# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1852 03 02_S106
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

106

the Missionshaus now inhabited by him. Here the kindest brotherly reception fell to our lot. We made here not only the acquaintance of several members of the Philadelphia (the candidate of theology v. Zeschwitz, the candidates of law v. Heynitz and Anger, the students of theology Neubert and Naumann *), but also had the joy of meeting here Herr Prof. Dr. Kahnis. God blessed this meeting first of all in this, that the misgivings that had arisen here against the direction of our Synod soon vanished and gave place to the most hearty confidence, although a complete agreement in the doctrine of Church and Ministry was not reached here. Herr Dr. Schneider had settled upon regarding the visible Lutheran Church as the Church kat’ exochen, that is, as the Church in the proper, highest sense of the word, to which therefore properly alone the name of the Church belongs, which we of course had to dispute as an unevangelical conception; for as certain as it is that the visible Lutheran Church, where it is actually constituted in doctrine and practice according to the Lutheran Confessions, is an orthodox particular church, which the other visible ecclesiastical communions known to us are assuredly not; while rather these others, on account of the grievous errors held fast in them, are sects: so certain is it that a sectarian conception of the Church lies at the bottom when one regards the visible Lutheran Church as the One holy catholic (universal) Christian Church. In a certain sense one may indeed also say that the Lutheran Church is the catholic Church, namely, if one understands by this the One holy Church scattered over the whole globe, to which all Lutherans from Luther onward properly alone confess themselves; for the Lutheran Church did not separate itself from the Roman Church in order thereby to cut itself off from the universal Church, but rather in order not to be cut off from it, not in order, as the Roman Church does, to lay claim to the dignity of the catholic Church now for itself alone, but in order to remain with it; as all this is so gloriously and clearly set forth in our symbolical books, especially in the 4th Article of the Apology, in the 12th Article of the 3rd Part of the Smalcald Articles, and in the exposition of the third article of our Christian faith in Luther’s Large Catechism. With Herr Prof. Dr. Kahnis we came into dispute over the nature of the ministry of preaching, after we had declared to him our belief that it is not a special estate, like the Levitical priesthood of the Old Covenant, but that therein a power is exercised which was originally given to the whole Church, that is, to all truly believing Christians, and that this power should be exercised only, yet according to Christ’s express command and according to a holy order instituted by Him, by persons fit for it and duly called by God through the congregation, in the public office; as this too is clearly and concisely set forth in the Appendices to the Smalcald Articles (not by Luther *), yet entirely in Luther’s sense and faith, by theologians of our side). Though it came to no complete agreement, neither now nor in the later repeated conversations with these dear men, yet both became convinced that the doctrine confessed by us does not, as it appears upon a superficial consideration or one hampered by prejudices, give furtherance to the Union as regards the conception of the Church, nor, as regards the conception of the ministry of preaching, injure the divine institution and dignity and the rights of the same and so abandon God’s ordinance to the caprice of rude or fanatical spirits. They praised God with us that He had done great things for us, and assured us of their hearty willingness for every possible helping hand. Herr Prof. Dr. Kahnis honored me at parting with a gift of his latest work: „Vom heiligen Abendmahle.“ — I cannot omit to mention yet one special, unexpected joy which God bestowed upon me now in Leipzig. I met here, namely, the son of my sister, whom I had left thirteen years ago as a boy full of promise, and in whom I now found again a godly, zealous and capable candidate of the holy ministry, grown up to manhood, from the school of Herr Dr. Harless and, what delighted me especially, evidently also from the school of the Holy Spirit, who was just on the point of accepting a pastorate in a congregation of the separated Prussian Lutherans. His name is Robert Engel. He then became our constant companion on our further journeys through Saxony.

*) Since it was just the academic vacation time, we found no opportunity to become personally acquainted with a larger number of the members of the said association.

*) For people are now often so fond of making our Lutherans believe that that doctrine of our Church was only a private opinion peculiar to Luther, and that it never became a general doctrine of our Church.

From Leipzig we then traveled first of all into the Muldenthal, my native country, where, as we knew, a considerable company of believing preachers labors in the vineyard of the LORD, who have always followed with hearty sympathy the development of our American Lutheran Church. On Tuesday the 23rd of September we traveled by railroad first to Altenburg and from there in an omnibus to Waldenburg in the Fürstlich-Schönburgisch territory, where we arrived late in the night. Through the mediation of the deacon there and pastor at Schwaben, Herr M. Pasig, the present editor of the „Pilger aus Sachsen,“ arrangements were made at once for holding conferences on the two following days, of which the first was held in M. Pasig’s dwelling and the other in the newly erected schoolteachers’ seminary building there. Present at this, besides the said Herr Deacon Pasig, were the gentlemen Wilhelm, archdeacon in Waldenburg, M. Meurer, pastor in Callenberg (the well-known biographer of Luther), Schnabel, pastor in Tettau, Gotsch, pastor in Ziegelheim, Kranichfeld, pastor in Wolkenburg, Niedner, pastor in Langenchursdorf, Spiegelhauer, pastor vicar in Altstadt-Waldenburg, Füllkruß, pastor in Kaufungen, Schütze, seminary director in Waldenburg, Geißler, teacher at the burgher school there, and some other believing schoolteachers. As a welcome guest the bookseller Herr Justus Naumann of Dresden, who happened to be present, also took part in the conference. As in most places to which we came, so here too the brethren’s question about the proper purpose of our delegation, and our explanation of it, occasioned a lively discussion (conversation) on the doctrine of Church and Ministry and the points closely connected with it. The result (outcome) of the speeches and replies was here also not a complete consensus, but this, that one part of those present declared themselves more for, the other more against, the conviction we expressed. On the part of the opponents we had to hear principles uttered here which were in truth as surprising as they were discouraging. From a certain quarter there was asserted, among other things, even an absolute (unconditional) necessity of the public ministry of preaching to salvation for every one, and finally only so much was conceded, that God indeed, because He is bound to no means, can convert a man also without a pastor, as by a miracle, through the mere written and read Word. In vain was it pointed out on our side that if one maintains that a man upon the mere reading of the Word is converted only as by a miracle, the power to convert is thereby denied to the Word and ascribed to the pastor; in vain was it further pointed out by us that our symbolical books also reckon the read Word among the means through which a man can be converted *); in vain, finally, was it testified by us that we by no means thereby denied the necessity of the holy ministry of preaching; that, to be sure, he who despises the public ministry of preaching cannot appeal to the fact that he has enough in the written and

*) Thus it says, for example, in the Formula of Concord: “And God will, through this means, and not otherwise, namely through His holy Word, when one hears it preached or reads it, and uses the Sacraments according to His Word, call men to salvation, draw them to Himself, convert, regenerate and sanctify them.” (Repetition, Art. 2, fol. 271. a.)