The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1907-08-23
A BIG CHURCH AUDIENCE
ATTENDED GERMAN LUTHERAN
SYNOD SERVICES.
MORE THAN 1000 WE'RE PRESENT

About $3.50 Was Raised For Lutheran
Mission Work, $3o6 Comma In
Through Collections From the Two
Sunday Services.
Probably the biggest church audi
ence ever assembled for church service
es within the boundaries of Norfolk
was present at the open air services
or the Lutheran synod held Sunday
morning and afternoon In Pasewalks
grove. Immense audiences were pres
ent both morning and afternoon, the
number OF people listening to the af-
ternoon sermon being estimated from
two to three thousand. A seating ca
pacity for 1000 people arranged in the
grove was not adequate.
Sunday was mission Sunday for the
state convention of the Lutheran
churches of the Missouri synod. The
morning and afternoon were devoted
to the big mission festival in the
grove, the evening to the special ser.
vices in Christ Lutheran church, where
Theo. Gutknecht was ordained for spe-
cial missionary work in India.
The big gathering of Lutherans for
the mission services was the result of
hundreds of Lutherans from Madison,
Stanton, Wayne and Pierce counties
coming into Norfolk to join with the
Norfolk church and the Missouris ynod
in the services. No services were held
during the day at ST. Paul Ev. Luth-
eran church, affiliated with the Wiscon-
sin synod, the members of that congre-
cation joining in the services in Pase-
walk grove.
Special sermons on missions were
features Of mission festival in Pase-
walk grove. In the morning Rev. Z.
Gehrke of Bennington spoke on home
missions; in the afternoon Rev. Mr..
Hopmann of Wilcox delivered a SER
mon on foreign missions. Both SER
mons were effective addresses.
Amout $3.50 was raised for Lutheran
Mission work Sunday. The sum of
1906 came in through the collections
Of the two services. About hundred
and fifty dollars was netted from the
receipts of the refreshment and lunch
stands in the grove.
The audience in Pasewalk's grove
Sunday was not only Norfolk's biggest
church audience ever gathered within
the city limits, the meetings were de-
to be the largest attended of any ever
held in connection with the state sy-
nod meeting.
Missionary Ordained.
Few more impressive services have
been held in Norfolk than the service
of Sunday evening when in Christ
Lutheran church a young man, Theo.
Gutknecht, graduate of st. Louis Con-
cordia seminary, was ordained for
work in the mission field in India. Mr..
Gutknecht, who is from Wayne county,
and whose father is a Wayne county
pastor, left this morning for st. Louis
enroute for his work in eastern India.
The Missouri synod already has sever
al missionaries in India.
The young missionary was ordained
by Rev. P. e. Brandt Of Pittsburg,
president of the national synod. He
was assisted by Rev. Mr.. Gutknecht of
Wayne county, father of the young
missionary, and by Rev. G. H. Becker
of Seward, president of the state synod.
The church choir was augmented by
additions from the ranks of the visit
ing teachers. The ordination sermon
of the evening was delivered by Rev.
e. G. Frese of Omaha.
Monday morning following the Sun
day mission festival and the adjourn
ment from Saturday morning the state
synod reconvened for the last two days
of their Norfolk session. Important
business items were to be taken up
Monday afternoon and Tuesday.
Monday evening was given over to
a special service with communion for
the visiting Lutheran ministers.