The Hursts
It was 1930!
My Mom had finally reached that time of day when she could rest for a few minutes by herself and read the local newspaper. With several kids, ultimately fifteen, ten of which were boys, and a very energetic husband, a few minutes of privacy was hard to come by in the Hurst household. But that day, as she scanned the paper, her eye caught an article that proved to be life-changing. The Ad focused on the Royal Family and it included a chart showing the descent from King David to the then present king, George V. The ad was inserted by the British-Israel-World Federation and when Mom brought it to Dad’s attention, it began a journey for the two of them and many of us kids to the blessed message of the Bible, which today we refer to as the Israel Truth.
Dad was a true blue believer. And he never stopped learning. He and Mom looked forward to Bible studies where they could learn more about the Israel message. One time he took all of us to Massey Hall in Toronto to listen to a speaker, I think it was either a Luke or a Paul Rader. That was sometime in the mid 1940’s and there must have been 2,500 people in attendance. All I remember is that it was an exciting trip and message. Dad loved it. He used to write about the message and while he was encouraged to bring a story to the Port Credit Weekly, their editor had a different viewpoint and so it was not printed. It didn’t stop Dad though, his enthusiasm continued to be reflected in his many stories.
When we moved to a farm in the Parry Sound area, Dad kept in touch with the message through Sunday British-Israel radio broadcasts. We might be working outside on the motor vehicles but when that broadcast began on a portable radio, everything had to come to a standstill so the message had our full attention.
Dad was a painter and decorator by trade and always had a panel truck for his business. He had a Union Jack painted on the front doors surrounded by the words, “We Serve”. When we moved to the Bonnyville area in Alberta, he was enthused about the governing Social Credit party because its doctrine was based on Divine Law. He began to study more about money and his writings included much about the banking system of Mystery Babylon.
Of course, we children also had the support of loving parents and were brought up as responsible citizens. Dad passed on in 1997 at the age of 88 and I am so thankful for the upbringing he gave me. I just hope that my life and the lives of some of his 245 offspring would make him proud.