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| Compare and contrast C. F. W. Walther |
Someone on the Net claimed I was discussing some "secret history:" of the LCMS.
The only new wrinkle in Walther history is the Philip Stephan book, In Pursuit of Religious Freedom. That book fills in quite a few details about Stephan's life and the Walther-led mob action. Paul McCain railed against the book, which de facto verified its overall truthfulness.
The only fact I have introduced is Bishop Martin Stephan's syphilis. Someone else pointed me to LCMS research that verified Stephan's STD (not a doctoral degree, in this case). Anyone can look up the symptoms of syphilis, Stephan's symptoms, and the mob action to arrive at the same conclusions, without a post-mortem blood test.
Adultery
I was re-reading Zion on the Mississippi this week. Stephan continued his degenerate ways in St. Louis. Although he came over without his wife, many women were allowed to hang around him, including his main mistress and Walther's kidnapped niece (who died young). The paragraph gave me a shock.
Walther knew all about Stephan, but he let his young niece hang around the randy bishop? Zion gives plenty of evidence that Stephan's behavior was well known in Dresden, continued on the ocean voyage, and expanded in America.
Syphilitic Delusions - Last Stages
Zion described how bizarre Stephan's behavior became when they arrived in America. The author ascribed it to Stephan's new title, but the range of actions is more harmonious with the final stage of syphilis, when the pathogen attacks the brain in earnest. Stephan's plans and spending were grandiose, but the clergy (including the Walthers) approved his spending. The clergy withdrew money for themselves, too, although not at the rate of the Right Reverend Stephan.
The bishop's adultery was not new. The trip was delayed because of Stephan's house-arrest. The bishop's spending was approved by the clergy advisory group. The new factor was the spread of syphilis in their close-knit group, which included physicians. Young ladies with syphilis were enough to cause a riot, even though adultery did not raise eyebrows.
The Walther Mythology
The real scandal is the Walther mythology promoted by LCMS and Synodical Conference politicians. Since they know the truth, much of it residing in the Concordia Historical Institute, where McCain once enjoyed a sinecure, their crowing about Missouri history is a sham, a disgrace, and another layer of lies on top of many others.
But the facts are there, even in the official hagiographies. More will be published later.
