‘Our Love Has Been Deepened’

ON Friday, March 31, 2000, Mount Usu in Hokkaido, Japan, erupted after lying dormant for 23 years. Thousands of residents were forced to flee from the danger zone. Many lost their homes and jobs, but fortunately none of them lost their life. Among the people who had to flee were 46 Witnesses of Jehovah, but they were not left on their own.

On the very day of the eruption, with the help of a traveling Christian minister serving in that area, arrangements were made for relief activities. Before long, relief supplies were arriving from neighboring congregations. Under the supervision of the Japan branch, a relief committee was quickly formed, and donations from Jehovah’s Witnesses all over Japan flooded into the relief fund. To support spiritual activities, full-time ministers of Jehovah’s Witnesses were sent to the most affected congregation, and the circuit overseer visited the area repeatedly to provide emotional and spiritual support.

The Witnesses in the affected area continued to hold their Christian meetings during that difficult period by using private homes in a safer area. When the evacuation order was lifted from the area where the Kingdom Hall was located, the brothers returned and found a tilted, cracked, and damaged building. Not far from the Kingdom Hall, the newly formed crater was still spewing thick smoke. The Witnesses wondered, ‘Is it wise to continue to hold meetings in this location? Can the Kingdom Hall be repaired?’

The decision was made to construct a new Kingdom Hall in a safer nearby location. Needed assistance was given by the Regional Building Committee. Money donated by Witnesses throughout the country was used for this construction. Land was quickly obtained, and thanks to the help of hundreds of volunteers, a new Kingdom Hall was completed in a short period of time. On Sunday, July 23, 2000, the first meeting held in this newly built Kingdom Hall was attended by 75 people. Many in attendance shed tears of joy. When the Kingdom Hall was dedicated in October that same year, one of the elders of the local congregation was moved to say: “The eruption caused hardships and suffering. Yet, this construction has turned our fear into joy. Our love for Jehovah and our dear Christian brothers has been deepened!”

[Picture Credit Line on page 19]

Eruption of Mount Usu: AP Photo/Koji Sasahara