More newish stuff - Barbour

Newish Stuff - Barbour

Writing History II

Writing History II

            Those who write about controversialist movements are often partisan or swayed by partisan statements. Having a point of view is ethical and acceptable. It is unethical to slant your writing to fit your point of view while ignoring contrary evidence.

            I see this most often in the thesis or dissertations written by wannabe sociologists and historians. They cite secondary sources without verifying accuracy. They do not weigh the merits of their sources. They are willing to uncritically accept the word of former adherents. Or they presume their conclusions are factual without verification.

            There are numbers of examples, but one that makes me frown is the attribution to the Adventists of every End-Times view. Adventism, especially original Millerite Adventism, has a very narrow doctrinal set. Belief in the return of Christ is First Century Doctrine, and seldom falls within the “Second Adventist” world view. In Zygumnt’s dissertation, individuals are called Millerites and old-time Millerites who weren’t born until decades later.

            Another example is the ready and uncritical acceptance of a ‘voice’ that supports a defamatory view. Many writers do this. The Brooklyn Eagle was in the early 20^th Century little more than a yellow-journalism rag. It was unreliable, partisan and as willing to lie as any other newspaper. It was Catholic in outlook, and willing to trash without grounds any other point of view. Because its articles support a point of view, they’re repeated, quoted and referenced as if they were the first-hand observations of participants. They aren’t. They’re slanted and inaccurate.

            Quotations from New York State newspapers about the arrest of Jonas Wendell are quoted on the Internet without critical comment. All of them are derive from one source, and all of them are false. None of those citing these articles tried to find an original arrest record. (You can’t find one, because it didn’t happen.) None of them report Wendell’s denials, and none of them identify Miss Terry, the daughter of a Second Adventist family living in Connecticut. The story is there, maybe without enough original documentation to satisfy the very curious (who as I do, always want to know more), but with enough detail to tell an accurate story.

            One well-known historian and former adherent called Russell a plagiarist because he believed similarly to someone else. This is, as we point out in Separate Identity Vol. 1, a misuse of the word. If you write history, do not borrow other’s mistakes. Word definitions matter. You must know the definition of the words you use. And you must know connotation of words. It is unethical to use a word that implies a bad act without clear evidentiary warrant.

            Some writers begin with the assumption that the characters whose history they present were bad people. They don’t like the doctrine or philosophy of someone, so they portray them in the worst light possible. Ethically, a historian should presume that the least offensive cause for an act or belief is the correct one unless there is clear, first-hand evidence to the contrary. One of the Wesleys was accused of adultery, apparently without any grounds. And in his lifetime that was repeated but without evidence.

            Yes, some have bad motives. No-one is a true saint totally without blame in their life. A historian should not accept accusations at face value. An example we deal with in one of our books is the claim that Russell ‘stole’ the Herald of the Morning subscription list. Russell was co-owner. He paid to restart the magazine, purchasing the type for it and financing it when it did not pay its way. There are contemporary notices of his ownership. So this is a lie, fabricated by a former adherent who paints everything in the worst possible light – totally without evidence. This is a moral failing. It is wrong. And it is very poor work.

            The opposite problem exists. Some writers alter the facts to fit a prophetic scheme or set of religious doctrines. This is called Historical Idealism. It is as wrong to claim positive events and views that did not happen as it is to frame someone in a bad light without clear, valid, verifiable evidence.

            We will not stop this by what we write. People are not willing to abandoned narratives in which they’re personally invested ... that validate personal decisions they’ve made. But we can present an accurate history and let it contrast with the false narratives that circulate so widely.

On Writing History

Writing History

by R. M. de Vienne

            There are two kinds of history: What the British call Public History and Americans tend to call ‘popular history’; and academic history. Unwarranted snobbery finds a home among those who write academic history. But finding original documents and writing footnotes doesn’t elevate academic history above its cousin.

            Though it colors your style, the audience one writes for does not matter. What matters is an honest, rational approach to the subject. Dr. Schulz and I write about controversial religions. Those who read our books have preconceived notions, often wrong. Not every reader is willing to accept new evidence. Some want to write your book for you. One of our readers believed we should cite former adherents’ books and pamphlets. Almost none of them are relevant. They do not cover the era accurately if at all. They are all secondary, sometimes tertiary sources. They do not present an accurate picture. Often they lie.

            Which brings me to my first point. If you write history, don’t lie to your readers. Some historians misrepresent their subject because their research lacks depth. Want an example? Of course you do. How many of you think that Juan Ponce de León went looking for the fountain of youth? It’s a common myth in American history books. But ... buster, it ain’t so. So ... this is what I wrote in a limited circulation school history:

As a result of political moves by Columbus’ son, he lost his governorship in 1512, but the Spanish king found ways to help him. King Ferdinand sent him out to explore new lands. Ponce de León heard of an island called Bimini. The story as it’s often told says he heard that the fabled Fountain of Youth was there. Drinking its miraculous waters would restore health and youth.  Many writers say that seeking this fountain was the reason for his exploration northward. But this story was invented by a man who wanted to discredit Ponce de León. None of the original records mention a quest for a miracle fountain. Many years after de León’s death Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés, a partisan follower of Diego Columbus, wrote that Ponce was gullible, egocentric and dull-witted. Oviedo told the fountain of youth tale in his book Historia General y Natural de las Indias. It was a literary device meant to make Ponce appear foolish. de León’s real motive was wealth. The king promised that he would hold exclusive rights to the lands he discovered and that he would become their governor.

            Do not lie to your readers by repeating a story you did not verify from original sources. ... Ever.

            When sources conflict, the tendency of some writers is to accept what the majority say, even in preference to an eyewitness. This is argumentum ad populum, one of the major logic flaws. Sometimes the majority view is wrong. Never reject the opposition account without solid reason. And never discount opposition views on an unfounded basis. Age, status in life, and similar things do not, without strong evidence, account for an alternative view. Never adopt a speculation as firm evidence.

            If a character says something different from others, and you do not know why, do not rush into a Non Causa Pro Causa argument. Do not adopt as a reason your speculation. If you cannot find in the original documents a supportable reason for the difference, simply note it. It is fair to balance that person’s testimony against that of others. If you do, only contrast it with eyewitnesses. False testimony comes from repeated use of the comments of one or two people. An example is the endless repetition of J. J. Ross’s claims against Russell. If you take only Ross against Russell and others who attended the trial, Ross is not sustained. However, the bulk of what has been written is derived from Ross because he represented what opposition writers wish the events to be.

            Do not use every document as if it were valid, accurate and the rock-foundation of truth. This is especially so of contemporary newspaper and magazine articles. Give them appropriate weight. If they contradict known facts, reject their testimony. Pay attention! This is important. If you accept a newspaper or magazine article, even contemporary with the event, merely because it supports your point of view, you’re a ‘dork.’ Stop it. Check further. Check your facts to ‘the bitter end.’ Bad writers don’t. Good historians do.

            Historians should be ‘truth detectors.’ If the story develops in a way that differs from your pre-conceived belief, you are ethically bound to follow the facts. You are prohibited by ethics from making it up, casting someone in a bad light because you oppose what they believed or coloring the story to justify your own acts and beliefs.

We need ...

First edition of Separate Identity made it to press with typos and such. We need a list of them all. We continue to work on getting an ebook out, though it's 'paused' because of another issue.

There is a possibility that a well-known university press will take on the books. Don't count on it. We have several 'issues' to overcome. One is cost. As it's published now, the cost is moderate. It would increase perhaps by an overwhelming amount. George's book costs about 150.00 USD. We want our book to be read. So we're just 'talking' with nothing at all settled. If you don't hear about this again, assume we couldn't reach an agreement.

But we still need to clean up the book. So read through it; note the typos; send me a list.

Also, if you really want to help, recommend the books to your friends, and leave a review on Amazon, googlebooks and lulu. Reviews are important. Those we have are good, but we don't have many.

Help find this?

The Flaming Sword of March 1898 said:

The Morning Star says that Mr. C. T. Russell, the editor of the Watch Tower, Allegheny, Pa., "is one of the numerous so called Messiahs with which this country is so amply surfeited.” His claims amount to this; he has not yet mustered up sufficient courage to make the claim emphatically; it would interfere with his revenues. He has a hobby, and is riding it for all it is worth, but it is not worth much. His observatory is out of shape the tower is not high enough, and it limits his horizon; its foundation is crumbling, and will no longer bear the huge, cross-eyed telescope which he employs.

We need the original Morning Star article, but we can't even identify the magazine. HELP!

With Jerome's expert help: 

 

Amateur films from the 1940s and 1950s

Rachael suggested that these might make a nice "filler" for the blog, although far too recent for the era being researched. These two films have turned up on YouTube. They come from Britain.

One is a series of amateur films of the witnesses' conventions and preaching work from the 1940s. There is a commentary of sorts from someone who was "there". I wasn't "there" but I knew personally some of those featured. The other is a film of the 1955 international convention at Twickenham. I was definitely "there" - somewhat shorter than I am now - but alas, am not preserved on celluloid on this occasion. For any British readers of this blog of the right age - enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovJEXjla_18

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxKVck7Ldck

Roberto's analysis of the Greek Handbills

... with slight English language help from Rachael ...

Ioannis Derziotis

The name of the speaker is Ioannis Derziotis, the lecture is "The Desirable Government."  In the lower part of the bill we have day and month, Sunday October 19, but no year. "A Desirable Government" was a booklet written by Rutherford in 1924 and translated in several  languages. (I have a copy in Italian language dated 1924.) So the day must be Sunday, October 19, 1924. The other possible date is far-off, Sunday October 19 1930.

So the only correct date of the bill can be Sunday, October 19, 1924. 

Nick Konstantopoulos

The name of the speaker is Nick Konstantopoulos, the lecture is “Organization of Satan’s Empire.” In the lower part of the handbill we have day and month, Sunday 25 January, but no date. In the years 1922-1925 there were a series of resolutions at the Bible Students Conventions against Satan and his Empire (See W56 8/1 pp. 467-74). The handbill can be related  to a doctrinal change in progress about Armageddon. In the Watch Tower of July 15, 1925, the leading article entitled “The Remnant” set forth for the first time that Armageddon is not a disorganized “time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation,” or a violent, anarchistic battle between capital and organized labor, but is a universal fight between Jehovah God and the entire organization of Satan the Devil in heaven and on earth.  Note that in those years the “System of things” was called “Empire of Satan”.

Well, the only possible date for this bill is: Sunday, 25 January, 1925 

We need a date for this one too

Can we date this?

Useful purpose ...

Without engagement from blog readers, this site serves no useful purpose. We will no longer publish research for volume 2 here, but will share it with a couple of informed fellow researchers. If you do not comment here, you will not find a place on the mailing list.

This blog will not die. But it won't present the meat of our research, only side issues or requests for research help.

Posting long, complex research is time consuming, sometimes difficult. Those posts are not appreciated, seemingly not wanted. If they were appreciated, we'd get a comment from you. We don't. I'm not wasting my time presenting that kind of material.

Jerome has several articles in preparation that you will find interesting. Watch for them. That kind of article will continue to appear and so will interesting illustrations. The complex material is going away.

Facebook

The Facebook issue never goes away. Facebook is not a secure and safe site. You compromise us and yourself when you link to this blog. DO NOT LINK TO THIS BLOG VIA FACEBOOK. SHOW SOME RESPECT. STOP IT.

Facebook compromises your privacy. It is paternalistic, intrusive and dictatorial. DO NOT BRING IT HERE.

The point of it ...

We post some of our current project here for comments. Hopefully, the comments are educated and informed, though often that's an unreasonable expectation. However, it takes little time for our readers to say whether they liked or hated or were confused by what we post. It hardly seems worth while posting extensive bits of work if it goes unread and unacknowledged.

I don't foresee us continuing the practice. Our readers seem to like fluff history rather than meaty stuff. 

Our research is almost totally self-funded from the sale of our book or out of our own pockets. You can help by recommending our books and by leaving reviews on Amazon, Google Books, and Lulu.

Rutherford Speech - Uncertain Date

Mike C. identified this as an Ink Blotter from the 1923 NYC convention.

Thanks Mike.

Basil Stephanoff and the work in European Turkey

Rough draft, temporary post. This will change. Don't rely on it. It's preliminary. Usual rules. You may make a copy for yourself. Do not circulate it. Use this information cuatiously, knowing it will change in final form.

updated:

European Turkey

            The map of Europe as it was in 1880 hardly resembles that of today. Much of Eastern Europe was controlled by an oppressive Turkish government whose representatives robbed, raped and murdered Christians. Regional nationalism embroiled western governments. And at first autonomy and then independence came to that area. Jehovah’s Witnesses: Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom, a nominally anonymous Watch Tower publication, reported that, “During the late 1880’s, Basil Stephanoff had preached in Macedonia, in what was then European Turkey. Although some had seemed to show interest, certain ones who professed to be brothers made false reports, leading to his imprisonment.”[1]

            This is all drawn from two letters appearing in Zion’s Watch Tower. The real story is far more colorful and certainly more complex – and in places very hard to follow. Born in May 1862, in Macedonia,[2] then ruled by Turkey, we encounter him first in the June 1888, Watch Tower. Writing to Russell, he reported on his mission work in Macedonia:

remainder of this post has been deleted

My German is very poor

But here is what I get out of the post below. Please refine this if you can:

A letter from Macedonia. –

Several years ago, Basil Stephanoff, a citizen of Macedonia in the European Turkey, came to this country to learn English and to learn the religion and the laws and statutes of our country. He visited Elkhart and spent some time here. He visited the various communities and preached in several places. Afterwards, he returned to his home. We publish a letter we recently received from him, which will no doubt interest our readers.

Monastir, Macedonia, European Turkey,

January 31, 1888.

Beloved brother in Christ:

I thank you for your kindness in regularly sending me the "Herald of Truth.” It offers much that is interesting. It contains articles full of encouragement and truth. The Lord bless your faith and life’s work.  

Our work is progressing well. In the near future, I intend to support one or two [???Onlyborn???] and four other American missionaries. We trust in God for all our needs. Even though I've already been through fiery trials, so far the Lord hasn’t left us. God’s grace is sufficient and the cross is my protection and fortress.

Last Sunday morning (29 Jan) I preached from Acts 17 about the "unknown God". About two hundred listeners gathered under my roof. The subject was principally about God, nature, and the Bible. In the evening the missionary accompanying me discussed GAL. 3. 18. The people were very interested. God be praised that the truth which was once proclaimed by the Saints in the dear old Macedonia again will be preached! I hope that yours are all healthy. I am glad to know that your work is thriving. Could you send me a copy of your new book 'Martyrs Mirror' (MärtyrerSpiegel)?... Continue to send me the "Herald." We intend to publish soon a tract explaining our beliefs, but we don't know if the Turkish Government will give us permission to do so.

We need a good English translation of this

Ein Brief aus Macedonien. – Vor mehreren Jahren kam Basil Stephanoff, ein Eingeborner von Macedonien im europäischen Theile der Türkei, nach diesem Lande, um die englische Sprache zu erlernen und mit der Religion und den Gesetzen und Ordnungen unseres Landes bekannt zu werden. Er besuchte Elkhart und hielt sich einige Zeit hier auf. Er besuchte die verschiedenen Gemeinden und predigte an mehreren Stellen. Nachher kehrte er wieder nach seiner Heimath zurück. Wir veröffentlichen hier einen Brief, den wir neulich von ihm erhalten, welcher unsere Leser ohne Zweifel interessieren wird.

M on a stir, Macedonien, europäische )
Türkei, 31. Januar 1888.

Geliebter Bruder in Christo:

Ich danke dir für deine Güte, daß du mir den „Herold der Wahrheit“ regelmäßig zusendest. Er bietet mir viel Interessantes dar. Er enthält Artikel voller Aufmunterung und Wahrheit. Der Herr segne dich in deinem Glaubens- und Liebeswerke. Unser Werk hat guten Fortgang. Ich habe vier andere Missionare aus Amerika bei mir und gedenke in Bälde einen oder zwei Eingeborne zu unterstützen. Wir vertrauen auf Gott für alle unsere Bedürfniffe. Bisher hat uns der Herr nicht verlaffen, obwohl ich schon feurige Prüfungen durchgemacht habe. Die Gnade Gottes ist genügend und das Kreuz ein Schutz- und Bergungsort für mich.

Letzten Sonntagmorgen (29. Jan.) predigte ich über Apftg. 17 von dem „unbekannten Gott“. Es hatten sich circa zweihundert Zuhörer unter meinem Dach versammelt. Der Gegenstand war hauptsächlich von Gott, der Natur und der Bibel. Abends redete der mich begleitende Missionar über Gal. 3. 18. Das Volk war sehr interessiert. Gottlob, daß nun wieder die Wahrheit, die einst den Heiligen im lieben alten Macedonien verkündigt wurde, nun wieder vorgetragen wird! Ich hoffe, daß die Deinigen alle gesund sind. Es freut mich zu erfahren, daß euer Werk so gutes Gedeihen hat. Könntest du mir ein Exemplar eures neuen Buches “Martyrs Mirror” (MärtyrerSpiegel) zuschicken ?..... Schicke mir den „Herold“ noch ferner zu. Wir gedenken bald ein Blatt nach unserem Glauben zu veröffentlichen, doch wissen wir noch nicht, ob die türkische Regierung uns Erlaubniß dazu geben wird. Mit herzlicher Liebe und Gruß verbleibe ich euer

Bajil Stephan off.

David D. Paterson

We do not have details yet, but believe he associated with Barbour up to 1878. If you have the pdf files of the Herald of the Morning for the early years, will you please read through them for any reference to D. D. Paterson.

Basil Stephanoff again.

We now know that Stephanoff was in America in 1885. We do not know how or when he got there? Anyone?

We need a volunteer to ...

transcribe the article entitled Mrs. Gilbert's Mission found here
http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1889-02-24/ed-1/seq-3.pdf

From the Comment Trail

A brief mention of Viola Gilbert from a chapter on the book Plan of the Ages:

Bill Arp’s endorsement was used to promote the book to other editors.

Charles Henry Smith, Writing as Bill Arp, Reviewed

The Plan of the Ages for the Atlanta Constitution

[Photo]

A Viola Gilbert, the widow of a wealthy New Yorker,[1] used it to approach The Brooklyn Eagle. Her success was limited, however. The paper only printed a single sentence: “Viola Gilbert, New York, announces “Millennial Dawn, the Plan of the Ages,” which is vouched for by no less a journalistic authority than “Bill Arp.”[2] Following her February 1888 endorsement of Millennial Dawn, she organized a meeting at Cooper Union. The New York Daily Tribune reported:

Mrs. Viola Gilbert spoke in the large meeting-room at Cooper Union yesterday on “The Plan of the Ages,” and explained by means of charts her ideas of the restitution of man to his original normal spiritual condition. Mrs. Gilbert is a slender woman, with a head that an artist would long to paint. She has mobile, refined and delicate features, while she speaks with an emotion that tends to carry conviction. The fall of man she interpreted for mankind’s good, as because of it man is to be restored, not only to the plane from which Adam fell, but it is to be elevated to a spiritual and finally a divine plane. The evangelistic services conducted by Mrs. Gilbert are made interesting from the delicacy, grace and tact with which she conducts them The millennium exists around man now, she holds, and all that he needs to realize it is to place himself in harmony with the Divine mind. This will result in physical as well as spiritual health.[3]

---

[1]               Viola Gilbert’s name does not appear in Zion’s Watch Tower, and little is known about her. A letter from her to the editor of The New York Times appears in the April 13, 1899, issue. She signed herself as “Viola Gilbert, Evangelist.” The letter was a comment on wife-beating as endorsed by a judge in St. Louis. She published at least one tract against Christian Science after having “studied with” Mary Baker Eddy. The Christian Science Church denied the claim that she had studied with Eddy. (Letter to “Mul,” The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, January 26, 1901.) She did not continue her association with Zion’s Watch Tower, but remained independent until 1902 when she re-joined Plymouth Church, New York City. (The New York Sun, May 5, 1902)

                Gilbert rejected inherent immortality doctrine. In 1890 she preached at Zion’s Temple on Fulton Street in Brooklyn, often on topics familiar to Second Adventists and Age-to-Come believers. Gilbert was noted for standing on the street representing her pet causes by holding a tall cross festooned with purple streamers. A reporter for the New York Sun wrote: “Her refined appearance and her tall cross with its purple streamers and urgent message attracted the attention of even the least observant of the throngs of shippers hurrying by.” (See the October 6, 1901, issue.) By 1891 she was involved with the Progressive Party and a delegate to the Pennsylvania Yearly Meeting of Progressive Friends. She is quoted in the report as saying: “I have worked in the missionary field a long time, have pointed out the way to Christ to many different persons, but they can't live on faith. The condition of affairs is constantly growing worse. I see before us a great revolution. The rich are growing richer and the poor poorer. Faith and works must go together.” – Report, page 72.

[2]               Brooklyn Daily Eagle, February 5, 1888. Untitled paragraph.

[3]               Explaining the “Divine Plan of the Ages,” The New York Daily Tribune, March 16, 1888.

Street Evangelist who circulated Plan of the Ages in New York City 1886

We need a volunteer

... to transcribe the article about the Children of Zion found here http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/viewer/?file=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspapers%252023%2FPhiladelphia%2520PA%2520Inquirer%2FPhiladelphia%2520PA%2520Inquirer%25201881%2FPhiladelphia%2520PA%2520Inquirer%25201881%2520-%25201310.pdf&highlightsFile=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2Fhighlighter%2Fhits%2F29323b19334f08c4309eab842728dffe#page=1

Into word format text. Anyone? We need it quickly as possible.

done. thanks.

Really Important

Basil Stephanoff gets short mention in Proclaimers. He was active in Macedonia (European Turkey) and Bulgaria in the late 1880s. He was imprisoned because (he claimed) false testimony at the hands of false brethren. He escaped to America, settling in Michigan. He was still a Watch Tower adherent in 1894, but drifted away by 1903 when we find him involved with the Masons and on his way back to Macedonia to fight against the Turks. A religious journal calls him a General in the Macedonian resistance. 

We need a more solid biography. Anything, no matter how minor, will help.

Update:

We don't often find photos of the characters who play their part in Watch Tower history, but ... Here is Basil Stephanoff ...

  
Another newspaper picture of  Stephanoff

 

Email about a history journal article

Besides me (Y. Dyuo), Ambassador and former minister of foreign affairs Liberia, Christopher Minikon, read the article. He is a historian and used to teach Liberian history in Liberia and abroad. Upon reading, we found that the article was incredibly informative and detailed.

Ambassador Minikon read and said "From what I know off hand, things seem accurate and fair. While giving incredible insight into matters that usually aren't talked about."

Attention Korea Telecom Visitors

한국인들은 여기 환영 하지 않습니다.

hangug-indeul-eun yeogi hwan-yeong haji anhseubnida.

For puzzled English readers, this is an invitation to the 

Korean

spammers to get lost in a distant forest. 

Do You Know?

I think ...

That you misunderstood my previous post. We have no intention of abbreviating anything. The issue is format. And to a lesser extent timing. So, restated: We can issue a volume 2 roughly the size of volume 1. It would cost approximately the same as vol 1 does. Volume 3 would come later.

Or we can finish our current outline; that's about seven more chapters. It will be a bigger book. It would cost more. We're uncertain how much more, but more than I would willingly pay.

We have no intention, either way, of abbreviating our research. Does this alter your opinion?

Pyramid Film

So ....

We've looked over the accumulating pile of manuscript pages and have decisions to make. The point of our work is to preserve a detailed history of the Watch Tower movement's earliest years. Detail is important to our story. We hope that others, based on our honest, detailed narrative, will be able to tell a more abbreviated story that is accurate and faithful to the underlying documents.

Our initial goal was a single volume history. We did not anticipate a two volume work, mostly because we did not appreciate the depth of the available record. When we saw that we had a complete single volume with more to go, we published volume one of Separate Identity. Academic acceptance has been slow coming, but increasingly we get good reviews and favorable mentions in the work of others. ... And we plod on with volume two.

Except, looking over the manuscript pile [it's really in a three-ring binder], we conclude that volume two will be massively large and too expensive to buy - or we will have a volume three before we're done. I'd like your reaction.

We are within four chapters of having a 'finished' volume 2. They are some of the hardest to research and write, but we can change focus and write them next. The plan was to write two chapters on the divisions of 1881-1882 next. Those chapters would fall into a third volume. What we have left for a completed volume two are chapters on Starting and Promoting Zion's Watch Tower; Continued Controversy with Barbour et. al. [Much more here than you may think.]; Promoting a Public Ministry; Approach to 1881.

So ... What do you think. We need your input and fairly quickly.

Newspaper Ad for J. C. Sunderlin's Photography 1888

ONCE AGAIN ...

Please do not link to this blog through Facebook, tumblr or pinerest. Twitter is okay. WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO GET YOUR ATTENTION? NO FACEBOOK LINKS, NO COPYING TO PINTEREST. Show some respect, please.

Kinemo Films again

Recently on this blog, there have been two articles on the 1922 issued Kinemo films, all of which present the beliefs of the Bible Students at that time, and feature J F Rutherford - albeit fleetingly - in some of the footage. For those who would like to see the films they are now on YouTube, courtesy of Brian, who who has painstakingly re-photographed every frame and made them available again after all these years.

Imperial Valley

https://youtu.be/-zIClU8TQtM

                                             

The Great Pyramid

https://youtu.be/S2snV8SyQVU

Palestine       

https://youtu.be/onCebb9bg6Q

If any new readers want background information on these films which were marketed with the approval of the Watch Tower Society with a write-up in The Golden Age magazine, please punch in Kinemo in the Search box of this blog.

We need a flat scan of this. Anyone have it?

Anti-Millennial Dawn Tract - Liberia 1888

Temporary Post

Bruce said to post this partially written material. We hope for helpful comments, though I personally don't expect any. ... If we found this difficult going, most of our readers will find it unfamiliar ground too. But 'hope springs eternal.'

Usual rules. You may copy for your own use. Do not share it. It will go away in a few days. Do not rely on it as is. It will change. It is unfinished research. Because something appears on the Internet does not mean it's accurate. That's true of our research as well. Expect corrections in the final product. Enjoy; comment!

Liberia

           A letter from Harper, Cape Palmas, Liberia, appeared in the June 1884, issue of Zion’s Watch Tower. Dated April 29^th, it was from a one-time Episcopal clergyman who had received a copy of Food for Thinking Christians:

DEAR BROTHER: – Having accidentally met with the little pamphlet published by you, entitled “Food for Thinking Christians,” and having carefully read it more than once, I am deeply interested in it, believing I get through it a clearer and more correct knowledge of the teaching of God's holy word than I ever had before. I am constrained to avail myself of your very liberal offer, and ask you to send to my address some copies for distribution among some of my friends and neighbors, who I think will make a judicious and profitable use of them. I should be also very thankful for a few of the tracts, entitled “The Tabernacle and Its Teachings.” Wishing you abundant success in your efforts for the good of mankind, I beg to remain, with assurance of high esteem, yours very respectfully,

            Later comments reveal this to be from Samuel W. Seton. Seton was a native Grebo born in Maryland County, Liberia. His exact birth date is unknown though it was sometime in the 1830s. His original name was Samuel Tobe Kade. He was educated at Protestant Episcopal mission schools and given the surname Seton at his baptism. Early in life he was “a seaman and a warrior,” but he turned to religion in the 1860s, serving first as a catechist. He and Samuel D. Ferguson were ordained Episcopal deacons in 1865.[1] Their relationship is part of this story, and we meet Ferguson again. Seton was ordained a priest in 1868. In the early 1870s he journeyed inland, preaching to unconverted natives.[2]

            As a native-born Liberian, Seton was despised by the Americo-Liberians, American-born or the descendants of American-born blacks who ruled the country. Jane Martin’s excellent biographical treatment of Seton notes that no Americo-Liberian ever asked an educated Grebo tribe member to dinner, “not even Rev. Seton.” Seton sought a return to tribal sovereignty, co-founding in 1873 the Grebo Confederacy, an attempt to unite the Grebo and reassert tribal soverignty. He opposed central government authority and some claimed he “was on the battlefield during armed conflict with the government” in 1875. Seton denied participating in the fighting, but he was a Grebo peace negotiator in 1876

the remainder of this post was deleted.

Another puzzle ...

We need a basic biography for Felix R. Bunot, teacher at Hoffman Station, Liberia in the 1870s.

Correction: His name is Felix R. Brunot.