# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_December 1862_S380
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

380 Church and Contemporary History.

capital, the watchword that went out equally through the whole land
and resulted in a coordinated action at the most various points of the
kingdom. It could draw reinforcements to itself with ease from every
circle. Everything unclear, rationalistic, and semi-rationalistic fell to it;
the Freemasons lent it their support, and from the ranks of the so-called
Conservatives, who would like to use the church only for the
preservation of themselves, it received no small applause. In the
southern parts of the land a portion of the country folk, too, was drawn
into it.

Meanwhile His Majesty the King made his progress through the
northern parts of the land, in the Duchy of Bremen. He was received
everywhere with great rejoicing. On several occasions there were
deputations offering thanks for the gift of the new catechism, and
almost invariably the King took the opportunity to express himself on
the catechism. When General Superintendent Saxer greeted the King in
his dignified and warm manner and said, among other things: "Permit
us, Your Majesty, to bring you our thanks for the grace with which Your
Most High Self has protected and furthered every honest labor for the
coming of the Kingdom of God" — the King answered, deflecting the
praise from himself and giving God the glory: "It had been a heartfelt
joy to him to be able, on the birthday of Her Majesty the Queen, to sign
the ordinance concerning the introduction of the new, or more rightly
the old, catechism; he hoped that the thought of it would once more be
a refreshment to him in his last hour; he was a poor sinner, and there
was, after all, only one way to blessedness, faith in Christ's blood, and
this way is taught, pure and clear, in the catechism." At this confession,
here briefly reproduced, even those whose way differed from the
King's had tears come into their eyes. Similar were his confessions in
other places, and he dismissed the teacher Rickmeyer, who had been
sent expressly to thank him for the catechism, with the words: "You
have given me today a joy that I shall not forget as long as I live."

The events that then followed — the disturbances that arose, and the
withdrawal, in consequence of them, of the ordinance that the new
catechism should be generally introduced — have already been
reported. Under the heading "The Catechism Defeat," Dr. Münkel
writes, further, the following in his paper of September 5, among other
things:

If the church now still wishes to work toward a voluntary acceptance
of the catechism, it finds itself in a difficult position. It has behind it the
experience of what "lawful and moral" means the storm-party fights
with. It will have to ask itself what prospects lie before it. Already
surveillance committees are being appointed; among the Jacobins they
were called "committees of public safety." These are to set up
espionage and a secret police, in order to bring to notice those pastors,
teachers, and congregations that grant the new catechism a refuge.
Every pastor and teacher will be watched closely to see whether he too
is smuggling in the new catechism, and if caught in the act, his fingers
too will be made to feel a sharp rap. People had cried out about
oppression of conscience and demanded freedom of conscience. Now
they will practice oppression of conscience, for this party has no other
notion of freedom than that it exists only for itself, in order to be able
to enslave others. Where lies and slanders do not succeed, they will
take refuge in chicanery and paving-stones. They will try to stifle every
public voice in favor of the catechism and to place the public papers
under the oversight of a reign of terror, as has already been attempted
at Stade with the Sunday paper. Our situation, then, has changed very
substantially.

This is a defeat of the authority of the regime, one made still more
painful by the accompanying circumstances. A flood of petitions has
protested against the new catechism, on the ground that it burdens
consciences and violates the right of free conviction. What this free
conviction actually consists in, people have mostly stated with great
frankness. For the petitions betray, more or less openly, their falling
away both from Holy Scripture and from the church, and ask outright
not only for the new catechism, but even Luther's Small Catechism, and
indeed even the Ten Com-