This continues from Part EC11 (Table of Contents in Part EC1), a series restoring availability of English translations of several of Walther's convention essays that have seemingly been abandoned by Concordia Publishing House. — In this seventh of eight essays, Eastern District 1868, elucidating the Theses in Walther's True Visible Church book, he covers XVIII C–D. The following are the subject headings published in the original German at the divisions in the narrative:
Subject headings:
Meaning of 1 Cor. 3:11-15 ● Fundamental dogma, or what everyone needs to know in order to stand in faith. ● What wood, hay and stubble are. ● Which are fundamentally false doctrines. ● Error of the Methodists. ● False teaching of the Puritans on Sunday. ● Error of the syncretists. ● Primary and secondary fundamental articles of faith and non-fundamental articles. ●Error of the Reformed concerning the Lord's Supper. ● Non-fundamental articles. ● von Rohr's error. ● Flacius’s error. ● Huber's error. ● What secondary fundamental articles are. ● Reformed error about the Lord's Supper. ● Judgment on some recent theologians. ● Kahnis. ● Which is an article of faith. ● A distinction must be made between parts and articles of doctrine. ● Copernican system. ● Four pieces that belong to an article of faith. ● That secondary doctrines should also be accepted with faith. ● Chronology. ● Even under the papacy there is still a church. ● Who is to be considered a heretic. ● An accusation of the Iowa Synod refuted. ● Problems. ● Jewish conversion. ● A Christian, as such, has no master over himself but Christ alone. ● A Christian has to watch over his freedom, but he should not become angry with the weak. ● Should a congregation be allowed to introduce compulsory schooling? ● Paul's example of how one should make oneself a servant of one's neighbor in love.
Notable Quotes:
11: "…some [Scripture doctrines] form the foundation, some rest on this foundation, some form the roof…"
12: "…human ideas, views and opinions for doctrines of faith, wood, hay and stubble" [1 Cor. 3:12-13]
13: Fundamental error: when "the Methodists lead man into a subtle workaholism".
15: "anyone who would deny it [doctrine of Creation] would be a heretic and damned".
16: "where someone… even denies primary fundamental articles, God has revealed his judgment, and we can and should also judge and reject".
18: Copernicanism: "such a person is setting up a dangerous hermeneutical principle".
19: Secondary doctrines: "Even lesser doctrines than these must be precious and valuable to us as revealed by God".
20: "Without this distinction [between primary and secondary fundamental articles, and between the non-fundamental articles] one will always either wrongly condemn or wrongly pronounce as saved."
21: "more is necessary to be believed and known by those with whom one wishes to enter into church fellowship than is required for the attainment of salvation".
21: Jewish conversion: "But if one dreams of a glorious future for the Jews as a special nation, [there are plenty of dreamers today] for example with a return to Palestine and dominion over all peoples, then it already touches on chiliasm and becomes dangerous… As a nation, the Jews will remain Jews until the Last Day".
22: Adiaphora: "our congregations know that we demand no obedience except to God's Word,…they know that we will not make them servants of men, but free children of God".
In the following, underlining follows Walther's emphasis, which is sometimes missing in the 1992 CPH translation. Paragraph breaks follow the 1992 translation; many hyperlinks added: