of covetousness, greed. “To the contrary,” continues Paul, “we became gentle in the midst of you, as when a nursing mother cherishes her own children.” He not only meant well, but showed loving, gentle consideration for them.—1 Thess. 2:5, 7.

32. Why may love be said to be the sine qua non of Christian manners?

³² Since those who engage in the Christian ministry do so because of love, they must let love give them eyes and ears to note what is the best thing to do and to say under given circumstances. Love will make them concerned with doing the most good and causing the least possible hurt and will therefore make them careful. While love “rejoices with the truth,” at times it may even indicate an ambiguous, evasive or cryptic reply rather than a tactless blurting out of the blunt truth. Love may well be said to be the sine qua non, the indispensable factor, in Christian manners: “Love is long-suffering and obliging. Love . . . does not brag, does not get puffed up, does not behave indecently, does not look for its own interests, does not become provoked. . . . It bears all things, . . . endures all things.”—1 Cor. 13:4-7.

33. What testimony have those on the outside given as to the Christian manners of the New World society?

³³ No question about it, Christian manners are important. Their value is driven home to all by the reputation they have gained for the New World society of Jehovah’s witnesses. Typical thereof is the lengthy report a certain United States senator had read into the United States Congressional Record. The gist of it was that the manners of Jehovah’s witnesses are “out of this world.” And a certain New York Herald-Tribune reporter wrote: “They are clean looking, have good manners and show respect for people of all ages. They are sociable in such a nice way that it makes you feel ashamed of the ill-mannered natives of this dirty and cold city of ours.”

34. In conclusion, what may be said about the value of Christian manners?

³⁴ Small and insignificant though Christian manners may seem to be, they are vital: “In no way are we giving any cause for stumbling, that our ministry might not be found fault with.” By means of them Christians will not only “have a favorable testimony from people on the outside,” but enjoy good relations both in the family circle and in the Christian congregation, to their mutual upbuilding and to Jehovah God’s glory!—2 Cor. 6:3-7; 1 Tim. 3:7.

“Weak Witness to Christianity”

Speaking of the form of Christianity practiced by Christendom’s worldly churches, cleric James A. Pike, bishop of the Episcopal diocese of California, wrote in Look magazine of December 20, 1960: “Christianity is in retreat. To be sure, the outward evidence seems to indicate otherwise. The growth of church membership in this country in the last fifteen years has been three times that of the previous fifteen years. . . . But an evaluation of all the evidence would demonstrate, not only that a decline has set in, but that the upsurge itself was without substance. . . . If General Motors over the years were to treble its sales but not improve its cars, its customers would properly consider the achievement a hollow one. The logic is no less applicable to the Christian church. . . . Abroad, there is a relationship between the retreat of Christianity and the advance of communism. . . . Some of the advance of the atheists is due to the church—to its clergy and its most responsible members. . . . What is responsible for making us a weak witness to Christianity? . . . First, the church, instead of being a goad, is by and large at peace with society. . . . A second cause of Christianity’s retreat is found in its own divisions. . . . A third cause of the retreat is that we have tended to make religion man-centered, rather than God-centered. . .‹v›. The final measure of Christianity’s retreat is its increasing irrelevancy to life.”