# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1851 04 15_S129
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Der Lutheraner.
(Rev. of John, ch. 14, v. 6, 7.)
"God's Word and Luther's doctrine pure shall to eternity endure."
Published by the German Ev. Luth. Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and other States.
Edited by C. F. W. Walther.
Volume 7.  St. Louis, Mo., April 15, 1851.  No. 17.
Terms: Der Lutheraner appears once every two weeks at the yearly subscription price of One Dollar for out-of-town subscribers, who are to pay for it in advance and bear the postage. — In St. Louis each single number is sold for 5 cents.
Only those letters which contain communications for the paper are to be sent to the Editor; all others, which contain business matters, orders, cancellations, money, etc., are to be sent hither under the address Mr. F. W. Barthel, care of C. F. W. Walther, St. Louis, Mo.

The Doctrine of the Holy Trinity and of the Person of Christ
Set forth by Dr. M. Luther.

(Continuation.)

To grasp this lofty matter in some measure, the Doctors, especially Bonaventura, give a crude comparison. As: If three maidens were to put on a garment among themselves, and all three laid hold of the garment, and put it upon the third, and the third herself also took hold with them: then all three put on the garment of the third, and yet only the third is clothed with the garment, and not the other two. So shall one understand here that all three Persons, as one God, created the one humanity, and united it with the Son in His Person, so that the Son alone is man, and not the Father, nor the Holy Ghost. In like manner shall one also understand the dove, which assumes the Person of the Holy Ghost, and the voice, which assumes the Person of the Father. Likewise, the fiery tongues on the day of Pentecost, in which the Person of the Holy Ghost is revealed. Likewise, the wind, and whatever more is preached of the Holy Ghost, that He does in Christendom, or in Holy Scripture.

Here it is fair to ask: Why do we say now, or rather, why then does the Scripture teach us to say: I believe in God the Father, Maker of heaven and earth, and not to call the Son Maker? Likewise: In Jesus Christ, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost. Likewise, that the Holy Ghost giveth life, and hath spoken by the Prophets. Here, indeed, outwardly their particular, distinct works are ascribed to the Persons, even as they themselves are distinct. This is perhaps too sharp even for simple Christians; let them abide in their simple faith, that God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost is One God, etc. Yet in Christendom one must speak of this, and learn to understand, in order to withstand the devil and his heretics. First, it is certain that God will be known by us, here in faith, yonder eternally in sight, how He is one only God, and yet three Persons; this is our eternal life, John 17:3. To this end He has given us His Word and the Holy Scripture, confirmed with great miracles and works, that we should learn therein. For, if we are to know Him thus, He must truly teach it to us, and reveal Himself to us and appear; of ourselves we would not ascend into heaven, and find what God is, or how His divine essence is constituted. Now, to this end He visibly makes use of His creature, as the Scripture teaches us, that we may lay hold of it; for invisible creatures do not move our senses.

Accordingly you must now regard the creature in two ways. First, as a creature or work in and of itself [absolute], created or made by God thus and so. In this way all creatures are God's, that is, of all three Persons alike one and the same work, without any distinction; as has been said. For in such a way they give us no distinct revelation of the three Persons, since they are all alike one and the same work of the three Persons, as of the one God.

Secondly, you must regard it not in itself (absolute) but relatively, according to its use, how God makes use of it toward us. Here God takes His creature, which all three Persons as one God have created, and uses it for an image, or form, or shape, in which He reveals Himself and appears. Here there become distinct images, shapes, or revelations of the three distinct Persons. Thus He uses the dove, that it should be an image or revelation, in which the Holy Ghost reveals Himself; and it is a distinct image, which shows us neither the Father nor the Son, but the Holy Ghost alone, distinctly. For the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost will that the dove should distinctly show and reveal to us alone the Person of the Holy Ghost, so that we may become certain that God's one essence is certainly three distinct Persons from eternity. Therefore Luke, chap. 3, v. 22, says: The Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove.

In the same way we speak of the Son, that He is revealed to us in the humanity, or, as St.