The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1926, Page 22

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22

THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

than a headlong charge with its almost inevitable
aftermath of hasty and disastrous retreat.

But when all has been said and done, there is
still much room for improvement. We have not
yet reached that point where we can say that all
of our congregations are intelligently informed
about the great missionary enterprises that our
Church is carrying on at home and abroad to carry
out the Lord’s Great Commission to preach the
Gospel to every creature. On the contrary, there
are still large numbers of people in our various
congregations who have not yet become conscious
of the fact that the carrying on of missions is the
business of the Church. There are congregations
among us to whom the missionary view has not yet
come, and who are still laboring under the baneful
delusion that the only reason the joy of the Gospel
has come to them is that they may selfishly expe-
rience it for themselves, without regard to the fact
that the first Gospel messenger positively declared
that it is a joy that is intended for all people. The
missionary message does not seem to have reached
the consciousness of these people.

Aside from the fact that our flesh is opposed to
“all missionary activity and will do all to hinder it,
we believe’ that the main cause of indifference to
missions, wherever it is found among us, is due to a
lack of information and education. How many of
our people who would deem it a disgrace to be com-
pelled to admit ignorance in commercial, industrial,
and political matters, are seemingly not ashamed to
admit their lack of knowledge concerning the weal
and woe of the Lord’s kingdom on earth. When
their country is at war, they read with avidity the
daily reports in the papers and talk over the. vic-

tories and defeats with their friends and even with .

strangers with whom they are thrown together; but
of that continuous warfare carried on by the sol-
diers of the Cross at home and abroad against the
powers of wickedness they know almost nothing,
_ and in it they seem to take no interest. The family
that reads no secular paper is classed as ignorant
and deemed by most people to be undesirable citi-
zens; but what if they should reason the same way
concerning those church-members who read no
church-papers!_ How many families are there
among Us in which no church- or missionary papers
are read! In some congregations there is at least
one church-paper to be found in every.family, but
in others it is probable that only one family out of
five subscribes to a religious periodical. :

_ However, we fear that our pastors and teachers

are also to blame for the lack of missionary infor-
mation among our people. How many opportun-
ities for giving missionary information do not
pastors in pulpit and catechetical instruction let
pass by without using! How often could not the
teacher in the day- or Sunday-school tell a gripping
missionary story or make.a missionary application,
but because their own missionary interest is not
strong enough, they let the precious opportunities
pass by unused! Not only our people, but likewise
we pastors and teachers, are not always conscious
of the fact that mission-work is tie business of the
Church. We do not always realize in the measure
we should that missionary education is vital to the
whole future program of the Church; that if we
do not awaken a vision of the extent of present
missionary opportunities, as well as of the great
urgency of the Gospel ministry to a lost world, we
are not doing our full duty to those upon whose
shoulders the responsibility for the work of the
Church must soon rest. F. J. L.

Alabama Negro Mission During 1925.

Workers. — There are on the rapidly growing
Alabama-field of our Colored Missions 11 pastors, °
3 professors, 26 lady teachers, 1 matron for the
dormitory, and 7% male teachers, a total of 48
workers. Of these workers, only 5 are white. The
Gospel of Jesus is being preached at

TWENTY-SIX Stations, 23 of which are or-
ganized congregations. At these places we have at
the end of 1925 a

MemsBersuip of 1,595 souls, 878 being commu-
nicant members and 212 voters. During the year
we have had the following

Gains. — By baptism 251, by confirmation 233 ;
a total of 484 accessions. In view of unusual difli-
culties, not the least of which was renewed and
bitter opposition in some quarters, we have every
reason to be grateful to God, who again has given
us such a bountiful harvest of souls. These new
members, as well as the older ones, are showing a
healthy spiritual life, as may be seen from atten-
dance at services and the [ .

NUMBER OF GUESTS AT THE LorD’s TABLE. —
Congregational reports show that 2,912 guests have -
partaken of the Lord’s Supper for the strengthen-
ing of their faith during 1925, an average of be-.
tween 3 and 4 times for each member during the
year just ended. While in most of our congrega-