Headline: Letters from Russia
Norka, Jan. 7, 1924
Much esteemed and dear Jakob Volz:
I can picture you laughing as you open this letter and I can hear you muttering to yourself, "when Pastor Wacker writes he writes on a grand scale. Normal sized writing paper is too small for him. He has to get larger sheets of paper." Now be patient and allow my detailed writing to flow over you. Who knows when I'll be able to write to you again.
First, I inform you that I received your dear letters of 16 October (from Portland, Oregon) and 16 November (from Harvard, Nebraska). I didn't want to answer your first letter because I was waiting for the news that you had received my previous letters. That never came in your last letter and I could wait no longer because Christmas was fast approaching. Christmas with its abundance of joy but also its abundance of work for we Pastors. I don't know if I already wrote you or not that Pastor Guenther went to Warenburg and I still serve the Beideck community. We celebrated Christmas quite happily. With us celebrating as our guest was a Russian clergyman who had come here many times during the emergency seeking aid for his church.
The January Conference was held this time in Huck. The influx of guests was tremendous and exceeded the previous years Conferences in Norka and Frank. By New Years Eve we had registered 880 guests from 35 localities on the Berg- and Wiesenseite. On New Years Day even more came from villages in the surrounding area, so that the number of guests was estimated at about 1000. It was clear from the start that the Prayer House would not be large enough, so the Church Superintendent shoveled a path through knee deep snow to the larger summer church. An hour before the twin services were to begin the churches were already full, not only all the seats, but also all of the aisles. It was like it was in Norka a year ago. They crowded into the pulpit, the altar, the stage and the stairs leading to the loft. And still more crowds appeared on New Years Eve and at dawn. When they could not find a place in the church they crowded into the Prayer House and in less than a quarter hour it too was full. Luckily Pastor Kluck was prepared to preach the Gospel. He preached this evening in the Prayer House about Psalm 97, I preached in the church about Psalm 118, 29. Brother Ehlers (the son) spoke at the evening meeting about Zachariah 7, 8-14; Brother Fink spoke at the church about Isaiah 63, 7. In addition to these two evangelists, several other brothers spoke in the Prayer House and at the church. I am unable to recount them all. On New Years Day parallel services and parallel meetings had to be held. Pastor Kluck gave the New Years sermon at the church about John 9, 25, while Pastor Eichhorn did the liturgy. I held the New years service at the Prayer House about John 1, 35-39. In the meeting in the afternoon and evening and at the concluding meeting on Wednesday morning at 6 o'clock, the evangelists Ehler and Fink and many other brothers spoke.
At the church services as well as the meetings there were altogether some 3 to 4,000 listeners assembled. At 8 o'clock on the morning of January 2nd the Conference ended with a closing speech by me about 2nd Corinthians 6, 9 ("as dying, and behold we live,") and a closing prayer and benediction. Brother Ehlers admonished them with the text of James 5, 7-11, to have patience in these times. They went out consciously gratified, once again their hungry souls satisfied at the richly bedecked table of our Heavenly Father.
At the concluding meeting, which took place only in the church, a collection was taken which amounted to 30 billion Ruble. That sounds so magnificent, however the willing sacrifice of our Volga Germans appears in a somewhat lesser light when one considers that 30 billion Ruble on New Years Day amounted to about 5 dollars US. The next large Conference is to be held in Hussenbach on the 24th of February.
:) I almost sent a historical error across the wide sea. You shouldn't mumble about it, what you have to say, say aloud.
(Translator note: The happy face was in the text and the above sentence is verbatim. I have no idea as to its reference but it seems to be an inside joke between the two men)
According to an old custom a short report was read on New Years Eve about the state of the community. In Huck in the year 1923 there were 174 males and 155 females born, in all 329 children. Deaths for the same period were: 50 males and 52 females, altogether 102 persons. Thus the population increase for this year was only 227 persons or about 4 percent. Those among the dead who had reached an advanced age were: Christina Brotzmann, nee Bohl, at the age of 82 years, 6 months, 6 days; Joh. Georg Kindsvater, 80 years, 2 months, 7 days; Elisabeth Leonhardt, nee Leonhardt (the mother of the present "Hauptschreiber" (Translator note: this is probably the current village secretary), 89 years 10 months 22 days. There were no special accidents resulting in death. 92 couples were married, 77 boys and 58 girls were confirmed, altogether 135. From the "Personbuch" (Family Register kept by the church) listing the number of souls in the municipality of Huck: 5408 males and 5210 females, in sum 10,618. In our "Personalbuch" there are still many counted who have left many years ago for the USA's starry flag, acquiring a new homeland for themselves. The actual number of inhabitants living in Huck could hardly exceed 5,000.
Now I want to deal somewhat more in greater detail with the subjects treated in your letter. I thank you very much for the detailed description of your travels. I thought of the beautiful song: "Wenn Gott rechte Gunst erweisen, den Schickt er in die Weite Welt." You have had the good fortune to see a good portion of God's earth. You have accumulated much to think about and to be thankful for! I admire the unshakable optimism with which you go forth to carry on the dear work of the welfare organization.
It pleases me that the Volga Germans of America also bestir themselves and are helping you to mitigate the great emergency in Germany. You are doing thereby a holy work which surely will receive better thanks than you received for the aid work here. I repeat here what I recently wrote to a friend in Portland. The greatest help that they can give to Germany does not consist of shiploads of food and clothing, but rather that they allow right and justice to prevail again. The Versailles Peace is based on the devilish lie that Germany is responsible for the outbreak of the war. This lie falls apart into nothingness, and it is not to be expected any differently. Then, in addition to this changed fact, the intolerable burden which had been laid upon Germany should be lifted and eliminated. Three months after the last Frenchman leaves holy German soil Germany will need no more assistance.
And yet there is another proposal I would like to express in this connection. If only the Volga Germans of America who have had such a good opportunity, became seriously interested in German culture. Is there anything more beautiful or more grand than German literature? Is there a people on this earth or is it to only one that God has revealed the power of music as he has the sublime masters of German musical art? No! No! No! It is a topic that for me is inexhaustible, imperishable, irreplaceable, etc.
I conclude with my cordial greetings,
your F. Wacker
I can picture you laughing as you open this letter and I can hear you muttering to yourself, "when Pastor Wacker writes he writes on a grand scale. Normal sized writing paper is too small for him. He has to get larger sheets of paper." Now be patient and allow my detailed writing to flow over you. Who knows when I'll be able to write to you again.
First, I inform you that I received your dear letters of 16 October (from Portland, Oregon) and 16 November (from Harvard, Nebraska). I didn't want to answer your first letter because I was waiting for the news that you had received my previous letters. That never came in your last letter and I could wait no longer because Christmas was fast approaching. Christmas with its abundance of joy but also its abundance of work for we Pastors. I don't know if I already wrote you or not that Pastor Guenther went to Warenburg and I still serve the Beideck community. We celebrated Christmas quite happily. With us celebrating as our guest was a Russian clergyman who had come here many times during the emergency seeking aid for his church.
The January Conference was held this time in Huck. The influx of guests was tremendous and exceeded the previous years Conferences in Norka and Frank. By New Years Eve we had registered 880 guests from 35 localities on the Berg- and Wiesenseite. On New Years Day even more came from villages in the surrounding area, so that the number of guests was estimated at about 1000. It was clear from the start that the Prayer House would not be large enough, so the Church Superintendent shoveled a path through knee deep snow to the larger summer church. An hour before the twin services were to begin the churches were already full, not only all the seats, but also all of the aisles. It was like it was in Norka a year ago. They crowded into the pulpit, the altar, the stage and the stairs leading to the loft. And still more crowds appeared on New Years Eve and at dawn. When they could not find a place in the church they crowded into the Prayer House and in less than a quarter hour it too was full. Luckily Pastor Kluck was prepared to preach the Gospel. He preached this evening in the Prayer House about Psalm 97, I preached in the church about Psalm 118, 29. Brother Ehlers (the son) spoke at the evening meeting about Zachariah 7, 8-14; Brother Fink spoke at the church about Isaiah 63, 7. In addition to these two evangelists, several other brothers spoke in the Prayer House and at the church. I am unable to recount them all. On New Years Day parallel services and parallel meetings had to be held. Pastor Kluck gave the New Years sermon at the church about John 9, 25, while Pastor Eichhorn did the liturgy. I held the New years service at the Prayer House about John 1, 35-39. In the meeting in the afternoon and evening and at the concluding meeting on Wednesday morning at 6 o'clock, the evangelists Ehler and Fink and many other brothers spoke.
At the church services as well as the meetings there were altogether some 3 to 4,000 listeners assembled. At 8 o'clock on the morning of January 2nd the Conference ended with a closing speech by me about 2nd Corinthians 6, 9 ("as dying, and behold we live,") and a closing prayer and benediction. Brother Ehlers admonished them with the text of James 5, 7-11, to have patience in these times. They went out consciously gratified, once again their hungry souls satisfied at the richly bedecked table of our Heavenly Father.
At the concluding meeting, which took place only in the church, a collection was taken which amounted to 30 billion Ruble. That sounds so magnificent, however the willing sacrifice of our Volga Germans appears in a somewhat lesser light when one considers that 30 billion Ruble on New Years Day amounted to about 5 dollars US. The next large Conference is to be held in Hussenbach on the 24th of February.
:) I almost sent a historical error across the wide sea. You shouldn't mumble about it, what you have to say, say aloud.
(Translator note: The happy face was in the text and the above sentence is verbatim. I have no idea as to its reference but it seems to be an inside joke between the two men)
According to an old custom a short report was read on New Years Eve about the state of the community. In Huck in the year 1923 there were 174 males and 155 females born, in all 329 children. Deaths for the same period were: 50 males and 52 females, altogether 102 persons. Thus the population increase for this year was only 227 persons or about 4 percent. Those among the dead who had reached an advanced age were: Christina Brotzmann, nee Bohl, at the age of 82 years, 6 months, 6 days; Joh. Georg Kindsvater, 80 years, 2 months, 7 days; Elisabeth Leonhardt, nee Leonhardt (the mother of the present "Hauptschreiber" (Translator note: this is probably the current village secretary), 89 years 10 months 22 days. There were no special accidents resulting in death. 92 couples were married, 77 boys and 58 girls were confirmed, altogether 135. From the "Personbuch" (Family Register kept by the church) listing the number of souls in the municipality of Huck: 5408 males and 5210 females, in sum 10,618. In our "Personalbuch" there are still many counted who have left many years ago for the USA's starry flag, acquiring a new homeland for themselves. The actual number of inhabitants living in Huck could hardly exceed 5,000.
Now I want to deal somewhat more in greater detail with the subjects treated in your letter. I thank you very much for the detailed description of your travels. I thought of the beautiful song: "Wenn Gott rechte Gunst erweisen, den Schickt er in die Weite Welt." You have had the good fortune to see a good portion of God's earth. You have accumulated much to think about and to be thankful for! I admire the unshakable optimism with which you go forth to carry on the dear work of the welfare organization.
It pleases me that the Volga Germans of America also bestir themselves and are helping you to mitigate the great emergency in Germany. You are doing thereby a holy work which surely will receive better thanks than you received for the aid work here. I repeat here what I recently wrote to a friend in Portland. The greatest help that they can give to Germany does not consist of shiploads of food and clothing, but rather that they allow right and justice to prevail again. The Versailles Peace is based on the devilish lie that Germany is responsible for the outbreak of the war. This lie falls apart into nothingness, and it is not to be expected any differently. Then, in addition to this changed fact, the intolerable burden which had been laid upon Germany should be lifted and eliminated. Three months after the last Frenchman leaves holy German soil Germany will need no more assistance.
And yet there is another proposal I would like to express in this connection. If only the Volga Germans of America who have had such a good opportunity, became seriously interested in German culture. Is there anything more beautiful or more grand than German literature? Is there a people on this earth or is it to only one that God has revealed the power of music as he has the sublime masters of German musical art? No! No! No! It is a topic that for me is inexhaustible, imperishable, irreplaceable, etc.
I conclude with my cordial greetings,
your F. Wacker
Sources
Die Welt-Post, April 17, 1924, page 2.
This translation provided courtesy of Hugh Lichtenwald.
This translation provided courtesy of Hugh Lichtenwald.
Last updated March 7, 2016