d sent by Luther, its worship was
substantially that of the Calenberg Principality of Br.-Luen. So that
until his twenty-eighth year he lived where the Government and Worship
of the church were ordered under the directions of the two branches of
the great family of KOO of Brunswick-Lueneburg. In the preparation of
these books such men as Luther, Melancthen, Bugenhagen, Amsdorf,
Corvinus, Chemnitz, Andreae and John Arndt took part. They are of the
noblest and purest type of Lutheran Ordnungen, and we can well discern
the effect of attendance on services of worship so ordered upon
Muehlenberg when he came to prepare the Liturgy for the churches here.

When he came to Halle he entered within the domain of the Margravate of
Brandenburg. Within the territory of this Margravate were found the most
extraordinary arrangements in church affairs which existed in any part
of the Lutheran Church in Germany. In the Duchies of Cleve, Julich and
Berg, the Presbyterians or Reformed from the Netherlands, welcomed as
refugees, had secured a full, self-governing, Presbyterial system in the
congregation, classis and synod. Under its influence the Lutheran Church
had largely adopted the same system. The Lutheran KO in force in
Muehlenberg's time says: "Each Congregation shall have its own Elders
and Vorsteher, who with the Pastors of the place constitute a Presbytery
or Consistory. There were to be four or six Elders, one half elected
each year by the Presbytery. Those going out of office could nominate
their successors."

The duties of the elders were: with the pastors, to have oversight of
the spiritual concerns of ministers and congregations, to visit from
house to house, to attend the Synod, to report transgressors to the
pastor, to admonish them, to exclude the recusant from spiritual
privileges, in short, to exercise discipline in connection with the
pastor. Their whole spiritual office was ordered after the manner of
Calvin at Geneva, and of the Refugee Presbyterian Congregations.

In each congregation were deacons in charge of the alms, appointed by
the government, or, like the elders, by the Presbytery or Consistory.
The whole care of gathering, keeping and distributing all alms was
given to them.

The Classis, which met once or twice a year, was composed of all the
ministers of the district, with one elder from each congregation, with
schoolmasters and kuesters as found good. Above the Classis was the
Synod, which met annually