From the passages quoted it appears that the Leipzig Interim was
inoculated with the germs of many controversies. However, while in the
beginning its offensive doctrinal features were not fully and generally
recognized and realized, the Emperor's demand for, and approval of, the
Wittenberg and Leipzig theologian's reintroduction of the Romish
ceremonies immediately created an acute situation and a great commotion
everywhere. The resulting theological conflict pertaining to the latter
point in particular was called the Adiaphoristic or Interimistic
Controversy. And, as explained above, even after the Interim had become
a dead letter politically, this controversy did not subside, because its
paramount object was not merely to pass a correct judgment on past
events during the Interim, nor even to obtain norms for similar
situations in the future, but, above all, to eliminate from our Church
the spirit of indifferentism, unionism, and of direct as well as
indirect denial of the Gospel-truth.
Accordingly, the exact issue in the Adiaphoristic Controversy was: May
Lutherans, under conditions such as prevailed during the Interim, when
the Romanists on pain of persecution and violence demanded the
reinstitution of abolished papal ceremonies, even if the ceremonies in
question be truly indifferent in themselves, submit with a good
conscience, that is to say, without denying the truth and Christian
liberty, without sanctioning the errors of Romanism, and without giving
offense either to the enemies or to the friends of the Lutheran Church,
especially its weak members? This was affirmed by the Interimists and
denied by their opponents.