"It's all entertaining. That Luther speaks so bluntly is because he fought either the Antichrist or miserable fanatics. You cannot cure all diseases with buttermilk and honey, but also bitter medicine must be given. Luther had a thousand year old oak tree of enormous extent before him, therefore he could not cut with a penknife but had to use huge axes and sharp saws. His heart would melt with sorrow over the poor souls who sat in darkness. Whoever stumbles over Luther's zeal, stumbles against God who has chosen such a tool." – C.F.W. WaltherNow compare this to Walther's statement in his 1859 LDJ essay:
Therefore the whole of Europe once sat at his [Luther's] feet; hence also it yet now comes that an iron monument of him is being built at Worms [Germany] in which we admittedly take no part, but rather we prefer to place a monument to him in our hearts by accepting his doctrine.With the ease that the Internet allows me to do this, I could not resist showing the reader what Walther is talking about of the "iron monument of [Luther] being built at Worms". Below are 2 pictures of a Luther statue:
Two Luther statues Left - Worms, Germany; Right - Concordia Seminary, St. Louis USA Sources: Wikipedia–Diet at Worms and Concordia Seminary |
The statue is an exact replica of one that exists in Worms, Germany.Well now, that is interesting. C.F.W. Walther just said above that --
"...we prefer to place a monument to him in our hearts by accepting his doctrine".... yet in 1903, Concordia Seminary went ahead and built a replica of the great "iron monument" in Worms, Germany anyway, even though Walther warned against a false honoring of Luther. Could Concordia Seminary's replica now rather be a monument to their unfaithfulness to Luther's doctrine as it is also in Germany?
I can just picture it now... someone from Concordia Seminary saying to me: "You have it all wrong. The Worms statue isn't made of iron, its a bronze casting!" ... and maybe add that their St. Louis statue is partly plastic? (Ha, ha, ha, ha! Psalms 59:8)
Read it and weep! you who are in the LC-MS and yet want to be faithful Lutherans! Weep indeed...
The final installment of Walther's 1859 LDJ essay follows in Part 32...
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