Sometimes, topics to post about and their content come easily. Other times… not so much. Today feels like one of those “not so much” days.
Part of the reason may be that it’s been an unusual week. As a pastor’s family, Holy Week has always been a bit chaotic. While our kids are grown now, we’re in that stage of life where caring for our parents can sometimes take precedence over everything else. That’s been the case this week.
At the beginning of the week, I had every intention of diving into some research on Holy Week observances around the time of the Saxon Immigration. That research window ended up being just about an hour this morning. Fortunately, Warren and Gerard showed up, and I had the chance to pick their brains a bit. Unfortunately, our time was short, and the search wasn’t very fruitful.
Good Friday in 1839 fell on March 29, meaning the immigrants were still in St. Louis—they wouldn’t arrive in Perry County until late April. I didn’t uncover anything specific about how they observed Good Friday, though Pastor Loeber’s diary offers a glimpse into what was happening around that time.
On March 28th, on Maundy Thursday, 32 confirmants registered with me. Johanna Dorothea Putzer, wife of Friedrich Traugott Putzer, sievemaker from Naumburg, gave birth to a little son around 9 o’clock in the evening who was baptized at home on holy Good Friday and was named August Wilhelm. Sponsors present were: 1. Bernhard Schmidt, master butcher from Cahla; 2. Johann Christian Mueller, master brickmaker from Plauna near Halle; 3. Mrs. Maria Elisabeth Wunderlich, wife of Jahann Carl Wunderlich, farmer from Eulenberg.
On March 29th, Johann Christian Weber, farmer from Playna near Halle, died from fever and a cold which led to leg problems and blood infection. Diligence in his profession, wisdom and skill for all sorts of useful business, charity for the poor and the church and well-read in God’s Word and Luther’s writings, distinguished him. He was buried on March 31st on the first Easter holiday.
On March 31st, Eva Magdalene Schmidt, 2nd child of Georg Joachim Schmidt, locksmith from Cahla, and his wife, died at the age of 1 year, 8 months and 18 days as a result of teething and infection. Buried on April 2nd.
To make Warren proud, I will show the records of these events from Trinity’s records.
A birth on Maundy Thursday, followed by a baptism on Good Friday. A death on Good Friday, with a burial on Easter Sunday. I have to figure that these events held special meaning because of the days they occurred, not to mention that they occurred just as the immigrants were getting accustomed to a new country.
God’s blessings on your Good Friday observances as we await the glorious Easter celebration on Sunday.