Full Text for The One Hundredth Anniversary of the Franconian Settlements in Michigan, 1845-1945. (Text)

,: if two nan lot mentio ebbelen and Fuerblinger, both pastors of the congregation at Frankenmuth. Candidate Karl August Wilhelm Roebbelen had brought eleven of Loehe's young men to the seminary at Fort Wayne. For five years he was pastor at Liverpool, Ohio. When Craemer in 1850 accepted a call as professor at Loehe's Fort Wayne seminary, Roebbelen was called as his successor to Frankenmuth. Roebbelen sincerely loved his Savior and the people for whom the Savior died and therefore took his ministerial work very serious. The fact that he examined his catechumens five days (three hours in the morning and two in the afternoon) in the presence of his congregation to prove that the children really had lea."l1ed the doctrines of the Catechism, shows how conscientious and painstaking he was in performing his official duties. He was an indefatigable worker and an outstanding preacher. Roebbelen was a sick man when he came to Frankenmuth. Therefore, much to the regret of his congrega- tion, he resigned his pastorate in 1858 and left for Germany in quest or health. He died there September 20, 1866. Roebbelen's successor was Pastor Ottomar Fuerbringer, who had been pastor in Freistatt, Wis. Fuerbringer was born in Gera, Thuringia, June 30, 1810. He studied theology at Leipzig. ~1e carne to this country with the Saxons under the leadership of Stephan in 1,l39. Toge - - -. Brohm ,, ___ ' "----.ser he for-:J-:J ro-ncordia College in Perry County, Mo., where he also gave instruction in the classical languages. Prior to his pastorate at Freistatt he was pastor at Venedy, lli. From 1854 to 1872 and again from 1874 to 1882 he was President of the Northern District of the Missouri One Hundredt..h Anniversary of Franconian Settlements 103 Synod. He was pastor at Frankenmuth from 1858 till the time of hi - '" "'ath i.'l 1892. Fuerbringer was a man _oune. ___ ..!olog ___ _ learning, of good judgment, and of firm resolution. Dr. A. L. Graebner called him "the profoundest thinker among the fathers of the MiSSOllri Synod." 9. The Franconian Lay People As important as good spiritual leadership is, we dare not, after all, give all credit for successful work to the spiritual leaders of the Church. The story of the Franconian settlements would be incomplete if the part which the lay people took were ignored. Conditions in the world today are so very different from those a hundred years ago that the average man has no conception of the hardsllips of pioneer life in those day s. Today very few spots in the world at large have remained untouched by modern civiliza- tion. Today we travel in well-equipped, air-conditioned coaches and sleepers in fast-moving trains, in luxurious steamships that cut the waters at great speed, and in airplanes that cover hundreds of miles in a few hours. Compared therewith, how inconveni, at, CI !rson nd h :lous e1 Wi hen 1 1ran( : ns ~ to this country: fifty days in small sailing vessels on the stormy ocean, a distance now covered in seven to ten days; the passing of one whole. .nontu a~ter leaving New York before the colonists arrived in Saginaw Valley, a distance which today is covered in less than twenty-four hours. Today farmers in the Saginaw Valley live in modern homes on modern farms and enjoy modern conveniences of life; in those days the settlers came to primeval forests inhabited by Indians and wild beasts; the settlers had to hew down trees in order to build log cabins; they had to clear the land in order to cultivate it; make roads; by hard labor and in spite of much sickness (ague) eke out a living as best they could. All of this took much faith and courage and endurance. Those early settlers, too, were human; at times they became discouraged. However, they had come here not in quest of wealth or an easy life, but to serve their Lord. They were sincere Christians, loved the Word of God, and trusted to His guidance and protection. For years they held their daily mornL..g and evening devotions, and attended church services not only on Sundays and church holidays, but also every Wednesday and Friday. They took their Chris- tianity very serious, [any hem tme well grounded i..'l the Word of God. They established Christian schools for their children. For years they lived an isolated life, partly owing to circumstances and partly to choice, When in the early years a railroad was to be built through one of the colonies, the peop' ')jectl - , lelie, _' it would bring too much of the world to them. However, these early settlers were not only interested in their own welfare; they 104 Outlines on the Standard Gospels were as much interested in the Kingdom of God at large and did not intend to keep their spiritual blessings to themselves, but desired that others should share them. They supported t.1,.e work of Synod and sent a very large number of their young men to Synod's col- leges and seminaries to become pastors and teachers. But those early settlers, too, were by nature sinful and were beset by tempta- tions on the part of their flesh, the devil, and the world. Their congregations, too, were not made up of perfect saints. But they encouraged one another to lead a Christian life, admonished the erring, and exercised church discipline when necessary. After all, the Franconian settlements were made up of sturdy, Christian people whom God richly blessed in many ways. The first early settlers have gone to their eternal reward, where they are glorip.1ing God with the saints forevermore. May the descendants not fail to appreciate the blessings which they have inherited from their fathers. May God in His grace grant that it may not have to be said of the present Franconian generation, as it was said of the people who lived after the death of Moses and Joshua, "And there arose another generation after them, which knew not the Lord nor yet the works which he had done for Israel," Judges 2: 10. J.H.C.F. Outlines on the Standard Gospels Sexagesima Luke 8:4-15 The text of this Sunday is a parable. Jesus often spoke in parables. He took some well-known fact of daily life and by way of comparison illustrated some heavenly or spiritual truth. There- fore, in order to understand a parable, we must look for the point of comparison. - Why did Jesus speak in parables? The answer is given in vv. 9, 10; see also Matt. 13: 10-17. The parable, being an illustration, has as its purpose the making clear of a truth. It is common experience, however, that people who do not want to see, will not see, though a matter be clearly presented to them. The unbelievers, who harden their hearts against God's truth, do not understand Christ's parables. To them the parable conceals God's truth, though it is intended to reveal the mysteries of the Kingdom of God for man's salvation. In order that we may not be found among such unbelievers, let us learn what the Lord says in our text, the parable of the Sower, concerning those who hear the Word of God. As only some of the land on which seed is sown brings forth fruit to perfection, so only some of those who hear the Word of God are finally saved. The reason why some are not saved is