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JAPAN'S PRINCE MIKASA,
center,
meets with Herbert W. Armstrong snd
Stsnley R. Rsder, Mr. Armstrong's per–
sonal counsel, in Jspan in 1977.
South Korea and the American position
toward those countries are of vital
concern lo Japan. Having spoken inti–
mately with leaders of both countries. 1
was invited to address some 40 mem–
bers of the Japanese Diet al a special
breakfast session. Afterward, 1 was
closely questioned by the legislators.
"Ambassador of World Peace"
lt may seem surprising that !he doors of
imperial palaces and official residences
are opened wide for a smiling, white–
haired man and his aide. Yet there are
sound reasons.
In addition to the announcement we
bring, our travels abroad have two other
great purposes:
First, to establish and develop pro–
grams that are meaningful, relevan! and
importan! lo each nation we visit and lo
the people involved, so that they may
live fuller and more abundan! lives.
And second, to create a better
understanding between people to fur–
ther the cause of world peace.
Herbert Armstrong has become
widely recognized and accepted as a
man of God, an individual who pos-
lO
sesses throughout
the world a moral
influence capable of
moving mountains.
Nationa l leaders
have read about ,
and often seen for
themselves , the
throngs surging to
hear him and the
ovations he has re–
ceived. They have
received, too, re–
ports from around
the world of the con–
fidence other lead–
ers have placed in
him. They have
heard, through their
intelligence reports
and other means, of
his reputation as a
"builder of bridges between nations.
00
High officials have come to trust Mr.
Armstrong as few other infl uential per–
sons could be trusted in this imperfect
world, accepting him, in his own phrase,
as ooan ambassador without portfolio for
peace.
00
They feel free to discuss their
most pressing international and domes–
tic problems with him in intimate detail. 1
have had the honór of attending many
of these conferences and have noted
the depth of sincerity with which he has
been greeted, the deference paid to
him, the close attention given by state
heads to his counsel. Time and again,
an audience that had been scheduled to
last only a few minutes stretched into an
hour or more, while importan! person–
ages cooled their heels in antecham–
bers.
Herbert Armstrong has found a cer–
tain advantage in his status as unofficial
ambassador that no credentialed envoy
could enjoy. " In meetings between a
government leader and other heads of
state," he says, "a great deal may be at
stake. They cannot be as free to relax.
But in meetings with me they feel more
free, and they are often interested in
hearing of the problems, opinions and
views of other leaders.
00
Occasionally,
too, Mr. Armstrong has been asked to
be the bearer of personal messages
from one leader lo another, messages
that could not be sent over usual diplo–
matic channels.
Few men in world history have gar–
nered so many tributes from so many
world leaders. In
1970,
Mr. Armstrong
was the recipient of a unique honor at
the hands of former King Leopold of
Belgium. Following the armistice al the
end of World War 1, King Albert,
appalled at the slaughter that had
occurred on a battlefield of his nation,
ordered one of the iron cannonballs that
remained on the field to be cast into tour
watch cases . Four fine movements
were placed inside them, l o be pre–
sentad to the tour men who , he
believed, had made the most significan!
contributions toward reducing the pos–
sibility that !hose terrible human sacri–
ficas might recur. The King presented
one watch to Field Marshal Ferdinand
Foch, who headed the Allied supreme
command in
1918.
The second he gave
to General John J. Pershing, command–
er in chief of the American Expeditionary
Force and the third went to Georges
Clemenceau, France's inspiring premier
during the dark days of the war. For tour
decades since that third timepiece had
been presented, nobody was believed
lo be qualified to receive the fourth
King Albert passed it on to his son,
Leopold, to watch and wait. In Novem–
ber,
1970,
Leopold found the man he
sought. He presented the fourth watch
to Herbert W. Armstrong. In accepting it,
Mr. Armstrong said, " 1 feel it was the
highest honor the king could have paid
anyone. Whatever contribution to world
peace 1may be making is not through
war , but through education, teaching
millions worldwide the way to peace."
There have been many other decora–
tions, gifts and keys to cities. Japan
awarded him the Order of !he Sacred
Treasure, Second Class, one of the
highest decorations that can be pre–
sentad to a noncitizen, in recognition of
" the outstanding contribution you have
rendered to the cause of friendship and
promotion of mutual understanding be–
tween the United States and Japan." In
November,
1977,
the Japanese govern–
ment conferred on me the Fourth Class
Order of the Sacred Treasure.
The prime minister of Lebanon ,
The
PLAIN TRUTH