1921—One Hundred Years Ago

“WHAT, therefore, is the particular work that we can see immediately before us for the year?” The Watch Tower of January 1, 1921, posed this question to eager Bible Students. In answer, it quoted Isaiah 61:1, 2, which reminded them of their commission to preach. “Jehovah hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek . . . , to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God.”

FEARLESS PREACHERS

To fulfill their commission, the Bible Students would need to be fearless. They would need to proclaim “good tidings” to the meek as well as “the day of vengeance” to the wicked.

Brother J. H. Hoskin, who lived in Canada, witnessed fearlessly despite opposition. In the spring of 1921, he encountered a Methodist minister. Brother Hoskin began the conversation by saying: “We should talk agreeably on the Scriptures, and even if we differ on some things, we can agree to disagree and part as friends.” But that did not happen. Brother Hoskin recounted: “We had talked only a few minutes when [the minister] struck the door so hard that I thought its large glass would fall to the floor.”

“Why don’t you go to the heathen and talk to them?” the minister shouted. Brother Hoskin held his tongue, but as he left, he thought to himself, ‘I felt that I was talking to one!’

When the minister delivered his sermon the next day, the attack continued. “He warned his flock of me, telling the people that I was the worst fraud that ever struck that town and that I ought to be shot,” Brother Hoskin recalled. Not deterred in the least, he continued preaching and had good success. He said: “I never had a more glorious time canvassing. Some of the people even exclaimed, ‘I know that you are a man of God!’ and asked if they could help me so that I might not want for anything.”

PERSONAL AND FAMILY STUDY

To help interested ones to progress, the Bible Students published Bible study programs in The Golden Age.a The Juvenile Bible Study program consisted of questions for parents to consider with their children. Parents were to “propound these questions to their children and aid them to locate in the Bible the answer.” Some questions, such as “How many books are in the Bible?,” taught basic facts. Others, such as “Should every true Christian expect persecution in some form?,” prepared young ones to be fearless preachers.

The program Advanced Studies in the Divine Plan of the Ages provided mature Bible Students with thought-provoking questions based on the first volume of Studies in the Scriptures. Thousands of readers benefited from these programs, but The Golden Age of December 21, 1921, announced that both programs would be discontinued. Why the sudden change?

A NEW BOOK!

The book *The Harp of God*

Bookmark with a reading assignment

Self-quiz cards

Those taking the lead realized that new Bible students needed to learn basic truths in a systematic way. To that end, the book The Harp of God was released in November 1921. Interested ones who accepted the book were also enrolled in The Harp Bible Study Course. This self-study course helped readers discern “God’s plan for blessing mankind with everlasting life.” How did this course work?

When a person accepted a copy of the book, he received a reading assignment printed on a small card. The next week, he received a card with a series of questions based on that assignment. The card ended with a reading assignment for the following week.

Each week for 12 weeks, the student received a new card mailed by the local class, or congregation. Often the cards were sent out by those in the congregation who were elderly or who had limiting circumstances. For example, Anna K. Gardner, from Millvale, Pennsylvania, U.S.A., recalled: “When The Harp of God was released, it gave Thayle, my invalid sister, more work she could do, sending out the weekly cards of questions.” When the course was completed, the student received a personal visit to help him further his Bible education.

THE WORK AHEAD

At year’s end, Brother J. F. Rutherford sent a letter to all the classes. He noted that “the witness for the Kingdom given this year has been wider and more effective than that given during any year of the harvest period.” Looking forward, he added: “Much work remains to be done. Encourage others to join in this blessed service.” The Bible Students evidently heeded this advice. The year 1922 would see them fearlessly advertising the Kingdom in an extraordinary way.

Fearless Friends

The Bible Students showed brotherly love by helping one another. They were fearless friends “born for times of distress,” as the following account shows.—Prov. 17:17.

On Tuesday, May 31, 1921, what came to be called the Tulsa Race Massacre erupted in Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.A., after a black man was jailed and charged with assaulting a white woman. When a mob of more than 1,000 white men clashed with a smaller group of black men, the fighting spread quickly to the black neighborhood of Greenwood, where more than 1,400 homes and businesses were looted and burned. The official death toll was 36, but the actual number may have been in the hundreds.

Brother Richard J. Hill, a black Bible Student and resident of Greenwood, related what happened: “On the night of the riot, we had our Bible study class as usual. After the class was over, we heard shooting downtown. We went to bed listening to it.” By Wednesday morning, June 1, the situation had worsened. “Some folks came and stated that if we wanted protection, we had better go to Convention Hall at once.” So Brother Hill along with his wife and five children fled to Tulsa’s Convention Hall. There, an estimated 3,000 black men and women were housed by the National Guard, who had been called in to restore order.

About the same time, Brother Arthur Claus, who was white, made a courageous decision. “When I heard that rioting squads were running about throughout Greenwood, looting and setting fire to homes, I decided to check on my dear friend, Brother Hill.”

Using The Harp of God, Arthur Claus taught a study class of 14 children

Arriving at Brother Hill’s home, he encountered a white neighbor holding a rifle. The neighbor, also a friend of Brother Hill’s, assumed that Arthur was one of the rioters. “Why are you in this man’s yard?” he shouted.

“Had I given him an unsatisfactory answer, he would have shot me,” Arthur recalled. “I assured him that I was Brother Hill’s friend and that I had been to his home many times.” Arthur and the neighbor successfully protected the property against the looters.

Soon Arthur discovered that Brother Hill and his family were at Convention Hall. Arthur was told that black people could not leave there without an order signed by General Barrett, the officer in charge. Arthur related: “It was a real task to get to see the general. When I told him my plans, he asked: ‘Will you watch over this family and take care of their needs?’ Naturally, I heartily agreed.”

With the order in hand, Arthur rushed to Convention Hall. He presented it to an officer who exclaimed: “Why, this is signed by the general himself! Do you know that you are the first person to take anyone from this place all day?” Brother Hill and his family were soon located. All of them crowded into Arthur’s car and headed home.

Brother Claus made sure that Brother Hill and his family were safe. His example of fearless brotherhood had a good effect on others. Arthur related: “The neighbor who helped protect the Hill’s property drew closer to the truth. And a number of people got interested in the Kingdom because they saw that there were no racial barriers, that all of us stood equal among God’s dedicated people.”

a The Golden Age was renamed Consolation in 1937 and Awake! in 1946.