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XVIII - 02(85)
"Watchman,
what of the night?"
"The hour has come, the hour is striking and striking at you,
the hour and the end!" Eze. 7:6 (Moffatt)
- - - SUPPOSE - - -
Chapter from Re-Written and Updated Manuscript
Suppose you had been living in Jerusalem in 66 A.D. You were a Christian. As a tradesman you were providing a modest but an adequate living for your family. You were aware of the prophecy Jesus had given concerning the coming destruction of Jerusalem, having heard it from the lips of the Apostles. Furthermore, it was also a matter of record in the Gospels already written, and you had heard it read frequently in the Christian assembly. But no Roman or alien armies had as yet surrounded the city. There were rumors, but Jesus had not said to rely upon rumors.
Then one morning you awakened to the fact that the Roman armies had surrounded the city, and all the gates were closed. How were you to leave the city? It appeared there was no way out. What did Jesus mean? Had you waited too long? No, suddenly the armies of Rome withdrew for no apparent cause. The Jewish forces pursued, and the gates were now open. What would you have then done? What should you have done?
Believing the words of Jesus, you hurriedly left the city with what you and your family could take with you. It was a complete uprooting of your life, and meant leaving behind many a cherished possession. You did not stop till you were safely across the Jordan, and located in a small village in the region beyond. There you sought to re-establish a form of existence. It was most difficult; life was hard. As time went by, news reached you that the armies of Rome had not returned. Things were not exactly normal, but from the reports, those in the city were faring far better than you were across the Jordan. What would have been tempted to do? What should you have done? You chose to stay where you were, and continued to struggle to make ends meet for your family needs.
A.D. 70 came. The Roman armies returned. You received news of the terrible slaughter and devastation which resulted when the city was taken. You were glad, though life was far from easy, that you had believed the words of Jesus. Your very life - salvation - depended upon your faith in what Jesus had said.
A. D. 1832
Suppose you had been living in a small New England town in the year 1832. One day during the week as you were reading the notices on the bulletin board in the village square, you read the announcement that one William Miller was going to lecture the coming Sunday night in the Town Hall on the soon return of Jesus. The next Sunday morning found you sitting in your usual place at church as your pastor introduced his sermon with the announcement you had read. He then proceeded to
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decry the fanaticism of thinking that Jesus was going to return to earth in just a few years. He ridiculed the prophecies as mere dreams with only an allegorical meaning. You had planned to go that night to hear Mr. Miller. But the pastor had some things to say about him, too. So you decided not to go, and you didn't.
The next year - one morning, well before daybreak - you were suddenly awakened with the sound of cries and the terrified voices of your neighbors. Looking out to see what was causing this unusual disturbance, you saw what they saw - the stars of heaven were falling. You began to tremble, because you knew what Jesus had said, and what was written in the book of Revelation, which was being so vividly fulfilled before your eyes. What were you to do? You recalled distinctly your decision of the previous year - now with deep regret.
Weeks pass, and again, one day as you read the bulletin board in the village square, you discover that William Miller will speak in a nearby church the next Sunday night. Regardless of what your pastor will say on Sunday morning, you are determined to go and hear Miller. So you do, and are completely convinced that the presentation of prophecy is accurate. The end of all things is at hand, and so you start attending the study group organized to prepare folk for the coming of Jesus, and to provide support that others may also hear.
October 23, 1844
Since you believed expectantly that Jesus was going to return on October 22, 1844, you gathered with those of like precious faith, uniting with them in prayer and watching all that day. Into the hours of the night you waited, but still Jesus did not come. The little sleep you got the rest of the night was fitful, and with the dawning on October 23, you could not rest. Your mind was agitated; your heart was torn with disappointment. What should you do? What could you do? Where in the Word of God could you turn for an answer?
The Midnight Cry which had established the date, October 22 - "the tenth day of the seventh month" - had also opened minds to the further and deeper study of the type and antitype relationship between the earthly and heavenly sanctuary. One who lived through this experience has written:
The subject of the sanctuary was the key which unlocked the mystery of the disappointment, showing that God had led His people in the great Advent movement. It opened to view a complete system of truth, connected and harmonious, and revealed present duty as it brought to light the position and work of God's people. (SP. IV, p. 268)
[Note that the study of the sanctuary brought "to view a complete system of truth" and "revealed present duty."]
What was that duty? Again from the pen of one who live through those trying days following the disappointment, we read:
The passing of time in 1844 was followed by a period of great trial to those who still held the Advent faith. Their only relief, so far as ascertaining their true position was concerned, was the light which directed their minds to the sanctuary above. As has been stated, Adventists were for a short time united in the belief that the door of mercy was shut. This position was soon abandoned. Some renounced their faith in their former reckoning of the prophetic periods, and ascribed to human or Satanic agencies the powerful influence of the Holy Spirit which had attended the Advent movement. Another class firmly held that the Lord had led them in their past experience; and as they waited and watched and prayed to know the will of God, they saw that their great High Priest had entered upon another work of ministration, and following Him by faith, they were led to understand also the closing work of the church, and were prepared to receive and give to the world the warning of the third angel of Revelation 14. (Ibid., pp. 271-272. emphasis mine.)
[Observe - those who followed Jesus by faith were led to understand "the closing work of the church." They also perceived the Third Angel's Message was to be given to the world.]
As Time Continued
Out of the disappointment, being sincere and believing the Word of God, you chose to unite your interests and endeavors with those who would be proclaiming to the world the Messages of Revelation 14. You looked for the time when the message would swell into a "loud cry" as foretold in Revelation 18. You rejoiced to hear the messages of Elders A. T. Jones and
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E. J. Waggoner when they came to South Lancaster to give what they had presented at the Minneapolis General Conference Session in 1888. Then one day a few years later, you opened the Review & Herald, that had just come in the mail. In it you read:
"The time of test is just upon us, for the loud cry of the third angel has already begun in the revelation of the righteousness of Christ, the sin-pardoning Redeemer. This is the beginning of the light of the angel whose glory shall fill the whole earth." (Nov. 22, 1892, p. 615)
This caused you to rejoice. The Loud Cry had commenced. Revelation 18 was about to be fulfilled. Soon Jesus would come. You recalled that experience which filled your soul on October 22, 1844. Surely you would not again be disappointed. But then, time dragged on. Nothing happened. The revival that had been so evident at the South Lancaster meetings died out. What had happened? You were getting older, and had hoped,
O so much, to be alive and see Jesus come. Many of your friends who had shared this same hope had already fallen asleep in Jesus. Must this too, be your experience?
Ten more years pass, and you heard about a letter which Ellen G. White wrote to Percy T. Magan. It had said:
We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel, but for Christ's sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequences of their own wrong course of action. (Letter dated, Dec. 7, 1901)
As the full effect of the letter comes home to your mind, you ask - "How many is 'many more years?'" The same day a friend visits you, and you both discuss things dear to your heart - the coming of Jesus; the advancing years of your life; - your hopes and expectations. This friend tells you about another letter, also written in 1901. You want to see a copy. In a few days, your friend returns and brings you a copy of this letter. You take it, and read it very slowly and carefully. It tells you:
In the twenty-first chapter of Luke, Christ foretold what was to come upon Jerusalem, and with it He connected the scenes which were to take place in the history of this world just prior to the coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Letter 20, 1901; C to W&E, pp. 23-24)
That evening when you had time to think it through, you asked yourself the question - "Why did Ellen White just ask us to note Luke 21.? Why not Matthew 24 and Mark 13? These are also reports of what Jesus gave in prophecy that night long ago. Why did she specify that what Luke had recorded about events to come upon Jerusalem would be 'connected [with] the scenes which were to take place... just prior to the coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory'?" Then you took your Bible and re-read thoughtfully Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21. You discovered that the only thing that Luke said about Jerusalem that Matthew and Mark did not was in regard to Jerusalem being trodden down of the Gentiles till the times of the Gentiles would be fulfilled.
As the evening hours lengthened into the dark shadows of the night, you continued that year in the early 1900's to ponder what you had read. Jerusalem was still under Gentile control. But you did recall reading in the newspaper of the first Jewish International Congress in 1897 for the purpose of promoting a Jewish Commonwealth in Palestine. Would this Jewish state - if it could be achieved - free Jerusalem from Gentile control? Thinking, wondering, pondering - would it come in your day? - you fell asleep.
1984 EDITION
THE TIMES OF THE GENTILES
FULFILLED
This new edition contains ten consise chapters, four appendixes, and ten documentary enhibits. Only one of the documentary letters was carried over from the 1972 edition. Some of the ten are being produced for the first time. The chapter titles are:
I -Recent Adventist Literature on Luke 21;24
II -Luke 21:24 in Context
III -An Analysis of Luke 21:24-25
IV -"The Revelation of the Son of Man"
V -"This Generation Shall Not Pass Away"
VI - Data of History and 1967
VII - Data of History and 1980
VIII - Suppose
IX - Some History
X - The Church - 1967 - 1980
The four appendixes cover the following additional topics:
A - Ezekiel 9 and Luke 21:24 As Seen in Testimonies for the Church
B - What Will the Final Witness Be?
C - LaRondelle and Luke 21:24
D - Historical Parallels
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BRAVE SOUL
What Will the "Lions" Do Now?
"On October 15 [1984], members of the Annual Council heard a report on the church in Hungary, where a breakaway group has existed for some years. The three part presentation was given by Edwin Ludescher, president of the Euro-Africa Division; G. Ralph Thompson, secretary of the General Conference; and Neal C. Wilson, president of the General Conference." (Adventist Review. Nov. 22, 1984) Only a summary was actually printed in the Review. However, Elder Lewis L. Szercz, Pastor of the St. Thomas-Exeter District of the Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, sent a letter to the Editor of the Review, addressing this summary. Copies of the letter were also sent to the following: Wilson, Thompson, Ludescher, J. W. Wilson, President of the Canadian Union, Members of the Ontario Conference Executive Committee, Hungarian pastors in North America and members of the St. Thomas SDA Church Board. The letter follows:
Editor
ADVENTIST REVIEW
6840 Eastern Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20012
Dear Sir:
A more misleading and prejudicial account of recent events among Seventh-day Adventists in Hungary cannot be imagined than the "Report to the Church" by Elders Edwin Ludescher, G. Ralph Thompson, and Neal C. Wilson regarding "the Hungarian situation" on page 6 in the November 22, 1984, Adventist Review (Vol. 161, No. 47).
To begin with, Elder Ludescher implies that acting contrary to the Church Manual -- as he acknowledges the official union church to have done -- is somehow less obnoxious than being "out of harmony with the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy" -- of which he, without any proof, accuses "the dissident (Egervari) group."
The reason "the Egervari group has set up its, own organization, with
ministers and buildings" is because "of about 700 individuals who had been
improperly disfellowshipped" (as Elder Wilson admits). Therefore it is
lamentable that Elder Ludescher does not state why "the Egervari group backed
away at the last moment" from reconciliation, but it is not surprising in view
of his demeaning assessment of them: "'If even an angel from heaven, should come
and urge them to reintegrate, they would say, "You come from too far away: you
don't understand." ' "
Elder Thompson correctly reports that "the chief complaint currently raised by the Egervari group is that the union has membership in the Council of Free Churches (CFC)" -- composed as it is of the Baptist Church, the Pentecostal Gospel Community, the Congregation of the Living God, the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Church of God, the Christian Fraternal Congregation, the Methodist Church, the Ancient Christian Denomination, and the Free Christian Congregation (Organizational
Policy of the Council of Free Churches in Hungary, page 2) -- but he misconstrues the true impact of that membership with these assertions:
1. "Membership in the CFC does not involve alliance with the WCC,..."
The fact is that the CFC is a member of the Ecumenical Council in Hungary, which is listed in the chapter "Member Churches of the WCC" on page 271 of Gathered for Life (OFFICIAL REPORT VI Assembly World Council of Churches, Vancouver, Canada 24 July - 10 August, 1983) under the heading "Hungary" as an "associate council." The three Hungarian churches -- Baptist Union of Hungary, Lutheran Church in Hungary, Reformed Church in Hungary -- listed additionally as WCC members also belong to their national ecumenical council. If we ignore this, that is like saying that the National Council of Churches in the U.S.A. listed similarly on page 277 of Gathered for Life in the same chapter alongside 25 American church bodies, is not allied with the WCC!
2. ". . . since membership in the latter is limited to individual churches; it is not open to councils of churches."
The fact is that these associate councils are -
established for purposes of ecumenical fellowship and activity ... knowing the Basis upon which the World Council is founded ... to cooperate with the World Council towards the achievement of one or more of the functions and purposes of this Council... Each associate council ... shall be provided with copies of all general communications sent to all members of the World Council of Churches. In
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addition to communicating directly with its member churches, the World Council shall inform each associate council regarding important ecumenical developments and consult it regarding proposed World Council programmes in its country.
From the chapter "Constitution and Rules of the WCC," in Gathered for Life, pages 338, 339)
3. "The Seventh-day Adventist Hungarian Union church is not a member of the main ecumenical body of churches in Hungary - The Hungarian Ecumenical Council."
The fact is that when former Hungarian Union president Elder Joseph Szakacs became president of the CFC he was concurrently vicepresident of the Hungarian Ecumenical Council, proving that the Adventist church's CFC membership automatically makes it a member of the main ecumenical body of churches in Hungary.
Elder Thompson implicitly acknowledges these facts since he advised "the union leaders... of withdrawing from the CFC, inasmuch as membership in it is a cause of dissension. " Thus the Egervari group represents and seeks to maintain the historic Adventist stand regarding ecumenical involvement pretended by Elder Thompson: "The Seventh-day Adventist Church has never been a member of the World Council of Churches."
As far, as the WCC is concerned, it "will take steps to develop cooperative working relationships with" the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, which sent Dr. Bert Beach as one of thirteen "Delegated Representatives of Christian World Communions" to the 1983 Vancouver Assembly. These "World Confessional Bodies" are the global coordinating committees of their respective worldwide churches, represented at the WCC Assembly and/or Central Committee by the Anglican, Disciples, Friends, Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist, Reformed, Salvation Army, and Seventh-day Adventist denominations! Thus the official, General Conference-sanctioned ecumenical collaboration is of a more intimate nature than that of the Roman Catholic Church, which had only "Delegated Observers" at Vancouver. See - Gathered for Life, pages 304, 305, 327, and 339.
With his comment about the Egervari group -- "'They want the family name, but they don't want to live in the same house" -- Elder Wilson reveals his real attitude towards Adventists who protest injustices in their church. It is to be expected that if the ecumenical experimentation is condoned, other serious problems or "obstacles" would arise in the Hungarian union. In trying to minimize the former, Elder Wilson inadvertently acknowledges the latter. Therefore to label the Egervari group as "a countermovement and a self-appointed, independent organization that recognizes no authority" is to merely extend the list of allegations contradicted by the evidence.
Rather than being "in open rebellion to the official policies of the world church," the Egervari group instead defended these policies with remarkable faithfulness, not denied when "the group applied to the Hungarian authorities for recognition as a separate organization." This took place under duress because with the group's final rejection as Seventh-day Adventists by Elder Wilson in January, 1984, the legal recognition required for religious organizations in Hungary ceased for the dissenters. Notwithstanding the emergency label of "Sabbath-keeping, Christ-expecting Christians," the Hungarian government did attest to their religious loyalty when the Honorable Mr. Imre Miklos of the State Office of Church Affairs deemed them to have doctrines and practices identical to an already established denomination, the 'Seventh-day Adventists'! Therefore Elder Wilson's criticism that "there is an unfortunate attitude of self-righteousness on the part of the group, and they judge the official church to be in apostasy" is patently false. Equally unsubstantiated is his charge "that they interpret certain distinctive doctrines in a different way."
In conclusion, the report of Elders Ludescher, Thompson, and Wilson on the Hungarian situation is partial and therefore mis-leading, tending only to malign the Christian character of conscientious Seventh-day Adventist believers concerned enough for God's church to stand up for principles espoused by us all.
With regret,
Elder Lewis L. Szerecz
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SUMMARY REPORT - 3
This is the third report from the Complaint filed by Americans United in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia.
FACTUAL ALLEGATIONS
(Continued)
"On January 24, 1867, Rep. William E. Dodge of New York introduced a resolution requesting the President of the United States to communicate to the House of Representatives any information the government might receive concerning the removal of the Protestant church at the American Embassy from the city of Rome by order of the Papal government. At this same time the House of Representatives had under consideration the diplomatic and consular appropriation bill. Representative Thomas Wilson of Pennsylvania on January 30, 1867, moved to strike from the civil and diplomatic appropriation bill the items providing for the salary of the American minister in Rome. The legislative provision specifically provided "and no money hereby or otherwise appropriated shall be paid for the support for an American legation at Rome, from and after the 30th day of June, 1867." Congress adopted the resolution cutting off appropriation's for this diplomatic mission. In diplomatic correspondence from William H. Seward, Secretary of the Department of State, to Mr. Rufus King, the United States minister to the Papal States, dated April 20, 1867, Secretary Seward notified Mr. King as follows:
Sir: You have already been informed that a law has been enacted by Congress which declares
that from and after the 30th of day of June next no more money shall be paid to the legation at Rome. This law leaves your mission still existing, but without compensation after that period.
You will be at liberty, under the circumstances, to consult, your own feelings and interests, either to remain at Rome, in charge of the legation, after the 30th day of June, without compensation or provision for your expenses, or to resign, or to leave Rome without resigning on leave of absence, but in every case without compensation, whether remaining in Europe or returning here.
Should you decide withdrawing from Rome, you are at liberty to do so at any time before or after the 30th of June. Whenever you may have prepared to withdraw from the capitol, you will place the archives in the care of the consul at that place taking the proper vouchers therefore, and you will inform the cardinal secretary of the state of that proceeding. You will need to give him no further explanation, although you are entirely at liberty to communicate the contents of this instruction.
"Two attempts were thereafter made by several members of Congress in 1869 and again in 1870 to re-establish diplomatic relations with the Papal States. On January 6, 1869, a debate took place in the House of Representatives on the question of the mission to the Papal States when James Brooks of New York asked Elihu B. Washburne of Illinois, Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, why the amount of money appropriated for the consulor and diplomatic expenses had been reduced by $7,025. The reply was that the mission located in Rome, which originally had been included, was left out. Thereupon, Congressman Brooks moved that the mission to Rome be inserted and an appropriation of $7,500 be made therefor. Brooks' amendment, however, failed 82-31.
"The second and final effort to reopen the United States mission to the Papal States occurred on May 19, 1870, when the House took up the diplomatice and consulor appropriations bill in the committee of the whole. At that time Representative Brooks of New York moved to strike out the appropriation for a minister to Guatemala and to insert Rome. This motion, however, was defeated 71 to 47. During the period of time from 1868 to 1870, there was substantial political-religious debate and controversy surrounding the cutting off of formal diplomatic relations with the Papal States, as well as the attempts to restore the congressional funding for the diplomatic missions. Even Catholics were divided as to the advisability of continuing the American diplomatic mission to Rome. In 1870, Monsignor Robert Seton, Prothonotary Apostolic, expressed the view of a large number of Catholics that "the United States minister
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of Rome is tantamount to a Protestant spy at the papal court." At the same time American Protestants were protesting any further diplomatic involvement even with the Papal States where the primary responsibility and role of the mission related to commercial and tourist interests. At that time, those opposing the reviving of the mission to Rome pointed out that there was little reason for the continuation of such a mission due to the lack of commerce with Rome. Protestants opposed any reviving of the diplomatic mission due to the church-state controversy that raged as a result of the previous diplomatic mission.
"Any further attempt at reviving the diplomatic mission came to an end on September 20, 1870, when the kingdom of Italy annexed the Papal States. In 1871 the Italian Parliament passed the Law of Guarantee to prevent the Pope from being merely an Italian citizen and the Holy See from coming under the territorial supremacy of Italy. During the period from 1870 until February 11, 1929, the Roman Catholic Church did not exist as a separate state but was a private ecclesiastical entity without territorial pretensions."
To Be Continued
"PARANONIA RELIGIOSA ADVENTISTICA"
One of the most heartless cases of persecution of believers in Czechoslovakia has just become known to Keston College from a reliable source in that country. The persecution of Jindriska and Karel KORINEK began in 1966, when they both were forcibly incarcerated in a psychiatric hospital for their beliefs, and three children were placed in state orphanages. A fourth born while in the hospital was taken at birth and given out for adoption. After their release, Mrs. Korinek attempted to get her baby back, and was apprehended and tried for kidnapping. Surprisingly, the court cleared her, restored her parental rights, and ordered the children returned to her.
Now they are on trial again, behind closed doors. The indictment seeks to have them declared not responsible and therefore subject to indefinite psychiatric hospitalization. In the case of such a verdict there is no appeal. The decision of the court was to be based on a medical report which diagnoses the Korineks as suffering from "paranonia religiosa adventistica" - namely, their profession of the Seventh-day Adventist faith.
From KNS No. 196, page 2.
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