# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1855 07 03_S179
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

179

Meanwhile the helper of the State religion, the imperial cavalry, here too lent faithful aid to the best of its power by every imaginable wantonness. The fate of unhappy Constance seemed to be about to break in upon Strasburg also. Many merchants and noblemen renounced their citizenship and left the city; then the Council thought earnestly of a settlement. After many negotiations they at last agreed that the Council should yield to the bishop three churches for the introduction of the Interim, and the bishop should concede to the city the college at St. Thomas as a school. The holding of the first Mass in this city, long since unaccustomed to Roman misrule, made much stir. "There was a great concourse, especially of young people, who in all their days had seen or heard nothing of such a spectacle or jugglery. How, namely, people in strange garments and with shorn crowns on their heads sang together what nobody could understand; how in broad daylight lamps and wax candles were burned, and with censers fog and smoke made; how a priest with servants (or cassock-holders) stood on the altar, used an unknown tongue, made all manner of gestures with genuflections and otherwise, bowed and folded his hands, now stretched out his arms, now drew them back, turned himself this way and that, once cried aloud, then mumbled quite low, cast his eyes up on high, bent himself forward, did not remain in one place, now to the right now to the left ran to and fro on the altar, played with his fingers (that is, made crosses), breathed into the chalice, lifted it on high, set it down again, there called out the living, here the dead, broke the host apart and laid it in the chalice, struck his breast with his fist, sighed, shut his eyes as if he would sleep, then started up again, took one half of the host into his mouth and chewed it, swallowed the other quite down with the wine, so that not a drop remained, washed his hands, held the gilded paten backwards, with outstretched arm, to the people, also held it to his forehead and breast, now kissed the altar, and then a little image in a case. These and more other such things the young people looked at with great wonder and not without laughter, and could scarcely be kept in order." —

As most of the Upper-German imperial cities did not hold their ground before this storm, so the fear of the Emperor's soldiers, the dread of worldly distress and of the diminution of earthly power and greatness bowed also many princes. Elector Frederick II of the Palatinate had the Interim introduced everywhere and commanded his subjects to attend the processions on Corpus Christi day; those who did not appear were punished with fines and imprisonment. Since the Duke of Jülich, Cleve, Berg had already earlier had to promise the Emperor to abolish the evangelical religion in his land, he was now the more compelled to bring the Interim to full effect throughout and to subject Westphalia again to the Pope. — The Duke of Württemberg had the Interim read from all pulpits and commanded "that no one should mutter against it." —

(To be continued.)

From India.

Correction and Explanation.

It is with some reluctance that I set about correcting, from so distant a place and therefore necessarily after so long a time, a false report which has probably arisen mostly because of the distance. But although for my own person I would gladly content myself that the full truth in this matter also is perfectly known to Him who will one day bring all that is hidden to light and judge all untruth, yet it does not become me to grant the enemy of our souls the triumph of having divided hearts which have become one through faith and love and in the spirit of truth, and in spite of all distance have also remained one.

The reply of the Reverend Synod of Missouri, etc., to the Reverend Conference, etc., at Leipzig, published in the "Lutheraner," which has lately come to my hand, says that it would justly be astonished if I had kept so wholly silent at Leipzig and had known nothing to say in justification of the Synod. And this astonishment would certainly be right, if there were any truth in this supposed silence. Since it has now come to me by private channels that my silence is taken as settled, and that here and there people are not unwilling even to make a moral guilt of it, it behooves me to correct the misunderstanding.

The letter of the Leipzig Conference does not, indeed, expressly mention my testimony. But when it says therein: "We have found no case in the Acts of your Synodal letters, nor have we heard of one from Mr. Missionary Baierlein — where we could have said with certainty: Here the ban is not imposed according to the order of Christ;" it is yet evident that I must have pointed to such cases; only that the writers of the letter have thereby as little as through reading the Synodal reports come to the conviction "that they could have said with certainty, here the ban is not imposed according to the order of Christ." No wonder; he who demands too much is never satisfied. To bring to men who measure the cases in question by a different standard, because they differ in doctrine concerning them, such a conviction "that they could say with certainty, etc.," would be just as impracticable for any delegates of the Synod as for the Synodal reports and for me. We can only bear witness of a matter and for a matter; but to bring conviction about things which lie in another quarter of the world, and of which we have no documents at hand, lies not within our power.

To clarify the matter, permit me to state briefly here the course of the proceedings, which seems to be little known.

On the evening of the day after the Mission Festival, when the Conference had as yet taken no notice at all of the delegates of the Buffalo Synod, a closed preliminary meeting was held, which had the American affair for its purpose. Present were Superintendent Münchmeier, Dr. Kahnis, Dr. Besser, Dr. Br. Lindner, P. Wolff, and still about two or three persons, then the delegates of the Buffalo Synod and I. Here the delegates laid their affair before them, relating the history of the Buffalo Synod from beginning to end. Since they complained especially that the Missouri Synod had received those banned by the Buffalo Synod, etc., I was called upon to say how the Missouri Synod had conceived the matter. And here it was that I gave my testimony, because I had been drawn into this closed preliminary meeting precisely for that reason. Soon the preliminary meeting also recognized that the affair was one on which it could not possibly come to full clearness here. It therefore declared to the delegates that it was willing indeed to answer the questions laid before it, but without any reference to the dispute at hand. It was said: "The application of the answers to your dispute we must leave wholly and entirely to your conscience." The delegates declared themselves satisfied with this, and therefore, quite shortly (for it was already late), the preliminary answering of the propositions was proceeded to, which could naturally not turn out otherwise than No! Thereupon it was resolved not to lay the dispute before the Conference, but only to induce it to answer the questions laid before it.

That was done also on the following day. And when the Conference hesitated to answer thus without further ado, it was declared to it: "It should be done only as if, say, the Pope laid theses before us. We could and would answer them without hesitation, leaving the application, to be sure, to him alone." As often now as voices were raised which wished to take notice of the standpoint of the dispute, so often and emphatically was it declared to them that the Conference could not concern itself here with the controversy of the brethren in America, that no judgment should be passed upon it. Only the propositions laid before it should — because the delegates had asked for it and thought that a service would be done them thereby — be discussed and answered. — Here, then, in the Conference, which would by no means concern itself with the dispute nor pass judgment upon it, I had indeed not only no occasion, but also no room for the defense of the Synod. — The Leipzig letter stands, to be sure, in a certain contradiction to these proceedings. It could consistently have been issued only by the closed preliminary meeting. But the Conference had