Oniay nabasad gapo na The Watch Tower ya Enero 1, 1918: “Antoy iilaloan tayon nagawa ed taon 1918?” Siansia nin magulo ed Europe lapud World War I, balet ipapanengneng na saray agawa diad gapo na satan ya taon a singa wala ray maong a bengatlan manatalaran parad saray Estudyante na Biblia tan diad interon mundo.

Nen Enero 8, 1918, nansalita si presidentin Woodrow Wilson diad Kongreso na United States tan imbaga to so 14 ya paraan ya iisipen ton makatulong pian niwalay “tua tan manbayag a kareenan.” Impaseseg toy diplomasya diad saray bansa, pambawas na saray armas, tan pamorma na “ulopan na saray bansa” pian parehon nagunggonaan iray “baleg tan melag ya bansa.” Say “Labin-apat ya Paraan” ya imbaga to et inusar diad saginonor nen pinorma so League of Nations tan nen nampapaknaan so Treaty of Versailles, ya lapud satan et anampot so World War I.

Anggaman magulo so situasyon ed apalabas ya taon, * nanengneng ya walay kareenan ya manatalaran ed saray Estudyante na Biblia, ya singa apatnagan ed saray agawa diad tinaon ya miting na Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.

Diad sayan miting ya agawa nen Enero 5, 1918, sinali na pigaran prominentin lalaki ya pinapaway ed Bethel ya kontrolen so organisasyon. Si Richard H. Barber, sakey a matoor ya ombiabiahen manangasikaso, et inggapo toy miting panamegley na pikakasi. Kayari na sakey a report nipaakar ed saray agawaan nen imbeneg a taon, sinmublay so tinaon ya eleksion parad saray direktor. In-nominate nen Brother Barber si Joseph Rutherford tan anemira nin brother. Insan in-nominate na sakey ya abogado ya onsusuporta ed saray onsusumpa so pitoran lalaki, kaiba la iramay pinapaway diad Bethel. Atalo ira. Amin lawarin shareholder et imboto day Brother Rutherford tan anemira nin matoor ya brother bilang saray direktor.

Imbaga na dakel ya agagin inmatendi ed saman a miting ya “agda nalinglingwanan iman ya kombension lapud aliklikna da so panamendisyon nen Jehova.” Balet agnambayag itan ya liket da.

Pigay bulan lan ibubunog na saray Estudyante na Biblia so libron The Finished Mystery. Positibo so reaksion na saray matuan impanpuso ya totoo ed saray katuaan ed Biblia ya nabasad satan ya libro.

Si E. F. Crist, sakey ya ombiabiahen manangasikaso diad Canada, so angistorya ya walay sanasawa ya kayari dan binasa so The Finished Mystery et inawat day katuaan diad loob labat na limaran simba! Imbaga to: “Sayan sanasawa et parehon maseseg tan tuloytuloy so iyaaligwas da.”

Walay sakey a laki ya awalaan na libro tan tampol ton innabang itan ed saray kakaaro to. Sikatoy ‘nakna’ na mensahe na satan. Oniay nanonotan to: “Manaakar ak ed saman diad Third Avenue [insan] walay kinmena ed takeb ko ya say amtak et laryo, pero ‘The Finished Mystery’ manaya. Insempet ko tan binasak ya amin. . . . Insan ko naamtaan ya sakey a ministro manaya . . . so angibantak ed saman  diad bintana to lapud pasnok to . . . Lapud saman ya ginawa to, manisia ak ya mas dakel nin totoo so akomberte to ya nawalaan na ilalo nen say amin ya ginawa tod bilay to. . . . Lapud sanok na sayan ministro, dadayewen mi la natan so Dios.”

Aliwa lan balo so reaksion na sayan ministro. Say libro et insebel na saray opisyal diad Canada nen Pebrero 12, 1918, ya ibabaga dan kontra kuno ed gobierno tan ed guerra so karga to. Kayari na satan, nandemanda iray opisyal diad United States. Nilooban na saray autoridad so Bethel Home tan saray opisina ed New York, Pennsylvania, tan California, ya manaanap iray ebidensya sumpad saray mangidadaulo na organisasyon. Nen Marso 14, 1918, insebel na Department of Justice na United States so The Finished Mystery, ya ibabaga dan say pangi-publish tan pangibunog ed satan et mangaamper ed totoo ya onsuporta ed militar, tan kontra itan ed Espionage Act.

Nen Mayo 7, 1918, awalaan na arrest warrant so Department of Justice parad sikara di Giovanni DeCecca, George Fisher, Alexander Macmillan, Robert Martin, Frederick Robison, Joseph Rutherford, William Van Amburgh, tan Clayton Woodworth. Inakusaan ira ya “gagagalaen dan impluensyaan so arum ya ag-onsuporta, agmanmatoor, tan ontanggi ya manserbi ed militar tan naval forces na United States ya satan et kontra ed ganggan tan sakey a seryoson krimen.” Ginmapo so bista ed korte nen Hunyo 5, 1918, balet melag so tsansa ya ag-ira napriso. Akin?

Imbaga na attorney general na United States ya agda uunoren so ley ya Espionage Act, sakey ya “epektibon armas sumpad propaganda.” Nen Mayo 16, 1918, ag-inawat na Kongreso so apela ya umanen itan ya ley ya manprotekta komon ed saramay mangipa-publish ed “no antoy tua, ya maong so motibo da, tan parad makatunongan iran gagala.” Nandebatian dan maong so The Finished Mystery. Nipaakar ed satan, oniay nabasa ed opisyal ya rekord na Kongreso na United States: “Say sakey ed saray sankamapeligroan ya alimbawa na onian klase na propaganda et say libron tatawagen ya ‘The Finished Mystery’ . . . Say epekto na satan et agla ingen bidbiren na saray sundalo so gagala tayo tan mamaseseg ed arum . . . ya agmansundalo.”

Nen Hunyo 20, 1918, imbaga na hurado ya guilty so waloran brother ed amin ya inyakusa ed sikara. Diad tinmumbok ya agew, impaamta na judge so sentensia to. Imbaga to: “Say relihyoson propaganda ya impakabat tan inkayat na sarayan akusado . . . et mas mapeligro ni nen say sakey ya grupo na German Army. . . . Nepeg ya ambelat so iter ya dusa ed sikara.” Kalabas na duaran simba, sarayan waloran brother et impriso ed Federal Penitentiary diad Atlanta, Georgia, ya manlapud 10 anggad 20 taon.

Legan na sayan panaon, pinasegsegang ya maong iray Estudyante na Biblia. Inimbestigaan a maong  na Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) so aktibidad da, tan nilibon dokumento so apawala. Ipapanengneng na sarayan rekord ya determinado iray agagi ya mantultuloy a manpulong.

Diad sakey ya sulat ed FBI, oniay imbaga na sakey ya postmaster diad Orlando, Florida: “[Saray Estudyante na Biblia] et manpupulong ed kaabungan diad baley tan maslak et gagawaen da itan [diad] labi. . . . Labay dan itultuloy ya gawaen itan anggano dakdakel so onsusumpa ed sikara.”

Say colonel na War Department et nansulat ed FBI pian ireport so ginawa nen Frederick W. Franz, ya diad saginonor et nanlingkor diad Mananguley ya Ulop. Oniay insulat na colonel: “Si F. W. Franz . . . et aktibon mibibiang ed panaglako na nilibon kopya na ‘Finished Mystery’.”

Si Charles Fekel, ya nanlingkor met diad Mananguley ya Ulop, et dinmalan met ed graben panamasegsegang. Sikatoy inaresto na autoridad lapud pangibubunog to na The Finished Mystery tan minanmanan da iray personal ya sulat to. Sikatoy sakey bulan ya impriso diad Baltimore, Maryland, tan tinawag dan “kalaban ya Austrian.” Legan ya makpel ton pupulongan iray imbestigador, anonotan to iray imbaga nen Pablo diad 1 Corinto 9:16, ya oniay nabasa: “Pakaskasi ak no agko iyabawag so maong a balita!” *

Likud ed maseseg ya pampupulong na saray Estudyante na Biblia, makuli iran angibunog na petisyon pian nibulos iray akaprison agagi diad Atlanta. Oniay nanonotan nen Anna K. Gardner: “Lanang kamin manggagaway paraan. Nen impriso iray agagi, say sinmublay ya ginawa mi et nananap kami na saray manpirma. Linma kamid kaabungan. Tan nilibo so nampirma! Ibabaga mid saray nakakatongtong mi ya sarayan lalaki et tuan Kristiano tan aliwan makatarungan so impangipriso ed sikara.”

Legan na saman ya mairap a panaon, mabetbet ya wala ray nagagawan kombension pian napabiskeg ed espiritual iray agagi. Oniay nabasa ed The Watch Tower: “Masulok ya kuarenta ya kombension . . . so agawa legan na taon . . . Wala ray balibalin report ya nanaawat mi manlapud sarayan kombension. Dati et gagawaen labat iray kombension diad sampot na panaoy tiagew odino diad gapo na loglog; balet legan na taon, kada bulan et wala ray nagagawan kombension.”

Siansian aawaten na saray matuan impanpuson totoo so maong a balita. Diad sakey ya kombension ed Cleveland, Ohio, walay 1,200 ya inmatendi tan 42 so abautismoan, kaiba lay sakey ya ugaw a laki ya “papablien toy Dios tan mas mabiskeg ni so debosyon to nen saray matatken ed sikato.”

Legan ya asingger lan manampot so taon 1918, ag-amta na saray Estudyante na Biblia no antoy onsublay ya nagawa. Arum ed saray kayarian diad Brooklyn et inlako tan say headquarters et inyalis diad Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Legan ya wala nid prisoan iray manangidaulo, sakey lamet a tinaon ya miting na saray shareholder so akaeskedyul ed Enero 4, 1919. Antoy onsublay ya nagawa?

Nantultuloy ya nankimey iray agagi. Matalek ira ed onsublay ya nagawa kanian aya so pinili dan yeartext parad taon 1919: “Anggapo so armas ya ginawa sumpad sika ya ontalona.” (Isa. 54:17, King James Version) Akaparaan la ra parad balbaleg ya pananguman ya mamaelet na pananisia ra tan mamabiskeg ed sikara parad mas baleg nin kimey ya manatalaran ed sikara.