The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1930, Page 122

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122

THE LUTHERAN PIONEER.

not walk from one mission-station to the other if
he can use a horse and buggy; and he will leave
the pony in the pasture and the buggy in the shed
if he has the opportunity and means to travel thirty
miles an hour in an automobile or sixty miles an
hour in a train or even 120 miles an hour in a
plane. The twentieth-century Church must use
twentieth-century methods. In the first century
after Christ, when His witnesses were to proclaim
the everlasting Gospel to every creature, the Lord
of the Church had the world-ruling Romans build
a huge network of excellent roads into every part
of their vast empire, and the Ruler of heaven and
earth also saw to it that His Gospel-messengers could
travel safely on every sea under the protection of
the Roman eagle, which kept the waters clear of
pirates. The soldiers of the Cross made use of these
modern highways on land and sea in order to carry
the banner of Jesus to the uttermost parts of the
world. When Luther again brought to light the
pure Gospel that “a man is justified by faith with-

out the deeds of the Law,” it was necessary to have ~

a method of reaching great multitudes in a brief
time, and therefore the divine Creator had Guten-
berg invent the printing-press. And how eagerly
and freely and determinately did not Luther press
the printing-press into the services’ of the Church!
In these latter evil times the Head of the Church
has given us a means of actually filling the air with
the saving truth that “Christ died for our sins ac-
cording to Scriptures.” This modern instrument
has been placed by God at our disposal, so that in
a comparatively inexpensive way, and with little
effort, we can preach the Word of God into millions
of hearts and homes. Shall we refuse to make every
possible use of this up-to-the-minute method of
reaching countless men, women, and children with
the meessage of salvation, week in and week out?
The progressive greater L. L. L. emphatically an-
swers, “No.” By resolving to sponsor a national
Lutheran Radio Hour, the L. L. L. means to say to
each and every mémber of the Lutheran Church:
“Brethren, we must gratefully accept this modern
God-given instrument and utilize it for the spread-
ing of the light in these days when the shadows of
the approaching night of eternity are rapidly de-
scending upon the children of men.” Every na-
tional Lutheran Radio Hour (and we hope that
_ after they have once been begun, they will never be
_ discontinued) will be an audible symbol and pledge
of assurance that the Lutheran Church is a modern.
_ Ghurch and thanks God for every modern scientific
advancement which makes possible a greater and

more effective spreading of the soul-saving, life-
reforming message that Christ is the world’s only
Hope. It is the clear will of the Lord, who has
commissioned His Church to preach the Gospel to
every creature, that we use every legitimate means
of publishing the saving Word. Who can deny that
radio is such a means? Therefore let us make full
and free use of it. Let us give the L. L. L. a gen-
erous lift!— Gospel Voice.

About Indian Fakirs.

Wherever you go in India you will meet with
the “holy man,” or fakir. Now you may meet him
dressed in a saffron gown, and then you may find
him very shy on clothes, but his body covered with
plenty of dirt, seemingly to make up for the lack of
clothing. He usually wears his hair quite long,
often in heavy plaits, and on it and his face he puts
a generous quantity of ashes. On his forehead he
will have his yellow caste mark, and in his hand
he carries his begging bowl, into which the people
are expected to deposit their offerings.

Of all the idlers in the world the Indian fakir
is without a doubt the most consistent; other idlers
may now and then perform some kind of task, but
the fakir never uses his hands in toil, it seems. The
only exercise he gives his hands is to hold them out
to accept a gift, to bless those who give him any-
thing, or to call down the curses of his gods upon
those who refuse him a donation.

During the heat of the day the fakir and his
chela (servant) rest in the shadow of some tree, but
in the cooler hours the two slowly wend their way
along the road. When nightfall overtakes him, he
enters the first village and begs his food and lodging.
Such is the fear of the people that they seldom
refuse his request. Refusal would be followed by
awful imprecations from the fakir, and whatever
evil might befall the refuser or his family would be
ascribed to the “holy man’s” curse. . Even Europeans
stand in awe of the curses and hidden powers of
fakirs.

The Result of a Curse.

A woman was shopping in the bazaar of a city
in India when a palsied fakir met her and asked
her for alms. The woman refused the old and
dirty beggar his request. The child of the woman
was in a carriage near by in the care of its Indian
nurse. Upon the woman’s refusal the fakir sharply
looked at the child and cursed it, saying that it
should soon be like him.