Full Text for CTM Book Review 6-10 (Text)

QTnurnr~itt IDqrnlngirttlllnutqly Continuing LEHRE UND VVEHRE MAGAZIN FUER EV.-LuTH. HOMILETIK THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY-THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY Vol. VI October, 1935 No. 10 CONTENTS P age The First Complete Printed English Bible. J. T. M ueller ••• 721 Deutschheidnische Stroemungen. w. Oesch • • .•.••••••••• , 732 Leadership-Training in Our Church. P. E. Kretzrnann ••••••• 739 Der Schriftgrund fuer die Lehre von der satisfactio vicaria. P. E. Kretzrnann • . • • • • • . • • • • •• 746 Reformationsfestpredigt ueber Ps. 116, 10. Thee. Laetsch •••• 749 Sermon Study on 1 Pet. 2, 1-10. Theo. Laetsch •••••••••• 754 Dispositionen ueber die altkirchliche Evangelienreihe.... 765 Miscellanea. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 773 Theological Observer. - Kirchlich-Zeitgeschichtliches. . . .. 778 Book Review. - Literatur. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 793 Ein P rediger mu!mancl)etlei f03iale, iifonomifcl)e unb po1itifd)e \}ragen beroegen bie smelt gcub 3utage - .\)utl)et roelt batauf au antrootten. ~r legt bor allem, roie bas bas borliegenbe ~ucl) nacl)roeift, hie allgemelnen ®runbfiitc bat, aUf benen aIle ~tl)if betu9t. ,,'!let ·>menfcl) ift ein gefelliges smefen, bat er anbern biene unb fie liebe.1/ (smeimaret musg. XXIV, 2371.) "metflucl)t unb berbammt ift aUes .\leben, bas H)m felbft 3unuB unb 3ugut gelebt unb gefud)t roitb; berfluel)t aIle smerte, bie nicl)t in ber .\3ieoe ge9en!1/ (6t . .\). musg. X, 407.) l/91un tft tein griiamr ®ottes~ !lienft benn cl)riitficf)e ,lJiebe, bie ben ~ebiirftigen gilft unb bienet.1/ (X, 957.) Unb in ben smarten ~etdes: ,,'!let mntrieb flir bas fittlid)e S)anbe1n liegt Dei .\)utl)er nunmel)r l)auptfCiel)liel) in bem ®efligl bet '!lantbarteit gegen ®ott. .\)utger gat biefe religiilfen ®runblagen felnet ~tgif in ber ,\}rell)eit eines ~l)dften~ menfeljen' 3ufammengefatt.1/ (6.65 f.) smeiter: .\)utljer ljat bem 6tanb unb ~e~ ruf feine ljolje smtitbe 3urlicigegeben. ,,~in 6el)ufter, ein 6el)mieb, ein ~auet, dn jegliel)er feincs S)anb)ueds mmt unb mlet! ~at, unb finb boel) aIle gleiel) ge~ tueiljte ~rieftet unb ~ifel)Dfe, unb ein jeglicl)er foIl mit feinem mmt obet smed bem unbern nlitliel) unb bienfttiel) fein." (X, 273.) ,,'!les \}litften unb beil ~ilnigs 6tanb ift gut unb bon ®ott geotbnet, unb ein ~neel)t ift niebriger aHl fie. smenn abet bes \}lirften mmt gefel)iefjt o1)ne .\liebe, fo f.)mel)e iel): bet ~neel)t, bet >mift fCiljtt mit .\liebe, ift fo fjoel) tibet bem \}titften, bet felnes mmtes oljne .\liebe roattei, als bet S)immel tibet bet ~rbe.1/ (sm. m. XXXIV, 2, 314.) .\)utf)et fterrt bie ()brigteit, ben 6taat, goel) ("Unfer \}lirft ift unfer mater, besgleiel)en bet ~lirget~ meiftetl/; sm. m. XXV, 1,70), roeift ifjn aoer auel) in felne ®ten3en; er "befel)rCinft ben 6taat aUf feine )ueltlicl)enmufgaven" (6,84). smeitet: ,,:Daa man nun bid fcl)reibt unb fagt, roele!) eine grote ~luge ~rieg fei, bas ift alles )ualjr,1/ 9liel)t etft feit 1918 ljat man angefangen, fo gu fel)teiben unb 3u fagen. Unb roelel)e 6teUung ~at man ba ein3uneljmen? ,,'!larum latt euel) fagen, iljt lieben ~erren: S)litet cuel) bot' bem .!ttieg!" mber: lIes fei benn, bafl igr roe1)ten unb fel)titen mliat unb euet aufgelegtes mmt euel) aroingt 3U ttiegen. mlSbann f 0 ratt's gegen unb gauet brdn; feib bann SJniinner unb beroeift euten ~arnifel).1/ (6t. £. X, 493. 516.) €s loljnt fiel) fiir)uuljt, nael)auftubimn, roas ~etcie libet .\)utf)ers ~tljif betreffenb Book Review. - ~ttetCltut. 797 ,IHtd)e unb ®emdnbe, 6taat, ffied)t, ~etuf, .l3iefJestatigfeit, lffje unb lIDit!fd).aft barbietct. "{lwar £jat 53utl)er fein Deftimmte§ f03ial1:lOfitifd)e§ ~togramm flir bas prattifel)c ~anbdn aufgeftellt"; "wir mlijfen l)erborl)eoen, ban .\lutf)er im eigenb Hel)en 6innwebet 5l::l)eordifer nnd) ~raftifer ber 6taatsfunft wm; unb fein wollte." (6. 70. 78.) lI'I1ie anbetn ~rtife{ ... befef)I' id) ben ffied)t§berftanbigen. SDenn mit, alll cinem &bangeliften, nid)t gefJUf)rt, f)ierinnen au urteilen unb au tid)ten" (XVI, 67.) 53ut£jet burfte feine ~ifJel nid)t bernad)ltiHigen, um bie 6taatswijfenfd)aft unb SJlatinnaIiifonomie 3U ftubimn. ~Der er l)at ben d)tifb lid)en 6taatsmiinnern unb ben d)riftlid)en Raufleuten unb ben d)riftlid)en ~auetn gefagt, nad) wdd)en ®runb[ii~en fie if)re ~rfJcit aus3urid)ten f)aDen, uub luCltn es ficf) um d)riftlid)e ®runbiii~e f)anbert, weld)e biefe finb. 53utljer legt abet nid)t nut bie allgcmeinen ®runbfa~e bat, fonbern fJefd)iiftigt fid) aud) mit fpe3iellen \Jiillen, wd& biefc in bas .l3icf)t bes lIDortes ®ottes au ftc((en; unb wa§er bet [agt, pant getabe auel) flir bie mobernen merf)1i1tniffe. lillit £jafJen trusts unb bergleid)en . .\lutf)er berlangt bom 6taat, "bie ~auetn, ~Utger, ~bel unb fo ell £jafJen, au 31uingen, ®etteibc 3U bedaufen unb nid)t au geftatten, ban fie mutwillig unniitige 5l::euerung anrid)ten". (X, 863.) lIDuute .\lutf)et etwa§ bon "back-to-the-farm"? IImief gbttlid)er ware ~cferwcrf mef)ren unb Raufmetnnf d)aft minbern. . .. &§ ift nod) bid .\lanD, bas nid)t umgetriefJen unb geel)ret ift." (lID.~. VI, 467.) ~etcfc l)at red)t: ,,~n lIDal)tt)eit f)afJen 53utf)ers hlirtfd)aftsetf)ifd)e" (wie aud) [cine anbcm f03ialetf)ifd)en) ,,~usfUf)tungen unferer {leU fef)r bier iU fagen." (6.147.) 5l:: f). & n g el bet. The Problem of Lutheran Union and Other Essays. By Theodore (b'aebne1-. Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, Mo. 1935. XI and 214 pages. Price, $1.25. In his introduction to this book Dr. J. H. C. Fritz says: "We heartily agree with the American Lutheran Church, as expressed in its resolution adopted at Waverly, Iowa, October, 1934, that our sincere and earnest endeavor must be 'to bring about Lutheran unity on the basis of the Scrip- tures and the Confessions.''' Without any doubt every member of the Sy- nodical Conferencc will subscribe to that. We have in the past proved that these are not mere words on our part, but that we are ready at all times to back them up with deeds. We are more than ready to do so again. We realize that "over against the atheism and the materialism, the doctrinal indifferentism and the Modernism, of our day the Lord has placed an in- creased responsibility upon the Lutheran Church, which He has so richly endowed and blessed, to proclaim the Word of God, especially the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in all its truth and purity for the salvation of souls to the glory of God. A united Lutheran Church could better measure up to this responsibility than the disunited Lutheran Church we have to-day." The object underlying the publication of this book is stated by the author himself: "In the following sections we shall deal with the obstacles to the consummation of Lutheran understanding, the hurdles which interfere with easy progress on the way to the coveted goal- Lutheran union." This is the purpose of the first two essays, "The Problem of Lutheran Union" and "As Others See Us." (As this is by far the most important part of the book, I shall not speak of the other three essays except to mention the titles: "Our Liturgical Chaos"; "The English Bible up to Date"; "The Mendacity of Modernism.") On the evidence of documents it is shown 798 Book Review. - ilitetatuf. that there are numerous differences that divide the various bodies of the Lutheran Church and that within some of these bodies there is no real unity; that therefore without thorough discussion of these points and the removal of these differences any union would be but a "paper union," nothing but sham. The book has already met with severe criticism. Partly hasty: "Un- fortunately we seem to be living in days in which people may be divided roughly into four groups: I) those who are openly antagonistic to Chris- tianity, 2) those who are quite indifferent about it, 3) those who want union at any price, and 4) those who find heresy in everyone except them- selves." We wonder where the reviewer (U. L. C.) places his synod.- Partly unfair; it is unfair to intimate that the author condemns church- bodies because of isolated excrescences within that body, bits of gossip, unfair in view of the author's statement: "Not because there is un- Lutheran practise, but because such practise is openly tolerated; not be- cause there are errorists in the . . ., but because these false teachers are permitted to sow their false doctrines unrebuked by their synodical body and are even recognized as leaders in the Church, do we object to the easy and thoughtless conclusion that bodies subscribing to the same con- fessional platform should clasp hands and agree to 'let bygones be by- gones' "; unfair to charge the author - or, through him, Missouri - with self-complacency and pride in view of the author's declaration on page 3.- Partly childish - which we must pass by as unworthy of the reader's attention. Sum and substance of all criticism, however, is: That's a poor way to prepare for union. You can't catch flies with vinegar. - Well, I sup- pose that is true; but then, who wants flies anyway?-This is the way it appears to me. If there are two men in my church who "do not speak," the first thing nccessary is to confront them and have them state clearly, definitely, without any equivocation, what they have against each other; then, and not until then, the next step may be taken. - We have no peace now; but we all want union. Well, let's get together and (1) tell one another plainly, clearly, friendly, in words of one syllable, what we have against one another. That's what Dr. Graebncr tries to do in this book. The first essay states what we have against others; the second essay, what others have against us. I'll grant that this second essay is shorter; it might be extended; no doubt it is considerably longer in the other camps. Here's the invitation: Tell us what you have against us. Let's put all our cards on the table. - Then, and not until then, can we (2) investigate whether the accusations are justified and then, in the fear of God and conscious of the fact that we are but stewards and responsible to Him above who has given us His clear Word as a guide, get to work and clean house wherever that is necessary. THEO. HOYER. The Comforter. A Brief Discussion of the Person and Work of the Holy Spirit. By W. E. Denham, A. M., Th. D. Fleming H. Revell Com- pany, New York. 124 pages, 5%X7%,. Price, $1.25. The author of this volume is a Baptist pastor in St. Louis, favorably known and greatly respected in conservative religious circles as a sincere, outspoken Fundamentalist. His decidedly Christian stand on the questions Book Review. - £itetatut. 799 which he discusses makes his book pleasant and profitable reading. He does not offer an exhaustive treatment of the New Testament teaching of the Holy Ghost, but a group of edifying discussions on certain phases of His person and work, such as conversion, sanctification, His endowment of the believer with the gifts of grace, freedom, power, etc. One of the best essays is that on "Grieving the Spirit of God." There is a reverent, pious tone pervading the whole of the book, which proves the writer to be a devout Christian. The doctrinal content is considerable, and though the discus- sion includes such topics as the baptism with the Holy Ghost, the believer's faith-life, the final goal of Christian striving, and the like, the author soberly avoids all excrescences of theological fanaticism. Unfortunately there is noticeable in many places a strong Arminian background and, be- sides, a lack of proper distinction between justification and sanctification, Law and Gospel, the latter being due to a failure in understanding properly and fully these Christian doctrines. The chief merit of the essays lies in the many practical applications of the Biblical truths to the Christian life and the hortatory values that are derived from them. J. T. MUELLER. Seen from My Pulpit. By Malcolm James MaoLeod, D. D. Fleming H. Revell 00., New York. 191 pages, 81,4 X 5%. Price, $1.75. Although the author admits the fact of sin, saying: "Sin is the arch- enemy of the human soul; it is the root cause of all the grief and all the trouble and all the sorrow in the history of the world," yet he fails to show how man by faith in the redeeming work of Ohrist is freed from sin, its guilt, its punishment, and its dominion. The vicarious atonement has not been given any place in his book. He refers to the jailer at Philippi, but not to the Savior, with whom the jailer found forgiveness of sins (p. 120). "The theology and cosmology of Paradise Lost are obsolete to-day," says the author (p. 116). "It isn't religion to believe that the universe was made in six days or six quadrillion years. It isn't religion to believe that once upon a time, long, long ago, the sun and the moon stood still on the ridge of Ajalon. It isn't religion to believe that the Book of Genesis is literal history. Whether the book is history or poetry or legend is not a religious question at all. That is a question of science, of history, of criti- cism. Religion is to be loving and kind and forgiving and pure. It is not an intellectual skirmish. It is the functioning of the heart. A man's thinking may be all wrong, and yet his heart may be all right. Religion is to try to live the life of Jesus Christ. The secret of true religion is identification with Him" (pp. 105. 106). ''Nothing is clearer than the fact that the religious phrases and thought-forms that were in common use a century ago are obsolete to-day" (pp. 182. 183). "People are sick and tired of wrangling controversy. Modernism and Traditionalism and Fun- damentalism interest them no more. Heresy trials are an abomination. They are of the devil. Religion henceforth must be free of all chains and fetters. It must be free as the air. Sectarianism to-day, confronted as we are with a united enemy, is just sheer stubborn stupidity. If I may be permitted to say it, I have in my ministry taken no part in things de- batable. There are enough great matters on which all are agreed to keep the prophet of God busy for several lifetimes. Why waste his time on po- lemics? What the world is pining for is vital personal communion with 800 Book Review. - .\litetatut. God. What we need more than anything is to have a real grip on God, 'to know Him otherwise than by hearsay,' as Carlyle puts it, to have a liv- ing touch with Him, a growing devotion toward Him, and to realize how precious to Him are all His children" (pp. 149. 150). These quotations will suffice to prove that this is a deadly book, one of the many with which Modernism has in recent years flooded the religious book market. J. H. C. FRI'fZ. Pro Ecclesia Lutherana. Vol. III, No. 1. June, 1935. 121 pages, 6X9. Price, $1.00. This volume contains the papers which were read at the last meeting of the St. James Society. They are the following: The Baptismal Rite, a Brief History of Its Development; The Nature and Purpose of Litur- gical Music; The Common Service, Its Origin and Development (con- tinued); Lutheran Influence on Anglican Reform Movements during the Reign of Henry VIII. - There is much interesting material here, especially in the historical discussions. If the volume is studied in the light of the articles which appeared in the CONCORDIA THEOLOGICAL :MONTHLY, V, 257 ff., one is apt to derive much benefit from one's studies. P. E. KRETZMANN. Through Two Generations. By Horaoe Mella1'd Du Bose. Fleming H. Revell Co. 160 pages, 5X7%. Price, $1.50. In an interesting manner the author, the well-known Bishop emeritus of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, tells the story of his life. Bishop Du Bose was one of the protagonists in the fight for constitutional prohibition, and his autobiography affords many a glimpse into the methods employed in this battle. He pictures his struggles for higher standards of education in his Church, against monistic evolution and negative criti- cism. Sorry to say, he adopted an attitude of compromise in these two questions. While we often disagreed with the views expressed, we enjoyed, and were profited by, reading the book. THEo. LAETSCH. NOTICE TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS. In order to render satisfactory senice, we must have our current mailing-list correct. The expense of maintaining this list has been materially increased. Under present regula, tions we are subject to a "fine" on all parcels mailed to an incorrect address, inasmuch as we must pay 2 cents for every notification sent by the postmaster on a parcel or periodical which is undeliverable because no forwarding address is available or because there has been a change of address. This may seem insignificant, but in view of the fact that ,ve have subscribers getting three or more of our periodicals and considerillg Ollr large aggregate subscription list, it may readily be seen that it amounts to quite a sum during a year; for the postmaster will address a notification to each individual periodical. Our sub- scribers can help us by notifying us - one notification (postal card, costing only 1 cent) will take care of the addresses for several publications. We shall be very grateful for your cooperation. Kindly consnlt the address label Oil this paper to ascertain whether your subscription has expired or will soon expire. "Oct 35" on the label means that your subscription has expired. Please pay your agent or the Publisher promptly in order to avoid interruption of service. It takes about two weeks before the address label can show change of address or acknowledgment of remittance. When paying your subscription, please mention name of publication desired and exact name and address (both old and new, if change of address is requested). OONCORDIA PUBLISHING HOUSE, St. Louis, Mo.