# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1879_S21
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 21 —

gent, you shall first admonish him and warn him in a Christian way, that he should look to his salvation and avoid offence. And oh, what a blessed work you have done, when you thus win him! But, my dear friend, who does it? For in the first place the truth is a hateful thing; whoever speaks the truth is resented; therefore you would rather keep your neighbour's friendship and favour, especially if he is rich and powerful, than that you should anger him and make him your enemy. Likewise, when the second, third and fourth neighbour also does the same, the first admonition falls into the well, and with it the second and third, through which the neighbour could have been brought back to the right way, if you had only admonished, as you are bound and obliged to do." (On Joel 3:17. VI, 2404 f.) — From this passage we see at once that not only open usurers, whoremongers, adulterers and drunkards are liable to church discipline, because they live in such sins as even the world holds disgraceful, but also those who live in sins that are punished only in the Church, as when someone sees that his fellow brother keeps no family worship or does not restrain his household from evil, and the like. Every faithful preacher must lay the foundation for church discipline in a new congregation by urging his people to admonish one another privately. He must not make friends with the thought that he alone will exercise admonition and church discipline; that is not Lutheran, but papistic. For thus it stands in our Confession: "That would be the right way, if one kept the order according to the Gospel, Matt. 18, where Christ says: If your brother sins against you, go and rebuke him between you and him alone. There you have a precious and fine doctrine for ruling the tongue well, which is well to be heeded against the wretched abuse. Accordingly direct yourself now that you do not at once carry your neighbour elsewhere and speak ill of him, but admonish him privately that he may amend. Likewise also, when someone brings something to your ears that this or that man has done: teach him too thus, that he go and rebuke him himself, where he has seen it; if not, that he hold his tongue. Such a thing you can also learn from daily household management. For so the master does in the house: when he sees that the servant is not doing what he should, he speaks to him himself; but if he were so foolish as to let the servant sit at home and went out on the streets to complain of him to the neighbours, he would indeed have to hear: You fool, what is it to us? why do you not tell him yourself? See, that would be brotherly dealing, so that the evil be remedied and your neighbour remain in honour. As Christ also says there: If he hears you, you have gained your brother. There you have done a great and excellent work; for do you think it a small thing to gain a brother? Let all monks and holy orders with all their works melted together come forward, whether