Missionary Service​—Come What May!

As told by Eric Britten

THE place: Coventry, England. The time: seven o’clock in the evening, November 14, 1940. Suddenly, air-raid sirens began to wail as a prelude to what was to be one of the longest raids in the history of modern warfare. When the bombs started falling, ten other pioneers (full-time preachers) and I huddled together under the stairway of our “pioneer home.” My thoughts turned to my wife, who was away visiting her mother. Was she safe?

We poured out our hearts to Jehovah for protection. How happy we were to come through this ordeal unscathed and to learn later that my wife and all members of our little congregation were also safe! We felt as did the psalmist who declared, “Your own loving-kindness, O Jehovah, kept sustaining me.”​—Psalm 94:18.

Early Tragedy

From the time of my birth in January 1910, I was reared in a strict religious home, and that early Bible training helped me considerably in later years. This was especially true after my mother’s death in January 1922, when I was just 12 years old.

About that time my father, although a Christadelphian, obtained from the Bible Students (as Jehovah’s Witnesses were then known) a set of C. T. Russell’s Studies in the Scriptures. One thing that impressed my father was the reasonable explanation of the ransom doctrine. (Matthew 20:28) Father felt strongly that if a Christian accepts the ransom doctrine, he is responsible to tell others about it. He realized, too, that the Bible Students were doing just that, so he sought them out.

In the early 1920’s he began attending meetings of the Bible Students in Coventry and took me along with him. Soon we both began to share in the preaching work. Dad reached the point of consecration (now called dedication), and in 1924 he was baptized. In 1926, at the age of 16, I, too, was baptized. The following year, in October 1927, tragedy struck again​—my father died, leaving me and my younger sister to be cared for. She went to live with our grandparents, whereas I continued to live alone.

I was just 17, and I had to identify Father’s body and make the necessary arrangements for his burial. To me this was a formidable task, but the Christian brothers came to my aid. They invited me to their homes for meals, studied the Bible with me, and accompanied me in the preaching work until I felt stronger again. How I appreciated their kindness during this difficult period!

Although living in Coventry, I found employment in the nearby city of Birmingham. During the week, I was able to attend meetings there. It was at these midweek meetings that I later met Christina, who was to become my wife.

Although raised a Methodist, Chris visited other churches, searching for something more satisfying. One Sunday morning two Bible Students visited her home and left three booklets with her. Shortly thereafter, Chris’ mother attended a meeting of the Bible Students and acquired three books for Chris. Little did her mother realize how these books were to influence her daughter’s life, even to the point of Chris’ going from house to house with the Kingdom message​—something Chris had said she would never do!

War Declared

In 1934 Chris and I were married. We both entered married life with the purpose of ‘seeking first God’s Kingdom,’ and we can truthfully say that Jehovah has blessed us for pursuing this course. (Matthew 6:33) As our goal, we kept in mind entering the full-time pioneer ministry. So we made arrangements for others to share our home and to work as pioneers along with us. But by this time, 1939, war clouds were looming up, and it seemed as though everyone in Coventry was making arrangements for a long period of austerity and for protection against possible bombings.

World War II was a very difficult period for everyone but especially for our brothers. For nearly six years, Coventry, as an industrial centre, was the special target of the German bombers. This meant many sleepless nights. We took turns staying up one night a week to protect our “pioneer home” and also the homes of our neighbours, while they in turn protected our home on other nights. There were some pretty close calls too. Why, on one occasion Chris was visiting a home to share a Bible message when a raid started. Bombs fell, and the houses on both sides of the home she was visiting were completely destroyed.

In and Out of Prison

Adding to our discomfort was the harassment by the authorities because of our neutrality. As a result, Chris and I were imprisoned for a short term. As soon as I had served my sentence, I was charged again, and I ended up going back to prison. This we called cat and mouse, since a cat will often release a mouse only to pounce on it again.

Even though we had little contact with the prison officers, at times we were able to preach to some of them. I recall one officer, named Beveridge, who during my first sentence ridiculed our neutral stand. When I was imprisoned the second time, his attitude had improved some. During my third sentence, he was quite favourable, although opportunities to talk with him were limited. When I finally left prison, I lost contact with him.

Years later, when we were in Portugal, a letter came from the Society’s office in Brooklyn advising us that Eric Beveridge, a graduate of Gilead (the Watchtower school for training missionaries) was being assigned to Portugal. How happy we were to learn that his father had been that favourable prison officer! He later retired from prison service and became a baptized Witness.

Missionary Service and Unusual Challenges

With the end of the war in 1945, the Kingdom work in England, as in other parts of the earth, entered a period of prosperity and expansion. Brother Knorr, then the president of the Watch Tower Society, and Brother Henschel visited England and held a special meeting with all pioneers interested in attending the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead, which had been opened in February 1943. Christina and I attended the meeting, filled out our preliminary applications, and wondered if we would ever be called.

In 1946 the Society invited me to do circuit work in England, visiting a number of congregations. I enjoyed this privilege for three years, and then, when least expected, the final applications for missionary school arrived! These we filled out immediately, and shortly thereafter we were invited to attend the 15th class, beginning in February 1950. The next five months in Gilead School in upper New York State were an unforgettable experience of intensive Bible study and mature Christian association. Before we realized it, we were attending graduation at Yankee Stadium on July 30, 1950. Our assignment? Brazil.

A missionary home was opened in the coffee-exporting port of Santos, Brazil, and we were part of a group of eight missionaries assigned to start our work there. There was the initial period of adapting to new customs and the Portuguese language. For a child, learning a new language may be relatively simple. But for us, at 40 years of age, it was far from easy. On one occasion I went with another missionary to buy bread. The Portuguese word for bread (pão) sounds similar to the word for stick (pau), the former having a slight nasal sound. Not yet having mastered the nasal sound, we asked for sticks (paus), and the astonished baker said that he did not have any!

Another custom that it took a while to get used to was how to accept hospitality when a householder offered it. We would say: “Muito obrigado” (Thank you very much), expecting to receive some refreshments. This, however, to the householder meant no! Finally, we learned the right expression: “Aceito” (I accept), which brought pleasure to the householder​—and to us.

We found that we even had to learn how to “knock” at a door. You see, the Brazilian custom is to clap the hands loudly at the front gate. At first it was always a surprise for us to have the householder answer our “knock,” but we soon got used to it.

Unhappily, within six months of our arrival in Brazil, I contracted an intestinal disorder with amoebas. The prolonged treatment for the illness left me very weak, and finally, in March 1954, acting upon the doctor’s advice, we sadly returned to England. There, in the temperate climate, I gradually recovered, but during my recuperation we received an unexpected letter.

A Very Different Missionary Assignment

The Society invited us to go to Portugal! There the work had been banned, and the two previous branch overseers had been expelled from the country. I was able to gain entrance into Portugal as a business representative of an English firm, and we arrived there in November 1954.

Having worked in Brazil where our preaching work was carried on openly, we soon realized that here in Portugal we would have to exercise care and much tact. Since our work was banned, we could not openly identify ourselves as Jehovah’s Witnesses. Door-to-door preaching was a challenge since we never knew whom we would meet. If anyone seemed overly curious or antagonistic, we simply left the territory, to return another day. It was not easy to get invited into the homes since people were understandably suspicious of strangers. However, Chris did start a study with a lady who later told her that she really had been afraid to let anyone into her home. Why did she do so?

It seems that this lady had been praying to God to show her the right way. But Chris’ knock came so soon after her prayer that she felt wary about letting her in! A Bible study was started, and the lady and her teenage daughter both progressed to dedication and baptism. They are still firm in the truth.

At that time Chris and I were the only missionaries in Portugal, but gradually the Society was able to have more sent into the country. The work progressed rapidly, especially in the capital, Lisbon. This increase aroused opposition. Several brothers were imprisoned, and much literature was confiscated.

Finally, for us the worst blow came in 1962 when we, along with four other missionaries, were ordered to leave the country. We requested an interview with the chief of the secret police to ask for a reconsideration of our case, since we were merely teaching people the Bible. His reply: “You have abused Portuguese hospitality for seven years and will never set foot in Portugal again!” We were shattered.

It is extremely difficult to describe our feelings at having to leave after seven happy years in that missionary field. Actually, leaving Portugal was much harder for us than leaving England back in 1950 to go to Gilead. We had worked intimately with the brothers; we had shared their joys and their problems. We felt we were leaving when our help and support were most needed. But we had no choice. ‘Our missionary days are over,’ we sadly thought as we set sail for England.

From England to the Amazon!

In England we continued in the full-time ministry as special pioneers, but we felt incomplete. We always remembered the happy times in missionary service, and we wanted to get back to it​—so much so that we finally wrote to the Society about the possibility of another assignment, even though by now I was over 50 years of age and Chris was 49. How great our joy when we received an invitation to return to Brazil and work from a missionary home in Belém, a city at the mouth of the Amazon River!

We did appreciate the Society’s letter giving us an idea of the climate in Belém​—“hot and humid,” it said—​and giving us the option of turning down the assignment. However, we were overjoyed at the prospect of returning to Brazil, even though it was to a different part of the country. We gladly accepted, and early in 1964 we arrived in our new assignment.

After serving one year in Belém, I was invited to do circuit work, visiting congregations in that region. This was a real challenge. The circuit was some 800 milesa long and 300 miles wide, taking in both sides of the Amazon River. The heat? Well, we just had to get accustomed to it! Conditions were often primitive. Even dirt highways were few in those days. Clouds of dust arose from them in the dry season. With the rainy season, they became impassable.

Besides trusting in Jehovah for his protection, having a good sense of humor helped. On one visit with an isolated Witness family, we had to sleep in a stable. In the morning Chris awoke to find herself covered with blood. We called out to the brother, thinking that something serious had happened. Imagine our surprise when he calmly informed us that she had apparently been bitten by a vampire bat! One reference work explains that among bats in the Amazon region are ‘bloodsucking vampires (Dysopes), although these are by no means as dangerous as travelers’ tales would lead one to believe.’ Had we known that before, we would have been less fearful of the outcome!

After serving a year in that circuit, we were transferred to Rio de Janeiro and later to São Paulo, where we have been serving now for several years. The Brazilian people are very open and friendly, and it has been a joy to experience the love and hospitality of the brothers in this part of the country as well. At the same time, we have enjoyed many fine experiences in the field.

At one house a youngster came in answer to Chris’ handclapping. He said that his mother could not come to the door because she was crying. Sensing something wrong, Chris said, “Tell her that senhora Christina would like to speak to her.” The mother came to the door, asking, “Do you know anything about the Bible?”

“That is just why I am here!” Chris answered. She invited Chris inside. On the table was a large Bible, open where the lady had been reading, seeking comfort. She was very upset because her husband had been away for a week, after a quarrel between them.

“He’s a good husband and father,” she said, “and I’m sure he hasn’t gone away with someone else.” Chris shared some Bible principles on family life and started a Bible study in the book The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life. That very night the lady went to the Kingdom Hall. Since we had to leave that week for the next congregation, the study was turned over to a local publisher. How happy we were when we visited the congregation again six months later and met not only the lady but her husband and three children! Some time later, both husband and wife were baptized as Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Now, though both of us are over 70 years of age, we are still able, by Jehovah’s loving-kindness, to continue serving in our missionary assignment, although not travelling as much as in the past. It has been a marvelous privilege to meet and work with so many mature missionaries and local brothers and sisters. We are glad that from the very beginning we have tried to ‘seek first God’s Kingdom’ in our lives. For over 30 years missionary service has been our joy. We are ever mindful of the words of the psalmist, when he said: “For Jehovah is good; his loving-kindness is to time indefinite.” (Psalm 100:5) And how we have appreciated that!

[Footnotes]

[Blurb on page 25]

We have always tried to ‘seek first God’s Kingdom’ in our lives, with resultant blessings

[Picture on page 24]

In Brazil, we had to learn how to “knock” at a door​—by clapping our hands loudly at the front gate