# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1898_S15
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

of the Ev. Luth. Synodical Conference of North America. 1898. 15

in the fact that in such territorial churches, given the uniformity of church life, the occurrence of such cases was not to be thought of at all. Where, however, members of different confessions lived among one another, regulations regarding sponsorship became necessary, and not only is a different degree of strictness found in different church orders, but also wavering within the same territory. Thus the Hessian visitation instruction of 1561 had said: "Since these same people (the Romans) confess one faith with us and are separated from us only in some abuses, if they are asked by our people to be godparents and, questioned on the common and chief articles of our Christian faith, give a fitting answer, they shall be admitted to the sponsorship." But when, shortly after the death of Landgrave Philip, the superintendent of Darmstadt turned the provost of the cathedral of Mainz away from sponsorship, although he had offered to make a confession of faith, and laid the matter before the first Hessian general synod of 1568, the latter decisively approved this rejection. In the later Hesse-Darmstadt church order it said: "Those who have hitherto belonged to a contrary religion shall declare themselves to the ministry in such a way that they not only let themselves be informed of something better, but also follow in a Christian manner, accommodate themselves to the doctrine of our churches, and receive the holy Supper in the congregation as soon as possible. In the event that they should not subsequently live up to this their express promise, the preachers and seniors shall reproach them for the failure to fulfil the promise made, look askance at them for it, and in future no longer permit them to be sponsors."

In the *Cynosura ecclesiastica* for the Württemberg church, which rested on preliminary work by Valentin Andreä and was issued in the year 1687, it said on this: "Pastors shall admonish their hearers in sermons to ask persons who are altogether of our religion to be godparents. But since for many reasons, and according to the circumstances of the places, it cannot be entirely maintained that no godparents of a contrary religion be accepted, it is to be considered that godparenthood is no *ordinatio divina* [divine ordinance] or of the *essentia baptismi* [essence of baptism], but only a *testimonium* [testimony] that the *susceptores* or *testes* [sponsors or witnesses] are present, etc. Since then the Roman Catholics have just our Creed and, so far as the substance is concerned, are not at odds with us as in other matters, and besides this may also serve them for good, since, being present, they see the action itself, so that they may be reminded and won by God's grace, such persons, when they are asked to be godparents, are not to be excluded. But with monks, nuns, priests and their household members, or such people as *ex professo* [by profession] publicly and unabashedly revile and blaspheme our Christian religion and the Gospel, he has