The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1926, Sheet 79

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THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

17

a population of 25,000 or more. This leaves 79 at
work among 46,000,000 Japanese who live in rural
districts,

Protestant Sunday-Schools in the Philippines. —
It was only in 1911 that a Sunday-school was or-
ganized in the Philippine Islands, but the unifica-
tion thereby brought about, of the work of religious
education conducted by Methodists, Presbyterians,
Baptists, United Brethren, Disciples, and Congre-
gationalists, has resulted in a marked increase in
energy and efficiency. To-day there are 1,015 Prot-
estant Sunday-schools in the islands, with 4,814
officers and teachers, and an enrolment of 65,590.
Nearly 500 Filipinos are taking teacher-training
courses,

Rosenwald Rural Schools for Negroes. —
A statement has recently been issued showing that
in the past ten years the Julius Rosenwald Fund,
in cooperation with 14 Southern States, has been
aided in the building of 2,600 rural schools for
Negroes. The cost of these schools. was $10,500,000,
provided as follows: By public funds, about
$5,460,000; by Negroes, $2,290,000; by whites,
$500,000; by the Julius Rosenwald Fund, $2,000,000.
A condition of aid from the Julius Rosenwald Fund
is that the Negroes raise an amount equal to that
given by the fund, or greater. This they secured
from their own contributions of money or labor,
from white friends, or from public funds.

Moslem Press More Active than the Christian. —
The Press of India quotes Dr. Samuel Zwemer,
famous Protestant missionary in Moslem lands, as
stating that in some countries, Mohammedanism is
far ahead of Christianity in the preparation of
literature. “As I have observed the situation,”
Dr. Zwemer is quoted as saying, “the Moslem press
is far ahead of the Christian press in India, as is
the case in China. There are diglot and polyglot
editions of the Koran in Bengali, Urdu, Gujarati,
Marathi, Malayalam, Tamil, etc., as well as three
English versions. If our information is correct,
three distinct Bengali translations of the Koran
now exist. The standard Mohammedan translation
in folio edition appeared as a third imprint, and
the publishers tell us that about 20,000 copies of
the third edition are sold every year in Calcutta.”

German Foreign Missions Aided. — Protestant _

churches have practically shown that they are
anxious to conserve the German foreign missions.
Financial assistance has been given German for-
eign missions in the following amounts: Holland,

300,000 florins; France, 270,000 frances; Belgium,
52,663 francs; Switzerland, 190,575 frances; Great
Britain, £15,012; North America, $319,096. Con-
tributions from Scandinavian countries, which were
very large, are not reported. The whole amount
may be figured at $711,129.75.

Negroes Take Over White Churches. — Negroes
continue to take over many of the large white
churches in Northern cities. Six churches in the
city of Newark, N. J., formerly belonging to white
Presbyterians, are now used by colored congrega-
tions. In Chicago they have taken over three white
places of worship, two of which were former Jewish
synagogs. One of these Chicago colored congrega-
tions has a membership of 10,000, the other of
6,000. The Negro church-membership in St. Louis
is also very large. ‘Two of this city’s colored con-
gregations worship in former white churches.

Lutherans in Chicago. — Chicago has at present
a Lutheran church-membership of almost 100,000
communicants. These worship in 240 churches and
are ministered to by 262 pastors. These Lutherans
belong to eight different synods. The Missouri
Synod has the largest membership, 53,000. The
total baptized membership is 146,274, of which
82,762 belong to Missouri congregations. The first
Lutheran church in Chicago was St. Paul’s, the
church in which the Missouri Synod was organized
in 1847. The property of the Lutheran churches in
Chicago is estimated to be worth over $12,000,000.
The Gospel is preached in various languages in
these churches; seventy-three congregations are
purely English. ae

St. Philip’s, Philadelphia. — Missionary Trum-
poldt writes: “Our little flock is growing. Three
were confirmed in January, two were confirmed to-
day [March 28], and two more are to be confirmed
next month. I also baptized two to-day.” Pastor
Trumpoldt also kindly sent the editor several num-
bers of the Lutheran Courier, which he edits and
publishes monthly in the interest of St. Philip’s
Ey. Luth. Church (colored). The little four-page
publication has the true Lutheran ring and is worth
reading from beginning to end. — St. Philip’s has
no home of its own and is in danger of losing even’
its rented home. Unless kind friends come to the
rescue and help the little band to get a permanent
place of worship, the future of this flourishing mis-
sion will be jeopardized. Pastor Trumpoldt’s ad-
dress is: Rev. P. Trumpoldt, 5807 Master St., —
Philadelphia, Pa.