# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1853 03 29_S100
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

100

is not true, since all true Lutherans do not recognize as Lutherans those who differ from them in the doctrine of the Sacrament of the Altar. And how can he himself still call himself a Lutheran! All the world knows that Luther would not accept Zwingli's hand on account of the latter's differing opinion in the doctrine in question, and that all confessors of Christianity who have named themselves after Luther have, by their confession in their Symbols, approved this step. But Mr. Harkey extends the hand of brotherhood to Zwinglians, or is himself one — he does not express himself on this in his discourse — and so holds with the Zwinglians and not with the Lutherans.

To be sure, Mr. Harkey does not see himself in the disagreeable necessity of admitting this; for his standpoint of cherished obscurity allows him to arrive at a more agreeable result. According to his remarks otherwise made in the discourse in question, the Lutheran Church is namely a fellowship of men who profess Christianity, and who are neither Roman Catholics nor Rationalists, nor Calvinistic Predestinarians nor Arminian deniers of all true religion, who furthermore call themselves Lutherans, as a rule, because they descend from Lutheran parents, and who have agreed among themselves to allow one another freedom in their religious convictions. Yea, on pp. 22 ff. there is even put to the account of the Lutheran Church what men like Gesenius and Ewald, Bretschneider and de Wette and others have written, who were in part more or less gross Rationalists and belonged to the Lutheran Church not even in name, but to the Union Church. On the ground of such a definition of the Lutheran Church, of which, we believe, every intelligent and well-instructed layman, even in confessions other than the Lutheran, would be ashamed, Mr. Harkey can indeed go hand in hand with Zwingli and yet be a Lutheran.

With his view of the nature of the Lutheran Church agrees the remark on p. 17, that she may not put any of her members under church discipline for holding views which differ from her expressed opinion, provided that such views do not touch what the Church regards as the fundamental doctrines and vital questions of Christianity. Here the simple reader asks, where and when has the Church then expressed opinions? Of confessions and confessional writings of the Church we know, indeed, but not of opinions and opinion-writings of the Church; and the confessions contain just that which everyone believes, or must believe, who would be of Lutheran confession and belong to the Lutheran Church. And what then does the Lutheran Church regard as the fundamental doctrines and vital questions of Christianity? We have always thought, surely that which she has taken up into her confessional writings; for why else should she confess it before the whole world. Mr. Harkey must indeed suppose that the Lutheran Church theologizes in her confessional writings like a learned private person, and moreover that there are found in the confessional writings — for where else should this be found — doctrines of the Lutheran Church set down which one need not accept and yet may be a member of the Lutheran Church. But in order not to suppose such a thing, it is not even necessary to have read the confessional writings of the Lutheran Church, but only to assume that they are not altogether unreasonable. Mr. Harkey, however, here attaches to the Lutheran Church a contradiction with itself. According to him the Church is namely to say: by this, that one accepts this and that doctrine, one is to know that he is a Lutheran, and distinguish him from non-Lutherans; but he who does not accept this and that doctrine is also a Lutheran. This Mr. Harkey would surely not do, if he did not himself imagine that he could think such things. In proof of this consider the words, p. 17: "I say to everyone who truly loves the Lord Jesus, give me thy hand — I am thy brother. I do not require that thou be of my opinion, especially in unessential things. — I cannot be of thine; nevertheless we are brethren" Hereby Mr. Harkey grants that people may be and remain disunited even about essential points (for he says "especially unessential") of the Christian religion and yet truly love the Lord Jesus, also that one may be disunited about essential points and yet be one another's brother (that is, here after all: united in all the essential points at least).

In order to maintain himself in cherished obscurity, Mr. Harkey then appeals to the fact that the Lutheran Church herself urges that freedom of conscience and the free exercise of one's own judgment in matters of religion are natural and inalienable rights of man, which no authority, whether worldly or spiritual, can except, as if, because the Lutheran Church naturally cannot, nor wishes to, force belief in her doctrines, she could also neither say nor be permitted to say: Whoever would belong to us must believe as we teach; otherwise let him either not come to us, or depart from us, as a religious communion.

Thus persons who, according to their understanding, might be, if not of extraordinary, yet of middle stature, become dwarfs. This is the natural punishment for their wishing to be great in the world and to count for something, and also making flesh their arm. Mr. Harkey also wants to count for something among other denominations, and to find support among them in his undertakings. That is once for all resolved, therefore poor understanding must say nothing against it, but must cast itself at the feet of the will.

But how does it stand first of all with the conscience?

"Lord, Lord," said, and devils also cast out, will not be enough on that day; but that one meant Christ and not himself, also not himself along with Him, and went through with Him through good and evil report.

Accordingly, as the matter now stands, we cannot thank God for the establishment of that new chair of theology, but can only beseech Him to preserve all those concerned from eternal harm.

Bethany, January 3, 1853.

To the Honorable Mission Commission of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri.

Esteemed Brethren beloved in the LORD,

As I have learned from No. 5 of the "Lutheraner," my last letter of the 15th of September of last year has duly reached you. — Here now I permit myself to lay before you yet a brief report on the mission here. We are indeed far too little for all the mercy and faithfulness which the gracious God has so richly shown us also in the past year; and to Him alone is due all thanks for the furtherance of the work of our hands, His holy work, for which He has in grace made use of our poor hands, also in the past year.

When I had to write to you a year ago that "the old heathen, with few exceptions, still go on in their accustomed manner," I can now tell you that the power of heathenism is completely broken, that actually only one family still lives in the accustomed manner; all the others are on the way to becoming Christians, or already have become such. Would to GOD I could say that the power of Methodism were broken just as that of heathenism is! But the raging of these our arch-enemies is still the old one, and it is a wonderful counsel of GOD, according to which He gives to these His enemies — for such are plainly those Methodists with whom we have to do here; concerning others, as concerning the children of God hidden among them, we do not judge; — so great power to work against the spread of His kingdom, and to be constant tempters and seducers of those who are on the way of salvation. For that there are still heathen here at all is wholly the fault of these creepers-in; and that it goes so slowly with the young Christians on the way of sanctification, that they have not yet grown up to a manly state in Christ, is again largely their fault. For what fruit could one expect from a noble seed-corn laid even in ever so good a soil, if it were not left in peace even for one day, but were constantly rooted up by wild swine, and the germs just forming were eaten off? But this the Methodists here really do, in that they