

LUTHERAN CHURCH. 



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Virginia, North and South Carolina effected 

 last year an independent organization, by con- 

 stituting themselves as the " General Synod 

 of the Lutheran Church in the Confederate 

 ,tes." The first General Synod was held at 

 ncord, North Carolina, in May, 1863. One 

 the delegates from Virginia, gives the fol- 

 wing account of the proceedings : 



We adopted without a dissenting voice, after a few 

 ight amendments, a constitution. The vote, after 

 le discussion upon it, was taken in solemn silence by 

 our rising to our feet, and when it appeared that every 

 delegate was standing, we united in thanksgiving with 

 the president, on bended knees, ta Almighty God, and 

 the General Synod of the Confederate States was a 

 fixed institution. 



After this transition from a convention into a synod, 

 .uch important business was transacted. In accord- 

 ice with a plan suggested and urged upon the dele- 

 gates in a series of ti ve articles, published last winter 

 in the "Southern Lutheran," we have adopted a 

 " Book of Worship." Committees were appointed a 

 year ago upon the liturgy, hymn-book, catechism, gov- 

 ernment, and discipline, &c., &c. These committees 

 were faithful to their duty, and came to Concord well 

 prepared to report. All their reports were accepted 

 and adopted, with some amendments, and referred to 

 a committee composed of the chairman, or acting 

 chairman, of these various committees, to prepare for 

 and superintend the publication of them in one vol- 

 umeto be called " The Book of Worship." In it are 

 contained the following items : 

 1st. Order of morning service, and order of evening 

 rvice, with four general prayers, the use of which is 

 jptional with the minister, that is, the use of the forms 

 of general prayer is optional the use of the introduc- 

 tory service is not optional, but must be followed as 

 prescribed in the book. 



2d. Service for festival days, days of humiliation, 

 fasting, &c. 



8d. Gospels and epistles, and lessons for the passion 

 week, published in full. 



4th. Family prayers for each morning and evening 

 of the week. 



5th. Forms for the performance of ministerial acts 

 baptism, confirmation, &c., &c., one of each. 

 Gth. Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds. 

 7th. Augsburg Confession, without note or com- 

 ment. 



8th. Luther's Smaller Catechism literal translation, 

 without any additions, alterations, or explanations. 

 Jth. Form of government and discipline. 

 10th.. Constitutions of General Synod, 

 llth. Collection of hymns abdut 450 containing 

 the best of all accessible collections. 

 The General Synod is not merely an advisory body, 

 t is clothed with power enough to enforce obedience 

 its enactments. In all cases of fundamental doc- 

 ine, forms of worship, and church discipline, it is the 

 ighest court of appeal. 



Some features of this new constitution were 

 arded by a large party of the Lutherans in 



e United States as a considerable improve- 

 ment upon the constitution of the old General 

 Synod. Thus the "Lutheran," of Philadel- 

 phia, one of the leading organs of the church, 

 remarked: "The seceding States may, and 

 we fervently trust and believe, will, be brought 

 back to their allegiance, but it by no means 

 follows that the Lutheran synods of the South 

 will merge themselves again in our General 

 Synod. The movement we chronicle may be 

 of immense importance in the future. It will 

 be seen that this new General Synod has not 

 been blind to some of the bitter lessons ex- 



perience has been teaching us, and if our church 

 in the South is to have a separate existence, 

 the theory on which it has started, and the 

 practical steps it has taken, are sagaciously 

 adapted to their ends." 



A special hymnbook for the " Lutheran 

 Churches of the Confederate States," contain- 

 ing about 450 hymns, was compiled by Rev. 

 Mr. Roedel, of Wytheville, "Wythe county, Va., 

 and adopted by the District Synods. A Litur- 

 gy was prepared by Dr. Bitte, of Salem, Va., 

 and Rev. Mr. Rude, of Columbus, S. C. Cate- 

 chism, Confession, Liturgy, and Hymns, are to 

 be bound together, and form a Book of Wor- 

 ship. The weekly organ of the Church, the 

 "Southern Lutheran," was removed from 

 Charleston, at the beginning of the attack, in 

 the spring of 1863, and edited by Rev. Mr. 

 Rude, of Columbus, S. C. 



The synod of Virginia, which convened in 

 Salem church, Augusta county, Va., on Oct. 

 22d, 1863, and which was attended by a dele- 

 gate from the synod of Western Virginia, pass- 

 ed the following resolutions with regard to the 

 formation of the General Synod of the South- 

 ern Church of the Confederate States: 



1. Resolved, That the General Synod thus formed, 

 meets with our approbation, in so far as we have been 

 definitely certified through our delegates concerning its 

 structure, and the adoption of the Augsburg Confes- 

 sion, and the three chief, ancient creeds, as its doc- 

 trinal basis. But as we have received no official state- 

 ment of its transactions for examination, we deem it 

 expedient and proper to sustain only a qualified con- 

 nection with it, as a synod, until we shall oe prepared 

 by further information to take intelligent action there- 

 upon. 



2. Resolved, That we fully approve of the stand 

 taken by our delegates in earnestly contending for 

 " our most holy faith " in that convention. 



Except in the States of Virginia, North and 

 South Carolina, the Lutherans of the slave- 

 holding States, mostly natives of Germany, 

 remained loyal to the Federal Government. It 

 was reported from Texas, that up to December 

 13th, 1863, all the ministers of the Texas 

 Lutheran synod were at their posts, and that 

 none of them had been pressed into the rebel 

 service. Many of their members had been 

 dragged from their homes under the conscrip- 

 tion law, and as many as possibly could, escap- 

 ed into Mexico, with the loss of everything. 

 In numerous instances, those who tried to 

 evade it by concealment, were hunted down 

 by dogs and summarily hung. From a letter 

 of Rev. W. T. Strobel (formerly of Texas, but 

 now of Danville, N. Y.) to the " Kirchenbote," 

 it appears that the ministers succeeded in get- 

 ting letters to Germany, via Mexico, giving the 

 friends there the* particulars of their trying 

 situation. The Rev. Pastor Bonenberger, of 

 the German Lutheran Church in Galveston, 

 was the only minister remaining in that city. 

 The church and Congregational school were, 

 however, well attended, but the cost of living 

 was so enormous that he could remain at his 

 post only by "boarding round" among his 

 people. It was also mentioned that the synod 





