# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1882_S69
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

— 69 —

regards the Fathers as his authority. I can beat a papist with the Church Fathers, because he says: The right doctrine must agree with the Church Fathers. So I can also beat a Schmidtian with the Fathers, because he says: Only that is right which agrees with the old dogmaticians. — The Formula of Concord says: "Nothing in man" moves God to election, and there are only two causes of election. Everyone must admit, however, that we confess a third cause as soon as we take something good in man, even if it is wrought by grace, as a ground of election. So it is beyond doubt contrary to the Confession to teach that there are three causes and that faith is the third. Does not our Confession say even clearly and plainly that it is a "dreadful" doctrine if one adds a third cause beside God's mercy and Christ's merit.

Another delegate called Pastor Muus's attention to the fact that with his assertion that the committee report before us is directed against the old dogmaticians, he evidently commits a *petitio principii*. For he assumes what the report does not say at all, and argues with it against the report. It says here: "With the expression 'intuitu fidei' a real explanation is gained only if" etc. But that the old dogmaticians supplied such an "explanation" of the mystery in election, of that there is not a word in the committee report. Therefore Pastor Muus's whole objection falls away.

Another member of the committee assured: That was precisely the committee's intention, namely: to include nothing in the report that could be regarded as a judgment on the old writers; but rather to testify that the Synodical Conference wholly refrains from that. Therefore the wording of the report itself contains no hint of it either.

A third member of the committee said: I think we could not have proceeded more fairly than we have done. For as soon as Prof. Schmidt and his associates prove: We do not want to explain the mystery of election with the "intuitu fidei" at all; we leave that standing; we know well that it cannot be explained from faith, — when they stand so, they are, according to our declaration, solemnly absolved of the charge that they are false teachers for the sake of the "intuitu fidei." They need only say to us: Good! we acknowledge what you have written there, — then we say: Thank God! that you are out of your error; but until now you wanted to explain the mystery through faith. Hopefully no one will demand that we first fetch all the volumes of "Altes und Neues" to prove this from them. Anyone who has taken even moderate notice of writing and counter-writing knows that this is so. Our opponents have used a whole number of new expressions to paraphrase the expression "in view of faith"; quite remarkable expressions, from which it can plainly be seen that they regard faith as something