arnurnr~ta m~tn1ngirul flnut1}ly Continuing LEHRE UNO WEHRE MAGAZIN FUER Ev.-LUTH. HOMlLETlK THEOLOGICAL QUARTERL Y-THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY Vol.xvm May, 1947 CONTENTS The lUelanchthonian Blight. Richard R. Caemmerer Conference Paper on Romans 4:5. H . J. Bollman . Sennon Study on Micah 7:14-20. Th. Laetsch Outlines on the Nitzsch Gospel Selections Miscellanea Theological Observer Book Review No.5 Pap 321 338 M8 364) __ _ 374 388 .396 Ein Predlger muss n!cbt alleln w d - den. aJao daM er die Scbafe unter- weise. wle ale recbte ChrIsten sollen seln.sondern auch daneben den Woe1- fen wehnn. da8s lie die Schafe n!cbt angrelfen und mit falscber Lehre ver- fuehren und Irrtum elnfuehren. Es Jst Jteln Dtag. du die Leute mehr bel der Klrcbe behae1t dean die gute Predlgt. - Apologte. An. 24 Luthe7- If the trumpet live an uncertain sound. who ahall prepare hlmIelf to the battle ? - 1 COf'. 14:3 Published by the Ev. Luth. Synod of Missouri, Ohio, aud Other States CONCORDIA PUBUSBING BOUSE, St. Louis 18, Mo. pUKftIJ IN 17 ... &. Theological Observer Seminary Extension Centers. - Concordia Teachers College, Seward, Nebr., will conduct a pastors' school for three weeks from June 23 until July 11. It will operate as a part of the extension division of Concordia Theological Seminary. The following courses will be offered: Pastoral Psychology, Rev. Virtus Gloe; Lutheran Reformation in Education, Rev. Virtus Gloe; New Testament Word Pictures, Prof. W. F. Wolbrecht; Guidance, Prof. L. G. Bickel, Ph. D. In addition the pastors may enroll in the regular summer school classes. All the facilities of the college will be available, and the rates will be reasonable. For a catalog address Pres. A. O. Fuerbringer, Concordia Teachers College, Seward, Nebr. A second extension center will be established at the Concordia Academy, Portland, Oreg., June 9-28. Doctors Bretscher and Rehwinkel of Concordia Seminary will be the lecturers during this three-week period. Enrollees are able to earn credits toward the B. D. or the S. T. M. degree conferred by Concordia Seminary. President Thomas Coates will gladly. furnish further information. F.E.M. Suggestions of the A. L. C. for Lutheran Union. - The Lu- theran Standard of March 22 reports that the Intersynodical Fel- lowship Committee of the American Lutheran Church met in 'Columbus, Ohio, on March 4. In this meeting a report on the progress of the co-operation between the A. L. C. and the U. L. C. A. was received; the resolution of the A. L. C. "to explore the measure of agreement with other Lutheran bodies and to further such agree- ment toward the goal of true unity" was discussed. The report continues: "In furtherance of this duty laid upon us and in view of the -forthcoming synodical meeting of the honorable Synod of Missouri, our Committee adopted the following: "1. Our Committee is bound by and herewith reiterates the position formulated in the resolution adopted by the American Lutheran Church in 1938, to wit: " 'That we declare the Brief Statement of the Missouri Synod, together with the Declaration of our Commission, a sufficient doc- trinal basis for church fellowship between the Missouri Synod and the American Lutheran Church. "'That, according to our conviction and the resolution of the Synod of Missouri, passed at its convention in St. Louis, the afore-mentioned doctrinal agreement is a sufficient doctrinal basis for Church-fellowship, and that we are firmly convinced that it is neither necessary nor possible to agree in all non-fundamental doctrines. Nevertheless, we are willing to continue the negotiations concerning the points termed in our Declaration as "not divisive [380] THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 381 of Church-fellowship," and recognized as such by the Missouri Synod's resolutions, and instruct our commission on Fellowship accordingly.' "2. We earnestly reaffirm our conviction that no intervening discussions which we have with the Committee on Doctrinal Unity of Missouri have revealed any fundamental doctrinal difference in the understanding of the Lutheran Confessions that forbid entry into pulpit and altar fellowship with the Missouri Synod. "3. Our Committee's concurrence in abandoning efforts to secure the formulation and adoption of the Doctrinal Affirmation which underwent several revisions is based on the following considerations: "a. We hold that the slight divergencies in language and point of view between the Brief Statement and the Declaration all lie in areas where there exists an allowable and wholesome latitude of theological opinion on the basis of the teachings of the Word of God. "b. We further hold that to make the production of a unified statement of the sort contemplated in the Doctrinal Affirmation an absolute sine qua non of Christian fellowship constitutes a threat to evangelical liberty of conscience by demanding a degree of uniformity in the statement of Christian truth that is incompatible with the Scriptures and with strict intellectual candor. "4. In accordance with the foregoing sentiments we are happy to make the following suggestions: "a. That we have a joint meeting with the Committee on Doc- trinal Unity of the Missouri Synod as soon as it can be arranged for the purpose of answering the question: What practical steps can be taken to demonstrate in action, life, and practice the measure of unity which now exists? "b. That we express our willingness to make available to the proper floor committee at the 1947 convention of the Synod of Missouri several representatives of our committee in order to make personal conference possible." F. E. M. National Lutheran Council Expands. - The Lutheran Outlook reports that in its annual meeting in Detroit, January 21-24, the National Lutheran Council "will henceforth take over the functions of the American Section of the Lutheran World Federation, and the American Section will be disbanded following the meeting of the Federation in Lund, Sweden, next summer. The merger move was proposed by a joint committee from the two groups and was approved by both organizations in Detroit, meeting at first separately and then together. The action was taken to conform with a provision in the new constitution of the Lutheran World Federation which calls for a national committee of the Federation in every country where it has member Churches. The National Lutheran Council will thus become the national committee of the Federation in the United States." The National Lutheran Council is becoming more and more 382 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER the agency for joint efforts of the U. L. C. A. and the American Lutheran Conference in such areas as student service, youth work, radio, publication, and postgraduate theological training. The editor comments on these joint efforts as follows: "It is evident from the aggressiveness with which the Council is expanding its co-operative activities in various directions that it is laying the framework for a larger Lutheran unity. The development of its work since the beginning of World War II has been little short of phenomenal. The Council, however, is in no sense usurping the work of the various Churches, but is merely assuming tasks com- mitted to it by the eight General Bodies affiliated with it. It can hardly be said, therefore, that the Council is developing into a Super-Church, although it is not difficult to foresee how its con- tinued expansion will make it the logical basis for organic Lu- theran unity. "That such consummation is not viewed with either mis- givings or displeasure on the part of a large segment of Lutherans was indicated last November when the American Lutheran Con- ference, in renouncing any ambition it may have cherished of becoming the unifying force among the Lutherans of this country, declared it to be its 'undeviating purpose' to find through the National Lutheran Council 'the door to effective unities in faith and in labor for all Lutheran Churches in America.' "It is clear from the decisions made at Detroit that the National Lutheran Council considers that it has received a mandate. It has been given the green light. It is shifting into high gear." F.E.M. The Age of Protestantism. - According to the Lutheran Standard, March 8, 1947, Dr. Kenneth Scott Latourette, professor of Missions and Oriental History at Yale University, declared that Protestantism is today in the van in world-wide leadership, but questioned whether Protestantism is prepared to take advantage of its opportunities. The war, he said, has made England a second- class power, and the influence of the Church of England is cor- respondingly weakened. The Lutheran Church cannot be expected to playa major role in this Age of Protestantism, because the Lutheran Church has received a body blow in its traditional stronghold. He therefore urged his Baptist audience to seize the opportunity which is theirs today. The fact is, that, as the cor- respondent points out, the future of Lutheranism in Europe rests, under God, on the Lutherans in America. However, it must be added that only a Lutheranism which is really loyal to its Lutheran heritage will be able to cope with the crypto-Calvinistic influences which are active through the World Council. There are a number of straws in the wind which indicate that an ecumenical Chris- tianity is in a process of developing in Central Europe which will ultimately result in a union more unionistic than the old Prussian union. The great task in Central Europe for American Lutherans is not to erase the difference between Lutheran and Reformed theology, but to re-establish the Lutheran churches on the basis of sound confessionalism. F. E. M. THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 383 Each One Reach One. - According to the Watchman-Examiner (February 6, 1947) Miss Grace Moore had completed religious instruction under Fulton J. Sheen and was to join the Catholic Church upon her return to this country. The Watchman-Examiner comments: "This announcement by the Roman Church's best known proselyter in this country creates in us the suspicion that outstanding public people are now the chief concern of the Roman Church, which is following a policy of cultivation and personal interest with a view to their enrollment as Catholics. The public statements made by Mrs. Clare Boothe Luce and other outstanding converts support this conclusion. Really, it is quite reasonable. The Roman Catholics are to be complimented on their efficiency in dealing with the spiritual needs of neglected people. Probably no group is more ignored by Christian churches than outstanding men and women in public entertainment, politics, commerce, and culture." How little the converts to Catholicism derive from their instruction is apparent from Mrs. Luce's letters in which she gives the reasons for her joining the Catholic Church. It seems to us that she is looking for some kind of a rapport with God, and that Rome's mysticism can answer this yearning of her heart for a mystical union with God. Rome's theology makes this possible, for it teaches that the soul, coming into existence by a creative act of God, has a natural yearning to be re-united with its original Source. A number of exchanges have reported Miss Moore's alleged conversion to Catholicism and have made the point that the Roman Catholics are gaining a number of prominent Americans for their Church, because they are "sufficiently interested in them to take the time and effort necessary to try and persuade them to become one of their flock." The exchanges point out the obvious lesson that Protestantism has frequently emphasized mass evan- gelism and has forgotten the individual person. The program of personal evangelism is the technique which our Savior employed and which under God has been successfully used in our circles and which at present is being promoted as the "Each One Reach One" program. In this program the important thing is that each one feels personally responsible for the spiritual welfare of some- one. Social and economic distinctions must be completely ignored in this program, and we must be as anxious to gain the rich and socially prominent as the poor and insignificant. F. E. M. Laymen in Church Affairs. - Under this heading the Christian Century (March 12, 1947) replies to an editorial published in the same periodical in its issue of Feb. 12 by Dr. Stanley High, in which he "directed a clarion call to Layman Charles P. Taft, the new president of the Federal Council of Churches, to 'enlist the laymen' in the work of the Federal Council and in the affairs of the denominations." This he announced as Mr. Taft's "unique and prophetic opportunity." The article at first refutes such statements of Mr. High as "that Protestantism is preacher-ridden" and "that 384 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER it is held down by clericalism." While these statements are rejected as unfounded in fact, the writer nevertheless admits that Protestant laymen are not as well informed about church affairs and not as active in them as they should be. Especially in the areas of church union and of mission work the laity has proved itself both uninformed and non-co-operative. In the article occur a number of statements which also we of the Lutheran Church would do well to consider. Here is one: "Steadily, for two or three genera- tions, the drift in Protestantism has been toward the Roman Catholic type of church in whose affairs the layman has no creative or responsible part at all. This is a stultification of Protestantism. It works very well in Catholicism, where the voice of the hierarchy is the authoritative voice of the church. But in Protestantism, the voice of the clergy has only such authority as is represented by the participating intelligence and devotion of its laity" (which sentence, of course, from the Lutheran viewpoint requires correction). Or take another. Mr. High had written: "I venture the assertion that there is not a single proposal for church unity now being considered that an assembly of representa- tive laymen of the denominations involved, convened under non- clerical auspices, and with the issue uncomplicated by clerical treatment, would not speedily vote through." To this the writer of the article, admitting the statement to be true, replies: "There is among the laity a deep yearning for a united Protestantism, a puzzled wondering why it is so difficult to attain, and an impatience with the endless talk of the clergy who solemnly declare that it is God's will and yet continue with apparent complacency to hold on to the sectarian order." But that is not all, for the writer adds to his remarks the following criticism: "Mr. High's suggestion, if taken literally, would be disastrous. It might result in a vote for unity, but it would not result in unity. No intelligent layman would entertain it for a moment. It is folly to imagine that if you could just get rid of the clergy, you could solve the church's probLems with simple directness" (italics our own). Then he writes: "It is equally inept to charge the glacial pace of the Christian unity movement to 'theology' and to assume that if you could get rid of theology, the non-theological mind of the laity would make short work of the problem. Any such solution would reduce the chu1'ch to the status of a purely secular institution. All the church's problems are theological at bottom. And every so-called 'non-theological' solution of these probLems is itself theo- logical. The preacher (God forgive him!) who has taught his lay- men to scorn theology does so in the name of a hidden theology of his own, a theology which he has not taken sufficient intellectual pains to make articulate. It is not theology that stands in the way of Christian unity, but BAD theology (italics our own). No truer words could have been written than these. Only the Christian Century does not know what "bad theology" is. Under "bad theology" every Christian loyal to Scripture understands unscrip- tural and antiscriptural theology, that is, theology that departs from THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 385 the Word of God. But what the writer means by "bad theology" he describes as follows: "Any theology that inhibits or obstructs Christian unity is bad theology, but it can be countered only by a good theology, that is, Christian theology." This itself, to use the writer's words, is "bad theology," which does not make sense. In a larger way, however, it remains true that "it is not theology that stands in the way of Christian unity, but bad theology," that is, the deviation from God's Word as this is set forth in Scripture. That lies at the bottom of all church factions and church divisions, and this both pastors and laymen should realize. We believe that in the Lutheran Church greater efforts are being made both to teach laymen theology and to acquaint them with, and interest them in, church affairs, especially mission work. But in this we can never reach perfection, and so we must continually strengthen our endeavors along these lines. The article closes with the sen- tence: "The gap between the clergy out in front and the laity in the rear can be closed only by bringing up the rear!" That is correct. In aU church affairs the clergy and the laity must work shoulder to shoulder. As we cherish a well-informed and active clergy, so also we must nurture a well-indoctrinated, discerning, and aggressive laity rooted in faith and love. J. T. M. Catholics Pray for Lutherans. - We caught this bit of news in the Lutheran (February 12, 1947), which reports that on January 21 of this year the Rev. John Coffey of Villanova College held a special service of prayecr: for Lutherans at the Catholic University, Washington, D. C., this being one of eight services on behalf of "sheep outside the fold." In his address Father Coffey said: "Our part must be one of sympathy and leadership to bring the Lutherans back to Christ. First of all prayer ... then under- standing ... finally, good example." Lutherans can well under- stand this desire of Catholic leaders "to bring the Lutherans back to Christ." It is a part of the present-day missionary movement of the Catholic Church to restore Protestants, especially such as still believe the Christian fundamentals and are not vitiated by modern secularism, to the bosom of Mother Church. To do this means for a Catholic to bring back Protestants to Christ. And that Catholics are very serious in their determination to win Prot- estants back to Catholicism is proved by the triple exhortation that this should be done by prayer, understanding, and good example. Lutherans, of course, know that to be brought back to Catholicism means the very opposite of being brought back to Christ. It means actually to renounce Christ, for it implies the rejection of the sola fide. In his sermon Father Coffey, moreover, said: "Not only is Martin Luther dead, but his doctrine is dead also. Luther de- clared the pre-eminence of the Bible as the sole rule of faith. Today Protestants admit that the Bible is not read and often not even preached." Admitting the claim that "often the Bible is not even preached" to be true, Protestants certainly do not concede the truth of the statements that "the Bible is not read" and that 25 386 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER Luther's "doctrine is dead also." As a matter of fact, the Bible is being read very diligently in large circles not only of Protestants, but also of people who are nominally Catholic yet have lost faith in their Church. Luther's sola Script-UTa still stands in believing Protestantism just as his sola gratia is still being held by faithful Christians everywhere. If Father Coffey thinks otherwise, he is badly in error. The news item in the Lutheran closes with a sig- nificant touch of irony. In January Catholics prayed also for their own people who have strayed from the faith. The Rev. Peter Duffee is quoted as having said in an address aimed at the winning back of erring Catholics: "We must face the alarming fact that the passage of every year sees some increase in the number of those who were, and who are no longer Catholics." It was well for the Lutheran to append this note since very often the mistaken notion is found that Romanism, while gaining converts, is not losing many of its own members. In some areas, it seems, the loss is tremendous. We find in Rome's activism a challenge to Lutheranism to keep on proclaiming the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ. Facing Romanism on the one hand and secularism on the other, the Lutheran Gospel trumpet certainly dare not give an uncertain sound. J. T. M. Married a Catholic. - The Lutheran (February 12, 1947) in its "Personal Problem Clinic" column reports the case of a Lutheran who married a Catholic and now finds himself face to face with a most serious problem, which he created when he married a Catholic girl and joined her church. He writes (in part): "I've never been satisfied with my new church connection. I don't understand what it's all about, and still feel that the Lutheran Church is much better. Our differences in religious views have made family life a tense, unpleasant experience. At times we lose control of our feelings, and our differences are expressed in ugly words. Home isn't what it ought to be. We have two chil- dren, a boy of six and a girl eight years old. They have been pretty hard to handle, for Agnes and I can't always agree on what should be done. Since we pay so little attention to the church, the youngsters haven't had much religious teaching. The girl is a real problem. She won't listen to us, and I am wondering what wild thing she'll do next. She's not afraid of God, man, or the devil. I've thought of putting her into a parochial school. Maybe the sisters could control her, but there is no parochial school near us." So far the letter, which pastors might remember when dealing with Lutherans desiring to marry Catholics. The thing simply does not work! But what surprises us is the advice which is given this perturbed Lutheran, whose conscience no doubt causes him much trouble. Here is some of it: "You married a Catholic, and you did it with your eyes open. Now you should go the very limit to live up to it and to make a success of your marriage. Of course, you'd have a hard time trying to agree with all the teachings and practices of that communion. You're really a Lutheran at heart. THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 387 In the Catholic Church there are many things with which Protes- tantism agrees. And about the others it's futile to argue. It's up to you to make the best of a bad bargain - don't sulk in your tent. You and Agnes still have a good many things in common - con- centrate on those things. And you'll have to get together on ways of dealing with your children. Harmony at this point is a prime requisite for happy home life. Go to church together. Worshiping together will help you see eye to eye in many other matters. . . . If possible, start family devotions .... Do your best and pray God's blessing on your efforts." This means that the perplexed Lutheran should continue worship in the Catholic Church despite his accusing conscience. This means, too, that there should be no testimony on behalf of the truth, as the Lutheran sees it, in his own home. Nothing is said at all about the important point which Luther so greatly stressed when inveighing against monastic vows, namely, that such vows and promises are contrary to God's Word and conscience and should therefore not be kept. We realize that it is difficult to advise, through the press, people who are in trouble, since the writer has no personal contact with the one whom he wishes to counsel. But the advice which is here given will certainly not help the alarmed husband regain his peace of mind. If he is still a Lutheran at heart, he should profess this by penitently returning to the Church which he wrongly left. From there on his Lutheran pastor may counsel him along more specific evangelical and Scriptural lines. J. T. M. The Church and the Economic Order. - There are primarily two approaches to a solution of the question concerning the Church and the economic order. The Lutheran view is that the problem of economics is within the realm of reason and that it is not the function of the Church to solve mankind's social problems. Never- theless as a member of society the Christian not only has a vital stake in the social order, but as a sanctified person has a grave responsibility in solving society's problems. The Church has the God-given duty to awaken within its members the awareness of their social obligations, as well as to educate them to make a worth-while contribution in the solution of the economic problems. The Epistles of St. Paul frequently speak about the Christian's social responsibility and lay down guiding principles for every social relation of our modern society. This is only natural, for the Christian life is not spent in a vacuum, but in a social environ- ment, be that society, the home, industry, government, or business. While the natural man seeks a solution of his social and economic problems according to reason, the Christian realizes that God's Word has laid down basic principles which must govern him in his various social relations. We must carefully distinguish between the modern social gospel, which is virtually a rational approach to the social problems, and the social implications of the Gospel which lie in the field of sanctification. Only the Gospel can produce the new life and God-pleasing social relations. There- 388 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER fore the Christian Church can speak on social problems only to those who are members of Christ's kingdom. The adherents of the Calvinistic principle take an entirely different view. They say that the Church has been appointed by God as the instrument to establish the sovereignty of God in all areas of human life according to the code laid down in the Bible. This means that the function of the Church is not only to find a solution for all our social problems, but it must also implement the establishment of an economic order which will be most beneficial to the greatest number. The Federal Council of the Churches of Christ represents this view and as early as 1908 has formulated this principle in the Social Creed of the Churches. It is difficult at times to see a line of demarcation in the Federal Council's social program between sociology and theology. This became quite evident in the first Conference on the Church and the Economic Order, which was held in Pittsburgh during February and which was attended by 364 delegates, two thirds of whom were laymen, including leading industrialists, businessmen, and promi- nent labor leaders. The discussion centered about the most hotly contested and most explosive topic in our national life, namely, the problem of the economic order. The conference occupied itself with the issues which threaten to divide our society, the moral issues involved in the economic conflict, and the Church's responsi- bility in resolving these tensions. We append a large section of the report by Harold E. Fey, published in the Christian Century of March 5. "Charles P. Taft, the new president of the Federal Council, asked the conference to describe the real issues in economic life in their relation to the Christian gospel, to determine the responsi- bility of the churches for them, and to outline a program by which the churches can carry out their responsibility. "The following is a summary of the conclusions. As defined by the conference, the basic principles are: '(1) The Christian Church considers the dignity and worth of the individual and the welfare of mankind of primary importance in the Christian ethic. (2) The ethical doctrines derived from the Old and New Testaments and enlarged by centuries of Christian thought and practice are of unlimited scope and relevant to all areas of human relations. (3) Human society is in process of change, but in no area of human relations have we attained a truly Christian standard of life. (4) The principles of the Christian gospel are applicable to the structure of social relations, to the organization of society, as well as to the personal relations of human beings. The factors of economic status and economic relationships are of basic im- portance and are fundamental in shaping the quality of life.' "In view of these presuppositions, the conference defined the following problems as of vital concern to the Church: (1) Can our economy so utilize its resources as to assure economic stability and progress and at the same time preserve and enlarge the" THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 389 essential liberties of man? (2) How can full production, £ull em- ployment and equitable distribution of the national income be achieved and maintained, and what is the relation thereto of restrictions that may interfere with these results? (3) What role should government play in our economic life? What criteria should be established in determining such participation, with particular reference to its relation to the individual? (4) What role should voluntary groups - business, labor, agriculture, finance, consumers - play in our economic order? (5) To what extent has con- centration of ownership and control brought beneficial or harmful effects upon the public welfare? (6) Upon what basis can the Church concern itself constructively with the problems of wages, prices, and profits? (7) How can industrial relations be made more harmonious and the Church use its influence most effectively toward this end? (8) How may government be used to provide social security without thereby undermining the assumption of responsibility by individuals and groups? (9) How can the Church assist in solving agricultural problems? (10) What should be the economic relationships of the United States to other nations in the light of its uniquely influential economic position? The dis- cussion of these questions was often warm, but no attempt was made to reach a conclusion. "Principles basic to the Church's responsibility in the economic sphere next commanded the attention of the conference. It agreed that these principles aTe: (a) God is the source and sustainer of life. (b) Love is the basis and fundamental commandment for the fulfillment of life. (c) All men are members of a community under God. (d) Man is endowed with moral freedom, which is limited by others' freedom but requires of him mOTal responsibility in economics. (e) Man is also a sinner, often using his freedom for selfish ends. (f) The individual is the responsible agent in religion and in human relations, including economics. (g) The ChTistian community must seek continually to create social con- ditions under which it will be less difficult to express in daily living the spirit of redemptive love. "After considerable debate it agreed that 'propeTty represents a trusteeship under God and should be held subject to the needs of the community. Under Christian perspectives, no single current system of ownership universally meets this test. In fields where the present forms of ownership are difficult to regulate for the common welfare, consideration should be given to further ex- perimentation in the forms of private, co-operative, and public ownership.' "When it came to discuss the program of the Church, the Pittsburgh conference was compelled to admit that its own argu- ments had 'revealed wide divergences of information and opinion on problems of economic life and the role of the Church in regard to them.' It was not dismayed, however, but accepted 'as part of the task of the Christian Church the obligation to deal frankly and openly with controversial matters.''' F. E. M. 390 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER The Baptist World Congress in Copenhagen. - As the Watch- man-Examiner (March 6,1947) reports, the Baptist World Congress will meet in Copenhagen, Denmark, from July 29 to Aug. 3, 1947. Denmark numbers four million people, of whom one million live in the city of Copenhagen. The Danish Baptist Union, which will entertain the Congress, numbers about 7,000 communicant mem- bers, with 7,000 Sunday school children and 4,000 young people, in 100 church buildings and other mission halls all over the country. It was founded in 1839. To the Evangelical-Lutheran State Church nominally belong ninety-seven per cent of the population. Prac- tically, however, so the Watchman-Examiner reports, only three per cent of the population in Copenhagen attend church and, at the most, fifteen per cent in the rural districts. The Free Churches are made up of the Baptist churches, with 7,000 members; the Methodist Church, with about 3,000 members; the Pentecostal Church, with about 3,000 members; the Apostolic Church, with about 2,000 members; and the Salvation Army, with about 3,000. The whole Free Church population, including independents and dissenters of all kinds, amounts to less than 100,000. The Roman Catholic Church has a baptized membership of about 26,000. One of the reasons given in the article why Baptists from all over the world should attend the Copenhagen Congress is to further the universal Baptist fellowship and to make the Baptist World Alliance a yet stronger fellowship and an effective instrument for co- ordinating Baptist missionary enterprise. Over 6,000 members of Baptist churches are expected to attend, and the convention ses- sions will be held in large halls that hold 3,000 and 4,200 persons, respectively. J. T. M. The Pope and the Maronite Church. - A flash from the Middle Ages! The Maronites are that branch of the Syrian Church which is located chiefly in the Lebanon and along the Syrian coast, but is represented likewise in Palestine, Cyprus, and Egypt. They march under the banner of Rome, but claim to be sel£- governing. A storm arose lately when the Pope, without con- sulting Patriarch Arida of the Maronite Church, appointed two bishops. The papal office, when the protests came, admitted that the Maronite Church is autonomous, but that circumstances alter cases and that while normally the authority of appointing bishops rests with the Maronite Patriarch, the Pope has the right to establish new episcopal sees (which takes care of the one ap- pointment) and to fill a vacancy in the rare instances when a bishop resigns (which happened in the other case). Grumblingly, it is said, the Patriarch yielded. A. Woman's First Calling. - In the Presbyterian (Feb. 8, 1947) Dr. C. E. Macartney published an excellent article against the ordination of women as ministers in the Church under the title "Shall the Presbyterian Church Ordain Women?" In its issue of March 8, the Presbyterian prints three letters, one by a woman criticizing Dr. Macartney's article, another by a man, favoring the article and showing that the ordination of women has also a very THEOLOGICAL . OBSERVER 391 absurd side, and a third by a woman, under the heading given above, which is so well written that, in our opinion, it deserves a place in this column. The writer is Elizabeth Hoopes Moore of Knoxville, Tenn., and she says: "The old question of ordaining women as ministers came before our last General Assembly, and in due course has trickled down to each presbytery and into every thoughtful Presbyterian home. It seems to me to be of grave importance and should be given the most serious considera- tion. We can read practically nothing on modern civilization without finding the decline of the influence of the home given as the first cause of many undesirable conditions existing today. Therefore it would seem that a woman sincerely interested in bettering the world could do her part far more successfully, though more obscurely, by marrying, bearing children, and pouring out all her Christian zeal into the rearing of them. A woman who has had several children, cared for them, guided them, and inspired them to Christian manhood and womanhood has done far more for the Church than that woman who turns her back on her rightful responsibility to the world and seeks the limelight in the pulpit. Perhaps our Church can make it legally possible for women to become ministers, but our Church cannot make it physically pos- sible for men to bear children. God ordained women as mothers, and He meant that to be their primary duty. He still means it. If the women devoted to the Church, filled with Christian en- thusiasm, and possessing some degree of intellectual ability, do not enter this God-appointed field of work, where are we to get our Christian leaders for tomorrow? I am a minister's wife and speak for the average woman. I am a college graduate, have traveled, have lived abroad, and, most important, the Church has always been near and dear to my heart. I enjoy public speaking and would enjoy thoroughly a life of study and writing. But to enter the ministry would be, in my estimation, a task of far less magnitude than my present one of being the mother of three young children. Men cannot be mothers, and women can. And the present world is crying out for good mothers. Our work as such may be insignificant in the eyes of man, but I am sure it is great in the sight of God, if we do it well. I have wondered just what kind of woman wishes to become a minister. She is one who evi- dently loves the limelight; so she cannot be very humble. She is shunning the less glamorous duties of motherhood; so she will also probably neglect the less pleasant duties of her pastoral work. She claims to have a call for full-time Christian service, but is not willing to enter any of the lesser fields. Such a woman cannot be of the best type, and certainly our Church needs the best of everything. If these women are overflowing with sincere religious fervor, let them go to work in many of the needy Christian fields already open to them. The hand that rocks the cradle still rules the world!" Here surely is good logic, good common sense, good Christian discernment, and, withal, a good letter to be read to our own organizations of Christian women, especially on Mother's Day! J.T.M. 392 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER Brief Items. - According to the Lutheran Standard of March 1, 1947, "seventeen new teachers must be secured before next fall to maintain proper teaching staffs in Christian day schools of the American Lutheran Church." The international organization Youth for Christ expects to send groups of workers to three continents in the interest of youth evangelization. According to present plans Youth for Christ will inaugurate an active program in Cuba, Mexico, and South America, also in the Orient and in Europe, especially in England, Hol- land, and Germany. How fond Americans are of stunts! This tendency manifests itself even in the sphere of religion. In Lincoln, Nebr., recently 71 girls belonging to the Methodist Girls' Club and five men from the Wesley Foundation publicly read the complete Revised New Testament in Immanuel Methodist Church. Each one who took part in the marathon read for 12 minutes. The time required for the reading was 15 hours. The "show" began at 6: 00 A. M. And who was benefited spiritually? In France more than one fourth of the elementary grade pupils attend church-supported primary schools, that is, schools con- ducted by the Roman Catholic Church. As to secondary schools, those that are church-supported have the majority of students, 275,000 against 250,000. When we consider technical schools, we find that those that are church-supported have enrolled 400,000 pupils, while those conducted by the State have 100,000. The Roman Catholic Church evidently still is a mighty force in France. Recently, so it is reported, a miracle was performed at the shrine of Mother Cabrini, canonized not long ago. The shrine is located at Bayonne, N. J. A four-year-old boy who had been paralyzed since his birth, when visiting with his parents the "sacred place," praying there and kissing the relic, a part of the saint's dress, all of a sudden was able to walk. The Church authori- ties are investigating whether they may with full assurance pro- nounce the occurrence of a miracle. Lutherans will think of 2 Thess. 2: 9 in this connection. The Lutheran reports (Feb. 26, 1947) that Dr. Theo. G. Tappert of Philadelphia Seminary will assist the German churchmen in preparing for the meeting of the Lutheran World Federation to be held at Lund during the latter part of June. The Lutheran states that the inability of the German churchmen to travel about freely in their country makes it difficult for them to conduct study conferences preliminary to the Lund meeting and that Dr. Tappert is to serve as liaison officer between the churchmen of the various areas of Germany. The final draft of the proposed basis for the union between the Congregational Christian Churches and the Evangelical and Re- formed Church has been completed and will be submitted to both bodies in the next few months. In the event that both denominations THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 393 approve the proposed basis for union, the merger will be effected. This will bring together members whose antecedents are found in such divergent groups as the Prussian Union (a merger of Lutherans and Reformed), the German Reformed Church, the Congregationalists, and the monarchian Christian Church. It seems difficult to conceive of a union of more disparate elements than will be brought together in this merger. That Rome under no conditions will recognize a divorce and yet will find loopholes for such members as have obtained a divorce, is evident in the case of Rear Admiral E. W. Stone, who recently was received into the Roman Catholic Church. Admiral Stone is planning to marry an Italian princess with close Vatican relations, in spite of his two earlier marriages and divorces. His first wife is dead, and he recently obtained a divorce from his second wife, but according to Roman Catholic law the second marriage was invalid because it was contracted while the first Mrs. Stone was still alive. Thus Rome can readily nullify the second marriage and ignore completely the fact that a divorce has been granted. According to the Living Church the hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church took exception to an attack on this Church by Msgr. Fulton J. Sheen. Sheen had stated in a public address that the Russian Orthodox Church of Moscow was being used by Russia to spread Communism through the United States and that Archbishop Gregory of the Russian Orthodox Church, as "professor of atheism," was coming to America to win the Russian Orthodox Church of the United States for Stalin. The Living Church sum- marizes the arguments of the American Orthodox hierarchy as follows: "1. It is the first contemporary instance, so far as we know, of o. protest directly to the .Pope, through his representative in this country, on the part of any Orthodox Church, asking that limits be placed to the anti-Orthodox campaign, in which so many agencies and leaders of the Roman Catholic Church appear to be engaged. "2. It is a direct contradiction and answer to the charge made by Msgr. Sheen and others that the Russian Orthodox Church is nothing but an agency of the Soviet government for the propa- gation of Communism. "3. It points out clearly that the kind of dual allegiance of the Orthodox - with their spiritual head in Moscow or Greece or Constantinople, but their political allegiance wholly in this country - is exactly parallel to the dual allegiance of Roman Catholics, who are so vociferous in their claim that their spiritual loyalty to the Pope does not make them any less loyal citizens of the United States. "4. It declares unequivocally that the Russian Orthodox in this country do not look beyond the borders of the United States for any temporal authority. This ought to help materially to unite the Russian Orthodox parishes in this country, which are now divided on this very issue." 394 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER Brief Items from Religious News Service. - A new Christian day school will be opened in Whittier, Calif., in September by the Calvary Baptist Church. According to Lord Mayor Sir Bracewell Smith only five per cent of London's population goes to church regularly. Translation of the Gospel of St. John into Maguindanao (Phil- ippine Islands) brings to a total of 1,080 the number of languages and dialects into which the Bible, in whole or part, has been translated. Commandants of all naval districts and river commands have been authorized to begin activation of the naval reserve component of the chaplain corps in accordance with the general naval reserve plan established last year, it was announced in Washington, D. C. A bill, H. R. 1992, to give employees of religious, charitable, scientific, and other non-profit institutions the benefits of coverage under the social security act, the Federal unemployment tax act, and the Federal insurance contributions act, has been introduced in Congress by Rep. Herman P. Eberharter. Representatives of the three historic "peace churches" have held meetings at Elgin, m., and Akron, Ohio, to complete details for joint production of peace literature. The Church of the Brethren will be responsible for a pamphlet on peace education in the home; the Mennonites for one on peace education in the school; the Quakers for one on peace education in the local church. Missionaries in China fear they may have to curtail their work and possibly leave the country if Communists gain control there, according to Dr. E. K. Higdon, chairman of the Philippines Committee of the Foreign Mission Conference of North America. Dr. Higdon said the fears were based on reports by Chinese Chris- tians who were forced to leave Manchuria because of Communist- imposed restrictions. Plans to re-convene the Vatican Council which adjourned sine die in 1870 are being discussed in Vatican circles. According to present plans the opening of the Council may coincide with the proposed Holy Year in 1950. The defense of Catholicism, greater participation in social service work, and renewed emphasis on missionary zeal are to be discussed in the proposed Holy Year and the Vatican Council. Reappearing after a two weeks' suspension ordered by the government in the interest of power and fuel conservation, London religious weeklies published editorials sharply criticizing the government's action as morally and legally unjustifiable. "The government that muzzles religious newspapers for a fortnight," the Methodist Recorder declared, "is doing a number of very serious things. Among them, it is showing its indifference, if not its hostility, to religion." Pope Pius XII has given official recognition to lay organizations which attempt to achieve "religious perfection" among those who must remain in secular callings. Rome therefore now has THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 395 three groups of "religious communities": monastic fraternities with strict vows, religious congregations with simple vows, and laymen who devote themselves to a religious life to develop a higher degree of spiritual living without taking formal vows. Enrollment of school pupils in weekday religious instruction courses throughout the country has more than doubled in the pal't four years. More than 2,000,000 pupils are now taking school- approved courses in the Christian religion as compared to 750,000 who were enrolled in 1943. Rumors that Pope Pius intends to name a new Secretary of State in place of Luigi Cardinal Maglione, who died in August, 1944, are being revived. Francis Cardinal Spellman has been mentioned as a likely candidate. - The Pope is expected to fill the ~ix vacancies in the College of Cardinals in the near future. The name of St. Louis' Archbishop Joseph E. Ritter has been mentioned in this connection. - The Vatican is appointing an increasing number of non-Italians to its diplomatic corps. Of 96 prelates, secretaries, and attaches now serving the Holy See abroad, 19 are non-Italians, including seven Americans. A regional conference at Chicago of the Conservative Fellow- ship of Northern Baptists voted to withhold funds from organiza- tions within the Northern Baptist Convention which do not "affirm faith in the Bible as the inspired Word of God, in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, which includes His pre-existence, virgin birth, miracles, and His bodily resurrection from the dead." A translation of the Psalms into Chinese verse, prepared by Dr. John C. Y. Wu, newly appointed Chinese Minister to the Vatican, has just been published, it was announced in Rome. The translation bears the imprimatur of Thomas Cardinal Tien, Arch- bishop of Peking. The Russian Orthodox Church in Japan has decided to sever relations with the Moscow Patriarchate and to place itself under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church in America. According to official figures the Japan Orthodox Church has 166 churches, 50 priests, and 13,990 resident members. Dr. Irving F. Reichert, rabbi of Temple Emanuel, San Fran- cisco, told the third annual national conference of the American Council for Judaism that the whole future of the Jewish people is at stake in a conflict between two divergent philosophies. "The fundamental principle of the American Council of Judaism is that the Jewish people are essentially a religious community whose strongest tie is a common faith and a common religious tradition," he said. "The fundamental principle of Zionism is that the Jewish people are a homeless nationality whose normalcy can only be achieved through establishment of a Jewish political state in Palestine. The gulf between these two concepts is unbridgeable. They represent totally irreconcilable points of view. The whole future of the Jew is at stake in the conflict between these clashing philosophies."