November 27, 1970  
November 27, 1970 - Brethren & Co-Workers Letter
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Herbert W Armstrong 

The PLAIN TRUTH a Magazine of Understanding
BOX 111, Pasadena, Calif. 91109

HERBERT W. ARMSTRONG, Editor

November 27, 1970

Dear PLAIN TRUTH Subscriber:

   I feel I simply must sit down to my typewriter and ....

   1) tell you about two very timely, thought-provoking booklets just now coming off our presses (sent gratis of course), and ....

   2) answer simply, candidly and briefly a few questions hundreds of subscribers are asking about us.

   Hundreds are perplexed — a little bewildered. WHY, they ask, does a Liberal Arts college of only 1,400 resident students (on three campuses in America and England), publish a magazine like The PLAIN TRUTH, with more than TWO MILLION subscribers worldwide? No other college does.

   And HOW can such a college, without endowment — without government aid — with no grants from foundations — publish such an important magazine with no advertising revenue and no subscription price income?

   With absolutely nothing to sell — no gimmicks — and never soliciting the public for contributions?

   No wonder some are a bit bewildered! It truly is probably the most unique institutional operation in the world. But there's nothing mysterious or secret about it, and I want to give you the plain and simple facts briefly, in this letter.

   But first, I'm so enthused over these two very timely new booklets, I want to tell you a bit about them.

   You may have noticed a new movement suddenly gaining momentum. I think you ought to know the full truth about it. It's a "Women's Rights" movement. Here are some of the disturbing questions it is provoking.

   "Have women ever had their rights? Are not women getting lower pay for the same work than men? Is it true there are no great psychological and biological differences between male and female? Have not women been discriminated against in different ways? Why should the 'Male-is-breadwinner and Female-is- nestbuilder' tradition be continued? Should not men spend 50% of their time in the kitchen?"

   This new "Rights Demanding" crusade began gaining momentum with the 1960's. Until then it was generally assumed the modern housewife had been freed by laborsaving devices from drudgery, released from Victorian morality, been given the world's best education, become a respected full partner with her husband. In short, she had achieved full feminine fulfillment.

   Then in September, 1960, Redbook magazine ran an article entitled, "Why Young Mothers Feel Trapped." It invited young mothers with problems to write in. The editors were shocked to be deluged with 24,000 replies. From the mid-1960's until the present, increasing numbers of magazine articles, newspaper columns, books, motion pictures, television programs, conferences, have become concerned with the problem of the Western Woman.

   Today it is said that IN NO HUMAN DEVISED SOCIETY have women ever had a clear conception of what their role should be. They do not know who they are, what they are, where they are going. And now, many women are angry with society. Some have joined together to form the "Women's Liberation Movement." They want to change every aspect of what they call a man-dominated society.

   Most of their objectives zero in on the traditional FAMILY CONCEPT. They feel it was invented by MEN — and is discriminatory toward women. What about the very existence of the marriage custom? Was it invented by men to subjugate women?

   This new uprising strikes at the very heart of the most basic and important institution in human existence — THE FAMILY. The question is vital to YOU. I feel our every subscriber should BE INFORMED. You need to KNOW ALL THE FACTS.

   This timely new booklet brings you an abbreviated, yet in- depth factual research into both sides of this question. It brings you a right UNDERSTANDING — the PLAIN TRUTH on this most vital question.

   The other booklet is a new, revised edition of a booklet first published years ago, now brought up-to-date. It is titled "The PLAIN TRUTH About CHRISTMAS." It is an eye-opening booklet bringing you the FACTS not generally realized about this most observed of all holidays.

   It answers such questions as: Was Christ born on December 25th? What does the Bible say about Christmas? Did the original Apostles and early Church teach and observe it? Why did the wise men bring gifts to the Christ-child? Did this start the custom of exchanging presents at this season? What is the real origin of Santa Claus? What's the real truth about the "Christmas spirit?" Of the mistletoe and the holly wreath?

   Do you know WHY you do the things you do? Did you ever stop to inquire in retrospect HOW you came to believe what you do? This booklet is highly documented — interesting — surprisingly informative — factual.

   And, of course, we offer these booklets without charge, absolutely free, AS A PUBLIC SERVICE — and with no follow-up or request for contributions. More about them later.

   But let me give you the candid answer to these questions about The PLAIN TRUTH, Ambassador College, and our rather amazing worldwide operations. You never heard of anything like it before. By all the criteria of institutional or business experience, it should never have been possible.

   It seems just about everything in this world is commercial, profit-making, seeking to get. But here is possibly the most UNIQUE organization in the world. It has directly REVERSED all concepts of doing things. It has belied all traditional methods of organizational procedure. Accepted practice seeks to GET. We have sought to GIVE. Our 36-years' experience has proved the practicality of that supposedly impractical "platitude": "It is more blessed to give than to receive."

   We have reversed the traditional pattern of magazine publishing. We set out to do it the way we felt it OUGHT to be done. No advertising, and consequently no advertising revenue. Your subscription ALREADY PAID — you can't pay for your own.

   Then there is the worldwide radio and television program, The WORLD TOMORROW. It purchases more radio time than any other in the world, more than FIFTY MILLION watts of radio power weekly on nearly 400 stations worldwide. And with no commercial sponsor to muzzle us, and never a request for financial support on any program.

   Truly it seems like "Mission Impossible" accomplished!

   Nothing like it has been done before. Yet it happened — and is happening!

   How did it all start? In my early business life I was assigned, on the editorial staff of a national trade journal, to travel over the United States studying business and social conditions. I pioneered in making scientific surveys — samplings based on the law-of-average principle to obtain, tabulate and classify the facts. I learned that people generally are not happy. Life is not lived in its fullness, as it ought to be

   Later, I learned WHY. It seems all systems in this world are based and operated on the "GET" principle. The "SUCCESSFUL" in the world seemed to be those who accumulated the most money. I knew scores and scores of millionaires, and I learned that money cannot buy happiness. Not that financial prosperity is wrong — but it is not the SOURCE of the full, happy, abundant life!

   I learned there are TWO opposite WAYS or philosophies of life.

   I state them simply: the one is the way of GET, the other of GIVE. The one is wholly self-concern, getting the best of every deal, giving the other the worst of it. The other way is outgoing concern for others equal to that for self. The one way is competition, the other cooperation. The one is "BE served," the other is serving, helping, sharing.

   Do something GOOD to make someone else happy, give him joy, and it will actually give you a greater thrill than him. Take four people. One pair are selfish, envious, jealous. Each tries to cheat the other. Each hurts the other. And the jealousy of each starts strife and each makes not only the other, but also him- self unhappy and miserable. The other pair have outgoing concern. Each gives or shares with the other. Each contributes to the other's peace and happiness, and thereby increases his own in addition to what he receives from the other.

   From there on you may read in The PLAIN TRUTH in the box with a border around it, captioned, "HOW your PLAIN TRUTH subscription has been paid," how in 1933 in Oregon I gave a number of lectures on the laws of success in life, and how it all started from there. The owner of the local radio station and about a dozen others of very ordinary means VOLUNTEERED to start the GIVING way by contributing regularly toward getting this new UNDERSTANDING to multiplied others via radio. We proclaimed the GIVING way of life — but we did not ask for contributions. We did not seek to GET — we practiced what we taught.

   A small few of our new listeners in time VOLUNTEERED to join in contributing regularly. We began to call them "Co-Workers." The program went on the air the first week in 1934. February 1st The PLAIN TRUTH was born — just a small homemade mimeographed "magazine." But it carried an interesting and helpful message that HELPED OTHERS.

   And so from there it just GREW — very slowly — ever so gradually, but continually, averaging 30% per year. That seemed such a slow growth — yet it meant our Work was actually doubling the number of people it was helping and serving every two and two- thirds years. Every eight years it multiplied in size and scope EIGHT TIMES OVER. Mr. Stanley Rader, our General Counsel, who also is a CPA and auditor of our books, remarked the other day that since he joined our staff, this Work has become FIFTY TIMES larger than it was then — in 1956. Today it is a truly great worldwide operation serving some 150 MILLION people on all continents! Still, of course, we can GIVE only as new Co-Workers VOLUNTEER.

   WHAT DOES IT MEAN to be a PLAIN TRUTH reader? PLAIN TRUTH readers are a different kind of people — they come to have a new and different perspective — they become aware of the TRUE VALUES while most of the world pursues the false. They come to UNDER- STAND the very SOURCE of the contented, happy, highly motivated and successful life.

   The PLAIN TRUTH IS UNIQUE among the world's largest mass- circulation magazines. Its readers are unique among magazine readers! Their minds are on the things that really count! The things that make life A JOY! They come to have UNDERSTANDING of world conditions — of world TRENDS — not in a narrowed partisan political sense, but utterly ABOVE politics. They come to under- stand the CAUSE of world's evil EFFECTS, and to face the future with hope and confidence.

   WHAT A JOY to us here at the Headquarters of this great enterprise to send you this enlightening high-character publication. WE figure that all of us involved in this great Work get the BIG blessing in being allowed to GIVE. THANK YOU for letting us give.

   Now I do hope you won't even lay this letter down until you have sent in your request — IN THE ENCLOSED SELF-ADDRESSED RETURN ENVELOPE — for both, or either one, of these free booklets. The one captioned, "The NEW FEMINISM — Have Women Ever Really Had Their Rights?" — the other "The PLAIN TRUTH ABOUT CHRISTMAS."

   And by the way, have you yet sent in your subscription to our NEW monthly magazine, TOMORROW'S WORLD? It is edited by the Graduate School of Theology of Ambassador College. It is a magazine of Biblical understanding. Not like any religious magazine, but it is soundly Biblical. Like The PLAIN TRUTH, your subscription has ALREADY BEEN PAID — you can't PAY for your own. It is eye-opening, interesting, answering many questions people want to know, helpful and inspiring. Perhaps you'd like to receive it every month, too?

   Again THANK YOU, sincerely, for allowing us to serve YOU. Be sure to request the booklets NOW, before laying this letter down so you won't put it aside and forget.

Most Sincerely,
Herbert W. Armstrong

Publication Date: November 27, 1970
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