Firstfala toktok wea stap long The Watch Tower bilong January 1, 1918, hem sei: “Wanem nao bae kamap long disfala year 1918?” Long datfala taem World War I still gohed long Europe, bat samfala samting wea happen long start bilong datfala year mekem hem luk olsem olketa Bible Student and pipol evriwea long world bae kasem gud samting.

Long January 8, 1918, President Woodrow Wilson, talem wanfala speech long U.S. Congress. Hem storyim 14-fala idea wea sei hem important for helpem evri kantri garem peace. Hem sei evri kantri need for story tugeta for mekem peace, katem daon olketa weapon, and startim wanfala “general association of nations” wea bae helpem evriwan for kasem gud samting. Bihaen, olketa iusim “Fourteen Points” bilong hem for startim datfala League of Nations and for negotiate for peace agreement wea olketa kolem Treaty of Versailles, wea hem nao finisim World War I.

Nomata 1917  * hem fulap witim staka trabol, olketa Bible Student tingse klosap nao olketa bae kasem gud samting bikos long samting wea happen long annual business meeting bilong Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.

Long datfala meeting wea kamap long January 5, 1918, samfala man wea bin garem big responsibility and wea finis from Bethel trae for tekovarem organization. Richard Barber, wanfala faithful traveling overseer, startim datfala meeting witim prea. Bihaen olketa storyim report bilong waka wea gohed long 1917, olketa start for electim olketa director olsem olketa duim evri year. Brata Barber chusim Joseph Rutherford and sixfala nara brata. Then wanfala lawyer wea saedem olketa wea againstim olketa brata hia, chusim sevenfala nara man, insaed diswan hem olketa wea finis from Bethel. Bat olketa lus. Staka shareholder nao electim Brata Rutherford and sixfala faithful brata for kamap olketa director.

Staka brata wea stap long datfala meeting sei, “datfala meeting hem winim eni nara meeting wea olketa attendim bifor.” Bat gogo samting happen wea mekem olketa no hapi.

For samfala month, olketa Bible Student givim pipol datfala buk The Finished Mystery. Olketa wea garem gudfala heart hapi for acceptim olketa Bible truth wea stap insaed datfala buk.

Edward Crist, wanfala traveling overseer long Canada, storyim wanfala hasband and waef wea readim The Finished Mystery and acceptim truth insaed faevfala week nomoa! Hem sei: “Tufala givim laef bilong tufala long Jehovah and gohed strong long truth.”

Taem wanfala man kasem datfala buk hem kwiktaem storyim wanem hem readim long datfala buk long olketa fren bilong hem. Hao hem kasem datfala buk mekem hem seke and message insaed kasem heart bilong hem. Hem sei: “Mi wakabaot long Third Avenue and mi seke wanfala samting bangam shoulder bilong mi, mi tingse hem wanfala brik, batawea, hem datfala buk ‘The Finished Mystery.’ Mi tekem  long haos and readim full buk. . . . Bihaen nao mi just savve wanfala preacher . . . hem kros and torowem datfala buk aotsaed long window bilong hem . . . From preacher hia torowem datfala buk, datwan mekem staka pipol lanem truth winim olketa sermon or eni nara samting wea hem duim. . . . Wei wea datfala preacher kros datwan mekem mifala praisem God.”

Staka pipol tu garem sem tingting olsem datfala preacher. Olketa bigman long Canada banim datfala buk long February 12, 1918, olketa sei information long buk hia againstim gavman and againstim wei for sapotim war. No longtaem bihaen, gavman long United States duim sem samting. Olketa wakaman bilong gavman go long Bethel and olketa office long New York, Pennsylvania, and California for lukaotem olketa pruv for againstim olketa brata wea leadim organization. Long March 14, 1918, U.S. Department of Justice banim The Finished Mystery bikos olketa sei wei wea olketa givimaot datfala buk hem mekem pipol no sapotim war, wea datwan againstim law wea olketa kolem Espionage Act.

Long May 7, 1918, Department of Justice appruvim for olketa arrestim Giovanni DeCecca, George Fisher, Alexander Macmillan, Robert Martin, Frederick Robison, Joseph Rutherford, William Van Amburgh, and Clayton Woodworth. Olketa arrestim olketa brata hia and sei “olketa no followim law, olketa criminal and mekem pipol for no faithful for duim waka bilong army and navy bilong United States.” Kot case bilong olketa start long June 5, 1918, bat hem luk olsem olketa brata bae lus. Why nao olsem?

Attorney general bilong United States hem sei disfala law wea olketa kolem, Espionage Act, hem for stopem wei wea pipol spredim olketa story wea againstim gavman. Long May 16, 1918, Congress rejectim wei wea samfala laek changem lelebet datfala law for protectim olketa wea pablisim information wea “tru, wea garem gudfala reason, and for mekem wanfala gud samting kamap.” Wanfala main samting wea olketa story abaotem hem datfala buk The Finished Mystery. Olketa record bilong U.S. Congress wea sei: “Wanfala example bilong kaen story olsem wea danger tumas hem nao datfala buk ‘The Finished Mystery’ . . . Datwan mekem olketa soldia for no bilivim wanem gavman talem . . . and mekem olketa no laek joinim war.”

Long June 20, 1918, olketa judge sei eitfala brata hia olketa guilty. Long next day, judge talemaot disison bilong hem. Hem sei: “Wei wea olketa defendant hia duim samting for sapotim and givimaot information wea againstim gavman . . . hem wanfala danger samting winim eni army bilong Germany. . . . Olketa shud kasem bigfala panis.” Tufala week bihaen, olketa sentencem eitfala brata hia for go long prison long Atlanta, Georgia, for samting olsem 10 go kasem 20 year.

Long datfala taem tu olketa Bible Student feisim olketa hard taem. Federal Bureau of Investigation  (FBI) investigatem waka bilong olketa and raetem staka information abaotem datwan. Olketa record hia showimaot olketa brata and sista bilong iumi barava strong for gohed preach.

Wanfala postmaster long Orlando, Florida, hem raet long FBI, and sei: “[Olketa Bible Student] preach from haos tu haos long taon and staka taem olketa duim datwan long naet. . . . Luk olsem, olketa laek for gohed preach nomata pipol againstim olketa.”

Wanfala bigman wea waka long War Department raet long FBI for reportim waka bilong Frederick Franz, wea bihaen hem kamap wanfala member bilong Governing Body. Datfala bigman sei: “F. W. Franz . . . hem barava strong for salem staka thousand copy bilong datfala buk ‘Finished Mystery.’”

Charles Fekel, wea bihaen hem kamap member bilong Governing Body, hem tu kasem persecution. Olketa bigman arrestim hem bikos hem givimaot The Finished Mystery, and taem hem stap long prison olketa checkim tu olketa leta bilong hem. Hem stap long prison long Baltimore, Maryland, for wanfala month, and olketa sei hem wanfala “enemy from Austria.” Hem no fraet for preach long olketa wea kwestinim hem, and hem tingim toktok bilong Paul long 1 Corinth 9:16, wea sei: “Bae mi kasem barava nogud samting sapos mi no talemaot gud nius!” *

Olketa Bible Student strong for preach, and tu olketa start for askem pipol for saenem wanfala pepa for mekem olketa brata wea prison long Atlanta for kamap free. Anna Gardner sei: “Mifala evritaem busy for duim samting. Taem olketa brata stap long prison, mifala waka hard for faendem pipol for saenem datfala pepa. Mifala savve go haos tu haos. Staka pipol raetem signature bilong olketa! Mifala talem pipol abaotem olketa Christian brata hia and hao hem no stret for olketa putim olketa long prison.”

Long datfala hard taem, staka convention kamap for strongim olketa brata and sista long spiritual wei. The Watch Tower hem sei: “Winim fotifala convention . . . hem kamap insaed wanfala year . . . Olketa kasem staka naes report long olketa convention hia. Firstaem olketa convention savve kamap tu-thri month nomoa, bat gogo olketa convention kamap evri month insaed year.”

Bat olketa wea garem honest heart gohed acceptim gud nius. Long wanfala convention long Cleveland, Ohio, samting olsem 1,200 nao attend and 42 nao baptaes. Wanfala long olketa hem wanfala young boy wea “tinghae long God, and from hem dedicate hem mekem olketa wea maet savve long hem for shame.”

Klosap end bilong 1918, olketa Bible Student no sure wanem moa bae happen. Olketa salem samfala property long Brooklyn and olketa muvim hedquarter go long Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Taem olketa wea lead long organization stap yet long prison, nara annual meeting for olketa shareholder redi for kamap long January 4, 1919. Wanem nao bae happen?

Olketa brata gohed strong long waka bilong olketa. Olketa trustim hao gud samting bae kamap dastawe olketa chusim yeartext for 1919, wea sei: “No eni weapon wea pipol iusim for againstim iufala bae win.” (Isa. 54:17, King James Version) Olketa redi for eni change wea bae kamap, and olketa samting wea bae kamap bae strongim faith bilong olketa and mekem olketa redi for duim bigfala waka.