Spring 2013 (Vol. 58, Issue 1) - Concordia Historical Institute

Spring 2013
Volume 58, Issue 1
Historical Footnotes
Concordia Historical Institute
Friedrich Wilhelm Wehle: Artist of Biblical and Religious Pictures by Derek Waffel
A
century ago, Friedrich Wilhelm Wehle
was a household name in the Missouri
Synod. Now few recognize it, though
they may unknowingly be familiar
with his work. During his life, Wehle was known throughout Lutheran
circles as a talented artist of Biblical and religious
scenes. His work included portraits and altar pieces,
but his greatest fame came from the lithograph copies
of his work found in homes and churches across the
country.
Wehle, who went by Wilhelm throughout his
life, was born on April 3, 1831, in the small town of
Jonsdorf bei Zittau in Saxony, about six miles southwest of Zittau and around a mile from Germany’s
current border with the Czech Republic, at the corner where Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland
all meet. Not much has been recorded regarding his
family or his younger years; his mother had died by
the time of his departure for America, though his father and some brothers were still living. By his early
twenties he was living in Dresden, supporting himself through a variety of odd jobs while taking classes
at the Dresden Academy of Art as he was able. Despite his obvious talent and lifelong work as an artist,
this appears to have been the extent of his technical
training. Though he was able to find periodic work
around Dresden as an artist and photographer, in
1864 he enrolled as a student of theology in Nassau
with a Pastor Brunnen.
He did not, however, remain there long. In
1866 he decided to go to America to finish his theological studies at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, and
at age thirty-five left his Dresden sweetheart Emma
Domke to board the ship Columbus at Bremerhaven,
setting sail for the New World on July 3, 1866. The
voyage was a long and miserable one; Wehle kept a
Reisebericht (travel diary) during the experience containing a detailed account of the Atlantic crossing and
his travel to St. Louis. Though the passage ought to
have taken three to four weeks, wind and weather
worked against them to lengthen it to seven weeks
and to produce a great deal of seasickness and misery among the 310 emigrants on board. At least six
passengers and one
sailor died during
the voyage and were
buried at sea.
Wehle
described the captain
of the ship, a man
named Hilmer, as “a
friendly gentleman .
. . who in spite of all
his congeniality and
friendliness turned
out to be a shrewd
fraud and deceiver.”
During the crossing,
F. W. Wehle, c. 1880-1890
they passed an Irish
cargo ship that had run out of food and was begging
for some supplies, which the captain refused them.
Wehle was quite moved by this tragedy, especially
since in his estimation they had supplies sufficient for
three months and could have spared some aid. Nevertheless, some days later he noted that he enjoyed
painting a portrait of Captain Hilmer, which delighted the captain. Wehle wrote, “He thanked me, but
never thought of paying me for my work.”
The ordeal finally ended on August 24, as the
ship pulled into New York Harbor. Upon disembarking, they passed through Castle Garden, New York
City’s immigrant processing station before the more
famous Ellis Island. Security was not the same priority it is today; the officials began examining the immigrants’ luggage but quickly called off the inspection when they decided there would be little there
worthwhile for taxes. Wehle and his fellow German
immigrants were met by several Lutheran pastors
and a German hotelkeeper who showed them great
kindness, providing good food and good beds that
seemed heavenly after almost two months of shipboard life.
Though he spent only three days in New York
City, Wehle did not write of it in complimentary
terms. Despite the splendor of the city, he was unimpressed by the members of high society he saw “parading along the Avenue” with their “false, powdered
(continued from page 1)
F. W. Wehle, c. 1890-1901
features.” He also described witnessing all kinds of
thefts, violence, brutality and poverty. He admitted,
however, that he went into dangerous parts of the
city in order to see if the stories he had heard were
true, and concluded, “I was fortunate that I came out
hale and hearty from this vicious exhibition of modern wild life of a rapidly growing metropolis.”
The train trip from New York to St. Louis took Wehle five days. The train cut across New
York State to Lake Erie to follow the edge of the lake
around to Toledo, Ohio, then turned southwest toward St. Louis, passing through Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Springfield, Illinois. Wehle seems to have
greatly enjoyed this cross-country trip, as he writes
in terms of wonder and pleasure of the landscapes
he observed, especially the expanses of “primeval fir
forests,” as he described them. “In general the entire
landscape seemed more luxurious than in Germany.
The fir of the fir woods seemed to be of a delicate nature. Everything appeared to be more fertile.” Even
though at the time he intended to enter the ministry, his thoughts still returned to his artistic passion;
reflecting on the natural beauty, he observed, “Perhaps a painter could create this in all its wonders of
life.”
Wehle arrived in St. Louis on September 1,
1866, almost two months after leaving Germany. It
was a rude awakening, as were his experiences over
the following week as he struggled to adjust to his
new life in America and at Concordia Seminary. His
first impression on arriving at the seminary was of
a military barracks, with bare walls, damaged furniture and trash everywhere. On his first evening
there, he had no source of light other than flashes of
lightning from a thunderstorm as he attempted to
put his room in order. More than once he compared
this new society unfavorably with Germany, saying
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Historical Footnotes
that in America everybody has to look after himself, if
he wants to get anywhere. When he complained about
the state of the furniture, he was simply told by the
faculty to repair what was available; he counted himself fortunate to find a broken rocking chair which he
could repair with nails and rope.
He felt overwhelmed as well by the classes,
which began two days after his arrival. Students were
awakened at 5:00 for morning prayer and breakfast;
lectures began at 9:30 in the morning and sometimes
continued as late as 5:00 in the evening. Though he was
impressed by the powerful speech and learning of the
professors, his feeling was that “the work never seems
to end. It is too much, one cannot comprehend which
[sic] is hammered into our youthful minds.” Wehle
continued to suffer health problems and blamed the
white bread they ate. He wrote, “I had trouble with digestion and occasional fever. The reason was because
the bread was always fresh.” What he longed for was
the German dark rye bread which was nowhere to be
found in Missouri.
It was at this point in his life that he ended his
Reisebericht, summing it up with his disappointment in
America in contrast to his previous hopes. He resigned
himself to life in his new country, facing “the great task
to help others in their despair and tragedies,” while
also looking forward to the fulfillment of God’s promises of the new heaven and new earth.
Wehle did not graduate from Concordia Seminary; the official reason given was continued ill health.
He later told his daughter, however, that when he
tried to preach his first sermon as a student, he was
overcome by fear of public speaking, which he could
never master and which led him to feel unworthy
for the ministry. But in his time as a student he interacted with some of the Missouri Synod’s “Founding
Fathers,” especially C. F. W. Walther, of whom Wehle
was a particular favorite and at whose home he sometimes ate meals. Walther encouraged Wehle to follow
his passion and talent to serve God instead as an artist, and helped him procure artistic commissions from
churches in the Missouri Synod.
Having made the decision to return to his first
vocation, Wehle sent for his fiancée, Emma Domke,
who had remained behind in Dresden. She joined him
in St. Louis, and they were married there on October
18, 1868. The following decade was not an easy time
for Wehle and his family. They moved several times,
living in Missouri, Kansas and Illinois. As an artist
working on commission, his income was never steady
and eventually his wife was compelled to work as a
midwife to help support the family. During this time
they had five children, two of which died within a few
(continued from page 2)
The Last Supper; F. W. Wehle
(one of several renditions)
months of birth.
The family’s fortunes began to change in 1879,
when Wehle was asked by John Pritzlaff, a prominent
member at Trinity Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, to
do some altar paintings for Trinity. Not only did he
take the job, but he moved his family there the following year and made Milwaukee his home for the rest
of his life. Wehle painted a total of six pieces for the
altar at Trinity, consisting of two interchangeable sets
of triptychs, one of his largest and most impressive
works. The first set was displayed through the Advent,
Christmas and Epiphany seasons. The scenes were of
the angels announcing Christ’s birth to the shepherds,
of Jesus lying in the manger and of Simeon holding
the baby Jesus at his presentation in the temple. These
were replaced from the beginning of Lent through the
end of the liturgical year with the second set, depicting Christ’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension.
Sadly, the originals did not fare well due to the coal
fires used in the church, and for Trinity’s 100th anniversary in 1947 new paintings were commissioned;
only the panel depicting the Ascension is perhaps a
restoration of Wehle’s original.
In addition to Trinity, as his reputation grew
he was commissioned to do similar work at other Lutheran congregations in the area, including at Bethlehem Lutheran in Milwaukee, the church which the
Wehle family attended. His greatest fame, however,
came from the many lithograph copies of his paintings which were sold and distributed throughout
The Crucifixion; F. W. Wehle
the country. Once established in Milwaukee, Wehle
began advertising his lithographed work across the
country, using Lutheran publications like Der Lutheraner and The Lutheran Witness. Perhaps unusually for
the Missouri Synod in the late nineteenth century, he
used both English and German with equal ease in his
advertisements; for example, one flyer featured the
same message printed in English on one side of the
paper and in German on the reverse side. He also included endorsements of his work from some of the
Missouri Synod’s prominent leaders, such as Walther
and Graebner.
Though he had discontinued his theological studies, Wehle was a devout Christian his entire
life and clearly took Walther’s advice to serve God
in the way he was best suited. The vast majority of
his art concentrated on religious subjects, which included portraits of Luther and Walther, but especially concentrated on scenes from the life of Christ. His
daughter recalled that he was a great student of the
Bible and would never paint a picture without first
making a thorough study of the scriptural text associated with his chosen subject. In his private life, he was
an elder at Bethlehem Lutheran Church and in 1896
was one of the founders of the “Evangelical Lutheran
Kinderfreund Society of Wisconsin,” an organization
intended to provide both physical and spiritual care
for orphans; it continues to provide social services today under the name “Lutheran Counseling and Family Services of Wisconsin.”
Spring 2013
Page 3
(continued from page 3)
Christ Walking on Water; F. W. Wehle
(one of several renditions)
Wehle also wrote on religious subjects periodically throughout his life, publishing several tracts
anonymously. One example of his religious writing
that has survived is a letter written to a young couple
on the occasion of their wedding. Taking the text of
Ruth 1:1,16-17 as his subject, Wehle’s letter is more than
an expression of simple congratulations and would
not be out of place during a wedding as the marriage
address. He speaks first to the couple, then to the bride
and bridegroom individually, giving them both practical and theological counsel as they began their life together. The names of the couple are not known, but
the bridegroom was a clergyman, perhaps one of the
many young Missouri Synod pastors he befriended.
Indeed, the Wehle family was always available
to help Lutheran seminary students, though they were
never wealthy themselves. Several future pastors who
spent time in Milwaukee were recipients of Wehle hospitality, receiving free room and board and a great deal
of kindness. In his obituary published in The Lutheran
Witness, the editor who wrote the piece personally remembered Wehle as “a genial, kindly man and a faithful attendant at divine services.” Wehle also commonly used students as his agents in selling his lithographs
across the country, providing himself a large market
and the seminarians a much-needed source of income
for their studies. His practice was to advance the student fifty or one hundred copies of his lithographs to
be sold at one dollar each; from the proceeds after they
had been sold, the student would pay him back twenPage 4
Historical Footnotes
ty-five percent and keep the remaining profit. It was
not unusual for a single family to buy five or more
of these works.
His talent for painting was not Wehle’s only
artistic endeavor. From his first days as an artist in
St. Louis, he billed himself as both painter and photographer; some photographs from his studio still in
the possession of CHI are of C. F. W. Walther, Concordia Seminary and Wehle himself. He was also a
poet; sometimes he would compose poems as descriptions for his lithographs. Additional examples
of his poetic efforts were published, albeit mostly
anonymously like his other religious writings. His
poetry and writing exhibit as much talent with a
pen as he possessed with a brush; however, writing
was a beloved activity, but not a source of income
like his visual arts.
Unfortunately, despite his artistic talent and
kind heart, Wehle was not a very savvy businessman. Several times unscrupulous real estate agents
convinced him to buy otherwise useless pieces of
land simply because they were beautiful or had a
lovely tree to which he took a particular fancy. By
the time of his death, the Wehle family was, in the
words of his daughter, “land rich but money poor,”
Painting of Christ; F. W. Wehle
and many of his property purchases had to be sold
off to pay expenses and debts. In keeping with the
common Missouri Synod feeling at the time, he had
no life insurance, which was considered to be a lack
of trust in God and His providence.
Wilhelm Wehle died at his home in Milwaukee on March 15, 1901, a few weeks before his seventieth birthday. His wife survived him by twelve
(continued from page 4)
years and was buried next to her husband in Pilgrim’s
Rest Cemetery in Milwaukee. Of their eight children,
three died in infancy; of the other five, two sons became surgeons, one followed his father’s footsteps as
an artist and took over his business, one worked for
the US Postal Service and their daughter married a
Missouri Synod pastor. Wehle is also survived by his
life’s work—his art; he deserves to be remembered not
only for his technical artistic skill, but as a fine example of a devout man who used his God-given talent to
the fullest in His service.
Bibliography:
The primary sources for this article were F. W. Wehle’s
daughter Emma Rohde and Rev. Charles Wind. While a
student at Concordia Seminary in the 1950s, Rev. Wind
did extensive research on Wehle and corresponded with
Mrs. Rohde. He assembled a large compendium of information from newspaper clippings and Mrs. Rohde’s
scrapbooks and personal recollections. He also wrote
an article on Wehle for the CHI Quarterly which was
never published. Mrs. Rohde’s letters and Rev. Wind’s
research were invaluable in the writing of this article.
Thanks are also due to Mr. and Mrs. Theodore Mueller of Milwaukee, who translated Wehle’s Reisebericht in
1967; to Arno D. Wehle, grandson of F. W. Wehle, who
wrote about his grandfather and his work for the CHI
Quarterly in 2004; and to Rev. Hunter Hofmann, the current pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Milwaukee
for the information concerning Wehle’s altar paintings
there. All images included are from the collection of
Concordia Historical Institute.
Edward Arndt: An Unwavering Shepherd in China
by Rebecca Wells
The year was 1912. The place was St. Paul,
Minnesota. Rev. Edward Arndt, a former professor at Concordia College in St. Paul, seemed to be
at a loss. He had taught at the school as professor of science and mathematics for thirteen years
until he was dismissed in 1910. Arndt’s dismissal
came following a two-year-long dispute over a recommendation he had made that three students be
held back due to low test scores. Arndt was not
one to compromise his standards, and when the
opinion of the faculty changed to the other side,
he was dismissed. Subsequently he lost his position as a part-time pastor in a local congregation.
Without a call elsewhere Arndt was destitute, and
he was forced to move his family to a poor section
of town. A multitude of questions was surely running through his mind as he found himself at a
crossroads in his life and ministry. What was he
going to do? How was he going to provide for his
family? What was God’s purpose for his life? It
was during this uncertain time that Arndt attended
some mission conferences and discovered a passion for mission work. He also found where God
was leading him: China.
Before continuing on with Arndt’s mission
work, let’s take a step back to look at how God
prepared Arndt for his calling as a missionary.
Edward Louis Arndt was born on December 19,
Professor Arndt at Concordia College,
St. Paul, Minnesota, 1897
1864, in Bukowin, Pomerania, Germany. His family immigrated to the United States when he was a
young child and settled in the Chicago area. Arndt
went on to attend Concordia College, Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri
(at the latter he was a student of C. F. W. Walther).
After graduating from the seminary in 1885, Arndt
was called to Trinity Lutheran Church in Saginaw,
Michigan, where he served for twelve years before
he accepted the call as professor in 1897. Arndt was
not only a pastor and professor, but he was also a
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Page 5
husband and parent. Two years into his ministry at
Trinity, Arndt married Marie Salomon, whom he had
met as a student in Fort Wayne. They eventually had
eight children together (Joseph, Lydia, Paul, Agnes,
Walter, Christian, Karl and Edward) in their fortytwo-year marriage.
Marriage of Edward Arndt and
Marie Salomon, May 1, 1887
Arndt’s life experiences had prepared him to
be a missionary. He was a man of strong convictions
and was uncompromising in his beliefs. He possessed a great enthusiasm for mission work and a
fervent love for his Savior. Arndt had faced extreme
adversity, yet he came through it with his heart and
mind focused on Christ. In a note written toward the
end of his life (translated from the Gabelsberger shorthand by his son) Arndt wrote, “It was unjust that I
was removed from my position. Although I was bitter about the treatment, yet I recognized this fact: My
dear Savior had nothing to do with it. I was still under obligation to serve him.” It was with this in mind
that Arndt turned his attention to sharing the Gospel
with non-Christians in China.
With his new missionary zeal, Arndt quickly
began raising funds by publishing a mission periodical, Missionsbriefe, along with other efforts. By
May 1912 he had garnered enough interest and support from pastors, teachers and lay people across the
country that he established the Evangelical Lutheran
Mission Society for China. In July the society called
Arndt as its first missionary. The society had hoped
to send another missionary along with him, but eventually he set out for China in December 1912 as the
Page 6
Historical Footnotes
sole missionary. Arndt and his family arrived in
Hankow in March 1913 to begin his new calling as
a missionary.
Hence, at the age of forty-nine, Arndt found
himself with a new vocation, living in a foreign
country and not knowing the language. He learned
the language in six months and was able to begin
teaching that fall. Arndt performed his first baptism and administered a first Communion in spring
1914. A second missionary, E. H. Reidel, was called
by the mission society in 1916, with many others
following in the coming years. For the first few
years the China mission was conducted independently from the Missouri Synod as the Synod felt
it could not handle the expense of another foreign
mission field. It was not until 1917 that the China
mission
fell
under the Synod’s purview
and the mission
society
disbanded.
Arndt’s
work in China consisted
of
opening
chapels
and
conducting
services; starting
mission
schools
and
instructing
catechumens;
translating
theological
Hiva Chin Kai Chapel
literature and
where the work began
hymns
into
Chinese; and,
later, founding and teaching at the seminary in
Hankow. By 1922 the mission boasted three stations—Hankow, Ichang and Shinanfu—which
were served by 15 missionaries (1 female) and 51
native helpers. There were 11 chapels, 12 schools, a
seminary, 381 baptized members and 1,073 pupils.
While the early 1920s saw an explosion in the
growth of the mission, it was not without difficulties.
A conflict arose within the mission which became
known as the “term question.” For six years the
missionaries, led by Edward Arndt on one side and
George Lillegard on the other, clashed over which
Chinese term to use for God, “Shen” or “ShangTi.”
The question was whether or not it was proper to
use a term for the Triune God that had been used
for a pagan god in ancient Chinese classic litera-
ture. This issue was debated in China
and by seminary faculty
and
Synod
leaders in the
United States.
Eventually the
controversy
led Lillegard
and
others
to leave their
mission work
in China.
Another major obstacle to
Arndt’s misThe house where Arndt
sion work was
studied Chinese language
the
political
unrest in China. During a Communist uprising in
1926 and 1927, Arndt was the only Missouri Synod
missionary who remained at his post with his flock
despite the imminent danger he faced. Arndt had
left his mission work only three times prior to the
uprising—once to settle his father’s estate, once to
lecture in order to raise funds for the mission, and
once to help settle the term question controversy.
wrote to the American consul releasing the consul
from any responsibility to Arndt, as he did not want
others to risk their lives in a rescue attempt as tensions mounted.
The following year, after the political unrest began to die down, an article appeared in The Lutheran
Witness (January 10, 1928) titled “Heroic Missionaries.” While Arndt was not named specifically, the
author, Professor Martin Sommer, wrote the following: “One of our missionaries remained at his post
in spite of all warning of the authorities, determined
to preach the Savior to the heathen and, if need be,
to let the blood of the missionary be the seed of the
Church.” That comment unquestionably described
Arndt, a man who, not only in his seventeen years as
a missionary in China, but also throughout his entire
life, conducted himself with determination, fortitude,
sacrifice, humbleness, faithfulness and zeal. Arndt
died in his sleep on April 18, 1929, and was buried in
the International Cemetery in Hankow.
Haisoli Chapel, September 29, 1914
Left to right (back): Hsie Ho-ngan, Ju Mung-jun,
Li-Hai-san
Left to right (front): Zhou Hong-sen, Ten Fu-I,
Edward Arndt, Xiao Yu-san, Hu Jin-bao
He was exceedingly dedicated to his work and
flock, and thus it would take more than danger to
himself to force him to leave. His commitment to
stay was so great that Arndt looked into changing
his citizenship so that the American consul would
not force him to evacuate. In April 1927 Arndt
International Cemetery, Hankow
Graves were destroyed and plowed under
during the Japanese occupation from
1931 to 1945.
If you would like to see more photographs and
artifacts from Arndt’s life and the China Mission, visit CHI’s building on the campus of Concordia Seminary to view Speaking the Word of God with Boldness:
100 Years of Missions in China, now on display in the
lobby.
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Historical Footnotes
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Historical Footnotes is a quarterly publication of Concordia Historical Institute (CHI).
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