# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1849 05 01_S142
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

142

pure in doctrine, they can never by their testimony make light out of darkness, never make the language of faith out of moralizing prattle, never make Christ's praise out of blasphemies; that they have therefore by their testimony not rescued the honor of the new Weylian Hübner, thoroughly saturated with the poison of false faith, but have thereby only set up for themselves a public, lamentable testimony of their falling away from the pure biblical faith and of their slight zeal for the honor of their highly praised Savior, and have taken upon themselves also the future heavy responsibility for all the unspeakable harm which the Weylian Hübner will and must work in many thousands of young innocent hearts. Let them go on as they will to accuse us of uncharitableness and of heresy-making; that will not keep us, in accordance with our calling as editor of a public periodical, from also publicly rebuking all ungodly doings which are carried on openly by those who would sail under the flag of our Lutheran name, for the removal of the offense thereby arising, from calling it by its true name and warning everyone against it (cf. Eph. 5, 11. Lev. 19, 17. Is. 5, 20. 56, 10. 11.); that will also not keep us in the future, especially then, from sparing no man and from keeping silence, when the honor of Him is attacked who is the true God and eternal life, and in whose name every knee shall bow, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and when that is ascribed to the works and virtue of man which belongs only to the merit of Him who shed His precious blood of God for the atonement of our sin, and not for ours only, but for the whole world, on the stem of the holy cross. God preserve to us only a heart which is ever and again kindled and cannot refrain from zealing where the heart of our saving doctrine, the doctrine of justification by faith alone in the God-man JESUS Christ, of grace, without works, is attacked. To be reviled for this is an honor to us, which we, God knows, do not count ourselves worthy of, since we have already done so much shame to our Savior.

Furthermore, we cannot leave unmentioned that Preacher Rauschenbusch, in a following number of Weyl's "Kirchenbote," has given the declaration that he was sorry "that his private letter addressed to Mr. Weyl was published, and that he had not wished thereby to give a judgment upon that book, nor did he wish to give one at all."*)

*) The father of Preacher Rauschenbusch is, namely, the author of the so-called Hübner published by Mr. Weyl.

Finally we remark yet, that, God be praised! the "Lutheraner" is by no means, as Mr. Weyl would have his readers believe, alone in declaring the new Hübner in this country to be a rationalistic botch-work, since this has been done also by a co-laborer on the "Reformirte Kirchenzeitung" at Chambersburg in one of the latest numbers of the same.

We have now done our part. Whoever, in spite of the repeated testimony received, will nevertheless poison the dearly redeemed youth with the false doctrine of the book, sprinkled over with the sugar of pious speech, let him do it on his own responsibility and at his own peril. If perhaps some man be still so weak in knowledge and in the gift of trying and discerning spirits, that he thinks there are not so many errors in it as we claimed to find in it, let him consider: "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump" (Gal. 5, 9.), a little poison is also deadly. As little as he would give his children bread to eat if there were but a grain of arsenic in it, because he would not murder his child bodily, so little ought we to give our little ones spiritual food, if there were but One false doctrine in it, lest we become murderers of their souls. May He, the good Shepherd, graciously take up His lambs Himself and rule the hearts of all those to whom He has entrusted them for pasture, to feed them only with the sincere milk of the sweet, saving Gospel (1 Pet. 2, 2.), and then crown their laborious work with the glorious result that a believing generation may again grow up in this glorious land of churchly liberty.

"A public lie is worthy of no answer," writes Luther in the Great Confession.

"What (in the Church) concerns all must be done with the consent of all." Leo.

How needful the contest against those who falsify the doctrine of the holy Sacraments or any other article of the faith.

(From Luther's sermon on the Christian's armor, on Eph. 6, 10. ff.: "We wrestle not against flesh and blood," etc. Of the year 1532. Works. Halle ed. IX, 454. ff.)

We fight not against them (the false teachers) as against flesh and blood, but against the wretched devil, who through them strives against us, and attacks us not in a fleshly or bodily manner, but our faith, the dear Word, Baptism, the Sacrament, and all the articles of the faith, of which none has been given or instituted by flesh and blood, nor belongs to this earthly government. Therefore we fight not against them in order that we might take from them body, goods or aught of that, or save what is ours against them; but that we may keep our doctrine and faith, Christ and God, and in addition win them from the devil, and gain eternal life; of which the world knows nothing.... The treasure is so great that no man's heart can comprehend it, and is surely not to be esteemed so lightly as the world does and as some unintelligent spirits pretend, deceived by the devil, concerning the Sacrament or another error: "One should not contend so hard about one article, etc., and thereover rend Christian love, nor give one another over thereby to the devil: but, though one err in a small matter, where one is otherwise at one in the rest, one might well yield somewhat and let go, and yet keep brotherly and Christian unity or fellowship!" No, dear man, not for me of peace and unity, whereby God's Word is lost; for therewith eternal life and all would already be lost. It is not here a matter of yielding, nor of conceding anything, for thy sake or some men's, but to the Word all things shall yield, be it called foe or friend. For it is not given for the sake of outward or worldly unity and peace, but for the sake of eternal life. The Word or the doctrine shall make Christian unity or fellowship; where that is alike and at one, there the other will well follow; where not, there remains yet no unity. Therefore tell me nothing of love or friendship where one will break off from the Word or faith; for it is not called, the love, but the Word brings eternal life, God's grace and all heavenly treasures.

This we will gladly do, that we keep outward peace with them, as we must do in the world with every man, even with the worst enemies; that may go its way in this life and worldly affairs, concerning which we have nothing to contend; but for the doctrine's and the Christian fellowship's sake we will have nothing to do with them, nor hold them for brethren, but for enemies, since they knowingly persist in their error; and against them we fight by our spiritual warfare. Therefore it is only a devilish and deceitful crafty assault, when one pretends such a thing, and demands that one should yield somewhat and allow an error for unity's sake, whereby he seeks to lead us thus craftily from the Word. For if we accept such a thing and become one in the matter, he has already gained room and soon taken a whole ell, where a finger's breadth had been yielded him, and so soon broken in altogether.

It seems indeed not that so great danger and power lie therein, but St. Paul makes it truly great, that it concerns not money nor goods, nor men's love and favor, or worldly peace and ease, nor what flesh and blood is and can do, or what the world can give and take: but the loss of God and of eternal life. Therefore let that remain or go, wherever it remains or goes, for therewith he has gained nothing yet; but if thou allowest that he take from thee this piece, namely the Word, thou hast lost all and there is no counsel nor help more. For the chief article is gone, without which no good life, nor what thou canst do, avails or stands before God, and yet the devil with such fine pretense and show is after it and seeks how he may bring thee thereof; for he has it in his mind that he will take all from thee. Therefore it is here no jesting matter, nor to be secure. If thou shouldest fight for thy house and home, wife and child, and at last for thy own body and life, thou wouldest surely not be slothful, but seek thy foe, and leave him no peace, nor accept anything from him, or yield him aught, but see how thou mightest forestall him and overpower him. Now thou hast here other foes, who mean thee otherwise and have sworn to thee eternal death and cease not till they overcome thee, and yet with such craft assail thee, as said above, as though they sought love and friendship toward thee, etc.