MEMOIR of Sr. Wilhelmina Albrecht,who
departed April 23rd, 1842, at Nain in Labrador.
(Compiled by her Husband.)
Periodical Accounts, Vol. 16(1841-44), 275-79
"My late dear wife was born September 26, 1810, at Niesky, where
her parents, Brother and Sister Jung, then resided. Soon after her birth,
they were called to serve the Mission in the Danish West Indies, whither
she accompanied them, as an infant six months old. The preserving care
of her Heavenly Guardian was remarkably manifested during this journey.
On their arrival at Hamburgh, their covered wagon was examined in a very
rude manner by the officials, one of whom thrust a pike into all the contents
of the waggon, and amongst the rest, into the basket containing the child.
The parents being engaged at the custom-house, did not immediately observe
what was passing; but, on looking round at the waggon, the mother perceived
it, and cried out to the man, in alarm- `There's a child in the basket!'
Happily the infant had escaped uninjured, and all further search was put
an end to. After a tedious and dangerous voyage by way of North America,
they arrived safe and well at their place of destination. In a short paper,
written by my late wife previous to her confirmation, she says:-
"`In my fifth year, I was brought back to Europe by a Missionary
couple, and placed in the institution at Kleinwelke, for the education
of children of Missionaries. Here I soon became quite at home, and was
very happy. As I grew up, and could understand what was said to us in the
children's meetings, I enjoyed many blessings from the Lord. On our festival
celebrations and prayer-days, I dedicated myself to our Saviour as his
property, and besought Him to make me a truly obedient child, and a pleasure
to those who had the care of me. A prayer- day during the Passion-season
was especially blessed to me; my heart was so deeply impressed with the
conviction, that my Saviour had died on the cross for my sins also, that
I thought that nothing could sever me from Him; but, alas! the happy feeling
gradually vanished, and I became more and more indifferent to Him.
"`June 4th, 1824, I was admitted to the choir of girls. On thus closing
the years of my childhood, I reviewed, in the presence of the Lord, the
numerous mercies, spiritual and temporal, which he had bestowed upon me,
and asked myself, what I had rendered to Him in return. Then I was constrained
to cry out, with shame and deep compunction,-
"Lord, I approach Thy mercy-seat,
And pray Thee to forgive me;
With contrite heart, I Thee entreat,
Show pity, and receive me. /276/
Cast all my sins and trespasses
Into the ocean of Thy grace,
And them no more remember."
"`December 11th, I had the privilege of being present at the Holy
Communion, and the blessing which I received on this occasion, has left
a deep impression on my heart. Being now about to enter on the prepatory
instruction for that sacred ordinance, it is my most fervent prayer to
our Saviour, that I may so improve the opportunity, as never to have occasion
to look back upon it with regret, and that I may, through His grace, adhere
to the covenant which I am about to enter with Him, till He shall call
me to Himself.'"
"March 1st, 1828, she was received into the congregation, and shortly afterwards
entered into the choir of single Sisters. In April, 1830, she was engaged
as teacher in the same school, in which she had so happily passed her childhood.
She entered upon this important office with fear and trembling, under a
deep sense of her insufficiency; but, after a nine years' service, she
could joyfully thank the Lord for the support and help which He had granted
her. She often declared, that this period was the happiest period of her
life. She loved and was beloved, and enjoyed good health, till the last
two years, when she had occasional attacks of nervous weakness.
"In 1839, she received a call to join me in the service of the Labrador
Mission. Devoted, as she was, to the Lord's will, the acceptance of a call
to Labrador was a matter of considerable self-denial to her, especially
as her constitution was but weakly; yet she complied with it in reliance
on her Heavenly Guide, whose help she had experienced in time past. We
were married April 21st; our hearts were at once united, and we promised
each other, to keep the prize of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus
steadily in view. We set out from Kleinwelke, May 2d, accompanied by the
good wishes and prayers of many friends. The parting from a place where
she had spent nearly the whole of her life, and which was endeared to her
by so many happy remembrances, was heavy, and still heavier was the separation
from her dear mother, to whom she cleaved with truly childlike affection.
Her heart fainted at the thought, that she would see her no more on earth.
"After a prosperous journey by land and sea, we reached Nain, August
21st. She now applied herself with great cheerfulness to her new and arduous
duties; and, though she had often to feel, that her willingness outran
her strength, she likewise experienced that the Lord can increase strength
to them that have no might. In the October following, she had to struggle
with an attack of illness, from which however, by the help of God, she
soon recovered.
"November 18th, 1840, she was rejoiced by the birth of a son; but
her joy was soon changed into mourning, as it pleased the Lord to take
our child to Himself after a four-weeks' illness. She was greatly afflicted
by this bereavement, and it was some time, before she could reconcile herself
to the dispensation, and feel, that even His chastisements are nought but
love. Through the mercy of God, however, her troubled heart was comforted,
and peace returned to her bosom.
"In September, 1841, she began to complain of great internal /277/weakness,
accompanied by many alarming symptoms. The disorder baffled all means which
were employed, and a long school of suffering now commenced, in which her
faith was put to a severe trial. Her Lord intended to refine her dear-bought
soul in the furnace of affliction, and thus prepare it for the heavenly
kingdom. In her diary, she thus expresses herself on the subject, on her
31st birthday, the last which she spent in this vale of tears: `Many tears,
both of joy and grief, flowed down my cheeks, as I yesterday evening reviewed
the days of the past year. From the beginning to the end, it has been full
of afflictive experiences; and, had not Thine hand sustained me, O faithful
Saviour, I must have sunk under the pressure. But Thou didst hasten to
succour and to strengthen me, so that, at its close, I can utter no voice
but that of thanksgiving; Thou hast done to me far better than my deserts;
to Thy name be, therefore, praise and glory! I commend myself anew, for
the coming year, in which my prospects are, indeed, but gloomy, to Thy
further care and guidance. Go Thou before me, blessed Saviour, on the narrow
path, and, through Thy grace, I will follow Thee, step for step, with childlike
resignation; and thus, with a bowed, yet joyful heart, I commence another
year of my pilgrimage. At the same time it is my earnest prayer, that Thy
views with me may this year be more fully attained. No pain or suffering
comes by chance, and my corrupted heart requires the fire of trial to purify
it from its dross. May Thy Holy Spirit disclose to me more and more the
depths of my own heart; then I shall have sufficient employment with myself.
Yea, be not weary of me, O Lord! I would most gladly be Thy sole property;
yet I stand continually in my own light, forgetful that my power and striving
can do nothing.'
"At the commencement of the present year, it seemed as if the disorder
had taken a favourable turn, and the prospect of being restored to activity
filled her heart with joy. She was often exceedingly distressed to see
her Sisters overwhelmed with work, while she was obliged to lie inactive-
an addition to their cares and burdens. Frequently would she ejaculate,
`Help them, O my Saviour, and have pity on Thy poor child!'
"The apparent improvement was, alas! Of no long continuance; the
cough and expectoration still remained, and the pain in her left side was
such, that she should not bear to lie upon it throughout her illness. In
the latter half of January, she grew evidently worse, and became impressed
with the conviction, that the Lord would take her to Himself. Her whole
soul was now occupied with the joyful prospect of a speedy release from
the groaning tabernacle. On my remarking to her, that it seemed as if her
illness would be the means of her consummation, and asking, what was the
ground of her hope, she said- `Believe me, our Saviour is preparing me
in stillness: I am greatly blessed; I feel His peace, and rejoice in the
prospect of my dissolution; but the idea of separation from you pierces
me to the heart. Dear Saviour, do Thou Thyself loose this tie! Pray for
me, that my sufferings may not be protracted, and that my faith may endure
to the end.'
"Lavater's Bible Extracts for Mourners was a source of much consolation
to her. Resigned, as she was, to the Lord's will, she gladly gave into
the hope, excited on any abatement of the malady, of being spared to me
yet longer. But the Lord had otherwise determined. /278/April 11th she
was seized with spasms, and looked forwards with composure to her summons
home. She took an affecting farewell of the Sisters, thanking them for
all the love which they had shown her, and then asked me, with a feeble
voice, whether I thought that our Saviour would now take her to Himself.
On my reply in the affirmative, she said- `So do I, and I feel His peace.'
"The spasms ceased in the evening, but on the 16th, they returned
with increased violence. We now took a solemn farewell of each other for
this life. With many tears I commended her in prayer to Him, who had given
her to me, imploring Him to be with her in the last struggle, and to preserve
her faith lively and stedfast to the end. In the night following, she slept
several hours, which she had not done for a length of time, and was better
the next day. Thus she continued, with occasional attacks of spasm, till
the 22nd, when they became so threatening, that I preformed the mournful
office of imparting to her the last blessing of the Church. The agony which
she endured often forced from me the sigh,-`Help, Lord; come and release
thy dear-bought sheep!' a petition in which she joined from the depth of
her soul. Towards midnight, she uttered a joyful exclamation-`My Saviour
is coming! I see him in a beautiful green pasture; He has a white robe
in His hand,-yes, it is for me!' Soon after she continued-`He is coming
nearer; He will take me presently. What bliss!' She now grew gradually
weaker, but was for the most part sensible, till 3 o'clock, when she asked-`Is
our Saviour there?' adding, directly -`Hush, hush! He comes.' Shortly after,
she asked if I was present, and on my assuring her, that I was, she said,
`And where is the Saviour? Ah! He too is here, and now we are all together
again.' And thus she fell asleep in Jesus. Her age was thirty-one years
and a half.
"I have lost in her an affectionate and faithful helpmate, and none
but my Saviour, who was her all and all, can comfort me. May He grant me
the favour, when my race is run, to be united with her eternally, and with
her to sing His praises! And may my last end be like hers!'"
LABRADOR
Extracts of Private Correspondence
From Nain
"YOUR kind letter found me in circumstances of the deepest affliction.
My heart was filled with anguish in the remembrance of the treasure I had
been called to resign, and in the daily experience of privations, which
none can rightly estimate, but those who have endured them. You both can
and will sympathise with me, when I inform you, that on the 23rd of April
last, it pleased the Lord to take home to himself my beloved wife, after
eight months of weakness and suffering. Her lot is unspeakably blessed;
but I am made to feel, that my journey is still through a vale of tears.
"I know not whether I mentioned to you, in my last letter, that my
dear wife was far from well, when the Harmony visited us last year. I thought
at the time, that her illness was chiefly caused by the conflict /279/of
feelings, which attended the perusal of letters, congratulating us on the
birth of a dear infant, whose smiles no longer cheered our hearts, and
by whose removal her tender spirit had been deeply wounded. The sequel,
however, proved, that her complaint was more serious that we had imagined.
She began to suffer from sickness and relaxation of the stomach and bowels;
and these symptoms were soon followed by fever, headache, cough, oppression
on the chest, and violent pains in the left side. No doctor was at hand,
and we knew not how to treat a case of this kind. In vain we did search
through and through, the few medical books within our reach, and try one
remedy after the other. Up to the end of September, no improvement had
taken place; the patient rather grew worse and weaker. The prospect was
gloomy indeed; a winter of eight months was before us; we knew not to whom
to apply for help, but the Good Physician Himself. In the first days of
January, there appeared something like a favourable change, and we ventured
once again to cherish hope; but before the end of the month there was a
return of all the more alarming symptoms, and that with increased
violence. In March it became evident, that her recovery was hopeless, and
in the beginning of April, she was already too weak to walk about, so had
to carry her from her bed to her couch, whenever she could bear to be moved.
As she could only lie on the right side, owing to severe pain in her left
breast, her situation was truly distressing, particularly as from the very
commencement of her illness, her cough seldom allowed her to sleep. On
the 22nd of April I imparted to her the blessing of the Lord and of the
Church, for her departure, the very day on which, three years before, our
marriage had taken place at Kleinwelke: words cannot describe what I then
felt. About half past four the following morning, her dear-bought soul
was gently released, and permitted to enter the mansions of heavenly rest.
By her removal, I feel as if I had lost every thing; for she was not only
a tender and affectionate wife, but also a faithful follower of Jesus;
united to him by living faith, and ever desirous to know and to do his
will. Her soul pleased the Lord, therefore hastened he to take her away.
After reading the above, you will readily believe, that the past year has
been one of heavy trial to me. For eight months, I had to nurse my dear
suffering wife, and meanwhile to take my share in all the duties and labours
incident to the Missionary calling in this country, and which included
the general management of our store. Many and fervent were my prayers for
help, and often did the dear sufferer join me I thanking the Lord, for
the measure of it which he vouchsafed. As the period of her sufferings
drew to a close I became seriously unwell myself; Br. Lundberg had to suffer
from erysipelas in the face, Br. Fritsche from the influenza, and Sr. Lundberg
from a complaint of a similar kind. As to our Esquimaux, nearly every family
was attacked by the prevailing malady. On every side, there was nothing
but trouble and sorrow. Yet, when we cried unto the Lord in our distress,
he heard our prayers and sent us help and deliverance; to Him alone do
I now look for comfort and support, in my state of affliction and loneliness,
and I can declare to his praise, that he does not withhold them. While
I commend myself to your prayers, I would entreat you, at the same time,
to remember my venerable mother-in-law, Sr. Jung, who, by the departure
of my dear wife, has been bereft of the last of her six children.
C.G. Albrecht
(Text made available by Dr. Hans Rollmann)