Concoll()ia Tbeological Monthly SEPTEMBER 1950· ARCHIVE THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER THE LUTHERAN FRONT Significant resolutions adopted by Lutheran bodies at their recent conventions and reported in their church papers (the Augustana Lutberan, Lutheran Herald, Lutheran Standard, the Lutheran) are the following: 1. The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church, which convened in Washington, D. c., resolved: a. Adoption of the proposal to become a charter member of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America (this contemplated new organization will embrace the Federal Council of Churches and seven other interchurch agencies, such as the Foreign Missions Conference of North America, the Home Missions Council of North America, the International Council of Religious Education, and the United Stewardship COlmcil), b. Approval of the merger plan affecting the eight participating bodies in the National Lutheran Council; formation of a federation as an intermediate step was likewise approved; c. Disapproval of any kind of diplomatic representation of the United States at the Vatican; d. Approval in principle of the establishment by the National Lutheran Council of a Division on Latin America; e. Unequivocal condemnation of warfare as "a crime against God and humanity" and a demand that the United States take the lead in a newall-out effort to end the "cold war" and to establish peace in the world. 2. The Evangelical Lutheran Church, which met in Minneapolis, adopted these resolutions: a. To decline participation in the movement to merge organically the eight bodies of the National Lutheran Council and to recommend that the National Lutheran Council do not become a federation; b. To continue negotiations with the American Lutheran Church and the United Evangelical Lutheran Church for the purpose of eventually effecting an organic merger with these groups; c. To authorize its Union Committee, acting jointly with the committees of the American Lutheran Church and the United Evangelical Lutheran Church, to give exploratory consideration to any 700 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 701 approaches from either or both of the other two American Lutheran Conference bodies (the Augustana Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Free Church) and to report back to the next convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (NOTE: The Augustana Lutheran Church had previously declared itself in favor of a merger of all bodies represented in the National Lutheran Council, but had not indicated that it would not consider a "smaller" merger.) 3. The United Evangelical Lutheran Church, which met in Hutchinson, Minn., declared itself in favor of merging with the Evangelical Lutheran Church and the American Lutheran Church and also indicated a desire that the Augustana Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Free Church might participate in this merger. It rejected the proposed plan of federating or merging the eight bodies represented in the National Luth ran Council. 4. The Finnish Suomi Synod, which met in Ishpeming, Mich., resolved in favor of federating the eight Lutheran bodies participating In the National Lutheran Council and stated that it was not prepared at this time to cake definite action on organic union, Other Lutheran bodies in our country are still lookmg forward to their convention. The Synodical Conference and the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church meet in August, and the United Lutheran Church and the American Lutheran Church will hold their biennial conventions in October. A careful scrutiny of the above data suggests a number of conclusions: 1. A merger of the eight bodies participating in the National Lutheran Council is, for the present, out of the question; 2. That the American Lutheran Church will approve of the threeway merger with the Evangelical Lutheran Church and the United Evangelical Lutheran Church appears likely; 3. That the Augustana Lutheran Church and the Lutheran Free Church will In the foreseeable future resolve to merge with the other bodies in the American Lutheran Conference does not seem likely; 4. That the American Lutheran Church will approve of the Common Confession at its convention appears likely; how the other Lutheran bodies in the American Lutheran Conference will respond-'Is very difficult to say; 5. Whether the Synodical Conference will take any action with 702 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER regard to the Common Confession appears doubtful, since at least one of the participating bodies in the Synodical Conference does not convene this year. The adoption by our Synod of the Common C01zfession has resulted in varying reactions in other Lutheran groups. The editor of the Lutheran Herald (issue of July 25) comments: The Missouri Synod has adopted the Common Confessio1t .... We do not know whether the ALC will do likewise, but it is probable that this will be the case. What the simation will then be, we do not know. Presumably, doctrinal documents are not drawn up as an exercise in dogmatics. The unity which they reveal would ordinarily express itself in a closer fellowship -altar and pulpit fellowship at the least; organic merger at the most. So the old question rises: Do things equal to the same thing equal each 0 her, ecclesiastically as otherwise? In other words: Does this action bring Missouri into the picmre of our negotiations wi[h [he American Lutheran Church? We, frankly, do not know the answer. We rejoice that Missouri accepted the Com· mOtl Confessioll, and at [he same time express our unbounded astonishment that she did. If this opens the possibility of closer relationships between us and Missouri, we shall be happy. But if it places an obstacle in the path of negotiations among ALC, UELC, and ELC, we shall deplore it. But the same editor is also concerned about the resolution of the Augustana Lutheran Church to become a charter member of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States. He writes in the same issue of the Lutheran Herald: It is our conviction that every opportunity should be given Augustana [the Augustana Lutheran Church) to discuss the whole simation with our Joint Union Committee. We confess that we are not unduly optimistic of favorable results. Augustana's action in deciding to join the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA . . . makes the situation difficult, at least as far as the ELC is concerned. (And we have not heard the faintest intimation from anyone in the ALC and UELC that those bodies entertain any intention of joining this ecumenical body.) We are submitting the above data on the Lutheran front not for the sake of filling the pages of the MONTHLY with current news nor to provide opportunity for speculating on what seem to us to be imponderables. We wish rather to bring home to our readers that the Lutheran Church in our land is definitely on the way toward new alignments and that every consecrated member of our Synod, whether THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 703 he belong to the clergy or laity, owes it to his Savior and to his Church to be circumspect and sober in the midst of these developments and to implore God that He might endow the leaders of our Church with a special measure of divine wisdom so to steer the course of our Synod in the second half of this century that as Vice-President Hertwig so eloquently told the convention in terms of the words of St. Peter, "God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ." P.M.B. MEETING OF CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF W. C. C. In the July 26 issue of the Christian Century, Harold E. Fey reports on the meeting of the Central Committee of the W orId Council of Churches recently held in Toronto. It was the third annual meeting ot the Central Committee, which was called into existence by the Wodd Council of Churches in Amste dam in August, 1948. Though Mr. Fey's report is much condensed, it does indicate that the 160 denominations now represented in the World Council are still having difficulty in determining their mutual relationships in the CounCIl. Accordmg ro Mr. Fey's report, sections of the report [submitted to the Committee] affirmed that "the member churches ... recognize in other churches elements of the true church," that they "are willing to consult together in seeking to learn of the Lord Jesus Christ what witness he would have them bear to the world in his name," and that the churches "should recognize their solidarity with each other, render assistance to each other in case of need and refrain from such actions as are incompatible with brotherly relationships." Finally, so Mr. Fey quotes from the report, "the member churches enter into spiritual relationships through which they seek to learn from each other and to give help to each other in order that the body of Christ may be built up and that the life of the churches may be renewed." From these brief quotations it appears that some member churches in the Wodd Council are not inclined so to water down existing differences in doctrine and practice as to forfeit and betray the historical place of these churches in Christendom. Refusing to submit to an emasculation of their beliefs and practices, these member churches will find it difficult, if not impossible, wholeheartedly and joyfully to work in common for the achievement of goals established by the Council in 1948. Mr. Fey informs his readers that the next meeting of the World Council of Churches will be held in Evanston, Ill., at Northwestern University, for two weeks in the latter half of August, 1953; that this assembly wili have 600 delegates, no alternates, only 150 consultants, 704 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 100 youth delegates, and not over 850 accredited visitors; and that its general theme will be something like "Jesus Christ as Lord is the only hope of both the church and the world." P. M. B. THE KOREAN SITUATION On June 27 President Truman announced: "I have ordered United States air and sea forces to give the Korean troops cover and support." Since that announcement our Army, Navy, and Air Force are again active in a real war only five years after hostilities ceased in Japan. The reactions and repercussions on the home front are well known. Americans appear determined to support every effort of our Government to stave off the invasion and to help the people in southern Korea to maintain their government. The fear that W arId War III with its dreaded implications may soon be upon us has driven many people to amass stock piles of food and clothing and even refrigerators and automobiles and thus to create shortages and to superinduce black-marketing. The fear that their sons may be drafted for service is paralyzing the heam of many parents. The reports of casualues. however limited these casualties may be, is filling American homes with grief and sorrow. At the same time no one seems as yet to have envisioned what could happen to our country if the Korean situation were to develop into a world-wide conflagration. That Communistic influence is making itself felt in Central American countries, especially in Guatemala, is evident from the recent reports by Will Lissner in the New York Times. How the Korean situation will affect our mission work in Japan, the Philippines, and Guatemala remains to be seen. In the meantime there are important truths for Christians to remember. A number of St. Paul's admonitions apply with peculiar force, as "See, then, that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil; wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is" (Eph. 5 : 15-17). Again, "Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good; be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another; not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer" (Rom. 12: 9-12). And, "I exhort therefore that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 705 peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, our Savior" (1 Tim. 2: 1-3 ) . The sentiments of our Synod in this crisis as expressed by Dr. Behnken in his telegram to the White House on June 29 deserve to be recorded and remembered. The telegram reads: Eight hundred and seventy-three delegates and one thousand visitors to the national convention of The Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod, representing 5,566 parishes and 1,750,000 members in the United States and Canada, today unanL.T!lous!y joined in prayer ~ o r you, Mr. President, for Congress, and all who are in authority that God may grant you wisdom rightly to use the , strength He has given our country, imploring God on High to turn the tide of war that threatens the world and to grant us and all nations peace. At the same time the convention pledged our Church to stand shoulder to shoulder with our fellow Americans that the voice of our nation and, if necessary, its arms may be raised for what is right 1U the sight of God and good for the peace of the world. P. M. B. MODERN VIEWS OF THE DOCTRINE OF ATONEMENT The journal Interpretation devotes the greater part of its April issue to three articles and a sermon on the doctrine of Atonement. Prof. H. T. Kerr, Jr., under the heading "Love's Intention," discusses the motive of the Atonement. He stresses particularly the thought that the Cross of Christ can be understood only in the light of the preceding life and the subsequent resurrection of our Savior. He states that we must " see the cross not as an isolated or even climactic fact, but as part of the incarnation and the resurrection .... We must look at the beginning and the middle of God's redemptive drama in Christ from the end." He criticizes the Anselmic view because it is predicated on the necessity of the Atonement from the point of view of both God's and man's nature. Professor Kerr suggests that the answer to the Cross can best be found by having the Cross portrayed to us, on the one hand, as man's opposition to God's justice and, on the other hand, as the love of God which seeks the sinner in spite of his unworthiness. Only if we see the Atonement as God's judgment upon sin and as redeeming grace from the viewpoint of the resurrection, shall we be able to understand the motive behind the redemption. In the second article Edwin Lewis discusses the Atonement under the theme "Creator and Creature." His main thought is that it lies in the very nature of God to seek fellowship, not only in the Trinitarian relation, but also in re-establishing the broken relation between 45 706 TF-EOLOGICAL OBSERVER the Creator and His creature. In reading his analysis we felt that he was leaning toward the ancient recapitulation theory of the Atonement. The third, and in our opinion the most significant, contribution was furnished by Gustav Aulen under the title "Chaos and Cosmos." It appears that Auien realizes the weakness of his former overemphasis of the resurrection as presented in his book Christus Victor. However, to this observer it seems that Auien has not materially changed his position. According to Aulen, the Atonement is a drama of the duellum mirabile between the demoniacal powers and God in Christ. The reconciliation is essentially the victory of the divine will itself. The Cross is the turning point in the war that God fights with the powers of evil, a war which had been going on throughout the history of the Old Testament and will continue until the end of time. However, through the work of Christ, this war entered into a new and decisive phase, the phase of victory. The enemies which God encounters in this conflict are sin, death, all the demoniacal powers represented by Satan and the Law. By destroying the dominion of the evil forces God reconciles the world unto Himself and is Himself reconciled. Since the MeSSiah IS closely umted WIth His people and acts as their Representative before God, His suffering and death have a representative character and expiated man's sin and guilt and at the same time liberated man from the evil powers which held him in bondage. Only by bearing the suffering, sin, and guilt of humanity can divine love accomplish the Atonement. Aulen maintains that in Christian thinking the Cross has so dominated that the resurrection has been viewed merely as God's stamp of approval on the work of Christ. This overemphasis of the Cross presents the Atonement as an event already completed in history and views the work of Christ chiefly as a "legal settlement between God and Christ." To counteract this so-called Anselmic view, Aulen would direct attention primarily to the victorious element in the drama of the reconciliation. Such a re-orientation, says Aulen, enables us to see the Atonement as being continued today by the Church through its proclamation; as a drama in which the divine law of love today and every day overcomes the demoniacal forces. This drama is never ended, though the conditions of the fight have been changed. In every generation "the Spirit of God has the same hard work to do" with every man, until the final battle is won In eschatology. These three articles no doubt help to emphasize certain phases of THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 707 the doctrine of the AtOnement. But there is always the grave danger that in overemphasizing one facet the core of the Atonement may be lost entirely. As is pointed out in the first article of this issue of our journal, the story of our redemption is so many-sided and so rich that no pastor will ever exhaust this theme. The words of Luther in the Preface of the Large Catechism certainly apply here: "For inasmuch as God Himself is not ashamed to teach these things daily, as knowing nothing better to teach, and always keeps teaching the same thing and does not take up anything new or different, and all the saints know nothing better or different to learning and getting finished learning this, are we not the finest of all fellows to imagine if we have once read or heard it, that we know it all and have no further need to read and learn, but can finish in one hour what God Himself cannot finish teaching?" (T1'igl., 573.) HISTORICAL RELATIVISM OF DIALECTICAL THEOLOGY AND BIBLICAL STUDY F.E.M. There is probably no field of theology In which the pendulum has swung so far from one extreme to the other as in exegesis. For a season Higher Criticism was concerned excIusivel y with a historicocritical approach to the entire Bible, centering ultimately in the quest for "the histOrical Jesus." This extreme form of historism was gradually supplanted by "Formgeschichte" and "Heilsgeschichte." But now the pendulum has come to the other extreme in "dialectical theology," which operates with "superhistory" and ultimately makes all religious history relativistic. Karl Barth of Basel and Rudolf Bultmann of Marburg are currently the chief exponents of religious historical relativism. Barth has developed such a high ChristOlogy that, as Baillie puts it, he has given us a superhistorical Christ in the place of the historical Jesus. Every Christian knows that without the historical record of our Savior's life there can be no Christology. Of Bultmann someone has said that he is anOther face of Karl Barth. This was quite a shock to Karl Barth and prompted him to disassociate himself from the Marburg theologian, whose principle of Entmythologisierung is so radical that he has been called a resurrected Strauss. John H. Otwell of the Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, Calif., in the Harvard Theological Review, April issue, under the title "NeoOrthodoxy and Biblical Research," subjects Barth's and Bultmann's historical relativism to a severe critique. It is Professor Otwell's contention that the dialectical theology has deeply and seriously influenced New Testament studies, because it plays so loosely with the history of 708 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER the New Testament. Otwell believes that Barth's historical relativism is a natural outgrowth of the basic principle of dialectical theology, to wit: that there is an impassable gulf between the "wholly-other" God and sinful man. As a result of this absolute difference, man is totally unqualified to attain any knowledge of God (including what is usually called the natural knowledge of God). Whatever man considers to be a knowledge of God is in reality only a reflection of his own sinfulness. Since man can do nothing to find God, God takes the initiative and reveals Himself. For Barth the act of revelation, whether of His wrath or His love, is the core of the Gospel. In the words of Barth: "Revelation in the Bible means the self-disclosure to man of the God [who is} undisclosable in His nature to man." In other words, revelation is not to be identified with the subject matter which God revealed through men, but the distinct act whereby God enters human history. Barth says that the Person of Christ is the act of revelation. Accordingly, in his view, revelation is at the same time the incarnation and the reconciliation. It follows, says Barth, that this act of God is inaccessible to historical investigation. Only Scripture can inrerprc( itself, because Scripture is an expression of God's free activity, which is never subject to human interpretation. Otwell's criticism of Barth is that he rejects an examination of the historical background and demands that the Bible be interpreted according to the (lPneumatikExegese" -or, shall we say, according to a preconceived unifying theme -which leaves the historian nothing but a meaningless shell of the historical Jesus. Otwell holds that Bultmann's underlying principles are in reality the same as those of Karl Barth. Like Barth, Bultmann holds that man is inherently sinful and unable to find God. God, on the other hand, is so righteous that He is the "wholly-other." Because of this qualitative difference it is impossible for man to have any knowledge of God. In fact, any attempt of man to know God is in reality man's self-worship. Only by a divine act is a revelation possible. Bultmann, differing from Barth, conceives this divine act to be "an encounter with God which quickens within the seeker a dormant knowledge of his own true nature." He calls this divine act the "address," an encounter between God and man which quickens in man selfknowledge. In Bultmann's theory, Christ enters into the picture in so far that it is His message which causes this self-awakening. Also the later proclamation of the Church about Christ is a part of this "address," provided that the message is presented in such a way that man is brought to a conviction of his sinfulness and is led into "the THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 709 experience of revelation." Here is where Bultmann's radical theory of textual criticism comes into play. He holds that many human accretions, especially such views as reflect first-century culture, have been interpolated particularly into the synoptic Gospels. These accretions are really only "myths," which must be eliminated from the New Testament canon, hence Bultmann's theory of "EntmythologiJierung." Bultmann therefore eliminates from the New Testament all references which to hi,m seem unimportant for, or contrary to, his theory that God "addresses" us in Jesus Christ. Thus, as Otwell points out, Bultmann's "historical" approach is that of a subjective speculative historian and is not historical at all. It is Or-well's contention that true Biblical theology requires that the historian and the theologian must pool their efforts. The issues described above remind us of the theological conflict between the Alexandrian and the Antiochian Schools. The former advocated a highly metaphysical concept of Christ, and the latter urged the theologians to restrict their studies to the biographical record of the Savior. The Holy Spirit, however, shows us how the Christian must study both the Person and the work of Christ in the words of St. John: "And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disClples which are not written in this book; but these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that, believing, ye might have life through His name." (John 20: 30-31.) F. E. M. ITEMS FROM "RELIGIOUS NEWS SERVICE" Proposals have been made that the Protestant Episcopal House of Bishops investigate alleged breaches of Church doctrine by the bishops of New Hampshire and Washington, D. C, it was made known in New York by the American Church Union. The Union charges that Bishop Charles F. Hall of New Hampshire violated "the doctrine, discipline and worship" of the communion by taking part in a "joint ordination" with a Presbyterian and a Congregational minister at Manchester, N. H., on April 24. It also announced that the Maryland Branch of the Clerical Union for the Maintenance and Defense of Catholic Principles has called on the House of Bishops to investigate the action of Bishop Angus Dun of Washington in "having denominational ministers (Lutheran and Congregational clergymen) officiate" at an Episcopalian service on Ash Wednesday. The group said Bishop Dun also invited "all Christian ministers of Washington, except those of the Roman Church, to 'join with us ... by receiving Holy Com-710 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER munion. The Church Union condemned the action of Bishop Hall as "presumptuous, mischievous, and irregular" and added that it was "the most flagrant breach of the Church's doctrine and discipline yet committed in the Episcopal Church throughout its history." The Maryland group asserted that Bishop Dun·s action "constitutes a flagrant disregard of the doctrine and discipline of this Church, a serious affront to thousands of loyal churchmen, and direct violations of the canons of the Church and the rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer." A national group within the Episcopal Church, the American Church Union is "dedicated to upholding the doctrine, discipline and worship of the Church as an integral part of the whole Catholic Church of Christ. Its expressed aim is for the extension and defense of the traditional faith of the Church." The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the U. S. A. passed a resolution at Cincinnati opposing marriages between Presbyterians and Roman Catholics. The resolution sta ed: "Resolved that this convention earnestly warns members of our Church against contracting marriages with Roman Catholics under condmons lmposed by modern Roman Catholic law, especially as these conditions involve a promise to have their children brought up in a religious system which they themselves cannot accept; and further, because the religious education and spiritual training of their children by word or example is a paramount duty of parents and should never be neglected or left entirely to others, we assert that in no circumstances should a member of this church give any understanding, as a condition of marriage, that the children should be brought up in the practice of another communion." Eighteen ministerial students from various seminaries have begun working in Pittsburgh steel mills and factories under the auspices of the Presbyterian Institute of Industrial Relations. Jobs were provided through the co-operation of several Pittsburgh industrialists and labor leaders who expressed interest in the project. The program is designed to prepare the students for a ministry to urban industrial communities. The eighteen students are from Yale, Union, Princeton, McCormick, San Francisco, and Bloomfield seminaries. Local headquarters of the group are at Pittsburgh-Xenia Theological Seminary. The Public Affairs Institute of Washington, D. C, has addressed an open letter to 350 church leaders calling upon them to convene a "world Congress on Religion and Poverty." Mr. Dewey Anderson, the director of the Institute, said the letter grew out of the Institute's research and THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER 711 recent publication of a series of eight studies of the conditions underlying President Truman's Point Four Program, which visualizes aid for underdeveloped nations. "While the suggested program," Mr. Anderson said, "does not outline a course of action to end the cold war immediately, any world-wide religious congress on the removal of poverty would directly affect the thinking and feeling of millions of people about the cold war. They may well learn that their national goals can only be achieved by the avoidance of war. They may gain hope and regain faith through this joint effort. They may be less likely to turn in desperation toward authoritarian and godless leadership to solve their misery." The Church of England is suffering from an inadequate number of clergy. According to the Rt. Rev. Harold W. Bradfield, Bishop of Bath and Wells, the 1900 population of 32,000,000 was served by 20,000 clergy, while 585 men were ordained that year. In 1949 the population was 45,000,000, but there were only 15,000 clergy and 362 ordinations. "As 600 clergy are lost by death and retirement each year and not more than 500 are ordained," Bishop Bradfield declared, "the Church is not making up its numbers. Consequently there are large urban areas which are pitfully understaffed." The 19'50 official Catholic directory shows that Roman Catholics in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii, now number 27,766,141 or 1,047,798 more than was reported in 1949. Archdioceses which have more than 1,000,000 Catholics are Chicago, with 1,691,681; Boston, 1,302,985; New York, 1,260,328; Philadelphia, 1,058,058; and Newark, 1,028,951. The largest diocese is Brooklyn, N. Y, with 1,249,197 Catholics, followed by Pittsburgh with 805,699. Premier Wilhelm Pieck of East Germany warned about 10,000 German children who took part in the Russian Zone youth rally against the teachings of the Christian Church. The Premier told the children, who ranged in age from 9 to 14 years: "High church officials have recently started a strong campaign against dialectical materialism, which is the scientific basis of our educational system. As we all know, faith begins when knowledge ends. One could even suspect that the church has joined the anti-democratic, imperialistic and warmongering forces of the world that are out to lead us into a new world war." On June 3 and 4 the All Saints Greek Orthodox Church in Weirton, W. Va., dedicated its new edifice, a $250,000 replica of the St. Sofia Cathedral in Istanbul, Turkey. The new church, built of cream brick 712 THEOLOGICAL OBSERVER and gray stone, with a dome of burnished copper and featuring Byzantine architecture, has a seating capacity of 2,500. A Vatican radio broadcast heard in London apologized to listeners for a shortage of church news from Czechoslovakia and other Iron Curtain countries, saying it was becoming increasingly difficult to obtain information from those nations. According to the broadcast, the Communists are stepping up their efforts to prevent the leakage of news dealing with their antireligious activities. A training center for Roman Catholic priests who hope someday to carryon a religious ministry in Soviet Russia and Iron Curtain countries is being conducted at Chevretogne in the heart of the Belgian Ardennes Mountains. The training center is being operated under the auspices of the "Oeuvre des Eglises," a Benedictine institution. Many of the priests who are receiving training at Chevretogne are of Slav origin and are receiving special "Russianizing" courses to adapt them to the special mission to which they may one day be called. The Central Conference of Amencan Rabbis, meetlng in Cincinnati, approved a report reaffirming its stand for separation of Church and State. The rabbis approved seven specific recommendations made in the report. 1. "We protest against the use of our public schools as places of Bible distribution." 2. "We do not believe that parochial schools, Christian or Jewish, should be indirectly subsidized from public tax money." 3. "The use of clergymen as official paid court officers is in violation of the principle of the separation of church and state." 4. "No public funds should be used for the support of the auxiliary needs of private sectarian schools, such as bus service." 5. "We protest against the practice of getting the support of town or city officials through governmental edict or proclamation of a holy day that is not significant to the non-Christian public." 6. "Religious bodies must not be permitted to use public buildings for the display of their strictly religious symbols." 7. "We recommend that provision be made for the periodic publication by the church and state committee of a newsletter to be sent to each conference member, and that this publication contain up to the minute information on the church and state relationship." The Greek Orthodox Cathedral Church of St. Nicolas in Nicea near Athens, Greece, in a solemn Liturgy service, commemorated the 1,625th anniversary of the first ecumenical council held in Nicea in 325 A. D.