The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1929, Page 169

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

eM mimes

THE LUTHERAN PIONEER. 169

people of the community by means of a thousand
printed dodgers, containing the order of service and
an invitation to be present, which were distributed
by eleven teams of students. Both the morning and
the evening paper of Greensboro carried items in
their news columns on Saturday. The Sunday
paper also gave the services a liberal amount of
space.

A very conservative estimate placed the atten-
dance at 350 people.

Grace Luther Memorial, as the name indicates,
is a merger of Grace and Luther Memorial congre-
gations. The actual merger, however, will not take
place until after the completion of the new struc-
ture, which will be about the first of February, 1930.
The former church was organized in 1895. In 1897
a building containing a church auditorium and two
schoolrooms was erected in a section of Greensboro
known as Warnersville. This building was damaged
beyond repair by a fire which broke out during a
Communion service in the evening of November 11,
1928. Owing to their inability to obtain suitable
quarters, the members decided to worship tempora-
rily in the chapel of the college.

The work of Luther Memorial began with the
opening, by Prof. Hans Naether, of a Sunday-school
of twelve children in the college chapel on May 25,
1924.

According to good old Lutheran custom the
corner-stone should be laid when the foundation has
been completed, but before the superstructure has
been begun. For various reasons this fine custom
could not be observed when the corner-stone of
Grace Luther Memorial was laid.

Another custom was set aside when a meager list
of important events in the history of Grace Church
was placed in the stone instead of a history of the
congregation. But no records of the church were

available since they were possibly destroyed in

the fire.

Opinions as to the value of church records some-
‘times differ; but an increasingly large number of
members feels that whenever the pastor keeps a
careful record of baptisms, confirmations, com-
munions, ete., he thereby gives good evidence of his
interest in the people entrusted to his care. A well-
kept church book indicates that the pastor regards
each soul as precious as a great treasure, which he
is determined not to lose. —

The following letter may be as interesting to the
readers of this column as it was to the members of

_ the faculty : —

“To THE Facutty oF IMMANUEL
LurHeran CoLtece: —

“We do not know how we can thank you enough
for the religious training you gave Eddie.

“After Eddie passed through the elementary
school at home, where we could teach him, we felt
that, when he entered Immanuel Lutheran College,
he would get even a better training than we could
give him. I am so glad that Immanuel Lutheran
College was the school of our choice.

“When we think of how his soul was snatched
almost instantly from his body, we give thanks to
you for keeping his mind set and fixed on Jesus
Christ, who alone can save.

“Secondly, we know that you really loved him
because you showed it by the long trip you made to
comfort us and to let those that heard, know what
kind of boy he was under your control.

“Thirdly, we thank you for the beautiful memo-
rial wreath you gave as a token of your love for him
and the sympathy you showed the family.

“Fourthly, though your trip was a costly one,
I think that it will well pay the school. During the
few days that I was at home everybody said that the
Christian school was the place where the children
should go. We will do more for Immanuel Lu-
theran College than ever before.

“We ask your prayers to help us overcome our
grief, though we feel that God had a purpose when
He took Eddie,.though we know not which that
purpose was.

“We ask God’s blessings upon you, that you may
live long to train and teach young men and women
the way to Christ.

“Yours truly;
“Mr. anp Mrs. T. L. Forney.”
Wx. H. GEHRRKE.

Our Early Lutheran Mission
in Michigan.

PIonEER readers will be interested in an account
of the work done by our fathers in Michigan among
the Indians living in the neighborhood of Saginaw.
The account comes from the pen of the vener-
able Dr. E. A. Mayer, of Frankenmuth, Mich. He
writes : — :

An important section of the history of the Lu-
theran Church would be missing if we would not
insert a special chapter speaking of the work which
our Lutheran pioneers did among the Indians.