Leben - A Journal of Reformation Life Volume 1 Issue 1

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2005 Jan-Mar (01-01)

Welcome!

A new publication is always something of an adventure, and the inaugural edition of Leben is no exception. Our goal was to not only rekindle an interest in the rich history of the Reformed Church, but to celebrate the wonderful mosaic of Reformed life, past and present.

The history of Reformed life is, to a great extent, the history of Protestantism, for it is from Reformed soil that most expressions of the Protestant church sprang. Because so much of the believing church today shares part of this history, we hope that the retelling will be of interest to the broader church community, as well. It is a history that shouts forth the mercy of God, as tragedy and triumph so evidently worked together to accomplish His will.

In the following pages, you will meet Anna Reinhard Zwingli, the wife of the founder of the Reformed Church. It is appropriate that this under-appreciated Reformer grace our first cover, and that the remarkable Anna Reinhard be the subject of our first article.

We have included an historical sermon by the Rev. Jacob Helffenstein accusing a seminary of subverting the historic Protestant doctrine of justification by faith. What may surprise many of our readers is that the institution in question was the German Reformed Church seminary at Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. The year? 1852.

In our Profiles in Faith, you will read the moving account of the first minister of the Gospel to be martyred by the Nazis in Germany. Pastor Paul Schneider is a name that every Christian, but especially every Reformed Christian, should know. There is also the story of the Keller family and their ordeal on the frontier during the French and Indian War.

This first issue of Leben is sent to friends of City Seminary as an expression of our thankfulness for all the Lord has done for us. We have so many stories to tell that we can hardly wait for our second issue. If you are not already a supporter of the ministry of City Seminary and would like to continue receiving Leben, then please, use the attached envelope to let us know. We'd love to hear from you.

WCJ
Editor and Publisher

Main Articles

Anna Reinhard, The Wife of Zwingli

What would Luther have been without his Kathe? The women of the Reformed Church have been an important element in her history. Just as Deborah and Esther, with the Marys of the New Testament, aided in making up Bible history, so the women of the Reformed Church have helped to make her history great.

The first, and in some respects the most interesting of them, was the wife of the founder of our Church, Ulrich Zwingli. Her name was Anna Reinhard. She had not been a nun like Catharine von Bora, L

Paul Schneider

The Martyr of Buchenwald

Few in the United States know the name of Paul Schneider, the first Protestant pastor murdered by the Nazis. Fewer still know the remarkable trial of faith that marked the life of this Reformed minister of the Gospel.

From an early age, young Paul set his mark upon the ministry, listing "the pastorate" as his chosen field of study when he passed the school-leave exam to enlist in the war effort during the First World War. Though wounded and awarded the Iron Cross, Paul

A Perverted Gospel

The Romanizing Tendency of the Mercersburg Theology

It has ever been the policy of Satan, when he cannot lead to the denial of the gospel, to obscure its lustre and neutralize its power by connecting with it the "commandments and doctrines of men." It was so in the early days of Christianity. Through the influence of Jewish tradition and pagan Philosophy, many, even in the Christian church, were "corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ." Some rejected the doctrine of the Savior's humani

Sing a New Song...

Rev. Caleb Hauser was born of American missionary parents in Bisrampur, India. He spent his childhood among the Winnebago Indians near Black River Falls, WI, later attending schools in Rising Sun, IN and Archbold, OH.

Responding to God's call to the ministry, he enrolled at Mission House College in Franklin, WI, graduating in 1897. Three years later he graduated from the Mission House seminary, serving Reformed churches in Ohio, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Between times of service in the pulpit,

Kidnapped! The True Story of the Keller Family
In the year 1738, my ancestors were living in the city of Zweibrucken, in the Palatinate, Germany. This is near the border of France, and sometimes known by its French name Deuxponts. Originally our family was of Swiss descent; but in the time of the black plague, they, with many other Swiss, emigrated, and found a pleasant home in this city, which is now included in what is known as Rhenish Bavaria.

The clear waters of mountain streams flowed from thousands of springs in the Hardt Mountains do

Relief for Burning Feet

Antidote for Loss of Hair

How to Cook Potatoes

RCUS Students Receive Free Tuition at City Seminary

The James I. Good Collection

Paul Schneider

Relief for Burning Feet

Kidnapped! The True Story of the Keller Family