Note 100 - Opposition to the International Conferences and Trainings
Near the end of his life Brother Lee stressed the value of the seven annual "feasts" for the release of the ministry and the blending of all the churches on the earth in the one Body of Christ:
In the fall of 1996 Brother Lee had a time of fellowship in his home with a number of brothers who had been closely serving with him. That was a very precious and poignant time, for we all knew the serious condition of our brother's health. On our part, having had some fellowship, we assured him in the Lord that whatever was needed during that time, we surely would provide. He just said, "Thank you." He then opened up his heart to fellowship with us in a very endearing yet firm way. He said that after he would go to the Lord, certain things must continue. He said that the full-time training established by him in Anaheim, the two semi-annual trainings, and the other annual gatherings—the Chinese New Year's conference, the two trainings for the elders and responsible ones, the Memorial Day conference, and the Thanksgiving conference—must continue. Then he said, "This you should regard as my will." (The Ministry Magazine, Vol. 5, No. 9, October 2001, pp. 17-18)
All the local churches on the globe today should be one. Today, unlike in Paul's time, travel and communication to nearly anywhere on the earth are very convenient. Because of this, the churches today should be blended much more than they were in Paul's time. Not only according to the revelation of the Bible but also according to the modern conveniences, we should be one, and we should be blended together as much as practicality allows. ( One Body and One Spirit , p. 20)
In the early years, the brothers from Brazil actively participated in the international conferences and trainings:
Testimony of David Franco, June 18, 2008:
Brother Dong used to attend the Conferences in Los Angeles at least twice a year. Later, he went to Anaheim to participate in the trainings with Brother Lee. Whenever I had the opportunity I also went to these trainings with Brother Dong. During those years many saints were encouraged to participate in the trainings. There was a time in which more than 100 saints from Brazil went to the trainings in Anaheim. Brother Dong would come back to Brazil, listen to the tapes of the trainings, and, twice a year, would give a conference in Brazil to share on the messages given by Brother Lee.
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Dong Yu Lan, testimony given in Taipei, Taiwan, November 23, 1981:
When God's work began, the Word was needed. How do you supply them? You cannot just tell them to call on the Lord all day long; you cannot just tell them to pray-read the word all day long. You need to give them something. I myself attended the training of the ministry in the United States in 1968, 1970, 1971, and 1973. In 1975, after I returned from the training, I had some fellowship with the brothers concerning bringing them to Brother Lee for the perfecting of the word of the ministry. As a result, from 1976, every summer and winter, we had brothers from Brazil who went to the United States for the training. We received much help. After each training, all of our messages and church activities were based on the content of the messages from the training.
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At the end of Winter Training of 2000, Ezra Ma spoke glowingly of the word ministered in the international conferences and trainings and of the benefit received by blending with the saints from North America:
Ezra Ma, "Fellowship Given During the Winter Training of 2000 Concerning the Lord's Move in South America," The Ministry Magazine, vol. 5, no. 5, May 2001, p. 133:
Praise the Lord for His recovery! We are one Body, under one ministry, and in one move. All the fruit—the outcome of the work—is the fruit of the ministry. In all these years in South America, we have been under the ministry of Brother Watchman Nee and Brother Witness Lee. These brothers have shared with us that the work is not an outward matter. Instead, the work is the outcome of life. In this winter training through the sharing of various brothers, we have enjoyed that we should do nothing by ourselves and for ourselves. Everything should be by the Spirit of God and for the kingdom of God. We are thankful to the Lord for the ministry of the age.
...The saints from North America have come to blend with us in South America through both the regular conferences and the young people's conferences. We have enjoyed this very much.
However, in recent years Brother Dong and his co-workers have actively discouraged participation in the international gatherings of the churches for trainings and conferences:
Dong Yu Lan, Daily Food: Growth in Life for the Kingdom, Week 1, Tuesday:
Today some people talk about the feasts. We may say that they have gone back to the Old Testament. Actually in God's move, He never goes back. He always goes on; He goes forward.
Dong Yu Lan, Service Meeting in Cochabamba, Bolivia, August 2004, Message 3:
Are there any rules and regulations in the church today? No one would answer. The church cannot have any rules and regulations. So you do not need to go to the U. S. for the trainings. Is there such a law in the church? No one can impose the seven annual feasts on anybody. That way the law is brought in and Christ is gone.
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Dong Yu Lan, Conference in Cochabamba, Bolivia, August 2004, Message 1:
I once talked to Brother Lee concerning this while he was going to Taiwan to conduct the training. I told him that it was a long way to travel from Brazil; given our financial situation, it was simply not affordable for many saints to go. It was impossible to set aside $350 from their monthly income, which in some places was probably enough to sustain two households for one month.
Click the icon to listen to an excerpt from the audio of this message. Pedro Dong, Regional Service Brothers' Meeting, São Paulo, Brazil, July 3, 2007:
Brothers, is it right to use the American holidays to make the whole world come for a conference? Brothers, no one can force anyone to do this. It is impossible. Do you have the money to go to the seven feasts in the USA? Do you have the money?
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In a meeting with co-workers in Taipei on November 6, 2007, Miguel Ma indicated that the Brazilian workers were intentionally not bringing saints to the trainings:
In 2004 I stayed in Anaheim for 40 days...I had fellowship with Benson three times, with Andrew two or three times, with James Lee, with Dick Taylor, and with Ed Marks, hoping that they would write a letter to stop all the negative speaking. "If you would cause all this negative speaking to stop, you have my word that I will take the brothers to attend every training." I said this to Benson in person. If you stop it, I will bring the brothers.
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The "negative speaking" to which Miguel Ma referred was not the speaking of the brothers ministering in the training, but the expressions of concern with the deviations in Brother Dong's work and ministry from some of the saints.
