The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project was first founded and established as a non-profit corporation in the State of Alaska, United States of America, by Neil David Holland (one of the witnesses to Jesus Christ listed in the Project). The following is an extract from the first meeting of the Board of Directors which includes an account of the Project founding and a dedicatory prayer:
The First Meeting of the Board of Directors of The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project was held on 28 July 2007, at the home of xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, Eagle River, AK
(Following corporation business) The Administrator (Neil David Holland) then welcomed all and outlined the founding of The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project as follows:
“As a retired military officer who had lived in Saudi Arabia for five years (1995 – 2000), as the Superintendent of the Royal Saudi Air Force, F-15 Flying Training Unit, in Khamis Mushayt, I became very familiar with Islamic thought and experienced the use of Islam to develop hatred among them for Jews and Christians.
“Immediately following the Al Quada attack on New York and Washington DC (commonly referred to as the 9-11 [11 Sep, 2001] attack), I was asked to return to active military service. Since that time I was troubled as to how our free western governments could respond to the call by Al Quada’s leaders, Osama Bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahiri, for us to repent and convert to Islam. If we did not, they felt justified in killing us by the millions. Our nation could only respond by protecting it’s citizens from their violence, and by advocating our position on freedom of religion – that Muslims are free to practice their religion in our country, provided that they do not seek to force their beliefs upon others by the threat or use of violence. The call to repent and convert to Islam could only be answered by individual Christians, but how could that be done?
“The Muslim world sees a Christian society that is represented by a great many different denominations, and they tend to look to the Pope as the head of Christianity, particularly given the historic contact between Islam and the Papacy, which of course is a very violent one considering the crusades. I puzzled over this problem for several years and then in January 2007, this answer was given to me by the power of the Holy Spirit.
“On 4 Jan 2007, I called in to work sick. While this was certainly true physically, I became aware of a great energy within me, that inspired me with the answer I had been seeking and drove me to sit at the computer for hours composing the pages of material that now make up The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project By-laws and web site (Only the Conflict of Interest Article of the By-laws was not envisioned). The presence of the Holy Ghost was such that I was filled with inspiration and felt a great increase in love towards my wife, children, and fellow men. The Spirit filled me in this way until 8 Jan 2007. Throughout the experience I was not my normal judgmental self and I was excited about the prospects of this vision. I could see the global potential of this project as a Christian grass roots movement that could unit Christianity in a way that the various denominations could not. I envisioned the officers and witnesses having opportunity to speak before numerous gatherings of Christians throughout the world, and uniting them through these special experiences with the Savior, Jesus Christ. I saw the church growing and becoming stronger and that the Christian unity that could come from this would speed the Lord’s coming. I saw the published witnesses of Jesus Christ providing a vehicle to invite others to come unto Christ.
“I cannot deny this experience and the requirements of it. I know that I must move this project forward one step at a time.”
A dedicatory prayer was … read by the Administrator:
“Our dear Father in Heaven, we hallow thy name.
“We are met here this lovely Alaska morning in the home of thy servant xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx to inaugurate The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project in honor of thy Son, the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
“We dedicate to thee this sacred project
– so that the personal experiences of witnesses of thy Son, may be published, declaring that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ or Messiah, the Son of the Living God, the resurrected Savior, and Redeemer of all mankind;
– so that the love of, and for, Jesus Christ may spread throughout the world;
– to promote religious freedom, tolerance and the Gospel of Jesus Christ;
– and to lead others to Christ so as to prepare mankind for the Second Coming of thy Son and His millennial reign.
“We call upon thee to bless the Administrator; the Executive, Financial and Legal Assistants; the members of the Board of Witnesses; their spouses and children, with health, strength, and the financial means to carry forth this Project in accordance with thy mind and will.
“We ask thee to bless those that know thy Son through personal and sacred experience, with the desire to come forth and publish their witness in accordance with thy will.
“We call upon thee to bless Christians world-wide with the desire to support this work and unite together in proclamation, that Jesus is the Christ, thy Son, the Savior of all mankind; that He was crucified and has resurrected from the dead, that our Muslim brothers and sisters may come to know these truths for themselves.
“We humbly ask thee dear Father, to protect thy servants in this work.
“Bless our free nation and other free nations around the world, that they may uphold and protect the principles of liberty, that the Gospel of Jesus Christ may spread around the world, that the people of the earth may be prepared for His glorious appearing and millennial reign.
“Father, please forgive us our sins. Send thy Holy Spirit to inspire us and guide us in this sacred work – that thy will, not ours, be done.
“We pray Father, that thou wilt flood the earth with the witness testimonies of those that shall come forth to publish their sacred experiences with thy Son. Bear witness through thy Holy Spirit of the truthfulness of these witness experiences we humbly pray, in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.”
Approximately two years later (in 2009) the Project was closed down following inspired direction to not “proceed” due to opposition by a regional authority of the church in which the Administrator (Neil Holland) holds membership. This opposition was removed late in 2010 by a higher authority of the church. The following extract from a letter to Neil’s wife, outlines these events:
Dear Pat,
I am seeking your support to restart The Witnesses of Jesus Christ Project, with some modifications based on your inputs as well as those most recently by (the high church authority).
Following the interview with (the high church authority) I was thinking only of preparing over the next two years for us to serve as missionaries. However; the Spirit “troubled” me with respect to the Witnesses project and caused me to review the inspiration and counsel I received from beginning to end. In doing so I realized that if (the regional authority) had correctly relayed (the high church authority’s) concern, the project would have continued uninterrupted. I considered the following sequence:
1. The revelation is received (in 2007 recounted above)
2. (My congregational pastor) supports
3. (My local authority) supports
4. (In 2009 the regional authority) accuses me of various forms of apostasy and demands that I “cease and desist.” The Spirit informs me that “You cannot proceed without the support of your … brethren.” Not proceeding is not the same as cease and desist – it is a delay rather than an end. This was the only time I received the Spirit’s communication in this contentious meeting.
5. I cease and desist and write a defense to the (the church world leadership) which I share with (the regional authority), but hold pending his final report.
6. (The regional authority is changed) and I receive no final report.
7. (The high church authority), the source of the cease and desist order according to (the regional authority), is sent to (Anchorage, Alaska).
8. (church business item unrelated to the Project).
9. (church business item unrelated to the Project).
10. In a private interview about the (Project), and with the constant presence of the Spirit, (the high church authority) discloses:
a. (church business item unrelated to the Project).
b. He did not issue an order to “cease and desist” (the Project).
c. He did not accuse me of any apostasy – he “did not know me, to be able to make any such accusations.”
d. He read all the (Project) web content and had only one issue with it: While I was serving as … an official of the church, and as such I could not be advocating the payment of tithes to any other entity such as the (Project).
e. He stated that I could pursue the (Project) if I chose to (and that the church had no objection to it).You can see, as I have seen, that if (the regional authority) had expressed (the high church authority’s) concern accurately, I would have removed the tithing option (as it was not part of the original revelation) and the (Project) would have continued forward with no interruption.
Another way to state this is that the Lord’s call to do the (Project) is still in place.
At this point I am comforted by the Spirit that we are to continue the (Project) ….
I have reviewed all of the (Project) content and intend to do the following:
1. Remove the tithing option on the donation page while also encouraging donations only after tithing to a church.
2. Remove the requirement for a notarized witness statement. Two or three personal witnesses will suffice.
3. Add guidelines for personal testimonies that include faith promoting experiences.Thank you for your wonderful support as I served in the (church), and all other endeavors I have been called to. Thank you for your firm testimony as heard again today.
Love,
Neil
Following these events Neil worked on updating the web site and determined through prayer that the cost and time to re-incorporate the Project was not necessary – it could continue forward as a private project. That is the current status of the Project.