Publication date
1/1/15
Volume
36
Number
1
The WatchTower
View from the Watch Tower
The Watchtower Magazines
../literature/watchtower/1915/1/1915-1-1.html
VOL. 
XXXVI 
BROOKLYN, 
N. 
Y., 
JANUARY 
1, 
1915 
VIEWS 
FROM 
THE 
WATCH 
TOWER 
No.1 
\Vhen 
our 
worthy 
President 
and 
also 
his 
Holiness. 
the 
Pope 
requested 
Christian 
people 
to 
pray 
God 
for 
the 
cessatIOn 
of 
the 
European 
war, 
we 
declared 
that 
the 
prayer 
was 
not 
in 
harmony 
with 
the 
divine 
arrangement 
and 
would 
not 
be 
answered. 
We 
pointed 
out 
that 
according 
to 
the 
Scriptures 
the 
2520 
years 
of 
Gpntile 
dominion 
pndpd 
in 
Spptember, 
1914; 
and 
that 
the 
war 
is 
the 
one 
prpdicted 
in 
the 
Scriptures 
as 
associated 
with 
the 
great 
d~lY 
of 
Almighty 
God-"the 
day 
of 
vengeance 
of 
our 
God." 
\Ve 
pointed 
out 
the 
\Vord 
of 
the 
Lord 
through 
the 
Prophet 
.Joel 
respecting 
the 
gathering 
of 
all 
nations 
to 
the 
Valley 
of 
Jehoshaphat-the 
valley 
of 
death.-Joel 
3: 
1-12. 
The 
experienees 
of 
Elijah 
in 
the 
closing 
of 
his 
ministry 
showed 
us 
how 
the 
great 
day 
of 
the 
Lord 
will 
be 
ushered 
in: 
first, 
the 
wind 
rendinCf 
the 
rocks, 
representing 
the 
present 
war; 
secondly, 
the 
great 
ea~thquake, 
representing 
the 
revoluti?n 
that 
will 
follow 
the 
present 
war; 
thirdly, 
the 
fire, 
representmg 
the 
anarchy 
that 
will 
follow 
the 
revolution; 
fourthly, 
"the 
still, 
small 
voiee" 
of 
God-which 
will 
follow 
the 
anarchy 
in 
the 
world-through 
Mpssiah's 
kingdom 
speaking, 
"Peace! 
be 
still!" 
"'Beat 
your 
spears 
into 
pruninghooks 
and 
your 
swords 
into 
plowsha 
rl's. 
and 
learn 
war 
no 
more! 
"-Micah 
4: 
3. 
\Ve 
spe 
no 
rpason 
for 
thinking 
that 
the 
present 
war 
will 
terminate 
until 
either 
Grl'at 
Britain 
or 
Germany 
has 
a 
decisive 
victory 
upon 
the 
sea. 
The 
strife 
between 
these 
two 
has 
been 
fomentinCf 
for 
thirtv 
VPars. 
Each 
has 
wished 
the 
destruction 
of 
the 
othe;'s 
fleet 
and 
~·olonies. 
but 
dreaded 
the 
war 
which 
would 
accomplish 
these 
ends, 
well 
knowing 
in 
advance 
that 
it 
would 
he 
a 
terrible 
one. 
The 
unfortunate 
circumstances 
which 
sud­ 
denly 
led 
up 
to 
Austria's 
assault 
upon 
Servia, 
Russia's 
defense 
of 
Servia, 
and 
France's 
revenge 
for 
Alsace-Lorraine, 
involving 
Germany 
on 
both 
sides, 
presented 
Great 
Britain 
the 
long­ 
sought 
opportunity 
for 
crushing 
her 
commercial 
rival. 
It 
Reems 
improbable 
tbat 
the 
British 
would 
now 
consent 
to 
cessa­ 
tion 
of 
war 
until 
a 
complete 
victory 
would 
be 
had 
over 
Ger­ 
many, 
or 
until 
her 
own 
existence 
would 
be 
in 
jeopardy. 
So 
far 
as 
at 
present 
may 
be 
discerned, 
nothing 
very 
decisive 
may 
be 
expected 
before 
Spring. 
Meantime, 
the 
soldiers 
are 
perishing, 
vast 
debts 
are 
aceumulating 
and 
the 
industries 
of 
peaee 
are 
being 
neglected. 
By 
and 
by, 
doubtless, 
the 
people 
will 
awaken 
to 
a 
saner 
view 
of 
the 
matter, 
and 
ask 
themselves 
why 
the 
people 
of 
Europe 
cannot 
live 
as 
happily 
there 
as 
they 
('an 
live 
together 
in 
the 
United 
States. 
By 
and 
by 
they 
will 
raise 
the 
question 
as 
to 
why 
it 
should 
be 
wrong 
to 
murder 
one 
another 
at 
any 
private 
behest, 
and 
yet 
right 
to 
slay 
one 
another 
at 
the 
command 
of 
kings 
and 
kaisers. 
By 
that 
time 
the 
earthquake 
stage 
'of 
the 
trouble 
will 
be 
near. 
\Vhen 
the 
earthquake, 
or 
revolution, 
so 
prominently 
men­ 
tionl'd 
in 
the 
Scriptures 
shall 
have 
come, 
that, 
no 
doubt 
will 
be 
the 
time 
when 
the 
kings 
and 
the 
captains 
of 
industry, 
of 
finance 
and 
of 
polities 
will 
in 
self-defense 
greatly 
exalt 
the 
power 
of 
religious 
leaf 
leI's. 
Then 
we 
may 
expp('t 
that 
the 
Fpder­ 
ation 
of 
Churchps 
will 
exercise 
a 
power 
in 
the 
world 
such 
as 
has 
not 
been 
sinee 
the 
days 
of 
Papal 
supremacy. 
In 
the 
symbolic 
language 
of 
Revelation, 
that 
will 
be 
the 
time 
in 
which 
the 
"image 
of 
the 
beast" 
will 
have 
life 
and 
work 
great 
won­ 
ders. 
threatening, 
commanding, 
in 
the 
name 
of 
lleaven.-Rev. 
13:11-18. 
distress 
and 
the 
distress 
of 
their 
loved 
ones 
on 
the 
battlefield, 
there 
is 
a 
natural 
tendency 
to 
turn 
to 
heaven 
for 
help. 
At 
the 
same 
time 
there 
is 
a 
quickening 
of 
understanding. 
People 
are 
more 
ready 
to 
think 
than 
previously. 
Told 
that 
the 
soldiers 
are 
fighting 
for 
the 
Lord's 
cause, 
and 
with 
the 
implication 
given 
that 
those 
who 
die 
are 
more 
or 
less 
martyrs 
for 
the 
cause 
of 
right 
(and 
are 
therefore 
heirs 
of 
heaven), 
the 
people 
are 
fight­ 
ing 
valiantly. 
The 
newspapers 
tell 
them 
how 
the 
Catholics 
and 
the 
Protes­ 
tants 
of 
Great 
Britain 
are 
praying 
for 
the 
Allies 
against 
their 
enemies; 
and 
how 
the 
German 
churches, 
Catholic 
and 
Protes­ 
tant, 
are 
praying 
for 
the 
Germans 
and 
against 
the 
Allies. 
The 
people 
are 
wondering 
and 
will 
wonder 
still 
more 
as 
they 
think 
further 
as 
to 
how 
these 
different 
prayers 
can 
be 
answered­ 
how 
the 
Germans 
could 
be 
taken 
to 
heaven 
for 
fighting 
against 
the 
Allies 
and 
the 
Allies 
be 
taken 
to 
heaven 
for 
fighting 
against 
the 
Germans! 
With 
all 
their 
thinking 
some 
will 
be 
sure 
to 
wonder 
whether 
or 
not 
these 
are 
reasonable 
conclusions, 
and 
what 
is 
their 
foundation. 
On 
the 
other 
hand, 
they 
will 
think 
of 
the 
hell 
of 
fire 
and 
the 
purgatory 
of 
suffering 
taught 
them 
from 
infancy; 
and 
if 
all 
the 
soldiers 
are 
going 
to 
heaven, 
they 
will 
wonder 
who 
is 
going 
to 
hell. 
The 
sober 
thinking 
which 
the 
war 
is 
engendering 
will, 
no 
doubt, 
be 
helpful 
in 
the 
end, 
however 
unreasonable 
some 
of 
the 
conditions 
may 
be 
in 
the 
beginning. 
Saner 
views 
mu~t 
ultimately 
come. 
The 
American 
people 
are 
in 
some 
respects 
suffering 
more 
from 
the 
war 
than 
are 
the 
peoples 
of 
Europe; 
for 
the 
traffic 
of 
the 
world 
is 
temporarily 
hindered. 
They 
have 
not 
the 
businesg 
stimulus 
whieh 
prevails 
in 
Europe, 
because 
of 
military 
preparation 
there. 
Americans, 
too, 
have 
a 
better 
opportunity 
of 
taking 
a 
calm, 
unprejudiced 
view 
of 
the 
war 
than 
have 
the 
people 
of 
Europe, 
who 
are 
so 
close 
to 
it 
and 
so 
liable 
to 
be 
influenced 
by 
the 
spe('ious 
argllmentg 
of 
f'l"afty 
leaders 
who 
tell 
them 
that 
the 
war 
is 
necessary 
for 
the 
maintenance 
of 
civilization-putting 
on 
their 
construction 
as 
to 
what 
is 
real 
civilization. 
Partisan 
spirit, 
called 
patriotism, 
runs 
high 
in 
the 
countries 
engaged 
in 
the 
strife. 
The 
newspapers 
defend 
and 
uphold 
the 
govern­ 
ments; 
so 
do 
Ule 
preachers; 
so 
do 
tlle 
orators. 
The 
few 
who 
take 
the 
saner 
and 
correct 
view 
of 
matters 
are 
forced 
to 
silence. 
From 
a 
distance 
the 
war 
seems 
most 
unreasonable. 
Ger­ 
many 
should 
be 
allowed 
to 
build 
as 
many 
ships 
as 
she 
desires, 
until 
her 
people, 
vexed 
and 
worn 
out 
with 
the 
cost 
of 
militar­ 
ism, 
will 
insist 
on 
a 
change 
of 
governmental 
policy. 
Great 
Britain 
should 
be 
allowed 
to 
have 
as 
many 
ships 
as 
she 
wants 
and 
as 
her 
people 
an) 
willing 
to 
pay 
for. 
Each 
nation 
should 
be 
allowed 
to 
do 
all 
the 
business 
she 
can 
do 
justly, 
honestly. 
Christian 
ministers 
should 
have 
long 
ago 
pointed 
out 
to 
the 
people 
that 
the 
present 
kingdoms 
of 
Europe 
are 
not 
God's 
kingdoms, 
but 
human 
institutions; 
and 
that 
all 
these, 
accord­ 
ing 
to 
the 
Bible, 
will 
eventually 
pass 
away 
at 
the 
inauguration 
of 
:Messiah's 
kingdom. 
The 
reverence 
of 
the 
Lord 
should 
have 
been 
taught, 
and 
patient 
waiting 
for 
his 
time 
and 
way. 
The 
effect 
of 
the 
war 
has 
certainly 
in 
America 
been 
favorable 
to 
Christian 
enlightenment. 
People 
who 
may 
be 
said 
never 
to 
have 
MEANTIME, 
WHAT 
SHALL 
WE 
DO? 
thought 
before 
on 
religious 
suhjects 
are 
thinking 
now. 
thinking 
The 
effect 
of 
the 
war 
is 
not 
unfavorable 
in 
all 
respects. 
hard, 
and 
many 
are 
reaching 
reasonably 
sane 
conclusions. 
From 
Europe 
we 
have 
the 
word 
that 
a 
great 
religious 
impres- 
The 
work 
which 
our 
Society 
has 
been 
doing 
in 
the 
world 
sion 
is 
being 
made 
upon 
the 
people 
by 
the 
war. 
In 
their 
own 
for 
several 
years 
is 
bearing 
some 
fruitage. 
People 
who 
sneered 
[6601] 
(3--4) 
Vou. XXXVI erald of ({hrists Presenec BROOKLYN, N. Y., JANUARY 1, 1915 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER When our worthy President and also his Holiness the Pope requested Christian people to pray God for the cessation of the European war, we declared that the prayer was not in harmony with the divine arrangement and would not be answered. We pointed out that according to the Scriptures the 2520 years of Gentile dominion ended in September, 1914; and that the war is the one predicted in the Scriptures as associated with the great day of Almighty God—“the day of vengeance of our God.” We pointed out the Word of the Lord through the Prophet Joel respecting the gathering of all nations to the Valley of Jehoshaphat—the valley of death——Joel 3:1-12. The experiences of Elijah in the closing of his ministry showed us how the great day of the Lord will be ushered in: first, the wind rending the rocks, representing the present war ; secondly, the great earthquake, representing the revolution that will follow the present war; thirdly, the fire, representing the anarchy that will follow the revolution; fourthly, ‘‘the still, small voice” of God—which will follow the anarchy in the world—through Messiah’s kingdom speaking, “Peace! be still!” “Beat your spears into pruninghooks and your swords into plowshares, and learn war no more!”—Micah 4:3. We see no reason for thinking that the present war will terminate until either Great Britain or Germany has a decisive victory upon the sea. The strife between these two has been fomenting for thirty years. Each has wished the destruction of the other’s fleet and colonies, but dreaded the war which would accomplish these ends, well knowing in advance that it would be a terrible one. The unfortunate circumstances which suddenly led up to Austria’s assault upon Servia, Russia’s defense of Servia, and France’s revenge for Alsace-Lorraine, involving Germany on both sides, presented Great Britain the longsought opportunity for crushing her commercial rival. It seems improbable that the British would now consent to cessation of war until a complete victory would be had over Germany, or until her own existence would be in jeopardy. So far as at present may be discerned, nothing very decisive may be expected before Spring. Meantime, the soldiers are perishing, vast debts are accumulating and the industries of peace are being neglected. By and by, doubtless, the people will awaken to a saner view of the matter, and ask themselves why the people of Europe cannot live as happily there as they can live together in the United States. By and by they will raise the question as to why it should be wrong to murder one another at any private behest, and yet right to slay one another at the command of kings and kaisers. By that time the earthquake stage ‘of the trouble will be near. When the earthquake, or revolution, so prominently mentioned in the Scriptures shall have come, that, no doubt will be the time when the kings and the captains of industry, of finance and of politics will in self-defense greatly exalt the power of religious leaders. Then we may expect that the Federation of Churches will exercise a power in the world such as has not been since the days of Papal supremacy. In the symbolic language of Revelation, that will be the time in which the “image of the beast”? will have life and work great wonders. threatening, commanding, in the name of heaven.—Rev. 13:11-18. MEANTIME, WHAT SHALL WE DO? The effect of the war is not unfavorable in all respects. From Europe we have the word that a great religious impression is being made upon the people by the war. In their own (5601) distress and the distress of their loved ones on the battlefield, there is a natural tendency to turn to heaven for help. At the same time there is a quickening of understanding. People are more ready to think than previously. Told that the soldiers are fighting for the Lord’s cause, and with the implication given that those who die are more or less martyrs for the cause of right (and are therefore heirs of heaven), the people are fighting valiantly. The newspapers tell them how the Catholics and the Protestants of Great Britain are praying for the Allies against their enemies; and how the German churches, Catholic and Protestant, are praying for the Germans and against the Allies. The people are wondering and will wonder still more as they think further as to how these different prayers can be answered— how the Germans could be taken to heaven for fighting against the Allies and the Allies be taken to heaven for fighting against the Germans! With all their thinking some will be sure to wonder whether or not these are reasonable conclusions, and what is their foundation. On the other hand, they will think of the hell of fire and the purgatory of suffering taught them from infancy; and if all the soldiers are going to heaven, they will wonder who is going to hell. The sober thinking which the war is engendering will, no doubt, be helpful in the end, however unreasonable some of the conditions may be in the beginning. Saner views must ultimately come. The American people are in some respects suffering more from the war than are the peoples of Europe; for the traffic of the world is temporarily hindered. They have not the business stimulus which prevails in Europe, because of military preparation there. Americans, too, have a better opportunity of taking a calm, unprejudiced view of the war than have the people of Europe, who are so close to it and so liable to be influenced by the specious arguments of crafty leaders who tell them that the war is necessary for the maintenance of civilization—putting on their construction as to what is real civilization. Partisan spirit, called patriotism, runs high in the countries engaged in the strife. The newspapers defend and uphold the governments; so do the preachers; so do the orators. The few who take the saner and correct view of matters are forced to silence. From a distance the war seems most unreasonable. Germany should be allowed to build as many ships as she desires, until her people, vexed and worn out with the cost of militarism, will insist on a change of governmental policy. Great Britain should be allowed to have as many ships as she wants and as her people are willing to pay for. Each nation should be allowed to do all the business she can do justly, honestly. Christian ministers should have long ago pointed out to the people that the present kingdoms of Europe are not God’s kingdoms, but human institutions; and that all these, according to the Bible, will eventually pass away at the inauguration of Messiah’s kingdom. The reverence of the Lord should have been taught, and patient waiting for his time and way. The effeet of the war has certainly in America been favorable to Christian enlightenment. People who may be said never to have thought before on religious subjects are thinking now, thinking hard, and many are reaching reasonably sane conclusions. The work which our Society has been doing in the world for several years ig bearing some fruitage. People who sneered (3-4)

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