488 THE GERMAN REFORMATION. A.D. 1517 To 1530.
it, in his “ Babylonian Captivity,” and in a special tract from the Wartburg. He assailed it again and again as a cardinal error in the papal system. He held indeed the doctrine of the real presence, but without the scholastic notion of transubstantiation and priestly sacrifice.
He gave the most prominent place to the sermon, which was another departure from previous custom. He arranged three services on Sunday, each with a sermon: early in the morning, chiefly for servants; the mass at nine or ten; and.in the afternoon a discourse from a text in the Old Testament. On Monday and Tuesday in the morning the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer were to be taught; on Wednesday, the Gospel of Matthew; on Saturday, the Gospel of John; on Thursday, the Epistle lessons should be explained. Ὁ The boys of the school were to recite daily some Psalms in Latin, and then read alternately one or more chapters of the New Testament in Latin and German.
Luther introduced the new order with the approval of the Elector in October, 1525, and published it early in 1526.} The chief service on Sunday embraces a German hymn or psalm; the Kyrie Hleison, and Gloria in Excelsis (Allein Gott in der Hoh sei Khr); a short collect, and the Epistle for the day; a hymn; the Gospel for the day sung by the minister ; the Nicene Creed recited by the whole congregation ; a sermon on the Gospel; the Lord’s Prayer; exhortation; the holy communion, the words of institution sung by the minister (this being the consecration of the elements), with singing of the Sanctus (Isa. 6: 1-4, rendered into German by Luther), the Benedictus, the Agnus Det (John 1:29) or in German “ O Lamm GCottes unschuldig” (by Decius), followed by the distribution, the collection, and benediction. Omitting the canon misse, or the offering of the sacrifice of Christ’s body, the new order was substantially the same as the old, only translated into German.
1 Deutsche Messe und Ordnung des Gottesdiensts, with musical notes for the parts to be sung.
§ 80. REFORMATION IN PUBLIC WORSHIP 489
Melanchthon says in the Augsburg Confession of 1530: 1 “Our churches are wrongfully accused of having abolished the mass. For the mass is retained still among us, and celebrated with great reverence; yea, and almost all the ceremonies that are in use, saving that with the things sung in Latin we mingle certain things sung in German at various parts of the service, which are added for the people’s instruction. For therefore alone we have need of ceremonies, that they may teach the unlearned.”
Luther regarded ceremonies, the use of clerical robes, candles on the altar, the attitude of the minister in prayer, as matters of indifference which may be retained or abolished. In the revision of the baptismal service, 1526, he abolished the use of salt, spittle, and oil, but retained the exorcism in an abridged form. He also retained the public confession and absolution, and recommended private confession of sin to the minister.”
The Lutheran churches in Northern Germany and in Scandinavia adopted the order of Wittenberg with sundry modifications, but the Lutheran churches in Southern Germany (Wiurtemberg, Baden, Palatinate, Alsace) followed the simpler type of the Swiss service.
The Lutheran order of worship underwent some radical changes in the eighteenth century under the influence of rationalism ; the spirit of worship cooled down; the weekly communion was abolished; the sermon degenerated into a barren moral discourse; new liturgies and hymnbooks with all sorts of misimprovements were introduced. But in recent times, we may say since the third centennial celebration of
1 Part 11. art. III. Comp. his ‘“‘ Apology of the Conf.,’’ art. XXIV., De missa.
2 The Augsburg Confession, Part II. art. IV., says: ‘‘Confession is not abolished in our churches. For itis not usual to communicate the body of our Lord, except to those who have been previously examined and absolved. - » » Men are taught that they should highly regard absolution, inasmuch as it is God’s voice, and pronounced by God’s command.”’