# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1922_S21
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

of the Ev. Luth. Synodical Conference of North America. 1922. 21

did not know at all what it was actually about. Before they set out on their speaking tours they first had to obtain the necessary information from our church officials, so that they should not perhaps stand up for a cause against which their party had taken a stand. Thus God has at various times, when the hour of his power had struck, granted such victories. We are to rejoice in them and thank him for them.

It may be that now too God wants once more, through such an undeserved victory, to give us a breathing space for the development of our school system. Various signs seem to point to it. The present school struggle broke out when, during the war, minds were aroused to the highest pitch and one could not deliberate and judge calmly. The hostility had long been there, but had not ventured out openly. Now, however, it saw a favorable opportunity, under the cloak of patriotism, to deal the Christian school its death blow. The war enthusiasm has evaporated, the hangover has set in. Now it is not exactly popular to go on rattling the skeleton of the war. Added to this is the following: the opponents of our school also proved in other respects to be narrow-minded people who tried to root out old customs by force and to reduce personal liberty to a minimum. During the war nobody really dared to oppose them; now, however, people are stirring. These people are being discredited, and thereby their attack on our school also loses a good part of its striking force. In general, as it seems, a political upheaval is preparing throughout the country; or rather, the forces that two years ago, in the presidential election, struck out blindly and zealously in the naive assumption that those elected would understand the sense of it, are now striking with somewhat more careful selection at those whom they take to be enemies of the common people. That may benefit our school. On the whole the political, social and economic situation in the country is quite agitated and keeps the appointed leaders constantly on the go, so that they find less time to plan and carry out thrusts against our school. As much as these general sufferings that go over the whole country also affect us, and as fervently as we also pray for their removal and relief and work toward it for our part, they may nevertheless be in God's hand the means of granting us a victory of his power in the school struggle.

Something else shall be pointed out in this connection. Especially through Mr. Bryan the question of Darwinism has recently been raised in our country. What the final results will be cannot be predicted. But one thing the movement has brought about: it has clearly shown what spirit prevails in the public educational institutions of the country. Through this many may be shaken up so that they come to understand to some extent why we do not want to entrust our children to the public school.

Thus much seems to point to the possibility that God will once