Frsrvuary 1, 1917 PEAYING WISDOM FOR PROSECUTING THE WORK DesR BRETHREN :— We wish to assure you of our continued love and loyalty in the Lord; and that you will have our support, our prayers and material things as we have ability to give them. We pray that the wisdom from above may be yours to prosecute the work of the Lord that remains to be done. Aztec Ecctrsta.—New Mex. THE WATCH TOWER (34-52) LOYAL AS IN THE PAST BELOVED IN THE ANOINTED :— We wish to convey to you our deep Christian love, with mingled sorrow. We rejoice to know that the loss of our beloved Pastor is his gain; and with renewed determination we wish to assure you that we shall be loyal to the Socrery as in the past. Tue DEeNIson CLass.—Texas. Dear BRETHREN :— Kindly send me 10 copies of THB WatcH TowER Memoria] Number. H. E. Spean.—Mass. ONE MILLION ALREADY ORDERED During the past month we have received orders from Eeclesias for the 1917 Volunteer Literature—“The World on Fire”—amounting to over one million copies. This number is very large; but many classes have not yet been heard from. This is the second mention we have made that the classes should take prompt action in advising us of the number they can use judiciously for Volunteer purposes. When ordering please mention B. S. M., Vol. 9, No. 1. Volunteer numbers of B. 8. M. are supplied free, transportation charges collect. While the presses are running we need to know how many to print. Orders from individuals will be received where there are no classes. In estimating do not figure on more than one copy to each English-speaking home. The friends will better realize the importance of care in the distribution of the Literature this year when we inform them that at the present cost of paper each million of the B. 8. M. amounts to about $3,000. Vou. XX XVIII BROOKLYN, N. Y., FEBRUARY 15, 1917 No. 4 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER GREAT STRIDES IN TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT While the church nominal makes little or no effort to correct the errors in her ereeds, handed down from a dark and remote past, but exhibits a declining interest in real Bible study and rather encourages every effort to fasten still more firmly upon the minds of her supporters the doctrines of Higher Criticism and Evolution, nevertheless we cannot observe with indifference her interest in the direction of placing still further restrictions upon the liquor traffic in the varioug States and territories of the country. We quote from the Literary igest: “The past twelve months in the religious world, comments a writer in the New York Heraid, witnessed a great stride forward in the temperance movement, when four more States went dry at the elections in November, so that now there are twenty-three States in the ‘dry’ column. In this connection we learn from the report of the Board of Temperance of the Methodist Episcopal Church, that “The Territory of Alaska, by a 5 to 3 vote, expressed itself in favor of prohibition on November 7, 1916; but it ia necessary that Congress put the policy into effect, aa that body reserves the right to legislate on the liquor question for Alaska. Utah, by action of a pledged Legislature, will pass a prohibition law, to become effective August 1, 1917. Florida, also by pledged legislative action, will submit a prohibition amendment to the Constitution to be voted upon in the general elections of 1918. “Wyoming has a legislature pledged to prohibition submission, but the details of its action are not determined. New Mexico is expected to vote upon the question in 1918, The Democratic primary of Texas has instructed the Legislature to submit the question to be voted upon July 28, 1917. Minnesota has a substantial dry majority in its Legislature, and will probably go dry in 1918. “Tt is practically assured that Kentucky and Nevada will vote upon prohibition, but.the time is not certain. Nevada will almost certainly go dry, and the result in Kentucky cannot be predicted. In Missouri and Indiana strong effort to induce the forthcoming sessions of the Legislature to enact statutory prohibition will be made. Iowa, with statutory prohibition, will, by its Legislature, submit prohibition for the Constitution for the second time, as is required by law before it may be voted upon.’ “In evidence of the growth of church unity, our Herald informant points toward the merging of the two great branches of the Methodist church, North and South, and he recalls that last winter commissions of all American Protestant churches met at Garden City, L. I., for the first time, and adopted a general platform on which it recommended that the World Conference on Faith and Order proceed. We are reminded also that Pope Benedict XV. sent a letter to the commissions, assuring them of his ‘deep interest and prayers.’ ” THE ONE TRUE CHURCH We view with increasing interest aleo the various moves made during the past year in the direction of “Church Unity.” But Warcu Tower readers are not ignorant of what will follow the realization of “Church Unity,” which would not be genuine church unity, but a Federation influenced, no doubt, by conditions of a threatening character growing out of the European War, and formed for self-protection and advancement at almost any cost.—Revelation 13:15-17. The desirability of oneness in the church of Christ ig beyond dispute. The impropriety of sectarianism, or division, is after centuries of separation generally conceded. But so recently as twenty-five years ago many stil] defended the divided condition as being helpful. Invariably they pointed to our Lord’s words, “I am the Vine; ye are the branches, Every branch in me that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” (John 15:1-5) It was claimed that the denominations are the branches. But the teaching of the Master here in that his people are related to him in an individual sense, and not as parties, sects or denominations. St. Paul sets forth the same great truth, declaring that Christ Jesus is the Head of the church which is his body; and that as the human body has many members under the full control of the head, except when diseased, so the church, as members in particular of the body of Christ, are all to be subject to the Lord as their Head. They are to be so connected to their Head, and thus with each other, that when one suffers, all suffer with him, and when one rejoices, all rejoice with him, because they have fellowship in the one Spirit of the Head. This true church has never been divided. Each member is united with the Lord, the Head, and through him to every other member of his body, which is the church. In this church there has always been maintained one Lord Jesus— one faith, his word of promise—and one baptism, consecration into his death.—2 Timothy 2:11, 12; Ephesians 4:4-6. “IMAGE OF THE BEAST’’—GIVING IT LIFE Recently there was published in the leading newspapers of the country a dispatch from Washington, D. C., which bears the appearance of great significance to many of our readers. Several copies of this dispatch have been forwarded to us by persons deeply interested in the fulfilment of prophecies respecting Church Federation and in the manner in which the impartation of “life unto the Image of the Beast” will be brought about.—Rev, 13:15. While later developments will doubtless hurry along the fulfilment of Scripture relating to Babylon’s downfall—“in one hour”-—God’s faithful people, “the wise,” will continue to walk in the light of his Word and rejoice in every evidence of its fulfillment, remembering that before Zion travails, she shall bring forth; before her pain comes, she shall be delivered of a man child. (Isaiah 66:7-9) The Head of this man child—Christ Jesus, glorified—was delivered before nominal fleshly Zion’s trayail eighteen hundred years ago. The body— “the church which is. his body”—shall be delivered prior to the collapse of nominal spiritual Zion, toward which we believe Babylon is now fast progressing. We give following a portion of the article referred to: “Private letters from the Vatican, received by Dr. A. Palmieri of the Library of Congress, a recognized writer on ecclesiastical subjects, announce that Pope Benedict [6043]
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