David Berg
—MO November 21, 1971 NO.144A
DEAR COLONY LEADERS:
1. GREETINGS IN JESUS' PRECIOUS NAME! THIS IS AN EMERGENCY CALL TO ALL COLONIES PERSONALLY FROM MO HIMSELF: "It has never been our personal policy from the very beginning to ever once try to persuade one single member of our group to stay with us when they wanted to go home. In fact, whenever we personally discovered that they were inclined to leave, we personally encouraged them to do so, and even helped them to do so all we could, even to the furnishing of transportation or phone calls to parents for a ticket home!
2. "IN FACT, DURING THE FIRST THANKSGIVING AND CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY SEASON OF OUR FIRST GROUP, AS SOME OF YOU WILL REMEMBER, WE LITERALLY SENT YOU HOME FOR THESE HOLIDAYS TO WITNESS to your loved ones, as a part of your responsibility to them to deliver your soul. We said to some of you at the time that, if you didn't come back because you wanted to stay home, then you should stay home, and to others who were afraid that if they did they would not be able to come back or prevented from returning, that if God wanted you back, he would deliver you—and we believe that with all our heart and soul!
3. "WHEN GOD WAS READY TO FIGHT A BATTLE WITH THE ENEMIES OF THE LORD THROUGH GIDEON AND HIS MEN, HE PERMITTED ALL OF THOSE TO GO HOME WHO WANTED TO GO HOME, AND HE EVEN SENT MOST OF THE REST OF THEM HOME BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT READY FOR BATTLE‚ leaving only 300 out of 33‚000, less than 1 percent, with whom Gideon and God won a glorious victory! However, it has finally been revealed to us that some of you have not been using this policy of testing your disciples and trusting God, although even Jesus usually tried to discourage disciples from following him by putting them through various tests to see if they really meant business‚ of which there are many examples in the Scriptures!
4. "THEREFORE, TO BOTH TEST OUR DISCIPLES AND TO STOP THE RECENT LIES OF THE ENEMY and to prove that we do not hypnotise, drug‚ kidnap‚ nor coerce them to remain in our Colonies, we are hereby going to have a nationwide demonstration this week to prove it, and our faith in them and in God and His Word as well as our way of life:
5. "AS SOON AS YOU RECEIVE THIS MESSAGE, WE WANT YOU TO CALL YOUR LOCAL NEWS MEDIA, TV, radio, and newspapers, and tell them you thought they might like to know, due to recent publicity to the contrary, that, to prove our good faith that these charges are untrue‚ we are going to send all of our members home to their loved ones or relatives for the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays, and that if the news media does not believe it, they are welcome to come out and watch the young people while they phone their parents to inform them of this today, Sunday, November 21, 1971, or tomorrow, or to even film them as they board various means of transportation to return home!
6. "WE BEG OF YOU TO READ THIS COMMUNIQUE IMMEDIATELY TO YOUR ENTIRE FLOCK AND TRY TO EXPLAIN to them that it is necessary for us to do this for the good of the Lord's Cause, for their own good, and for the sake of others who have been deceived and mis-led by these false allegations. This will be a massive, worldwide demonstration throughout all Colonies in all countries to prove on a vast and impressive scale to the whole world that these lies that some have been telling about us are not true, but totally false and unfounded, Satanic, anti-Christ propaganda of our enemies! Therefore, God has led us to take this drastic step at once to stop these lies!
7. "ANY COLONY LEADERS WHO EITHER NOW, OR HEREAFTER, EVER TRY TO PREVENT OR DISCOURAGE ANYONE FROM GOING HOME WHO WANTS TO GO HOME, or who is reported to be using high pressure tactics or over-persuasion to keep a disciple from leaving who wants to leave, will be removed from his position of leadership for better training until he learns that Jesus never forced anyone to follow him. He only said, "Follow Me" and "Come and see"!
8. "TO YOU WHO ARE GOING HOME, WE SAY‚ GOD BLESS YOU AND MAKE YOU A BLESSING! Be sweet, kind, loving‚ and patient, and even love your enemies! Bless them that curse you and do good to them that despitefully use you! Rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in Heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. We believe if God wants you back He will help you return, and we will do all that we can to assist you, if you need help. And to the relatives we say, May God have mercy on you, and may you have mercy on your child and not try to prevent them from returning, even as we have not prevented them from coming home! God be with you!"—Love,—MO.