Full Text for CTM Theological Observer 17-10 (Text)

Theological Observer A Tribute to the Sainted Dr. M. Willkomm. -In the TheoLo­gische Quartalschrift of July Dr. P. Peters of Thiensville, Wis., writes about the life and work of his former colleague at Neu­zehlendorf Dr. Martin Willkomm, who entered the heavenly rest last spring. Our readers will be grateful for the words of appre­ciation and love of Dr. Peters, and we herewith reprint them. "The Ev. Lutheran Free Church of Germany has suffered a grievous loss in the death of Dr. Karl Martin Willkomm on the 1st of June, 1946. While its ranks have been thinned by the en­listment and the captivity and even the death of a number of its pastors, still the loss of its outstanding theologian in a time when very far-reaching discussions are being carried on with the other Free Churches of Germany will be deeply felt by our brethren overseas and by those of us who are aware of the valuable service which Dr. Willkomm by the grace of God has rendered the Free Church and the Synodical Conference. As members of the Wis­consin Synod we will not fail to recall and to remember that Dr. Willkomm has been the theological teacher of all the pastors of our Poland Mission. "Born in India, January 23, 1876, he came to Germany when his sainted father, the Rev. Dr. O. Willkomm, severed his connec­tions with the Leipzig Mission and the Saxon State Church for confessional reasons and was called to serve congregations in Ger­many belonging to the Saxon Free Church, of which he later became president. In Niederplanitz, Saxony, our Dr. Willkomm attended the parish school and then the local Gymnasium, from which he graduated with high honors. He then came to America to receive his theological training at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. In 1898 he was ordained and installed as assistant pastor in Planitz. From 1905-1919 he served the Free Church congregation at Muelhausen in Alsace and then succeeded his father as pastor of St. John's Congregation in Planitz. As President of the Free Church of Saxony and Other States Dr. Willkomm on the 15th of November, 1922, dedicated the Seminary buildings at Berlin-Zehlendorf to the service of the Triune God and on Octo­ber 2, 1923, was called as Di1'ector of this theological seminary. Here he served the Church for twenty-two years as professor of Dogmatics and Church History, as editor of the church paper, Die Ev.-Luth. Freikirche, and of the theological journal, Schrift ltnd Bekenntnis, and finally as author of various writings, espe­cially on our Lutheran Confessions. (Cf. April number, 1946, of the QuartaLschrift, p.148.) June 7, 1934, the Faculty of Concordia Seminary conferred on its alumnus the honorary title of Doctor of Divinity. The last, and certainly not the least valuable, service which Dr. WiUkomm rendered the Free Church, for which he had so often entered the lists against attacks of the state churches, [779] 780 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER was to write his comments on the theses which formed the basis of the discussions carried on with the Breslau Free Church. In a letter written to the undersigned on April 29, 1946, he men­tions that he and his wife had left the Hindenburg Hospital in Kleinmachnow, where the Lord had granted them, to use his own words, 'eine Zujlucht fuer den Winter,' and had returned to their former dwelling in one of the bombed buildings on the seminary grounds, and then adds: 'Students have not yet arrived; still we hope that some will come again.' Untiring in his labors for tlie Free Church and its theological school, he had cherished the hope of beginning a new semester and of welcoming the first postwar students, although he would have had to do it in great bodily weakness, of which he speaks in his letter, and in the midst of the ruins which World War II had wrought. His Lord willed otherwise. Suffering for years from a heart ailment, Dr. Willkomm died of a stroke. His work was done in the ecclesia militans and the ecclesia pressa when his Lord thus called him home. 'Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth; yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them' (Rev. 14: 13). R. I. P." A. Pastors' School at Seward. -From June 24 to July 12 Con­cordia Teachers College, Seward, Nebr., this year conducted its third pastors' school as a part of the regular summer session of the institution. Courses specially designed for pastors were a Greek reading course of the book of Acts and a seminar on the Church. These studies were under the direction of Dr. William Arndt of St. Louis and President A. O. Fuerbringer of Seward. In addition, the pastors enrolled in other courses offered during the term. Among these were psychology of adolescence, rural sociology, and public relations and publicity. The seminar on the Church had a full-time enrollment of twenty-two men, and several others audited part time. It was chiefly an exegetical study of the Scripture texts which contain the doctrine of the Church. Many hours were spent in the library and the seminar room in examining these texts. In addition the class divided itself into groups of two men each who jointly wrote papers on the following topics: The Position of the Teacher, Deaconess, and Missionary; Who Were the Weak Christians of Rom. 14 and 1 Cor. 8:10?; Sola Scriptura and Legalism; Rom. 16: 17 f.; Unionism and Separatism; The Application of the Law of Love in the Life of the Church; Prayer Fellowship; What Is Divisive of Church Fellowship?; The Social Gospel; the Church and Higher Education. The complete summaries of the studies on the Church are being printed under the title What Is the Church? The Biblical Concept and Its Application to the Present Scene. Copies may be ordered from Prof. A. Fuerbringer. Price, 75 cents. H. F. WERLING THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 781 Lutheran World Convention Plans. -From R. N. S. we take over the following report: "The first postwar meeting of the Lutheran World Convention, co-operative agency for Lutheran churches in 28 countries, will take place at Lund, South Sweden, June 24--29, 1947, it was dis­closed at the conclusion of a three-day meeting of the Convention's executive committee at Uppsala, Sweden. The meeting was pre­sided over by Archbishop Erling Eidem, Primate of the Swedish Lutheran Church, and marked the first time the group has met officially since 1939. "The meeting announced that a proposed constitution for the Lutheran World Convention, which was organized at Eisenach, Germany, in 1923, will be submitted for adoption at the Lund assembly. "The constitution calls for changing the name of the Lutheran World Convention to the Lutheran World Federation and provides for enlarging the executive committee from 12 to 16 members. Membership of the committee would be divided into four groups, comprising a western, or American; a northern, or Scandinavian; a central, or German; and a new minority, or Asia, group. "The Federation would function through an executive com­mittee meeting every year, and a general assembly convoked every five years. "Officers elected at the executive committee's meeting at Copenhagen last December were confirmed at the Uppsala sessions, with Arcqbishop Erling Eidem of Sweden as president, Prof. Olaf Moe of Norway as first vice-president, and Dr. S. C. Michelfelder of the United States as executive secretary. In addition, Dr. Ab­dell Ross Wentz, chairman of the American section of the L. W. C., was named as second vice-president. "A proposal for representation in the World Council of Churches on a confessional rather than a geographical basis was adopted unanimously by the executive committee. It will be submitted to the arrangements committee of the World Council at a session in London during the first week of August. "Confessional representation was urged by American members of the L. W. C.'s executive committee because the Lutheran bodies in America believe that Lutherans of the world should be recog­nized in the World Council as a denominational unit. ;'Delegates to the meeting included representatives of Lu­theran churches in the United States, Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark. Two German delegates who were prevented by transportation difficulties from arriving in time for the meeting were Dr. Karl Ihmels and Dr. Ernest Sommerlath, both of Leipzig, in the Russian occupation zone. Major discussions at the meeting concerned plans for aiding needy Lutheran churches in war-affected countries, increased spiritual opportunities for the Church, and collaboration with 782 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER churches of other denominations through the World Councll of Churches." It should be added that Bishop Meiser of Bavaria attended a part of the meeting, having arrived late. A. Brenz's Smaller Catechism. -The Lutheran Church Quarterly (July, 1946) publishes among other fine articles also a brief ex­planation of Brenz's Smaller Catechism, which it then offers in a very readable English translation. Of the Catechismus Minor of Brenz it says that it "is a brief erotematic compendium, com­prising in the German version twenty-two and in the Latin trans­lation twenty-three questions and answers. The five Chief Parts are treated in the succession: Baptism, Creed, Commandments, Prayer, Supper." It adds (we quote only a few statements): "Following the appearance, in 1529, of Luther's Small Catechism, Brenz prepared, in 1535, a new catechism, which was even briefer than his earlier work and which treated the Chief Parts in the order: Baptism, Creed, Prayer, Commandments, Supper, and added a sixth, 'Of the Office of the Keys.' Through its incorporation in the Wuerttemberg Church Orders this became the official catechism of the duchy. In the Wuerttemberg Order of 1559 catechetical training in the church and in the Volksschule go hand in hand, each reinforcing the other." We heartily congratulate the Quar­te1'ly for digging out of oblivion this important piece of Lutheran catechetical literature. At the same time, a comparison of Brenz's and Luther's catechisms shows how much more valuable the latter was both in the arrangement of subjects and in the wealth of subject material. Recently the Augustana Synod re­solved to publish important writings of Luther in handy form for popular use. A Zurueck zu Luther movement will certainly be of great benefit to the Lutheran Church in the United States. J.T.M. Missionary Aviation Becomes Reality. -The Lutheran Herald (August 6, 1946) reports: "The Lutheran World Convention's pioneering venture in missionary aviation became a reality early in July when its renovated C-47 transport plane took to the air­ways from Shanghai on two important flights in behalf of Prot­estant missions. The plane, acquired last spring from the U. S. Foreign Liquidation Commission by Dr. Daniel Nelson, the LWC's relief director in China, was completely overhauled and put in first-class condition before taking off on its initial flight on July 4, to carry relief supplies from Shanghai to Haichow in Kiangsu Province. Its second trip was made on July 8, when supplies and equipment were moved to Cheloo Christian University at Tsinan in Shantung Province. At the controls was young Dick Rossie, one of the leading aces in the Pacific theater of operations during the war. Early in August the C-47 will wing its way to Calcutta, India, with a full passenger list, consisting of Scan­dinavian missionaries in China who have not had a furlough for nearly a decade. Because air travel is the cheapest, quickest, and 1~iEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 783 safest mode of travel in China today, the Lutheran World Con­vention appropriated $40,000 for the purchase, repair, and opera­tion of the plane. It will be used principally to repatriate mis­sionaries in isolated areas of China, but will also be available to other Protestant groups on a rental basis, which is expected to pay the original cost of the project." The world keeps moving on. At its last convention the Southern District of our own Church allowed the Florida delegates plane fare to attend the conventions held at New Orleans, since traveling by air was found to be both quick and inexpensive. J. T. M. Luther Still Living. -President Cl. E. Hoopmann of our sister synod in Australia announced in the Australian Lutheran (June 26, 1946) the completion of "the Martin Luther Series" of six booklets. In view of the fact that recently also the Augustana Synod at its regular convention resolved to publish Luther's writings in tract form, this is interesting news. President Hoop­mann writes as follows: "'The Martin Luther Series' of six book­lets has now been completed. The last booklet of the series to appear is The Liberty of a Christian. These booklets, available at our Publishing Company, should be read by our members and handed on to others. There is no doubt about it that Lu­therans in Australia could do much more to make Luther and the doctrine he taught known to others. Weare not always con­scious of our glorious heritage and the opportunities we have of inducing others to share with us the blessings of this heritage. As I was recently perusing the February 15 issue of the 'Church's Oldest Newspaper' in England, The Record, kindly sent me by Pastor H. Noack, I was struck by the prominence and space given to Luther and his work. A lengthy article dealt with 'Justifica­tion in Luther's Theology.' A large and striking advertisement announcing meetings in London to commemorate the fourth cen­tenary of the great Reformer's death was headed: 'The Solitary Monk Who Shook the World.' The first celebration advertised was the one in St. Paul's Cathedral on February 18. Then fol­lowed advertisements of services and celebrations to be held on other days of the same week, including an important rally at Westminster Chapel on Thursday, February 21. At this celebra­tion the Rev. E. Gordon Rupp, M. A., B. D., the author of Martin Luther: Hitler's Cause or Cure, was the principal speaker. The book by Gordon Rupp is a reply to Peter Weiner's despicable Martin Luther: Hitler's Spiritual Ancestor. The Church Times calls Rupp's book 'a masterful refutation' of the book by Weiner. The British Weekly writes of the same book: 'A completely devas­tating exposure of Mr. Weiner's offenses against history and the republic of letters. This book is not only an excellent piece of literary criticism; it reveals a scholar with a real knowledge of the great German reformer and his writings.' Brethren, let us never be ashamed of Luther and the doctrine which he taught. It was the doctrine of St. Paul, the doctrine of Christ. Let us 784 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER study Luther: his life and work. Truly, he was able to say in words taken from his favorite Psalm: 'I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord' (Ps. 118: 7)." J. T. M. Starving Europe. -In the Australian Theological Review (March SO, 1946), Dr. Hamann quotes "with a feeling of distinct pleasure" an article which appeared in the Australian Christian Wo,.ld (Jan. 18, 1946). It reads: "The Upper House of the Con­vocation unanimously adopted the following resolution, moved by the Bishop of Chichester (Dr. Bell) and seconded by the Bishop of Birmingham (Dr. Barnes): This House deplores the expulsion of German families in the eastern parts of Germany and the Sudetenland from their homes and occupations as a violation of the principles of humanity that the Allies are pledged to uphold; it hopes that his Majesty's Government will continue to make representations to the Governments of Russia, Poland, and Czecho­slovakia to end these miseries and will do all it can, in co-operation with the United States of America, to sustain those who enter our zone of occupation; it calls on all Churchmen to support the Government in these endeavors and to accept continued restric­tion in imports and rations in order to release transport, coal, and food during the coming winter for the peoples of Europe. "Dr. Bell said that one of the most terrible crimes of the past twelve years had been the expulsion from their homes of human beings in vast numbers, because of their race or nationality. The crime was started by the Germans long before the war and was perpetrated against Jews and non-Aryan Christians. It was con­tinued during the war, when ablebodied men were transported for forced labor. The terrible process was still being continued, only now the perpetrators were our Allies. Those affected were, in the main, the poor, the old, and women and children, to the number of at least nine million; most probably twelve million. "The Archbishop of Canterbury, supporting the resolution, said that there was a cause for the re-ordering of population in some parts of Europe, but no one in the House could regard with anything but horror the way in which these deportations had been made, without the possibility of providing the decencies of life for those removed, and with the certainty that millions were bound to perish." From an item headed "Jewish Appeal for Germans" Dr. Ha­mann next quotes the following: "At a meeting in London arranged by the 'Save the Children Fund' Mr. Victor Gollancz, the publisher, speaking as a Jew and 'as a man of the Left since the age of six,' made a moving appeal on behalf of the starving and homeless millions of Germans. While children were fainting from undernourishment elsewhere in Europe, he said, in Germany children were falling down dead, not only in the streets of Berlin, but on the awful trek from the East. 'I am a Jew,' declared Mr. Gollancz, 'and six million out of sixteen million of my people have been massacred by the Nazis. THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 785 I have no particular reason to be tender towards the Germans, but I do not understand how a child of three can be responsible for what Herr Hitler did. I do not see how an ignorant peasant woman in Silesia can be more responsible for the sins of the German Government than an agricultural laborer in an English village. And even if she were responsible, is that any reason for behaving like Nazis? Is that a decent thing for a Western civilized Christian country to do?' " These expressions, coming from men against whom no charge of prejudice can be raised, are all the more valuable since, as Professor Hamann points out, "very similar utterances recently printed in a Lutheran publication were the signal for a rather unintelligible attack in the public press and in a book printed in Australia." J. T. M. Religious Conditions in Slovakia and Hungary. -60,000 Slovak Lutheran repatriates from Hungary are being resettled in areas where there is a serious shortage of pastors, according to Dr. J. Hutchison Cockburn, director of the Department of Re­construction and Interchurch Aid of the W orId Council of Churches, who has returned from a visit to Slovakia. "The Slovak Lutherans," Dr. Cockburn declared, "are being settled in Roman Catholic areas, where there is not only a shortage of Lutheran pastors but also of Lutheran churches." He declared that the Slovak Reformed Church, which has mostly Hungarian clergymen, also has an inadequate number of pastors as a result of an agreement for the exchange of 100,000 Slovaks from Hun­gary to Slovakia and vice versa. Dr. Cockburn said that many Slovak Reformed ministers have gone to Hungary, but none has come from Hungary to replace them. He reported that many clergymen are taking care of several parishes and that the Church is considering training laymen to help alleviate the short­age of ordained ministers. The World Council executive said moderate elements in Slovakia are hopeful that permission will be given Hungarian Protestants to hold services in Hungarian rather than Slovak. Dr. Cockburn announced that the recon­struction department this year has sent $35,000 in funds to Czecho­slovakia for interdenominational church aid, and has promised to send an additional $70,000 for youth camps and Christian insti­tutions. The department, he said, also sent $30,000 to the Czech Brethren Church and expects to forward another $20,000. Gifts of more than $20,000 have been received from American Lutherans and Congregationalists to be channeled through the W orId Council for the benefit of coreligionists in Czechoslovakia. -R. N. S. Books and the Book. -In his "Theological Table-Talk" in Theology Today (July, 1946) Dr. Hugh T. Kerr, Jr., calls attention to the fact that while the Bible is still the best seller, it may soon forfeit its place of pre-eminence, the Reader's Digest being one of a number of contenders for that honor. Other investigation has shown that while there were more requests for the Bible than 50 786 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER for any other book, Forever Amber and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn were close rivals. In fact, the survey concludes that "the reading of the Bible was equalled, if not surpassed," by popular novels. Other investigators, however, believe that regardless of the sale of the Bible itself, Biblical references and allusions are increasing in number in contemporary literature of all kinds. In a survey of "more than twelve thousand pages of American poetry pub­lished between 1930 and 1938 ... the 1930's show an increase of 50 per cent over the 1920's in Biblical references." (Quotations from L. E. Nelson's Ottr Roving Bible.) Dr. Kerr suggests that this might constitute "a statistics of more profound significance than the mere mathematical calculation of the number of Bibles printed, distributed, and sold within a given period." Another important fact is mentioned in Dr. Kerr's editorial. While Forever Amber and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn were widely read, also books with a definite religious background such as The Robe, The Keys of the Kingdom, and The Apostle proved remarkable best sellers. The whole subject is certainly one that merits much thought. J.T.M. "Theology Today" and the Revised Standard New Testament. Floyd V. Filson closes an excellent article on the Revised Standard New Testament in Theology Today (July, 1946) with the follow­ing significant words: "The final verdict on the R. S. V. will be given not by scholars and critics but by the working leaders and faithful members of the Church. For the present, the novelty of the version guarantees it wide attention. In the long run the Church as a whole must decide whether it is the best help in worship, teaching, and study. No one expects the A. V. (Author­ized Version) to be dropped from use; indeed, it may be recalled that the A. V., like many other versions, needed some time to win its way and was revised somewhat in the process; we cannot therefore expect the verdict on the R. S. V. to be given in a year. But when the Old Testament is complete and the full R. S. V. is available, the decision will then rest with the Church. A study of the New Testament portion of the work warrants two con­clusions: first, that further minor revision to give a more con­sistent rendering of the Greek is desirable and, second, that such an improved R. S. V. will have a real chance to win the favor of a majority of the Church." Certainly, a very fair and sane view to take of the new version. J. T. M. Le Tourneau and Christian Education. -In the Sunday School Times (July 20, 1946) Ernest Gordon reports that the well­known Christian industrialist Le Tourneau has opened a new plant in East Texas, and in connection with it the "Le Tourneau 'l'echnical Institute of Texas," with a faculty of teachers ill mathematics, mechanical drawing, chemistry, electricity, thermo­dynamics, physics, and metallurgy. Students will be able to sup­port themselves by working eight hours daily in the plant. Mr. Gordon quotes Le Tourneau as saying: "Our student workers THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 787 will be taught by the best teachers and shop instructors that good pay can provide .... Finally, Le Tourneau Tech will not neglect the most important phase of education. Students will have reg­ular classes for study of the Word of God and every encourage­ment through chapel services and other means to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and to learn from Him." Dr. Gordon com­ments on this: "What a rebuke this is to those unbelieving theo­logians who have perverted Christian schools and sterilized Bible teaching in hundreds of institutions in the United States!" J.T.M. Philip E. Howard of the "Sunday School Times." -On Satur­day morning, June 22, 1946, there was called to his eternal rest Philip E. Howard, Sr., president of the Sunday School Times since 1903, when he succeeded Dr. Henry Clay Trumbull. He joined the Sunday School Times in 1891, when he had graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and thus served it for fifty-five years. He was born in Lynn, Mass., on April 1, 1870, and became known in the course of time for his deep devotion to his Savior, which manifested itself radiantly in the articles he wrote for the Times. He also wrote or compiled fifteen books; among these his The Life Story of Henry Clay Trumbull, written in 1905 and perhaps his greatest work. Under his care and that of his co-workers the Sunday School Times ably and ceaselessly defended the funda­mentals of the Christian faith and thus became a leaven for good in thousands of homes when Modernism sought to destroy the Christian faith in so many churches. Early on Wednesday, June 19, there died also a valuable helper of Dr. Howard, Dr. E. J. Pace, who supplied the Times with more than fifteen hundred "Christian car­toons," most of which were hortatory or consolatory. Dr. Pace was sixty-six years old when he departed this life. J. T. M. Yugoslavia and the World Council of Churches. -Conditions in Yugoslavia are pictured vividly in an article submitted by R. N. S.; hence we print it here. It comes from Geneva. -For the first time since the outbreak of the war a representative of the World Council of Churches has succeeded in establishing per­sonal contact with churches in Yugoslavia. He is Dr. Paul Neff Garber, American-born Methodist Bishop in Europe, who has ar­rived here to report on conferences with Serbian church leaders. Dr. Garber said he interviewed representatives of the Serbian Orthodox Church, and of Reformed, Methodist, Baptist, and Sal­vation Army groups, in an effort to set up an interdenominational reconstruction committee similar to agencies established in other countries, but added, "I am not sure as to how successful I was." He disclosed that Serbian church leaders are anxious to receive much-needed material and spiritual aid, even indirectly, from the United States and Great Britain, but are fearful lest they open themselves to charges of "collaborating with western reaction­aries." Dr. Garber recalled that the Yugoslavian constitution specifically guarantees religious freedom, but said that although 788 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER worship services are being held openly, the churches suffer from "difficulties from other sources." As examples he cited the in­ternment of German nationals, which has "virtually ended Lu­theranism in Yugoslavia except among Yugoslavs," and the closing of many Methodist and other churches. He disclosed that the Government has requisitioned the Methodist tuberculosis sana­torium at Novi Sad and is running it as a state institution. During his stay in the country, Dr. Garber added, Salvation Army work was brought to a standstill by government requisitioning of the Army's buildings for storage purposes. "Because all instruction is in state hands," Dr. Garber declared, "there are no Sunday schools. Church-state relations are delicate at present, and this is especially true of the Sellbian Orthodox Church, which anti­Tito forces are charged with having sought to exploit." Resumption of Work by European Evangelistic Society.­From Indianapolis, Ind., via R. N. S., comes the following informa­tion: Resumption of work by the European Evangelistic Society, a voluntary Disciples of Christ group organized in 1935 to combat Nazism with Christian principles, is being planned here, Prof. Dean E. Walter of the Butler University School of Religion an­nounced. Professor Walter said the group will be incorporated as a formal body, and final plans for its work will be adopted at the international convention of the Disciples of Christ Aug. 6-11 at Columbus, Ohio. An exploratory commission will be sent to Europe to discover the most productive areas for the Society's work, Professor Walter said. The Society hopes to get in touch with former members suppressed during the Hitler regime and to find out what can be done to assist in the rehabilitation of Chris­tians in Europe. Organization of Protestant Episcopal Church. -When the General Convention (of the Protestant Episcopal Church) meets in Philadelphia on Sept. 10, the deputies will be representing 74 dioceses and 29 missionary districts of the Church. The con­vention meets triennially. The Living Church (Protestant Epis­copal) states: "Since 1786 General Convention has met regularly every three years, and while it has seen many changes and de­velopments, its basic organization has remained the same. From the time the Church had enough bishops to form a separate house, General Convention has been a bicameral body. While joint sessions are frequently held, all legislation is adopted by the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies sitting separately. On important matters the House of Deputies is further separated in voting, when the tally is made by dioceses and orders. Thus all legislation requires the consent of all three of the elements of the Church -the bishops, the clerical deputies, and the lay deputies. And since all of these are elected by the dioceses (except missionary bishops, who are elected by the House of Bishops), the government of the Church is a truly democratic one." The last sentence requires comment. While we do not THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 789 wish to say that an episcopalian organization of the Church is forbidden by Scripture, we hold that the congregational system which we follow in the Lutheran Church in America is in keeping with the example of the early apostolic Church. A. E. Stanley Jones on the Prospect of Missions in India.­Developments in India are followed with deep interest by all friends of Christian missions. Will India soon be an independent country? And if so, what will be the status of the missions con­ducted there by European and American Christians? Writing in the Christian Century, E. Stanley Jones takes an optimistic view of the future with respect to Christian missions if independence should come to India. He states, "To those who declare that minorities, especially the Christian minority, will be persecuted in the new India, I reply: There will be no such persecution. In its Karachi session the Congress set up a bill of rights guaranteeing religious freedom and the protection of minorities. That bill has been reaffirmed. A few months ago, when a mob got out of hand in Calcutta and partially burned the Methodist church, Abul Kalam Azad, the Moslem president of the All-India Congress party, called on the pastor, expressed his regret, and suggested that the Congress be allowed to restore the church as a pledge that all religious minorities will be secure under independence and all places of worship respected. The All-India Christian Association decided to ally themselves with the Indian National Congress. The private secretaries of both Gandhi and Nehru are Christians." Dr. Jones thinks that no one will be kept from embracing the Christian faith if he desires to do so. He reports that Acharya Kripalani, secretary of the Congress party, stated that conversions to Christianity will not be forbidden in the projected state, adding that he was speaking not merely as an individual, but as secretary of the Congress party and was ex­pressing its position. Let us hope that Dr. Jones is not seeing things in too rosy a light. A. Great Britain and the Palestine Question. -A correspondent of the Christian Century, writing from London, has this to say on views expressed in England concerning the Palestine issue: "Palestine is still a serious concern -one not to be solved, many are saying, by processions and banners with provocative slogans. The Archbishop of Canterbury has spoken the general mind of the Christian Church on the matter. He declared that those who try to confuse the government's action with anti-Semitism are guilty of a great disservice to the public interest both in England and in Palestine. It is true, he pointed out, that a clear indication of Palestine's future is greatly needed. 'The real problem,' he said, 'is that of the 500,000 and more Jews and all other displaced persons in Germany. That problem cries out for a solution, and there is little sign of l.ITgency in dealing with it. And yet, if the united nations combined to solve it, if every country were willing according to its capacity to give asylum for some, it would be 790 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER solved.' "-At this writing the daily press reports on the Pales­tinian situation are alarming. The issue seems to revolve not on the aspirations of Zionism, but on economic and social con-siderations. A. Modernists and Christian Terminology. -The Presbyterian (August 15, 1946) offers the following interesting editorial, show­ing the deceitfulness which Liberals practice when using the traditional Christian terminology. We read: "In the Christian Century an inquirer asks of Dr. Morrison, the editor, what he means by the word 'resurrection.' Dr. Morrison answers that he is not concerned to know whether Jesus after the 'resurrection' appeared in a resuscitated physical body or in some other form. He continues: 'On the whole, I am inclined to stand with Paul, who denied the resuscitation concept and based his argument on the concept of a spiritual body.' This is an astonishing statement. Where is the Scripture passage in which Paul denied the 'resusci­tation concept,' the concept that Jesus rose from the dead in His physical body? I cannot find it. It is not there. Paul's aim in 1 Corinthians 15 is first to prove the historical fact that Jesus rose from the dead, as the basis for our expectation that we too shall rise; then he declares that at our resurrection our bodies shall be 'changed.' But in proving the fact that Jesus rose, he brings forward the testimony of those to whom the risen Christ appeared. Exactly what was that testimony? We have it in the Gospels, three of which were written within ten or twelve years after Paul wrote his Epistle; and in the Book of Acts; and in certain other Epistles. Acts was certainly written in the late sixties; and the Epistles date from A. D. 52 to the late sixties. Put their testimony together and the only reasonable conclusion is that these men and women were convinced that Jesus had risen from the dead in the same body He had worn before death. Some of them were in the upper room when He, appearing, demonstrated to their terrified eyes and hands that He was not a spirit, but the same Jesus they had known, in the same body. The only way to nullify such evidence is to deny the historicity and authenticity of the documents containing it. As for me, I accept the New Testament documents with their implications." A fine testimony to the truth of Scripture against the flippant and false use of Christian terminology of which Modernists make themselves guilty. J. T. M. News from the International Convention of Jehovah's Wit­nesses. -Early in August Jehovah's Witnesses held a convention in Cleveland on which Religious News Service submits this report: "Sixty thousand Jehovah's Witnesses from many countries attending the international convention here received instructions at afternoon and night rallies on courtroom procedure, theocratic ministry, and door-to-door canvassing techniques. "Hayden C. Covington, head of the sect's legal department at Brooklyn, N. Y., headquarters, urged that the Witnesses prepare THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 791 their own defense cases carefully before going to court if ar­rested on 'fabricated charges such as preaching without a license or failure to obtain certain permits.' "Covington, reviewing court conduct rules, demanded the Witnesses maintain dignity, speak loudly, and show zeal by quoting Scriptures in their defense. "The society's suspended daily convention paper, the Mes­senger, out of print since the international convention in Columbus, Ohio, in 1937, was introduced at the convention by Grant Suiter, convention chairman. "Suiter called the Messenger the 'only way truth about Je­hovah's Witnesses can be carried to the people.' He charged the public press, while currently considerate of the Witnesses in what was published by Cleveland papers, had failed in its duty of telling the truth and giving accurate information. "The Messenger was sold to the general membership at all exits of the Municipal Stadium as they left the rally. Cost was five cents a copy or three for ten cents. Witnesses could sell or give these away to the general public, Suiter said. He announced 100,000 copies would be printed daily, but if the demand occurred, 'we'll print 200,000 or more.' "Municipal and civic organizations received a number of complaints during the day when no flag was seen flying over the Stadium. Witness officials asserted they thought the Stadium management was taking care of flag display. Paul J. Hurd, Stadium commissioner, reported no one had requested the flag be removed. He said the flags on the Stadium and Public Han would fly the next day. "An army of 50,000 trained Witnesses began a person-to­person evangelistic campaign of the Cleveland area to spread their beliefs. "N. H. Knorr, president of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society and head of the Witnesses, said, 'We're not lOOKing for new members, we only want to teach people the Bible.' "For a radius of 20 miles from Public Square the Cleveland district was divided into 11,773 territories, convention officials said. Teams of three to five persons were assigned to canvass every person in each territory. "General reaction of the public to the increasing pressure of Jehovah's Witnesses' evangelistic campaign was one of tolerant amusement. There were, however, several minor disturbances in the downtown area when enthusiastic Witness literature sellers persisted in trying to sell their material to passersby. Corner salesmen were pushed by angered pedestrians. Several young men Witnesses were jeered and called 'draft dodgers' by women." A Liberal Son of a Pious Mother. -Recently there appeared an interesting book, A Frontier Lady, by Sarah Royce; edited by Ralph Henry Gabriel, Yale University Press, New Haven, Conn. From this remarkable diary, from which Ernest Gordon in the 792 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER Sunday School Times (May 18, 1946) quotes enough to show that Sarah Royce was an outstanding Christian, upon whose strong faith and constant prayer depended the safety of her difficult trek to Cali­fornia in those early years when only few who ventured the arduous trip to the Golden State reached the West Coast. She believed in a prayer-answering God. She started with an ox team from Iowa -she, her young husband, and their small daughter Mary. Others joined along the way and broke away again. Every imaginable evil befell them on their long way -cholera, numerous attacks of hostile Indians, lack of water, want of food, the un­bearable heat, and dust, and the like. During the long journey she never for a moment lost her faith in the providing God, never omitted prayer. In due time the family reached the West Coast where they made their home. Here, after some years, there was born to Mr. and Mrs. Royce a son, who as Professor Royce of Harvard became internationally famous as a scholar. Mr. Gordon writes of him: "Professor Royce of Harvard was a man much talked of in his day. He had a prodigious head set on an under­sized frame and filled with a prodigious store of knowledge. His life was spent in discussion and analysis without coming to any definite conclusions so far as the man on the street would know. A few phrases survive him -'loyalty,' 'the beloved community," which many have heard and few can define. Of Christ and His work he never cared to speak, and of God he may have made some theoretical definition apart from revelation, but owing nothing to revelation. My recollection of him at this point is of his quoting in Latin with a quizzical expression the beginning of the Fifty­third Psalm "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God,' almost in a manner to indicate that the fool was not altogether mis­taken. . . . As a distinguished Californian professor, Royce was asked by a publishing house to write the story of California in a series of State histories. . . . It was at that time that he induced his mother to set down an account of her experiences of the overland journey in an oxcart to the Golden State. It was a remarkable manuscript, remarkable not only for the thrilling episodes of the long journey, but above all for the Christian faith and courage which runs through the whole account like a scarlet thread. Professor Royce wrote a little introduction to his mother's story. It was preceded by a preface from a Yale professor in history who thought it incumbent on him to contrast the religious earnestness of the mother with the skepticism of the son. He says: 'By the time Royce's education was completed, the main positions of the Puritan had been carried. The Bible could no longer be considered in the old literal sense the inspired word of Deity. The theology which rests on a magic book was in ruins,' and so forth. Josiah Royce expressed the temper of the new intellectual age; his mother in her narrative, loyalty to 'the old religion.' Royce himself was not so crude. His mother's experiences were to him poesy and imagination, touched with harmless self-deception .... THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 793 Professor Royce wrote about that fine trait 'loyalty.' His mother's transcontinental and troubled journey was an exhibition of a double loyalty -that of Christian loyalty to God and of God's loyalty to His people when in need. Professor Royce wrote of the 'beloved community.' His mother belonged to it. She was of Him 'of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named.''' J. T. M. The Influence of Anti-Christian Influences on Missions.­Ernest Gordon in the Sunday School Times (May 11, 1946) points out that mission work flourishes only where churches remain loyal to Christ's command. He writes: "Missions can never be suc­cessfully developed without much prayer and great faith. When these are wanting, they fade into mere schoolteaching and futility. Furthermore, missions have a program which was given them by the Lord Himself. It has no limitation on time or extent If this program is reduced to anything below the standard of 'every creature' and to the greatest immediacy, it shrivels. The professor of Missions in Union Seminary, Dr. Daniel J. Fleming, does not seem to realize this. His are worldly-wise plans. He writes of 'The World Task of the Church': 'Throughout the first two and a half decades of our period, missionary thought was under the influence of the slogan The Evangelization of the World in this Generation. Excessive efforts were made to enter every accessible field, and work was extended in many countries until it became excessively thin. About 1918 there began to be a reaction against this overextension. Surveys and reports of recent years recommend a more intensive policy and insist on the wisdom of quality rather than quantity in work. Increasing costs and lowered income have furthered this trend so that many societies have attempted to be less diffuse.' When the words of faith The Evangelization of the World in this Generation were accepted and acted on, missions flourished mightily. When they were laid aside, missions declined. Dr. Fleming continues: 'Contributions reached their maximum about 1920, beginning their decline well before the depression. . . . Instead of quite confidently planning policies on the basis of an indefinitely expanding budget, mission ad­ministrations have now had to face the possibility of a permanently reduced budget, since the capacity for giving on the part of the wealthy and those of moderate means is decreasing.' The date given coincides roughly with the control of seminaries and certain missionary societies by anti-Christian influences. Contributions then began their march into newer and evangelical missionary enterprises. Since then there has been an immense increment of missionary giving outside official church societies. This move­ment has both spiritual quality and missionary quantity. It aims at spreading the Gospel as widely and as quickly as possible, trusting the Holy Spirit to co-operate in deepening and intensifying the life of men and communities after their evangelization. It is Paul's method -'striving to preach the Gospel where Christ has not been named." It must be admitted that evangelical mission societies 794 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER at times have attempted too much and in consequence have done their work very superficially. But Modernism, with its stark unbelief and its outspoken appreciation of pagan religion, has definitely hurt the cause of missions. Infidels cannot be mis­sionaries because they have no saving Christ to proclaim. J.T.M. Did the Roman Catholic Church Support Fascism? -Spokes­men of Roman Catholicism naturally deny that their Church or its head, the Pope, sanctioned Fascism. At Hartford, Conn., a meeting was held at which Roman Catholic speakers stated that their Church should not be accused of having supported or having been sympathetic toward Fascism. A report in the Religious News Service emanating from Hartford gives this account of the meeting: "Charges that the Roman Catholic Church supported Fascism or was secretly allied to totalitarian forces while paying lip service to democracy were labeled false here by Dr. George N. Shuster, president of Hunter College, N. Y., at concluding sessions of a two­day conference of the Catholic Association for International Peace. Dr. Shuster, who is president of CAlP, spoke on 'The Contribution of the Church to Democracy in the World Crisis.' "Declaring that the Catholic Church has sponsored a pattern of social values which can give genuine liberty and justice to the world, Dr. Shuster told the gathering of priests and laity that 'the whole of the Catholic effort must be understood as a mass move­ment which developed out of the contest with Liberalism and Marxism for the soul of the peoples. " 'Though the goals of justice were important, something else­namely the Faith -was more important still, so that one might risk postponing the march toward the social objective for a while, or compromise on the means to attain it, if the religious purpose could thereby be served,' the Catholic educator said. "The conference heard a plea for faith in the United Nations Organization by the Rev. Robert A. Graham, S. J., who attende!i the UN meetings in London. He said that although the UN has become 'a battlefield for ideologies,' it will produce results in the long run. "'Impatience ana pessimism are too prominent today,' Father Graham declared. 'The UN stands for peace, and we should not withdraw our loyalty when failures occur.' He praised Mrs. Elea­nor Roosevelt's efforts in the assembly's defeat of Russian-backed proposals to repatriate forcibly all refugees. "Dr. James M. Eagan of the College of New Rochelle, N. Y.; deplored the 'great lack of leadership' on the part of the United States in the field of dependent or non-self-governing peoples. He warned that 'if we don't wake up and assume this leadership, Soviet Russia will' and said that the continuance of present policies will cnly 'make fertile ground for the spread of Communism.' "The Rev. Basil Matthews, O. S. B., Trinidad-born Negro priest, declared that representation of West Indians in the Caribbean Com-THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 795 mission of the United Nations is 'not adequate' and also urged that the commission be 'converted not reconverted' from wartime pur­poses to peacetime aims."-The verdict of history on the papal policy during the war will be awaited with interest. A. The. Two Issues Causing a Problem for Efforts at Union According to the Christian Century. -Concluding his series of articles on the question "Can Protestantism Win America?" Charles Clayton Morrison, editor of the Christian Century, sub­mits the thirteenth and final article on the subject "Protestantism and the Lordship of Christ." Discussing this topic, he says, "I can think of only two sectarian features which offer even a momentary problem for Protestantism that is devoutly concerned to be ecu­menical. One is the exclusive practice of baptism by immersion; the other the exclusive ordination of ministers within the historic episcopate. But the first can be easily reconciled in the ecumenical Church by the recognition of the full Christian status of those otherwise baptized and their acceptance by any local church with­out re-baptism. The second is really not so difficult as it has been made by the inflexible position of those on both sides. Protes­tantism in general has no convictions that inhibit its acceptance of the historic epscopate, for every denomination has its own shorter-lived and less impressive, but still historic, episcopate. By some such procedure as the so-called South India plan, the historic episcopate could, within a generation, become the position of an ecumenical Protestantism." The two points which Dr. Mor­rison mentions should indeed not cause much difficulty. But how about the real presence in the Lord's Supper, the substitutionary atonement of the Son of God, and of the doctrines that are pointed to by sola gratia and sola fide, not to mention sola Scriptum? He is looking at the scene from a very narrow point of view. A. The Decline and Fall of Rauschenbusch Theology. -"Even one of his foremost disciples, Prof. J. W. Nixon of Rochester (writes the Sunday School Times, June 8, 1946) , lecturing on the Rauschen­busch Foundation, is obliged to say: 'The phrase social gospel is still in decline and may never come back. Its work may be finished.' Dr. William Adams Brown wrote before his death: 'When Rauschenbusch comes to discussing remedies, his conclusions seem almost naively optimistic. . . . The high hopes entertained by the earlier advocates of the social gospel have been followed by later disillusionment. It is not simply that they have failed. What is worse is that, in the measure that they have succeeded, they have been disappointing.' Dr. McGiffert of the Chicago Divinity School, writing on Walter Rauschenbusch Twenty Years After, says his successors took over social vision minus the religious resources of the earlier day. They have discovered that service and reform cannot satisfy the deeper longings of the human heart. 'They are enrolling under any banner, whatever that promises to deal with, the personal problems of decision and destiny ... .' Even 796 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER Kagawa (himself a liberal), when asked what message he would most like to give to American Christians, replied: 'First, we in Japan need prayer. Second, send us missionaries who will serve Christ; we cannot use a bunch of social workers. Third, send us Bibles and New Testaments in Japanese.''' All of which goes to show that a Church without the spiritual Gospel of Christ is also void of any effective social gospel, the term here being used in its best sense. J. T. M. Catholic Priest Urges Protestants Not to Marry Catholics.­The Catholic priest in question lives in Chicago. He is editor of Novena Notes, national Catholic weekly published in Chicago. His name is Rev. Hugh Calkins, O. S. M. This is the report R. N. S. submits on his editorial: "To non-Catholics thinking of marrying Catholics, we say, 'please don't,' Father Calkins stated in an editorial. "Referring to the pledge a non-Catholic must make prior to the marriage, which requires that all children of the union be baptized as Catholics and brought up in the Catholic faith, Father Calkins said, 'If you are a devout non-Catholic, how can you in conscience swear to such promises?' "The position of the Catholic Church, the priest explained, is tantamount to a declaration that, 'we don't dislike you, but we'd prefer that you didn't play in our yard. However, if you insist, you'll have to play our rules.' "Accepting such a position and taking the oath means 'you are being disloyal to your non-Catholic beliefs,' he added. "Church laws forbid most strictly mixed marriages. Not be­cause we wish to antagonize other creeds, not to work hardships upon couples, but to safeguard the faith for Catholics. That faith is divinely precious and is lost very often by mixed marriages. Though you may not agree, you can see our point is sane." Rome Opposing Dutch Unity Trade Union Movement. -The Roman Catholic hierarchy of Holland has issued a pastoral letter forbidding Catholics to become members of the new Unity Trade Union Movement because it is a 'Communist organization.' The letter was read in all Catholic churches throughout the country. "The bishops also declared that the ban on Catholic member­ship in the N. V. V. (Dutch Trade Union Congress) and other So­cialist organizations would be continued until the facts 'show that the aims and principles of such organizations are no longer in opposition to Christian beliefs and the Christian spirit.' "'It has become apparent,' the pastoral letter declared, 'that the Unity Trade Union is working under the guise of national unity in ways indisputably Communist. The clear-thinking part of the community has rejected it, and there can no longer be any doubt that Catholics may not be members of this Unity movement. "'What we stipulated earlier about membership in Com­munist organizations now applies to membership in this trade union movement. Any Catholics who are members of this move­ment must be refused the Holy Sacrament.' THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 7H7 "Discussing the Catholic position toward the N. V. V. and So­cialist groups generally, the Dutch bishops said: "'These organizations show a tendency to free themselves from Marxist principles and purely materialistic aims steadfastly condemned by the Church. Because of this, leaders of these organizations thought membership would no longer be forbidden to Catholics. Although we may not blind ourselves to this de­velopment in Socialist organizations, we must exercise care and keep to our former decision to forbid membership in these or­ganizations.' "In the same vein, the bishops discouraged membership by Catholics in neutral and humanitarian organizations which are not founded on Christian principles. "'At the present time,' they asserted, 'we must reject these organizations if we are to build on a true foundation. Neutral organizations are not acceptable to Catholics. The rightful place of the Catholic is not in one of these organizations, but . . . as a member of an organization which is clearly governed by Chris­tian principles.' "The bishops added, however, that Catholics may 'co-oper­ate with humanitarian societies which, although not founded on Christian beliefs are striving for the upbuilding of a better com­munal life by working in the same direction as Catholics."­Religious News Se7·vice. Brief }terns. -President Truman has appointed a missionary educator to be the ambassador of the United States to China. Ii is Dr. J. Leighton Stuart, a Presbyterian, president of Yenching University of Peiping. An editorial in the Christian Century of July 24 can hardly be read without bringing tears to one's eyes. It has the caption, "The Children Have Ceased to Cry," The editorial describes conditions in Europe, quoting reports. "All Vienna is hungry; the children have ceased to cry, for they know there is no food to still their hunger," says one account. What is true in Vienna undoubtedly is the case in many another province or section of central Europe. That the removal of Nazism has not meant the elimination of the spirit of hatred, of murder, and of lustful power is shown by the recent pogrom in Poland, in which more than 40 Jews were killed. The scene of the frightful episode was Kielce. Baptists lament the death of Dr. Curtis Lee Laws, who died in New York City, July 7, 1946, almost 78 years old. He was editor of the Watchman-Examiner from 1911 to 1938 and can be said to have served with distinction. It is reported that in India the prohibition issue is playing an important role in public discussions. Prohibition is one of the fundamental aims of the Indian National Congress. Plans have been made for a visit of Pastor Martin Niemoeller in this country. He is expected to arrive late in November, 788 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER accompanied -by his wife. When the biennial meeting of the Federal Council of Churches will convene in Seattle, December 3-6, he is expected to be one of the speakers. The National Lutheran Council and Lutheran World Convention officials are among the parties seeking to provide speaking dates for him. Philanthropic giving, so the press states, has experienced a general "upswing" this year. "New York gave $94,160,497 during the first six months of this year, compared with $45,080,558 in the first six months of 1945. According to a report in the Christian Beacon a single mis­sionary in China now would require $180,000 Chinese a month and about $20 in D. S. A. money a week just to live. Dr. Dodd [a Presbyterian missionary] paid $26,000 just to get his luggage up from the customs house to his place of abode in Shanghai. Board costs $5,000 a day. An orange would cost from $500 to $1,000. A haircut costs $800, and $860 in stamps were affixed to the letter which brought this news. The official exchange rate is $2,000 Chinese to one American. [The daily press reports that this has been altered to about $2,400 Chinese to one American.] In the black market $12,000 to one could be obtained. [Wishing to adhere to the agreement made by our Government with the Chinese Government, we cannot avail ourselves of the advantages of the black market, which accounts for it that our mission in China at present is very expensive. -A.] The Luther League of America (D. L. C. A.), at its fiftieth anniversary convention, inaugurated a campaign to raise $25,000 by 1949 for mission work in British Guiana. Brief Items from Religious News Service. -Investigation has shown that in areas of Kentucky and southern Indiana that were studied religious radio programs rank second in popularity. The response to them amounts to 21 per cent, and the only type of program that ranks higher (26 per cent) is the kind that features hillbilly music. Protestantism has lost ground in France during the past 75 years, according to a study prepared by Pastor Roquette and published in the Bulletin of French Protestantism. This pastor states that there are at present 237,000 members of the Reformed Church as compared with 480,000 listed in the 1872 official census of Reformed Church members. His study does not include the 350,000 Lutherans in Alsace. In 1943 only 4,076 babies were baptized in the Reformed Church while 6,272 members died. Converts numbered only 283. Migrations from the country to towns has led to the closing of 125 parishes out of 650. From Paris comes the news that across the fiat, unshaded plain of Beauce, north of Chartres, a band of 30 English pilgrims are marching in the hot sun on their way to Vezelay to join pilgrims from 13 other nations taking part in an international crusade for peace. Since July 1 they have walked an average of 50 miles f). day, carrying an 8S-pound cross. The English pilgrims THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 799 are headed by a young Dominican priest from Oxford. The cross is to be set up on the site where St. Bernard preached his crusade 800 years ago. Shall one smile or weep? At the Montreat, North Carolina, Leadership School the as­sertion was made that "young married couples and young people just out of college are the 'most unchurched' group in the nation." The next largest unchurched group is said to be that of very young children, who could be but are not attending church schools. In 1830 over 80 per cent of the nation's population were farmers, while today the figure is about 20 per cent. Whoever tries to understand American life and the religious scene must take these conditions into consideration. October 21-23 a national conference on the control of juvenile delinquency is to be held in Washington, D. C., according to an announcement of Attorney General Tom C. Clark. Five hundred delegates from all 48 States will participate. The War Assets Administration in Washington, D. C., an­nounces that preference will be given to religious groups in the purchase of government-owned chapels in this country and abroad. Those that wish to use chapels as shrines or memorials will be given first consideration. Second consideration will be given purchasers who will utilize them for religious purposes. Around Milan, Italy, a strange kind of antireligious fanaticism is manifesting itself. From 14 Roman Catholic churches in Milan the "sacred host" was stolen. The thefts are attributed to agents of a secret society. known as the "Devil's Prelate." The society is said to hold regular meetings in various Milan hotels, at which hosts are burned at the conclusion of a "black mass." Dr. Hans Lilje, former secretary of the Lutheran World Con­vention, stafed recently that there has been "an amazing response among German youth to religion and that they are avidly seeking religious guidance and example." In his home town of Hanover "fifteen to twenty thousand young people attended an open-air religious meeting, and many more were present at a subsequent gathering." At an auction of English and foreign Bibles and New Testa­ments, a first-edition copy of John Eliot's Indian Bible, printed 1663 at Cambridge, Mass., was sold for $4,200. A defective copy of Miles Coverdale's Version (of which no perfect copy exists) was sold for $8,000. It was printed in 1535. A copy of the first edition of Thomas Cromwell's Great Bible, printed in 1539, brought $5,200. An unpressed impression of the first issue of the first edition of the King James Version of 1611 with "he" instead of "she" reading in Ruth 3: 15 (commonly known as the "He" Bible) also brought $8,000. The Office of Church World Service in New York, the joint Protestant relief agency, announces that it shipped overseas 868,600 pounds of food, clothes, and other supplies valued at $328,000 800 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER during the month of June. The largest quantity of food to a single country -71 tons -went to Hungary to supplement the average daily diet of 800-900 calories per person. Three carloads of food and clothing were consigned to Poland. Other countries that received aid were Korea, Italy, France, Belgitlm, Holland, Austria, Germany, Greece, and China. When on July 7 Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini was declared a saint, it was pointed out that her case is of unusual interest, because she is the first United States citizen canonized and because her canonization took place within the comparatively short space of thirty years following her death. If a person is to be canonized, he first has to be declared a Venerable and a Beatus. (Venerable is the title accorded to a "servant of God" whose cause for beatifica­tion has reached the stage where his heroic virtue or martyrdom has been proved, while the title of Beatus entitles the person to receive public veneration.) The process of canonization is very costly. Doctors are called to certify that the miracles proposed cannot be explained on scientific grounds. The case is debated by the postulator, who favors the canonization, and the promoter of the faith, whose task is to raise all sorts of objections ("the devil's advocate"). -Are any comments required? In Marion, Ind., religion will be taught in the public schools. The plan was proposed by the Community Council of Weekday Religious Education and approved by representatives of the Catho­lic, Protestant, and Jewish faiths. According to the plan, an elective course will be available for senior high school students, and an elementary course will be offered to all fourth-grade pupils. The teachings will conform to state legislation, and no student will take the course without parental consent. The Central District of the American Lutheran Church meeting in Millard, Nebr., tabled a resolution calling for "selective fellow­ship" between the American Lutheran Church, the United Lu­theran Church, and the Missouri Synod. Somewhere in the future is a world Church in which Chris­tians of all faiths will be united, Methodist Bishop Ivan Lee Holt of St. Louis declared in Dallas, Texas. "I don't know how it will come about, but the need is so obvious that it cannot be helped," he asserted. The world Church which Bishop Holt envisions will unify Protestants and Catholics. "Not in my time or in the imme­diate future will we see a working world Church, but in some distant future, it will come, it must," he declared. Bishop Holt, who is president of the Ecumenical Methodist Council, pointed out that there are 92 Protestant and Orthodox denominations bound together in the World Council of Churches, but with which Roman Catholics are not affiliated, and said that his dream is one in which all bodies will be united into one. The Bishop shortly will fly to England to help plan the next world conference of Methodists, which probably will convene in Oxford in 1947 or 1948. A.