!"#2J U N E 2 0 1 2

IS YOURFOOD REALLYSAFE?

ALSO: CAN THE DEADHELP THE LIVING? PAGE 10

!"#2AVERAGE PRINTING 41,042,000PUBLISHED IN 84 LANGUAGES

IS YOUR FOODREALLY SAFE?

3 Is Your Food Safe?

4 1. Shop Wisely

5 2. Keep It Clean

6 3. Prepare and Store Food Carefully

7 4. Be Observant When Eating Out

8 Healthful Food for All—Soon!

10 The Bible’s ViewpointCan the Dead Help the Living?

12 The Bible—A Book of AccurateProphecy—Part 2

15 Young People AskAre We Just Friends—Or More?—Part 1

18 Was It Designed?The Shell of the Clusterwink Snail

19 I Found True Love and Peace

22 Batik—Indonesia’s Fabulous Fabric

24 EURO 2012—A Historic Event

26 Edible Insects—A Meal We Will Not Forget

28 Watching the World

29 From Our Readers

30 For Family Review

32 It Helped Me Conquer a Bad Habit

Awake! June 2012 3

THE above headlines appeared during a two-week peri-od last year. Researchers estimate that each year about

30 percent of people in developed countries suffer fromfoodborne illness.

How do such reports affect you? “I get worried and evenangry,” admits Hoi, a father in Hong Kong. “I have two chil-dren, and I am concerned about how and where their foodis made.”

In poorer countries, foodborne and waterborne diseas-es kill millions—mostly children—every year. “In the mar-kets here, food items are exposed to flies, rain, wind, anddust,” says Bola, who lives in Nigeria. “When I read orhear about food diseases, I feel scared. I want to protect myfamily.”

Is it possible to protect your family from unsafe food?The Canadian Food Inspection Agency states: “If unsafefood gets into our grocery stores, it makes headlines. Andrightly so. But unsafe food, which could lead to foodborneillness, can also happen from what we do—or don’t do—inour own kitchens.”

What can you do to protect your family from foodborneillness? We will consider four ways to make your food safer.

IS YOUR FOOD SAFE?“Germany Shuts School

Over E. Coli Scare.”

—REUTERS NEWS SERVICE,

GERMANY.

“Salmonella Outbreak

Linked to Sprouts in Five

States.”—USA TODAY.

“Meat of 6 Cows Fed

Radioactive Straw Reaches

9 Prefectures.”—THE MAINICHI

DAILY NEWS, JAPAN.

˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙ ˙

Some groups of peopleare particularly vulnerable tofoodborne illness, including:

˘ Children under the ageof five

˘ Pregnant women

˘ People over the age of 70

˘ People with compromisedimmune systems

If you or anyone eatingwith you falls into one ofthese categories, you shouldbe particularly cautiousabout the food you prepare,serve, and eat.

Source: New South Wales Food Authority,Australia.

WHO AREAT RISK?

!"#$ THIS JOURNAL IS PUBLISHED for theenlightenment of the entire family. It

shows how to cope with today’s problems. It reportsthe news, tells about people in many lands, examinesreligion and science. But it does more. It probes beneaththe surface and points to the real meaning behindcurrent events, yet it always stays politically neutral anddoes not exalt one race above another. Most important,this magazine builds confidence in the Creator’s promiseof a peaceful and secure new world that is about toreplace the present wicked, lawless system of things.

This publication is not for sale. It is provided as part of a worldwide Bible educa-tional work supported by voluntary donations. Unless otherwise indicated, Scrip-ture quotations are from the modern-language New World Translation of the HolyScriptures—With References.Awake! (ISSN 0005-237X) is published monthly by Watchtower Bible and TractSociety of New York, Inc.; L. Weaver, Jr., President; G. F. Simonis, Secretary-Treasurer; 25 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, NY 11201-2483, and by Watch Tow-er Bible and Tract Society of Canada, PO Box 4100, Georgetown, ON L7G 4Y4.Periodicals Postage Paid at Brooklyn, N.Y., and at additional mailing offices.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Awake!, 1000 Red Mills Road,Wallkill, NY 12589-3299. � 2012 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsyl-vania. All rights reserved. Printed in Canada.

Vol. 93, No. 6 Monthly ENGLISH

4

UNLESS you grow your own food, yourfirst contact with the food you eat will

likely be at a market or supermarket. Whenyou shop, how can you select and purchasehealthful food?˘ Plan your route.

“Shop for non-perishable food first,” advis-es the Food Safety Information Council inAustralia. “Leave [items from] the fridgesand freezers to the end of your shopping.”Also, if you are buying hot food, pick it upjust before you return home.˘ Favor fresh food.

Try to purchase fresh food when possible.�Ruth, a mother of two in Nigeria, says: “I usu-ally go to the market very early in the morn-ing when the food is fresher.” Elizabeth, fromMexico, also shops at an open market. “ThereI can buy fresh fruits and vegetables, andI can pick them out myself,” she says. “I al-� See the article “Key 1—Eat Wisely,” in the March 2011 is-

sue of Awake!

ways buy fresh meat slaughtered that day.If necessary, I freeze what I don’t use.”˘ Inspect your food.

Ask yourself: ‘Is the skin on my produce in-tact? Is the meat free of unusual odors?’ If thefood is prewrapped, inspect the packaging.Damaged packages can allow poisonous bac-teria to enter the food.

Chung Fai, who buys food at a supermar-ket in Hong Kong, says: “It is also necessaryto check the expiration date printed on pack-aged food.” Why? Experts warn that even if“expired” food looks, smells, and tastes good,it can still make you sick.˘ Pack safely.

If you use a reusable shopping bag or plas-tic bin, wash it out frequently with hot soapywater. Carry meat and fish in separate bins orbags so they do not contaminate other food.

Enrico and Loredana, a couple in Italy,shop locally. “That way,” they explain, “wedon’t have to transport food very far and riskspoilage.” If it will take longer than 30 min-utes to return home, put chilled or frozenfoods into an insulated bag, or in some otherway, make sure it is kept cool.

In the next article, learn how to keep yourfood safe after it enters your home.

1. SHOP WISELY

TRAIN YOUR CHILDREN: “I teach my childrento check the expiration date of any packagedfood items, such as snacks, before they buythem.”—Ruth, Nigeria

LANGUAGES: Afrikaans, Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Bislama, Bul-garian, Cebuano, Chichewa, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional)� (audioMandarin only), Chitonga, Cibemba, Croatian, Czech,� Danish,� Dutch,�� En-glish,�� Estonian, Ewe, Fijian, Finnish,� French,��� Georgian, German,�� Greek,Gujarati, Hebrew, Hiligaynon, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Igbo, Iloko, Indonesian,Italian,�� Japanese,�� Kannada, Kinyarwanda, Kirghiz, Kirundi, Korean,�� Latvi-an, Lingala, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malagasy, Malayalam, Maltese, Myan-mar, Norwegian,� Polish,�� Portuguese,��� Punjabi, Rarotongan, Romanian,Russian,�� Samoan, Sepedi, Serbian, Sesotho, Shona, Silozi, Sinhala, Slovak,Slovenian, Spanish,�� Swahili, Swedish,� Tagalog,� Tamil, Thai, Tok Pisin, Tongan,Tsonga, Tswana, Turkish, Twi, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, Xhosa, Yoruba, Zulu

� CD also available. � MP3 CD-ROM also available.� Audio recordings also available at www.jw.org.

WOULD YOU WELCOME MORE INFORMATION OR A FREE HOME BIBLE STUDY?Please send your request to Jehovah’s Witnesses, using one of the addresses below. Fora complete list of addresses, see www.watchtower.org/address. America, United States of:25 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, NY 11201-2483. Australia: PO Box 280, Ingleburn, NSW1890. Britain: The Ridgeway, London NW7 1RN. Canada: PO Box 4100, Georgetown, ONL7G 4Y4. Germany: 65617 Selters. Guam: 143 Jehovah St, Barrigada, GU 96913. Jamaica:PO Box 103, Old Harbour, St. Catherine. Japan: 4-7-1 Nakashinden, Ebina City, Kanagawa-Pref, 243-0496. Puerto Rico: PO Box 3980, Guaynabo, PR 00970. South Africa: Private BagX2067, Krugersdorp, 1740. Trinidad and Tobago: Lower Rapsey Street & Laxmi Lane, Curepe.

Awake! June 2012 5

JUST as a surgeon protects his patients bywashing his hands, sterilizing his instru-

ments, and maintaining a clean operatingroom, you can protect your family by keepingyourself, your kitchen, and your food clean.˘ Wash your hands.

The Public Health Agency of Canadastates that “hands spread an estimated80 percent of common infectious diseaseslike the common cold and flu.” So wash yourhands thoroughly with soap and water beforeeating, after using the toilet, and when youprepare a meal.˘ Keep your kitchen clean.

One study revealed that while the bath-room tended to be the cleanest place in thehome, “the sites in the households that werecontaminated with the most fecal bacteriawere the sponge/dishcloths in the kitchen.”

Therefore, change dishcloths frequently,and use hot soapy water or disinfectant toclean kitchen surfaces. Granted, this is notalways easy. A woman named Bola lives ina home without tap water. “It is a big chal-lenge,” she says. “But we never skimp onsoap and water, so they are always availableto keep our kitchen and home clean.”˘ Rinse produce.

Before produce is sold, it may have beencontaminated by unclean water, animals,fecal matter, or other raw food items. There-fore, even if you plan to peel fruits or vege-tables, rinse them thoroughly to removeharmful bacteria. This takes time. “WhenI prepare a salad,” says Daiane, a mother inBrazil, “I try not to rush, so that I am sure towash the greens thoroughly.”˘ Separate raw meat.

To prevent the spread of bacteria, seal orsecurely wrap all raw meat, poultry, and sea-food, and separate them from other food.Use a separate cutting board and knife forthose foods, or wash your cutting board andknife thoroughly with soap and hot water be-fore and after raw meat or seafood touches it.

Now that you, your tools, and your ingre-dients are clean, how can you prepare mealssafely?

2. KEEP IT CLEAN

TRAIN YOUR CHILDREN: “We teach ourchildren to wash their hands before eatingand to wash or discard food that has fallenon the floor.”—Hoi, Hong Kong

6 Awake! June 2012

ACARELESS cook in ancient Israel gath-ered wild gourds, although he was “not

acquainted with them.” He added the un-familiar food to a stew. The eaters, whofeared that the food may have been poi-soned, cried out: “There is death in the pot.”—2 Kings 4:38-41.

As the above example illustrates, food thatis prepared carelessly warrants caution, as itcan be harmful or even deadly. To preventfoodborne illness, therefore, learn to prepareand store food carefully. Consider the follow-ing four suggestions:˘ Do not thaw meat at room temperature.

“Even though the center of the [meat]may still be frozen as it thaws on the coun-ter,” says the U.S. Department of Agricul-ture, “the outer layer of the food could bein the ‘Danger Zone,’ between 40 [4°C] and140°F [60°C]—temperatures at which bacte-ria multiply rapidly.” Instead, thaw food in

the refrigerator, in a microwave, or undercold water in a package that will not leak.˘ Cook thoroughly.

According to the World Health Organiza-tion, “proper cooking kills almost all danger-ous microorganisms.” When cooking food,especially soups and stews, make sure thatit reaches a temperature of at least 158 de-grees Fahrenheit (70°C).� Since it can bedifficult to judge the internal temperature ofsome dishes, many cooks use a meat ther-mometer.˘ Serve soon.

Cooked food should not be left at roomtemperature for too long, so serve it soon,even immediately, to prevent spoilage. Keepcold food cold and hot food hot. You cankeep hot meat in an oven set at approximate-ly 200 degrees Fahrenheit (93°C).˘ Handle extra food wisely.

Anita, a mother in Poland, serves mostmeals immediately after cooking. But if thereis extra food, she says, “soon after prepa-ration I freeze it in small portions to makeit easy to defrost.” If you store leftovers inthe refrigerator, eat them within three to fourdays.

At a restaurant, you have to trust someoneelse to prepare your food. So how can youprotect your family when eating out?� Some foods, such as poultry, need to be cooked to a high-

er temperature.

3. PREPARE AND STOREFOOD CAREFULLY

TRAIN YOUR CHILDREN: “When my childrencook food, I remind them to read and followthe instructions on the food package.”—Yuk Ling, Hong Kong

ALMOST half of all money spent on foodin one Western land is spent in restau-

rants. Yet, in that same land, restaurant foodis associated with about half the foodbornedisease outbreaks.

True, if you choose to eat at a restaurant,someone else purchases the ingredients,cleans the kitchen, and cooks the food.Nevertheless, you can decide where you eat,what you eat, and how you pack any foodthat you take home.

˘ Look around you.

“As we walk into a restaurant for the firsttime,” says Daiane, who lives in Brazil, “Ilook around to see if the tables, tablecloths,utensils, and servers are clean and tidy. Ifnot, we leave and look for another restau-rant.” In some lands, health officials routine-ly inspect and grade restaurants for cleanli-ness, and they post their results for the publicto read.˘ Beware of doggie bags.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administrationadvises: “If you won’t be arriving home with-in two hours of being served [sooner if tem-peratures are above 90 degrees Fahrenheit(32°C)], don’t take the leftovers home withyou.” If you have leftovers, go directly homeafter your meal and store them in the refrig-erator.

If you take the four steps outlined in thisseries of articles, you can make your foodsafer.

4. BE OBSERVANT WHEN EATING OUT

Jeff, a healthy and energetic 38-year-oldman, took his family out to eat at arestaurant near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,U.S.A. A month later, Jeff died of acuteliver failure. The culprit? Green onions inhis meal—contaminated with hepatitis A.

TRAIN YOUR CHILDREN: “We teach ourchildren to avoid food that might be unsafe toeat.”—Noemi, Philippines

8 Awake! June 2012

YOU can take practical steps to enjoy saf-er food. However, many factors are be-

yond your control. For example, you cannotpersonally inspect all food before you buy orprepare it. You may have to purchase foodthat has been processed and shipped fromafar. And some of the food that you buy maybe contaminated by dangerous chemicals inthe air, water, or soil.

In a report entitled “Foodborne DiseaseControl: A Transnational Challenge,” of-ficials from the World Health Organizationstate that some food safety problems “cannotbe resolved by national governments alone;

they require international cooperation.”Foodborne diseases are a global problem!

Understandably, many will question whywe can confidently say that soon there will behealthful food for all. It is because “Jehovah,the Lord of the whole earth,” promises a so-lution to man’s food problems. (Joshua 3:13)Some may claim that unsafe food proves thatGod cannot be trusted. But think: If a waitercarelessly allows fine food to spoil, would itbe proper to blame the chef? Of course not.

Similarly, humans—not the Creator—are re-sponsible for spoiling the earth’s supply offine food. The prevalence of unsafe food is a

HEALTHFULFOOD FOR ALL

SOON!

“A CODE OF RULES OF HEALTH”

About 3,500 years ago, Israel received theMosaic Law. That Law protected the Israelitesfrom many foodborne illnesses. Consider thefollowing instructions:

˘ Avoid unclean utensils and dishes thattouched a dead animal: “Any vessel of whichsome use is made will be put in water, andit must be unclean until the evening and thenbe clean.”—Leviticus 11:31-34.

˘ Do not eat an animal that died of itself:“You must not eat any body already dead.”—Deuteronomy 14:21.

˘ Eat leftovers within a short period: “Onthe next day what is left of it also may be eat-en. But what is left of the flesh of the sacrificeon the third day is to be burned with fire.”—Leviticus 7:16-18.

A. Rendle Short, M.D., expressed surprisethat the Mosaic Law—compared with the con-temporary laws of surrounding nations—shouldcontain “so wise and reasonable a code ofrules of health.”

man-made problem. God’s promise is that hewill “bring to ruin those ruining the earth.”—Revelation 11:18.

The fact is, God has already proved thathe cares about the quality of our food. Heis the One who formed the earth and madetrees that were not only “desirable to one’ssight” but also “good for food.” (Genesis2:9) Even after sickness infected the humanfamily, Jehovah God gave his people specificguidelines that would protect their food andtheir bodies.—See the box “A Code of Rulesof Health.”

What kind of food does God want us toenjoy? The Bible tells us: “He is makinggreen grass sprout for the beasts, and vege-tation for the service of mankind, to causefood to go forth from the earth, and winethat makes the heart of mortal man rejoice,to make the face shine with oil, and breadthat sustains the very heart of mortal man.”(Psalm 104:14, 15) The Bible also states that“every moving animal that is alive may serveas food.”—Genesis 9:3.

Regarding our future, his Word promis-es: “He will certainly give the rain for yourseed with which you sow the ground, andas the produce of the ground bread, whichmust become fat and oily. Your livestock willgraze in that day in a spacious pasture.” (Isa-iah 30:23) Yes, today’s foreboding headlineswill soon be replaced by the announcement:“Healthful food for all!”

The Creator promises us abright future with plentyof good food

10 Awake! June 2012

1.Turtleinscene6.2.Froginscene1.3.19,000.4.B.ANSWERSTOPAGES30AND31

PEOPLE have long believed that the deadare capable of guiding the living. One an-

cient portrayal of this belief is found in a talewritten by the Greek poet Homer about Odys-seus, also known as Ulysses. Homer’s legend-ary hero, desperate to know how he could re-turn to his home island of Ithaca, venturedinto the underworld to consult a dead seer.

Hopeful of receiving answers from thedead to perplexing questions, many peoplehave consulted spirit mediums, slept in theirancestors’ tombs, or performed spiritisticrites. Is it really possible to obtain supernatu-ral guidance from the dead?

A Widespread Practice

Many of the world’s major religions teachthat communication with the departed is pos-sible. The Encyclopedia of Religion observesthat “necromancy, the art or practice of mag-ically conjuring up the souls of the dead, isprimarily a form of divination.” It then addsthat this practice is “widespread.” The NewCatholic Encyclopedia confirms this by statingthat “necromancy, in various forms, has had aworldwide distribution.” Little wonder, then,that some faithful in many religions have at-tempted to obtain knowledge from the spiritworld!

Although this contact with the dead “wasseverely condemned by the Church,” says the

New Catholic Encyclopedia, “repeated refer-ences are made to the practice in the MiddleAges and the Renaissance.” What does theBible say on those matters?

Should You Inquire of the Dead?

In ancient times, Jehovah God command-ed his people: “There should not be found inyou . . . anyone who inquires of the dead.”(Deuteronomy 18:9-13) Why would Jeho-vah make such a prohibition? If it were pos-sible for the living to talk with the dead, itwould be a loving thing on God’s part to al-low such communication, would it not? Butsimply put, such communication is not possi-ble. How do we know that?

The Scriptures repeatedly teach that thedead are unconscious. Consider Ecclesiastes9:5: “The living are conscious that they willdie; but as for the dead, they are consciousof nothing at all.” Psalm 146:3, 4, says: “Donot put your trust in nobles, nor in the sonof earthling man, to whom no salvation be-longs. His spirit goes out, he goes back to hisground; in that day his thoughts do perish.”And the prophet Isaiah likewise spoke of thedeceased as being “impotent in death.”—Isa-iah 26:14.

Numerous people believe, however, thatthrough the use of spiritistic practices, theyhave been able to contact dead loved ones.Such experiences are common, so it is ev-ident that many have spoken with someonefrom the spirit world. As the above scripturesshow, however, they have not spoken with thedead. With whom, then, have they spoken?

THEBIBLE’SVIEWPOINT

Can the DeadHelp the Living?

Awake! June 2012 11

Talking With Whom?

The Bible reveals that spirit sons of Godrebelled against their Maker and became de-mons. (Genesis 6:1-5; Jude 6, 7) These pro-mote the false idea that humans live on afterdeath. To further this untruth, they pretendto be dead persons by speaking to the livingfrom the spirit realm.

The Bible relates that King Saul of Israel,after being abandoned by Jehovah for disobe-dience, attempted to consult the dead proph-et Samuel through a spirit medium. Saul did

receive a message from the spirit world butnot from Samuel. Samuel, in fact, had refusedto see the king, and Samuel opposed spiritmediums. In reality, Saul received informa-tion from a demon who merely pretended tobe Samuel.—1 Samuel 28:3-20.

The demons are God’s enemies, and con-tact with them is dangerous. For this reason,the Scriptures command: “Do not turn your-selves to the spirit mediums, and do not con-sult professional foretellers of events, so asto become unclean by them.” (Leviticus 19:31) “Anyone who inquires of the dead,” warnsDeuteronomy 18:11, 12, is doing “somethingdetestable to Jehovah.” Indeed, among theother acts of unfaithfulness for which Jeho-vah put King Saul to death was Saul’s “ask-ing of a spirit medium to make inquiry.”—1 Chronicles 10:13, 14.

To whom, then, should you turn when youfeel the need for superior guidance, whenfaced with perplexing questions or choices?The Scriptures describe Jehovah God as the“Grand Instructor.” If you and your lovedones consult his Word, the Bible, and actuallypractice what it teaches, it will be as if “yourown ears will hear a word behind you saying:‘This is the way. Walk in it, you people.’ ” (Isa-iah 30:20, 21) Though Christians today donot expect to hear a literal voice from the trueGod, he can guide them by means of the Bi-ble. Yes, Jehovah himself is, as it were, saying:‘Let me be your guide.’

HAVE YOU WONDERED?

˘ How does God view attempts to contactthe dead?—Deuteronomy 18:9-13.

˘ Can the dead provide the living withknowledge? Why do you so answer?—Ecclesiastes 9:5.

˘ To whom may we confidently turn forguidance?—Isaiah 30:20, 21.

12

IN THE preceding article in this series, weconsidered three prophecies found in the

Bible regarding the offspring of Abraham.The evidence shows that God fulfilled thosepromises through the ancient nation of Isra-el, who were descendants of Abraham.

Ancient Babylon was another nation thatplayed an important role in Bible history, par-ticularly during the seventh century B.C.E.Let us consider three Bible prophecies con-

cerning this kingdom and see if they point toevidence of divine inspiration.

The prophet Moses warned the ancientpeople of Israel: “If you should at all forgetJehovah your God and . . . walk after other

THE BIBLEA BOOK OF ACCURATE PROPHECYP

ART

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Flee From Babylon!

This eight-part series in Awake! is examiningan outstanding feature of the Bible—itsprophecies, or predictions. The articles willhelp you to answer these questions: Are Bibleprophecies merely the work of clever humans?Do they bear the hallmark of divine inspiration?We invite you to weigh the evidence.

The Lachish Letterssupport Jeremiah’sdescription ofthe Babylonianconquest of Judah

T I M E L I N E O F B A B Y L O N

(B.C.E.)

647

632

625

617

607

c. 732 B.C.E.:Isaiah foretellsfall of Babylon

Jeremiahcommissionedas prophet

Babylonoverthrows

Assyria

Nebuchadnezzarbegins ruling

Daniel andEzekiel takento Babylon

NebuchadnezzardestroysJerusalem

gods and serve them and bow down to them,. . . you people will absolutely perish.” (Deu-teronomy 8:19; 11:8, 9) Still, the Israelites re-peatedly rebelled against God by turning toidol worship.—1 Kings 14:22-24.

In time, God’s patience ran out, and he al-lowed his wayward servants to fall into thehands of the Babylonians. Under King Nebu-chadnezzar—also spelled Nebuchadrez-zar—Babylon’s forces came against Israel,where they laid siege to Jerusalem. Was thissiege significant? Let us consider what theprophet Jeremiah wrote nearly 20 years be-fore the event occurred.—Jeremiah 25:1.��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Prophecy 1: “For the reason that you [theIsraelites] did not obey my [God’s] words, hereI am sending . . . to Nebuchadrezzar the kingof Babylon, . . . and I will bring them [theBabylonians] against this land and against itsinhabitants . . . And all this land must becomea devastated place, an object of astonishment,and these nations will have to serve the king ofBabylon seventy years.”—Jeremiah 25:8-11.��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Fulfillment: After an extended siege, Nebu-chadnezzar sacked Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E.He also conquered other Judean cities, in-cluding Lachish and Azekah. (Jeremiah 34:6, 7) He deported most of the survivors toBabylon, where they were held captive for 70years.

What history reveals:

˘ The Bible identifies Nebuchadnezzar asbeing the king of Babylon about the time ofJerusalem’s destruction. Archaeological evi-dence supports the Bible’s testimony abouthis existence. A cameo made of onyx stoneis on display in Florence, Italy. It bears aninscription that says in part: “In honour ofMerodach, his lord, Nebuchadnezzar, king ofBabylon, in his life-time had this made.” Neb-uchadnezzar ruled from 624 to 582 B.C.E.

˘ The book The Bible and Archaeology saysthat excavations and surveys in Lachish con-firm the following: “The final destruction wasviolent, and so fierce was the fire which de-stroyed the city [Lachish] that the limestoneof the buildings turned to lime.”��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Prophecy 2: “In accord with the fulfilling ofseventy years at Babylon I [Jehovah] shall turnmy attention to you people [the Jewish exiles],and I will establish toward you my good wordin bringing you back to this place [the land ofJudah].”—Jeremiah 29:10.��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Page

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The Cyrus Cylinder recordsCyrus’ policy of returningcaptives to their homelands

582

539

537

Nebuchadnezzar’srule ends

Babylon falls tothe Medes and

the Persians

Jewish captivesallowed to returnto Jerusalem

Jews held captive in Babylon for 70 years

14 Awake! June 2012

Fulfillment: After 70 years of exile, from607 to 537 B.C.E., King Cyrus of Persia re-leased the Jewish captives and allowed themto return to their homeland to rebuild the tem-ple in Jerusalem.—Ezra 1:2-4.

What history reveals:

˘ Did the Israelites remain captive in Bab-ylon for 70 years as the Bible foretold? Notethe comments of a leading Israeli archaeol-ogist, Ephraim Stern. “From 604 B.C.E. to538 B.C.E.—there is a complete gap in evi-dence suggesting occupation. In all thattime, not a single town destroyed by theBabylonians was resettled.” The so-calledgap in which there was no occupation or re-settling of conquered territory correspondsclosely to Israel’s exile in Babylon from 607to 537 B.C.E.—2 Chronicles 36:20, 21.

˘ Ancient nations throughout Mesopota-mia wrote on tablets made of soft clay. Onehardened clay tablet, known as the Cyrus Cyl-inder, dates back to about 539 B.C.E., thesame year that King Cyrus of Persia over-threw the Babylonian Empire. One inscrip-tion reads: “I am Cyrus, . . . king of Babylon.”The same inscription goes on to report: “I re-turned to [certain previously named] sacredcities on the other side of the Tigris, the sanc-tuaries of which have been ruins for a longtime, the images which (used) to live there-in . . . I (also) gathered all their (former) in-habitants and returned (to them) their habita-tions.”

This secular source harmonizes with theBible prophecy that states that the Jewish ex-iles would be repatriated to their homeland—a prophecy recorded about 200 years in ad-vance.��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Prophecy 3: “Babylon, the decoration ofkingdoms, the beauty of the pride of theChaldeans, must become as when God over-threw Sodom and Gomorrah. She will neverbe inhabited.”—Isaiah 13:19, 20.��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Fulfillment: In a shocking turn of events,the mighty world power of Babylon fell be-fore a combined army of Medes and Persiansin 539 B.C.E.� The city never fully recovered.Rather, it slowly declined and eventually be-came a desolate waste “without an inhabi-tant.”—Jeremiah 51:37.

What history reveals:

˘ Babylon’s disappearance was so com-plete that scholar Tom Boiy speaks about“Western historians and travellers from thesixteenth until eighteenth century” who werefamiliar with the city’s symbolic value buthad problems identifying “the exact loca-tion.”

˘ In 1919, H. R. Hall, the keeper of Egyp-tian and Assyrian Antiquities at the BritishMuseum, described Babylon in this way: “Itis a chaos of tumbled walls . . . overwhelmedwith sand.”

What can we conclude from our examina-tion of the fulfillment of these prophecies? Itshould be clear that time and again the Biblehas proved to be a book of accurate prophecy.The prophetic messages regarding Judah andBabylon were fulfilled exactly as foretold!

Jerusalem suffered destruction because thepeople did not heed the divine warnings to re-ject ungodly conduct. After the foretold 70years of captivity in Babylon, the Israeliteswere allowed to return home to Jerusalem.The ancient city of Babylon was destroyedin the manner that was described, and it re-mains uninhabited down to this day. Butthese are only a few of the many propheciesfound in the Bible.

Our next issue will discuss how events inthe first century C.E. were foretold long inadvance. Those fulfilled prophecies alsobuild our confidence in the accuracy of theBible.� That Media would play a leading role in the conquest of

Babylon was also foretold by Isaiah some 200 years in advance.—See Isaiah 13:17-19; 21:2.

Awake! June 2012 15

Mark the following statement true or false:I shouldn’t have friends of the opposite

sex until I’m ready for a serious relationshipthat could lead to marriage.

��� TRUE ��� FALSE

Consider: Although he wasn’t looking toget married, Jesus had friends of the oppo-site sex. (Matthew 12:46-50; Luke 8:1-3) Evi-dently, so did the single man Timothy, for theapostle Paul told him to treat “younger wom-en as sisters with all chasteness.”—1 Timothy5:1, 2.

Paul must have realized that as Timothyserved in various congregations, he wouldmeet a number of young women. (Mark 10:29, 30) Would it be wrong for Timothy to so-cialize with them? No. But since he wasn’tpursuing marriage yet, Timothy would need

to set boundaries so that he wouldn’t get ro-mantically involved, certainly not flirting withthose young women or otherwise toying withtheir feelings.—Luke 6:31.

What about you? Are you in a position topursue marriage?

If YES 4 Your friendships with membersof the opposite sex may well lead to finding alifelong mate.—Proverbs 18:22; 31:10.

If NO 4 You need to set boundaries. (Jere-miah 17:9) Easier said than done? Absolute-ly! “It’s difficult to maintain a just-friends rela-tionship,” says 18-year-old Nia.� “It’s not easyto know where to draw the line.”

Why do you need to draw a line at all? Be-cause if you don’t, you’re bound to get hurt orhurt others. Consider why.� Some names in this article have been changed.

YOUNGPEOPLEASK

Are we just friends—or more?PART 1

DIDAPARTICULARPERSONCOME TOMINDWHENYOUREADTHE ABOVE TITLE?

YES

READ THIS ARTICLEIMMEDIATELY. YOUMAY NEED IT MORETHAN YOU REALIZE.

NO

READ THIS ARTICLEANYWAY. IT WILL HELPYOU TO KEEP YOURFRIENDSHIPS WITHTHE OPPOSITE SEXABOVEBOARD ANDPROBLEM FREE.

FACT OF LIFE: When you get emotionally involvedbefore you’re ready for a serious relationship,someone will get hurt. “It happened to me twice,”says 19-year-old Kelli. “One time I developed feelingsfor a boy, and the other time a boy started having feel-ings for me. Both times someone got hurt, and it hasleft me with scars that I carry to this day.”

To think about:˘ In what settings would it be proper for you to so-

cialize with members of the opposite sex? What set-tings would you do well to avoid?

˘ Why is it unwise to pair off with the same personrepeatedly? What might the other person assume?What might you assume?

“At times, I have lied to myself, saying, ‘Oh, we’re justfriends. He’s like a brother to me.’ But then when hemoves on, I feel hurt—as if he owed me something.”—De-nise.

The Bible says: “Sensible people will see troublecoming and avoid it, but an unthinking person willwalk right into it and regret it later.”—Proverbs 22:3,Good News Translation.

Getting emotionally involved when you’renot ready for a serious relationship willlead to disaster

TRUE STORY: “I texteda friend of mine who livesabout a thousand miles(over 1,500 km) away. Wetexted each other perhapsonce a week. I wasn’t inter-ested in him romantically,and I didn’t think he wasinterested in me either. Then,one day he sent me a textthat read: ‘Hey, beautiful!I miss you. What have youbeen up to?’ I was stunned!I told him that I viewed ourrelationship as just friendsand that I wasn’t interestedin him romantically. Hetexted back, ‘Whatever.’ Andthen he never texted meagain.”—Janette.

˘ If you’re not in a positionto be in a serious relation-ship or are not inclined tobe in one, how would yourespond if you received a textmessage similar to the onesJanette received?

˘ If you are a boy, do youthink the text messages sentto Janette were appropriate?Why, or why not?

˘ In your opinion, doestexting make it easier to getemotionally involved thanface-to-face discussions do?Why, or why not?

WHAT WOULDYOU DO?

FACT OF LIFE: When you get emotionally involvedbefore you’re ready for a serious relationship, youcan lose a good friendship. “A boy and I would texteach other,” recalls 16-year-old Kati, “but soon he be-gan flirting and we were texting each other almostevery day. Then one day he told me how much heliked me and that he wanted to be more than justfriends. The problem was, I didn’t like him in a ro-mantic way at all. After I told him that, we seldomtalked, and our friendship ended.”

To think about:˘ Who got hurt in Kati’s case, and why? Could

Kati or the boy have prevented a negative outcome?If so, how?

˘ When texting, in what ways could a person un-wittingly give the impression that he or she would liketo be more than just a friend?

“Sometimes I’ve had to pull myself back. Boys can begreat friends, but I didn’t want to mess up the friendshipby being more than that.”—Laura.

The Bible says: “Smart people watch their step.”—Proverbs 14:15, Good News Translation.

The bottom line: Socializing with members of theopposite sex isn’t wrong in itself. But if you’re notready for a serious relationship that could lead to mar-riage, you need to set boundaries.

IN THE NEXT “YOUNG PEOPLE ASK” . . .

Getting emotionally involved before you’re readyfor a serious relationship can damage your reputation—find out how.

WHY NOT ASK YOUR PARENTS?

Ask your parents for their thoughts on thebulleted questions in this article. Do theiropinions differ from yours? If so, how? Whatmerit can you see in their point of view?—Proverbs 11:14.

More articles from the “Young People Ask” series can befound at the Web site www.watchtower.org/ype

WHAT YOURPEERS SAY

Joshua—The moretime you spend withthe same person, themore likely you are tobecome attached.

Natasha—If you intendto be just friends but youregularly hang out withjust one particular per-son, romantic feelingswill get stirred up inone or both of you.

Kelsey—Even if youstart out as just friends,it’s easy for feelingsto change if you spenda lot of time together.It’s not impossible tobe just friends, but ittakes maturity anddiscernment.

Awake! June 2012 17

˘ Many sea creatures are bioluminescent—that is, able to produce light. The clus-terwink snail uses this ability in a uniqueway. When threatened by a predatorcrab, the clusterwink retreats into its shelland “flashes,” producing flickers of lightthat scare off the crab. But how does lightshine through the snail’s shell?

Consider: Far from being a barrier,the shell of the clusterwink snail diffuseslight. Dimitri Deheyn and Nerida Wilson,scientists at the Scripps Institution ofOceanography in San Diego, California,U.S.A., found that the light produced bythe snail is uniformly spread through-out the entire shell, and the shell diffusesthe light ten times more efficiently thana commercial diffuser of the same thick-ness (.02 inch; 0.5 mm). At the sametime, the shell’s ability to transmit thislight to its surroundings is eight timesmore efficient than man-made diffusers.Surprisingly, this extraordinary capabilityto diffuse or transmit light is not found

in the shells of closely related nonbiolumi-nescent marine snails. Not coincidentally,this light happens to be the color thattravels the farthest in seawater.

Dr. Deheyn says that learning aboutthe clusterwink snail “could be importantfor building materials with better opticalperformance.” The field of biophotonics,which uses light for medical analysisand treatment, also stands to benefitfrom such research. And in this era oflight-emitting diodes, diffusers capableof more efficiently amplifying smalllight sources will doubtless contributeto energy savings.

What do you think? Did the shellof the clusterwink snail come about byevolution? Or was it designed?

WAS IT DESIGNED?

The Shell of theClusterwink Snail

+

Magnified viewof the shell

in normal light

+

Magnified view ofthe shell flashing

diffused light

Left: www.robastra.com; center and right:Courtesy of Dr. D. Deheyn, Scripps Institutionof Oceanography, UC San Diego

Awake! June 2012 19

IENTERED the world in 1976 in a dirt-floorhut in the mountains of East Timor, then

a part of Indonesia. I was the eighth of tenchildren born to poverty-stricken parents. Be-cause my parents could not feed us all, theykept my identical twin brother and asked mycousin to raise me.

In December 1975, just before I was born,Indonesia invaded East Timor, and that trig-gered a guerrilla war that lasted over twodecades. Thus, my earliest memories are ofviolence and suffering. I vividly remembersoldiers attacking our village and forcing allto flee for their lives. My cousin and I trekkedto a lonely mountainside where thousands ofTimorese had sought refuge.

The soldiers, however, discovered our hide-out, and soon enemy bombs rained down onus. I have horrible memories of the terror,death, and destruction that followed. Whenwe finally returned to our village, I lived inconstant dread. Many of our neighbors dis-appeared or were killed, and I feared I mightbe next.

When I was ten, my cousin fell sick anddied, so my parents sent me to live with my

grandmother. She was a widow, who was em-bittered with life and viewed me as a burden.She worked me like a slave. One day, whenI was too sick to work, she beat me and leftme to die. Fortunately, one of my uncles tookme to live with his family.

At age 12, I finally startedschool. Soon afterward, myuncle’s wife fell ill and my un-cle became severely depressed.Not wanting to burden themfurther, I ran away and at-tached myself to a group of In-donesian soldiers based in thejungle. I became their help-er—washing clothes, cookingfood, and cleaning camp. Theytreated me well, and I felt need-ed. But after several months,my relatives found me andpressured the soldiers to re-turn me to my village.

Political Activist

After finishing high school,I moved to the capital ofEast Timor, Dili, and entered

I Found TrueLove and Peace

AS TOLD BY EGIDIO NAHAKBRIA

I grew up feeling abandoned and unloved.

Yet, now I feel loved and have genuine

inner peace. How did this transformation

take place? Let me explain.

Egidio as apolitical activist

20 Awake! June 2012

a university. There I met many youths withbackgrounds similar to mine. We concludedthat the only way to achieve national indepen-dence and social change would be throughpolitical action. Our student group orga-nized many political demonstrations, most ofwhich ended up in riots. Many of my friendswere injured. Some were even killed.

When East Timor gained independence in2002, the country lay in ruins, tens of thou-sands of people had died, and hundreds ofthousands had been displaced. I hoped thatconditions would improve. But widespreadunemployment, poverty, and ongoing politi-cal upheaval continued.

A New Direction

At that time, I was living with some rel-atives, including a distant younger relativenamed Andre, who was studying the Biblewith Jehovah’s Witnesses. As a devout Ro-man Catholic, I was not happy that my rela-tive was involved with another religion. Still,I was curious about the Bible and occasional-ly read the copy Andre kept in his bedroom.What I read stirred my interest further.

When, in 2004, Andre gave me a printed in-vitation to the Memorial of Jesus’ death, I de-cided to attend. Misreading the invitation, Iarrived at the meeting place two hours ear-ly. When the Witnesses arrived, including lo-cals as well as foreigners, they warmly shookmy hand and made me feel welcome. I wasimpressed. During the Memorial discourse, Inoted each cited scripture in a notebook andlater checked them in my Catholic Bible tosee if what the speaker said was true. It was!

The following week, I attended Mass at mychurch. Because some others and I arrivedlate, the priest grabbed a piece of wood andangrily drove us out of the church. As westood outside, the priest ended the service bysaying to the congregation, “May the peace ofJesus go with you.” One brave woman calledout, “How can you talk of peace when you just

drove those people out of the church?” Thepriest ignored her. I left the church and neverreturned.

Soon afterward, I began studying the Bibleand attending Witness meetings along withAndre. Our relatives were alarmed and beganto oppose us. Andre’s grandmother warnedus: “I will dig a hole to bury you boys in if youcontinue to study with that new religion.” Herthreats, however, did not deter us. We weredetermined to make spiritual progress.

Making Changes

As I studied the Bible, I began to feel thatI had never really known love. I was toughand defensive and found it hard to trust peo-ple. The Witnesses, though, took a genuine in-terest in me. When I fell very sick and my rel-atives ignored me, the Witnesses visited meand helped me. Their love was not “just wordsand talk” but “true love, which shows itselfin action.”—1 John 3:18, Today’s English Ver-sion.

Despite my rough appearance and disposi-tion, the Witnesses treated me with “fellowfeeling” and “brotherly affection.” (1 Peter3:8) For the first time in my life, I beganto feel loved. My personality softened, andI began to develop love for God and my fel-low man. Consequently, in December 2004,I symbolized my dedication to Jehovah by wa-ter baptism. Andre was baptized soon after-ward.

Blessings Amid Troubles

Following my baptism, I felt a burning de-sire to help other people who had neverknown true love or justice. Therefore, I tookup the full-time Christian ministry, or pio-neering, as Jehovah’s Witnesses call it. Shar-ing the Bible’s upbuilding message was farmore refreshing than sharing in political dem-onstrations and riots. At last, I was truly help-ing people!

In 2006, political and regional tensions inEast Timor erupted again. Factional groups

Awake! June 2012 21

battled over long-standing grievances. Thecity of Dili came under siege, and many east-erners fled for their lives. Along with oth-er Witnesses, I escaped to Baucau, a largetown about 70 miles (120 km) east of Dili.There our ordeal turned into a blessing, sincewe were able to establish a new congregation—the first one outside Dili.

Three years later, in 2009, I received an in-vitation to attend a special school for full-time Christian ministers in Jakarta, Indone-sia. The Witnesses in Jakarta took me intotheir homes and their hearts. Their genuinelove deeply impressed me. I sensed I was partof a global “association of brothers,” an in-ternational “family,” who truly cared for me.—1 Peter 2:17.

Peace at Last!

After the school, I returned to Baucau,where I still live. Here I delight in helping

people spiritually, just as others once helpedme. For example, in one isolated village out-side Baucau, I and others teach the Bible toabout 20 people, including many older oneswho cannot read or write. The entire groupattends weekly meetings, and three indi-viduals have joined our spiritual “family” asbaptized members of the Christian congrega-tion.

Several years ago, I met Felizarda, a warm-hearted girl who accepted Bible truth andrapidly progressed to baptism. We married in2011. I am happy to say that Andre, my rela-tive, serves at the East Timor office of Jeho-vah’s Witnesses. Even most of my relatives,including Andre’s grandmother, who oncewanted to bury us, now respect my faith.

In the past, I felt angry, unloved, and un-lovable. But thanks to Jehovah, at last I havefound true love and peace!

Egidio and Felizardaalong with members ofthe Baucau Congregation,East Timor

22 Awake! June 2012

BATIK has been around for ages, yet it isnot old-fashioned. Royalty wear it at fan-

cy receptions, as do traders at local market-places. It is beautiful, colorful, and incrediblyvaried. But what is batik? How is it made?Where did it originate? And how is it used to-day?

Batik is a fabric with an ancient history.The Batik design is made by using a specialdye-resistant technique and has become anintegral part of Indonesian life and culture.Similar fabrics are popular the world over.

A Marriage of Dye and Wax

A craftsperson produces a piece of batikcloth by using a small copper tool filled withliquid wax to draw by hand an intricate de-sign on a piece of fabric. When the wax is dry,the fabric is dyed. Waxed parts keep their nat-ural color, unaffected by the dye. The processis often repeated using various colored dyesto create vivid designs.

In the mid-19th century, Batik artisansused copper stamps to apply the wax. Thismethod was faster than using the handheldtool and could be used to produce identi-cal pieces of fabric. During the 20th century,commercial factories started to screen printthe design on the fabric. Handmade batik canstill be purchased. However, the industriallyprinted batik now dominates the market.

Cotton or silk is usually used to make ba-tik. Dyes are made from locally grown leaves,

wood, bark, and spices, although synthet-ic dyes are also used. Before wax was intro-duced, vegetable pastes, animal fats, and evenmud were used to create patterns. Nowadays,the wax is often synthetic. Yet, a mixture ofparaffin and beeswax is still used.

Long History—Bright Future

No one knows exactly when and where ba-tik was made for the first time. In China,some fragments of batik date back to thesixth century C.E. It is still unclear when thetechnique became known in Indonesia, butby the 17th century, there was evidence of abatik trade to and from Indonesia.

In recent decades, batik has gained greaterpopularity and has become a symbol of In-donesian national identity. In 2009, in recog-nition of batik’s long history in Indonesia andits impact on local culture, UNESCO listedbatik as part of the country’s “Intangible Cul-tural Heritage of Humanity.”

Batik Attire

There are traditional ways of wearing, fold-ing, and making batik that are influenced bylocal beliefs and superstitions. Many of In-donesia’s provinces have their own typical ba-tik colors and motifs. Batik from the northcoast of Java, for example, is brightly colored,often having motifs of flowers, birds, and oth-er animals. However, batik from central Javausually has a narrower color range, and the

BatikINDONESIA’SFABULOUS FABRIC

motifs are often geometric designs. There aresome 3,000 recorded batik patterns.

A traditional batik garment is the selen-dang, which is a shawl or carrying cloth hungover the shoulder and worn by women. Wom-en often carry a baby or items bought at themarket in it. But the shawl is also used to cov-er the head on a hot day.

Men use a traditional head covering callediket kepala. The square batik cloth is tiedaround the head to form a turban. It is oftenconsidered as formal dress for ceremonies.

Another popular garment made of batik isa rectangular cloth wrapped around the body,called a sarong. Sometimes the two ends ofthis cloth are sewn together to form a tube. Atypical sarong is worn around the legs andtucked in at the waist, resembling a looseskirt. The sarong is worn by both men andwomen.

Batik fabric is used for almost any style ofclothing, from casual trousers to glamorousgowns. But the fabric is also used for paint-ings, wall hangings, tablecloths, bedspreads,and so forth. Tourists strolling through anIndonesian market may find batik-style bags,sandals, lampshades, and even laptop covers.The variety is almost endless—a fabulous fab-ric indeed!

A small copper tool filled with liquid wax isused to draw an intricate design by hand

The fabric with the wax design isrepeatedly dipped into the dye

Batik Attire1. Selendang2. Iket kepala3. Sarong

DO YOU enjoy watching a good soccermatch—or perhaps even participating in

one? If so, likely you are aware of the UEFA(Union of European Football Associations)EURO 2012 games, which are scheduled tokick off in Warsaw, Poland, on June 8, withthe concluding match to be held on July 1, inKiev, Ukraine. What is EURO 2012, and whatpreparations have gone into it? What makesit a historic event?

“Creating History Together”

European football (soccer) championshipshave been held in Europe every four yearssince 1960. Among the diverse countries thathave hosted these matches are Austria, Bel-gium, England, France, Germany, Italy, the

Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Swit-zerland, and Yugoslavia.

This year, the final tournament will bejointly hosted by Poland and Ukraine. In Po-land, the cities of Gdansk, Poznan, Warsaw,and Wroclaw will host the games. In Ukraine,matches will play out in Donetsk, Kharkiv,Kiev, and L’viv.

According to UEFA, this “will be the thirdtime that the final tournament is jointlyhosted by two countries (after Belgium/

EURO2012A HISTORIC EVENT

P O L A N D

Gda´nsk

Poznan WARSAW

Wroclaw

U K R A I N E

L’viv

KIEV

Kharkiv

Donetsk

EURO 2008 final match between Germany and Spain, held at theErnst Happel Stadium in Vienna, Austria

Netherlands in 2000 [and] Austria/Switzer-land in 2008).” Even so, the EURO 2012 ishistoric. In what sense? This year’s final tour-nament is not only the culmination of muchcollaboration between the two host countriesand the match’s organizers but also the firstto be held in Central and Eastern Europe.Thus, the official slogan selected for thisyear’s event is “Creating History Together.”

Preparations

Of course, one of the most important prep-arations for any match is obtaining adequateplaying facilities. To that end, the host citiesof Poznan and Kharkiv have renovated exist-ing stadiums, while the stadiums in the othersix cities are completely new. These facilitieswill hold an estimated 358,000 spectators.

With so many spectators anticipated, thehost cities have put much thought and effortinto safety precautions. Thousands of securi-ty staff have been training for the event. Ac-cording to Science & Scholarship in Poland,their training included “practicing safety tac-tics on 140 projects covering . . . crowd con-trol, creating safety zones and cooperationwith foreign security teams.”

Why are such measures necessary? Forone thing, authorities recognize that largesporting events are potential targets for ter-rorist activity. They also know that rowdyspectators often pose a threat to one another,as past incidents of violence and hooliganismhave revealed.

A Balanced Viewpoint

Sadly, many spectators take their interestin sports to an extreme. “My life is less happyand less fulfilled if my [soccer] team is doingbadly,” states one fan. “I honestly believe thatif nuclear war [were] a distinct possibility, mybiggest worry would be if the next weekend’smatches would be affected.”

By contrast, consider the balanced view ofrecreation that we find in an ancient book ofwisdom—the Bible. It acknowledges the val-ue of wholesome diversion in life, stating thatthere is “a time to laugh . . . and a time to skipabout.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-4) The Bible alsoencourages moderation. (1 Timothy 3:2, 11)Thus, when deciding what to center our liveson, we are wise to follow the Bible’s advice to“see the difference between what is importantand what is not” and then to “choose whatis important.”—Philippians 1:10, Easy-to-ReadVersion.

Olympic Stadium in Kiev, Ukraine

Pages

24

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On October 20, 2011, UEFA announcedthat it will “enforce a complete ban on theuse, sale or promotion of tobacco in allstadia involved in UEFA EURO 2012.” Thereason for the ban? “A tobacco-free EURO2012 is about respecting the health ofour spectators and everyone else involvedin the tournament,” stated Michel Platini,president of UEFA. Among supportersof the ban are European CommissionerAndroulla Vassiliou, who urged host citiesto extend the smoke-free zone to includeadditional areas, such as restaurants andpublic transportation. “Football and sportare about health and performance,” statesVassiliou, “and tobacco is about the oppo-site: they just don’t mix.”

NO TOBACCO AT EURO 2012

Awake! June 2012 25

SEVERAL friends have invited my wifeand me to share a meal in a quiet neigh-

borhood in Bangui, the capital of the CentralAfrican Republic.

“Come in! I hope you’re hungry!” they sayto us as we arrive. Even before we enter,we smell enticing aromas of onions, garlic,and spices and hear the noisy chatter of ourfriends. Our host, Ella, entertains us with talkof the meal to come.

“Insects are an important source of proteinfor many in Central Africa,” Ella says. “Butwe don’t eat them because we have to; we eatthem because they taste so good.” She adds,“Today we will be eating makongo—caterpil-lars.”

We should not have been surprised.Though insects on the dinner plate may notappeal to all tastes, in well over a hundred

countries, some insects are considered a deli-cacy.

A Feast in the Forest

Avariety of insects are eaten in the CentralAfrican Republic. During the rainy season,termites called bobo swarm around termitemounds or, in urban areas, around electriclights. After an evening storm, children runto collect them by the basketful—often, toss-ing them in their mouth with shrieks of de-light. Termites are eaten sun dried, roastedwith salt, and spiced with hot pepper, or theymay be boiled in stews or dumplings.

Kindagozo refers to green grasshoppersthat arrive in the area in the dry season. Cen-tral Africans roast grasshoppers or simmerthem in water after the insects’ legs and wingshave been removed.

Edible InsectsA Meal We Will Not Forget

Awake! June 2012 27

Several species of caterpillar are also eat-en throughout the country. We were invitedto enjoy the larvae of the Imbrasia. A largebrown moth lays its eggs in sapelli trees. Af-ter the caterpillars are hatched, villagers col-lect and wash them. The caterpillars are thensimmered with tomatoes, onions, and oth-er ingredients according to a family’s recipe.Some may be dried or smoked for preserva-tion. They can also be kept for up to threemonths for later use.

Safe and Good for People

Although not all insects are edible, manyare safe when harvested from areas free ofpesticides and fertilizers and prepared prop-erly. Of course, as a precaution, they shouldbe avoided by those allergic to the insects’marine counterparts, crustaceans, which arealso arthropods. In contrast to most shellfish,which scavenge for decaying matter, most edi-ble insects eat only clean leaves and consumeplants that humans might otherwise be un-able to digest.

Caterpillars have an amazing amount ofnutrition concentrated in a deceptively smallpackage. According to the Food and Agri-culture Organization of the United Nations,dried caterpillars contain more than doublethe protein of beef. Food experts are rediscov-ering insects as a source of nourishment indeveloping lands.

Depending on the species of caterpillareaten, just 3.5 ounces (100 g) can provide alarge part of the daily requirements of suchimportant minerals as calcium, iron, magne-sium, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc, aswell as many vitamins. Additionally, flourmade from ground caterpillars can be mixedinto a pulp to supplement the diet of under-nourished children.

Besides their nutritional value, there areother benefits to entomophagy—the practiceof eating insects. Using insects for food is en-vironmentally friendly. Doing so requires lit-tle water and produces few greenhouse gasemissions. Added to that, collecting insectsfor food is a natural means of pest control.

The Main Course

As we anticipated this special meal, we re-membered that the Law covenant given to theancient nation of Israel declared locusts to beclean. Servants of the true God, such as Johnthe Baptist, ate them. (Leviticus 11:22; Mat-thew 3:4; Mark 1:6) Still, we may initially hes-itate to eat something that we are not accus-tomed to eating.

Ella returned from the kitchen with asteaming entree that grabbed everyone’s at-tention. With us were eight Central Africanswith beaming smiles, and before us were twolarge bowls of caterpillars. As visitors, we re-ceived the honor of being served first, andgenerously so.

We can say: “If you are privileged to enjoysuch an inexpensive, delicious, and nutritiousmeal, do not hesitate! It is a meal you will nev-er forget.”

Uncooked “makongo”—caterpillars

Prepared “kindagozo”—grasshoppers

How Many Species on Earth?“We are still remarkably uncertain as to how many

species exist, highlighting a significant gap in our ba-sic knowledge of life on Earth,” say scientists whose re-search appears in the journal PLoS Biology. Althoughtheir estimate is 8.7 million species of living things, giveor take a million or so, other experts put the figure any-where between 3 million and 100 million. So far, onlyabout 1.2 million of those species have been classified,and it is believed that at the present rate, it could takeover 1,000 years to catalog the remainder. “This slow ad-vance in the description of species will lead to speciesbecoming extinct before we know they even existed,” saythe researchers.

Archaeology by SatelliteArchaeologists are using a new method to locate sites

of interest to them. They are employing analytic tools tointerpret pictures taken by high-resolution and infraredsatellite photography. Images taken from 440 miles(700 km) above Egypt, for example, are reported to haverevealed the locations of 17 previously unknown pyra-mids, 1,000 ancient tombs, and some 3,000 lost settle-ments. Because infrared photography is capable of pen-etrating the earth’s surface, the technology is revealingoutlines of long-forgotten and buried structures, whichare invisible on the ground.

WATCHING THE WORLD

Theworld’s populationsurpassed 7 billionin late 2011, “up from6 billion in 1999.”—HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC

HEALTH, U.S.A.

“Overall, 58.8% of people inthe [United Kingdom] saidthey felt that their familywould benefit fromhaving technology-freetime where all communica-tions are switched off. . . .One in three people has feltoverwhelmed to the point ofneeding to escape from com-munications technologies.”—UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, BRITAIN.

“Since 1976, the conferenceof America’s Catholic bishopshas issued statements . . .before each presidential elec-tion year to help Catho-lics apply their faith totheir political choices.”—FORDHAM UNIVERSITY, U.S.A.

“If sufficient numbersof criminals want tocreate havoc on thestreets, they can. . . .A moral malaise has grippeda minority of young Britons,a subgroup that is neverthe-less big enough to terroriseand humiliate the country.”—THE ECONOMIST, BRITAIN.

Awake! June 2012 29

Hospice Care—What Is the Goal? (July 2011) As a social wel-fare assistant, I trained at a hospice, and I can personally verifythat what you say in the July 2011 Awake! is true. Facilities thatare fully prepared to care for the terminally ill are necessary in theworld in which we live. I eagerly await God’s government to come,when no one will say, “I am sick,” and God will dry the tears fromour eyes.—Isaiah 33:24; Revelation 21:3, 4. M. R., Italy

I was a little disappointed and dismayed to see “adult diapers”mentioned in the article. The term is very demeaning to anyonewho is in the situation of having to wear protective underwear.Not one of the commercial packages containing “protective helps”uses the word diaper. Name withheld, United States

“Awake!” responds: Thank you for bringing this point to our atten-tion. Our heart goes out to anyone who is dealing with serious healthproblems, and we certainly do not want to add to a person’s sufferingby using terms that some may consider to be demeaning. We apolo-gize for any distress this may have caused our readers.

Young People Ask . . . What Should I KnowAbout Social Networking? (July 2011)Thank you for this article. I am 26 yearsold. I had been planning to open a [socialnetworking] account, not because I wantedto have more friends, but because many wereencouraging me to do so. This article helpedme a lot. You can gain friends without be-longing to a social networking site.

M. P., PhilippinesI expected the article to present a negative

view of social networking. But the article wasbalanced. It looked at the positive and neg-ative aspects and provided advice on how wecan protect ourselves from the potential dan-gers of social networks. It impressed on mymind the need to use caution when postingpersonal information on the Internet.

C. W., United States

Secrets of Family Success (October 2009)This special issue has been a great help toour family. I especially enjoyed the boxes“Try this exercise” that were provided witheach of the seven secrets. The specific sug-gestions that were offered have already beenput to use in my family. H. H., KoreaFor Family Review Thank you very much forthis regular feature. Our six-year-old daughterenjoys the Children’s Picture Search and es-pecially likes coloring the pictures. These ar-ticles accentuate the parents’ role in train-ing their children from a very early age. Thework that you are doing for the little ones isinvaluable. M. P., Poland

FROM OUR READERS

FOR FAMILY REVIEW

WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM . . .

Adam and Eve?HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TEMPTED TO TAKESOMETHING THAT DID NOT BELONG TO YOU?

˙ Color the pictures. ˙ Read the Bible verses,and explain them as you fill in the missingdialogue. ˙ Find the hidden items—(1) a turtleand (2) a frog.

˘ “FOR FAMILY REVIEW” answers on page 10

GENESIS 2:16

GENESIS 2:17GENESIS 3:4

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

GENESIS 3:6

LATER, GOD ASKEDIF THEY HAD EATENFROM THE TREE.—GENESIS 3:11

GENESIS 3:12 ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

GENESIS 3:13 ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝ ˝

BECAUSE ADAM AND EVE STOLE FROM HIM,GOD CAST THEM OUT OF THE GARDEN ANDTHEY BEGAN TO DIE.—GENESIS 3:14-24

Why should Adam and Eve havehonored God by obeying him?CLUE: Revelation 4:11.What resulted from their stealing?CLUE: Romans 5:12.What do you learn from this account?

What do you think? Who caused thesnake to talk? CLUE: Revelation 12:9.

To print out additional copies of “ForFamily Review,” go to www.jw.org

Awake! June 2012 31

Collect and Learn Cut out, fold in half, and saveJO

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J O S I A H

PROFILE Though his father, Amon, wasbad, Josiah did “what was right in Jeho-vah’s eyes.” (2 Chronicles 34:2) He choseto listen to those who loved God ratherthan to those who were bad association.His humility and appreciation for true wor-ship brought him God’s favor.—2 Kings 22:19; 23:24, 25.

QUESTIONS

A. Josiah became king at age ��������and ruled for �������� years.

B. Which two prophets had a goodinfluence on Josiah?

C. What did the priest find inside thetemple when Josiah had workers repair“the house of Jehovah”?

ANSWERS

A. 8, 31.—2 Chronicles 34:1.

B. Jeremiah and Zephaniah.—Jeremiah 1:1, 2; Zephaniah 1:1.

C. “The book of Jehovah’s law,” writtenby Moses.—2 Chronicles 34:14-18.

Peoples and Lands3. Our names are Sash, aged 9, and Rosette, aged 8.We live in Rwanda. About how many of Jehovah’s Wit-nesses live in Rwanda? Is it 19,000, 47,500, or77,500?

4. Which dot shows where we live? Circle it, drawa dot where you live, and see how close you are toRwanda.

Children’sPicture SearchCan you find these pictures inthis issue? In your own words,describe what is happening ineach picture.

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www.jw.org g12 06-E

˘ Last year the book QuestionsYoung People Ask—Answers ThatWork, Volume I, was released. Onpage 180, it explains Proverbs 24:16,which says that a righteous one mayfall seven times and get up. This wasa great help to a young person whosaid: “The illustration on that pageshowed me that my progress is no-ticed by God. . . . This book made merealize that I can make my prayersmore specific and ask God to helpme with my feelings of worthlessness.In turn, I will be able to pray to himbefore giving in to temptation andthereby conquer my bad habit.

“I have confidence that even thoughI have fallen more than 77 times overthe years, I will overcome my prob-lem. I no longer feel that I’m the worstsinner to walk the planet.”

You may request a copy of thisbook by filling in the accompanyingcoupon and mailing it to an appropri-ate address listed on page 5 of thismagazine.

It Helped MeConquer a Bad Habit

Q Without obligation,I request a copy of thebook shown here.Indicate which language.��������������������������������������

Q Please contact meconcerning a free homeBible study.

Name ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

Address �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������

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Province/State ������������������������� Postal/ZIP Code �������������������������

Questionsyoung people ask

answers that workVOLUME 1