# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1874_S19
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 19 —

not to be put down to the account of the disorder or disorderly order, but God, according to His grace, has bestowed His blessing upon us richly to avert the sad consequences of it.

Moreover, has it then really always gone only well with us? Have we not had to learn that here and there, precisely because no territorial delimitation was present, bad frictions have arisen? Is that not precisely the one thing that still causes us serious difficulties? In faith we are united from the heart, through love we are bound with one another; all conditions for a brotherly life together are present: and yet there are still so many sad neighborly conditions because of this ill-ordered neighborhood!

And even if one could not see at once what evil fruits our conditions bear, that would still be no proof against territorial delimitation. An evil often takes a small beginning and works on in silence and in secret until suddenly it breaks out mightily.

Let everyone also consider how our conditions were brought about. Because we formerly stood over against one another, not united in faith, every synod founded new congregations in the territory of the others. Would that have occurred to us if we had been united in faith from the start? We would certainly never have acted according to any other order than territorial delimitation. Quite another thing it is when the congregations have different languages. For language is a far mightier boundary than a territory. Moreover, let no one suppose that, if he here concedes and is convinced that geographical delimitation is the only normal condition, he must then, on coming home, carry this out strictly at once. God forbid such exaggeration! Let us calmly watch how the dear God will order and untangle everything. But we should in any case be united in principle, so that we do not steer toward a wrong goal. Whoever, however, on the ground of this doctrine, against love, wished to press on by force and, on coming home, to draw a line at once, regardless of whether he thereby disturbs the peace of the church, such a one would be either a worthless man or a thoughtless hothead who must first run off his horns. With such a Carlstadt-like sort we must proceed strictly.

The principle of the Thesis was now indeed granted unanimously. Everyone acknowledged that, after the pattern of the apostles, territorial delimitation is the best arrangement, the right normal condition. Indeed, it was generally wished that such an arrangement already existed among us or, if it were possible, could soon be introduced.

But that precisely the four reasons added to the Thesis proved this could not be conceded on all sides. For if one looks at the four reasons, it has the appearance as though one did not

[Vertical pencil lines in the right margin beside the lines "with one another; ..." through "... breaks out mightily," and a bracket beside "The principle of the Thesis was now ..." through "... could soon be introduced," with a handwritten marginal word, illegible and cut off at the edge.]