Yes, XPeterX, that struck me as well! It raised lots of questions.
How does it become 'evident' that a repentant sinner has been forgiven by Jehovah? If he is truly repentant, it is a no-brainer that God would have forgiven him. In what way does Jehovah direct the elders into thinking that a repentant sinner has indeed been divinely forgiven?
Can you post the extract from WT 2/15/78? This computer's CD-ROM drive's glitching.