Faithful and No Fraet Long Hardfala Taem Bilong Nazi
Long June 17, 1946, Queen Wilhelmina bilong Netherlands sendem toktok sorre go long wanfala Jehovah’s Witness famili long Amsterdam. Hem duim diswan for talemaot hao hem tinghae long son bilong disfala famili, Jacob van Bennekom, wea olketa Nazi killim dae long World War II. Samfala year bifor, taon council bilong Doetinchem, wanfala taon long east Netherlands, disaed for kolem wanfala road followim Bernard Polman, wanfala Witness Bilong Jehovah tu wea olketa killim dae long taem bilong war.
WHY nao olketa Nazi againstim Jacob, Bernard, and samfala nara Witness Bilong Jehovah long Netherlands long taem bilong World War II? And wanem nao mekem olketa Witness hia stap faithful long taem bilong planti year bilong nogud persecution and for kasem respect and gud tingting bilong pipol long kantri bilong olketa and datfala queen? For faendaot, letem iumi reviewim samfala samting wea lead go long raoa olsem bilong David and Goliath midolwan smol sekson bilong Olketa Witness Bilong Jehovah and bigfala sekson bilong olketa Nazi.
Tambu—Bat Duim Moa Samting Winim Bifor
Long May 10, 1940, Nazi army attakim Netherlands. From literature wea Olketa Jehovah’s Witness givimaot hem showimaot wicked samting wea olketa Nazi duim and hem saportim Kingdom Bilong God, olketa Nazi kwiktaem tumas trae for stopem waka bilong olketa Witness. Klosap thri week bihaen olketa Nazi attakim Netherlands, olketa wakem wanfala secret law wea tambuim Olketa Witness Bilong Jehovah. Long March 10, 1941, wanfala nius report talemaot long pablik disfala tambu, and hem accusim olketa Witness for mekem war kamap “againstim evri part bilong gavman and church.” From diswan, olketa barava lukaotem olketa Witness.
Samting wea interesting, disfala nogud Gestapo, or secret police, hem evritaem lukluk long waka bilong evri church, bat hem barava persecutim nomoa wanfala Christian organization. Wanfala man wea studyim history long Netherlands, Dr. Louis de Jong, hem sei: “Persecution go kasem dae hem kasem nomoa wanfala religion—Olketa Witness Bilong Jehovah.”—Het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden in de Tweede Wereldoorlog (Gavman Bilong Netherlands Long Taem Bilong Mek-tu World War).
Police bilong Netherlands helpem Gestapo for faendem and arrestim olketa Witness. And tu, wanfala traveling overseer wea fraet and kamap wanfala apostate givim information long olketa Nazi abaotem ples for faendem olketa Witness. Kasem end bilong April 1941, 113 Witness nao olketa arrestim. Waswe, diskaen attak stopem preaching waka?
Ansa hem stap insaed Meldungen aus den Niederlanden (Olketa Report From Netherlands), wanfala secret article wea Sicherheitspolizei (Security Police) bilong Germany raetem long April 1941. Disfala report sei olsem abaotem Olketa Jehovah’s Witness: “Disfala tambu sect duim bigfala waka long full kantri, olketa garem olketa meeting nomata law hem tambuim and olketa pasim olketa pepa wea garem toktok olsem ‘Wei for persecutim olketa Witness Bilong God hem wanfala crime’ and ‘Jehovah bae panisim olketa wea persecutim pipol.” Tufala week bihaen, disfala sem report sei “nomata Security Police strongim moa waka bilong hem againstim olketa Bible Student, waka bilong olketa hia go ahed for kamap moa big.” Tru nao, nomata police maet arrestim olketa, waka bilong olketa Witness go ahed, olketa offerim winim 350,000 literature long pablik insaed 1941 nomoa!
Wanem nao mekem disfala smol sekson bilong tu-thri handred Witness wea go ahed for grow, for garem strong for againstim disfala nogud enemy bilong olketa? Olsem faithful profet Isaiah bifor, olketa Witness fraet long God, no long man. Why nao olsem? Bikos olketa barava trustim toktok bilong Jehovah for Isaiah: “Mi—Miseleva nao dat Wan wea comfortim iufala pipol. Hu nao iufala mekem iufala fraetem man wea savve dae?”—Isaiah 51:12.
Man wea No Fraet Bae Kasem Respect
Long end bilong 1941, 241 Witness nao olketa arrestim finis. Bat, tu-thri givap from olketa fraetem man. Willy Lages, wanfala member bilong German secret police wea garem nogud fasin, hem sei “90 percent long Olketa Jehovah’s Witness no laek for talemaot eniting, bat long olketa nara grup, barava smol sekson nomoa savve stap kwaet.” Wanfala bigman long religion long Netherlands, Johannes J. Buskes, wea stap long prison witim samfala Witness, talem hao toktok bilong Lages hem tru. Long 1951, Buskes raet olsem:
“Long datfala taem, mi garem bigfala respect for olketa bikos long trust and paoa bilong faith bilong olketa. Bae mi no forgetim wanfala young man—maet hem no winim 19 year—wea givimaot olketa pepa wea talemse Hitler and datfala Mek-Thri Rul bae foldaon. . . . Boy hia fit for kamap free insaed haf year sapos hem promis for no duim moa diskaen waka. Bat hem barava no want for followim datwan, and hem kasem panis for stap long labor camp long Germany. Mifala savve wanem datwan minim. Long next morning taem olketa tekem hem go and mifala go for lusim hem, mi talem hem mifala bae tingim hem and prea for hem. Ansa bilong hem olsem: ‘No wari abaotem mi. Kingdom bilong God bae kam.’ Samting olsem bae hard for iu forgetim, nomata sapos iu againstim teaching bilong Olketa Jehovah’s Witness.”
Nomata barava raf fasin kamap, namba bilong olketa Witness go ahed for grow. Bifor mek-tu world war samting olsem 300 nao stap, bat namba go ap kasem 1,379 long 1943. Sorre tumas, long end bilong datfala year, 54 long winim 350 Witness dae insaed olketa difren concentration camp. Start long 1944, 141 Jehovah’s Witness from Netherlands nao stap yet insaed olketa concentration camp.
Last Year Bilong Persecution From Nazi
Bihaen long D day, June 6, 1944, wei for persecutim olketa Witness kasem last year bilong hem. Long saed long army, olketa Nazi and olketa wea saedem olketa no wei nao. Man maet ting from diswan bae olketa Nazi givap for aftarem olketa Christian wea no guilty. Nomata olsem, long datfala year, olketa arrestim nara 48 Witness, and 68 long olketa wea stap long prison olketa dae. Wanfala long olketa nao Jacob van Bennekom, wea iumi storyim firstaem.
Jacob wea 18 year hem midolwan long 580 pipol wea baptaes long 1941 for kamap wanfala Jehovah’s Witness. No longtaem bihaen datwan, hem lusim wanfala nambawan waka bilong hem bikos waka hia againstim wei for no teksaed olsem Christian. Hem garem niu waka olsem odele and hem kamap wanfala full-taem minister. Taem hem tekem raon samfala Bible literature, olketa faendem and arrestim hem. Long August 1944, Jacob wea 21 year raet olsem from prison long Rotterdam go long famili bilong hem:
“Mi stap gud and fulap witim hapi. . . . Olketa long hia kwestinim mi fofala taem finis. Long first tufala taem hem barava raf, and olketa killim mi nogud, bat from strong and bigfala kaeness bilong Lord, kasem distaem mi no talemaot eniting. . . . Mi givim sixfala tok finis long hia, wea 102 nao stap lisin. Samfala long olketa barava showimaot gudfala interest and promisim hao taem olketa kamap free bae olketa go ahed.”
Long September 14, 1944, olketa tekem Jacob long wanfala concentration camp long taon bilong Amersfoort, long Netherlands. Hem go ahed for preach long there tu. Long wanem wei? Wanfala prisoner sei: “Olketa prisoner savve kolektem olketa haf aedo wea olketa gard torowem and iusim olketa page bilong Bible olsem pepa for smoke. Samtaem bifor olketa iusim pepa for rollim cigarette bilong olketa, Jacob savve readim tu-thri word from olketa Bible page. Stretawe, hem savve story raonem olketa word hia for preach long mifala. No longtaem, mifala kolem hem Jacob ‘datfala Bible Man.’ ”
Long October 1944, Jacob hem insaed wanfala bigfala grup long prisoner wea garem waka for digim trap for olketa army tank. Jacob nating willing for waka bikos conscience bilong hem no letem hem for saportim waka bilong war. Nomata hem kasem hard taem from olketa gard, hem nating givap. Long October 13 wanfala officer tekem hem from ples wea hem stap for go bak long ples for waka. Jacob stand strong moa. Gogo, Jacob kasem order for digim grev bilong hemseleva and olketa sutim hem dae.
Waka for Lukaotem Olketa Witness Hem Go Ahed
Strongfala fasin for no fraet bilong Jacob and samfala moa mekem olketa Nazi barava kros and olketa lukaotem moa olketa Witness. Wanfala target bilong olketa nao Evert Kettelarij, wea 18 year. Firstaem, Evert hem fit for ranawe and haed, bat gogo olketa arrestim hem, killim hem nogud and askem hem for talem wea nao olketa nara Witness. Evert nating talem so olketa sendem hem go long Germany for duim hard labor.
Long datfala sem month, October 1944, police aftarem brata-in-law bilong Evert, Bernard Luimes. Taem olketa faendem Bernard, hem stap witim tufala nara Witness—Antonie Rehmeijer and Albertus Bos. Albertus stap finis for 14 month long wanfala concentration camp. Nomata olsem, taem hem kamaot, hem strong moa long preaching waka. Olketa Nazi killim nogud thrifala hia, then olketa sutim olketa dae. Bihaen long war nao olketa just faendem body bilong thrifala hia and berem moa. No longtaem bihaen long war, samfala niuspepa storyim disfala kill-kill. Wanfala niuspepa talem hao thrifala Witness hia barava nating willing for duim eni waka for olketa Nazi wea againstim law bilong God and hem sei “from diswan, olketa mas pei witim laef bilong olketa.”
Long November 10, 1944, olketa arrestim Bernard Polman, wea iumi storyim finis, and sendem hem for go waka long olketa army project. Hem nomoa Witness midolwan olketa labor wea waka and hem nomoa wanfala wea nating laek for duim disfala waka. Olketa gard traem enikaen wei for hem agree. Olketa no givim hem kaikai. Olketa killim hem nogud witim stik, spade, and end bilong gun. And tu, olketa forcem hem for swim insaed cold wata wea hae kasem knee, and then olketa satem hem insaed wanfala rum wea tuwet, wea hem stap long naet witim olketa tuwet kaleko wea hem werem. Nomata olsem, Bernard nating givap.
Long datfala taem, olketa letem tufala sista bilong Bernard, wea no Jehovah’s Witness, for visitim hem. Olketa encouragem hem for changem tingting bilong hem, bat datwan nating muvim hem. Taem tufala askem Bernard sapos hem laekem tufala for duim eniting for hem, Bernard talem for tufala go bak long haos and studyim Bible. Then olketa wea againstim hem letem waef bilong hem wea babule for visitim hem, olketa hope waef hia bae changem tingting bilong Bernard. Bat kakam and toktok bilong waef hia barava strongim moa disison bilong Bernard for stap faithful long God. Long November 17, 1944, faevfala man wea persecutim Bernard sutim hem dae taem evri nara labor wakman lukluk. Nomata bihaen Bernard hem dae finis, witim body wea fulap witim bullet, officer wea komandim datwan barava kros tumas and hem aotem gun bilong hem and sutim tufala eye bilong Bernard.
Nomata olketa Witness seke long disfala barava nogud wei for killim man, olketa stap faithful and strong and go ahed witim Christian waka bilong olketa. Wanfala smol kongregeson bilong Olketa Jehovah’s Witness, wea stap klosap long ples wea Bernard hem dae, talem diswan no longtaem bihaen Bernard dae: “Long disfala month, nomata hem rain tumas and Satan givim kam moa hevi, waka bilong mifala hem kamap moa big. Hour wea mifala iusim long field service hem go ap from 429 go kasem 765. . . . Long taem bilong preaching, wanfala brata givim gudfala witness long wanfala man wea hem meetim. Disfala man ask sapos diswan hem sem religion bilong man wea olketa sutim. Taem man hia herem hao hem nao diswan, hem sei: ‘Hem no man nating, hem garem nambawan faith! Hem nao wanem mi kolem man wea win long faith!’”
Jehovah Rememberim
Long May 1945 olketa Nazi lus and olketa go from Netherlands. Nomata persecution go ahed long taem bilong war, namba bilong Olketa Jehovah’s Witness go ap from tu-thri handred go kasem winim 2,000. Taem man for raetem history Dr. de Jong story abaotem olketa Witness long taem bilong war, hem sei: “Bigfala sekson long olketa nating willing for denyim faith bilong olketa nomata olketa kasem danger and olketa safa.”
So, olketa wea garem paoa garem gudfala reason for rememberim Olketa Jehovah’s Witness long wei wea olketa no fraet long taem bilong Nazi. Bat, samting wea moa important, Jehovah and Jesus bae rememberim nambawan record bilong olketa Witness hia long taem bilong war. (Hebrews 6:10) Insaed long Thousand Year Rul Bilong Jesus Christ wea klosap for kam, olketa faithful and strong Witness hia wea givim laef bilong olketa long service bilong God bae resurrect from olketa memory grev, witim hope for stap laef olowe long paradaes earth!—John 5:28, 29.
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Jacob van Bennekom
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Toktok insaed niuspepa wea talem law for tambuim Olketa Jehovah’s Witness
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Raet saed: Bernard Luimes; long daon: Albertus Bos (left saed) and Antonie Rehmeijer; long daon: office bilong Society long Heemstede