The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1922, Page 74

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74

The Lutheran Pioneer.

to a fitting close by a divine service held at the
Church of Our Savior, Pastor F. Kroencke. Pastor
A. F. Zich, who preached the sermon, based his dis-
course on Matt. 13, 31—33.

We cannot refrain from closing.our brief re-
marks by taking also this occasion to thank the
congregations of Cincinnati, and in particular the
serving ladies and the individual hosts, for the
exceptionally hearty hospitality shown the Confer-
ence and its guests throughout the convention. God
bless the good people of Cincinnati for all the kind-
ness shown us! F. J. L.

Twenty-First Report of the Board for
Colored Missions.
From July, 1920, to July, 1922.

This year we are celebrating the golden jubilee
of the Synodical Conference. This Conference
was founded by five orthodox Lutheran synods in
St. John’s Church, of the Wisconsin Synod, at Mil-
waukee, Wis., July 10, 1872. Despite all the rag-
ings and ravings of Satan, despite all the enmity of
heterodox denominations, despite the many mistakes
which we have made, this church federation still
exists to-day, after a lapse of fifty years; indeed,
it has grown to be the largest Lutheran church-body
in our country. This is the Lord’s doing; it is
marvelous in our eyes. To Him be all the glory
and praise!

In this anniversary year we are thinking of the
manifold blessings which our gracious Father in
heaven has so bountifully bestowed upon us and our
children by means of this church federation, and
thank Him with hearts and hands and voices. In
this connection we particularly consider the great
and - undeserved blessings which He has so richly
showered upon the main joint work of the Synodical
Conference during the past forty-five years — our
dear Colored Missions. At its sixth convention,
held in Emmanuel Church, Fort Wayne, Ind., in
the year 1877, the Synodical Conference decided to
take up the work of spreading the Gospel among
the: Colored population of our country. The pro-
posal to enter upon this work was hailed with de-
light and great enthusiasm. By the grace of God
the small mustard-seed that then was planted has

grown to be a great tree, whose branches ee out

over eleven States of the Union.
As intimated, the beginnings of our Negro Mis-
sions were small and insignificant, as is generally

lina.

the case with the things pertaining to the kingdom
of God. The Synodical Conference elected a board
in whose hands the direction of the work should
repose. The first board was composed of Pastors
J. F. Buenger and C. F. W. Sapper, and Mr. J. Um-
bach, all of St. Louis. That same fall (1877) the
Board called Rey. J. F. Doescher as its first mis-
sionary. Pastor Doescher accepted the call and was.
consecrated to his important work on the 17th day
of October, 1877, at the convention of the Western
District of the Missouri Synod, at Altenburg, Perry
County, Mo. His instructions were to find promis-
ing mission-fields in the Southern States. Doescher’s
itinerary took him to Memphis and through Ar-
kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia,
and Florida. At Little Rock, Ark., he founded the
first mission-station. This station was taken over
by a young candidate for the ministry, Frederick
Berg, at Eastertide of the following year (1878).
In July Pastor Berg organized our first Colored
congregation. This first congregation is still in
existence. Pastor Doescher also founded a mission-
station in New Orleans. The first home of this
mission was the old dilapidated Sailors’ Home,
situated near the banks of the Mississippi. This
was the beginning of Mount Zion Church in New
Orleans.

The spiritual condition of the poor Negroes in
Little Rock, New Orleans, and other places was
simply indescribable.
according to the body a little more than a decade
before, they were languishing in the far worse bon-
dage of sin and knew nothing of the precious liberty
which Christ had merited and gained for all men
by His life, sufferings, and death. In view of their
sad condition the words were appropriate : —

The heathen have my sympathy;
How deep their woe and sin!

O God, behold their misery!
Their soul is dead within.

Nor do they know the Lamb that bore
Our burden lest we die;

Their heart is wretched to the core,
Beneath a curse they lie.

At the end of the first decade (1887) there were
three missionaries in the service of our Negro Mis-
sions; these served about 300 persons in five con-
gregations. Four years later (1891) the Lord of
the harvest led our Colored Missions to North Caro-
Now the work grew rapidly. At the end of
the- second decade there were 1,400 persons in
eighteen congregations, and at.the end of thirty
years the number of persons in the care of our

a

Though they had been freed .