# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1850_S151
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 151 —

10. Pastor Löhe has been most kindly asked to attend
our next year's synodical session.

11. Time did not permit the Synod to discuss in detail, already at
this convention, all the doctrinal differences existing between it and the
synod of the Lutherans who emigrated from Prussia. For mutual
strengthening in the faith, the Synod only provisionally compared and
discussed the following passages of our precious confessional writings:
the Augsburg Confession, p. 5a (Leipzig edition), the Smalcald Articles,
page 335, and the Apology of the Confession, pp. 147b and 153b. The
first passage begins with the words: "Although the Christian Church is
properly nothing other than the assembly of all believers and saints," etc.;
the second states: "For, thank God, a child of seven years
knows what the Church is, namely, the saints, believers, and the little
sheep who hear the voice of their shepherd. For so the children pray: I
believe in a holy Christian Church"; the third: "The true kingdom of
Christ, the true company of Christ, are and always remain those whom
God's Spirit has enlightened, strengthens, and governs, even though it is
not yet revealed before the world, but hidden under the cross." And
finally: "Beyond this, it must indeed be confessed that the keys belong
to, and were given to, not one man alone, but to the whole Church, as
this can be sufficiently demonstrated with clear and certain reasons. For
just as the promise of the Gospel certainly and immediately belongs to the
whole Church, so the keys likewise belong immediately to the whole
Church, since the keys are nothing other than the office
by which this promise is imparted to everyone who desires
it, as indeed is evident in practice, in that the Church has
the power to ordain ministers. And Christ says, with these words:
Whatever you shall bind, etc. And he indicates to whom he gave the
keys, namely to the Church: Where two or three are gathered
together in my name, etc. Likewise: Christ gives the highest
and final judgment to the Church, when he says: Tell it to the Church, etc."

For the rest, the Synod will set forth and justify its doctrine of the
Church, etc., more fully in the above-mentioned book (see above:
"Grabau's Second Synodal Letter"). Its draft shall be presented to next
year's Synod for review and, if applicable, approval, and, once
approved, sent to press.

Handover of the Synodical Archive.

Since the former secretary had, owing to several circumstances, been
unable to attend this year's sessions, he put, by letter dated September
18 of this year, the following questions, among others, to the Synod
regarding the handover of the archive:

1. Whether the Synod does not consider it more expedient to return
the documents belonging to the Fort Wayne Seminary — namely the deed
of gift and two bills of sale, which he was required, under Chapter VI,
Article C, § 6, to keep in custody — to the Seminary's own directorate for
safekeeping, since shipping and removing them might possibly give rise
to harm or embarrassment.

2. Whether the Synod approves of the charter obtained for this
institution from the Indiana legislature, and consents that the