Omaha daily bee., 1903-02-21
KAISER RELIEVES PASTORS
Proves His Orthodoxy in Long Letter t.
Admiral HOLMAN.
CLAIMS DIVINITY FOR HIS GRANDFATHER
Says God Reveals Himself Through
Great Men, such as Moses, \
peare, Goethe and First
German Emperor.

BERLIN, Feb. 20.-Emperor williams
faith in God and Christ and the authority
of the Old Testament as declared in his
letter to Admiral Hollman, councillor Of
the German Oriental society, is accepted
by the leading authorities of the state and
church as satisfactory evidence Of his
orthodoxy, which for months had been the
cause Of deep concern to the ministers and
pastors.
The doubts began a year ago, when the
emperor first listened to Prof. Delitzsch's
lecture on the Babyloniap origin OF the
bible and increased later when ne person.
ally assisted the Assyriologist in showing
stereopticon pictures to sixty members Of
the court. The pictures were, designed
to prove the Babylonish origin Of Hebrew
ideas.
The. emperor subscribed to send Prof.
Delitzsch again to .Assyria and discussed
with him when he returned his most recent
discoveries, all to the dismay Of orthodox
churchmen.
Emperor Reveals Deity.
In other portions Of the letter to the
admiral, not hitherto published, the en-
peror gives his personal views regarding
the revelation, saying:
I distinguish between two different kinds
OF revelations progressive and, as 1t were.
historical; the other purely religious, as
preparing. the way for the future Messiah.
Regarding the former, It must be said for
me, II does not admit of a doubt, not even
the slightest, that God reveals Himself con-
tinuously in the race Of men created by Him.
He breathed into man the breath of His
life, and follows with fatherly love and In
terest the Development. In order TO lead
1t forward and develop ii He reveals, Him
self In this or that stage, whether priest or
King. whether among the heather. Jews or
Christians, Moses, Homer. Charlemagne.
Emperor William the Great, these He
sought out and endowed with His grace to
accomplish splendid, imperishable results
for their people, in their intellectual and
physical provinces, according to His will.
How often my grandfather pointed out
Lords hands.
The second form Of revelation. the more
religious, Is that which leads to the mani
with Abraham. Now begins the most as
tonishing activity of Gods. revelation.
Abraham's race and the people developing
from IT, regard faith in one God as their
holiest possession and hold fast to II with
ironlike consistency.
the divided elements were again welded to-
gether by Moses, ever trying to hold fast
to their monotheism. 1t was the direct in
venton of God that caused the rejuvenation
of the people thus proved through CEN
turtles, till the Messiah, heralded by proph-
cts and psalmists, finally appeared, the
ICdNCb AGNGldNlOh "a 1Ou III NAAO WOAA W
for He appeared in the Son Himself.
Admits Divinity of Christ.
Christ is God, God in human form. He re-
deemed us and inspires, entices us, to fol-
low Him. We feel His fire burning In
us. His sympathy strengthens us. His
discomfort destroys us. But, also, His I'M
tercession saves us. Conscious of victory,
building solely on His woro, we go through
labor, ridicule. sorrow, misery, and death,
for we have, in Him Gods revealed word
and He never lies.
That is my, view of these matters. 1t ie
to me self evident that the Old Testament
contains many sections which are of a
purely human and historical nature, and
are. not Gods revealed word, They are
merely historical descriptions Of incidents
OF all kinds which happen In the political,
religious; moral and intellectual me OF TINS
penple.s The Legislative act on Sinai, for ex-
ample, can be only regarded, as symbolic
ally inspired by God. When Moses had to
reburnish+ we'll known paragraphs ofslaw,
perhaps derived from the code of Ham.
murobi. in order to corporate and bind
them into the loose, weak fabric OF his
| people, here the historian can perhaps con-
strue from the sense or wording a con
nection with the laws of Hammurobl, the
friend of Abraham. That is, -prehaps, logic
ally correct. But that Win never disguise
the fact tina God melted Moses thereto and
insofar revealed Himself to the people Of
Israel,