# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1853 08 16_S178
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178

Doctrines of Pastor Grabau

tion of our conscience and of our Christian liberty and in the interest of the truth, but by no means because we are minded to give up the institution of private confession. Pastor Grabau should have considered that private confession is not recommended to Christians, and admission gained for it, by making the Lutheranism of a congregation dependent upon its reintroduction, and speaking of it as of something commanded in the Augsb. Conf.; by such "making a matter of conscience" the cause is only harmed.

Doctrines of the Roman Church

still retained." (Theol. casualis ed. J. F. Mayer. p. 98. 99.)

Doctrines of the Lutheran Church.

[illegible]es more convenient." (Colleg. adiaphorist. disp. 6, Anno 1616 E. 2. 3.) — The Wittenberg theological Faculty of the year 1639 writes: "We do not deny that such private confession is not used in all orthodox churches, since nevertheless there is also forgiveness of sins and worthy use of the Holy Supper, wherefore the confessional chair has been appointed for neither of these ends." (Consil. Part. II. fol. 139.) — Balduinus: "It (private confession) is retained in our churches, not as absolutely necessary, for it is nowhere commanded, but as a useful practice. It has been introduced especially on account of the special absolution and the instruction of the more ignorant. Hence Luther writes that if even the pastor himself, who handles the sacrament daily, were to use the sacrament without previous confession, this shall not be forbidden him. The same judgment holds of other well-instructed Christians, lest the papistical compulsion be called back again in a matter which in itself is an indifferent thing. Moreover, if in the churches where private confession is in use it may under circumstances be omitted by one, then it is rather omitted in the places where it is not in use and yet the doctrine of the Lord's Supper is otherwise kept pure (as happens in some places of South Germany), and the holy Supper nevertheless is received to salutary profit." (Tract. de cas. consc. p. 466. 67.)

Persecution on Account of Bible Reading in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

The persecution which the Italian family Madiai has endured at the hands of the Roman Catholic authorities on account of Bible reading has aroused general sympathy here also. But since probably only a few readers of the "Lutheraner" are acquainted with the particulars of this persecution, the detailed report which is found concerning it in the "Christenbote" shall be communicated here. It runs thus:

On the 17th of August, 1851, in the evening between 7 and 8 o'clock, the Florentine police forced their way into the dwelling of Francesco Madiai, who happened not to be at home. The whole house was searched most exactly from top to bottom; but nothing suspicious was found except two Bibles and a book of devotion in the English language; these were seized. Meanwhile Madiai came home and was at once arrested, with three other persons, and led to prison, although neither he nor the others had been caught reading the Bible. One of the arrested, the English captain Arthur Walker, was however released from the dungeon again after 22 hours, in consequence of urgent representations of the English embassy. The two other persons, on the contrary, had to remain in it 7 days, without any hearing being held with them or the crime being named to them which they were supposed to have committed. At the end of this time they were given the choice between imprisonment for life or banishment for life. They chose the latter, and the one of these persons went to Turin, the other to Geneva. Madiai had to stay behind in prison. Twelve days after his arrest his wife Rosina, née Pulicci, was also taken in. Both declared in the hearing now held with them that they were Protestants. In order to gain at least the appearance that they had not been put under accusation solely for the sake of religion, it was pretended "that they kept a disorderly house," although Rosina had proved the respectability of her conduct by having served, before her marriage, for 16 years in one and the same English family as lady's maid, and both spouses are known in Florence as very respectable people. After the hearing they were shut up in separate cells, were not allowed any intercourse with one another, and no one was allowed to visit them. This treatment so shattered the health of the wife that it was feared she would succumb under it. But not even the visit of a physician was permitted her. After a repeated hearing the court at Florence finally declared in the first instance, under the 16th of October, that it lay beyond its competence to pronounce judgment upon this case, since these people were convicted of the crime of ungodliness; for they had become apostate from the Catholic religion and adhered to an unbelieving confession which they call evangelical. Moreover they belonged to a society of 20 to 30 persons who assemble at times in the house of Madiai to read the Bible in the translation of Diodati and to search out the contradictions between it and the Catholic doctrine. As chief witness there appeared Antonia Marini, a former maid of the Madiai couple, who stated that she also had once been made apostate from the Roman Church in this house, but that she had now returned to the same. Since the court of the first instance now believed itself not empowered to pass any judgment, the matter came before the royal court of justice. But this delayed very long with the decision, for it was first written to Rome in order to request rules of procedure from there. Meanwhile the friends of the persecuted family made every possible exertion, partly to avert a condemnation of them, partly to lighten the lot of the prisoners as much as possible. They also at last obtained permission to visit them in their cells, and always came back edified by the faith-filled composure of the same. Rosina they found indeed extremely weakened in body, but strong in spirit and full of faith, and her husband also proved a believing steadfastness, although the suffering condition of his wife disquieted him greatly and it pained him deeply that he could do nothing for her relief. Yet he declared that he was ready to endure even death out of love to his Savior. At the beginning of the year 1852 both spouses were brought into a harder prison, but they counted themselves happy that they were now so near one another that they sometimes heard the sound of their voices and had a common jailer, from whom they could receive news of one another. Once every week their English friends also were permitted to visit them and to offer them some alleviations. Thus it was, for example, permitted to bring Mrs. Madiai a brazier of coals to warm herself a little in the very cold prison. It was also allowed to bring Francesco books for entertainment, only they were to be, as the director remarked on the occasion of their wanting to bring him a translation of the Psalms, interesting (entertaining), but by all means no unholy (heretical) books. Under these alleviations Rosina gradually recovered, yet a deplorable irritability of the nerves still remained. Besides this, however, both grew in patience, in humility, in trust and in love to God, and proved under all trials an admirable devotion. Once the judge asked Francesco whether he had not read in Merle d'Aubigné's Church History what punishment befalls heretics? He answered: "Indeed he had already heard of the cruelties which the Inquisition of the Roman Church permits itself, but he was ready to suffer torture and death for his faith."

At last, after nine months' imprisonment, the hour of decision came. The pub-