bears the title, Paraenesis votiva pro Pace Ecclesiae ad Theologos Augustanae Confessionis, Auctore
Ruperto Meldenio Theologo, 62 pp. in 4to, without date and place of publication. It probably
appeared in 1627 at Francfort-on-the Oder, which was at that time the seat of theological moderation.
Mr. C. R Gillett (librarian of the Union Theological Seminary) informs me that the original copy,
which he saw in Berlin, came from the University of Francfort-on-the Oder after its transfer to
Breslau.
Dr. Luecke republished the tract, in 1850, from a reprint in Pfeiffer’s Variorum Auctorum
Miscellanea Theologiae (Leipzig, 1736, pp. l36–258), as an appendix to his monograph on the
subject (pp. 87–145). He afterwards compared it with a copy of the original edition in the Electoral
library at Cassel. Another original copy was discovered by Dr. Klose in the city library of Hamburg
(1858), and a third one by Dr. Briggs and Mr. Gillett in the royal library of Berlin (1887).
The author of this tract is an orthodox Lutheran, who was far from the idea of ecclesiastical
union, but anxious for the peace of the church and zealous for practical scriptural piety in place of
the dry and barren scholasticism of his time. He belongs, as Luecke says ("Stud. und Kritiken,"
1851, p. 906), to the circle of "those noble, genial, and hearty evangelical divines, like John Arnd,
Valentin Andrew, and others, who deeply felt the awful misery of the fatherland, and especially
the inner distractions of the church in their age, but who knew also and pointed out the way of
salvation and peace." He was evidently a highly cultivated scholar, at home in Hebrew, Greek, and
Latin, and in controversial theology. He excels in taste and style the forbidding literature of his
age. He condemns the pharisaical hypocrisy, the folodoxiva, filargiva, and filoneikiva of the
theologians, and exhorts them first of all to humility and love. By too much controversy about the
truth, we are in danger of losing the truth itself. Nimium altercando amittitur Veritas. "Many," he
says, "contend for the corporal presence of Christ who have not Christ in their hearts." He sees no
other way to concord than by rallying around the living Christ as the source of spiritual life. He
dwells on the nature of God as love, and the prime duty of Christians to love one another, and
comments on the seraphic chapter of Paul on charity (1 Cor. 13). He discusses the difference between
necessaria and non-necessaria. Necessary dogmas are, (1) articles of faith necessary to salvation;
(2) articles derived from clear testimonies of the Bible; (3) articles decided by the whole church in
a synod or symbol; (4) articles held by all orthodox divines as necessary. Not necessary, are dogmas
(1) not contained in the Bible; (2) not belonging to the common inheritance of faith; (3) not
unanimously taught by theologians; (4) left doubtful by grave divines; (5) not tending to piety,
charity, and edification. He concludes with a defense of John Arnd (1555–1621), the famous author
of "True Christianity," against the attacks of orthodox fanatics, and with a fervent and touching
prayer to Christ to come to the rescue of his troubled church (Rev. 22:17).
The golden sentence occurs in the later half of the tract (p. 128 in Luecke’s edition),
incidentally and in hypothetical form, as follows: —
"Verbo dicam: Si nos servaremus in necessariis unitatem, in non-necessariis libertatem, in
utrisque charitatem, optimo certe loco essent res nostrae."
The same sentiment, but in a shorter sententious and hortative form, occurs in a book of
Gregor Frank, entitled Consideratio theologica de gradibus necessitatis dogmatumt Christianorum
quibus fidei, spei et charitatis officia reguntur, Francf. ad Oderam, 1628. Frank (1585–1651) was
first a Lutheran, then a Reformed theologian, and professor at Francfort. He distinguishes three
kinds of dogmas: (1) dogmas necessary for salvation: the clearly revealed truths of the Bible; (2)
dogmas which are derived by clear and necessary inference from the Scriptures and held by common
tuis.
(Tuis.)
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