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WESTIN, JiREV FRÅN C. O. ROSENIUS
341
they met for devotion, to pray and sing, and another moment they
joined in improper and wanton conversation, or even "corrupt
communications," and drinking of ardent spirits. When I elevated my voice
against such improprieties, the most distinguished among the leaders, a
highly gifted clergyman, answered me with strong expressions against
absolute abstinence:—"I prefer to get tipsy as a swine to-day; I can
then make a true repentance to-morrow." Already this expressions
shows you their false idea of repentance. As falsely they taught about
faith. The)’ denied all standing in grace, and taught only of " moments
in the grace," declaring themselves to be children of the devil during
the inconsiderate life of the day, and so again children of God, when
in the evening they knelt down in prayer and repentance. When I
expressed my astonishment at their manner of teaching as well as of
living, and from the Word of God witnessed against it, they all
condemned my views. But now one of them tried to initiate me into the
mysteries of their aim in these deviations from the rule of the Word,
both in doctrine and life. A more moderate clergyman said to me: " I
do not wonder at your astonishment with our manner of living and
preaching; but you must be aware of one thing: we have two parties
in the country, with which we wish to contrast. On one hand, we have
the dead orthodoxy of the Church, with which we contrast through our
doctrine; and, on the other, the pharisaical hypocrisy, from which we
wish to differ through our unrestrained manner of life." Of course I
deplored that they had not found a better way of obtaining this aim;
that they had not sought to differ from a dead orthodoxy through life,
power, and purity of doctrine, and not by false doctrine, and from
hypocrisy through real and true holiness, and not through unholiness.
The following year one of these ministers, F. G. Hedberg, came
to real light in the Gospel, and, amazed at the errors in which he himself
and all the others had been kept, he now powerfully bore witness to the
truth as it is in Christ Jesus. Some of the other clergymen and a
considerable part of the peasants were now also brought back into the
right way; whilst those who remained in the old errors anathematized
Hedberg and his brethren. The light of the Gospel gave joy and
strength to the believers; but even among these there soon arose a
deplorable error, when they took a real antinomian turn, so that
Hedberg himself for some time taught there was no need of preaching the
law. This state of things did, nevertheless, not last long. Hedberg was
soon convinced again of the truth, and published a treatise against the
Antinomian error. Since that time the light of the Gospel has more
and more spread its blessings on the soul of him and his brethren.
Among those who despised Hedberg’s evangelical preachings, and
remained in the above-mentioned absurdities in doctrine and deeds, more
than one have sunken down into manifest vices, and, as striking
warnings, served to open the eyes of many a devoted partisan, who has
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