# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_August 1864_S252
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

252 Church-Contemporary Affairs.

increasing migration of its members to the cheap lands of the West, the
number of its pastors and congregations more than doubled every 15
years, while progress in evangelical knowledge, true godliness, domestic
religiosity, church discipline, and all the manifestations of a living
faith is very encouraging. Who does not remember the earlier days of
decline in Easton, Allentown, Lebanon, Reading, Pottstown, Danville,
Lancaster, Williamsport, and many other places, where the English
element of our church fellowship was lost by families — indeed by
droves! But we have cause to thank God for the happy turn which He has
brought about there. Instead of the total neglect of our English
interests, or an English service every other Sunday, there now stand
one, two, sometimes even three flourishing English congregations
alongside equally strong German ones, in unity of the same faith and in
the fellowship of love of the children of God. — In short, the church in
the East and West has advanced in the open confession of the Christian
faith, in the work of gathering and building up, in the work of domestic
and church education, and in the unfolding of Christian life from the
inner principle of a living, justifying faith in Christ. More than
300,000 communicants throng to its altars, and the tens of thousands of
its scattered children are gathered yearly into its bosom, while crowds
of those who once knew it only to mock its faith find comfort and peace
in its temples." — C.

"Recognition of Our Lutheran Church." A correspondent of the
"Observer" had, while traveling, fallen in with a perceptive gentleman
from Missouri, who spoke with particular severity about a large portion
of the immigrants in his state and in the West generally. He mercilessly
censured their character as citizens, and especially their political
radicalism, their disregard of the Sabbath, their unbelief, their
fondness for lager beer, their Sunday amusements, etc. "Yet," he said,
"one must make a noble exception here. My remarks apply to the German,
French, and Irish Catholics and unbelievers, but are not to be applied
to a large part of the Protestants. There is a large German Protestant
population, belonging to the Lutheran church, in Missouri, Iowa,
Illinois, which is not of the same kind. They are immeasurably better.
Although they come from the same country as those Catholics and
unbelievers, they nevertheless seem to be an entirely different breed.
They are by no means to be classed together with the other immigrants.
In politics they are conservative and decidedly loyal. As citizens they
are among the most industrious, most temperate, and most worthy with
which any state can be blessed. In their moral character they are a
model to their neighbors. In their religious bearing they are very firm,
only somewhat repellent toward other churches because of their bigotry,
for they recognize as belonging to the true church only Lutherans who
subscribe to all the dogmas of their faith. Otherwise they are among the
best citizens we have." The correspondent had, among other things,
added this: The members of our church who display these traits of
character, which press themselves upon an observant statesman and
distinguish the Lutherans from the other immigrants, are a Bible-reading,
praying, and diligent class of Lutherans. The great truths of Lutheran
doctrine, or of the Gospel, have impressed themselves upon their hearts
and souls. They have repented and believe in Christ. Their great,
innermost principle is justification by faith. They hold themselves
accountable to God for all their actions. They live here in order to
train themselves for eternity, and to raise their children in the bosom
of the church of their fathers unto godliness and good morals. For these
noble purposes they pray and labor. And this earnest, practical, holy
Lutheran piety forms in them the fine character which has been ascribed
to them by the Missourian statesman. — The foregoing is now reprinted by
the "Lutheran and Missionary" of June 30 from the "Observer," but it
believes it must add: "Thus the 'Observer' of June 17 testifies
regarding a portion of our church that holds strictly to its confession.
In its preceding number it dared