Pff2: Evangelical doctrine, “defend to the death”; Harrison a “deceitful peacemaker”?

      This continues from the previous Part Pff1 (from April) (Table of Contents in Part Pff1) in a 3-part presentation of the old Missouri Synod's reprint of August Pfeiffer's influential book Lutheranism Before Luther. — If there is one quote that stood out to me above all others, it was this one in Pfeiffer's Preface, page 3:

 “As long as the Pope remains Pope and we Evangelicals remain Evangelicals, a reasonable person can easily see that no religious settlement can be hoped for between us, that deceitful peacemakers are not to be trusted, and that it is best to defend the truth to the death, as God wills.”

Compare this with LCMS President Matthew Harrison's comment in his Preface to his translation of Walther's Church & Office:

“As I perused the Catechism of the Catholic Church for contemporary documentation of positions of the Roman Catholic Church which Walther addresses and which are the object of Lutheran polemic, I noted numerous points of remarkable convergence of Lutheran and Roman Catholic doctrine on the Office of the Ministry. While we must reject what is false, we can also joyously note what is right—no matter who says it.”

Would it not be fair to say that Pfeiffer would call Pres. Harrison a "deceitful peacemaker"? — Let us hear more from our dear Pfeiffer:

Notable Quotes:

5: "Where one Pope decrees contrary to the other, one of the two must necessarily err in his decree"

6: "popes have often in their decrees…run directly counter to the revealed Word of God"

17: "they invoke the authority of the Church" over Christ and the Apostles.

24: "so the wine that is not partaken of sacramentally, but is poured out carelessly, is not Christ's blood, but only mere wine"

30: "the one against whom the following writing is directed, namely a Jesuit, Fr. Arnold Engel…has copied his entire work from others, has not yet read our writings properly, has not examined the passages from Luther and others himself" [A common practice of papists in their polemics.]

33: The papists' "great following does not harm the lies and our small following does not harm the truth".

36: Jesuit Jacob Reihing "turned from a zealous champion of the Roman Church into a staunch confessor of the evangelical doctrine"

37: Papacy "like a rotten fish".

44: "since they [papists] have no intention to proceed in the main controversy, to make a diversion…and to lead us away from the Scriptures". 

44-45: "this Antichrist is none other than the Roman Pope [regarded not as a single person, but as an ever-living enemy in many successive persons]" [See this blog post.]

50: "so it is enough that I know and prove that the Pope, as he now is, is the Antichrist, … even if I cannot specify, know or point out the year and day when he first became so."

55: "is it not enough that we show the papists their gross errors from God's infallible Word…?"

59: "the pope's growth …is seen for the first time in Victor as a child or child in the womb, in Boniface III as an adolescent or boy, in Leo III as a youth…, in Gregory VII as a man, and in Leo X as an old man"

67: Fr. Engel "claims that if the papacy were…not from God, it would not have stood for so long"

70: "One must therefore distinguish the papacy, i.e. the falsifications of doctrine…from that which has remained good under the papacy."

77: "…but therefore the Papists are as little catholic as a quack is a doctor".

77-78: "Father Engel…wants to insist on the everlasting succession,…from one bishop to another… It is enough that the faith remains in the divine Scriptures and in some people's hearts at all times."

81: "This question: whether before Luther there were Lutherans or Christians of the same mind or faith as Luther? …has already led many a man to fall away and fall into hell".

84: "if we now speak of doctrine,… all orthodox believers before Luther were certainly in agreement with Luther in the fundamentals of Christian doctrine".

89: "it of no help to the papists that they object that all other heretics also appeal to Scripture" [See how Prof. Joel Biermann uses the same tactic as the papists.]

90: Papists "do not desire to learn the truth from the divine Word".

95: "it may well happen, and has happened very often, that the visible church…which publicly professes the true Christian faith…is covered with the clouds of affliction, stirred up…by false teachers" [Cp. to this blog post on old Missouri's teaching.] 

103: "But with such “new” [Lutheran] doctrine we already want to go to heaven, which is new in the eyes of the Pope, but old in the eyes of Christ."

105: "we have a legitimate calling.…rather congratulate ourselves that we do not have the papal mark on us."

119: "so they are even greater fools who therefore fall away to the papacy and rely on the fact that in the end they can depart on Christ's merit". [e.g. Father Richard John Neuhaus]

125-6: "the term “Roman Church” has two meanings…Either by the Roman Church is meant the multitude of those who cling to the Roman Pope … or the remnant of the ancient Roman Church, or the pious Christian hearts among the outward group of the Roman Church"

129: "I hope that Fr. Engel's little nut will have been bitten open in this way and, praise God, it has left me without any toothache." [:-) – Pfeiffer's lighthearted joke!]

131: "he knows well that according to the papal doctrine no man can be assured of God's grace"

134: Luther "is as little to be called a weather vane as Augustine".

138: "For their 'unity'…is only enforced and does not consist in the unity of the Spirit".

145: "Not Luther, but the Pope has hatched completely new and unheard-of doctrines"

163: "that I therefore not only maintain the unconquerable and alone saving evangelical doctrine before and after, but also defend it against you and your kind to the death".

There it is again, that phrase "defend to the death", both in the Preface and here in his hot battle against the Jesuit Father Engel. Pfeiffer signals the absolute importance of the "evangelical doctrine", i.e. the Gospel – it is a matter of life and death. — In the concluding Part Pff3, we explain some details pertinent to our translation, and then present our full translation.

Handel died a Christian

      The spiritual condition of George Frideric Handel in his dying days was not recorded in the Westminster Abbey article on him, only that "he hoped he might be buried in the Abbey". The same is true for the Wikipedia article on him. All it could report was that "He died in 1759 at home in Brook Street, at the age of 74." It also reported that he was blind in his last years, which explains the description of events that Prof. Ludwig Fuerbringer described in a short blurb on him in Der Lutheraner. This article fills in the most important detail on the most important aspect of his life, more than his music. In the following translation, some hymn verses unfortunately do not retain the rhyming of the German original, but do retain their meaning.  From Der Lutheraner, vol. 50 (1894), p. 65 [EN]: 

I Know That My Redeemer Liveth.

 

      George Frideric Handel, the composer of the "Messiah", was not only a highly famous composer, but also a devout, believing Christian. In April 1759 he lay on the sickbed that also became his deathbed. When he realized that his end was near, he had his servant read the 91st Psalm to him [Ps. 91]. "That was beautiful," he then said. "O, this is food that satisfies and refreshes. Read me some more, read me the fifteenth chapter of St. Paul's first epistle to the Corinthians [1 Cor. 15]." The servant read again. Several times Handel interrupted him, saying, "Stop, read that again!" After a while he had his favorite hymn read to him from his blessed mother's hymnal:

I am certain in my faith, 

Which incorporates me in Christ. 

Who can rob me of this treasure, 

Which his blood and death pledge to me? 

His precious Word confirms this, 

Therefore my faith says: "I am certain." —

      The sick man's lips whispered softly during the reading, speaking along with the words as much as he knew by heart, then he said: 

"O, it is a beautiful thing when someone can be so sure of his faith! How glorious is the evangelical church with its preaching of the free grace of God in Christ, as the hope of the sinner! If we had to rely on our works, dear God, what should become of us! What good we have in us, is it not all a gift from God? But what we have received as a gift, we cannot claim as if it were a merit. And have we done all that we could and ought to have done? Oh, that God would have mercy on us, how many things complain against us! If the word of grace be nothing, then farewell, hope! When I was young, they tried to make me a Catholic in Italy. O Lord, my God, I thank thee that thou hast stood by me there, that I have not gone into the net; for then I should now lie without consolation. Truly Dr. Martin Luther has found out the right gospel, that to faith in Jesus Christ salvation is given by grace. I cling to this grace with both hands.

      To thee alone, O Lord Jesus Christ, 

      My hope is on earth."

      Handel had often expressed the wish to die on the day of his Savior's death. His wish was granted. On Good Friday he passed away with the softly whispered words, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit! Oh, let me die with you and rise again!"

      In the Westminster Abbey in London he lies buried next to the famous men of his adopted fatherland. His grave is marked by a meaningful monument, which is at the same time a testimony to his Christian faith. He stands there life-size in front of an organ, in his hand a sheet of music on which can be clearly read the words which he set to music in his "Messiah" in such an incomparable way, the words: "I know that my Redeemer liveth." [Job 19:25-26] L. F. [Ludwig Fuerbringer]

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 

      Wikipedia and Westminster Abbey make no mention of Handel's resistance to becoming Catholic in Italy. But he explicitly called out the soul destroying nature of that church body, naming Martin Luther as God's instrument to defend the Gospel. All those who admire Handel and his musical works know nothing of him if they ignore what he believed, indeed he was "so sure of his faith". The Bible passages Handel selected for consolation prompted me to read the same passages so that I too may be consoled. May I and all readers of this post find comfort in not just Handel's music but, more importantly, his Christian faith.

[Following the break below is the original German text:]

EC15: Certainty of Salvation (Illinois District 1879)

     This concludes from Part EC14 (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. — What Christian would not want to be certain of their salvation? In the report of the 1879 Illinois District convention, there were nearly 70 pages devoted to this essay of Walther on a most important topic. This essay is Walther at his finest! — The Foreword from the 1992 CPH translation said this:

"…as noted in the opening paragraphs of this essay, it is related to the issue of the election controversy and its implications, even though little reference is made to predestination throughout the essay. … Walther begins by demonstrating the impor­tance of being certain of one’s salvation, proceeds to show how neither personal works nor individual feelings can provide that certainty, and then leads the reader to the true foundation of certainty along with showing how to obtain it.… Walther’s essay provides many examples and suggestions for dealing with a variety of spiritual issues and problems encountered by the pastor as he seeks to lead his people toward a firmer faith".

Notable Quotes:

25: "The certainty of this is of the highest importance and full of the most glorious and sweetest consolation."

25: "the Scriptures …teaches us on almost every page that a man should be certain of God's grace and rejoice in it".

26: "Our dear Lord Christ also confirms His promises on oath. He says in John 5:24: "Verily, verily…"

29: "the most blessed task of the holy ministry of preaching is to bring…firm assurance of their state of grace"

30: "The doctrine of the papists that no man can be completely certain of his state of grace"

31: "the papists have put a stamp on their whole theology… a theology of doubt."

33: "…the whole doctrinal edifice of popery aims at leaving the sinner in doubt…they claim that man is not justified by an external righteousness imputed to him, but by a righteousness that is inherent and innate in him."

36: Augustine: "say to thy God, I am holy, because thou hast sanctified me; because I have received, not because I have had; because thou hast given, not because I have earned."

39: "The real reason why the papists do not believe the doctrine of the certainty of the state of grace is because they are dominated by the spirit of Antichrist".

42: "in general almost all church parties that have arisen from the Reformed Church, teach that the certainty of the state of grace consists only in a sweet feeling… They refer people to their own feelings".

44: "But woe to him who builds on this feeling the certainty of his state of grace!"

48: "this peace [of God] is primarily in God; it consists in the fact that God … is reconciled with you."

51: "these feelings [of enthusiasts] are caused by nervous stimulation or sympathetic influence".

52: "the enthusiasts [Pentecostal, etc.] turn many people into hypocrites with their emotional Christianity."

53: "the fanatical sects do not base their faith on the Word alone…they basically subscribe to the Calvinist doctrine of election."

54: "…the right solid foundation of this certainty. These are the means of grace."

55: "God's mercy…is only preached to us by the Holy Spirit…through the word of the gospel."

59: "…when we base our faith on the sacraments, we also base it on the Word itself."

60: "By this witness of the Holy Spirit, however, nothing else is to be understood than the Word made alive in us by the Holy Spirit".

62: Holy Communion: "that I may be sure …for the forgiveness of my sins".

66: "Just as no one can come to true faith without the Holy Spirit, neither can he come to the certainty of his state of grace".

67: "Those who have…gradually fallen away from Christ inwardly…entertain the false hope that they are in grace with God…they are lost." [This was me in 1973.]

69: "The certainty of the state of grace can therefore be shaken, even destroyed."

70: "since we are talking about the certainty of the state of grace, it can only be shaken by deliberate sins."

73: "The certainty of the state of grace stands and falls with faith."

77: "certainty of the state of grace also exists in the doubts of the repentant, as long as man fights against it"

79: "Romanists teach, as we saw in the first thesis, that one must doubt the certainty of the state of grace".

80: most serious temptation of Satan is…when he tries to fill our hearts with doubts about the grace of God".

82: In sanctification, the Christian "has evidence by his love and good works that he is in favor with God".

86: "Luther shows where it comes from that man becomes willing to practice love, namely because he knows for certain that God is reconciled with him".

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:

The file may be downloaded >> here <<; the German text >> here <<.

May the renewed access to these important essays of Walther aid the reader in their knowledge of true Christian doctrine, and in the certainty of their own salvation as they have it in the Lutheran Doctrine of Justification (EC11). Amen!

EC14: Conversion (Northern District 1873)

     This continues from Part EC13 (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. — The Foreword to the 1992 CPH translation (by Prof. Arand?) of this 1873 Northern District essay had this first paragraph:

“As Walther rightly points out, the subject of a person’s conversion is one of those touchstone articles of faith which will demonstrate the purity and Scriptur­alness of one’s entire theology, since this locus has points of contact with nearly everything pertaining to a believer’s salvation. Accordingly, Walther treats the subject with the thorough, careful, and reverent study it deserves and which characterizes all his work. The end result is an essay that can serve as a helpful com­panion to Art. II of the Formula of Concord, which treats the very same topic under the heading “Free Will.” Wal­ther organizes his theses around four crucial questions: (1) What is conversion? (2) What are the means of conversion? (3) How much time is necessary for a per­son to be converted? and (4) What part does the Chris­tian play in conversion?”

Notable Quotes:

20: "The means by which a person is converted is the Word of God heard or read."

21: "there is no more mysterious subject than this very doctrine [of Conversion]."

23: " conversion is not a change of works, nor a change of moral principles, but a transfer from the state of sin and wrath to the state of faith and grace."

24: "But the natural man cannot contribute to his salvation, but only to his damnation".

24: "Even Philipp Melanchthon erred in this doctrine by establishing three causes of conversion. But despite all respect for his great merits, our church decisively rejected his error [of synergism]." [See Bente's Introduction]

26: "on God's side the baptismal covenant is eternally firm; but man loses the new life received in holy Baptism through reigning sins… If baptism is not to be a condemnation to us, we must seize daily the gifts of grace given to us in it."

27: "The means by which a person is converted is the Word of God heard or read.… For the intention of the author of the Thesis is to show that adults take no active part in their conversion."

27: "an adult must be born again before Baptism if he is not to receive it for damnation."

28: "No one can pray for conversion who is not already converted, for God does not hear sinners".

32: "The Word of God loses none of its power when it is proclaimed by a layman."

33: "That the mere reading of the Word of God is also a means of conversion, the Formula of Concord testifies…: "…namely, through His holy Word, when men hear it preached or read it…".

34: "Baptism is therefore to be denied to adults who are obviously unbelievers."

35: "God himself has commanded that His Word be read to all the people, including women and children."

36: "The Weimar Bible can therefore be warmly recommended to all Christians".

36: "conversion itself happens at any time in an instant".

38: "For there is no other power of conversion than the Word."

39: "For the Law does not bring about repentance for having offended God, but for having earned hell with one's sins."

40: "God must first bring man to a standstill and to the realization that he must concern himself with the salvation of his soul."

41: "as soon as a significant distinction is made between revival and conversion, synergism is the inevitable result."

43: "…man can certainly hinder it [conversion] in himself, but cannot contribute to it".

44: "our Confession ascribes the conversion of man to the Holy Spirit alone and rejects all human participation."

46: "…we owe it to God's grace alone if we are saved, and that we are lost through our own fault if we are damned."

48: "Righteousness does not precede conversion, but follows it."

50: Young children: "experience teaches us that even small children can resist and thus commit real sin."

52: "He who goes to church to find the way of salvation is already converted".

53: "…there is no middle state between unbelief and faith, death and life."

54: "Almost no one today believes that man cannot contribute to remorse before his conversion."

57: "Synergism is basically nothing other than papist leaven; for the papacy is nothing other than hierarchism on the one hand and Pelagianism on the other."

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:

 

The file may be downloaded >> here <<; the German text >> here <<.

In the next Part EC15…

EC13: Adiaphora, church organization (Central District 1871)

     This continues from Part EC12 (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. — This is the last of eight essays, Central District 1871, elucidating the Theses in Walther's True Visible Church book, he covers XVIII D relating to "adiaphora". The writers of the Foreword to this series (Arand and Suelflow?) wrote the following words referencing this essay:

"There are altogether 25 theses in Walther’s book, but his discussion of them ends with Thesis XVIII D. Apparently it would have ended with XVIII C at the Eastern District convention in 1868 at Richmond, Va. [EC12]…if the Central District had not requested elucidation on XVIII D, the point dealing with adiaphora (things neither com­manded nor forbidden in Scripture). (It will be noted that this last lecture came much later than the others.) In light of the questions being asked within the church today concerning the wearing of vestments by pastors, the use and value of the historic Lutheran liturgy, the relevance and emotional appeal of Lutheran hymns, and the debate over the role that sociological tools and market research should play in the shaping of Lutheran worship, this lecture on adiaphora is arguably one of the most important in the entire series and deserves extra attention here."

While I will disagree on which essays are the most important, i.e. the ones dealing with Justification (EC4 & EC11), yet I would agree to the very real importance of this essay for today.

Notable Quotes:

10: "The papal Church also says that we must submit to the Word of God, but immediately adds that we must also submit to the traditions and commandments of the church".

10: "there is no such difference among His Christians that some should command and others should obey".

10: "no one should be moved to obedience by pious talk, by long arguments, but by the Word alone".

11: "how much more must we shake off and condemn everything that men want to burden us with contrary to our Christian freedom".

12: "thus Christ also hath redeemed us from the law, spiritually: not breaking and doing away with the law, but thus transforming our heart".

12: "God's people [in Old Testament] were prepared to long for the One who could fulfill the whole Law and redeem them from the Law"

12: "Therefore, although the Lord God has given His precepts in the Old Testament, we [Christians] do not keep them because they do not apply to us".

14: Ceremonies: "Therefore, as desirable as it is that the edifying ceremonies should find acceptance in all Christian congregations, it would nevertheless be folly to strive for their introduction and uniformity in such a way as if the lack of them would abolish the true unity of the church." [see this blog and labels "Liturgical movement", "Liturgical vestments" on the right.]

15: "this passage from the Article XXVIII [Augsburg Confession] proves precisely what the Article VII teaches, namely, that the uniformity of ceremonies does not belong to the unity of the church" [against "Gottesdienst"]

16: "We know and maintain that the character, the soul of Lutheranism lies not in external customs but in pure doctrine. If a congregation had the most beautiful ceremonies in the very best order, but did not have the pure Gospel, it would be anything but Lutheran." [Cp. Bente's statement in his Preface to the Triglotta]

16: "It is also a pity that there are so many different ceremonies in our synod".

17-18: "not a good atmosphere if people do not want to kneel at confession and communion".

18: "…the Lutheran church can endure all constitutions of external church government…episcopal, presbyterial, consistorial and congregational … In the last of these [congregational], which is at the same time the expression of the recognition of Christian freedom, the congregation exercises the highest judgment. This we have also adopted,… because it follows the example of the apostolic church."

20: "this article [XVIII] also gives instruction as to how the power inherent in every congregation is to be handled."

20: "…it may always be asked whether it is right to use one’s right."

21: "It is true that this does not hinder salvation if, for example, men and women sit together in church…". [Missourians viewed separate seating as desirable but not necessary]

24: "If the discipline of the church is in disrepair, if false doctrine penetrates, if injustice goes unpunished, then the responsibility lies with every member who does not bear witness against it."

25: "…every congregation to be careful that its preachers do not go too far in matters of Christian freedom."

27: Luther: "Love is empress over ceremonies, and ceremonies should give way to love, but not love to ceremonies."

28: "…the character of our time. Love is demanded when it is a matter of doctrine, when God's Word alone should be master". [cp. with Dr. Carl S. Meyer's essay in 1956]

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:

Web version here; download file >> here <<; the German text >> here <<.

In the next Part EC14…

EC12: Fundamental, non-fundamental doctrines; Copernicanism; Jews; Adiaphora (Eastern 1868)

     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:

Web version here; download file >> here <<; the German text >> here <<.

In the next Part EC13…