The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1921, Page 43

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

43

‘'wo members of the Board for Colored Missions
had come from St. Louis to attend the funeral ser-
vices. Immanuel College, Greensboro, N. C., whose
first president Pastor Bakke had been, was repre-
sented by Prof. W. G. Schwehn, while the pastors of
thé North Carolina mission-field, in which field he
was the pioneer, was represented by Pastor McDavid,
of Charlotte, N.C.

Interment was made in the beautiful Wanderers’
Rest, Cemetery amidst the singing of the strains of
“Bethany.” PF. J. 1.

—-—- ---*em

Tenth Anniversary in Yonkers, N. Y.

Recently Bethany Congregation in Yonkers,
N. Y., had the opportunity of checking up the re-
sulis of its activities during the past decade. ‘The
occasion was the tenth anniversary of the congrega-
tion and of its pastor. What was examined particu-
larly was the effect our activities have had on others.
One would naturally expect that on such an occa-
sion a general inventory of the spiritual, numerical,
and material strength of the congregation would be
taken. Indeed, this is most important, but with
this internal growth we deal regularly and note its

success or failure at more frequent intervals. So

we made use of this termination of our first decade,
to look around us and to estimate the effect which
our Christian activities have had upon those outside
of our congregation.

For ten years we had busied ourselves with
spreading “God’s Word and Luther’s doctrine pure”
among the people of our city,.not only through the
pulpit, but by distributing tracts, and in every other
legitimate way. At times we had met with sarcastic
criticism and even stern opposition. But we worked
on, spreading the Word, and letting our light shine
as best we could. “And now, what of the results?
A small minority of those whom we had reached
- had come out boldly and joined us in this glorious
work. But what of the others? A goodly number
of these had become occasional visitors in our ser-
vices, but the vast majority of them had not re-
sponded at all. What effect had our work had upon
this large number of people who apparently had not
been touched by our repeated invitation? Had
they, through the fragments of the Word carried
to them, become sufficiently acquainted with us and
the object of our activities to respond were a su-
preme effort made? We left it to our tenth anni-
versary to answer these questions for us. And most

gratifying was the result. Not only were we allowed
on this occasion to view the most encouraging pros-
pects of our Church among the people among whom
we are working, but we were also permitted to see
the place we occupy in the hearts of our fellow-
Lutherans round about. But let me tell you about
the anniversary itself.

It was held in the Parish House of St. John’s
Chureh. ‘The assembly hall, where Bethany Con-
gregation worships, was decorated with palms and
cut flowers. At 7.40 p.m. there were about fifty
people present. When the service opened at eight
o’clock, there were more than two hundred. Fifty
had come in a body from St. Mark’s Church, and
St. John’s Church and Bronxville College were well
represented. ‘These Lutherans had come to assure
Bethany Congregation that its work of ten years had
blended harmoniously in the general upbuilding of
the Lutheran Zion in this vicinity. Then there was
the large number of visitors, many of whom had
traveled from near-by cities to wish pastor and con-
gregation happy returns of the day. The order of
service had been printed on a neat souvenir folder
so that every one present would be able to join in
our beautiful service. Pastor O. H. Trinklein, of
St. Mark’s Church, officiated at the altar. When
that large assemblage arose to open the service with
the Gloria in Excelsis, though there were those in
the audience who had never been in a Lutheran
chureh before, there was not the slightest evidence
of a discord. All seemingly caught the spirit of the
occasion, and the minor differences of race, custom,
and the like, faded before the bright light of purity
of doctrine and sincerity of worship. Pastor von
Schlichten, of St. John’s Church, delivered the anni-
versary sermon. And a mighty fine sermon it was.
His text was Ps. 122,6—9. The speaker impressed
his audience most forcefully when he had them rise
in the midst of his introdufttion and sing two verses
of “Jerusalem the Golden.” His subject was: “The
Glories of the Heavenly Jerusalem as Reflected in
the Jerusalem on Earth.” An anthem by the choir,
and a duet by two young ladies added to the beauty
of the servict. No special offering was taken up,
but the plate collection, which amounted to a little
more than fifty dollars, was given to the Building
Fund.

After the service, the entire assemblage went
down into the dining-hall. The men’s club had pro-

‘vided ample refreshments for all, and the ladies,

who had decorated the hall very beautifully, were on