The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1918, Page 5

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God and the salvation of souls. Our next meeting
will be held at Midway. May the Lord continue to
add His blessings to the laborers and their work in
Alabama! Cras Pray.

A Letter from Uncle Bob.

New Orleans, La., Dee.
Dear PIONEER: —
Howdy! Howdy!
eh, old friend ?
To be sure! Well, it isn’t Uncle Bob’s fault.
‘Those Quadricentennials, you see, come only once

5, 1917.

Long time between writes;

| every four hundred years, naturally; and this one
t naturally came on the 31st of October, 1917, be-
H

cause it naturally was born on the 31st of October,
1517, when Dr. Martin Luther showed in one or
\ the other of 95 theses which he nailed on the door

a) of the Castle Church in Wittenberg that we are natu-
1 rally sinners who could not save ourselves, but that
} we are justified through faith in Christ Jesus alone.

Before this memorable day had dawned, History
spoke of the Dark Ages, because man through
popery was enslaved in ignorance, superstition, and
false doctrines. But Luther emancipated the Church
when he nailed the Ninety-five ‘Theses on the door
of the Castle Church, October 31, 1517.

October 31, 1917, marks the Quadricentennial
of the Reformation. ‘Throughout the land this
epoch-making event was celebrated by the whole
Protestant world, and especially By the Lutheran
Church, as never ‘before.

This Quadricentennial' had eee) all the talent
within our borders. ‘The literary products were
not only numerous, but many will be enduring
monuments, whose tablets will testify to future
generations that their Lutheran forefathers stood
boldly for the truths as revealed to us in Holy Writ.
Musical compositions, some of unusual merit, glori-

_ fied the Quadricentennial in the large cities through
mass choirs. ‘Che music thus rendered, in many
instances, on account of its immense volume of
sound, had an overpowering effect upon the human
‘heart, and in its grandeur and majesty was in-
| comparable.
i Dear PionEER, methinks there was lots of weep-
ing and gnashing of teeth in the nether world while
’ the Lutheran Church was singing about the Refor-
» mation in this year of grace 1917! 9
Si Orations and addresses on this occasion were
special efforts of the speakers to present to the

-'The Lutheran Pioneer. -

or

people at large the historical facts and, above all,
the Biblical truths of the grand work of the Refor-
mation.

We in the sunny South, or rather, New Orleans,
had two grand celebrations. On November 4, 1917,
at 2.30 p.3t., our white brethren gathered at the
Atheneum over two thousand strong. On Novem-
ber 11, 1917, our Colored Lutherans gathered at
the Pythian Temple, hundreds strong; and it is
this latter celebration which concerns us in the
Colored Mission in particular.

Long before the date set for the celebration,
Luther Conference and the different congregations
got busy through yarious committees: Publicity,
Music, Hall, ete.

For a nominal sum we seared the Colored
Pythian ‘Temple, which has ample accommodations:
a splendid auditorium and balcony, largé stage and
accessories; and modern appurtenances throughout.

The original plan of having all the speakers
from our own ranks, to show what the Mission had
produced in the way of able men for our Colored
Mission, had to be modified, because two of the
chosen speakers had been removed: by the Board
to the Alabama field a short time before the cele-
bration.

Rey. A. Wiley, although not in the best of
health, delivered an address which created favor-
able comment from every side. He especially elabo-
rated on the many blessings of the Reformation.

Rey. A. Wismar, of Gretna, La., in his address
painted in vivid colors the horrible’ condition of
the Church just previous to the Reformation, and
showed that the time was ripe for a change.

Both addresses had God and His glory for
their pivot.

The singing by the Mass Choir, under the able
direction of Teacher Seeberry, deserves much credit.
Both leader and members labored long and dili-
gently, and achieved a grand success.

The children’s choir of 125 pupils from St. Paul,
Bethlehem, and Mount Zion, surpassed our fondest
expectations. ‘Their singing was.simply immense.
The different teachers worked daily for two weeks
to make the singers proficient. On Wednesday,
November 7, the Children’s Mass Choir had a re-
hearsal at the Pythian Temple.
Mount Zion marched down two different streets
within sight of each other to this rehearsal. Of

course, they waved to each other — all good Luther- —

ans ‘do this when there’s a chance. St. Paul came —
down with Leader Seeberry from the other end of

Bethlehem and its 2