Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran ChurchBente, F. (Friedrich)
Religion
Historical Introductions to the Symbolical Books of the Evangelical Lutheran Church
Bente, F. (Friedrich)
Formula Concordiae -- Catechisms; Lutheran Church -- Catechisms
In his _Gloss on the Alleged Imperial Edict_ of 1531, Luther dilates as
follows on the Roman assertion of having refuted the Augustana from the
Scriptures: "In the first place concerning their boasting that our
Confession was refuted from the holy gospels, this is so manifest a lie
that they themselves well know it to be an abominable falsehood. With
this rouge they wanted to tint their faces and to defame us, since they
noticed very well that their affair was leaky, leprous, and filthy, and
despite such deficiency nevertheless was to be honored. Their heart
thought: Ours is an evil cause, this we know very well, but we shall say
the Lutherans were refuted; that's enough. Who will compel us to prove
such a false statement? For if they had not felt that their boasting was
lying, pure and simple, they would not only gladly, and without offering
any objections, have surrendered their refutation as was so earnestly
desired, but would also have made use of all printing-presses to publish
it, and heralded it with all trumpets and drums, so that such defiance
would have arisen that the very sun would not have been able to shine on
account of it. But now, since they so shamefully withheld their answer
and still more shamefully hide and secrete it, by this action their evil
conscience bears witness to the fact that they lie like reprobates when
they boast that our Confession has been refuted, and that by such lies
they seek not the truth, but our dishonor and a cover for their shame."
(St. L. 16, 1668.)
54. Apology Recast by Melanchthon.
Owing to the fact that Melanchthon, immediately after the presentation
of the Apology, resolved to revise and recast it, the original draft was
forced into the background. It remained unknown for a long time and was
published for the first time forty-seven years after the Diet. Chytraeus
embodied it in his _Historia Augustanae Confessionis,_ 1578, with the
caption, "_Prima Delineatio Caesari Carolo Die 22. Septembris Oblata,
sed Non Recepta_--The First Draft which was Offered to Emperor Charles
on September 22, but Not Accepted." The German and Latin texts are found
in _Corp. Ref._ 27, 275ff. and 322. Following is the Latin title:
"Apologia Confessionis, 1530. Ps. 119: Principes persecuti sunt me
gratis." The German title runs: "Antwort der Widerlegung auf unser
Bekenntnis uebergeben." (245. 378.) Plitt says of the original Apology:
"It was well qualified to be presented to the Emperor, and, in form
also, far surpassed the Confutation of the Papists. Still the
Evangelical Church suffered no harm when the Emperor declined to accept
it. The opportunity for revision which was thus offered and fully
exploited by Melanchthon, who was never able to satisfy himself,
resulted in a great improvement. The Apology as it appeared the
following year is much riper, sharper in its rebuttal, and stronger in
its argumentation." (88.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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