# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_Januar 1864_S30
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

30 Church and Contemporary Affairs.

Russia. Besides Germany, then, the Empire of Austria is the most strongly favored. May love, in Hungary at least, not distribute its gifts with bandaged eyes! In the past year 15 churches were dedicated, and 19 more church dedications are to follow. Besides this, 8 schools have been built. Without doubt this Society, whose praiseworthy aims are unmistakable, is borne along by a strong, growing current of the age, while the Kirchentag alongside it has been wrecked, and the more confessional endeavors must choose for their voyage, with lighter freight, a few narrow side channels.
A disciplinary investigation has been ordered against Dr. Münkel because he is said to have made, in religious instruction, a remark insulting to the Emperor of the French. The liberal press is incensed that a criminal investigation was not instituted instead. (Fr.)
Revision of the Lutheran Bible Translation. On the question whether such a revision or emendation appeared necessary or advisable, the Supreme Consistory at Schwerin had requested the opinion of the theological faculty at Rostock. Now that this faculty (Professors Dieckhoff, Krabbe, Philippi, Bachmann) has discharged this commission, the opinion has appeared in the Dieckhoff-Kliefoth "Theologische Zeitschrift," in the 5th number of the current volume. It is a document thoroughly worthy of a truly Lutheran theological faculty, and so excellent that we wish only the one thing — that it might please the editors to have it specially reprinted, so that it might thereby be brought before a wider public. The thoroughly well-grounded final verdict of the opinion is that the projected emendation is "neither necessary, nor advisable, nor practicable." Especially important here is the demonstration that the faculty must already reject and set aside, "as false, only negatively correct, doubtful, questionable, insufficient or unnecessary," a whole series of Möckeberg's emendations — he who, among the more recent emenders, wishes to deal especially gently with Luther's text. If this is done to the green wood, what will be done to the dry? If the very first attempt at improvement, made with all conscientiousness, has miscarried so completely that, were it adopted, our Luther Bible would, under the title of necessary corrections, actually be enriched with new translation errors — what sort of Bible would we finally get, if, as would then be expected, still far less clean hands wished to carry on and complete the work of improvement? God bless the dear men for the faithful watchman's service which they have rendered, by their excellent verdict, to the church of the pure confession — indeed to the whole of German Christendom. What the authors of the opinion also say on this occasion about "the establishment of a unified and common Luther text" (in which they declare: "The basis of such a text-critical undertaking would, however, always have to be the Luther Bible of the final hand, of the year 1545, as his last and proper testament bequeathed to the German nation") — this too doubtless contains the only correct principles that would have to be applied in pursuing this ultimate aim.

From Lippe-Detmold. Thus writes the Pilger aus Sachsen of Oct. 31 of last year: This small principality belongs, as is well known, almost entirely to the Reformed confession. Some liberals there had, some time ago, petitioned the prince for the abolition of the old Heidelberg Catechism and the reintroduction of a discarded rationalist religious textbook. The consistorial ruling issued in response to this is so excellent that one can only wish that all Lutheran church governments might give the same answer in a similar case. It reads in part: The petition points to the principle as though church doctrine were a matter for the arbitrary determination of the individual members of the church, so that the majority of votes should decide on doctrine and other rights within the church. On such an assumption it would not be impossible that at some moment a passing majority might demand the abandonment of precisely those doctrines that distinguish the Christian from the non-Christian. But just as the Evangelical church in general, so too the Reformed church of this land is not a fellowship of unbelief, but a fellowship of