# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_December 1860_S382
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

382 Church and Contemporary History.

e.g. the seventh electoral district (ward), with a population of 35,000 souls, has only
six churches, and these are not particularly large; the eleventh district, with 80,000 souls, has
only about a dozen churches, which together cannot hold more than 10,000 persons.
According to a report in the Chr. Intelligencer of October 18th, there are now, in all,
only 300 churches in New York, with room in them to accommodate only a third of the great
city's population. This report is rightly headed "The Advance of Heathenism
in New York." We read just now in another paper that Baltimore
possesses 165 church buildings.

The Olive Branch Synod in Indiana numbers, in all, only eight ordained
ministers, and of these only three were present at this year's meeting!

The General Synod of Ohio, assembled on October 24th, discussed,
as we learn from the Luth. Standard, the question concerning the church. "Without having
arrived at any definite understanding, a committee was appointed, which represented fairly
completely every view that had been expressed, to draw up a thesis which,
after further discussion and adoption by the synod, should serve to express the synod's
view on this question. Notwithstanding this, without waiting for the
committee's report, this matter and the question of the ministry were postponed to the
next meeting of the synod." The editor of the Luth. Standard, Mr. Worley — not
of the most honorable memory from the story of the stolen letter — speaks in his
report of "shameful and disorderly reception of Messrs. Eirich and Buehl'' on
the part of our synod. These are expressions certainly worthy of the character and evil conscience
of such a man. — We read just now something of the reasons why
it did not come about at the synod that the report on the question of the church was made
and heard, in the Lutheran Kirchenzeitung of Columbus. It says there, among other things,
namely this: "Since the fatal urge to travel home before the close of the sessions
had broken out like a contagious disease before the committee could report,
it was thought better to receive the report only at the beginning of the next synod,
so that it might be discussed there in full session." "The whole number of votes in the synod
amounted to 60–70; of the members present, at most 15 were laymen."
Much was said about maintaining the territorial boundaries of the synods and about regulating this
matter. We think that the general conference was the right means to
establish, little by little, the right outward and inward relationship of the synods to one another.
Since this means has, on the part of the Ohio Synod, with reproaches against
ours, as though it harbored designs of conquest, actually and scornfully been rejected,
the right goal will hardly be reached by an outward, diplomatic route. We are
reminded here of the words of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession: "Good consciences
cry out for the truth and for right instruction from God's Word, and to them
death is not so bitter as it is bitter to them to be in doubt on some point; therefore they must
seek where they may find instruction. If you would keep the church among you, you must
see to it that you have it rightly taught and preached; thereby you can bring about a good
will and a steadfast obedience." Fol. 82. Here no
making of decrees helps, no sending forth of arrows dipped in gall, no scolding. First of all it is a matter of
safeguarding faith and conscience; only then comes order. Man sees what
is before his eyes, God sees the heart. Let men judge according to the former; the Lord
will judge according to the latter. He knows how gladly we would keep every good order and
live in peace with all the world, but faith and conscience always take the
first place with us. Whoever does not believe or heed this, him we cannot help.

The "Olive Branch" of Springfield, Ill., expresses doubt about the
pope's next fate in view of the news now coming in. It closes with the
words: "Well, we shall see — but the last days of the papacy are not
far off." One does not consider, however, that the pope has often before been in an even greater
predicament, and yet knew how to draw himself out of the snare as the most consummate
Reynard the Fox; above all one does not
consider that, according to Scripture, an end will be put to the pope only through the appearance of the coming of the