"Emporia Gazette", 1962-08-02
by Mike Ellis, The Joplin Globe, Written for the Associated Press
Joplin, Mo (AP) - Most of Missouri will be at the bottom of an ocean about 4000 feet deep sometime after April, 1963, according to a prophecy by the head of a small religious group.
It will be just like Noah's time, only worse, believers say.
Some members of the group who live in the Joplin area are making plans to leave the state as soon as possible. A few already have moved to points 5000 feet or more above sea level that have been declared safe from the great floods that are predicted.
Mason Remey, Washington DC, 2nd Guardian of Baha'is Under the Hereditary Guardianship, has predicted that "a great global catastrophe," in the form of inundation, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, will harvest human lives sometime after next April.
Remey hasn't set an exact time for the catastrophe but predicts it will occur during his lifetime. He is 87 years old.
The church official said that although points 5000 feet or more above sea level will escape inundation, there still is the possibility of sudden death from volcanoes and earthquakes.
Joplin is about 980 feet above sea level.
The catastrophe will supposedly be caused by the shifting of the earth's crust, bringing about radical changes in the positions of the Tropics of Cancer, Capricorn and the equator. Remey's followers claim scientific validity for the prophecy and cite the book, "The Earth's Shifting Crust," by Charles H Hapgood, who is not a member of the group.
Dr Leland Jensen, a Joplin chiropractor, and his wife, both missionaries of the faith, have put their property up for sale. They plan to move to Cheyenne, Wyo.
"I am moving out of this area because I am being obedient to the Guardian," Dr Jensen said
Dr Jensen mentioned others who had left for higher ground. They included residents of Joplin, Webb City, Springfield, and Columbus, Kan.
But another member of the group, Mrs Mable Peck, Joplin, said she has no plans to move to a higher location.
"I'm living on borrowed time now, I'm 84 years old," she explained, "and I think the Lord knows where I am if he wants me."
Nationally there are only a few hundred persons following Remey, former President of the International Baha'i Council. A split arose in the faith with the minority accepting Remey's authority. The Baha'i faith, which originated in Tehran, teaches the universal brotherhood of man, the unity of all religions and peace for the world.
About 6000 remain under the Hands, the governing body of the Baha'i faith.
Mrs Beulah Magruder, Joplin, said Remey's followers have nothing to do with the faith as far as the larger group is concerned. She said "we are not fighting" with Remey's group and added: "His prediction hasn't scared us one bit."