# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1852 07 17_S182
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

182

of last year, to Monday, I was awakened, at about 2 o'clock in the morning, during my stay in the filial congregation of N. N., by my host, who came to my bed with the words: "Pastor, I would not willingly disturb you, but Mrs. N. N. is here and desires immediately to be received into the Evangelical Lutheran Church and the holy Sacrament."

This woman is a shoemaker's wife from a place a mile distant from N. N., who had already once presented herself to me for admission into the Church, but could not be received chiefly for the reason that the Sunday service, which was just about to begin, made a thorough conversation with her impossible. Already the day after, on account of attending our service, she had been shamefully abused by her husband, and, her face full of bumps and weals, and her arms beaten black and blue, and, as the women of the congregation assured me, still far worse treated over her whole body, she had come to me again with the most imploring plea for help. She demanded the Sacrament again, and with a bleeding heart I had once more to leave her wish unfulfilled, because no wine had been left over, none was to be had in the place, and it was not possible to send to the town. There remained nothing for me to do but, with the poor woman, in fellowship with the members of the congregation present, to go in prayer before the Lord, and to beseech the All-merciful, who bears yet exceeding more compassion in His Jesus-heart than we sinful men, that He would lame the angry man's hand, that he might cease from his beating and tormenting; yea, for the sake of the woman's own best interest, in agreement with the members of the congregation, I could not even advise that she be brought home under escort, because the husband's wrath would thereby only have been increased. So she went, without human aid, but strengthened by prayer, with the resolve: "And though he beat me to death, my faith he cannot rob me of," back to her home, where her husband, about to fall upon her again, was hindered by his father-in-law, fell into a quarrel with him, dislocated a finger, and had for the time being to stop the beating.

This woman it was who came on the said Sunday at night, after I had awaited her in vain the day before, and again desired the Sacrament. Gladly would I have put off the holy act until day, but my host urged me. He said: Pastor! the woman was dragged about yesterday by her husband the whole day till late evening in N. N., on the news of your arrival; she was by all means to go with him there to church and Sacrament; the former she did, the latter not, but refused, and for that reason they both had to leave the church, because disturbance arose thereby. Having come home in the evening, her husband commanded her to undress and go to bed. She was already half undressed when she goes out once more through the house door and runs quickly round the house. Her husband and brother are soon behind her; but she hides herself behind the fence and creeps in the darkness undiscovered, although her pursuers are close by her, on her belly to the potato field, until she is far enough away to run on undiscovered, and so she has come hither by way of K., and fears that her husband also will not long stay away.

Now nothing helped, I had to get up, and my wife, who this time had accompanied me on my journey, likewise. The room was put in order, the table changed into an altar, and everything arranged as churchly as possible. The whole congregation was awakened and called together; soon the women also brought the cross-bearer, fully clothed by them, who before all in this solemn hour made her plain, unadorned confession of faith, moving the hearts of all, and through the Sacrament, in the presence of the congregation, who in such an hour could not refrain from drawing near once more to the Lord's table, although she had received the holy Sacrament only on Sunday, became a member of the evangelical Lutheran Church.

It is true that in the Christian life feelings and sensations do not matter very much; by them is determined neither our strength of faith nor our faithfulness of faith, but the faith which, no matter whether in anguish and terror or in joy and delight, without wavering and vacillating holds to the "Word" and grounds itself upon the "Word" alone, overcometh the world; yet at times the Lord lets us, in blessed hours, also perceive and feel the heavenly glory in a lovely foretaste, in order to strengthen our faith. Such a little hour I experienced now in the bosom of my young congregation of N. N., not yet a year old. It was as though the Lord tarried in the nearest nearness, almost visible among us. We had nothing to do but praise and give thanks. Even today we speak of it often, and even today the arrival of the woman, in the midst of dark night, in which she alone traversed dry-shod a way which, because of the many water-filled ditches, offers difficulties to men by day, is a miracle. She could not herself tell us how she had come across; she knew only that she was there safely. It is remarkable how she plainly maintained that she had been led by the angels of God; for otherwise, full of anxious fear to go in the darkness even as far as the house door, she declared she had this time started on her way so cheerfully, just as if she had been in the midst of a great host surrounding and protecting her, and had found it without any difficulties.

The joy of the woman after receiving the holy Supper was unspeakable, and, strengthened, she went with fresh courage to meet the new tribulations awaiting her, which were soon enough to begin again. She left my dwelling with the words: "Now I have my LORD and Saviour, and now let it be as God wills." She had hardly arrived at the neighbor's house and had just finished her silent prayer there, when her husband and brother also appeared. Furious, the former went at her. She sprang to meet him with the words: "Ah, Fritz! how glad I am that thou comest; behold, now I have received the Sacrament." The man thrust her from him, and raging and cursing he wanted to see the one who had presumed, without his permission, to give his wife the holy Supper. He came with his knotted staff toward my dwelling; I, with my wife, this time anxiously concerned, caught sight of him through the window before he came in. Defiantly he entered, and stood before me with the question just indicated. Yet the conversation that developed seemed to break his wrath, in which I remarked to him first that, on taking over my office, I did not remember having assumed the obligation to ask the shoemaker N. of N. for permission when I wished to incorporate new members into my flock, and then earnestly pointed him to his godless conduct. He reached me his hand kindly at parting, and is said to have declared outside also that the pastor was a quite reasonable fellow, which he had not at all believed; yet this short conversion did not last long, for when he caught sight of his wife, the old fury returned, and as he could not now do anything to her, he hastened wrathfully to the tavern, to drown his vexation in a breakfast of brandy.

Since then my eyes have not seen the woman again, but the more have I heard about her, which has only increased my joy in her faith, in spite of all her weakness. It is her husband who has made every coming to the service and into the brotherly fellowship impossible for her. The first thing with which he punished her on his return home was that he took away all her clothes and locked them in the chest, so that she kept barely the necessary covering for her nakedness; besides, it rained blows by day and shoves by night.

At last her weakness made itself felt, and to escape the uninterrupted maltreatment she sought a hiding-place in the house under the roof in the hay, where she remained undiscovered for 14 days. The man had her cried in the district paper as a runaway, but at last, brought to it by the disappearance of the remains of food, discovered her hiding-place in his own house, and went on afresh in his old method.

The LORD must give counsel what is now to be done; yet praised be His holy name, the woman still stands rock-firm and in such tribulation has not yet grown soft, but full of praising