Assemblies in Frankfurt, Berlin, St. John’s
WE NOW take up again the account of the “Clean Worship” Assembly in Frankfurt, Germany, an account which our last issue brought up to the closing day. The great final day of the all-too-short assembly came Sunday, August 26. The clouded skies broke and sunshine flooded the assembly grounds. A 15-minute report on the work in the United States by one of the president’s secretaries elicited applauses and ah’s! of amazement. Four speeches followed by other members of the Brooklyn Bethel family, three of them in German. Thus out of the entire American delegation four spoke to them in the language of the country. The German-speaking brothers appreciated this indeed.
Afternoon comes on, and the hour for the widely announced public talk. The stadium is thronged and thousands are also over in the Cycle Racing Bowl. Many parasols are up to shield ladies from the beaming sun. The orchestra, 150 pieces strong, shows itself an accomplished group by its half hour of musical selections, in a specially fine medley of Kingdom Song melodies. Then a few minutes after 3 p.m. chairman Frost introduces the speaker, who by now has faced a number of audiences on this same big question. The speech is again on, through a competent interpreter. The message is a double-barreled shot against false religion, it being delivered in English and German. The big crowd now counts up to a high total of 47,432. Despite its size it does not prove too unwieldy to be swayed by the powerful arguments of a forceful speaker. Eighteen hearty applauses interrupt his progress.
Among those in the audience is the Oberbuergermeister, the Lord Mayor, of Frankfurt am Main, who is seated up in the central balcony of the stadium’s tribune. He has arrived some minutes late and has not been able to meet the speaker beforehand and address some words of welcome and appreciation to this mightiest assembly that Frankfurt has ever witnessed. With no emotion on his face he listens to the forthright exposé of false, apostate Christianity. Toward the close the assistant chairman comes to conduct him down and out onto the field at the end of the talk, to be introduced to Brother Knorr and to offer any words of recognition to the assembly, if he still cared. However, the lord mayor’s time is short and he must leave at once, and so he sends his card to the Society’s president by messenger and expresses admiration of Jehovah’s witnesses’ organization and the speaker’s courage in delivering this harsh message of the old Hebrew Scriptures.
Brother Knorr concluded his public address with an appeal to all interested persons to make a personal study of the Bible. In this behalf he announced a free copy of The Watchtower and the booklet Can You Live Forever in Happiness on Earth? to each and everyone there. Tens of thousands of hands clapped in appreciation. Adding the 47,432 auditors today to those who heard this public lecture by the Society’s president in London, Paris, Luxembourg, Brussels, and Rotterdam, it makes a grand total of 106,587 in Europe.
With the public event over, there was no grand rush to get away. The stadium crowd was practically the same for the closing features of the assembly, and all were greatly blessed for staying. A telegram was read from Washington, D. C., signed by the 700 preconvention workers doing the preliminaries for the October assembly in that city. The reports by the convention committee, convention servant H. Knoeller and his assistant W. Becker, proved very interesting. It was good to learn that the Kasse (treasury), always a problem child, had been cared for and there were enough German marks contributed to offset all convention expenses. Convention chairman Frost followed on the subject “Remaining Fearless to the Accomplished End”, and his speech was a challenge to the Communist authorities under whose regime hundreds of witnesses here from the East zone would return home just as clandestinely as they had come.
The president’s concluding talk infused further strength and determination into all, especially those whom he would leave behind in divided Germany. He betrayed keen pleasure in reading first an unusual telegram, to this effect: Seventy Montreal-bound new world travelers send greetings from stratocruiser at 18,000-foot altitude. Then the complementary telegram, to this effect: Greetings from Montreal on safe arrival. With 575 in Montreal tonight we share the good things of London and Paris. Then Brother Knorr went on to a brief review of some talks, emphasizing our thoughts and conduct. He contrasted new world optimism with old world pessimism.
“We love life,” he said. Hence those brothers in Hitler’s concentration camps hung onto life’s slim thread for a purpose. So they are alive today and are here at convention and carrying out this purpose, and will keep on doing it to the battle of Armageddon. Released from concentration camps, they did a lot of talking about God’s kingdom, optimistically so, and now, look what we have here, because they talked! The thousands of newly added witnesses are a letter of recommendation on their work. The thing to do is to keep the theocratic organization clean for the further ingathering of other sheep, for to it is where God brings these other sheep now. Thoughtfully Brother Knorr voiced appreciation of the Frankfurt populace and their lord mayor and of the help he had tendered in behalf of the assembly; also of the grounds workers and of the 4,901 convention volunteer workers. It was happifying to learn that Germans were expected to be brought to America for study at the Gilead School and thus they would be made available for missionary work in other lands. Also, more expansion was projected in Germany, in token of which the branch building at Wiesbaden was to be enlarged, particularly to accommodate a big new press to be imported from the Swiss branch. In Germany the magazine Awake! is not circulated, only some copies being received by mail, but now on this new press the German Awake! was to be printed at Wiesbaden for mass distribution in Germany. It was hoped to effect all this in the next ten months. O joy!
Travel instructions came now, a song, and the final prayer by the convention chairman. Then what a demonstration followed! The great orchestra struck up the tune, and then the Germans broke out into a song commending Brother Knorr and his fellow witnesses to God. Handkerchiefs were pulled out and waved toward him. Hundreds broke bounds and came surging across the field toward the platform, younger ones running, elderly ones stepping at a slower pace. As he came off the platform a dense mass surrounded him. How soul-stirring this show of appreciation! It was some time before he showed up at his convention office in the tribune building, not to go home, but to wait and see the departing conventioners off.
Excellent preparations had been made and instructions given for the departure of those tens of thousands that night from the small Sports Field railroad station and its three platforms. Again fine organization came to the fore for smooth handling of the great project without confusion, friction, fear or mishap. Standards with their company signs were again raised aloft, and those who belonged there assembled about it. Night fell. The crowds in their particular groups stayed seated in the stadium and other assembly points, patiently waiting. Calls for the passengers of the respective trains of the thirty specials rang out over loud-speakers, one at a time, as its due time for departure drew near, the first being at 21.20 o’clock for Wetzlar, Siegen, and other points. At call the travelers making up that trainload rose and got on the march, following their standards. As they moved down the road and paths, through alternate electric lighting and shadows cast by the trees, and joyfully conversing, no children crying, it reminded Bible students of how the children of Israel in their millions marched with their heavy luggage to the assembly point for their mass departure from Egypt.
The president and a number of others of us went down to the railroad station to witness some departures. The first train was quickly filled and pulled out at 9:25 p.m. Then another, and another, from this platform and that, while at times a regular express train, fully alerted, sped through on an open track toward its destination. Without a great crush the friends boarded their train. A number would jam the windows to lean out, wave hands and bid farewell. Carloads would join in song. As the trains moved out and cries of farewell rang out, we would wave back and cry out, Auf wiedersehen! Gute Reise! etc. We stayed till 10:35 p.m., by which time about eleven trains had been made up and had departed. Reluctant to go before the last of the thirty trains pulled out, about ten minutes after midnight, we finally departed for Wiesbaden. What a sight it had been! What an experience! The railroad management were amazed at the orderliness and promptness of Jehovah’s witnesses in performing this traffic feat, putting through a train on an average of every six minutes for more than 25,000 passengers.
The many omnibuses were loaded and dispatched with like handling. But thousands of friends stayed over for postconvention privileges. Yes, many slept a further night in the straw. Monday before 8 a.m. throngs of friends began arriving at the Wiesbaden Bethel for an inspection trip through. By bus, car and motorcycle they came. Group by group they were conducted through home, factory and offices. They were excited, interested, pleased. “Wie schoen, wie sauber!” they would remark. All day long this kept up, and more came on Tuesday. Finally 2,346 had come and made an inspection tour. Among them were about 800 visitors who had been in Hitlerite concentration camps during the Nazi regime and whom members of the Wiesbaden family recognized with joy.
BERLIN EXTENSION OF ASSEMBLY
Monday morning meant a meeting with the German circuit servants for Brother Knorr. Early Tuesday morning, accompanied by the branch servant, he departed from Wiesbaden Bethel for the Rhein-Main airport near Frankfurt with his traveling party. Workers doing deconstruction work at the convention grounds got word of it and went out by truck and car to give him a warm send-off. A large bouquet of flowers from the convention floral decorations followed him into the plane. Then, at 9 a.m., a half hour before the announced time, the plane took off for Berlin, hopping over Soviet territory for the American zone in that city. An hour and a half later as they left the Tempelhof airport there, they were greeted by more than 300 brothers.
For the assembly in Berlin no public notice was given by the Society, in order not to make the Communist people’s police aware of it beforehand and so imperil our brothers of the East zone. The ones who were invited were, of course, just the brothers and Berlin friends. However, the American Berlin radio station RIAS made an announcement of it that Tuesday morning, so that the entire East zone was also informed that Jehovah’s witnesses would hold an assembly in the Woodland Stage (Waldbuehne). A witness anyhow!
After a dinner at the Berlin office, Brother Knorr and his companions went to the Woodland Stage, where at the district assembly July 29-31, 1949, a Resolution challenging and protesting to the Communist authorities of East Germany was adopted by 17,232 witnesses, this being followed by a public address by the German branch servant on “It Is Later than You Think” to 33,657 hearers.
Now in spite of the present ban on Jehovah’s witnesses in East Germany 13,563 get together in this vast open-air amphitheater. It is estimated 8,000 of these were from the Communist East zone. After a short introduction of song and prayer, Brother Knorr gave the opening afternoon talk on “Making Your Mind Over for New World Living”. His secretary, Brother Henschel, spoke next, then Brother Schroeder, who, being introduced as one of Gilead’s instructors, received an especial applause. Then Brother Frost addressed them, giving a brief report on the international assemblies at London and Frankfurt. Finally Brother Knorr again resumed the speakers’ stand, and, through his interpreter, Swiss Brother A. Rutimann, gave them a stirring talk, weaving in things of his speech on “The Triumph of Clean, Undefiled Worship”. Then the uninterrupted four-hour assembly closed with song of praise to Jehovah. As at Frankfurt, so here Brother Knorr could not escape a big demonstration by the brothers expressing their love and thankfulness, and it was slowly that he was able to make his way out.
In the evening a session with the circuit servants took place, at which Brother Knorr had them tell him about the interesting experiences of our fellow servants in their underground activity over there. Next day 237 newly interested ones were baptized. That morning, at eight o’clock, Brother Knorr and his party left for the next national assembly, at Copenhagen.
NEWFOUNDLAND’S GREATEST ASSEMBLY
Tuesday evening, at the Rhein-Main airport Brothers Franz and Hannan took off for a flight westward toward North America. In the half hour before departure they had a heart-cheering visit with a delegation of postconvention camp workers who turned out in their work clothes and sang a farewell song as they boarded the plane. Wednesday morning they landed at Gander airport on Newfoundland, the tenth-largest island in the world and recently made Canada’s tenth province. From here Brother Franz flew in a two-seater Fleet Canuck plane piloted by Gilead graduate G. Ernst, our first missionary to own his own plane and fly it in the work as circuit servant. Brother Hannan and the then branch servant, C. Clemons, came later by commercial TAC plane the 118 air miles to St. John’s, to the southeast. Here they lodged in the missionary home in connection with the branch. Six years ago when Gilead graduates first landed, there were only 35 Kingdom publishers in Newfoundland. They now have 21 organized companies and a peak of 315 publishers, 59 of these being in St. John’s, where they attend meetings in the Kingdom Hall in the yard back of the missionary home. In the front yard a sign stood advertising the public lecture for September 2 on “Will Religion Meet the World Crisis?”
Here, also, they had teased the public about this, by painting on sidewalks, curbs, and large stones the question “Will it?” On August 23 came further information when the lecture handbills began to be distributed. Window cards were placed, information marches were carried on with placards on the marchers, and three streamer signs were stretched across streets at strategic locations, one near the roller-rink building where the public lecture and three-day convention were to be held. As the better halls in St. John’s are controlled by Catholic and Protestant religious societies, the rink was the best meeting place obtainable. A cafeteria kitchen was erected outside the rear right of the building and meals were served through the long open windows of the hall.
Friday, August 31, the convention opened at 9:30 a.m. with 90 present, despite the low overcast and rain. From then on we just had a grand convention of three days. The fine program was capably handled by many Gilead graduates and native publishers. Among the speakers was a native of St. John’s, who was a customs official during the time of the World War II ban on publications of our Society and on Jehovah’s witnesses, but who got the truth through reading the literature as a censor.
The pioneer work was encouraged, to build it up above the 41 general pioneers then in the service; and four asked for application blanks to enter Gilead School. Saturday morning a baptism was held and eight were immersed in a tarpaulin receptacle which was installed in the missionary home’s basement. Among the three sisters immersed was the sister from Woody Island in Placentia Bay, the sister reported on in the July 15 issue of The Watchtower in the letter headed “Results of a Long-delayed Back-Call”. She not only negotiated the journey here but also brought her husband with her. It was enjoyable to hear her tell over the platform microphone how the pioneer first called on her and she tried to get rid of him, but later found the truth from the literature she took of him.
Gilead graduate G. Stover (who made it to London and Paris by working his way there and back on boats) and Brothers Franz and Hannan brought speeches, reports and experiences from the London and Paris assemblies. One of the first things Friday morning was the reading of this telegram just then received: “55 richly refreshed conventioners en route to New York stopping at Gander send love and best wishes for a successful Newfoundland clean worship assembly.” (Dated Gander Airport, August 31, 7:21 a.m.)
Sunday was rainy and cold, with no heating in the roller-rink, and the big air show was billed to begin today and tomorrow was Labor Day. And yet 260 turned out to hear the public talk delivered by the Society’s vice-president. It got excellent attention and at the conclusion the booklet Religion Reaps the Whirlwind was distributed free and many copies were eagerly taken. So well pleased were they that many interested attenders stayed for the assembly’s closing session and we had an attendance of 200. When the assembly concluded, all were overflowing with gratitude and gladness. It had been the best yet in Newfoundland and gave promise of good progress and increase in the work up there. It really meant something for so many to assemble together, traveling long distances and by circuitous routes and on slow trains and by boat. Next day a good-sized crowd of the conventioners turned up at the local airport to give the two Society’s representatives from Brooklyn Bethel a cheering send-off.