# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1899_S96
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

96 Proceedings of the 24th General, or

Negro Mission.

"The Commission for the Negro Mission takes the liberty, in accordance with
a longstanding provision, of presenting to the Reverend Synod of Missouri,
Ohio, and Other States a brief report on the work of the Negro Mission, and
of asking for renewed love and support for this blessed work.

"Although the strain of the past difficult years has made itself very much
felt in this mission too, through reduced income, and prevented its further
expansion, this work as a whole has nonetheless continued on its quiet and
blessed course. We have not only kept what we have, but in the past year
have also been able to drive the stakes of our mission tents further out.
We may in particular boast, with grateful joy, that God, through the last
meeting of the Reverend Synodical Conference at Cincinnati, O., has poured
out upon His Lutheran Christians a new spirit of joy and love for this
work. By resolution of that meeting we were permitted to take up four new
stations, and $30,000.00 has been pledged for the next two years toward
carrying on the work and paying off its debts. With heartfelt thanks
toward God and our dear Christians, we can also report a significantly
increased income in our treasury since these resolutions. We may venture
to place three of this year's candidates into the work of our Negro
Mission, and we look forward to the future with glad hope.

"The present state of our mission is as follows: we have 14 stations, to
which the four newly opened this year are added. At these stations 9
missionaries work as pastors, of whom 5 also teach school, and 6 teachers,
of whom two are Negroes; the mission has 13 churches, 7 schoolhouses, one
parsonage, and one cemetery. We hope to be able to place three new workers
from this year's candidates into the work. From the beginning, the
congregations are trained to give for God's kingdom despite their poverty.
All have set up poor funds and provide for their own needs in church and
school. Older stations pay regularly from 12 to 25 dollars a month into the
mission treasury. All property of the mission stands in the name of the
Synodical Conference.

"Our dear mission workers are faithful and self-denying in their difficult
labor, and God's rich blessing rests upon their faithful diligence. May our
intercession and our generous gifts for this splendid mission work stand by
them, encouraging and strengthening." (Report of the Commission for the
Negro Mission.)

Note: Since the conduct of the Negro Mission is a matter for the Synodical
Conference, the Synod, after hearing the foregoing report — in which we
too are freshly encouraged to rejoice in this work, and likewise to zeal for
it in intercession and in giving of our earthly goods — proceeded to the
order of the day without further remarks.

[PRINTED-ERROR: the running head of this page prints "Verhandlungeu" for "Verhandlungen" — a wrong sort in the standing head; reproduced as printed.]