The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1931, Page 159

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

THE LUTHERAN PIONEER

159

Synod Lutherans, many of the established congrega-
tions now being self-supporting. Methodists, Pres-
byterians, and others support an interdenomina-
tional mission among the Indians in Matto Grosso.
Brazilian Baptists are conducting missions to the
Indians in the Amazonas territory. The Lutheran
Synod of Santa Catharina, Parana, and Other States
has issued an appeal for the undertaking of mission-
work to the Indians.” —N. L. C. News Bulletin.

Cannibalism in New Guinea. — 7’he Lutheran
Missionary recently brought a letter from the pen of
Miss F. Henkelmann, a worker in the flourishing
mission of the American Lutheran Church in New
Guinea. We quote a portion of this letter, which
substantiates what has been frequently claimed by
others, namely, that cannibalism is still to be found
on the island: “At the beginning of this month
there was a battle near the village of Sibog. The
natives of Kembung had come quite a distance to
get better acquainted with our helpers stationed at
Sibog, about five hours march straight inland from

_Galek. They had hardly arrived at Sibog, when one
man murdered one of the Kem people, the rest leay-
ing everything and fleeing. They were, however,
ambushed by men of three other villages at the
crossing of the Jouie River, and two men, one
woman, and a child were killed. One man who was
killed on the road was taken to the nearest village,
cooked, and eaten! A twofold cause of the massacre
has been reported: one to pay back the Kembung
people for a raid they had previously made, and the
other has it that the murderers were enraged because
another village showed interest in the teachings of
the helpers. The murderer who took the initial step
was once a catechumen, but bitterly opposed the
burning of the ‘messiab’ a year ago.”

Death of a Prominent Indian Pastor. — Rev.
Philip Leisenring, ordained Indian Lutheran pastor
and member of the faculty of the theological sem-
inary at Luthergiri, Rajahmundry, East Godavery
District, India, died in the Lutheran mission-hospital
at Nidadabole, June 24, 1931, at the age of fifty,
following an illness from typhoid fever. Pastor
Leisenring was born in Guntur of native baptized

‘Christians, who brought up all their children in the
Christian faith. A number of the members of the
family are leaders in the Andhra Lutheran Church.
Philip was educated in the schools of the United
Lutheran Church mission in India and, after his
ordination by the Andhra Church, served as pastor
of a congregation at Guntur and later at Rentich-
intala. He served as teacher in the Luthergiri The-

ological Seminary since January, 1930, and was
loved and esteemed by his countrymen and by the
missionaries for his sturdiness of character, his
truthfulness, his independence, and deep piety.

The Presbyterians and Missions. — For the
first time since 1925 the Presbyterian Church, which
has a communicant membership of two million, con-
tributed less than $60,000,000 in a year. During
the year ending March 31, 1931, the total church
contributions were somewhat more than $58,000,000,
a decrease of over $4,000,000 from the report of the
previous year. Noteworthy it is that this decrease
is found almost altogether in the congregational ex-
penses. To be exact, the decrease in the congrega-
tional expenses was $3,500,000, while the decrease
in the synodical expenses was only $500,000. The
decrease in the Foreign and Home Missions funds
was very little. The Presbyterians have always
shown themselves to be missionary-minded, and so
also in this case they rather cut down the home costs
than let their mission enterprises suffer.

Jewels in Mud. — John Robertson tells how
Ruskin, while walking along the streets of London
when the weather was wet and mud was abundant
and sticky, began to philosophize on the organic
elements of the clay beneath his feet. He took some
of the mud home with him and analyzed it. He
found that London mud contained sand, clay, soot,
and water, the very substances from which our pre-
cious gems are made. Onyx, chrysolite, agate, beryl,
carnelian, chalcedony, jasper, sardius, and amethyst
are formed from the sand; sapphire, ruby, emerald,
and topaz came from the clay; and the diamond is
the product of soot. These are mighty fine things to
find in the filth of the street. There is more in mud
than we think. We cannot transform the mud under
our feet into these sparkling gems, but God does it
through the chemical processes of nature. And
through the processes of His power, grace, and love
He changes the common mud of humanity into rare
jewels of moral and spiritual beauty.

Ev. Luth. Herald.

BOOK TABLE.

The Story of Luther. By Prof. W. G. Polack. Concor-
dia Publishing House, St. Louis, Mo. 155 pages;
G1 illustrations. Strong cloth binding. Price, 60 cts.,
postpaid.

Professor Polack has here given us in his usual lucid
and flowing language a graphic picture of Luther’s strong
personality and the example of his useful and laborious
life. The short biography is well put together and proves
most interesting reading. While this biography may not
bring anything new concerning Luther, yet the writer pre-