H5: Salzburgers' emigration: "they went…singing hymns"; now in Georgia, a "reconciliation"?

     This continues from Part 4 (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series that began with Walther's 1871 announcement of the republished "little book" by Matthias Hoe von Hoenegg, a book that gave instruction to south German Lutherans oppressed by Roman Catholics. — We now go deeper into the history of the Salzburger Emigration and follow them to two of their destinations: (1) East Prussia and (2) America: 

1) East Prussia

      My familiarity with this area has been minimal, but that increased as I learned of some events surrounding the story of the 20,000 re-settled Salzburg emigrant Lutherans who were given some available lands in north Germany by King Frederick William of Prussia. More details of their travels are available at this Wikipedia article, and at "The Red Brick Parsonage" here. (See the map at left for a general idea of their route.)

      The following is a translation from a 1965 East Prussian book (pp. 21-22) about the emigration which included "a rather vivid report on the arrival of a train of emigrants in the … Imperial City of Memmingen":

"... it seemed to me at the time as if I saw before me with the greatest emotion a vivid picture of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. There was a mixture of stooping, trembling old men with white hair, strong men and young men in their prime: exhausted and weary old women with powerful women and beautiful young girls. …But anyone who thought that these homeless people, as they approached us, would have filled everything with lamentation and wailing and mourned their pitiful fate with cries that pierced the clouds and streams of tears, would be very much mistaken. It is true that the bystanders were moved by the sight, that tears rolled down their cheeks and their compassion was expressed in sighs. But they [the Emigrants] themselves resembled triumphants and were similar to the old Christian martyrs, of whom it is said that they went to their fate singing hymns. So these confessors of ours approached us singing, and singing they left the city again, driven out of their homeland, wandering through many dangers on rough paths in lands unknown to them, without knowing where they would one day find a home and a permanent abode."

Modern scholars tend to call reports such as the above "legend". A full English machine translation of this 51-page booklet is available here, German text here. (Or view immediately below) See pages 17-18 for a closer account of the Catholic actions leading up to the expulsion. This book was produced by Salzburger descendants, not by objectivist unbelieving scholars. I have added highlighting to certain portions of interest, for example page 47, of an association to preserve "the heritage of ancestors expelled from the Salzburg region because of their Lutheran faith". I have also highlighted some problematic points. [See the next blog post Part 6a about this.]

2) America (Georgia)

      At right is the same map as above, but showing where the Salzburg Emigrants split up at Nuremberg, a small portion going to America. The story of those who settled in Georgia is well reported by the Georgia Salzburger Society. — One then naturally wonders how the descendants are maintaining the steadfastness of their ancestors — the ones who loved the doctrines of Scripture? … the doctrines that Hoe von Hoenegg defended? One finds that there remains a Lutheran church in their settlement to this day, the Jerusalem Lutheran Church, "the oldest continuous worshiping Lutheran Church in America", established in 1733. But the congregation is associated with the ELCA, a synod which is Lutheran in name only. Surely the congregation was embarrassed when the ELCA came to an agreement with the Roman Catholic Church in 1999, with the so-called "Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification".  Then one learns of a "Reconciliation" initiated by a government, not a Catholic Church, official of Austria who commissioned a stone monument.  The monument was first displayed at the famous Christ Church (Lutheran) in Salzburg in May 1994 before it was shipped to Georgia. At that unveiling, it was stated that the "speakers celebrated the new gesture of reconciliation between Catholics and Protestants." The monument was placed in Salzburger Park in Savannah, Georgia.

Then in 1996, the State of Georgia placed an Historical Marker near the monument which states that the monument was "in memory of the Lutheran Protestants of Salzburg who were denied religious freedom and expelled from their homeland." — One wonders that the Governor of the State of Austria had to apply some pressure on the Catholic officials to participate… or did they participate? Did those at the commemoration sing Luther's hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" (TLH 262) or "Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Thy Word" (TLH 261) at this ceremony? (I have my doubts.) Or did they sing the Catholic "Salve Regina"? — 

     Do the Lutherans of the Jerusalem Lutheran Church not realize that the separation of Church and State in Austria only came about by the influence of America's "First Amendment", and that the Catholic Church did not initiate this so-called "reconciliation"? — Prof. Dr. Korey Maas stated in an essay in CTQ 2019, pp. 230-231 (emphasis mine):

If one of the central principles of liberalism, for example, is a religious liberty such as that codified in a separation of church and state, it must be admitted that this is not, contrary to [George] Weigel, a long-held or “basic” Catholic belief. It was a principle explicitly rejected as “absolutely false” and “a most pernicious error” by popes as recently as the twentieth century.

Dr. Maas exposes a statement made by a current prominent American Catholic spokesman (George Weigel), for what it is, a brazen falsehood.

===>>> Can the congregation in Georgia, "the oldest continuous worshiping Lutheran Church in America", in good conscience, sing the truly Lutheran hymns now as their ancestors sang them during their forced emigration?

       In the next Part 6a, we come back to the Salzburgers who settled in East Prussia, and find a connection with the Old Missouri Synod.

[The East Prussian book quoted above, in English, may be viewed directly in the window below:]

H4: Hoe's book, 200-year favorite, for South Germany; Salzburg expulsion of 1731

South Germany

      This continues from Part 3c (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series that began with Walther's 1871 announcement of the republished "little book" by Matthias Hoe von Hoenegg, a book that gave instruction to south German Lutherans oppressed by Roman Catholics. — Walther's report in the 1871 Der Lutheraner that Hoe's "little book" was "a favorite book of the people in Germany for two hundred years" qualifies it as a most important book through at least the 1700s. It would be influential as a resource for Lutherans in their struggles against the oppression of the Jesuits and the Catholic Church.

      About a century after the time of Hoe von Hoenegg and Jacob Reihing, the south Germans were in a hot struggle for their faith. Where is "South" Germany? (It is sometimes known as "Upper Germany" or "High Germany") The map at left is the Wikipedia map for the dialect of the "southern German-speaking area" called "Upper German" and gives a general idea of the territory involved. It includes what is known today as Austria, including Salzburg.

     The "Red Brick Parsonage" blog has already, in 2017, given a good background for the history of south Germany here, stating: 

"The history of Lutheranism in the former Archbishopric of Salzburg (whose land now comprises part of Austria since being annexed in 1805) is one of repeated persecution, dating back to the expulsion of Paul Speratus in 1520, for expressing his evangelical views too openly, and the beheading of Georg Scherer (or Schärer) in Radstadt on April 13, 1528, for refusing to recant the Lutheran doctrine he was preaching. There were also exiles decreed in 1588 and 1613-15. The Peace of Westphalia of 1648 was supposed to put an end to such persecution, but in the Archbishopric of Salzburg it did not."

The later date coincides with the time of Jacob Reihing's Jesuit activities in a neighboring territory, before his conversion to Lutheranism in 1621. Hoe von Hoenegg's 1603 popular "little book" would have certainly been known to these Salzburg Lutherans who were faced with their forced expulsion in 1731 by Roman Catholics. It was most refreshing to read the "Red Brick Parsonage" pastor state of these expelled Salzburg Evangelical Lutherans (my emphasis):

"I do not know how any historical development… can create such a sensation in their time, yet fly so low under the popular radar in the present, even within the confines of the Christian church."

Indeed!  Why is this?  Many secular scholars have written much about the Salzburgers and their expulsion, so why the silence within the Christian Church, especially the Lutheran Church? But this indifference in the present time was not the fault of Walther — he gave this history prominence in his Der Lutheraner articles. Prof. J. C. W. Lindemann also gave this history prominence in his essay on "Religious Freedom".

<<———  Where is this Salzburg territory? The map at left gives an idea of its location. 

Salzburger emigration, c. 1731-32

The map on the right depicts the general route of the Salzburg Lutherans after their expulsion.—————>>

 The more extensive history of the Evangelical Salzburg Lutherans is given by J. C. W. Lindemann here, and by a translation of a German language history by "The Red Brick Parsonage" here.

      As Lindemann relates, these Salzburgers had a "weakness of their knowledge", and during the "terrible pressure", "many were so tormented that they became Catholics again out of fear and pain".  May Hoe von Hoenegg's "little book" be a resource, along with many others, to strengthen readers who are, or will be, under persecution here in America.  May they, especially me, look "unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith" (Heb. 12:2). Amen!

      In the next Part 5, we meet with the Salzburgers who travelled to North Germany and… America.

H3c: Jacob Reihing: 4 histories; pivotal figure in church history

      This continues from Part 3b (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series beginning with Walther's announcement of the republished "little book" by Matthias Hoe von Hoenegg, a book that gave instruction to south German Lutherans oppressed by Roman Catholics. — The history of Jacob Reihing is a history that tells the story of the Reformation in the 1600s and 1700s. His history intersects with both sides in a remarkable way. He was the brilliant star and sharp opponent of both, the Roman Catholics and the Lutherans, the Counter Reformation and the Reformation. His story leads into the infamous Thirty Years' War and beyond. And the land that he came from, south Germany, became perhaps the hottest battleground for people's hearts.

      Although Reihing's publications listed in the Post-Reformation Digital Library are in the Latin and German languages, rendering them inaccessible to all but scholars, I have taken the time to translate several histories into English, to supplement Walther's two brief accounts in Der Lutheraner. This is due in part to the lack of any Wikipedia article on him in English. All descriptions below contain a link to a separate web-based version: 

1) The popular biography in Germany was from the 1888 compendium Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB) by historian Th. Schott.  The basic facts of Reihing may be obtained without a rabid Jesuit "bias": 

2) Julius Schall, Doctor Jakob Reihing: Once a Jesuit, then (convert) Evangelical Christian, 1579-1628, 1894 (free on Internet Archive; DE, EN):

Although in a book format, it is only 28 pages, a brief but lively account, and by a German pastor who was likely Lutheran judging by his writing. One excerpt from Schall, a crisp statement of the dramatic turnabout by Father Reihing:

"Just at the time when the Catholic Handbook [against Hoe] was spreading the fame of its author throughout southern Germany and the old church was forcing its way to victory in Palatinate-Neuburg, the unbelievable happened: Father Reihing fled to the enemy, the highly praised Jesuit converted to the Evangelical Church…"

      Schall reports that Dr. Lucas Osiander the Younger, at Jacob Reihing's acceptance into the Lutheran Church, spoke of another noted Catholic turned Lutheran, Petrus Paulus Vergerius, the Pope's representative to try to get Luther to renounce his doctrine. But Luther's answer to him, and his study of Holy Scripture (like Reihing), turned him to the truth of the Gospel. (See Schall on p. 17; also the funeral sermon pp. 9, 27-28)

3) Gottfried Brock, The Evangelical Lutheran Church of the former Palatinate of Neuburg, 1847 (free on Google Books). Brock is cited by other historians. His account is more detailed than Schall's. The following is an extensive excerpt, Chapter 4 pp. 117-191. His is also a lively account (DE version here; EN):

Brock reports that, along with Hoe von Hoenegg, Lutheran theologian Balthasar Meisner was also a targeted polemical opponent of Reihing – see Brock, p. 125. Brock also reports, p. 181-182, how the Jesuits first attempted to coax Reihing back to them: 

"One can imagine how angry his former Jesuit brothers were about Reihing's move and how they used every means at their disposal to bring him back. Father Keller, rector of the Jesuit College in Munich, made him the greatest offers at the end and assured him that he was free to become a Jesuit again, or to accept a canonry, or even to enter the lay state, if only he wanted to profess the Roman Church again; the superiors would grant whatever he wanted. Reihing's brother, Konrad, Rector of the Jesuit College in Augsburg, the Provincial Christoph Grenzing, and even the General of the Order, Mutius Vitelleschi, left no stone unturned to win him over, and Count Palatine Wolfgang Wilhelm wrote to him himself."

Brock then relates how these same Jesuits took off their mask, showed their true selves, and "became fiercely hostile to him". By what methods? They attacked his person, not his doctrine. (Count Wolfgang Wilhelm would have been doubly embarrassed for he had converted from Lutheranism to Catholicism.)

4) Finally, David R. Preus, now a missionary for the LC-MS, wrote on the Lutheran theologian Balthasar Meisner for his 2018 PhD thesis. A small portion was devoted to a history of Jacob Reihing, calling him "the most celebrated Catholic convert to Lutheranism". Below is an excerpt from pages 168-171:

Preus summarizes by stating: "With his mention of Hoe and Meisner by name, Reihing testifies to the effectiveness of the Lutheran arguments."

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      I would invite readers who want to know the real history of the struggles of the steadfast Lutherans of South Germany, and the background of the Thirty Years' War, to read all 4 histories above — they are all short in length, except Gottfried Brock (#3) which is 75 pages. But even when reading that, I could not stop — the testimony of the Evangelicals was so powerful.  Read about the "torture of conscience" by the Jesuits on pages 171-172. Read there of the faith of the locksmith, the baker, the writer, the widow, the shoemaker. — In the next Part 4, we cover the faithful Lutheran Salzburgers of the next century.

H3b: How Reihing, Jesuit, turned Lutheran; Rome now using Reihing's method

      This continues from Part 3a (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series beginning with Walther's announcement of the republished "little book" by Matthias Hoe von Hoenegg, a book that gave instruction to south German Lutherans oppressed by Roman Catholics. — This segment concludes the 1845 Der Lutheraner article on Jacob Reihing. Of the histories recorded of Jesuit Reihing, few provide much in the way of quotes from his own writings. And so I was glad when I found that Der Lutheraner, probably Walther, provided an important quote from Reihing himself regarding his own conversion from the Roman Catholic Church to the Lutheran confession. There are few people of Reihing's stature who have made this move, and so his account is especially valuable. — Because Reihing's status as a Jesuit was so notable, it was surprising to discover that there is no English Wikipedia article on him. The Catholic Encyclopedia leaves him out, likely because his conversion was so devastating for the Jesuits — more on that below. — From Der Lutheraner, vol. 1 (March 22, 1845), p. 60 [EN]:

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The converted Jesuit.

[probably by C. F. W. Walther, editor; part 2]

 

Reihing turned to Württemberg, preached a sermon of recantation in the presence of three Württemberg princes in Tübingen on November 23rd of the same year [1621] and eight days later delivered a sermon against the Roman Sacrifice of the Mass in the court chapel in Stuttgart. In 1628 he finally passed away as a Lutheran professor of theology and superintendent at Tübingen, gentle and blessed in true faith in his one Mediator, our Lord Jesus Christ.

We still have several excellent writings, which Reihing published after his conversion, and in which he refuted his previous writings, written in papal blindness, as sincerely and humbly as thoroughly; one of the most excellent of these is entitled: “The Torn Papal Bonds.” ["Die zerissenen päbstlichen Banden."; no online record of this in PRDL] In this book, Reihing himself tells how he came to this realization as follows:

"My listeners (in the Palatinate of Neuburg), most of whom were Evangelicals or had only recently been enticed to the papacy, demanded proof from the Scriptures, and my opponents [Lutherans], against whom I wrote and spoke, also drove me into the Scriptures and challenged me to fight with them on the basis of the Scriptures alone.

What was I to do? I was compelled to seek scriptural proof for everything, so that in the minds of my listeners, which were still unsettled but so attached to the Scriptures, it would not appear as if I myself had no confidence in my cause, indeed as if I was forced to give it up myself. I therefore endeavored to establish the papacy from the books of divine Scripture and thus to overthrow the Augsburg Confession. This was the purpose of all my sermons, conversations and writings. It also seemed to many and to myself that I was fighting with luck; I was already walking along like a highly celebrated victor, and was also considered so here and there. But the Lord's reckoning in heaven was different; according to His counsel, my battle was to have a completely different outcome. As if by a divine ray of light, the blindness and darkness of my proud spirit was finally dispelled; for a little more than a year I began to realize, with an ever brighter view of my spirit illuminated from heaven from day to day, that in all the most important points of controversy the Scriptures were most clearly against the Papists and for the Evangelicals. And so, at last, not only was the lying veneer of truth removed from the papal errors, but also the veneer of error that had been put on the Evangelical truth was wiped off in my soul. The error that I had previously defended as truth fell, and the purest truth that I had fought against as error finally awoke in me, and triumphed.”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -  End of article; continued in Part 3c  - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

      Walther's extensive quote from Reihing above was covered also, partially, by G. Brock in his 1847 book p. 178-179, and by Pastor Julius Schall in his 1894 history of Reihing, p. 19. (More on these books in the next post.) — Although Walther did not mention Hoe von Hoenegg and his Evangelical Handbook in this 1845 article, he did so in his 1871 announcement of the reprint of Hoe's book.

 

Catechism of the Catholic Church   — The Catholic Encyclopedia 

    Today, the Catechism of the Catholic Church attempts to use the same method that Jesuit theologian Jacob Reihing used, citing the Scriptures. Pages 689–720 lists all the Bible citations, about 3000, in their Catechism. One wonders that the contributors to this Catechism studied Reihing’s Catholic Handbook for tips on how to use the Scriptures for their own deceptive ends. Again, Reihing's Handbook was in response to Hoe von Hoenegg’s Evangelical Handbook. — 

      The Catholic Encyclopedia (Google Books, HathiTrust) does not have an article on the Jesuit Jacob Reihing, but he and Hoe, are mentioned as "apostates" in an article about the Jesuit polemicist "Laurenz Forer"). However the Encyclopedia has an article on the notable Jesuit Conrad Vetter. The irony of this is that Vetter translated Jacob Reihing's Catholic Handbook that was written against Hoe von Hoenegg, demonstrating that Reihing, as the author of this highly regarded Jesuit book was more notable as a Catholic theologian than Vetter. Reihing's book was hailed by the Jesuits as an important book for their coercive tactics against unwilling Lutherans in south Germany. Doubly ironic is that the Catholic Encyclopedia is expressly embarrassed at Vetter, saying "Unfortunately the tone [of Vetter's writings] is ordinarily not very refined."  The Jesuits could not say the same about Reihing's highly regarded book.  The Catholic Church, especially the Jesuits, would like nothing better than to bury the name of Jacob Reihing. May his name therefore be blessed by those who hold to the Holy Scriptures alone for their Christian faith, as Reihing came to do.

      We are not done with the dear Jacob Reihing! The histories of him and the places and times surrounding him are highly significant even today. For anyone who wants to be a true Lutheran, they reveal how it actually stands between Lutherans and Roman Catholics, notwithstanding the silence of today's LC-MS teachers and leaders. In the next Part 3c, we offer an English translation of 4 different histories of Reihing

Vegetarians: Pieper's lesson from Luther – God, the butcher (Lehre und Wehre 1887)

[Today is Ash Wednesday, a day when Roman Catholics are forbidden from eating meat.]

 

"Animals are not ours to… eat"

    The following short lesson by Dr. Pieper caught my eye when processing the volumes of Lehre und Wehre. It is certainly a "hot topic" today in the agricultural world, as farmers and ranchers are being attacked from all sides over the eating of meat. Multiple reasons are formulated in an effort to ultimately eliminate the meat produced from farm animals — beef, pork, and poultry, although I have not heard of an attack on seafood. Cruelty to animals, climate change, and moral reasons are advanced in an effort to gain public support for their cause. The organization called "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals" or PETA, is brazenly advancing their cause on "ethical" grounds. Cattle farmers now face formidable political forces that could get the vegetarian legislation passed in America.

     In my youth, I finished feeder pigs to market weight, and a family member had a small farrowing house. My father had cattle when I was very young. So it was with amazement when I first heard of these claims against the eating of meat, against cattle because of their supposed effect on climate. It was an indication of how crazy the world has become.

      But is there any merit to the vegetarian cause? Should Christians be drawn into their "ethical" arguments? We get true Christian counsel, which is Biblically based, from Dr. Franz Pieper's short blurb that utilizes the pertinent writings of Martin Luther and Holy Scripture. In the process, we find out that the "vegetarian" cause has been ongoing for centuries. — From Lehre und Wehre, vol. 33 (June, 1887), pp. 170-171 [EN]: 

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Luther and the Vegetarians. As we can see from German newspapers, the warnings of the vegetarians also make an impression on some Christians. If Christians are not used to letting their conscience be determined by God's Word alone, they are easily led astray by even the most enthusiastic fanatics. Here we are reminded of something Luther said about eating meat. Luther admits that in connection with meat-eating, gluttony has increased and people's lives have become shorter. (Cf. Luther's interpretation of Genesis 11:10, St. Louis edition I, 712 [AE 2, 231]) But the same Luther also writes on Genesis 9:2-3 (op. cit. p. 590 ff. [AE 2, 133-134]): 

“Therefore this word orders the butchershop and puts rabbits, chickens and geese on the spit and decorates and fills the table with all kinds of dishes. And necessity makes people clever and skillful, so that they not only hunt the wild animals, but also at home raise other livestock with diligent care, which they use for food. In this passage, therefore, God makes himself, as it were, a butcher, for by His Word He slaughters and strangles the animals that are used for food. That He thus, as it were, repays the great affliction that pious Noah had in the flood because of sin, and rewards him with rich consolation; for that is why He intends to care for him all the better from now on. — 

For this reason we should not consider it as if it were done by chance, as the pagans think, that the custom of slaughtering livestock was always there; but it is ordained, or rather permitted, by the Word of God. For no animal could have been slain without sin unless God had clearly permitted it in his Word. Therefore it is a great freedom that a man may freely and with impunity strangle all kinds of animals that are useful for food and can be eaten. And if only one kind of animal were ordered to such <page 171> use, it would still be a great good deed. How much greater a gift is it, then, that all animals that are useful for food are generally permitted to man! 

The wicked and the heathen do not understand this, and the philosophers know nothing about it. For they hold that this custom has always existed. But we are to truly put such things on high, and honor them, to make our consciences sure and free about this use of creatures, created and permitted by God, namely, that there is no law forbidding to eat of it. Therefore there can be no sin in their use, just as the shameful popes have blasphemously burdened the Church in these matters. — 

Thus with these words man's dominion is increased and the senseless animals are subjected to man's service until death. That is why they are afraid and flee from man for the sake of this new and previously unusual order in the world. For it would have been an abomination for Adam to strangle a bird for food. But now that the Word is added, we understand that it is a special good deed of God that God has thus fed and ordered the kitchen with all kinds of meat. He will also order the cellar afterward, when He will show man how to cultivate and make wine.”  F. P. [Franz Pieper]

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      Luther points out the Antichrist's, that is the Pope's, blasphemy with his rules of fasting and abstinence from meat. What is the Roman Catholic rule on this for today? According to the current USCCB website (WB), it is the following, for Fridays during Lent, Ash Wednesday, and Good Friday:

“The norms concerning abstinence from meat are binding upon members of the Latin Catholic Church from age 14 onwards.”

But now Christian consciences can rest on the only source of certainty, God's Word. And farmers and ranchers should answer the vegetarians, and the Pope, with the simple phrase 

“But God has permitted it!”

H3a: Walther on Jesuit convert Jacob Reihing; "a miracle", "still disputed today"

      This continues from Part 2 (Table of Contents in Part 1) in a series beginning with Walther's announcement of the republished "little book" by Matthias Hoe von Hoenegg, a book that gave instruction to south German Lutherans oppressed by Roman Catholics. — In Walther's announcement of Hoe's book in 1871, he spent just as much space on the remarkable conversion of Jesuit theologian Jacob Reihing as on Hoe.  He was quite familiar with the story of Reihing for he had described it in even more detail in the very first volume of his Der Lutheraner publication, in 1845. I discovered this when reading LC-MS missionary Rev. David R. Preus's 2018 PhD dissertation on the Lutheran theologian Balthasar Meisner, p. 168. Although the 1845 Der Lutheraner article in question was unsigned, I have little doubt that it was written by editor Walther, for this was a favorite subject of his. — Walther's article is being presented in 2 parts. From Der Lutheraner, vol. 1 (March 22, 1845), p. 60 [EN]:

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The converted Jesuit.

[probably by editor C. F. W. Walther; part 1]

Jacob Reihing is a remarkable example of how often those who are most zealous for their error, when they do it ignorantly like Saul (1 Tim. 1:13), are finally brought around by God's grace and transformed into the most blessed instruments for spreading the truth. Reihing was born on Jan. 6, 1579 in Augsburg of Roman Catholic parents, studied at the University of Ingolstadt, then entered the Jesuit order and became a doctor and professor of theology at the aforementioned university, and finally preacher to the court of the Count Palatine of Neuburg. 

Wolfgang Wilhelm

Until then, Reihing had been an extremely zealous advocate of the papacy, not only writing several pamphlets in defense of it and allegedly refuting the Evangelical-Lutheran doctrine, but also actually persuading the formerly Lutheran Count Palatine Wolfgang Wilhelm to convert to the Roman Church in 1614. Reihing was also the main instigator of the fact that the aforementioned Count Palatine expelled not only his former Lutheran court preacher Heilbrunner [G. Brock p. 145], but also many of his subjects who remained Lutheran from the Neuburg Palatinate. Reihing explained to the world the reasons that had led Wolfgang Wilhelm to profess the papal religion in a pamphlet of his own entitled "The Walls of the Holy City" [Preus p. 168; Schall p. 10; ADB;], i.e. the Roman Church. In short, Reihing showed himself to be a true Jesuit, that is, a true bodyguard of the Pope. However, God had decided to make this man an encouraging example of the richness of his mercy and the power of his enlightening grace. 

John Gerhard:
“It is indeed a miracle”

So it happened that in 1621 Reihing (convinced by diligent reading of the Holy Scriptures, which he had been compelled to do), against all expectations, applied for admission to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. This conversion caused a great sensation throughout Germany; even J. Gerhard wrote to a friend in Copenhagen in the same year: 

"You have no doubt heard that the notorious Jesuit Reihing has joined our side; it is indeed a miracle that such a Saul has become a Paul."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -  Continued in Part 3b  - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

     Walther says that Jesuit Reihing was the one who persuaded an important political figure, Wolfgang Wilhelm, to convert from Evangelical Lutheranism to Catholicism. In my reading of other online histories, I found no mention that Reihing was the instigator. The 1888 Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie article states of that time: “…but it cannot be determined whether Reihing was already active”;  G. Brock, a noted historian, states of Wolfgang Wilhelm, p. 124-125: “The Catechism of [Jesuit Peter] Canisius was emphasized, which the Count Palatine was said to have studied for eight months. At the same time, Reihing's writing appeared: Muri civitatis sanctae [DE]”. I suspect that Walther had access to other historical resources that backed up his point, but he did not share that. 

      Walther called Reihing's conversion "against all expectations", John Gerhard called it "a miracle", the Neue Deutsche Biography (2003) calls it "sensational" ("aufsehenerregender") and adds:

"The reasons for Reihing's conversion to Protestantism are still disputed today."

Disputed?  The dispute comes only from the opponents to Protestantism. Reihing explicitly gave his reasons. In the next Part 3b, we conclude this brief history by Walther where he quotes Reihing's own "reasons for his conversion".