The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1883, Page 10

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10 The Lutheran Pioneer.

all. his works and ways; whether he believe in| owing chiefly to want of teachers. But as some
God, the Father, that has created him, and in} of the new church-members have promised to
Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, that has} take an active part in the Sunday school, this

Letter from New Orleans.

DEAR PIONEER:—

Since the consecration of Mount Zion Church
the missionaries have been busy at work there.
The new field promises to give us a good deal
more labor, but also richer blessing. A better
Jocation and a more promising field is hard to
find. As to the location mention has already
been made by a corespondent in the January
number of the Pioneer. . Only this may be
added: Our church stands in the centre of a
vicinity of which the greater majority of the
people are colored. And that which makes
the new field of labor so promising is, besides
the central location of the church, that the
people are more settled, more refined, and,
judging from their regular attendance, more
highly value the goodness and mercy of God
bestowed upon them through our mission, than
those in- the neighborhood of ‘‘Sailors’ Home.”

It will be remembered that previous to the
consecration of Mt. Zion Church Sunday even-
ing was devoted to services in St. Paul’s chapel
on Claiborn. But the people of Mt. Zion, being
very urgent in their requests to have services
in the evening, instead as before in the after-
noon, a change was made in their favor.
Though this change is rather a disadvantage to
the church-goers of St. Paul’s Church, it could
not under the present circumstances be avoided.
Services Sunday evening are always better at-
tended than at any other time of the day.

The part of the church which the ladies
occupy is always well filled, while the gentle-
men’s side is rather empty. This is owing
chiefly to the lamentable fact that the men
folks are to a great extent irreligious, or indif-
ferent and careless. Benevolent associations
of all sorts and secret societies and lodges have
succeeded in estranging them from the house
of God. Whatever little money they spare,
instead of being contributed to the church, to
the preservation and spread of the Gospel,
goes to purposes mentioned above. © That this
is detrimental 10 the growth of the colored
church of any denomination and threatens its
ruin, is obvious.—On consecration day it was
announced that applications for membership
would be received on Tuesday evening follow-
ing. Seven applied in person; soon after, three
more were added, and one who had been duly
instructed, but not admitted, joined this class.
With these instruction began, based on the six
principal parts of Luther's Smaller Catechism.
They were all attention and zealous to learn
the way of salvation.

_ After having been duly instructed, they
were received into the church, two through the
Sacrament of holy Baptism, and the rest
through the act of confirmation. After a ser-
mon suitable to the occasion, the candidates
for baptism confessed their faith in their Lord
‘and Saviour, and professed adherence to Him
and our church until death. ‘To each of those
already baptized the following questions were
irected: Whether he renounce the devil with

redeemed him, and in God, the Holy Ghost,
that has sanctified him, and whether he would
promise anew to believe, live and die according
to the will and Word of God and remain faith-
ful to our church and its doctrine until death.
These questions being affirmed, they were de-
clared to be members of the congregation.
The Sunday following they joined with the
rest in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper.

In a monthly meeting the congregation
adopted the resolution to pay all minor ex-
penses of the church, such as gas, sexton’s sal-
ary, coals, etc. The collections taken up at
every service have hitherto amply covered
these expenses. ‘To the decoration of the new
church some of the old members contributed
handsomely. In cleaning and decorating it
the ladies Wright and Mosely were the most
active. For the aisle and the altar carpet was
bought, while the old pulpit of Sailors’ Home
received a new dress of dark-blue cloth trim-
med with gold laces.

Under the direction of Mr. Vix a singing
choir has been organized, which promises to be
a success. At the last recitation hour 25 singers
were present. They have asked permission to
occupy the gallery and it has been granted.

That the school would be far more prosper-
ous in this locality was to be foreseen, but that
it would be so crowded at the. commencement
was not expected. It was feared, too, that by
taking up a field of labor so distant from the
old one, we would lese many of the best schol-
ars, but this fear has proved to be groundless.
The greater number of the regular scholars
followed their teachers. Some thirty or forty,
headed by Mr. Vix, marched triumphantly out
of ‘‘Sailors’ Home”’ through the streets to the
new home, each one carrying a token of re-
membrance from the deserted place. One was
seen with a water bucket in his hand, another
with a rusty old dipper, another with a three-
legged chair, almost the only furniture-we had;
here comes another one with a pair of worn-
out brooms, another with a dusty oil-lamp, and
even the much hated cowhide had not been
forgotten. The procession was small, but it
did not fail to attract attention as it marched
along shouting: ‘‘Good bye Sailors’ Home.’’
They were the first ones to claim their seats
and their rights. New scholars have been ad-
mitted almost every day. To our sorrow we
must now decline all further applications, the
school being crowded. The roll shows that
112 children have been admitted with a daily
attendance of 90—95; and bearing in mind
that these are divided into different classes,
besides not being very easy to manage, it is
clear that Mr. Vix has more to do than what
is good for himself and ‘the reputation of the
school.

The Sunday school, though as yet somewhat
smaller than the day school, is in fair condition.
Tt has not received the attention it ought to,

want will soon no longer be felt.

May God continue to bless and to prosper
our work to the glory of His name and the
salvation of many souls.

New Orleans, February 19th, 1883.

Missionary.
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For Me.

By Dr. Martin Luruer.

**Who loved me, and gave himself for me.’?

Who is this me? Even I, wretched and
damnable sinner, so dearly beloved of the Son
of God, that He gave himself for me. If I
then through works or merits could have loved
the Son of God, and so come unto Him, what
needed He to deliver Himself for me?

Wherefore these words, ‘‘ which loved me,’’
are full of faith. And he that can utter this
word ‘‘me,”’ and apply it unto himself with a
true and constant faith, as Paul did, shall be a
good disputer with Paul against the law. For
He delivered neither sheep, ox, gold, nor silver,
but even God Himself, entirely and wholly,
‘*for me,” even for ‘‘me,”’ I say, a miserable
and wretched sinner. Now therefore, in that
the Son of God was thus delivered to death for
me,.I take comfort arid apply this unto myself.
And this manner of applying is the very true
force and power of faith.

Read, therefore, with great vehemency
these words, ‘‘me,’’ and ‘‘for me,’’ and so in-
wardly practice with thyself, that thou, with a
sure faith, mayest conceive and print this
“me”’ in thy heart, and apply it unto thyself,
not doubting but that thou art of the number
of those to whom this ‘‘me’’ belongeth:. also
that Christ hath only loved Peter and Paul,
and given Himself for them, but that the same
grace also which is comprehended in this ‘‘me,’’
as well pertaineth and cometh unto us, as unto
them. For as we cannot deny but that we are
all sinners, and are constrained to say that
through the sin of Adam we are all lost, were
made the enemies of God, subject to the wrath
and judgment of God, and guilty of eternal
death, so can we not deny but that Christ died
for our sins, that he might make us righteous.
For he died not to justify the righteous, but
the unrighteous, and to make them the chil-
dren of God, and inheritors of all spiritual and
heavenly gifts. ‘Therefore, when I feel and
confess myself to be a sinner through Adam’s
transgression, why should I not say, that I am
made righteous through the righteousness of
Christ, especially when I hear that he loved
me, and gave Himself forme? This did Paul
most steadfastly believe, and therefore he
speaketh these words with so great vehemency
and full assurance; which he grant unto us, in
some part at the least, who hath loved us, and
given himself for us.

WT be 1
Nebel ei