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Thirty-Five Years of Luther Research

that even the weakest ones could grasp the evangelical truth. Buchwald, Knoke and Albrecht,69 by means of new discoveries and most thorough and extensive investigations in a conclusive way, made us acquainted with the origin of the two catechisms, with the form in which the Small Catechism was at first published, with the different editions up to Luther's death, with its translations into Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, English, etc. Compare the author's article on the "Religious Instruction During the 16th Century" in the Lutheran Church Review of 1915 and 1916.

That through the publication of his "Passionale" in 1529, Luther became the father of Bible story instruction, is covered by my article in "Kirchliche Zeitschrift" (1906), and the little book has been made known again through the second part of my "Quellen zur Geschichte des kirchlichen Unterrichts."69 This last-named work also carefully traces the great influence which Luther's catechism had into the most distant portions of Germany and beyond. Hardeland presents the rich thoughts that are hidden in all of Luther's catechetical writings, and Meyer shows plainly how the Large Catechism grew out from the three series of Luther's sermons on the catechism-texts of 1528.69

Luther was the advocate of an entirely new relation of the evangelical congregations that now arose all over Germany towards the State. Sohm, Kolde, Brandenburg, Koehler, Drews, K. Mueller, Holl, Hermelink and Waring aim at making us acquainted with this view of Luther of the State and its relation to the Church, as well as with the dream of founding ideal congregations that was once dreamed by him.70 Space does not permit to dwell longer upon this matter. May it suffice to say