# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1851 01 07_S74
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

74

bodily resurrection, but has never doubted a real and true resurrection. Similar may have been the demonstrations of those who already in the times of the Apostles gave out the resurrection as "past already" (2 Tim. 2, 18.).. Calvin knew how to put himself in such repute with the Swiss in a short time that, so to speak, everything passed through his hand. Not yet content with this, he tried also to extend his influence over the evang. (Luth.) churches, giving himself the appearance of seeking to establish peace and unity among the Protestants of both Confessions. He wrote to some esteemed theologians of Germany that they should please refrain from censure and reproaches against the adherents of Zwingli, yea, to Veit Dietrich at Nuremberg he made the demand that in the publication of Luther's works he omit the passages directed against Zwingli. Since he did not succeed here, he turned his whole attention to Melanchthon, and actually so won over the peaceable man, who after Luther's death had become weak and vacillating, that at last he was able to boast: "If I do not rightly use Philip's name for myself, then I will suffer every disgrace. I have said it and say it still, and will affirm it a hundred times, that Philip (Melanchthon) in the matter of the Supper is no farther from me than from his own heart, though he has not always disclosed his opinion freely and plainly, as I would have wished, and has had to be afraid of Luther! "(A fine praise!—)". At the time when Luther was still living, I spoke with Philip about this doctrine of the Sacrament, and did not need to exchange a word with him, for we have always been of one mind". — Heedless of what embarrassment he might bring upon the poor, timorous man by such inconsiderate publications, he even blamed him further that he did not raise his voice loudly enough against his departed friend Luther. Later Calvin became still much more importunate, fell into his accustomed schoolmasterly tone, and at times addressed Melanchthon thus: "Thou hast well to consider what thou owest to Christ, that thou do not, suppressing the sincere confession of the truth, silently lend aid to godless men in the suppression of the truth itself. Thou hast to take heed in time lest thy too great silence redound to thy dishonor with posterity. How? if death should now overtake thee? will not men then cry out that thou wast slavishly fearful, so that thou shouldst lose all authority and all confidence in thee vanish? It is not necessary to exhort thee with many words to hasten to roll this disgrace (infamiam) from thee." In view of the great esteem in which Melanchthon stood among the Evangelicals, some of whom even regarded him, after Luther's decease, as the leader of the Church, this Calvinistic influence was bound to be of weighty consequences. As the first of these one may regard the gradually arising opinion that for a union between the Saxon and the Swiss churches nothing further was needful than an ambiguous formula of doctrine.. Another consequence of that influence was the growing boldness with which Calvin's adherents sought to force their way into the evang. (Luth.) churches and to drive out the clergymen of Lutheran sentiments, or, when this did not succeed, at least to disturb the peace of the congregations. Thus in 1553 the Polish nobleman John Lasko, driven out of England by Queen Mary, came to Denmark with a considerable number of like-minded persons, who called themselves the ecclesia peregrinorum (Pilgrim Church), and found, as alleged evangelical co-believers, the friendliest reception. But soon they began to abuse the Danish preachers and congregations, called Luther a wretched man, the controversy over the Supper a mere wrangling about words concerning bread and wine, about which men should not be at variance at all, and demanded a separate church constitution, because they did not wish to have any fellowship with the confessors of the Augsb. Conf., whom they could not regard as members of the Christian Church. King Christian had lodging, protection, and support offered them, if they would introduce no innovations in the ceremonies, nor cause any other offense or disorder, but would submit to the church order of the kingdom; in vain, they persisted in their demand, however imprudent the same was, since the dissension between them and the evangelical (Luth.) Church was supposed to amount only to a dispute about words unworthy of any purpose. Since no representations availed, the King had their debts contracted in the land paid, and had a gift of money sent them besides, but at the same time also the order to leave his dominions, which they then also did, amid the most violent abuse of the King and his counsellors, and betook themselves to Rostock, Wismar, and into the Hanse towns, where, however, in a short time they were likewise driven out as disturbers of the peace, and now wandered about unsettled, until the Countess Anna permitted them to stay in East Friesland. One from their midst, Joh. Utenchovius, later published a history of their wanderings, of which even strict Calvinists judged that it had better have remained unknown. In the year 1556 Lasko came to Württemberg and now assumed the appearance as if he and his people agreed with the Augsb. Conf., which unfounded pretense especially displeased Brenz, who by command of the Duke held a colloquy with him, in which Lasko, by the remark that Christ's body sits at the right hand of God, which is also in the bread — fell into such confusion that all the hearers were astonished how he could have come so unprepared to a disputation requested by himself. — Differently from Lasko in Denmark, his co-believers in Switzerland and elsewhere came forward against the adherents of the Augsburg Confession, to be sure always with the same purpose. They represented themselves as if they were well disposed toward the Evangelicals (Lutherans), showed themselves reverent, brotherly, hospitable toward them, pretended they would refuse no means and ways which might lead to a union, began also to praise Luther highly in sermons and to exhort everyone to the diligent reading of his books. In an anonymous writing (that is, in which the author had not named himself): "Diallaktikon" (Means of Reconciliation) they also proposed an adjustment of the controversy over the Supper by the assumption of two bodies of Christ, of which one should be the real body of the Son of God, the other, however, a sacramental one: a presumption of human reason, which had to fall of itself. Beza expressed himself about it to a friend: "What thou hast mentioned of the double body formerly displeased me, but afterwards I have noticed that this comes very much to our advantage. For a sacramental body can be nothing else than the name of the body, understood according to the sacramental figurative manner of speech." To this in the end all Reformed proposals of union amount! — How little the words and assurances of the Genevan (Calvinistic) Reformed are in general to be trusted is shown by an occurrence which took place at that time and which may well be the non plus ultra (the highest pinnacle) of Calvinistic dishonesty.

For when the French King had suffered the defeat at St. Quentin in 1557, the Huguenots (Reformed in France) came forward more freely in Paris and began also in other cities to hold nightly assemblies. Informed of this, the King had many taken into custody, and since everything was to be feared for their lives, as well as for the safety of the rest, William Farel, Theodore Beza, Caspar Carmelus, preacher in Paris, and John Budaeus of Geneva were sent to Worms, where on account of a colloquy the most distinguished evang. (Luth.) theologians were assembled. To these the envoys represented themselves as brethren who had come to seek, for their persecuted co-believers, the intercession of the Protestant princes of the Empire with the King of France, whereby they asked that the German theologians might support their petition by an intercession with the princes. On demand they gave a confession of faith brought with them, which they had already made known everywhere on the journey, in order to win the hearts of the Evangelicals for themselves. This confession of faith, which Farel, Beza, and the other envoys had signed with the remark: that thus the Supper of the LORD is taught and believed in Switzerland and Savoy, expresses itself concerning the Sacrament of the Altar in the following manner: We confess that in the Supper of the LORD not only all the benefits of Christ, but also the substance or the very being of the Son of Man, that is, the true flesh (which the Word assumed into His person for ever and ever, and in which flesh He was born, suffered, and rose again and ascended into heaven) and the true blood