his secretary, M. G. Henschel. During his talks Brother Knorr released two new books in Finnish: “Make Sure of All Things” and “New Heavens and a New Earth”. Surprised and delighted the brothers were to receive these publications, for they will improve their service. They obtained 3,500 copies of both books.
From the Arosa Star, at sea, the following radio message was sent to the Helsinki assembly: “Hearty greetings, 792 joyful fellows returning America Arosa Star. Schroeder Kurzen Eicher.”
The rooming department had started their work three months earlier and they arranged rooming for 2,568 persons. Many more had come to their relatives and friends, so that all together 4,000 persons were accommodated. In looking for rooms the publishers used 2,743 hours.
The first day 3,575 brothers were present. The number increased to 4,693 by Saturday evening. Also 186 symbolized their dedication by immersion. Forty-two cars were used by the transportation department, which served to bring the brothers to the immersion place and to bring good-will persons to the public lecture. At the public meeting there were 6,940. This was the first time for such a large attendance at a public meeting. Two halls were used, both being packed out. A hard shower right in the middle of the talk did not affect the meeting.
The assembly closed with the brothers very appreciative and hoping that Jehovah will in the future favor them with further assemblies like this to build them up spiritually to work like a New World society.
RÉSUMÉ
Thus the 1955 service year of Jehovah’s witnesses was brought to glorious climax. Among outstanding features that marked this as an extraordinary year were (1) the presentation world-wide of the lecture “Christendom or Christianity—Which One Is ‘the Light of the World’?” on April 3, which was immediately followed by the release of the 32-page booklet bearing that same title, and the record distribution of over ten million copies of that booklet in thirty distinct languages and in eighty-eight lands during April and May; (2) the Memorial celebration the following Thursday night, April 7, the attendance at which—863,973—surpassed any previous world-wide record; (3) the concluding of the four-month Watchtower subscription campaign with the securing of 562,228 new subscriptions for that magazine and its companion Awake! in forty languages; (4) the expansion of the number of publishers of the Kingdom message to a new maximum of 625,256 in 156 lands outside the iron curtain during the Memorial month of April; and (5) the incomparable summer series of thirteen “Triumphant Kingdom” assemblies in as many cities and in nine countries.
The public attendance at the public lecture “World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom” and the numbers baptized at the assembly cities are distributed as follows:
City Public Attendance Baptized
Chicago, Ill. 42,116 620
Vancouver, B.C. 21,877 500
Los Angeles, Calif. 36,290 1,014
Dallas, Tex. 16,409 468
New York, N. Y. 55,009 1,374
London, England 41,970 1,183
Paris, France 16,500 785
Rome, Italy 4,351 378
Nuremberg, West Germany 107,423 4,333
Berlin, Germany 17,729 870
Stockholm, Sweden 21,708 854
The Hague, Netherlands 15,360 451
Helsinki, Finland 6,940 186
Totals 403,682 13,016
The literature releases were as follows:
English
Volume II New World Translation of the Hebrew Scriptures
Qualified to Be Ministers
What Do the Scriptures Say About “Survival After Death”?
You May Survive Armageddon into God’s New World
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
Spanish
“This Good News of the Kingdom”
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
French
What Has Religion Done for Mankind?
Basis for Belief in a New World
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
Italian
Awake! (semimonthly)
“New Heavens and a New Earth”
“This Good News of the Kingdom”
Basis for Belief in a New World
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
German
Basis for Belief in a New World
4 new tracts
“New Heavens and a New Earth”
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
Swedish
Basis for Belief in a New World
“This Means Everlasting Life”
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
Norwegian
What Has Religion Done for Mankind?
Danish
“Let God Be True” (2d edition)
“Make Sure of All Things”
“New Heavens and a New Earth”
Hollandish (Dutch)
After Armageddon—God’s New World
“This Good News of the Kingdom”
What Has Religion Done for Mankind?
Basis for Belief in a New World
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
Finnish
“Make Sure of All Things”
“New Heavens and a New Earth”
World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom
The blessing that this series of assemblies was to all who put forth the effort to attend was immeasurable. Letters of appreciation have been received by the Society that are typical of the blessings that have been enjoyed by all. For instance, from France comes a letter to Brother Knorr in which the writer says: “Regretting not to have been able to reach you through the huge crowd while in Paris, I wish to do so by these few lines. First let me tell you of the splendid hours I passed in Paris. What a genuine stimulus that was! I’m sure everyone looks forward to the joy of the 1956 assembly. May Jehovah bless you abundantly.”
From England, from two who have been pioneers for thirty years, come these lines: “What a wonderful time we have all had at the conventions. Jehovah has indeed been good to us. So many blessings, and our hearts are full of gratitude for his love and care over us. We are now writing to thank you very much for all your many kindnesses. Each time the post brings the magazines we feel so grateful and we do want you to know how much we appreciate your love . . . also all the books at the convention. The talks ‘Pursuing My Purpose in Life’ were grand to listen to.”
From New Jersey, U.S.A.: “I have just recently returned from the ‘Triumphant Kingdom’ assemblies that were held abroad. Within these few lines I wish to thank the brothers for the tremendous effort that made these assemblies such a great success. Without such well-laid plans many would have been unable to attend. It was a great witness to the glorious name of Jehovah. Again I thank you.”
From Belgium: “The purpose of this letter is to express the appreciation of our publishers in Belgium and Luxembourg for the kind hospitality that was shown them during the assemblies by the English, French, German and Hollandish brothers and sisters and people of good will. It is indeed a very great privilege to be associated with other members of the New World society and to get acquainted with more and more friends in the different countries we visited during the assemblies. It is not only a great privilege to be a member of the New World society, but it is also a great privilege to visit the different theocratic assemblies, to see the glory of Jehovah and to witness the coming into Jehovah’s temple of many thousands of good-will persons. The final session of the Nuremberg assembly is unforgettable, and I am sure that the brothers and sisters who saw it appreciate very much the wonderful working of Jehovah’s spirit on His organization.”
From South Africa: “Now that we are back at home after a wonderful trip, having enjoyed both spiritual and physical refreshment, we would like to express our appreciation first to our heavenly Father for the spiritual food provided, and also to the Society for the loving care that was exercised to ensure our comfort while traveling and also in our accommodations. We have never ceased to marvel at the mass of detail that was included in the plans made—surely there was nothing forgotten. We hope our experiences and enthusiasm will make other publishers plan to attend the next international assembly wherever it may be held. We look forward now to a repetition of many of the good things we had in Europe in our own assembly to be held in October. Surely the blessings are ‘pressed down and running over.’”
Following the assembly in each place private letters were mailed to the religious clergy and editors, enclosing a copy of the booklet Christendom or Christianity—Which One Is “the Light of the World”? In many cases indignant, insulting letters have been received where acknowledgment of receipt of the booklet has been made. So the religious leaders of this world refuse the spiritual relief that is available for them amid the “famine for hearing the word of Jehovah” that rages throughout this world, even Christendom. Some of the letters were kind and wished Jehovah’s witnesses well. May at least some of these few come out of darkness. But Jehovah’s witnesses continue to show the due appreciation for all the rich, spiritual store that he has opened to them. Great masses of the afflicted people, too, are gradually coming to an appreciation of the plenteousness with which Jehovah has blessed his people, This has been manifested by the great percentage of the public that was present at the address “World Conquest Soon—by God’s Kingdom.” Again we say, God’s kingdom has scored another resounding victory in the successful “Triumphant Kingdom” assemblies of 1955.