The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1929, Page 34

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34 THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

Luther’s Small Catechism and Missions.

Every missionary beginning work in a foreign
country at once takes up the study of the country’s
language, so that he may translate the Scriptures
into that language. This is a tremendous task,
since so many ideas must be expressed for which
these languages have no proper terms and words.
Lutheran missionaries generally prepare the way
for the Bible by giving a translation of Luther’s
Small Catechism into the hands of the people
among whom they are working. As it is so much
smaller in content than the whole Bible or even the
New Testament, the single missionary finds the
translation of the Small Catechism more equal to
his ability and far more quickly accomplished.

For this reason, Pastor John Campanius, the
first Lutheran as well as the first Protestant mis-
sionary to the American Indians, soon after he had
come to the Delaware Indians in 1643 to preach the
Gospel to them, set about translating Luther’s Small
Catechism into their language. And it was thus
that Luther’s Small Catechism was the first book to
be translated into the language of the American
Indian. Campanius worked here in America among
his fellow-Swedes and the Indians until failing
health compelled him to return to Sweden in 1648.
- While we cannot to-day say how many Indians were
taught the plain and simple Catechism truths, we
do know that the faithful work of Campanius made
a deep and lasting impression upon the native
Americans, and the light of eternity will no doubt
reveal much blessing brought to the Indians by the
teaching of Lmuther’s Small Catechism through
Campanius.

Lutheran missionaries have used Luther’s Small
Catechism in many foreign lands. In various parts
- of Africa; Luther’s Catechism has brought the saving
knowledge of Christ to many former heathen. In
China our missionaries use a translation of the
Small Catechism prepared by Rev. E. L. Arndt. In
India our missionaries regularly use Tamil and
Malayalam translations of Luther’s Catechism in
their work. In short, I believe it may be said
_ without fear of contradiction that Lutheran mis-
_ sionaries, wherever they may work, base their educa-
_ tional work upon Luther’s Small Catechism. And
the result is most gratifying, as a few instances may
help to show.
i : A Theft and Its Sequel.

: An orphanage in India. A circle of
boys, with Cornelius in the center. Cor-

ery dejected mien, for he has been -

shown up to be a thief. He has stolen pencils from
his schoolmates ; a whole nestful of them were found
buried under a tree near the compound. His school-
mates are taking him to task. “Did you learn to
steal here in the orphanage? Repeat the Seventh
Commandment.” They would not let him go till he
had promised never to steal again. Such was the
result of the teaching of the Small Catechism.

Weeks passed. ‘The court scene described above
was forgotten, when little Cornelius gave the mis-
sionary a joyful surprise. Through the curtained
door could be heard a child’s voice on the veranda.
The child, it seemed, was repeating a lesson it had
learned by heart. Now and then the mumbling of
a man’s voice could be heard, saying, “Good!”
“Tine!” “Very good!” The missionary recognized
the man’s voice to be that of one of his old heathen
servants, who was sitting on the veranda and doing
some work. And the child was— Cornelius! He
had come over from his quarters in the school at
that late hour to tell the old heathen the Bible story
they had heard in school that day. The former thief
had become a missionary of his own volition.

A Heathen Beginning, but a Christian Ending.

- A Hindu boy and a Christian had gotten into
a quarrel, with the result that they had disfigured
each other’s faces with crayon. Besides this, the
Christian boy, the more temperamental of the two,
had poured a bottle of ink over the linen shirt of his
opponent. The Hindu boy went to the principal
and complained of the shameful treatment he
claimed to have received at the hands of the Chris-
tian boy. The investigation was without any satis-
factory results, since neither of the two wanted to
admit that he had begun the quarrel. Finally the
principal gave this verdict: “As far as disfiguring
each other’s faces with the crayon is concerned, you
are alike guilty; but you, Barnabas” (this was the
name of the Christian boy), “will have to pay for
the shirt you have spoiled.” The Hindu demanded
half a rupee. :

Immediately after the recitation the other Hindu
boys told him: “You are a fool! You should have
demanded three times as much as you did.” And,
sure enough, the next morning the Hindu boy ap-
peared at the principal’s office and declared that his
guardian demanded one and a half rupee. When
‘Barnabas heard of this demand, he was incensed at
the demand. The principal brought the argument
to an end by saying: “Barnabas will give you the
price first agreed upon. If you cannot buy a new
shirt for that amount, we shall get you one.”