# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_April 1907_S178
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

178⁸ Kirchlich-Zeitgeschichtliches.

sSymbol contains not a single one of the great ideas which Jesus preached
and for which he gave his life. Not one of his burning convictions or moral
and reéligious truths is even suggested. On the other hand, the God of the
Apostles“ Creed is not the equal Father of all, but the first Person of the
Trinity, the maker of heaven and earth. The Christ it declares was con-
ceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Marxy, descended into hell —
three matters on which the lips of Jesus were never opened. The cereed is
as far removed from the doctrine of Paul as from the Galilean gospel. It
reflects neither Paul's enthusiasm of liberty nor his sense of redemption
and new life in Christ. It is not true that the Apostles' Creed is à fair
statéement of ordinary Christian belief at the present day. To begin with,
three of its clauses, viz., the descent into hell, the holy Catholie Church, and
the resurreéction of the body, requireé to be very much explained away and
deprived of their original and proper meaning before they are at all accept-
able to the aveérage Proteéstant congregation. An inereasing number in the
Church, as well as out of it, do not believe in the literal virgin birth of
Jesus. It may be that these doubters are sadly in error, but the point is
that they are numerous, and likely to be more so, and it ought not to be
made hard for them to worship God honestly.“ — In der Theologie vertritt
der ndeyendent den offenbarsten Unglauben, in manchen sittlichen Fragen
redet er der Heuchelei das Wort und in der Politik dem Sozialismus.
F. B.

Theologische Gewißheit. Präsident Eliot von Uarvard University sagte
auf einer Versammlung kongregationalistischer Pastoren in Boston: There
is an irresistible trend toward the belief that truth çcannot be fixed. In
the region of philosophy and metaphysies there is an incessant flux; in
chemistry, zoology, botany, no one for a moment believes that the end has
been reached. Why should the theologian say he has reached the fixed
point in his research? ... They (mariners) know how slowly, painfully,
patiently they must make their way. The theologian takes a different
attitude. He sees in the fog of mystery a thing to be believed. But the
scientifie man is going to rule. Before long, it will be only his way that
will command the respect of thinking people.“ — Hierzu müssen sich alle
Theologen bekennen, welchen die eigentliche Quelle der Theologie nicht das
inspirierte Wort der Heiligen Schrift ist, sondern irgendwelche Tatsachen der
eigenen Erfahrung oder der Geschichte, und denen die Theologie oder die christ—
lichen Lehren nicht von Gott selber vorgelegte Wahrheiten sind, sondern
menschliche Deutung und Theoretisierung religiöser Tatsachen. Theologische
Gewißheit hat zu ihrer notwendigen Voraussetzung die Anerkennung der
Heiligen Schrift als der alleinigen und unfehlbaren Quelle und Norm der
christlichen Wahrheit. F. B.

Von der Stellung der Papisten zum Staat schreibt Bischof Spalding:
„It is vain to try to compromise us Catholies of the nineteenth century
with the acts and words of those of the Middle Ages. We do not believe
that the popes have never done wrong. As Cardinal Newman said, We are
not forced to deéfend the polities or the acts of certain popes, either before
or after the revolt which took place in the sixteenth century against their
authority. If public law in Europe in the eleventh and twelfth cçenturies
permitted them to declare tyrannical princes and emperors to have for-
feited their authority, it doës not follow that it is permitted to them now.