many encouragements, which He has given us in these latter times to assure us of His continued favor towards us, and to inspire us with renewed confidence to press forward joyfully on the way of His appointment. Thanks be to Him, who has spread His wing over our little Zion in these tempestuous times, and preserved it unhurt in a period, when so much has been destroyed around us! Thanks to Him, the faithful Steward of our church, who has also so richly blessed us in financial concerns, and has especially supplied the means needful for executing the work, which He has committed to us, in a manner truly wonderful, and far surpassing all our expectations! Thanks to Him, above all, for the spiritual blessings, which He has poured out upon us !That fire, which the Lord has kindled even in these our days of open infidelity and apostacy, inasmuch as He has raised up a host of bold confessors of the truth as it is in Jesus, that fire, we joyfully acknowledge it, has also imparted light and warmth to our church. Many of our number have been awakened and revived by this instrumentality; a spirit of prayer has been poured out, and our brotherly union has been strengthened. At the centenary jubilee, when we paid renewed homage to our Savior as the Elder of our church, in grateful remembrance of the shepherd's faithfulness, which we have experienced at His hands for the space of one hundred years, He has shewn us by a powerful revival among our youth,* how he bears the rising generation also upon His heart, and thus He has given us a pledge of His grace for future days. He opens new doors for us to extend His kingdom among christian and heathen nations, proving to us, that He still condescends to employ us in His service. We would rather in silence rejoice in these tokens of His favor, and acknowledge, that we owe them not to our merits, but to His great mercy; but it is meet to mention them as an encouragement to covenant with renewed confidence and full joyfulness of heart, faithfully to employ and diligently to increase the talents, which the Lord has bestowed upon us. We have during the synod, viewed the plan and foundation of our church in every point of view, and resolved to uphold all that is deemed of essential importance. Our forefathers built upon the foundation of redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ; the doctrine of the cross was their watchword by which they wished to be known before the world, and which they desired to carry to all the ends of the earth. To this foundation we too will firmly cling, and never grow weary to declare to the world, that no one is more blessed, but also none more holy, [] This revival originated in the boys' academy at Niesky in Prussia in the year 1841, and we purpose to insert an historical account of this interesting event in a future number of the Miscellany. than the pardoned sinner. This truth we will not only proclaim with our lips, but approve it also in our walk and conversation as the power and wisdom of God. We will let the word of Christ dwell richly among us in its full extent, as well in its consolations and the assurances of His grace and pardon, as in its exhortations to a holy life and conversation, and in its earnest reproofs and corrections; and we will daily regard it as a mirror, in which we behold our inborn sin in its true deformity; as a guide to that physician who can alone effect a radical cure of the deeply-rooted diseases of the soul; as a counselor in all life's circumstances; as a lamp to light us through all the trials and afflictions of this world unto our eternal home. Our children also we will instruct in the holy truths of God's word from their tenderest years; early lead them to the arms of the most faithful children's friend, and bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We will carefully guard in our words and actions against every thing, which might prove a stumbling-block to them, watchfully preserve them from all offences and things hurtful to the soul, and especially from drinking in the poison of corrupting books. Let our example on the contrary produce an abiding impression upon their hearts of the true happiness of a child of God. Our parental affection should not let us neglect most earnestly to inculcate the duties of obedience and habits of industry, to the exclusion of all effeminacy and luxury. The assemblage of so many brethren and sisters at our synod from the remotest parts of the earth has impressed us anew with the happiness arising from an union founded upon Christ our Savior. Though separated by vast distances, and varying in many unessential points, according to our different localities, still we feel that it is one bond of love which encircles us, one foundation of faith and hope on which we stand, one goal which we all strive to reach! We all bear the impress of one character, a sign which soon enables us to recognise the true brother, and which we will not deny before the world. O might we all, dear brethren and sisters, truly partake of those blessings, which rest upon this our fellowship with one another, our brethren's polity, and the beautiful services of our sanctuary! Yea let us all, as companions in life's pilgrimage, encourage and animate one another, praying for grace and strength from the Lord, that we may all, each in his degree, contribute to realize the wish : "That every one who knows us may clearly trace In all thy people unction, truth and grace, That whoe'er approaches Thy congregation, While we build up the church at home, let us also be mindful of the vocation, appointed by the Lord, to labor for Him abroad. Soon after the origin of Herrnhut the ardent desire manifested it self in the heart of this congregation to tell to others what the Lord had done for His people. Messengers were sent far and near to christian and heathen nations. Our Diaspora and missionfield, commenced at that time, and since so greatly enlarged, have never been so widely extended as at the present time. We are invited to go to distant, savage nations, where hitherto no ray of gospel-light has penetrated! In christendom, that portion of the Lord's people, who have remained faithful, feel more and more the necessity of closest union to encourage one another "in the good fight of faith," and many* look to our church, and offer to us the hand of fellowship, which we gladly take hold of, without departing from the peculiarities characteristic of the Brethren's Church. We feel deeply humbled, that the Lord condescends to call us by these voices into His service. We feel it our duty to obey His intimations. The synod pledged itself faithfully to follow Him in all His leadings, and was rejoiced to hear that the same spirit is reigning in our congregations. Let us, therefore, beloved brethren and sisters, renew our solemn brethren's covenant, and joyfully occupy our post beneath the banner of the cross! "Warriors! on your station stand, Faithful to your Savior's call, With the shield of faith in hand, Satan, toil, or length of way; Never, never, quit that post!" May the Lord Himself teach us to remain faithful to His cause! May the God of all grace for the execution of His work make us perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle us! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with us all! Amen! Given in the synod of the evangelical Brethren's Unity at Herrnhut, the 24th day of August, 1848. J. G. HERMAN, Praeses Synodi. (*) In Germany especially.-Ed. III. MONTHLY LEAVES, or INTELLIGENCE, communicated by the Prov. Help. Conference in reference to our section of the Moravian Church in the United States. 1. Br. George Weiss, after a visit of about six months, left Bethlehem on the 1st of November, on his return to his former mission station at Friedensthal, St. Croix. On the 17th of June he had been ordained at Bethlehem a deacon of the United Brethren's Church by bishop Peter Wolle, of Litiz. 2. Br. J. F. Fett, who for the last ten months had been laboring chiefly among the German immigrants at Philadelphia, has been appointed by the Home-Mission-Society as their missionary among the Germans in the north-western states. On the 23d. of Sept., he was ordained at Bethlehem a deacon of the United Brr's. Church by bishop Wm. Henry Van Vleck, and left Phila., on the 2d of October on his mission. Br. Edward Rondthaler, in addition to his duties as pastor of our congregation at Phila., will, as far as practicable, supply the place of br. Fett to his former German flock. 3. Br. and sr. P. Ricksecker, who to recruit their health, which had been impaired by long service on our West India mission, had spent upwards of one year in retirement here at Bethlehem, have received and accepted a call as laborers of our congregation at Hopedale, Wayne Co., Pa, in the place of br. Henry F. Simon, deceased. On the 25th of November Br. Ricksecker was inducted into his new station by br. Jacobson. 4. Br. Lawrence Oerter, who for the same reason had been compelled to retire from the same mission field, and had spent about two years in our midst, has received and accepted a call as minister of our congregations at Bethabara and New Philadelphia in North Carolina.-He left with his family on the 6th of Dec. for his place of destination in North Carolina. DEPARTED. 1. June 21st, 1849, at Litiz, in her 65th year, Sr. Caroline Sophia Loeffler, relict of br. Jacob F. Loeffler, dec., who with her late husband had served in several of our congregations in various offices. 2. October 8th., at Bethlehem, in her 81st year, sr. Anna Levering, relict of the late Abraham Levering, who for many years had served the congregation as warden at Litiz. 3. November 10th., at Hopedale, Wayne Co., Pa., br. Henry F. Simon, aged nearly 58 years, for a number of years a missionary on our West India station, and subsequently minister of our congregations at Hebron and at Hopedale. 4. November 16th, at Bethlehem, very suddenly, br. John F. Stadiger in his 83d year, who for more than twenty years had been warden of the congregation at Bethlehem. IV. HOME MISSION DEPARTMENT. The board of home missions at Bethlehem had appointed the Revd. J. F. Fett as their home missionary, and instructed him o proceed forthwith on a tour of home mission reconnoissance ia Milwaukie to Quincy, Illinois. He had been directed to vist Milwaukie in order to report to the board in reference to Mr. wersen and his little band of Danes and Norwegians, in conseuence of a letter, which had been previously addressed by Mr. wersen to the editor, extracts from which we insert below, in rder to enable the reader more fully to understand portions of 3r. Fett's report, which we have translated for the Miscellany. We give Mr. Iwersen's letter with very slight alterations in the >eculiarities of his style, believing that the spirit of childlike faith nd love to Jesus, which breathes in this letter, will deeply inerest and touch the heart of every christian reader. A. Extracts from a letter of Mr. A. M. Iwersen. DEAR AND VENERABLE BRETHREN IN THE PROV. H. CONFERNCE! In the faith, that we are closely united in the cross of ur praiseworthy Savior, I address myself to you in confidence hat you will take care of me and my brethren and sisters here in Milwaukie. A few souls have from time to time been gathered iere. These souls, who have more or less stood in unity with he dear United Brethren, have felt an increased necessity to be ormed into a Moravian congregation, and this they have laid beore the feet of our Redeemer in that faith, that he would accept hem in grace and mercy, and fulfil their wish, when his hour is coming. Our beloved Br. Bigler gave us the hope, that you, in Jesus Christ and in his grace intimately beloved brethren, will take hearty care of us here in Milwaukie. Oh brethren! would you help a little flock, which is one spirit with you? Can you bear n your hearts, that we must be hungry for the sacrament, and we cannot be sated?-We are few, yet we are more than them in Matth. 18, 20. We have not much of earthly goods; but the Lord possess the silver and the gold in the land. Oh! that He would open the hearts for us! our prayer to you, dear and respectable brethren is the same, as that of the man of Macedonia; Come over and help us!"-Oh, come over dear brethren! We |