The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-03-04
ACALLFROM CHARLESTON
WENTWORTH STREET CHURCH
WANTS DIR. BOWMAN.


A DELEGATION of Charleston Lutherans
Brings over Twelve Foot Petition
and Urges DR.. Bowman to Return to
His Old Pastorate-His Connection
with the South Carolina Church
A Possibility that He viii Accept the
Call
The Wentworth Street Lutheran church
of Charleston has extended call to Rev,
W. s. Bowman, D. d., pastor of the Evan
gelical Lutheran church, of this city.
On Thursday a delegation from Charles
ton. composed of Hon John D. Cappelmann,
S. Thomas, Jr., President of the corpora
ton of the Wentworth Street church; w.
H. WEIGH and DR.. Aug. Schwacke, came
over to Savannah. The object of their visit
was to present in person and urge upon DIR.
Bowman his acceptance of the following
call:
CHARLESTON S. c., Feb. % 1888
Reu. William s. Bo'cnaH, D. d. SaUannah,
DEAR BRorHER-At a duly called meeting of
the congregation of the Wentworth street
Lutheran church, of Charleston, S. O., held on
Sunday last, it was unanimously resolved that
a call be extended to you to the pastorate of
said church.
The undersigned were appointed a committee
TO convey to you the action OF the congrega-
ton as above, TO wait on yon in person and to
solicit most earnestly and sincerely an accept
ance of the call on your part. This committee
were likewise fully authorized to take action on
the part OF the congregation in the matter OF
suitable salary. Hoping for favorable reply
and praying Gods blessing upon the matter in
hand we beg to subscribe ourselves,
Yours fraternally.
S. THOMAS, JR..
JNo. D. CAPPEI.MANN,
W. II. WEIGH,
AUG. II. SCHwACKE,
Committee.
Attest: JNo. D. CAPPELMANN, Secy.
A TwELvE-FooT PETITION.
With this document We're two petitions
nearly or quite - feet in length One was
signed by the officers and members of the
Wentworth Street church, and the other
bore the signatures of the members Of the
other four Lutheran churches, and the lead
ing citizens and municipal and county
officials of Charleston.
The visiting committee after the preSenta-
ton of the three documents seconded them
with all their persuasion with which DR..
Bowman could not have failed to be deeply
impressed, for it was not only the unani-
nous voice of his old pastorate that was
calling him back, but the voice of all the
Lutheran churches aud the church people of
Charleston of all denominations.
DIR. Bowman was not prepared to give
the committee an immediate answer, and
after a full and extended conference the
matter was left open until after Easter.
WILL HE ACCEPT THE CALL4
A MORNING News reporter found DIR.
Bowman in his study yesterday afternoon,
and asked him if he intended to accept the
call. He was not prepared, he said to de
termine the matter. For some reasons
Charleston is very close to his heart Some
of tho hast a his life civ m ba
church in that city. In fact he said he
considered that his life-work had been done
there. He was deeply affected by the
unanimity of the call for his return to close
his life-work where the most arduous work
of his years had been done True he had
home here, married here, and his seven
years of church work in Savannah have
drawn him very closely to his fold and he
is willing to work wherever be can accom-
plish the most good for the Lutheran church
He declined once before very urgent call
TO an independent Congregational church
although it would not have severed his
ecclesiastical relations with the Lutheran
church.
HIS CHURCH WORK IN TWO CITIES.
DIR. Bowman when he accepted call
from the Lutheran church of Savannah
seven years ago, found the church I'M
finished and with debt OF $4,000 against
it. Under his pastorate the bonded debt
has been removed, and the attendance at
church and Sunday school has more than
doubled. This healthful condition was the
subject of a very high encomium from Rev.
Dr. Solomon Henkel, Secretary of the late
synod which assembled here, who, in con
trasting it with the churches at Richmond
and Staunton, Va, said it exceeded, by 100
per cent, what he had expected of the
Lutheran church Of Savannah
Dr. Bowman'S work in Charleston covered
an epoch of twenty-one years. For five
years he conducted a Lutheran mission
there and at the end of the five years he
succeeded in merging the Methodist Pro
testanU organization into the Lutheran
church. Having sold the mission church,
the house of worship of the Methodist
Protestant church was enlarged, and be-
came the Wentworth Street Lutheran
church, of which he remained the pastor for
sixteen years, and which pastorate he re-
signed to accept the call to come to Savan-
nah.
DIR. Bowman is not only one of the ablest
preachers and most prominent pastors in
the city, but he is citizen which Savan-
nah will regret to lose.