# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_December 1861_S381
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Church and Contemporary Notices. 381

...priesthood, but as representatives of the divine Word (!), appear at the synods in their own estate."

A Precaution. In the announcement of the recently held meeting of the Buffalo Synod, as found in the Informatorium, it says, among other things: "The peace, impartiality, and unclouded independence of the synod and of each individual synodical member is to be safeguarded by this: that every pastor and deputy who takes part shall not engage, before or after the sessions, in any private, club, or caucus deliberations or intrigues serving his own will. Whoever is found guilty of this must, upon the synod's judgment, leave it."

The Slaves in the South. We read the following in the Lutheran Observer of October 18: "The Presbyterian Standard of Philadelphia has some fitting remarks on this subject. Some of the Northern papers, with the intention of further increasing the already all-too-great agitation in our country, give their readers a false report of the lack of religious instruction for the slaves in the South. Nothing could in fact be more incorrect. Take the whole South, and you will find three Christian colored people for every one in the free states among the same number of people. However much we may hate slavery, it is an undeniable fact that in the South there is no lack of religious freedoms. Even in Charleston, S.C., there is a large Presbyterian church entirely intended for Blacks. The first Baptist church of that city has nine hundred colored members of good Christian character, and all the churches count more Black than white members." — C.

Strange. The New Jersey Synod recently had a synodical seal made, and chose for its device the depiction of Luther on the Pilate's Staircase in Rome!

II. Abroad.

Dr. Ebrard's application for a regular professorship at Erlangen has been unanimously rejected by the theological faculty of that university. So reports the "Evangelist."

The Gustavus Adolphus Society. The Freimund is informed from the Grand Duchy of Hesse: "It is perhaps unknown to many readers of the Freimund that Jews also belong to this society. It also appears, moreover, that the society has taken on the pushiness of the Jews. In one place there was a local Gustavus Adolphus society. The vicar, to whom the full authority of the office and all parish business had been entrusted, did not take part in it. Nevertheless the president of the deanery branch society, Dean Dr. E. at G., instructed him to collect the annual contributions of the local society. He left it to the society to see to its own affairs. From higher up the vicar was indeed released from this task, and it was assigned instead to the emeritus pastor. When the latter wanted to morally compel the church wardens to it against their will, the vicar explained to him and to the church wardens that no one could be compelled to this service. Thereupon he was removed from his office without any hearing whatsoever, chiefly because the dean had also, quite untruthfully, accused him of insubordination!"

Yet Another Monument. There now prevails a veritable mania for erecting monuments to deceased great men. The Upper Lusatian Society of Sciences has recently resolved to erect a stone monument to the theosophist Jacob Böhme as well, at the Nicolai churchyard in Görlitz, where his grave is located.

Saxony. A year ago there appeared in the Saxon Church and School Gazette a remark on an article in an anti-religious paper, in which the denial of church honors at the burial of suicides was portrayed as sanctimonious bigotry. In that remark the writer of the article was accused of the "intention" of "stirring up hostility toward the Church, of spreading among the people the notion that even despisers of the Church and suicides, who depart in unbelief without trust in God, may make claim to church honors — that is, of intending to demoralize the people." The party thus attacked brought suit, and — horribile auditu — Professor Luthardt...