# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_April 1864_S111
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Foundational Theses on the Question of Church Order and Church Governance. 111

obedience that is owed to God, is demanded of him.

On this Brochmand writes: "It is to be carefully observed that, as soon as
necessity is imputed to things indifferent, they are rather to be abolished
than kept, since it is only through the pretext of necessity that they become
harmful."*) Further, Luther: "A bishop as bishop has no power to impose
upon his church any statute or ceremony without the consent of the
church, whether expressed or tacit. Because the church is free and a
ruler (mistress) in her own right, and the bishops may not lord it over the
faith of the churches, nor burden and trouble them against their will. For
they are only servants and stewards, not lords of the churches. But when
the church, as one body with the bishop, agrees together, then they can
jointly impose upon themselves whatever they wish, provided only that
godliness does not suffer thereby, and can likewise let such things go
again as they please. But such power the bishops do not seek; they wish
to rule and to have everything free. This we must not concede, nor take
part in any way in this wrong or oppression of the churches and of the
truth. The bishop as prince can impose even less upon the church, for
that would mean mixing the two authorities together, and he would then
truly be an Allotrioepiscopus, that is, a bishop who meddles in matters
not his own; and if we let him have his will in that, we would be guilty of
the same sacrilege. Here one must sooner give up one's life than permit
such godlessness and wrong. I speak of the church as something distinct
from the civil government. The bishop as prince can impose and command
upon his subjects, as subjects, whatever he wishes, provided only it is
godly and right; and the subjects must obey. For there they obey not as
church, but as citizens." Answer to the Questions Sent to Him concerning
Human Ordinances, dated 21 July 1530. Walch XVI, 1207ff. The same:
"Where a doing or a not-doing is found in which God has neither taught,
commanded, nor forbidden, one should leave it free, as God himself has
left it free. But whoever goes beyond this and commands or forbids, falls
into God's own office, burdens the conscience, creates sin and misery, and
destroys everything that God has given freely and securely, and besides
drives away the Holy Spirit with all his kingdom, work, and word, so that
nothing but the devil remains there." Against the Heavenly Prophets.
Walch XX, 250. The same: "Dear friend, do not let it seem a small thing
to you to forbid where God does not forbid, to break Christian liberty
which Christ's blood has purchased, to burden consciences with sin where
there is none. Whoever does this, and dares to do it, dares also to do all
manner of evil; indeed, he denies

*) Diligenter observandum est, quod, simulac necessitas affingitur adiaphoris,
antiquanda potius sint, quam servanda, tanquam quae solius necessitatis praetextu
noxia sint. — Systematis univ. theol. Tom. II, fol. 524.