Saturday, February 7, 1931.
THE SALEMITE
Page Three.
LIFE OF BISHOP ONE
OF CHEAT SERVICE
AND TIRELESS ENERCY
(Continued From Page One)
Carolina reveals that he has been
most active. It reads: He was
tor of Home Moravian Church from
1877 until 1908; principal of Salem
Female Academy from 1884 to If ‘ ‘
was elected to membership in
Provincial Elders Conference
1880; received the honorary degree
of Doctor of Divinity from the Uni
versity of North Carolina, 1880;
consecrated a bishop of Unitas Fra-
trum, 1891; was sent five times as
a delegate of the Southern Province
to the General Synod at Herrnhut,
Saxony, between 1879 and 1914;
relinquished pastorate of Plome
Cliurcli to devote more time
effort to the development of Salem
congregation and the province,
1908; received the honorary degi
of Doctor of Laws from the Univer
sity of North Carolina, 1922.
Bishop Rondthaler was one of the
best known churchmen in the South,
and his activities in Moravian,
well as all religious interests, have
brought to him country-wide recog
nition as an outstanding man of God.
His entire life was devoted to the
service of his church and his unfail
ing energy and inspiration has been
the means of bringing uncounted
numbers of persons closer to Christ.
Just a few days before he suffered
his final illness, Bishop Rondthaler
was proclaimed! Winston-lSalem’s
most outstanding citizen. The dis
tinguished community service award
was voted to him and was to have
been presented in a public ceremony
within the next few weeks.
The problems which Bishop Rond
thaler encountered in accepting the
call to service in the South is re
vealed in an interview which he
granted local newspapers several
years ago.
“Bishop de Schweinitz first inter
ested me in the work at this point.
1 had no intention then of coming
South, but in 1877 a strong personal
appeal from him proved irresistible
and changed all my plans in life.
“I came to Salem just at the
change in things, when utter dis
couragement and reconstruction were
passing into the dawn of a new
hope. The Southern people had suf
fered greatly from the war’s effects;
men and women of means had been
reduced to abject poverty. Homes
built up through the efforts of years
liad been wiped out in those dark
days of 1861-65 and now, after
dergoing the disheartening experi
ences of reconstruction, things i
looking brighter and those who had
ahnost ceased to hope had begu
feel that perhaps all was not lost.
“I shall ever be grateful that c
eumstances so shaped themselves
to bring me to this community
But the inspired and ambitious
minister recognized in these condi
tions the opportunity for unlimited
service and entered into his
field with an enthusiasm that n
knew a slackening. He was always
to be found in the midst of any ac
tivity that had for its purpose the
advancement of the Kingdom and
the increasing number of years,
though slowing his step just a little,
brought only increased faith and de
sire to serve his Maker.
To the general'public, not only of
Winston-Salem but all the State and
in many parts of the nation. Bishop
Rondthaler’s leadership of the Easter
Sunday morning services and the
Christmas love feast gatherings
probably was best known. In prac
tically every year during his resi
dence here, with the possible excep
tion of one or two occasions when
he was attending church gatherings
out of the United States, he con
ducted these services and his inspired
messages brought joy and new vision
to thousands that composed these
various congregations.
Bishop lived under a simple rule,
an age-old rule that he recognized
in early life as the fundamental basis
of Christianity and which he ex
pressed in these words: “If you deal
kindly with people, they’ll deal kind-
His optimism as a philosopher of
life he summed up: “The right is
always going to win. It may en
counter a long and difficult course,
but it will certainly prevail in the
end. And I’ve noticed that there al
ways will be more kindness in the
world than w^e expect. We may not
meet with kindness from the folk
of whom we expect it, but we will
encounter more than we are expect
ing.”
The talk of “modernism” failed to
impress the bishop. He termed it a
“recurrent thing.” He had great
hopes for the next generation.
“Every year I teach young women
from over all the South,” he pointed
out, “and every year I find them
just as eager for the wholesome
truth which is to be found in the
Bible as have been any of the many
who have gone through the courses
here years ago. The young women
and, I presume, the young men,
have different customs from those
which were observed in the past, but
at heart they are much the same.”
The aged minister was always in
terested in young people and through
close association with them was able
to keep in touch with their problems
and their thoughts. His advice on
all matters was eagerly sought and
throughout the world today are thou
sands of women who, as students at
Salem College, learned to know
Bishop Rondthaler as a true friend.
He was instructor in Bible at this
aged institution for many years,
continuing to meet his classes until
his final illness.
The up-building of the Southern
Province has been due in large m
ure to the initiative, perseverance
and inspiration of Bishop Rond
thaler. Always alert to the religious
needs of his people, wherever they
might be, he was untiring in his
efforts to help them and the organ
ization of churches throughout this
section was one of his happiest du
ties. Not only did he assist in es
tablishing these centers of worships,
but he kept in closest touch with
eacli and his periodical visits were
always occosions of joy—to him and
to the congregations.
A close student of history and
always with a watchful eye upon
happenings throughout the world,
Bisliop Rondthaler was never out
of touch. He was well read, keen to
adapt to the conditions of life all
that could be learned. Each year,
he prepared and read, at the New
Year’s Eve service at Home Church,
the memorabilia which recorded the
outstanding events of the year in
the church, the community, the na
tion and the world. In the prepara
tion of these records, the Bishop
found unusual pleasure.
In all of his reading. Bishop
Rondthaler made copious notes,
which were thoroughly classified and
became source material for his ad
dresses, sermons, editorials; and
other literary work. It was his fa
vorite theory that as a minister his
knowledge should be as varied and
as accurate as possible, seeing that
lie had to deal in public speech with
every variety of technical informa
tion and of distinctive interest.
Included in his readings was a
constant and intimate study of for
eign maps and even a detailed ex-
emination of foreign railroad and
steamship schedules. In this way,
he kept alive and vivid his ex
tensive travels on three continents,
these travels having been begun on
foot when he was twenty-one years
of age. At the age of eighty-three
years, h emastered the Arabic al
phabet, a feat he had found impos
sible at the age of twenty-three.
Always a quiet worker, but an ac-
complisher of good and useful deeds.
Y. W. C. A. TRIBUTE
Jan. 31, 1931.
Dear Dr. and Mrs. Rondthaler:
We members of the Cabinet
want you to know that we are think
ing of you all day today. We feel
that we have lost a dearest and most
inspiring friend in Bishop and we
are glad that we had the privilege
of being here while he was still with
us. Our lives have been enriched
for having known him and his in
fluence will always be with us.
We sympathize with you in the
loss of your father, but we feel that
Bishop is happy in a higher service
with his Master.
Sincerely,
Matilda Mann; Elizabeth Marx;
Lucy Martin Currie; Lenora Rig-
gan; Zinaida Vologodsky; Thelma
Stortz; Irene McAnally; Wilhel-
mina Wolhford; Eleanor Idol; Ida
Baker Williamson; Martha H.
Davis; Margaret Skidmore; Mary
B. Williams; Margaret Johnson;
Frances Caldwell; Katherine Schle-
gel.
The members of the General
Alumnae Association of Salem Col
lege wish to express to you their
deepest sympathy and love in the
loss of our “Dear Bishop.”
Miss Adelaide Fries, President.
Edith Witt Vogler, Secretary.
Bishop Rondthaler’s memory will
never fade. The good he did will
live after him, and the achieve
ments of his long and active career
will always be evident in the com
munity he adopted as his home fifty-
three years ago.
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