1917 an Open Letter to the People of the Lord

8/4/2019 1917 an Open Letter to the People of the Lord

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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE 'PEOPLE OF THE LORDTHROUGHOUT THEWORLD. . .: IIIIIIIIIIlIIIlIIIlIllIIIIIIIIIIIIIIllIIllllllllllilllllIllilll!!lll

. . . .DEARB R ~ T H R E NN T H E LORD sistance as we can in harmony with Matt. 18: 15-17, and Bro;Loving greetings in the Master's Name! Russell's comments thereon in Volume 6. We cannot all meet'Following we preserlt a copy of a petition which we have and give these questions our united attention; but we can. . .

sent to Bra. Rutherford and the f ou r deposed Directors of urge that an impartial committee hear the matter and. present,their findings, decision and recommendations to the Share-.the Society. This petition has been prepared af ter prayerful holders' meeting in Pittsburg, which is as near a full assembly,anti careful consideration and with an earnest desire to see of the Church in the flesh as it is possible to have.the tlistressing controversy which has shocked and grieved The suggestion may be made that such a comn~ittee ould'us, ant1 IIO doubt all of you, settled in a just and equitable be appointed and a hearing had at the ~ it ts bu rg eeting i nmanner. January. A little reflection, however, will convince that this&lost of the undersigned reside in Brooklyn and the imme- would be impossible. Sufficient time could' not be devoted,diatc vicinity and have had abundant opportunity -to view .the there for an orderly and thorough hearing.,.,Unless this com-injlrrio~~snfluence of these unsettled questions here in our mitte; is appointed the Januav meeting ad hasmitlst. Wk have seen this controversy grow until it now se-i- to thoroughly investigate these questions, which. ar e of such;eusly tllreatens the harmony of the New York City Ecclesir; importance to us as the Lerds people,we have seek1 a growing coldness and lack of sympathetic informationwe need to intelligently, expeess the,Lord 's choice:understa~~tlingeveloping amongst brethren we feel sure for Directors and Officers, and His mind'on.other matterspossess the spirit of .the Lord, and we have heard o f similar . .which. may come before the Convention.;. . , , ,cotlrlitiolls elsewhere. O u r hearts a re grieved beyond measure Do yo , wish to help in securing a fa ir . hearing 3nd.- by 'these conditions. Wha t shall we do? ment of this controversy? You ,can dq so if: you-will. . ~2 . - ,

The issues, are no t so clear that we. can judge as to.. The .proposed "straw vote" to b e taken.on,-NOV. .1,; 1917,.the alltl ljLlt these of our minds. I t is im- require us, unless refuse to .V@e f o ra n y pf thpse whp:are concerned in this controversy, tg.:cast;j~,r.~votes..for~,possiblc 0 ~1s~ v h o now the character of .the brethren who brethren as , ~ i . ~ ~ t ~ ~ ~ ,cersf ,th e, sm.iety ,i fdilrer wit11 .'tlie present ma na ge me n' of the Society .to accept elected, wi ll occupy positions a8 gene ral ,ipverseers of , t h ethe sll&est ions 111ade by some who 'superficially view the 'mat- Church throughout the, world), :who are-, ying :under; serioasiter, . I I ~ ~ ; ~ ~ I ~ , ,that "they have gone o ut of. the ~ r & " ; hat they charges, which .should prevent-their being elected as, Elders.:are ,~ol,l~osetlo ClranneSn etc, we know to.he in local- congregation; .until these a r e heard afid disposed.:of. This would not be in harmony with-go od:orde r accordihg;that t l ~ e ~ l l b t ~ ehe Lord and are endeavoring toserve Him and to the ~ ~ ~ d * ~ord.. . . . . . ., . ..His. ~lebljle,laily. The real election comes in J anu ary; the.'"s&al"' vote", qnWllal lllet~call be done to decide the importarlt pri~~ciples Nov. 21 is not necessa ry;-nor, under .the circumstancts;:'doew!involvetlanti to bring tllis great controversy to an end?. How it Seem wise. Instead of taking pa rt in this-vote-at that ti mewe suggest .to the fr iends tha t- hey present. n thei r. ocal meet-:,can icrr assist our brethren to rightwhat is wrbng ind become ing a resolution a petition t oB ro t h e r , Rutherford:abl


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A PETITION TO BRO. RUTHERFORD AND THE FOUR DEPOSED DIRECTORS OFTHE W. . B. & T. SOCIETY

DEARRETHREN-The undersigned, together with many others throughout theworld, have been greatly distressed by the controversy whichhas arisen among the Directors and Officers of the Society asconstituted at the time our dear Brother Russell left us abouta year ago and since, and which has involved th e good reputa-tion of all of you and a number of other brethren whose stand-ing among the Lord's people has been good heretofore. Itseems to us the great need at this time is to seek the Lord'sinstructions and, acting in harmony therewith, use your bestand united efforts to secure a just, impar tial hearing andsettlement of the inatters which have troubled, and which con-tinue to distress, the Lord's people throughout the world, andeven thre aten the unity of the congregations in some places.The necessity for prompt action looking toward such a hear-ing of the persons and matters under criticism is especiallyapparent in view of the near approach of the annual electionof Directors and Officers of the Society; and that owing to theseveral publications which have been sent out by the parties tothis controversy, the reputations of all have been impai red;and at present it is impossible for many, including the under-signed, to harmonize the statements of these opposing papers.as they ar e quite contradictory. Thi s very fact puts all ofyou at a disadvantage as respects the coming election. Someof the frie nds are disposed to place the grea ter confidence inthe publications of Brother Rutherford , and are thus preju-diced against the other brethren; while the reverse is true ofother -friends, who have gre ater confidence in the statementsof the deposed Directors and others.Such a condition, and especially that we and the otherfriends throughout the world should nominate and elect asDirectors and Officers of the Society brethren now lying undersuch serious charges, as all of you are, seems to us the reverseof good order in the Church, as outlined in the Lord's Wor dan d Brother Russell's expositions in Volume Six. Th e Direc-to rs and Officers of the Society surely occupy as responsiblea position in the Church as an Elder in a local congregation,practically the only difference being that the Elders' sphere islocal, while the representatives of the Society have a general.charge as respects the oversight of the Church throughoutthe world. Th e character requirements of these officers ofthe Society should, then, be quite as stringent as if they were,being elected as Elders in a local congregational electlonBrother Russell points out in Volume Six, page 418, thatslander against an Elder of a congregation is a slander against,the congregation electing him. I t is apparent to all that seri-.ous charges have been brought against all of you and otherrepresentatives of the Society; and thus the entire Churchhas become involved and has a responsibility regarding thehearing and judging of these.We are aware that the claim of all of you, no doubt, is thatyour circulation of uncomplimentary statements about theother side was not slander and evil-speaking, as it would havebeen, had you taken this course as elders of some local con-gregation. W e presume that your thought in publishing thesestatements which have so shocked the Church, was that youhad used every effort to settle matters amicably among your-$elves without avail, and that you were in these papers appeal-

ing the case to the Church in general, whose officers, in asense, you were. However, instead of clearing the question,these papers have made it more confusing to the friends, in-cluding ourselves. They contain numerous contradictions oneof the other. A question which comes with great force to usis, How are we.under these circumstances to judge righteous-ly in this mat ter and express the Lord's -choice in our vo te sfor Directors and Officers of the Society? We would notwish to have any serving in that capacity who do not possess alarge degree of the Lord's Spirit, or who are guilty of mis-representation and falsehood. Consider the matter from - ourstandpoint , Jaying all personal feelings aside. Can yo11 notsee our dilemma? And will you not help us out of it ant1 totake part in the election in an intelligent manner in lt l thusexpress, as nearly as we ar e able to do, the mind of the- Lor d?How can we arrive at the truth as respects the questionsand persons involved in this controversy, and how can we beinformed as to how best to c a r r y forward the worlc whichwas so ably started and supervised for many years by theLord's special servant, our dearBrother Russell? We be-lieve this could be -accomplished by the appointment o f arepresentative committee of Brethren, Shareholders of .theSociety, to hear the evidence regarding the matters under con-troversy, including the activities of t h e Society and its Oliicersduring the past year; that to this committee (chosen as Iiere-after outlined) should be givenfull information as to the.Society's financial condition, organization, legal sfa tr~ s, ela-tion to the People's Pulpit Association, the foreign Brauches-in fact,-as to all matters necessary to a thorough understand-ing of the Society's work and its sphere of activity, as achannel of Truth organized by Brother Russell for the carry-ing forward of the work which he, in the Lord's providence,initiated arid was made responsible for; and that this commit-tee, after hearing all matters arid ascertaining the trllill asrespects the contradictory statements which. have been pub-lished, should make a full report to the assembled Share-holders at Pittsburg on January 4, the day before the elec-tion of Directors and Officers is to take place.Our desire in suggesting this course is that we and all of.the Lord's people may have our minds set a t rest respectingthe difficulties which have arisen in the last few months, thatthe breach between the brethren concerned rnay be healed,and that the Shareholders shall have such information, 110tha's t o the activities of the past year, the present s tate of theSociety, and the possibilities of the future, as will enable themto wisely plan for the . continuance' of . the work, and elect asDirectors and Officers, brethren whose reputations are clearof such ,stains as ar e now upon the reputation of many ofthose who have been.prominent and efficient in the worlc ofthe Society in the past. ~., In harmony with the above, weresp.ectfu lly request that youarrange f or an Investigation Committee to .be composed -a sfollows :Brother Ruther ford ,to choose th ie e (3) members:Th e four deposed Directors to choose three (3 ) 'me?~~beri.These six ( 6 ) brethren to electyanother. - , . . .The seven (7 ) thus constituted to choose by election theremaining members of the committee, which we suggest num-


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ber in all, 15. (This is suggested as a reasonably large com- esp~ cially the S hareholders, to hear the matter witheutmittee t o hea r and report on such important matters, and prejudice, and in the fear of the Lor d to render their decision,seems in harmon y.wi th Brother Russell 's views on a similar and to report the same, together with their recommendations,question,nam ely, the committee constituted to hear and judge to the Shareholders ' meeting in Pit tsbur g on January 4.charges against any member of the Editorial Committee of the Tha t this committee be called together as quickly a s pos-Watch Tower, which would approxima te that number.) sible, so that ample time may be had for the hearing andT ha t these brethren be chosen because of their known careful weighing of all evidence presented, and the form ulat--soundness in the Truth, fa ithfulness to the Lord's work and ing of their report and recommendations.possession of a good -measure sf II is Spiri t ; that they be With Christian love .and praying fo r you and us a ll thecharged both by the principals in the controversy and those Lord's guidance and blessing,whom they would represent namely, the Church in general and Your brethren in the Lord,.E. 0 . K U E H N E. NICHOLS E. . RAETERYGENEVIEVEANFORD C. R. NICHOLS FLORENCEOGERS

' H: F. ROCKWELL M. A. TH OM SO N JULIUS GRAEVES . .H. CLAYROCKWELL H. W. N E W M A N CHARLOTTERAEVESLILLIAN CURTIS MRS.H. W . N E W M A N E . K E R RVIOLACURTIS W. A. RENGELLY MARIONF. M A S O NEMILYM. SINNOCK A. E. BURGESS I ~ A. SOLLL A U R A. MAITLAND LAURAW. BURGESS E. M. BAUERFRANCE S . MAITLAND GEORGE VERY J . S H A W~SABEL . PAINE J. S. AVERY J. SHEPFIELDM I N N ~ E . E IB EL . PERCYEAD M. CAMEROKGRACEALEXANDER F. CLARK G. NELSONEDITH M. READ A. -E . HAZEL. M. BERRYFRED . MASO N E. CHRISTIE FRED.G. MASONM. LICEB A NK S H A N N A H . PATTEN MARTINFISCHERSAMU EL EVINE NIEL MCNAUGHTON MART HA HO MA SCORAA . K U E H N E . M C X A U G H T O N E V E L Y N A N T IN GID AMILLS S. GV. M O N A H A N J A M E SA. PANTING

- A N N I EH. ESTWICK K. BELL CORA M. RE IDE. M C K A YATTIE HENDERSON GWENDOLYNALLAOERUTH HENDERSON W. . LANGILLE ELIZABE TH TANARBJ. L. COOKE M. S. PERROW MA RYE. BARCVSW. J. HOLLISTER F. S. B AR RE T E M M A A N D R U MGRACEA. HOLLISTER EMILYJ. M A S ON J O H A N N A . C OO KMARIAC. LUND QUIST MARGARETOLDEN. S H A WM. . MORRISON J. YAM ASOCK EY ELIZA BOLTEF. RAFTERY S. M . H A W N J O H A N N A A R G EN TPRUDENCEAFTERY . MARIAROBERTS W . L. SARGENTC. C. HARRISON GEORGE OBERTS ALVINAKLUDAS

E. V. DYER LOISE GAFFELNIN F. C. KLUDASM. DAHL M. CARLSON TILLIE B. PHILLIPSEDITH HOSK INS M. E. WEST EMILELAVEALLECOREYMITCHELL C. H. WEST ELIZAA. MARVINNORMA . MITCHELL F. A. LINNELL EDNAMARVINMRS. C. C. BEALE J. PERROW JOH N DAHLSTROMMRS.W. GREGORY M. E. PERROW HILMADAHLSTROMHA RRY HLERS L. LIMPER Jos. HOLDEWV. S. COBB MARIOXC A M P A. L A S ~ A N EG. M. BRAND E. M. FIELD CHAS. R; COATES ,DOROTHY . COOKE MARYH Y N D M A N R E T H AE. DALTONMABEL OOKE ELIZABETHHA^ J ~ H A N N ELSENKJETSAAMRS. F. GREENVILLE MARIE ANDERSON. W . M. HARRISONH . M. COMER F. G R E E N V ~ L E SC OT T H A P M A NE M M A O M ER E . T. B m s S A R A H . C. CHAPMANBENJ. BOULTER. SOPHIEGREBE W. J. MASON\Y. REDWOOD RUTH I. GALBRAITH G. H. SH OL LF. H. WEST CLARARAFTERY D. E. BRIDGEG. L. WILEY LIBERTAMICHAELS SUSIE M. COAT ESLUELLA AMBO MINNIE REIM ANN MARGARETIRDBENJ. MCCLELLAN JAM ESH. B U C K M A N M I N N I ES . B U C K M A NTHEO.WALLACE C. E. JONES. J ~ H N A R N E RW. S. BARCUS WM . J . COOK Mi. A. HALI.

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1917 an Open Letter to the People of the Lord