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I was really impressed with all the plans Mayor Kollek told us
he has in mind for renewing and re-beautifying the city of Jerusalem.
I could especially appreciate it, personally, since I have--the
past thirty years--gone through the job of building AMBASSADOR
COLLEGE in Pasadena (not to speak of similar jobs at the other two
campuses). It was built out of what--at the lower down-hill level--
had been the nearest thing to a slum section Pasadena had. We
were then buying up the property--a 40-foot lot at a time--usually
with two old shacks--one behind the other--on each narrow 40-foot
lot. With the fine help I have had, we have built this area of
Pasadena into a campus that twice in the past two years has won the
national award of being the most BEAUTIFUL, the best landscaped and
BEST MAINTAINED campus in the United States!
God turned THIS EARTH over to old father Adam, in the Garden
of Eden, to "dress it and keep it"--not let it run down to weeds.
But MAN has befouled this earth God gave him in every way--polluted
the waters, befouled the air; ruined the soil.
Mayor Kollek then took the group of us to a special restaurant
for lunch. There, several other friends joined us. After that,
we drove to the site of the new Liberty Bell Park.
I was scheduled to be there on July 2nd for the official
ground-breaking ceremony for building the new park in the heart
of the new city. I had undertaken to build the children's play-
ground area of the new city park. The last day of June, I had
boarded the G-II jet aircraft, bound for Jerusalem. We were
forced down at Bangor, Maine after crossing the United States from
southwest to northeast, as I think I wrote you before. We had a
cracked window in the cockpit. We were forced to return to
Pasadena--flying at low altitude. So the Mayor conducted that
ceremony alone.
When we reached the park area, I saw a large sign posted, in
both Hebrew and English, saying:
"Under Construction Here:
A C H I L D R E N ' S P L A Y G R O U N D
A GIFT OF
THE AMBASSADOR INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL FOUNDATION
H. W. ARMSTRONG, PRESIDENT"
Sabbath afternoon we had a bible study in my hotel suite at
the Jerusalem Hilton. About thirty came. We now have a very
small Sabbath group meeting in Jerusalem, but no local pastor as
yet, though one man serves as leader.
I gave them an hour-and-a-half bible study on Jerusalem: Past,
Present, and Future. I think you'll find a brief outline of that
study helpful, interesting and enlightening--if you'll take the