# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_December 1864_S370
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

370 Correspondence from Germany.

completely shielded him against all attacks (in particular, all the
members of the Supreme Church Council made a solemn declaration before
the synod that they stood together, jointly and severally, for Huschke
and his entire system of doctrine); in part it pained us to see the
unexpected conduct of certain individuals, who had in part professed
the cause of the truth and now placed themselves entirely on the
Breslau side. This was especially true of Pastors Feldner and Eichhorn,
who contended almost more fiercely than anyone else for the Supreme
Church Council and against us — and all the more distressingly, since
neither of the two would engage at all in a discussion of the doctrinal
questions, but were rather blinded against us purely by concern for
outward church peace. So there was repeated, on the whole, at the synod
what the pre-synod had already shown: the Supreme Church Council,
together with the great majority, dominated completely, and there was
only a small, tightly closed opposition party standing against it. A
great gain for our opposition, however, was that the entire Diedrich
element had withdrawn, and that we, by God's grace, stood united and
firmly closed among ourselves. All the purer and stronger, for that,
was the testimony of the truth that we were able to bear. For me there
lay in this a twofold joy, for in the year 1860, at the previous synod,
I was still the only one who then stood entirely alone against Breslau,
as also against the Diedrich opposition of that time, and fought
against both extremes; now the Diedrich party had withdrawn, and I had
the joy of seeing gathered around me a band, small though it was, of
faithful friends and fellow combatants, who now fought with me, from
the same ground of faith, against the false Breslau doctrine. That has
been an unspeakable comfort and a glorious refreshment to me in
otherwise so difficult Breslau days.

As for the outward course of the negotiations, two days, the 10th and
11th of October, were spent disputing our charge of false doctrine,
which we had brought against the Supreme Church Council. Every effort
in the world was made to get us to withdraw this charge of false
doctrine and of the public offense thereby given; we were offered
peace, friendship, and everything else, if only we would take back this
one word, "false doctrine" — we were fairly stormed, now with sweet
words, now with sour ones. These were deeply moving, earnest days. In
particular, Consistorial Councillor Münchmeier of Hanover, who was
present as a guest, pressed us hard. But God's overflowing grace kept
us firm and unmoved, and we did not yield to our opponents, although
once, perhaps at the most difficult moment of the synod, our little
band of witnesses had melted away to as few as four men. Most of those
present watched with great vexation as this false peace effort
foundered, and late in the evening of October 11 a vote finally had to
be taken on our charge, and by a large majority our charge was rejected
and the Supreme Church Council acquitted. But now the second stage of
the difficult struggle began. For on the following day the Supreme
Church Council brought before the synod the motion for a doctrinal
norm drawn up by Pastor Nagel, which, though with great caution,