The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1925, Page 10

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

10

missionary. Then, of course, he is expected to keep
up in his studies and to prepare faithfully for his
class work in the schools. In short, he is a very
busy man, and the missionary says that Joseph with
the help of God tries to be faithful.

Recently Joseph had one of the outstanding days
of all his life. He was married. In the Puliyoor-
konam congregation he found his wife. Missionary
Oberheu writes: “The day of the wedding was very
fine. The ceremony took place at eight o’clock in
the morning. Contrary to our custom in the States,
the people of India have their marriage breakfast,
or supper, the night preceding the wedding. A great
many people usually come for the curry and rice

Missionary Oberheu, Wife, and Child.

and the other Indian delicacies. All this does not
entail a great expense upon the groom or bride, as
the edibles and refreshments are usually bought on
credit a few days before the wedding. On the day.
of the wedding all the guests contribute some money
toward their own entertainment, and on the day
after the wedding the bills are paid. It cannot,
however, be denied that some Indians are far more
ostentatious on the day of their wedding than is
desirable. And as a result they remain in debt for
many years. Of course, after the groom and the
bride have entertained their guests at the expense
of the guests, they in turn must also pay for their
entertainment when they attend weddings.
“At the marriage of P. Joseph the bride (she is
standing to the right of the groom) was dressed in
her typical Indian cloth of pale purple. The groom

THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

wears the customary garland of very sweet-smelling
blossoms, which are called picchipu. The odor of
these flowers is so strong that if one had them in
a closed room, he very soon could scarcely breathe.
The flowers, when made into a garland, are strung
on a cord with limes on the sides near the top of
the wreath and a lime as a pendant at the bottom.”

On festive occasions of this kind also the mis-
sionary and his wife are decked out with garlands.

A large congregation witnessed the marriage
ceremony. Missionary Oberheu spoke on the words
of the Emmaus disciples: “Lord, abide with us!”
Several of the friends of the’ groom had written a
special wedding poem for the occasion, which was
sung to the music of one of the beautiful Indian
carols. The marriage was an altogether joyous oc-
easion for the little village station.

Catechist P. Joseph is living quite near to our
Puliyoorkonam chapel where he was united in mar-
riage. In addition to his wife he has to provide
for his aged mother, who is living with him, and
for a nephew, whom he is educating.

FREDERICK BRAND.

aad

The Saddest Sight in India.

Under this heading Missionary: Paul Heckel,
Nagercoil, India, has the following in a recent
number of Zhe Australian Lutheran: —

The saddest sight one sees in India is the so-
called “Christian” missionary to whom the Cross of
Christ is “chiefly ethical in its value,” to whom
Christ Crucified as the sinner’s Substitute is a
childish fable, long since outgrown. I have met
such representatives of three of the great mission-
ary bodies working in this part of India. In fact,
all the non-Lutheran missionaries with whom I have
had occasion to talk privately on matters religious,
four out of five men, have been of this stamp.
I have yet to speak to the man who knows and
believes that Jesus Christ died upon the cross to
pay the sin-debt of mankind. What such Saviorless
people want out here in a country which needs,
first of all, not social service and social uplift, but
the cleansing which comes alone by the blood of
Jesus Christ, the cleansing from all sin — what
such enemies of the atonement of Jesus Christ
want out here is beyond me. Only last Friday
I was told by a Masonic missionary, speaking in
true Masonic fashion, that he saw no reason why
the Jew of to-day could not be saved without accept-
ing Christ. What he wants to do for India, besides