It is a message spoken in more than 200 languages.
It is a message heard in more than 210 lands.
It is a message heard in more than 210 lands.
It is a message delivered personally,
wherever people may be found.
This Bible study aid, you can...
It is all part of the greatest preaching campaign the world has ever known.
A message uniting millions earth-wide.
The scriptures listed from the Bible.
Jehovah's Witnesses have been organized to accomplish this work
for more than a hundred years.
Jehovah's Witnesses are best known for their preaching work.
Who really are Jehovah's Witnesses?
They are your neighbors.
People you meet every day.
So then Beth,
what does it mean to get to know God?
It is their Bible education program that is most visible to others.
The righteous themselves will possess the earth.
Indeed, how is their activity organized?
Directed?
Financed?
Brooklyn, New York.
World headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses since 1909.
The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is a legal corporation used to publish
Bible literature.
Bethel,
a Bible word meaning house of God.
An appropriate name for the complex.
Known as the Bethel family,
thousands of spiritual brothers and sisters from various backgrounds freely
volunteer their time and talents.
Everything they do at Bethel is linked to Jesus' command at Matthew 24, 14.
Preach the good news of the kingdom and all the earth.
Watchtower, good morning.
And what state are you calling from?
Thousands of phone calls are handled daily.
Yes, on that question have you been able to
find information using the Watchtower Publications Index?
Members of the writing staff answer written or urgent Bible questions.
I'm sure you'll find some very helpful information that way.
Now when questions of this nature
come up we like to refer to the guidelines in the Scriptures.
Do you have your Bible handy?
Well, follow as I read 1st Corinthians chapter
7 verses 10 and 11.
At the direction of the writing committee,
timely spiritual food is prepared in the form of magazines, brochures, books and
booklets for the entire organization.
To supplement the libraries,
newspaper and magazine articles are filed for additional research by writers.
The research is careful and thorough.
The information,
reliable and authoritative.
Man must live on every utterance coming forth through Jehovah's mouth.
We should pay attention and accept every word that proceeds out of the mouth of Jehovah God.
This is our proposed May 8th magazine with the cover subject...
Magazine planning meetings are held weekly.
Four proposed covers feature a young boy in three of them and then the boy and the girl
in the lower left in this one.
Does anyone have any comments now on which they prefer?
The picture of the delicious looking red apples and the boy's obvious delight
nicely illustrates the subject of a clean earth.
What I liked about the cover is that the boy is looking directly at the reader
and he's asking the question,
will you live to see it?
Proof readers check spelling,
grammar and punctuation.
Translators are vital to the work of spreading the good news.
Worldwide the watchtower is printed simultaneously in fifty-five languages,
adding to the unity of this international organization.
We've just received these thirty-one questions of translators working on the Bible.
They like to know the exact meaning of the word kingship.
That's right, the Hebrew word
mamalachá.
Let's investigate what the research program has to say.
The Bible is the main textbook of Jehovah's Witnesses.
The Translation Services Department
provides help for the translation of the Bible and other publications
into a number of different languages.
Computer programs speed up the process of translation and improve its accuracy.
Printing Bible literature in over two hundred languages
requires a large array of character sets
from Arabic
to Hindi
to Russian
to Zulu.
No organization anywhere needs to use so many different typefaces and alphabets.
The Society designed a unique
multi-language electronic phototype setting system
known as MEPS
to compose pages to be typeset in the languages being printed.
MEPS is used in the production of life-saving literature
that reaches people even in the most distant part of the earth
in a form they can most easily understand.
Pictures communicate a clear message to all people
regardless of language or age.
Well this has an advantage with the sky being as saturated as it is
but here the road lights come up a little better.
As far as the background is concerned these men don't have to be too prominent but we do
want to see the astonishment on their face as they see what's taking place.
Alright fine.
Well the drama I think will come as a result of... Working from approved concepts
scenes are staged and photographed
that are later drawn
or painted by artists.
Grab on the wrist
nice and tight.
Very good.
Look him right straight in the eye.
You're pulling him up out of the water. Arch your back a little bit more.
Mouth open Peter.
Good. Call out to the Lord. That's right. That's good. Right.
Arch your back a little bit more. Eyes wide open Peter. Good. You're sinking.
You're sinking.
And Jesus is pulling you up out of the water.
You are very good.
Good.
The graphics department links photography, artwork and the printed page.
Modern equipment electronically stores photographs and artwork.
Electronically stored pictures can easily be fitted to page requirements.
Photography, artwork and the printed page.
Modern equipment electronically stores photographs and artwork.
Electronically stored pictures can easily be fitted to page requirements.
Electronically stored pictures can easily be fitted to page requirements.
Film negatives are carefully positioned
so that pages can be assembled and delivered to the factory for printing.
Three thousand film negatives are duplicated each week
and are then shipped to thirty three printing branches around the world.
How does the proof look?
Well let's check the registry.
It looks sharp. I'd say we're ready for press.
The nearby factory complex
and others the world over
print and bind Bible literature.
Aerial walkways connect all buildings.
The society began its own printing operations in New York in nineteen twenty.
The purpose then and now?
Publish Bible truth.
What is printed can mean life to the reader.
Jesus said at John seventeen three
this means everlasting life.
They're taking in knowledge of you,
the only true God,
and of the one whom you send forth,
Jesus Christ.
High-speed presses are required to keep up with the growing printing demands of
Jehovah's Witnesses.
In the last seventy years
total literature printed
eleven billion pieces.
A roll of paper weighing in at twelve hundred pounds
will last just thirty two minutes on a press.
A hundred and sixty rolls,
just one day supply for Brooklyn.
Almost a thousand miles of paper,
sixty one million printed pages.
Smaller presses print calendars, forms and letters.
The factory produces hundreds of tons of ink each year,
a ready supply for the presses.
Ink mills grind color pigments to the desired consistency.
Better and more books
is the goal of the bindery,
where printed pages become bound books.
Because of size and weight,
large reference books still require sewing.
Individual sections called signatures are assembled and sewn.
Hundreds of smaller books are assembled and glued together on high-speed equipment.
Binding operations include
whip stitching,
nipping,
smashing,
sewing,
trimming,
pressing, sanding and embossing.
More than three million books and Bibles are produced each month
by just the Brooklyn Bindery.
What's a book without its cover?
Our covers are durable and easy to identify.
The cover is durable and easy to identify.
Embossed covers are check for quality.
They are more than ink and paper.
Bible-based publications have changed thinking, attitudes, habits and personalities of millions
of persons, young and old.
The Bible states in Hebrews 4.12
that the Word of God is alive and exerts power
and is able to discern thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Readers have come to an accurate knowledge of Bible truth
and understand the value of the work done at Bethel.
It is a pleasure to welcome you as new members of the Bethel family.
You'll be working here in the factory complex.
Proverbs 20.29 says,
the beauty of young men is their power.
And here in the factory we have an abundance of assignments that require such power.
The Deluxe Bindery,
where leather-covered Bibles are produced,
that will stand up to frequent use.
Several publications produced here focus on the book most used by Jehovah's Witnesses,
the Bible.
Over the years the Society has printed a variety of Bible translations.
Sixty-seven million copies of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures have been
printed.
It is an accurate, easy to understand, fresh translation of God's Word,
designed for Bible study.
Forty-seven million copies.
You can live forever in Paradise on Earth,
printed in ninety-four languages.
Producing books is one thing,
shipping them is another.
The Furman Street Building,
a million square feet,
one-third used by the shipping department.
More than just well-made publications,
these Bible study aids provide vital information about the future
and guidelines for happier lives now.
So many books,
so little time.
One-lapse photography gives us a high-speed view of the conveyor system.
While an increasing number of branch offices print and bind books,
much literature still must be shipped internationally.
Truly,
it is a vision witnessing to the most distant part of the Earth.
Literature is also delivered by watchtower trucks to distribution centers for pick-up
by local congregations.
From the initial research and writing,
to printing and binding,
as much as two years may have elapsed.
Finally,
all the information is on its way.
The visually handicapped are reached with the good news through the New World Translation
and fifty other Bible publications in Braille.
Text on diskettes from the writing department is transcribed into Braille
and transferred to zinc plates for embossing.
Each issue of the Watchtower magazine is available to the visually handicapped by subscription.
A day at Bethel begins just as it does for families of Jehovah's Witnesses all over
the Earth,
with a discussion of a Bible text.
It's time to begin our morning worship program, brothers.
It's good for us to begin our day by focusing our attention on the Word of God.
First of all, we'd like to say good morning to all of you assembled here in Brooklyn at
the Ten Dining Rooms,
and also to those of you joining by the TIE line at the Watchtower Farms and also
at the Educational Center at Patterson, New York.
We want to also say good morning to the brothers who have tuned in with us at the branch in
Canada.
We have a wonderful text for discussion.
It centers our attention on Acts 1-8.
You will be witnesses of me to the most distant part of the Earth.
So now let's listen to what our commentators have prepared for us.
Being effective Witnesses means imitating Christ's method of teaching.
He knew how to relate to people, and Jesus' same method of witnessing is just as successful
today.
The two important factors that have made our Earth-wide ministry so effective are first
our direct contact with people of all kinds and nationalities, and second the direct and
Bible-based message that highlights God's Kingdom.
Personal study is another part of the regular spiritual feeding program.
Quiet places are found in the Bethel Libraries.
Whether we are working in a Bethel home, a factory or a branch office,
entrance school gives newer members of the family additional Bible training.
We are serving our brothers throughout the world, supplying them with the things that
they need.
Now the title of the Watchtower article for study this evening is...
Each Monday, the Bethel families study the Watchtower together.
This helps them prepare for their own congregation meetings.
Look at this picture on page 10.
You'll notice there's no problem in identifying who that man was, because there you see Noah
very plainly being moved with godly fear in carrying out God's command to build an ark.
Now on paragraph 5, how do the Scriptures describe Noah's righteousness and faith?
Noah really proved that even though he had to deal with his own imperfections, the wicked
world around him and the devil, that he could live a life that pleased God.
In their public preaching ministry, the Bethel family use the very publications they have
produced.
This issue of the Watchtower will take you to the Bible, where you can get more information
on this sound hope for world peace.
These homes for the growing Bethel family have been designed and constructed by the
society.
Older hotels and apartment buildings have been purchased and remodeled.
Complying with local laws for historical landmarks, the Bosset Hotel was carefully restored to
its original appearance.
Brooklyn Bethel, home to a family of three thousand, who cooks the meals, washes the
laundry, keeps house.
In order for the Bethel family to make a neat appearance as ministers, more than 140,000
pieces of laundry are cleaned every week.
Hard work makes for a hearty appetite.
In just one week, the kitchen bakes 1,200 loaves of bread and uses 26,000 eggs.
The
To reduce the cost of food, the society has its own farms.
About 100 miles north of Brooklyn are the largest watchtower farms.
Watchtower farms have a variety of food production, processing and canning facilities.
From here come most of the fruit, grain, vegetables, milk, honey, cheese, pork, beef and chicken that feed the Bethel family both in Brooklyn and at the farms.
Much more than just a farm.
A large portion of the work done here is the printing and mailing of Watchtower and Awake magazines.
The Watchtower has been published continuously since 1879.
Printing has grown from 6,000 copies of the first issue in one language to 28 million copies each month in 110 languages.
The purpose of the Watchtower magazine is to keep watch on world events as they fulfill Bible prophecy and to exalt Jehovah as the sovereign of the universe.
Awake shows how to cope with today's problems by using the Bible.
It points to the real meaning behind current events, yet always stays politically neutral and does not elevate one race above another.
Most important, Awake builds confidence in the Creator's promise of a paradise earth.
For this occasion, the Most hacenious of Man, the Shoulder Man is
Magazines are packed for delivery to thousands of waiting congregations.
But what about personal subscriptions?
Approximately two million are carefully handled at Watchtower Farms.
Subscription data is computerized and fed into the automatic magazine addressing conveyor,
known as AMAC.
Engineered, designed and built for the society.
The Watchtower Bible School of Gilead, founded in 1943, trains two classes of students each
year.
An intensive five-month Bible course prepares students for missionary assignments all over
the earth.
For instance, the Hebrews 6.18 Paul says, In order that through two unchangeable things,
that is, God's Word and His oath, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have
fled to the refuge may have strong encouragement to lay hold on that hope set before us.
Now, what is God's arrangement to accomplish the gathering of all things together again?
Brother Montañez.
This is the administration Paul talks about at Ephesians 1, 9 and 10, which includes the
Messianic Kingdom and Jesus' ransom.
Good, with Jesus as the unifying agent.
Jehovah instructed the prophet Jonah to go to Nineveh to give a witness, but instead
Jonah went down to the seacoast city of Joppa and took a ship and went in the entire opposite
direction over to Tarshish.
So what are some of the lessons that we learn from our study of the book of Jonah?
Well, we learn that it's always wisdom to obey Jehovah in the first place, and we should
not be choosy about our territory.
I shall not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves in a ray against
me round about.
Salvation belongs to Jehovah.
Gilead students share the results of their long hours of research by giving reports to
the class.
Is the Good News important to us?
Well, what did Jesus say at Mark chapter 8, verse 35?
When S&C said we should be willing to give up our lives for the sake of preaching the
Good News, if we really want Jehovah's approval in life in the future.
The historic Stanley Theater, now restored as an assembly hall of Jehovah's Witnesses.
A fitting location for the graduation of a Gilead class.
This is a special day for the entire Bethel family.
The Bible is Jehovah's express will through which he introduces and reveals himself, his
personality, his attributes, his qualities, matchless virtues, principles, standards,
purposes and dealings with mankind from each very start.
We know that many more millions are now held in Satan's dismal prison houses.
So at Isaiah 49, 9-12, Jehovah commands the call to go forth for all of these to come
out and to those in the darkness, reveal yourselves from all points of the compass.
As shown in verse 12, north, south, east and west, worldwide liberation is now taking place.
Yes, while for most people in prison, anything having to do with religion is a chore, if
not a bore, for Jehovah's Witnesses, their worship is a joy.
Yes, we get so much happiness from our sacred service.
Of course, you Gilead students that are graduating today have a special reason for rejoicing
because of having come to this day, an occasion to which you've not only looked forward to
for five months, but some of you even for many years, right?
They're going to Papua New Guinea.
These students and over 6,000 like them have graduated from Gilead and entered the missionary
field.
To the most distant part of the earth they will go.
In the first century, missionary work was governed by a body of anointed Christian men.
Likewise, today, the entire worldwide organization is directed by a group of anointed men called
the governing body.
This is called the Watchtower Educational Center and it will be the permanent location
of the Watchtower Bible School of Gilead for missionary training.
And this is the building area where they will live and where they will do their homework
and have their studies preparing for their classes.
Nice sloping hillside surrounded by orchards and lovely trees and a fine inn where the
brothers will be able to stay when they visit.
The Educational Center at Paterson, New York is the largest construction project ever undertaken
by the society.
Designed to complement its environment, it will be home to 1,200 students and Bethel
workers.
Rapid growth in the number of Jehovah's Witnesses calls for expansion at many of the 96 branches.
Publishing and construction cost money.
How are they financed?
All expenses are met by voluntary donations.
No Jews, tithes or collections.
Following the Bible principle, each one contributes as he is resolved in his heart.
Over 100,000 pieces of mail each month must be delivered to the right offices.
The service department corresponds with traveling overseers, manages preaching territory and
records the field ministry activity of Jehovah's Witnesses.
Secretary, please take the following, Dear brothers, the society is happy to inform you
that the application submitted for your new congregation has been approved.
With elders, ministerial servants, publishers and pioneers all working closely together,
you will have the pleasure of aiding others of honest heart in your territory.
We will look forward to receiving the first report from your congregation and noting Jehovah's
blessing on your faithful service.
Each year, hundreds of Kingdom Halls are built by Jehovah's Witnesses themselves.
With 50 new congregations being formed each week, there is a constant demand for more
Kingdom Halls.
In many countries, innovative, quick construction methods are used.
Some halls have been built in two days.
Worldwide, the more than 63,000 congregations are organized into circuits and then districts.
It's a real pleasure to be with your congregation again.
Following the Bible example, the governing body sends out traveling overseers to instruct
and encourage congregations.
The legal department helps defend and legally establish the right to freedom of worship.
Well we filed the amicus curia brief in the United States Supreme Court June 23rd.
Judge would not interfere with the parents' rights and the infant is doing real well now.
For your information, Jehovah's Witnesses have litigated many cases of this nature over
the past years.
We've taken 18 of these all the way to the Supreme Court and have vindicated and defended
our right to engage in door-to-door work.
Jehovah justly then does not tolerate worship of any other God.
He is the only true God.
Annual conventions are a spiritual highlight for Jehovah's Witnesses.
They follow the Bible precedent set in ancient Israel.
This would seem like a very good location for one of our conventions.
Arrangements for conventions held in the United States begin with the convention department
in Brooklyn.
Careful thought is given to convention location and size.
The truth is, no sincere person, when honestly evaluating the evidence, can fail to accept
that the Bible is God's Word.
This new publication presents much of that evidence in an easily accessible form.
The release of new publications is a special feature of district conventions.
To a new book, Questions Young People Ask and Answers That Work.
After thoroughly studying Bible standards and conforming their lives to them, new Witnesses
are baptized in symbol of their dedication to God.
Not an end, but the beginning of an expanded ministry, sharing Bible truth with others.
Global wide expansion requires the engineering and construction of new facilities.
Classes in a variety of trades provide workers with needed skills.
For short periods, Witnesses from all over the United States freely offer their construction
skills.
With 96 branches worldwide, the work of the construction department is not limited to
the United States.
International volunteer construction workers supplement the local workforce in building
and enlarging branch facilities.
At Brooklyn Bethel, regular maintenance saves money.
It keeps buildings and machinery in good order.
Technicians and craftsmen work behind the scenes to keep the organization running smoothly.
Many learn their skills after arriving at Bethel.
Offices require furniture.
Each of it is reupholstered at Bethel by busy hands.
In the sound studios, recordings of Bible dramas, readings of the Bible, Watchtower
and Awake magazines and other publications are made and edited for release on cassette.
This is Jehu Drama, page 17, take 3.
And you must see which is the best and most upright of the sons of your Lord, and put
your hands up.
This is the Watchtower, April 15, take 2.
Study article, prepare for deliverance into a new world.
God's time to bring deliverance is very near.
The attitudes and events that Jesus foretold as a sign of His presence and of the conclusion
of the system of things are clearly in evidence.
The features of that sign first began to appear over 75 years ago.
Tape duplicating.
At high speed, programs are copied thousands of times over.
Cassette loaders wind the pre-recorded tape into cassettes at speeds of up to 80 miles
per hour.
30,000 audio cassettes can be filled each day.
The Watchtower and Awake magazines and cassettes are mailed out by the tens of thousands.
year and are encouraged.
You are warmly invited to tour our world headquarters and any of our branches and see for yourself
more of the organization behind the name.
An orchestra made up of Jehovah's Witnesses assembles at Brooklyn Bethel twice a year.
The original compositions they play and record will be appreciated by millions.
Okay we're rolling this is VTB 42 take one.
Paradise restored on earth what a joy the new world will be.
the spirit of peace and Christian brotherhood earth-wide,
with all creation praising Jehovah.
Music
Lift up your eyes and view the fields, said Jesus,
that they are white for harvesting.
Since those words were spoken, millions have been gathered.
The harvest continues.
Who are included in the harvest today?
Honest-hearted persons who long for better conditions on the earth.
People who develop a genuine love for truth by earnestly studying the Bible
and sincerely applying its message to their daily lives.
And as love of the good news grows, so does the desire to share it with others.
Jehovah's Witnesses Worldwide have been trained as an organization
to assist their neighbors to build faith in the Bible.
Brooklyn Bethel, world headquarters, not just an organization.
A large family of volunteers from many backgrounds working shoulder to shoulder,
happily devoting their lives to serving the needs of their brothers earth-wide.
We are pleased to be united with you in the grand fulfillment of Jesus' words
at Acts chapter 1 verse 8.
You will be witnesses of me to the most distant part of the earth.
Amen.