Pastor Louis J. HAAS

Louis J. HAAS was born on April 2, 1844, in Durlach, Baden. There he attended school until the age of 14.  Through a religious mother the seed of love for Jesus and the word of God were planted in his heart at an early age, so that in his boyhood years, the biblical stories of Jesus had made an early impression, and brought him to realize that he wanted to dedicate his services to God as a missionary.  In 1862 he came to the Basel Mission where he was accepted as a student one year later. After finishing the six-year course of study, he was ordained on May 2, 1869, in Muhlhausen, in Elsass, by Pastor Adolf STOBER.  Some weeks later he went with a few other Brothers to his first assignment in Kyebi, on the Gold Coast of Africa.  Here he experienced problems of all kinds.   His wife, Maria, born STRUB, whom he had married on December 19, 1872, suffered a stroke on November 6, 1873.  He suffered a breakdown soon after.  He requested and was granted permission to [sic] home for the year 1874. Three weeks after arriving home in August of 1874, his aged mother passed away.

In the fall of 1876, after having worked for 1 ½ years with Baron Jul. Von GEMMINGEN in Gernsbach, the deceased came to America.  He received his first job in Loudenville, Ohio, and began working on December 16, 1876.  In March 1877, he was married again to Wilhelmina LOCHER, daughter of the Missionary C.W. LOCHER, who had shared with him for years both joy and sorrow.  The marriage was blessed with 12 children, of whom one son and two daughters were called home by God at a tender young age.

Brother HAAS also served parishes in Newark, Ohio; Napoleon, Mo.; Manchester, Mo.; McWilliams, Nebr.; and Old Monroe, Mo.  Here he contracted malaria, which caused him severe headaches.  In September of 1906, he moved to Otis Orchards, Washington, where he settled with his family on his own land.

Since the General Synod of 1899, Pastor HAAS has been editor of the "Theological Magazine".  After ------ to Washington, he also looked for ------ God with the sermon of the ----- and the small parish ----- as in Rathdram -------.  In 1912, because of increasing difficulties in breathing, he had to give up preaching, but he continued his work with the magazine until his death.  He received a severe blow in the summer of 1914. His wife was burned by lightning, and four months later, as the severe wounds healed, she went blind.  This was a difficult period for him, and caused him much pain and sorrow until the end.

He suffered strokes in February and April of last year, which left him in a very weakened condition.  He longed from that point on to be called home, especially after his long-time colleague, Pastor E. OTTO, was so quickly and unexpectedly called home.   Even though he was confined to bed most of the time, things went pretty well until he was hit with the flu shortly before Christmas.  This led to pleurisy right after Christmas, and brought him to the edge of the grave.  He seemed to get over this somewhat and found himself on the road to recovery. At the beginning of March of this year, a defective heart valve got worse, and things went downhill from then on.  Two weeks before Easter he was served his dinner by the undersigned.  After that he had very few lucid moments.  On the Sabbath, April 7, at 9:43, he went quietly home to God.  He reached the age of 73 years and 5 days.

The funeral took place on Wednesday, April 11.  Pastor J. RAMSER of Colville, Washington, gave a solemn talk tied to the Psalm: "You lead me to your -----", etc., after the singing of a few verses from the song: "Christ, He is my Life."   Local Pastor Rev. BALDWIN, who Brother HAAS had often visited, conducted the services at the altar.  Reporter spoke from First Cor. 4, 1-3 about the high calling, the great responsibility, and the great reward of an evangelical preacher, with special reference to the life-long work of the deceased.  Pastor BALDWIN spoke of the words the deceased had selected as his motto.  First Joh. 2 1-2.  The congregational choir sang a few fitting songs. Pastor BALDWIN spoke the 23rd Psalm at the grave, and blessed the body and the undersigned closed with prayer and benediction.

Besides his widow, five sons, four daughters, three sons-in-law, two daughters-in-law, and eight grandchildren mourn his death.  All were present, except for one son in the East who was not able to come due to the distance.