re. "In the loveliest surroundings my eyes have
ever seen and among a friendly people," he writes, "my strength soon
revived so that I could continue my literary work and even complete my
wearisome translation of the sagas."

An incident is related from his work at Prastoe which throws a somewhat
revealing light upon his ability as a pastor. At his only confirmation
service there, the confirmants, we are told, wept so that he had to pause
several times in his address to them in order to let them regain their
composure. Since he was always quite objective in his preaching and
heartily disbelieved in the usual revival methods, the incident
illustrates his rare ability to profoundly stir even the less mature of
his hearers by his objective presentation of the Gospel. Even his
bitterest enemies could not deny the evident effectiveness of his
ministry in every charge he served.

His work at Prastoe was, however, of brief duration. In 1822, less than
two years after his installation, he received and accepted a call as
assistant pastor at Our Savior's Church in Copenhagen, thus attaining his
long deferred wish for a pulpit in the capital.

----------

[9]The printed text is corrupt here. _Saga: A New Year's Gift for 1812_
is one work. Possibly the third work referenced is _World Chronicles_,
the first part of which was published in 1812.

Chapter Thirteen
The Living Word

Grundtvig began his ministry in the capital with high hopes, but he was
soon disappointed. His services as usual attracted large audiences,
audiences that frequently overflowed the spacious sanctuary. But these
came from all parts of the city, an ever changing throng from which it
was quite impossible to create a real congregation. The parish itself was
so large that the mere routine duties of his office consumed much of his
time. There were mass weddings, mass baptisms, mass funerals for people
of whom he knew little and could have no assurance that he was not
"giving the holy unto dogs or casting pearls before swine." With the
prevailing decay of church-life most pastors accepted these conditions
with equanimity, but to Grundtvig they constituted an increasingly heavy
burden.

He was still lonely. Awakened Christians were few, and his fellow pastors
were nearly all Rationalists who looked upon him as a dangerous fanatic
whom it was best to avoid. Gru