Dorothy PageHatcher, Eldridge B. (Eldridge Burwell)
Religion
Dorothy Page
Hatcher, Eldridge B. (Eldridge Burwell)
Christian fiction
As Mr. and Mrs. Page were being driven home in the automobile, after
their ride something impelled the father to tell the chauffeur to turn
the corner and go up the third street. The little Baptist chapel was on
that street. It was a summer evening and the windows of the church were
raised and the door was open, and as they approached the church Mr. Page
told the chauffeur to slow up. They heard singing, and there through the
open door they saw the pulpit and the open baptistry. The machine
stopped and they sat quiet as they listened to the singing, and soon
they saw a picture that chained them to their seats. Out into the water
to the front moved Dorothy at the side of the pastor. The parents were
sure that Dorothy never looked lovelier than at that moment, and on her
face was a happiness that they had never seen before. It smote them to
the heart. They heard the words of the minister as he said: "Dorothy
Page, do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior?"
She bowed her head in assent and they saw her lips move. The pastor then
said: "Upon a profession of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in
obedience to his command I baptize you, my sister, in the name of the
Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen."
They saw her fade from their sight under the water, and then from the
water they saw her rise as the congregation struck up the hymn:
"O happy are they
Who their Savior obey
And have laid up their treasures above."
That was all. Dorothy turned and was led by the pastor out of the
baptismal waters and the father bade the chauffeur move on; but an arrow
had entered the hearts of the parents.
A new light shone in Dorothy's eyes after that Sunday. Those who saw her
as she emerged from the baptismal waters declared that her face looked
like that of an angel. Many times during the week she was heard singing
in happy tones. The thought that she had put obedience to Christ's
commands above every earthly consideration filled her with peace and
gladness. To her parents her new joy was a mystery. Association with a
band of poor and obscure people suggested to their minds not happiness,
but isolation and almost disgrace.
Dorothy's chief thought now seemed to be her church. Not a day passed
that she was not in conference with the pastor or some of the members
seeking to familiarize herself with the condition of the church, its
needs and its work. To the request of the superintendent that she would
take a class in the Sunday school she replied with a startled
expression: "Oh, Mr. Randall, I must have someone teach me the Bible
before I can teach others." She finally yielded to his appeal and
decided to go out among the poor and neglected of the town and gather
some girls into a class.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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