In their controversy with Rome Lutherans held that the Church did not exist merely in participation of external rites, but chiefly in the possession of the inward life, the heavenly gifts. As yet the kingdom of Christ is not revealed, and the visible Church is a corpus mixtum. Thus the Apologia distinguishes clearly between the ecclesia proprie et large dicta (church in the proper and church in the wider sense of the term).
Nevertheless this Kingdom of Christ has a visible existence. "We are not dreaming of a Platonic commonwealth," says the Apologia, "for it has external marks, the preaching of the pure Gospel and the administration of the sacraments." And this Church is the "pillar and ground of the truth," for she is built upon the true foundation, Christ, and upon this foundation Christians are built up.
Subsequently, in his Loci, Melanchthon developed still further the idea of the Church as an institutum. This may have been because of the fanatics, or it may have been because of his entire disposition as a teacher and pedagogue. Followed as he was in support of his views by the dogmaticians, the Lutheran Church acquired that distinctive character which has marked her history as an educating and training force. This position is still further explained from the fact that the Lutherans, unlike the Reformed, were placed in charge of nations and peoples, and had to be responsible for their Christian guidance and training. As a national church, her relations to the people were different from those of the Reformed, who, on the continent, existed mainly in smaller communities and congregations where it was comparatively easy to enforce church discipline.
In this relation the Church is not only the product, but also the organ of the Holy Ghost. It is her duty to nourish the life of its members (parturit et alit), and to spread the blessings of the Church to others. According to the Large Catechism, she is the spiritual mother of the faithful. Her pedagogic duty is pointed out. (See Rohnert, Dogmatik, pp. 508 and 487.)
This visible character of the Church is recognized in the New Testament in the various commands and promises given to her: the power of the keys, the duty to confess before men, to serve one another in love, of united intercession, of contending against the kingdom of darkness. In the Epistles the presence of sinful men is everywhere recognized, nevertheless the members of the Church are termed "the called" of Jesus Christ.
Lutheranism of the 16th century stood between two opposite errors, Rome on the one hand with its exaggerated ideas of the Church as an institution, and Reform on the other hand with its one-sided notions of the invisible church. The Lutheran Church took the via media, declaring that the Church, proprie, was spiritual, but that it was also an institution. The question for us is whether we Lutherans of the twentieth century have remained on the via media or whether we have not slipped too far to the right or to the left.
To find the answer one would naturally consult our church formulas and constitutions. According to Dr. Walther's "Pastorale," the candidate for admission to a "Missouri" church must be a truly converted and regenerated Christian. The General Council requires that the candidate shall have been admitted to the Lord's Supper and shall accept the constitution. The Synod of New York requires that candidates be confirmed, accept the Augsburg Confession, lead a Christian life, obey the constitution and any other regulations that may hereafter be adopted.
From this it seems that "Missouri" is the only body that emphasizes the interna virtus. The others place the emphasis upon conformity with certain outward forms and requirements.
But we cannot always judge from the printed constitution. To bring the information up to date, and to ascertain the actual usage of the churches, the author obtained from forty pastors of this city an account of their practice. Some of their replies will be embodied in this chapter.
Theoretically we enter the church through baptism. Practically, for most
Lutherans, confirmation is the door of admission.