# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1884_S18
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

18   Proceedings of the 19th General [Synod], or

has not failed to appear. In order to bring at least one part of it before us,
a few brief theses have been drawn up, which the Reverend Synod, we
hope, will find time to consider.

The second is the happy completion of our seminary building. The
truly magnificent and blessed festival of its dedication also did its part in
keeping us of good courage. Among the thousands present there was no
one who might still have feared that we had built the house in vain. Even
in viewing the ornamentation of the stately building, no voice was raised
saying, "To what purpose is this waste?" People praised God's goodness
and rejoiced in the unity and zeal of our congregations. — Now it is true
that the building cost considerably more than it should have, by the
Synod's resolution. This has in fact led one of our congregations to enter
a protest against it — though adding that it naturally intends to do its part
toward paying off the debt incurred. Another congregation has moved
for an investigation of the matter. Both petitions, together with the
report of the building committee, will — once they have been reviewed
by a committee — be laid before the Reverend Synod itself. But while we
will indeed have to state that so great an overrun of the sum authorized
by the Synod ought not to have occurred, and while we must also
consider means of preventing such occurrences in the future, we
certainly will not forget, in doing so, that our building committee had
much trouble and labor, showed the best of intentions, and can point to
such a success that, in the judgment of experts, the building is not only
fully worth its cost, but that under any other building committee it would
at least have cost as much, if not more. Let us, then, deal briefly with
what needs to be said, and let us by no means allow fruitless
lamentations to embitter, even in the slightest, our heartfelt joy in this
beautiful monument to God's goodness.

The third is the Luther celebration that was held. What we expected
did indeed happen. The world praised Luther's person, so as to be able,
with all the more justification, to ignore his teaching; the
heterodox communions did so in order to place themselves, in this way,
under the protective banner of a great name. But let us not for that
reason suppose the celebration was in vain! God's works happen quietly,
and one usually notices his ways only once they reach their goal. For us,
however, the festival certainly served to make us stand all the more
confidently, in doctrine and practice, in life and in death, on the "Word"
alone, just as Luther stood on it.

The fourth is the influx of so unexpectedly large a number of students
into all our educational institutions. While, on the one hand,

[On the right margin, faint text from the facing page shows through; not transcribed — see the finds file.]