exclusively English churches. There is a proverb
about killing the goose that lays the golden egg, which we would do well
to bear in mind.

Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, founded by Dr. Walther and the Germans
of Missouri, numbers 344 students. Candidates for graduation must be
able to minister in at least two languages. In a polyglot church such as
ours this would seem to be a policy worthy of imitation.

The fifteen languages in which we minister to our people confer upon us
an honorable distinction. Each one represents an individuality which
cannot be ignored, some spiritual gift which is worth exercising and
preserving. By keeping in touch with this many-sided life we enrich our
own lives, obtain broader conceptions of the church's mission, and fit
ourselves for more effective service in this most cosmopolitan city of
the world. Instead of trying to exterminate these languages, let us
cultivate a closer acquaintance with them and let us pray for that
pentecostal spirit which will enable us to say "we do hear them speak in
our tongues the wonderful works of God."

The Problem of Membership

Three classes of members are recognized in our churches: 1, Those who
have been baptized. 2, Those who have been confirmed-that is, those who
after the prescribed course of instruction and examination have been
admitted to the communion. 3, Communicants-that is, those who are in
active fellowship with the church in the use of the word and the
sacrament.*
*The temporal affairs of the congregation as a civic corporation
are regulated by the State and the qualifications of a voting member are
defined in the laws of the State. This chapter deals only with the
question of membership in the church as a spiritual body. In general
the State readily acquiesces in the polity of the various churches so
long as it does not interfere with the civic rights of the individual.

There is a fourth class of which no note is taken in our church records.
It is the class of lapsed Lutherans-that is, of those who have been
admitted to full communion but who have slipped away and are no longer
in active connection with the church.

Of these we shall speak in a separate chapter.

It is sometimes charged that the Lutheran communion does not hold clear
views of the church. On the one hand her confessions abound in
definitions of the church as a spiritual kingdom, as a fellowship of
believers. On the other hand her practice frequently remin