The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1906, Page 46

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46 The Lutheran Pioneer.

The Immortal City.

Off in God’s beautiful city

Tears cease fore’er to flow;

Beautiful angels are gathered

In garments white as snow.

Blending their heavenly voices

In some new song so sweet,

Singing God’s praise with thanksgiving,
Kneeling with joy at His feet.

There flows a pure, crystal river
Through that fair city of light;
The streets are all paved and shining,
God’s presence makes all so bright.
Never a care or a shadow
Can enter that beautiful place;
All who have gone home to glory
Are wearing a smiling face.
EstTuer PETERSON.

——————>0e-

Near a Heathen Temple in India.

At the Kondaupur Festival was a little boy to-
tally blind, who sat by the roadside at the entrance
of the fair. What do you think he was doing? He
was calling out at the top of his voice for moncy.
Yes; he was a little blind beggar. He was so earnest
about his business, and kept on shouting, “Give
me money,” “Give me money,” at the same time
moving his hand up and down to attract more at-
tention. .
Another day I saw a little girl near the temple
of the goddess. She was not begging, but leading.
Perhaps you wonder what I mean by this. Well,
I will tell you. As I went along I saw a woman
lying in the dust, so I watched her. She kept
lying down and getting up again, about every half
minute. She was measuring her distance, with her
face to the ground, till she should reach Ambabai’s
temple. The little girl, perhaps this woman’s
daughter, was pointing out the way, and showing
the poor woman where she should fall down next.
O how sad it was to see them!

“Then I saw a boy who was wearing a long robe
and a string of shells round his neck. The robe
was dirty, as it had been sprinkled with oil and the
dust had clung to it. He played two drums, which
were strapped to him. This boy was a worshiper
of the goddess, and he and his people were called
by hername. Their work is to go among the people
who own bullocks. One of their number, having
been asked the name of the owner’s bullock, spells
it out by a kind of deaf and dumb alphabet to his
friend with the drums. ‘The latter usually stands

some distance away. The drummer pays strict at-
tention, and immediately he understands the name
he beats his drums and sings, bringing in the bul-
lock’s name as part of the song. For doing this
they receive money from the people, who seem to
think the performance wonderful.

During the fortnight that the festival lasted
many boys and girls, and even babies, were taken
to the temple to be presented to the goddess. It
was a painful sight to see them as they wended their
way thither. They held their hands together as if
in prayer, and “holy men” kept pots of flaming in-
cense resting on their heads during the procession.
Their faces and legs were smeared with red and
yellow powder, and a grain like rice was stuck on
their foreheads. Drums were beaten and pipes
played by men in front of the procession. Jriends
and relatives, with gifts of cocoanuts, cakes, and
sweets, and a sheep for sacrifice, followed.

While selling the Scriptures I saw some little
boys shivering in the bright sunshine. What was
wrong? They had been bathing in the holy well
to get rid of their sins. It was a farthing for each
bath.

My heart was gladdened on several occasions
when bright-faced boys stepped up and bought
copies of the Gospels. We sold some in front of
the temple and in sight of a place where we had
seen little children stooping down and kissing the
feet of Ambabai’s “holy men.”

Pray for the poor heathen ! — Afissionary Link.

A Cheerful Martyr.

The martyr Fanin, who in the year 1550 was
burned at the stake in Ferrara for his evangelical
faith, went to his death very cheerfully. His cheer-
fulness was so great, that all who were with him
were astonished at his words of praise and thanks-
giving. One even reproached him, saying that he
should not be so cheerful since even Christ trem-
bled in His agony and sweat great drops of blood.
Fanin replied, “Just for that reason because Christ
trembled in the agony of death I need not tremble
and fear; for Christ trembled under the burden of
my sins, and endured for me the agony of death
and the torment of hell. Why should I not be
cheerful and rejoice, since I know that my sins
are atoned for, and that I through death am taken
into everlasting life?”

He kept his cheerfulness of faith unto the end
and praised his Savior eyen in the flames.

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