Free Evangelical Church of Geneva.

The Free Evangelical Church of Geneva demands only a formal adherence to its Profession of Faith from the elders (including the ministers) and the deacons.  “Some of these officers have even been permitted to hold certain reserves on such or such article.”

Germanic Switzerland.

Pastor Bernard of Berne, having enumerated the symbolical writings of Germanic Switzerland, says:  “For centuries the pastors were obliged to sign them, although it is true that the Second Confession of Helvetic Faith was alone recognised as the general rule imposed upon pastors.  The signing of the Formula Consensus was exacted only temporarily (being discarded about 1720).  It has been only from the beginning of this century that, under the influence of rationalism, pastors have been required to preach the Gospel merely according to the principles of the Helvetic Confession.  To-day we find all confession of faith abolished in our Germanic Swiss Churches.  Pastors preach what pleases them.  Chosen by the parishes, they owe to them solely an avowal of their doctrines.”

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The Hungarian Reformed Church has a singular history, in respect of Creeds.  The Report of the Council goes very minutely into the detail of eleven confessions held successively by that church.  Of these, there survive two—­the Helvetic Confession and the Catechism of Heidelberg, by which ministers and office—­bearers are still bound.

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[German Churches.]

Next as to Germany.  As the several states have their separate ecclesiastical usages, the same rule does not apply everywhere.  For an extreme case of absence of toleration, we may refer to the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg.  Lutheranism is the established religion; and the Duchy is the stronghold of mediaeval conservatism both in politics and in religion.  The, removal of Baumgarten from the University of Rostock is an example in point; and the decree is so characteristic, and illustrative that it deserves to be given at length.

“We have to our sincere regret been given to understand that, in your writings published in and since the year 1854, you have advanced doctrines and principles that are in the most important points at variance with the doctrines and principles of the symbolic books of our Evangelical-Lutheran Church and of our rules of Church Discipline, to such an extent as to amount to an attempt to shake to the very foundation the basis whereon these doctrines and principles and our church rest.  In order to reach more exact certainty on these things, we have assembled our Consistory to consider this matter, and from them we have received the annexed opinion, by which the above-mentioned view has been fully confirmed.