[R6010 : page 371]

MOULDED THOUGHT OF MILLIONS

BY A.I. RITCHIE—NEW YORK

Our Pastor was very dear to the Bethel Family. He was a loving, yet just head over the Home, and all the members of the Family had ready access to him with their perplexities and troubles. It was interesting to notice how almost all went away from these interviews smiling, as if all difficulties had been cleared up. He seemed almost intuitively to understand; and was always sympathetic and tender, even when he himself was suffering great pain.

When I read his DIVINE PLAN OF THE AGES in 1888, it answered all my questions; and as I continued to read my love and admiration for him increased, though I never met him until 1905. My later years of close association with him were a constant inspiration to me. The better I knew him, the better I loved him. He was the best man I ever saw, and I never expect to see his equal. There is none like him.

He entered so fully into our lives that there might be a danger of thinking of him as belonging peculiarly to the Bethel Family, or to the New York Ecclesia, or at least to the Bible Students of America. But he was broader than all these; he was loved and respected by Bible Students and Truth seekers the world over. He was also respected and loved by devout Jews in almost every part of the world, and helped much to revive their faith in their Bible promises.

Besides all this I am convinced that he did more to mould public thought—especially in the religious world—than all other contemporary religious leaders. Very few now believe the doctrine of eternal torment; thanks to his efforts! He brought many other religious truths to light.

====================