# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1855 06 05_S162
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

162

and to bring it itself back upon the old track under the power of Rome. For this it was contrived cunningly and confusedly enough. At bottom it bore the whole abomination of the papacy within it, yet overlaid with such a varnish that eyes blinded by the power of the Emperor and the fear of persecutions all too easily let themselves cling to this varnish and purposely did not see the abomination beneath it; or, where it nevertheless peered out too horribly, one could hang upon it the little cloak of Adiaphoron (thing indifferent), and thus fitted out, with good Lutheran phrases about Christian liberty in such matters, set the monstrous birth before "the rabble" and commend it as acceptable. Thus in the article on justification it was indeed taught that "God makes man righteous not out of his works, but according to His mercy, purely for nothing without his merit; each one should hold fast ever to Christ's merit," and yet they would not let go the "inherent" righteousness, and confidence was directed as much to the sanctification imparted by Christ and following upon justification as to the righteousness acquired by Him. Works which are done outside of God's commandments with good intent are praised, and a merit is ascribed to them. To the priest all sins which one can recall are to be recounted, and through the satisfactions, which consist in fruits of repentance, chiefly in fasting, prayer and alms, the causes of sin are taken away, and temporal punishments removed or at least mitigated. The merits of the saints, out of the mercy of God and out of the grace of Christ, are not only helpful to them for their blessedness, but also serviceable to us for protection and for the obtaining of divine grace; the intercession of the saints is therefore to be desired. Transubstantiation and the sacrifice of the Mass remain, though only as an offering of remembrance and thanksgiving, whereby we do indeed not earn for ourselves the forgiveness of sins, but make use of that which was earned on the cross. They are to be kept up continually, accompanied with the whole swarm of abominations of the canon of the Mass; so also the number of the seven sacraments remains, whereby extreme unction "either benefits the body, or guards the soul against the fiery darts of the wicked." The divine right of the Pope is indeed not expressly emphasized, yet there is nevertheless granted him, according to the precedence bestowed upon Peter, to whom Christ commanded the government of the universal Church, the place of the "supreme bishop, who is set over all the others with full power, in order to preserve the unity of the Church. This Church itself — taken of course according to the externalized conception of the papists — has the power to interpret the Scripture, to establish doctrine from it, to pronounce judgment, to decide doubtful matters in the councils, and to make laws. That the whole train of ceremonies, fast days and feast days, vestments and other ornaments, chrism, processions, candles, crosses and the whole order of the Roman liturgy hung upon it, everyone will of himself expect. And what then was offered to the poor conscience, according to their own confession and the doctrine set up in the Interim, with this whole rubbish? Doubt, nothing more, for even this was again established, that man cannot believe without a doubt, because of his weakness, that his sins have been forgiven him. That was and is the comfort of the Church that alone saves, which she offers to her children, a scorpion for an egg. And that was and is indeed even today worth shedding the blood of the saints in order to maintain herself with her arrogated power. Only because an uprising was feared were married priests permitted to keep their wives until the close of the Council, and likewise the celebration of the holy Supper in both kinds among those who had hitherto partaken of it so, only they were not to despise the others, since the body and blood of Christ are contained in each kind. For the services rendered in this laudable work Agricola received from the Emperor 500 gulden and from Ferdinand 500 thalers, at that time a considerable sum, together with the promise of a good dowry for his daughters, should they marry. Sidonius received the bishopric of Merseburg; Pflug had received his reward beforehand, namely the bishopric of Naumburg, into which, as already noted, he had lately been introduced at the Emperor's instigation. According to Thuanus there went around the proverb: "The authors of the Interim kept the chrism so firmly in order that they themselves might the better be anointed." For this offspring of darkness the Protestants were to give up the apple of their eye, the Augsburg Confession, and let themselves be led anew into the papal darkness. One should think that it would have been impossible to carry through at the Diet the proposal to introduce this Interim; nevertheless it happened. And chiefly two things contributed to it. When the Emperor first laid it before the more powerful Protestant electors and other princes, it was done before the Spanish monks had laid their hand to it; then they too were of the opinion that the Interim was to be a binding rule of faith for both parties. So they could really think that by accepting it they would not only not betray the cause of Protestantism but serve it, since under its protection more air would now be given to the true doctrine also in the regions that had hitherto remained papistical, in spite of the potentates ruling over them. Maurice indeed made objections, but at last promised not to provoke any disturbances in the Imperial Council by open opposition, and though he could bind himself to nothing for his subjects, yet they would finally themselves see that it had not been in his power to alter anything which all the other princes had approved. The Emperor took this for a full consent and now troubled himself little about the objection of the insignificant princes, Wolfgang of Zweibrücken and John of Cüstrin. When now the Interim was at last read out at the Diet, there were found, to be sure, not only the changes made by the monks, but in the preface it was also declared that it was binding only on the hitherto adherents of the Augsburg Confession, while the papistical party was merely directed to persist in its old statutes. So the Protestants saw too late that one need not give the devil the whole hand, but that he takes it for himself if one only offers him the finger. At the consultation of the princes, which had to take place on the spot in the presence of the Emperor, though in a more distant part of the hall, some opposition did show itself against immediate acceptance, but before an actual poll had once been taken, the Elector of Mainz stepped out of the circle and thanked the Emperor in the name of the Estates for the great diligence, trouble and care which he had expended out of love for the fatherland for its pacification, and that they would obediently abide by what Imperial Majesty should require. The Emperor took this as the expression of their sentiment and of the general acceptance on the part of the Empire, and so the Interim was publicly issued as a law of the Empire, with the appended prohibition that nothing be taught, written or preached against it. And he was not of a mind to yield anything of it, and felt himself powerful enough to carry out his purpose. The cities, to be sure, still expressed the intention of drawing up a common protest at the Diet itself, but nothing came of it.

(To be continued.)

(Sent in by Pastor Röbbelen.)

The Revelation of St. John.

Continuation.

The Thirteenth Chapter.

"So there comes now in the 13th chapter (upon the trumpet of the last among the seven angels, who blows at the beginning of the 12th chapter) the business of the same seventh angel, the third woe, namely the papal empire and imperial papacy; here the papacy also gets the worldly sword into its power, and now governs not only with the book in the second woe, but also in the third woe, as they indeed boast that the Pope has both the spiritual and the worldly sword in his power.

"Here now are two beasts, one is the empire, the other with the two horns, the papacy, which has now also become a worldly kingdom, yet with the semblance of the name of Christ. For the Pope has set up again the fallen Roman Empire, and brought it from the Greeks to the Germans, and yet it is more an image of the Roman Empire than the body of the empire itself, as it has been: nevertheless he gives such an image spirit or life, so that it yet has its estates, rights, members and offices, and goes after a fashion in full swing. That is the image which was wounded and has been healed again.

"But what abominations, woe and harm such an imperial papacy has done is not now to be told. For first the world has been filled through its book with all idolatry,