IsiThala sangoJanabari 1, 1918 savula ngamezwi athi: “Kazi umnyaka ka-1918 usiphatheleni?” IPi eKulu yaragela phambili eYurobhu kodwana izehlakalo zomnyaka loyo bezitjengisa bona kunezinto ezihle abaFundi beBhayibheli ebebazozibona kunye nephasi liloke.

NgoJanabari 8, 1918 uMongameli uWoodrow Wilson ekulumwenakhe nabantu beenhlangano zepolotiki be-U.S wakhuluma ngezinto ezili-14 ebekacabanga bona ziqakathekile nakuzakuba “nokuthula nobulungiswa.” Wahlohlozela bona kufuze kube nokuthula eenarheni, kungabi neenkhali zepi begodu kube “nokuzwana ebantwini” ebekuzokuzuzisa “iinhlangano ezincani nezikulu ngokulingana.” Izinto ezili-14 akhuluma ngazo bezizokusetjenziselwa ukuthoma ihlangano ebizwa ngokuthi yi-League of Nations, kunye nokukhulumela isivumelwano ebesibizwa ngokuthi yi-Treaty of Versailles bona kuqedwe iPi eKulu.

Ngitjho naphezu komguruguru womnyaka ogadungileko *, ukuthula bekubonakala kuseduze ebafundini beBhayibheli. Lokhu sikutjhwiso zizehlakalo ezenzeka emhlanganweni wamarhwebo we-Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society waqobe mnyaka.

NgoJanabari 5, 1918 kwaba nomunye umhlangano lapho bekunamadoda adumileko ebekaqeda ukukhanjiswa eBethel, bewafuna kube ngiwo alawula ihlangano. URichard H. Barber umjikelezi wavula umhlangano lo ngomthandazo. Ngemva kobana kufundwe umbiko womnyaka ogadungileko, kwakhethwa abanqophisi njengombana kwenziwa qobe mnyaka. UMnakweth’ uBarber wakhetha uJoseph Rutherford kunye nabanye abanakwethu abasithandathu. Umjameli obekangehlangothini labaphikisi wakhetha amadoda alikhomba kuhlanganise nalabo ebebaqeda ukukhanjiswa eBethel. Kodwana khenge baphumelele. Abantu abanengi bakhetha uMnakweth’ uRutherford nabanakwethu abasithandathu bona babe banqophisi.

Abanakwethu abanengi ebebalapho bathi: “Lo bekumhlangano obusiswe ukudlula yoke ekhe baba nayo.” Kodwana khenge bathabe ukuyaphi.

AbaFundi beBhayibheli bakhambisa incwadi ethi The Finished Mystery begodu kwaphela iinyanga benza njalo. Abantu ebebathanda iqiniso leBhayibheli bakuthabela khulu abakufunda encwadini leyo.

U-E. F. Crist umjikelezi weCanada wakhe walandisa ngabanye abatjhadikazi abafunda incwadi le bebamukela neqiniso ngeemveke ezihlanu kwaphela. Uthi: “Abatjhadikazaba bazimisele khulu begodu bayathuthuka.”

Enye indoda yathi nayifumana incwadi le khenge isariyada, yavele yatjela abangani bayo ngekufundileko. Umlayezo lo “wambetha angakalindeli.” Nayilandisako ithi: “Bengikhamba endleleni i-Third Avenue nangibetjhwa yinto ehlombe, bengicabanga bona ngibetjhwa sitina, nangithi mehlo suka ngabona incwadi etlolwe ukuthi ‘The Finished Mystery.’ Ngayithatha ngayifunda ngayiceda nangifika lapha ngihlala khona. . . . Ngezwa batjho yaphoswa  mumuntu wesondo ngefesidiri akwate abila . . . Ngokufuthela incwadi le ngaphandle wasiza abantu abanengi bafumana iqiniso bewabasiza baba nethemba ngengomuso. . . . Ngebanga lomuntu wesondo lo, namhlanje sidumisa uZimu.”

Umuntu wesondo lo akusinguye yedwa owenza into le. Phela neenkhulu zeCanada zathi incwadi le ayikho emthethweni, lokho bakwenza ngoFebherbari 12, 1918. Bebathi incwadi le yenza abantu bavukele begodu bangasekeli zepi. Kwathi kungakayiphi neenkhulu ze-United States zalandela. Iinkhulu zakarhulumende zaya eBethel nema-ofisini aseNew York, Pennsylvania neCalifornia, ziyokufuna into ezingayisebenzisa njengobufakazi bokulwisana nabanakwethu. Kwathi ngoMatjhi 14, 1918 uMnyango wezoBulungiswa we-U.S wathi incwadi ethi The Finished Mystery akukafuzi igadangiswe bese inikelwe abantu. Bathi into eyenze bona incwadi le igadangiswe begodu inikelwe abantu bekukukhandela umphakathi bona ungasaya epini begodu lokho bekwenza kube budisi ngorhulumende bona athuthuke kwezepi.

BekungoMeyi 7, 1918 ngesikhathi uMnyango wezoBulungiswa ubopha uGiovanni uDeCecca, uGeorge Fisher, u-Alexander Macmillan, uRobert Martin, uFrederick Robison, uJoseph Rutherford, uWilliam Van Amburgh, noClayton Woodworth. Babekwa umlandu “wokubanga ikohlakalo, bathi benza abantu bangathobeli imithetho, bangathembeki, bangafuni ukuya epini, bangasekeli amabutho wesitjhaba kuhlekuhle benza ikohlakalo embi khulu.” NgoJuni 3, 1918 bayokulotjhisa umarhastrada kodwana bekubonakala ngasuthi indaba le bengeze ithathelwe ehloko. Kubayini?

Umarhastrada we-United States wathi beqe umthetho obandakanya iinarha ezinengi umthetho lo ubizwa ngokuthi yi-Espionage Act. NgoMeyi 16, 1918 ihlangano yathi umthetho lo angeze watjhuguluka ngombana uvikela abantu abawusungulako, phela bawenza “ngeqiniso, bahlose izinto ezihle begodu bafuna ukwenza nobulungiswa.” Incwadi ethi The Finished Mystery ngiyo ebekuphikiswana ngayo khulu. Elinye ilunga lathi: “Incwadi eyingozi nefundisa amala nginasi ebizwa ngokuthi ‘The Finished Mystery.’ Okukuphela kwento incwadi le eyenzileko kuqeda amasotja amandla nokwenza abantu bangafuni ukuya epini.”

NgoJuni 20, 1918 umarhastrada wabeka abanakwethu ababunane umlandu. Kwathi ngelanga elilandelako wayisonga indaba le. Wathi: “Incwadikazi le inamala kangangokuthi ibanga umguruguru begodu iphadlhula isitjhaba phakathi, ngitjho namabutho weJarimani angeze akwenza okwenziwa yincwadi le. . .  Yeke kufuze babhadele kabuhlungu ngento abayenzileko le.” Kwathi nasekudlule iimveke ezimbili abanakwethwaba bavalelwa ejele le-Atlanta eGeorgia, bagwetjwa iminyaka engaba li-10 ukufikela kwema-20.

Ngesikhatheso abaFundi beBhayibheli bebatjhutjhiswa kabuhlungu khulu. I-Federal Bureau of Investigation  (FBI) yaphenyisisa ngendaba le yeza namaphepha amanengi anemininingwana. Yafumana ukuthi abanakwethu bebazimisele ngokuragela phambili batjhumayela.

Isikhulu seposi ye-Orlando, eFlorida satlolela i-FBI incwadi sathi: “[AbaFundi beBhayibheli] bangena umuzi nomuzi begodu umsebenzabo lo bawenza ebusuku. . . . Bazimisele ukuragela phambili nokwenza umsebenzi lo nanyana baqalene nani.”

Isikhulu esisebenza eMnyangweni weZepi satlolela omunye uMnyango karhulumende malungana nomsebenzi kaFrederick W. Franz owaba lilunga lesiHlopha esiBusako. Sathi: “UF. W. Franz . . . bekanesandla ekuthengisweni kwencwadi ethi ‘The Finished Mystery’ begodu kwathengiswa iinkulungwana zazo.”

UCharles Fekel owaba lilunga lesiHlopha esiBusako watjhutjhiswa kabuhlungu khulu. Wavalelwa ejele ngebanga lokukhambisa incwadi le begodu zoke iincwadi ebekatlolelwa zona bezifikela eemphathimandleni. Wavalelwa ejele leBaltimore, eMaryland inyanga yinye wabizwa ngokuthi “Linaba le-Austria.” Njengombana bekabatjhumayeza nabantu abamphenyako wakhumbula amezwi kaPowula asemTlolweni woku-1 kwebeKorinte 9:16 othi: “Maye kimi nangabe angizimemezeli iindaba ezimnandi!” *

Ngebanga lokuthi abaFundi beBhayibheli bebazimisele ngomsebenzi wokutjhumayela, bakhambisa incwadi yesibawo bona kutjhatjhululwe abanakwethu ababotjhelwe ejele le-Atlanta. U-Anna K. Gardner nakalandisako uthi: “Ayikho into asingakalingi ukuyenza. Ngesikhathi abanakwethu bavalelwe, umsebenzethu waba kufuna abantu abazokutlikitla incwadi yesibawo. Sakhamba umuzi nomuzi, safumana iinkulungwana zabantu abatlikitla. Satjela abantwaba ukuthi abantu ababotjhiwekwaba madoda athembekileko amaKrestu, begodu bekungakafuzi abotjhwe.”

Ngesikhathi esibudisesi saba nemihlangano eminengi ebeyenzelwe ukukhuthaza abanakwethwaba. IsiThala sathi: “Kwaba nemihlangano engaphezu kwama-40 ngomnyaka lowo. . . Safumana imibiko ethabisako emihlanganweni leyo. Ekhabo lakhona besiba nemihlangano nasele kuzokuphuma ihlobo, kodwana ngonyaka lo saba nemihlangano qobe nyanga.”

Abantu khenge balise ukuthanda iqiniso leBhayibheli. Komunye umhlangano ebewuseCleveland, e-Ohio kweza abantu abangaba yi-1 200 kwabhajadiswa abama-42, kuhlanganise nomsanyana “obekathanda uZimu nokuzinikela kuye, okwaphathisa abantu abanengi abadala iinhloni.”

Njengombana umnyaka ka-1918 besele uzokuphela abaFundi beBhayibheli bebangazi bona ingomuso libaphatheleni. Eminye imakhiwo yeBrooklyn yathengiswa bese umzimkhulu wathuthela ePittsburgh, ePennsylvania. Ngesikhathi abanakwethu ebebadosa phambili bavalelwe ejele, kwahlelwa omunye umhlangano wabanqophisi ebewuzokuba ngoJanabari 4, 1919. Bekuzokwenzekani lapho?

Abanakwethu baragela phambili nomsebenzabo. Khenge baphele amandla, bebanethemba. Kungebangelo bakhetha umtlolo womnyaka ka-1919 othi: “Akunasikhali esibekelwe [nina] esizakuphumelela.” (Isa. 54:17) Bebalindele nanyana yini engenzeka ezokuqinisa ukukholwa kwabo nokuthi baragele phambili nomsebenzabo.