294 Discoveries In A German Bible

DISCOVERIES IN A GERMAN BIBLE Dr. Ernst F. Tonsing Thousand Oaks, California May 20,2003 I. INTRODUCTION During our lifetime we hold hundreds, perhaps thousands of books in our hands. We open their pages for school reports, background reading, general interest, selfimprovement, or, during quiet, summer evenings, just for pleasure. If not purchased new at a downtown store or unwrapped as a present, often these books contain evidence of their former owners. This may be a bit of paper used as a marker, a leaf or pressed flower that drops out, or a dedication written on an end paper. Sometimes these little scraps or scribbles have a story to tell. A pastor in Colorado recently sent me a Bible that had been in the library of the Rev. Ernest F. Tonsing, First Lutheran Church, Topeka, Kansas.1 The statement that accompanied the gift was that the volume had been left on a shelf when he retired, and the later pastor gathered up the book with her when she moved, and, now, thought that I should have it. H. TWO BOOKMARKS When I opened the front cover, this book began to unfold its story. There were two pieces of white paper used as bookmarks. The first had typed across the top in caps, "GERMAN BIBLE" and, handwritten in blue ink below it, "formerly owned by the late Rev. Paul Tonsing," that is, the father of Ernest F. Tonsing.2 The other paper had the typed label: "German Bible / property of Rev. Paul Tonsing," and, written below it in blue ink, "Published in 1894."3 I recognized them. They had been used for displays of Bibles in various languages that Pastor Ernest Tonsing laid out annually the eight-foot, folding tables in the Sunday school room of First Lutheran Church at Fifth and Harrison streets in Topeka in the 1950's and 60's. After the exhibits, the books were placed back into cases in the office under the southwest tower. This was only the first story this book had to tell.

1

The Bible is in the German language, in a black, leather binding, measuring 19.3 cm. (7 9/16 inches) high, 11.8 cm. (4 1/16 inches) wide, and about 5 cm. (2 inches) thick. It has 288 pages of text, the last book of the Revelation of St. John's being followed by four blank pages with the titles, Familien=Register. The end papers are a dark brown. 2 Facing the inside of the front cover is written in the upper right corner what appears to be a catalogue number: "#322." The first bookmark is 15.2 cm. (6 inches) by 10.15 cm. (4 inches) in size. 3 The second paper is 13.18 cm. (5 7/16 inches) by 10.85 cm. (4 '/«inches).

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THE TITLE PAGE

The title page of the Bible began to hint about the first owner of the book. It appears thus4:

Die Bibel, oder

die ganze •

Heilige Schrift des alten und neuen

Testaments. New=York herausgegeben von den Amerikanischen Bibel=Gesellschaft. 1894. Translated, this reads: "The Bible, or the whole Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. / New York. / Published by the American Bible Society / 1894."5 The German is that of the Sixteenth Century Reformer, Martin Luther, the standard translation used by Germans until the middle of the Twentieth century. The font in which the title page and book is typeset is called, Fraktur or "Gothic."6 Thus, the owner was literate in this language. TV. TWO INSCRIPTIONS There are two, curious, inscriptions in this Bible. Facing the inside cover in dark black ink, is written in Fraktur script, "Paul Gerhardt Tonsing." And, on the first whole page following this one is a longer inscription, again in black ink and Fraktur characters7:

The photocopies accompanying the text of this article are larger than their actual size. The page following the title page states in English below the Table of Contents for the Old Testament: "320,000 Printed." 6 The text of the Bible has each verse set off by a number just like the old King James Version that used to be common in American households. 7 See the photocopy of this inscription accompanying this article. 5

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Paul Gerhardt Tonsing 315 Ersten Strasse Atchison, Kansas. IstenDezember Neunzen Hundert Vier und Dreizig. Translated, this reads: Paul Gerhardt Toensing 315 First Street Atchison, Kansas First [of] December Nineteen Hundred Thirty-four. V. NOTES ON THE INSCRIPTIONS There are several curious things about these inscriptions. The first observation is not: the handwriting does seem to be that of the father of Ernest F. Tonsing, Paul G. Tonsing. This can be determined by comparison with several other extent signatures.8 Second, the inscription was made exactly a year and four months before the death of Paul Tonsing on March 1, 1936.9 The letters are well written, well spaced, the loops and strokes confident, and they have a graceful slant to the right. There are several writeovers and places where the pen left the page to retrace the letters. The "p" in the first word is composed of three separate strokes rather than one. The "dt" in the second word is made with four strokes, and the second "a" in "Kansas" begins with a vertical stroke where it should have been rounded. The "e" in Neun has a ligature at the bottom of the first stroke where it is not needed, and the "z" has a superfluous upright loop. I wonder if, after so many years of writing "Latin" letters, Paul Tonsing had some difficulty in steering his hand in the patterns learned in his now distant youth. In both inscriptions, U-Bogen ("u-bows," also called "u-curves") appear over the letter "u," but this is common in this script. It simply designates the letter as a "u" and is not to be confused with the umlaut. Third, the street name of the residence of the pastor, son-in-law of the late Governor of Kansas, John A. Martin, was originally known as "First" street. This was changed by the Governor to "North Terrace" (apparently, he wanted his address to appear more elegant). Indeed, in his own directory published contemporary with this inscription,

I have several volumes and documents in my possession from which this can be observed. Paul Gerhardt Tonsing was born January 3, 1870. Rebecca Chaky and Ruth Martin, Ruth Martin Family Tree 1995 (Frendswood, Texas: Never Done Press, 1995), p. 92.

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"Tonsing, Paul G" is listed as residing at 315 Terrace. But, in the inscription in the Bible he used the designation, Ersten, or "First" Street. Perhaps he thought that this sounded better than Terrasse ("terrace"), or Erdstufe ("earth-step"), or Hduserreihe ("house riser") in German. Fourth, Paul Gerhardt, when writing his name on various documents,11 or in his publication of the Atchison Directory,12 preferred the spelling of his name, "Tonsing." Indeed, the members of the "Kansas" branch of the family consistently have used this spelling of the name. However, the patriarch retained the umlaut over the "o" when writing both of these inscriptions, spelling the name "Tensing" as an abbreviation of "Toensing."13 Fifth, it seems odd that the inscriber would use the archaic Fraktur letters to sign his name and write the address. In the copy of the Lutheran Liturgy that he owned in his first parish, Paul G. Tonsing did not use this script, but, rather wrote with letters typical of American writers of the late Nineteenth Century: Rev. Paul G. Tonsing Beloit Kansas June 1895.14 The Fraktur script (also called die deutsche Schrift) is thought to have originated during the reign of the German emperor, Maximilian (ruled until 1517), and was used in preference to the "Schwabacher" and the gothic "Textura" calligraphy. Based upon the "Bastarda" shapes employed by the scribes in the emperor's chancery, the calligrapher, Leonhard Wagner invented a typeface that became known as Fraktur, that is, "fractured," because of its broken lines.15 Fraktur was popular during the seventeenth through the early nineteenth centuries, but was gradually phased out in preference for the Latin type.16 10

Tonsing's Atchison Directory, 1936, Compiled, Printed, and Published by Paul Tonsing and Paul, Jr., (Atchison, Kansas, 1936), p. 56. The full title on the first page is: City Directory of Heads of Families and Business, Professional, Religious and Educational Institutions Arranged Alphabetically, also Numerically by Streets, Telephone Patrons Arranged Numerically. 11 For example, the Rev. Paul G. Tonsing's Private Church book in which he kept a record of pastoral acts during the years 1895-96 at Zion Lutheran Church, Beloit, Kansas, in my possession. 12 Tonsing's Atchison Directory, 1936, op. cit. 13 The umlaut in Germanic languages is written above a vowel as two vertical strokes, and not the two dots produced by this computer program. It represents the Gothic "e," and, when placed above or immediately after the vowel as an "e," it gives a sound midway between that vowel and the letter "e." 14 This is written in light, gray ink on the first, blank page ofLiturgie und Agende: ein Kirchenbuch fur die Evangelisch=Lutherische Kirche in den Vereinigten Siaaten. {Liturgy and Ritual: A Church Book for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States). Second edition (Philadelphia: J. Kohler, No. 911 Arch Street, 1855). In my possession. 15 Dieter Steffmann, "Brief History of Fraktur" (http://www.steffmann.de/english/fraktur.htm). May 12, 2003. 16 Ibid. Thoroughly German in origins and use, it is ironic that Adolph Hitler banned its use in the Reich in 1941 as being "un-German," and mistakenly condemned it as "of Jewish origin." Its use continued during

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It seems strange that Paul G. Tonsing used Fraktur in this Bible. He certainly knew it. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, in the latter part of the nineteenth century, it seems likely that his earliest penmanship in grammar school consisted in tracing the shapes of the Fraktur script. The first parish that he served, Zion Lutheran Church in Beloit, Kansas, was organized in 1886 with a constitution that ruled that the language of the congregation be German. Pastor Paul Tonsing came to it in June, 1895, just after his graduation from Western Theological Seminary in Atchison, Kansas. By his time, however, the congregation's worship services alternated between German and English, evidence of the newer generation's Americanization.17 Thus, early in his career, Paul Tonsing used the German language in his ministry. But, after his first parish, he no longer needed to speak or write German, let alone write in Fraktur characters. In 1901, Paul Tonsing left for Union Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hardy, Nebraska. The name of this congregation came from the fact that the congregation had two locations close to each other, but located on either side of the Kansas-Nebraska border.18 Here his ministry was in English. After a serious illness and upon the advice his doctor, Paul Tonsing retired from this congregation and returned to Atchison to enter the family's printing business. He preached occasionally at First Lutheran Church at Grasshopper Falls (later, Valley Falls), Kansas, west of Atchison. This congregation had been founded by the intrepid missionary, Rev. McAfee, in 1857, making it the first Lutheran church established west of the Missouri River. The services were in English as well.19 Paul Tonsing's involvement in Saint Mark's Lutheran Church in Atchison, again had him teaching and preaching in English rather than German.20 Furthermore, the German language and culture in America fell into disfavor during World War I and afterwards. Those of Germanic ancestry suppressed their peculiar customs in order to affirm their patriotism and to "blend in" with their Anglo-Saxon neighbors. Most German-speaking Lutheran congregations dropped their services in the "mother tongue" in favor of English by the 1930's.

and after the war, however, until German printers sought a font not connected with the Nazi past, preferring one associated with the Bauhaus style of the 1920's. 17 H. A. Ott, A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Kansas (General Synod) Together with a Sketch of the Augustana Synod Churches and a Brief Presentation of Other Lutheran Bodies Located in Kansas (Topeka, Kansas: Kansas Synod, 1907), pp. 60, 287. 18 Ibid., pp. 91,287. 19 Ibid, pp. 12-13. 20 Ibid, pp. 55-58

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VL THE GERMAN LANGUAGE BIBLE By the time of the inscriptions in this Bible, 1934, Paul Tonsing had published his newspapers and directories in English for some three decades. Why a German Bible, and why inscribe it in German script? Part of the reason may have been nostalgia for the past. The language of one's childhood is always familiar and cherished. With the daily turmoil of a large family, a demanding business, and an unstable world, perhaps Paul Tonsing sought refuge in the Sprache of his youth. But, there is more. Martin Luther's translation of the Bible resides close to the hearts of German-speaking people. This Bible is one of the most remarkable achievements of any individual in any language. The Sixteenth Century Reformer was a professor, preacher, orator, translator, theologian, composer of music, and a family man. All of these were brought to bear when it came to his translation. Rather than depending upon the Latin Vulgate of Saint Jerome, which translators before his time had done, Luther worked from the original Hebrew and Greek. But, Luther encountered a problem. In his time there was no universal German language, but, rather, barely related dialects used in each of the over five hundred little principalities of Germany. Martin Luther invented the modern German language. He used as a foundation the language of the Saxon court, and enriched it by constructions and vocabulary from his students and people from the streets of Wittenberg. For example, to understand the descriptions of the sacrifices in the Hebrew Bible, he interviewed the town butcher as he cut up sheep. When it came to the jewels in the breastplate of the High Priest, he spoke to the Keeper of the Jewels of the Elector for their properties. Furthermore, the biblical sentences had to "pass the test of Luther's ear, not his eye."21 Few translations of the Bible speak so clearly and powerfully as Luther's. For example, read aloud the beginning of Jesus' "Sermon on the Mount" (Matthew 5:3-5) in Martin Luther's German translation, and compare the rhythm, fluency and sounds with the King James English: Selig sind, die da geistlich arm sind; Blessed are the poor in spirit: den das Himmelreich is ihr. for their's is the kingdom of heaven. Selig sind, die da Leib tragen; Blessed are they that mourn: denn sie sellen getrOstet werden. for they shall be comforted. Selig sind die Sanftmuthigen: Blessed are the meek: den sie werden das Erdreich besitzen... for they shall inherit the earth... The German words of the "Lord's Prayer" in Matthew 6:9 ff. roll off of the tongue in contrast to the contortions required of the mouth in the English version:

21

Henry Zecher, "The Bible Translation That Rocked the World," Christianity (http://www.christianitytoday com/holidays/nbw/features/34h035.htm') (May 12, 2003).

Today

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Unser Vater in dem Himmel. Dein Name werde geheiliget. Dein Reich komme. Dein Wille geschehe auf Erden, wie in Himmel...

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven...

The Reformer's lines in the Twenty-third Psalm have a rhythm and flow of sounds that is harmonious in contrast to the fitful starts and stops, however cherished, of the English rendition: Der Herr is my Hirte, mir wird nichts mangeln. Er weidet mich auf einer griinen Aue, und fuhret mich zum frischen Wasseren... The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters... Religious feelings are closely tied to poetic language, as Martin Luther realized. Language, after all, is more than utility or efficiency. It bears with it associations and memories. It suggests contexts by its common use, and contemplation by its nuances. The philosopher-musician-medial missionary of Lambarene, Africa, Albert Schweitzer, was once asked which language he preferred. Raised bilingual in Alsace-Lorraine, he responded that speaking French was like walking in the immaculately groomed gardens of Versailles, while speaking German was like strolling through a forest of giant trees. Much like French, the English language prefers well-ordered sentences and transparent structures. German, however, expands the intimate and grounds the grand. Flexible and evocative in its own right, the English King James' translation simply does not plumb the depths of emotions as does Luther's German. Perhaps, then, it was partly nostalgia and partially a deep appreciation of the language of Luther's Bible that led Paul Gerhardt Tonsing to chose the German edition and inscribe his name in it using the old Gothic letters. VIL

WHAT A FRAKTUR INSCRIPTION TELLS

In addition to the love of the language, there may be another aspect of the story to be gleaned from this Bible. The pastoral need for a German Bible, for instructing, preaching and conducting the Liturgy, was, now, thirty-five years in the past for Paul Tonsing. Why did he have a Bible in that language, and why did he inscribe it in archaic Fraktur script so late in his life?

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As a second-generation American experiencing those conflicts any person who has parents from the "old land," and who spoke the Mutter Sprache during the first years of life, there is a certain nostalgia for one's time of innocence. Eventually, the Swedish, French, Spanish or German speaking person has to learn English to find work, to get along with Anglo neighbors, or to keep up with the news in the papers. As the secondgeneration moves beyond the confines of the immediate family and the community of "old-timers," the transition is inevitable. But, it comes with a cost. The parent's generation feels betrayed, the English-speaking third-generation alienated, and the middle-generation torn between loyalty to their roots and aspirations for their children. Paul Gerhardt Tonsing spoke only "Low German" for the first five years of his life until he went to school to learn proper "High German."22 His son, Paul, Junior, believes that he did not speak English until his tenth birthday.23 He does not seem to have needed the German language after this time except in his first parish. But, now, some sixty-four years of age, the habits of writing familiar in his childhood reemerged as he wrote his name and address Perhaps, the pages of this German Bible, inscribed in the elaborate calligraphy of his youth, hint at the story of this son of immigrant parents who found himself pulled in the psychological duality often observed in second-generation individuals. Paul Gerhardt Tonsing never seemed to reveal this in conversation, letter, editorial, sermon or comment to his immediate family.24 Yet, it does appear, now, that this intelligent, very able, genial and complex man had another side to his personality, uninvestigated until the discovery of a Fraktur inscription in an old Bible.

Ernst F. Tonsing, Ph.D. Thousand Oaks, California May 20, 2003

22

The Autobiography of The Reverend Paul Gerhardt Tonsing, Atchison, Kansas, Transcribed by Ernst F. Tonsing, Ph.D. (Thousand Oaks, CA: August 14, 2001), p. 4. 23 Paul Tonsing, Jr., phone Interview, May 18, 2003. 24 Paul Tonsing, Jr., interview by phone, May 18, 2003.