The Conservative Reformation and Its Theology - Saint Mary ...

statement, that these Articles "received revision and some slight
modifications." This Confession, when finished, was sent by the Elector to
Luther, by whom, without a solitary change, or suggestion of a change, it
was approved, May 15th, one month previous to the entrance of the
Emperor into Augsburg. The first session of the Diet was held June 20th,
and it was determined that the religious questions should be taken up first.
On the 23d of June, the Protestant Princes signed the Confession. On
the 24th they received permission to present the Confession on the
following day. The material labor on the Augsburg Confession was
finished and approved by Luther more than a month before the Diet met.
In the intervening weeks, Melanchthon elaborated the style, and gave
higher finish to the form of the Confession, and before the Diet met, the
Confession was finished. It was then no draft, but the perfect Confession,
which was in the hands of the Confessors, when the Diet met; but neither
draft nor Confession was ever submitted for adoption to the Diet. It
received, and could in the nature of the case receive, no revision or “slight
modification before the Diet." Melanchthon was not present at the
discussion before the Diet, not only, although this would seem to be
enough, because there was no such discussion, but he was not, in fact,
present in the Diet at any discussions of any sort. Melanchthon did not
hear the Augsburg Confession read. Justus Jonas was the only evangelical
theologian who heard the Confession read, an honor which may have been
thought due to his juristic skill, or to his official position. There was no
discussion of the Articles of the Confession before the Diet, and no debate
in regard to them to make any progress, to be shared in by Melanchthon,
or to require the aid of Luther. The Symbol was not formed in this manner,
as we have" seen, but was finished before the Diet began. Equally
mistaken is the statement, that Melanchthon entered upon a detailed
refutation of the Romish Confutation, "so far as he could reconstruct the
document from his own recollection on hearing it read," as he did not hear
it read, and was at first entirely dependent on "notes that had been taken
by others who were