# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1876_S12
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 12 —

often. Then it is said: One must not be so rigid and take God's Word so strictly. Indeed, preachers and congregations that will not tolerate such practice contrary to God are denounced as harsh and unloving. But consider: what more terrible thing can be said than this: You have indeed commanded, dear God, that we should have no fellowship with the heterodox, indeed, should shun and flee them, but we are too indulgent and loving for that; we excuse them their false doctrine. Those who act so are the most shameful papists. The congregation that says: We give permission to depart from the doctrine of the divine Word, makes itself pope. It is objected: Certainly, the chief articles one must hold fast, but from such teachings of God's Word as are of lesser importance one may depart. But this is, to make it clear by an example, as if one were to say of the seventh commandment: Hundreds or thousands of dollars [*Thalern*, thalers] one must indeed not steal, but to steal smaller sums is permitted. Indeed, one could say the same of all sins: The gross sins one must avoid, but smaller and lesser ones are not to be heeded. That this is reprehensible everyone will surely admit. Just as reprehensible, however, is it to say that one may give away lesser pieces of the truth. Whoever does this thrusts Christ from the throne, as much as in him lies, and puts the devil upon it, who is a father of lies.

How can a pastor serve a congregation that is in fact Unionist! In many old Agendas [service books], at official acts the minister is made to say: I, in place of the Christian Church, etc., do or say this or that. By this the position of a pastor toward his congregation is described. He shall represent the faith of the congregation. The preacher is the mouth of the congregation. Is it not, then, a shameful hypocrisy when the preacher preaches Lutheran and knows that his congregation believes otherwise, and yet passes it off as his congregation? Such a man stands before his congregation as before Turks or Tamils, whom he must first convert.

To be sure, pseudo-Lutheran preachers say that they accept Unionist congregations precisely in order to make them Lutheran. But that is a lie, for they will make nothing else of them than what they themselves are, namely heterodox. It is indeed true that as heathen can become Christians, so also Unionists can become Lutherans, but those preachers will not accomplish that. For that can happen only through the pure preaching of the Word of God. But now they administer to such a Unionist congregation also the Holy Supper and thereby give it the testimony that it stands right in doctrine. Is it not shameful deceit and fraud when, by the administration of the Sacrament, one says in deed: You stand right! while in one's heart one must say: You stand wrong! A true Lutheran preacher cannot possibly act so.

It is a shameful abomination when I, to one who has told me that he does not believe that in the Holy Supper Christ's true body and