DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY DURHAM, N. C. Form 934— 20M— 8-34— C.P.Co. The Lutheran Church in American History BY ABDEL ROSS WENTZ, Ph.D., D.D. Professor of Church History in the Gettysburg Theological Seminary Second Edition, Revised PHILADELPHIA : PENNSYLVANIA THE UNITED LUTHERAN PUBLICATION HOUSE Copyright, 1923, by The Board of Publication of The United Lutheran Church in America Copyright, 1933, by The Board of Publication of The United Lutheran Church in America Made in the United States of America Sch.a ■ Preface To The Revised Edition The position of the Lutheran Church in America rests upon a birthright. It is not an immigrant church that needed to be naturalized after it was transplanted from some European land. It is as old as the Ameri- can nation and much older than the American Republic. The Lutheran Church in America is an integral and potent part of American Christianity. The people in the Lutheran churches of the land are a constituent and typical element of the American nation. This fact, if properly understood and adequately weighed, will im- press every Lutheran with a sense of his responsibility to his day and to his community. It should impress the Lutheran Church as a whole with a sense of its obligation to American civilization in general. Now this reciprocal relationship between American culture and the American Lutheran Church can be properly understood only in the light of the historical perspective. That the Lutheran churches are an inte- gral and molding element in American Christianity and that Lutherans are a constituent and determining part of the American nation can be appreciated only when it is observed that our Church and our nation were born at the same time, grew up side by side, and developed by similar stages of progress. This succession of parallels between Church history and general culture is not an accident. From the nature of the case there is a reciprocal relation between nationality and religion, between a man's conduct as a 3 262029 4 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY citizen and his conduct as a church member, between the political history of a country and the ecclesiastical history of that country. This relationship has its clear implications both for the churches and for the institu- tions of general culture. Certainly it is important that Lutherans should view their history in the framework of general American civilization if they are to take their rightful place in the Christian world of today and in society in general. In this volume therefore we seek to avoid the danger of abstraction that lurks in the study of Church his- tory. The life and work of the Church must not be detached from the social and political environment in which it grew up. The purpose of every student of history should be to understand himself in the situation in which he finds himself. This determines our method of presentation. It is based upon an analysis of the facts of Lutheran history in America and a synthesis of those facts in a continuous line of interpretation down to our own day. The main purpose is to enable the reader to see the relation of our Church's history to the history of society in general and so to interpret the main direction of events, particularly in the pres- ent day. The first edition of this book was widely used not only by pastors and seminary students but also by young people and in other lay circles. For that reason we have equipped this second edition with some teach- ing helps. The immediate purpose is two-fold. The book is intended to furnish an introduction to the his- tory of the Lutheran Church in America, an interpre- tation of the general course of events without per- PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION 5 mitting the reader to lose the main thread in a mass of details. But at the same time it is intended to point the way for the more advanced student to carry his studies into greater detail and even into lines of special research. Instead of encumbering the text with foot- notes the references to sources and the suggestions for further study are appended to the individual chapters. The list of questions that follows each chapter is intended to be the basis of a review only of the materials in the chapter. These questions may prove useful for those who do not care to go further than the text itself and particularly to study groups of begin- ners in the subject or training schools for lay workers or young people. The Topics for Special Study are intended to suggest more detailed investigation of particular points touched by the chapter or to suggest other angles of approach to the general subject of the chapter. These topics will only be used by the more advanced students. In the work of a class they may be made the basis of reports by one or more individuals to the group as a whole. In almost every case it will be found that materials for these special topics are contained in the special treatises or general works named in the bibliog- raphy for the chapter in which the topics are listed. A few of the topics in each chapter call for interpretive acumen and philosophical skill, because they assume a preliminary knowledge of the subject and require the student to deal with the profounder principles under- lying the facts. The Subjects for Biography should prove interest- ing to students of all grades. Among the various kinds 262029 6 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY of literature just now the interest in biography is supreme. It would be easily possible to pursue the entire course of Lutheran history in America by a series of carefully chosen biographies. History is largely the record of great personalities in their deal- ings with their fellow-men and in their reactions with their times. There is always a reciprocal relation between a man and his age. Neither can be under- stood apart from the other. A study of Lutheran leaders in the frame-work of their times would there- fore constitute a fascinating course in Lutheran his- tory. And there is an abundance of biographical materials, both published and unpublished. Apart from the comprehensive monographs on such leaders as Muhlenberg, Schmucker, Walther, Krauth, Schmauk, Passavant and others, there are a number of biograph- ical collections. Such is Nothstein's Lutheran Makers of America. Brief Sketches of Sixty-Eight Notable Early Americans, published in 1929 and containing thumb-sketches of many of the personalities listed in the earlier chapters of this book. Such also are W. B. Sprague's Annals of the American Lutheran Pulpit, which presents from various pens biographies of fifty- five distinguished Lutheran clergymen who lived before 1855; J. C. Jensson's American Lutheran Biographies with its three hundred and fifty biogra- phies of prominent men before 1890; M. L. Stoever's Reminiscences of Deceased Lutheran Ministers, a series of extended biographies covering eighty-three subjects and published consecutively in the Evangeli- cal Quarterly Review from 1854 to 1870 ; my History of the Gettysburg Seminary with its biographical PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION 7 sketches of the fourteen hundred graduates of that institution between 1826 and 1926; O. M. Norlie's Norsk Lutherske Prester i Amerika, written in Nor- wegian and containing sketches of more than eighteen hundred Norwegian Lutheran ministers in America between 1843 and 1913; R. Andersen's Lutherske Kirkes Historie i Amerika, written in Danish (1880- 1882) and containing 640 pages devoted almost entirely to biographical narratives; and the sections entitled "Lutheran Biographies" in the several volumes of the Lutheran World Almanac which in Volume VII (with its cumulative index on page 138) reach a total of one hundred and sixty-one subjects. Reference should also be made to the biographical items in the Lutheran Cyclopedia by Jacobs and Haas (1899) and those in the Concordia Cyclopedia by Fuerbringer, Engelder, and Kretzmann (1927). In preparing the lists of materials for further read- ing and study our chief problem was one of selection. There could be no thought of listing a complete and exhaustive bibliography in any case. Our purpose was to choose materials that might be accessible to the average student and at the same time lead him to other literature on that particular phase of the subject. We limited the lists almost entirely to works in English and only referred to works in other languages when we considered them indispensable and without counter- part in English. It is our hope that these lists may furnish the means by which the reader can pursue the subject into as much detail as may suit his purpose. By gathering the literary references at the end of each chapter it has been possible to be specific, to free the 8 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY body of the text from tedious and cumbersome docu- mentation, and at the same time to enable the critical and scholarly student to trace the statements of fact to their ultimate source. The current statistics set down in the latter part of the book will soon be obsolete. It is suggested that these might be brought up to date from time to time by reference to the various year-books of the general bodies, or simply by reference to the latest edition of the Lutheran World Almanac. Moreover, this almanac in its section on historical essays and digests always contains a number of articles bearing on Lutheran history. Chief among these is the article by the statis- tician of the National Lutheran Council entitled "Trends and Events among Lutherans." This may be regarded as a perpetual supplement to any text-book on Lutheran history in America. It is my hope that this new edition may continue to prove helpful to students of various grades in applying the light of historical perspective to the understanding of the present situation and the solution of current problems in the Lutheran Church in America. Abdel Ross Wentz. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, June 15, 1932. General Bibliographical Note The story of the Lutheran Church is not a short one. To tell it at full length would require scores of bulky volumes. The Lutheran Church in America is only a small fraction of the Lutheran Church in the world. But even the story of the Lutheran Church in America, if told in detail, would fill a long shelf of volumes. Few people would want to read all the details of every part of the Lutheran Church in America. Some want to know the particulars about a certain limited period or a certain small section of the Church. But for most people it is sufficient to know the general course of events in times past and the main trends of today. Of course, these general trends can only be de- termined by one who has studied the details and knows how to interpret them in general terms. Accordingly, there are two kinds of books that need to be considered by every student of our subject. The one kind consists of special works that deal with some particular aspect of the subject, some period of time, some section of territory, some local congregation, some individual person, some separate institution, some special phase of the Church's life, or some special type of work. The other kind consists of general works that seek to cover the whole field, omitting details but pointing out the general course of events. The first group of works is a very large one. I esti- mate that a complete list of the volumes and pamphlets dealing with the various aspects and details of the Lutheran Church in America alone would embrace at 10 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY least thirty thousand titles. And this would not include the much larger number of manuscripts which contain Lutheran history in our country but which have never been published. The collection of printed materials would include biographies, histories of congregations, conferences, synods, general bodies, institutions, and special lines of Christian work, minutes of synods, reports of agencies and proceedings of other organiza- tions, periodicals, liturgies, catechisms, sermons, books of devotion, and special addresses, essays, and articles. These are found chiefly in the archives of synods, the libraries of seminaries and colleges, and the special collections of private individuals. The largest and most complete collection in existence is that of the Lutheran Historical Society of the United Lutheran Church in America. This collection was begun in 1843. It is housed in the library of the theological seminary at Gettysburg. It embraces more than ten thousand volumes and an equal number of pamphlets, classified and bound, besides hundreds of photographs and a vast collection of unpublished manuscripts and proto- cols. A few of these special works have been listed in the bibliographies attached to the several chapters of this book. And in a number of instances I have pointed to more detailed bibliographies along special lines. By following the lines thus indicated it would be possible for any student to pursue the study of American Lutheran history into almost infinite detail. The second group of works is a much smaller group. These works are not concerned about setting forth details. They take the view of the whole. The purpose of these general works should be to help the reader to GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 11 understand the situation in which he finds himself. In this kind of history writing the author's personal point of view is important. His own position will help to determine what he regards as significant and so will color his narrative and his interpretation of the de- tailed facts. We may glance now at the titles of these volumes that seek to set forth the whole of the history of the Lutheran Church in America. The list is not a long one. It embraces seven titles as follows: Ernest L. Hazelius, History of the American Lutheran Church, from its Commencement in the Year of Our Lord 1685, to the Year 1842. Zanesville, 0., 1846. 300 pages. 12mo. This little book is the first effort to review at any length the history of the whole Lutheran Church in this country. Dr. Hazelius had been professor at Hart- wick Seminary for fifteen years, professor of church history at Gettysburg for three years, and when he wrote his book was professor of theology at the theo- logical seminary of the Synod of South Carolina at Lexington. In 1842 only a limited perspective of our history was possible. Dr. Hazelius in his history makes the rounds of the several synods as they existed at that time and is chiefly concerned to call the roll of the personalities who served the various pastorates. Edmund Jacob Wolf, The Lutherans in America. A Story of Struggle, Progress, Influence and, Marvelous Growth. With an Introduction by Henry Eyster Jacobs. New York, 1889. 544 pages. Dr. Wolf was professor of church history at the 12 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Gettysburg Seminary. His volume brings the narra- tive half the distance from Hazelius to our times. It is written with an objectivity and impartiality of judg- ment that was not very common at that time. It was intended for the general reader and is characterized chiefly by its readableness. The beauty of rhetoric and the eloquence of style carry the reader along from chapter to chapter and tend to fire him with enthus- iasm for the Lutheran Church as a whole. Dr. Wolf's volume proved to be a powerful factor in helping the several branches of Lutherans to know one another. The book is abundantly illustrated. Written in a flow- ing style and printed in large type, it still affords attractive reading for the elementary student or for one who wants to know how Lutheran history was conceived forty-five years ago. A. L. Grsebner, Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in America. Erster Theil. St. Louis, 1892. 726 pages. The Missouri Synod commissioned Professor Graeb- ner, a professor in the Seminary at St. Louis, to write the history of the Lutheran Church in this coun- try. He began his work with great industry and thor- oughness. All parts of the field were visited and the original sources critically examined. Much new ma- terial was brought to light. Not only in gathering his materials but also in his presentation of them Profes- sor Grasbner was more thorough and comprehensive than any other writer who tried to cover the whole field. Unfortunately he did not complete the work. The stately volume called the "First Part" and published GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 13 in 1892 brings the narrative down only to the found- ing of the General Synod in 1820. The other parts have never followed. Unfortunately, also, the book is in German and without table of contents or outline, so that it is not easily usable by the average Lutheran reader. Of course, the viewpoint is that of the Missouri Synod and the author criticizes adversely not only the patriarch Muhlenberg but also all others who do not take the position of modern Missouri. Henry Eyster Jacobs, A History of the Evangeli- cal Lutheran Church in the United States. New York, 1893. 539 pages. In the American Church History series this is Volume IV. It is scholarly, authoritative and judicial. It was the best work on the history of the Lutheran Church in America up to forty years ago. The develop- ments of the past forty years have given us a new per- spective on many of the earlier events, and Dr. Jacobs declares that every page of his book would need to be rewritten if it were to be re-issued today. But Dr. Jacobs has been generally regarded as the outstanding authority on our subject. All parts of his book are covered by the bibliographies in our volume. George J. Fritschel, Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in Amerika. Erster Teil, 1896. 432 pages. Zweiter Teil, 1897. 432 pages. This is a German translation of Dr. Jacobs' book already mentioned, with additions concerning the development of the German Iowa Synod. 14 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY J. L. Neve, A Brief History of the Lutheran Church in America. First Edition, 1903. Sec- ond Revised and Enlarged Edition, 1916. 469 pages. Burlington, Iowa. Dr. Neve felt that Dr. Wolf's book sacrificed the real historical character of the work because it simply enumerated the leading events and coordinated them. He felt that Jacobs and Fritschel traced the develop- ment too much from the viewpoint of confessional progress and so confused the beginner. He therefore set about to present the materials "simply from the viewpoint of organization and growth." He divided his general subject into three parts: (1) Origin of in- dividual congregations; (2) Congregations organized into synods; (3) Synods organized into larger bodies. Each of these parts constitutes a "period" of the his- tory. The result is that the student gets a vivid impres- sion of a multitude of parts and organizations in the Lutheran Church in America but is in danger of fail- ing to see any continuity of development or any rela- tion to general history and culture. Attached to the several chapters are a number of biographical sketches. F. Bente, American Lutheranism. Volume I, Early History of American Lutheranism and the Ten- nessee Synod. St. Louis, 1919. 237 Pages. Volume II, The United Lutheran Church. St. Louis, 1919. 243 pages. The first of these little volumes is taken mainly from Graebner's book mentioned above. Dr. Bente, like Grsebner, was a professor in the Concordia Theological Seminary. The second volume is little more than a GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 15 prolonged criticism of the theological positions of the former General Synod, General Council, and United Synod in the South. Volumes III and IV were to deal in similar fashion with other general bodies of Lu- therans, but they have not appeared. In the Lutheran World Almanac for 1931-33 (Vol. VII, pp. 108-137) is an essay by 0. M. Norlie entitled "Outline History of the Lutherans of America." It is a series of thumb-sketches covering 151 synods in alphabetical order. Among the annotations on these synods of past and present are a few bibliographical references in each case. This will be a valuable refer- ence work for the student of the complicated history of our synodical organizations in this country. It would lead us too far afield if we should begin to list here the general sources of information on Lu- theran history in this country, such as encyclopedias, periodicals, almanacs, and collections of source ma- terials. We must content ourselves with a reference to the very limited lists of books and articles that are found in the body of our text at the end of each chapter. In these bibliographies attached to the several chap- ters of this book I have listed the corresponding parts of Wolf, Grsebner, Jacobs, and Neve. I have also set down some of the special treatises which will furnish the student with more details on the subject of the chapter and at the same time will point to the docu- ments containing the evidence for the facts set forth in our outline. In a number of instances I have referred to more complete bibliographies along special lines. By following the lines thus indicated it would be possible for any student to pursue the study of American Lutheran history into almost infinite detail. CONTENTS PAGE Preface to the Revised Edition 3 General Bibliographical Note 9 PART I— IN COLONIAL TIMES (1625-1760) 19 Chapter I. General Background 21 II. The New Netherland and New York 31 III. New Sweden 41 IV. Georgia 50 V. Pennsylvania 55 PART II— AT THE BIRTH OF THE NATION (1740- 1790) 63 Chapter VI. The Patriarch 65 VII. Growth and Expansion 80 PART III— IN THE YOUTH OF THE REPUBLIC (1790-1830) 87 Chapter VIII. General Background 89 IX. Expansion 102 X. Problems 115 XL A General Organization 128 XII. A Theological Seminary 139 PART IV— A PERIOD OF INTERNAL DISCORD (1830-1870) 149 Chapter XIII. General Background 151 XIV. Organized Benevolence 164 XV. Immigration and Confessional Reaction 178 XVI. "American Lutheranism" 198 XVII. Disruption and Reconstruction .... 213 17 18 CONTENTS PAGE PART V— IN THE DAYS OF BIG BUSINESS (1870- 1910) 237 Chapter XVIII. General Background 239 XIX. Growth in Numbers and Benev- olence 255 XX. The Inner Development of the Augustana Synod 274 XXI. The Work of the Missouri Synod .. 295 XXII. The Liturgical Development 304 XXIII. Confessional Conservation 320 PART VI— IN AN AGE OF LARGER UNITS (1910- ) 339 Chapter XXIV. General Background 341 XXV. Norwegian and German Mergers in the Northwest 356 XXVI. The United Lutheran Church in America 372 XXVII. The American Lutheran Church .. 401 XXVIII. Co-operating Groups 411 XXIX. The Lutheran World Convention 428 Index 441 PARTI IN COLONIAL TIMES (1625-1760) Growth of Local Institutions The Lutheran Church in American History CHAPTER I GENERAL BACKGROUND The story of the Lutheran Church in America can- not be understood apart from the story of American history in general. The religious life of a people runs parallel in many respects to their political and social life. This is necessarily so. The main currents of influence that modify the Church History external history of the Church are the ara e s same as those that determine the cul- tural life of the people in general. The member of the Church is at the same time a citizen of the State, and the impulses and ideals that actuate him in the one case are bound to influence his conduct in the other. We may therefore expect to find a significant parallel between the political history of our country and the life story of our Church in our country. The beginnings of the Lutheran Church in America were slow, diverse and disconnected. But so were the beginnings of the American colonies themselves. It must be remembered that almost as much time passed between the discovery of America by Columbus and the first permanent slow Be s innin e s settlement at Jamestown as has passed between the establishment of the Republic and the present hour. 21 22 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY And again, from the first colonial settlement to the Declaration of Independence was a longer stretch than from Washington's inauguration to the close of the World War. It should also be noted that population was very- sparse in colonial times. In 1660 there were not more than 60,000 people in the colonies, and parse ^ ^ ^ e outbreak of the Revolutionary Fopulation War over a century later there were not more than two and a half millions, or somewhat less in all the colonies combined than the Lutheran Church alone numbers in its active membership in this country today. That long period which we call colonial times was therefore a period of slow movement and localized institutions. There were no rapid iversity o currents of thought or practice and Institutions . no widespread organizations either m Church or State. There was so much diversity among the colonies that the history of the Lutheran Church in this period was largely determined by the place where it was located in each case. The Lutheran element in the colonies was subject to the limitations of the times. It will help us there- fore to understand the position of these earliest groups of Lutherans in this country, if we pause to consider some of the political and moral conditions of that day. In politics it was a period of diversity and isolation. The voyages of discovery and explora- Variety in ^ Qn w j^ w jjjgjj American history Poll ft IT'S begins had determined the place where the different European nations planted their institu- GENERAL BACKGROUND 23 tions in America. The early political life of the colo- nies therefore is really a chapter of European history and presents as diverse and varied a picture as the political history of the seventeenth and eighteenth cen- turies among the European nations. The variety of manner in which different European nationalities or different groups of the same nationality settled America resulted in isolated colonies or groups of colo- nies, each characterized by its own sort of government and its own political problems. Throughout this period there was little intercom- munication among the colonies. The distances that separated the colonial capitals were immense, amount- ing to thousands of miles if measured by the standards of today. Means of * c ° . , , , , ,, , . , Communication travel were very slow and the physical barriers were very great. Rivers, mountains and forests, savage beasts and still more savage men, were insurmountable obstacles to a common life among the colonists. Until the very end of this period there was little sense of a community of interest and little dis- position to co-operate in anything. The ties that bound the colonies to Europe were much stronger than any that bound them to one another. The chief highways at first were the rivers. These ran from the mountains to the sea, and roads from north to south were lacking. As a rule, therefore, each colony found it , , oma • 4. 4- t. ij • Isolation more convenient to hold communica- tion with the mother country than with its neighbor on either side. Two of the strongest colonies, it is true, Virginia in the south and New England in the 24 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY north, looked to the same mother country for control and direction. But then the difference in the circum- stances under which the two colonies had been founded together with the sharp difference in climate and the consequent difference in industry, reinforced by the lack of intercourse, produced even here a divergence in politics and a difference in type of character. In the North there was a clear movement towards diffusion of rights and privileges among all citizens, while in the South the distinct political trend was towards the centralization of rights and privileges in the hands of a few. In New England the democratic spirit was fostered by public schools and the printing press, while in the South the aristocratic spirit was cultivated by private schools and limited facilities for read- Democracy and . In New E land industry W a S Aristocracy . varied and labor free with the conse- quence that wealth was distributed and movement easy. In the South industry was simple and labor forced with the consequence that wealth was concen- trated and democracy stunted. In each case the middle group of colonies, destined to be the home of the vast majority of en mg Lutherans throughout this period, showed a partial blending of the two diverse tendencies. This same diversity characterized the social and religious life of colonial times. The denominationalism that has always been such a prominent characteristic of American religious life has its roots in the very beginnings of the colonial period. From the earliest GENERAL BACKGROUND 25 times the Christian Church in our country has never been anything more than the communion of saints and not even remotely their corporation. The earliest church history of America is in reality a chapter from European church history. As the colonization of America represented many races of Europe so the religious life of the American colonies reproduced the different types of „ opy ° European European Christianity. Of course the Religious Life external equipment of the churches and their ministers was much more limited than in Europe. But the same religious life and customs that prevailed in the mother countries were practiced in the colonies, the same bigotry and superstitions, the same intolerance and barbarities, the same intemper- ance and unchastity, the same worldliness and skepti- cism on the part of most people, the same other-world- liness and gloom on the part of the devout. The colonies responded to the same high impulses that touched European Christianity from time to time, and felt all the waves of religious revival and decline that swept over the home lands. There was perhaps a more general diffusion of the spirit of missions than in Europe, owing to the nearness of the heathen Indians, but lack of organization prevented any aggres- sive or charitable enterprise. There was much diversity among the colonies in the details of their religious r , 1 Tf r f lty m , . „ . Keligion life and practice. This was due to the religious differences among the countries from which the colonists came and especially to the differ- ences in the circumstances under which they came. It 26 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY accounts in large part for the disconnected character of Lutheran history in this period. The one feature that was common to the religious life of nearly all the colonies was State-Churchism. Many of the colonists had crossed the ocean to escape the intolerance of the Old World. But State- Chu , . so completely were they saturated with European modes of thought that after they reached American shores they set up their estab- lished Churches and practiced much the same sort of intolerance as that from which they had themselves sought asylum. Taxes were levied to purchase church property, to erect church buildings, and to support the pastors of the ruling church. Statutes were enacted to suppress vice and punish blasphemy, to promote the observance of the Lord's Day, and to compel Religious Taxes i •• 1 -,. • regular attendance on divine services. Strict laws were passed to prevent heresy and to quell dissent in any form. In almost every sphere of life laws were made to regulate the citizen's personal and private conduct even where it did not affect other people. The civil code was very severe in its penalties. The general result was a serious cur- tailment of the free spiritual influence of the churches and a decided limitation on the exercise of free religious opinion and practice. It was this unholy alliance between the State and some particular Church, in most cases the Church of England, that dominated the religious landscape down to the Revolu- tion. But the American colonies of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were simply sharing the com- GENERAL BACKGROUND 27 mon heritage of the times when they regarded the civil power and patronage to be a necessity to religion. Only Pennsylvania and Rhode Island were excep- tions. Under the charter of Rhode Island no person was in any way disabled for any religious opinion whatever. Under the proprietary gov- ernment Of Pennsylvania liberty Of Pennsylvania conscience and worship and eligibility * n ° e to public office were granted to all per- Exceptions sons professing to believe in Jesus Christ. To Rhode Island Lutherans never came. To Pennsylvania they came in large numbers and were cordially welcomed. But apart from Pennsylvania the Lutheran organizations throughout colonial times, if they were not persecuted, existed by tolerance rather than by sovereign and independent right. In the religious trend of the period as well as the political we observe a difference between New England and the South. Most of the English colonists who came to New England had fled from the oppressions of the Church of England at home. They organized their churches in New „ ew . n . s an . .Puritanism England in vital connection with the local power, it is true, but on the principle of the equality of the individual members and in complete independence of English authority. The Puritan Church organization was thoroughly democratic. The local congregation was sovereign. The centralization of religious authority in Bishop or Pope was antago- nistic to everything Puritan. There was a decided tendency, therefore, towards toleration and diffusion of religious rights. 28 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY On the other hand, the Englishmen who settled in the southern states were High Churchmen. They admired the episcopate. They sought the aid of the English government in establishing ou ern their churches on a monarchical basis, Anglicanism and thus perpetuated the Church of England on American soil. Even when dissenters were allowed to organize churches south of Pennsylvania they labored under the disadvantage of competing with a Church that was either directly supported or else strongly encouraged by the colonial government. Of the Middle Colonies, New York was at first a Dutch colony, but later as an English colony partook of the religious characteristics of New England. New Jersey and Delaware were much influenced by their proximity to the southern group of colonies and always leaned toward the concentration of Pennsylvania religious authority. Pennsylvania, the Chief Home thankg to the brQad policy of itg of Lutheramsm founder and other conditions favoring diversity, attracted such a variety of sects and religion- ists that no central religious organization of the people would have been possible. Colonial Pennsylvania epitomizes that unity in diversity that was afterwards to become the law of the whole land. It was to be ex- pected, therefore, that the stream of Lutheran exiles from the State Churches of Europe would direct its course to this inviting land and make it the chief home of American Lutheranism throughout colonial times. GENERAL BACKGROUND 29 QUESTIONS 1. What is the relation of church history to general history? 2. What was the extent of the colonial period in American history and what was its chief characteristic? 3. Indicate the sparsity of population during colonial times. 4. Why was there so much difference among the colonies in their political institutions? 5. How do you account for the isolation of the colonies? 6. What were the differences between the civilization of New England and that of Virginia? What were the differences in religion? 7. What determined the character of the religious life in the American colonies? 8. What one feature was common to the religious life of all the colonies and what did it involve? 9. Which colony was the chief home of Lutherans in colonial times? Why? 10. In what way was the religious situation in Pennsylvania an exception among the colonies? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Religious Motive in the Discovery and Exploration of America The Religious Motive in the Colonization of America The Unity of Religion with General Culture The Influence of Geography upon Colonial Enterprises The Spirit of Colonialism Intercolonial Communication The Origin of the Blue Laws The Advantages and Disadvantages of State-Churchism The Incidence and Sequence of Social Change The Religious Origin of the Political Ideas of Roger Williams The Religious Origin of Colonial Institutions in Pennsylvania Permanent Deposits of Colonialism in American Christianity SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Robert Blair Thomas Bray William Brewster Jonathan Dickinson Jonathan Edwards John Eliot George Fox August Hermann Francke Theodore J. Frelinghuysen 30 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Samuel Hopkins Francis Makemie David Nitschmann James Oglethorpe John Robinson Philip Jacob Spener Solomon Stoddard Gilbert. Tennent John Wesley George Whitefield Roger Williams John Witherspoon BIBLIOGRAPHY Bacon, L. W., A History of American Christianity. 1897. Pages 1-154. Beard, Charles A., and Mary R., The Rise of Civilization in America. 1927. Vol. I, pages 3-188. Cheney, E. P., The European Background of American History. 1907. Dorchester, D., Christianity in the United States. 1888. Pages 13-256. Jacobs, H. E., The Lutheran Movement in England. 1890. Mace, W. H., Method in History. 1897. Pages 77-104. Sweet, W. W., The Story of Religions in America. 1930. Pages 11-183. West, W. M., American History and Government. 1913. Pages 156-171. CHAPTER II THE NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW YORK The earliest Lutheran settlers in America came to the Dutch colony of the New Netherland. This Dutch settlement on the Hudson was one of the two colonies that until 1664 prevented England from having a con- tinuous colonial empire from the Penobscot to the Savannah. It was „ f Colony begun by the Dutch West India Com- pany. This company settled forty families in the neighborhood of Albany (then called Fort Orange) in 1623 and two hundred persons on Manhattan Island (then called New Amsterdam) in 1625. The earliest settlers came for commercial purposes and in this re- spect differed from the earliest settlers of most of the other colonies. The established Church in Holland was the Re- formed. Under the administration of the Dutch West India Company that Church was made the official religious organization in the settlements on the Hud- son. But there were large numbers of Lutherans in Holland. Amsterdam alone contained 30,000 Luther- ans, among them the wealthiest and most enterpris- ing people in the city. These Lutherans co-operated with their countrymen in the commer- cial enterprise in America, and some Lutherans of them came to the New Netherland Persecuted with the other settlers in 1623 and 1625. But the 31 32 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY policy of the Dutch West India Company, unlike the policy of the Dutch Government itself, excluded all other religions than the Reformed. The result was that the Lutheran settlers on the Hudson found them- selves hindered in the exercise of their faith. They not only had to attend the services of their Reformed friends but they were obliged to have their children baptized and instructed by Reformed pastors and in the Reformed faith. Efforts to cultivate their Lu- theran faith in private services were met with severe measures of repression by Governor Stuyvesant. But by the middle of the century the number of Lutherans in the colony had grown to such an extent and their sense of religious oppression had become so deep that they resolved to attempt an independent organization. They proceeded in orderly fashion. They first appealed to the Lutheran consistory of Amster- dam to intercede for them with the directors of the West India Company. Nothing was Lutheran done. Their request was renewed in £ astor 1653, with the petition that a Lutheran pastor be sent them. Four years later the pastor arrived. His name was John Ernst Goet- wasser and he had been sent by the Lutheran churches of Amsterdam. But the joy of the Lutherans was bit- terness to the Reformed. The Reformed pastors set up a vigorous protest against Goetwasser's admission. He was prohibited from holding services or perform- ing ministerial acts, but nearly two years elapsed be- fore they succeeded in having him deported. It must be remembered that this was a day of religious wars THE NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW YORK 33 in Europe, and religious intolerance was the spirit of the times. Governor Stuyvesant continued to fulminate against the preaching of any other than the Reformed religion, but in spite of his proclamations the Lutherans in 1662 imported a student, e . u Abelius Zetskoorn, to be their min- ister. He was forthwith transported to a charge on the Delaware. Relief for the Lutherans only came with the sur- render of the Dutch settlements to the English in 1664. New Amsterdam took the name of New York. The English governor cheerfully granted the petition of the Lutherans th ei g i" h er for permission to call their own pastor. But another five years elapsed before their minister arrived. Two calls were declined. The third was accepted and brought Pastor Jacob Fabritius. Meanwhile a Lutheran congregation had been organ- ized at Albany. Fabritius served both of these Dutch congregations. But he was a great disappointment to his long-suffering people. More than a generation they had maintained their Lutheran faith and longed for a Lutheran pastor. And now their first regular minister proved so des- „ lsa PP° intin s Fastor potic and irascible that his public and private life disgraced his congregations. With in- creasing difficulty he administered his work, and in less than two years (1671) he was compelled to resign first in Albany and then in New York. He afterwards took up work among the Swedish Lutherans on the 34 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Delaware and left a highly honorable record as a devoted pastor. As successor to Fabritius the consistory at Amster- dam sent over Bernhard Arensius. He is described as "a gentle personage and of very agreeable be- havior." Quietly and faithfully he administered the affairs of the two congregations for Minister twenty years (1671-1691) spending his summers in New York and his winters in Albany. In 1674 the second church building was erected. The first had been erected in 1671 on the present site of Trinity Espiscopal Church, but had been demolished in 1673, when the Dutch returned to power for a year, because it stood beyond the fortifications of the city and interfered with its defence. The congre- gation was duly compensated for its loss and under the superintendence of Arensius built a church within the city walls. Those were trying times in which Arensius con- ducted his ministry. The war between Holland and England caused changes of government in the colony. The Roman Catholic aggressiveness of the English King, James II, and his overthrow by Trying Times fche p rotestant William of Orange, kept the colonists in constant excitement. But the Lutheran congregations flourished, and when Arensius died in 1691 the congregation in New York consisted of some thirty families while that in Albany numbered twelve families. For the rest of the seventeenth century the pastorate was vacant. The Lutheran authorities at Amsterdam THE NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW YORK 35 insisted that the Lutherans of New York must now assume the responsibility for their own pastor. In 1701 they invited Andrew Rudman to become their pastor. He had been shorTplstorate laboring among the Swedes on the Delaware. He accepted the call and proved to be a man of constructive talents. But on account of the climate he remained in New York only a little more than a year. In November, 1703, he returned to Penn- sylvania and helped to ordain Justus Falckner to be his successor in New York. Meanwhile a change had crept over the Lutheran parish in New York. From the beginning it had been a cosmopolitan congregation. The language was chiefly German (called High-Dutch) . A number of the fami- lies were Dutch, but the majority of the members were German, Danish, Dutch Declines Swedish and Norwegian. Under Eng- *" . e ™ an lish rule the German element increased while the Dutch element declined in relative strength. With the turn of the century German immigration set in strongly and Falckner was obliged to conduct ser- vices in German, and only occasionally in Dutch. For several years while the German settlements along the Hudson and Mohawk had no pastor of their own, he took full charge of their congregations also. It was a large parish of which Falckner had the care. It extended some two hundred miles, from Albany to Long Island, and included settlements on both sides of the Hudson and in New Jersey. For just 36 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY twenty years Pastor Falckner cultivated this field. He was a man of thorough education, deep spirituality, and great vigor. His entries in his Falckner's parish records are accompanied with M " . u soulful prayers for the spiritual wel- fare of those to whom he had min- istered. He appointed "Readers" to conduct the ser- vices while he was absent in another part of the parish. In addition to his abundant labors as pastor he found time to write and publish a handbook of Christian doc- trine in questions and answers. Upon his death in 1723 his elder brother, Daniel, who had become pastor of the Dutch congregations in New Jersey, for a while supplied both the Dutch and the German churches along the Hudson. The German Lutheran congregations in the colony of New York were made up of refugees from the Palatinate of the Rhine. The Palatinate had been ravaged by almost a century of uninterrupted war. Finally, in order to establish a vast desert between the German and French borders, Louis XIV had ordered all the inhabitants of the Palatinate, numbering half a million, to leave within three days. The Palatines Many of the fugitives found temporary on the Hudson /. • -n i i i j.i s\ , . refuge in England, and there Queen Schoharie Anne arranged for their transporta- tion to the American colonies. In 1709 Rev. Joshua Kocherthal and a Lutheran congregation of sixty-one people settled Newburgh on the west bank of the Hudson. The next year three thousand more Palatines arrived in New York and were settled a hundred miles up the Hudson at the foot of the Cats- THE NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW YORK 37 kills. These settlers suffered terribly from hunger and cold and from the avarice of governors. Some of them made their way westward into the Schoharie Valley. Later immigrants settled all along the Hudson. In all these German parishes Kocherthal was the pastor. Unceasingly he ministered to the temporal and spiritual welfare of his scattered flock until his death in 1719. Then for several years these congregations were added to the Dutch charge of Justus Falckner. Falckner's successor was William Christopher Ber- kenmeyer. The Lutheran Consistory of Amsterdam extended him the call of the Dutch congregations in New York and Albany. He was then a theological student in Hamburg. After consider- able hesitation he accepted the call, er enmeyer was ordained in Amsterdam and reached New York in 1725. He brought with him a library for the con- gregation and funds for a new church building. These had been contributed by friends in Germany, Denmark and London. Four years later the new Trinity Church was dedicated in New York. Berkenmeyer had the organizing talent of the North Germans. Seeing that the parish which he had inherited from Falckner was too large for one man to cultivate it successfully, he sent to Germany for another minister, resigned at New York, and took charge of the northern and more promising part of the field, making his home at Athens (then Loonenburg). The southern part of the field was placed in charge of Michael Christian Knoll, a native of Holstein, who had been ordained by the Lutheran pastors of London. Knoll spent eighteen years of faithful labor in New 38 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY York under difficult circumstances. He was obliged to preach in Dutch to a congregation that had become predominantly German. The inevitable "split" came in 1750. Christ Church was organized by some of the . . Germans under Pastor J. F. Ries. New York" Knoll, worn out with the conflict, re- signed from Trinity and went to Athens to succeed Berkenmeyer, who had died in 1751. But most of the Germans did not follow Ries, and so a situation arose among the Lutherans of New York that called for the steadying hand of a Muhlenberg. Berkenmeyer was the most influential spirit among the Lutherans of colonial New York. He was a man of impressive personality, thorough culture, and strict Lutheran convictions. His ministry continued eight years after that of Muhlenberg began in Pennsylvania. But Berkenmeyer and his North Ger- Berkenmeyer . , £ . . , , , , , d M hi b man circ ' e °* ministers belonged to a different school from Muhlenberg and his Halle group of fellow-laborers. Berkenmeyer sus- pected Muhlenberg of pietism and laxity of practice, and the correspondence between the two sometimes savored of theological controversy. But that did not prevent Muhlenberg from coming to New York in 1751 and 1752 and saving the Lutheran situation there. QUESTIONS 1. When and by whom was New Netherland settled? 2. How were Lutherans treated in the Dutch colony? Why? 3. With what success did the Lutherans attempt their own services? 4. Who was their first regular pastor and how did he succeed? THE NEW NETHERLAND AND NEW YORK 39 5. How did the Lutheran congregations grow? 6. What was the nature and extent of Justus Falckner's ministry? 7. What was the origin of the German element in the colony of New York? 8. How did the work progress under Berkenmeyer? 9. What differences between Berkenmeyer and Muhlenberg were there? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The History of the Lutheran Church in Holland The Organization of the Lutheran Church in Holland The Ordination of Justus Falckner German Immigration into the Colony of New York Berkenmeyer's Library Berkenmeyer's Plan of Union among Lutherans The "Synod" of 1735 The Language Problem among the Lutherans of Colonial New York Religious Intolerance in the Seventeenth Century The Pretensions of Tailor von Dieren SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Bernhard Arends William Christopher Berkenmeyer Jonas Bronck Jacob Van Buskirk Lawrence Van Buskirk Jacob Fabritius Justus Falckner John Ernst Goetwasser Martin Hoffman Michael Christian Knell Joshua Kocherthal James Pietersen Kuyter John Frederick Ries Sieur Paul Schrick Peter Nicholas Sommer Hendrick Willemsen John Peter Zenger Abelius Zstskoorn 40 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY BIBLIOGRAPHY Diffenderffer, F. R., The German Exodus to England in 1709. 1897. Ecclesiastical Records of the State of New York, 6 vols., 1901- 1905. Evjen, J. 0., Scandinavian Immigrants in New York, 1630-167 U. 1916. Finck, W. J., Lutheran Landmarks and Pioneers in America. 1913. Pages 22-27. Fiske, John, The Dutch and Quaker Colonies in America. 1899. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in America, Erster Theil. 1892. Pages 3-144; 165-232. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 21-61; 110-132. Nicum, J., Geschichte des Evangelisch-Lutherischen Minis- teriums vom Staate New York. 1888. Pages 1-32. O'Callaghan, E. B., The Documentary History of the State of New York. 4 vols. 1849. Vol. 3, pp. 101 ff.; 539-607; vol. 4, p. 19. , Documents Relating to the Colonial History of the State of New York, 14 vols. 1856- 1883. Reynolds, W. M., The Lutheran Church in the New Netherlands and New York. The Evangelical Review, vol. 6, Jan., 1855, pp. 302-329. Sachse, J. F., Justus Falckner, Mystic and Scholar. 1903. Schmucker, B. M., The Lutheran Church in the City of New York. Lutheran Church Review, vol. Ill, July, Oct., 1884, pp. 203-222; 276-295. Wenner, G. U., The Lutherans of New York, 16A8-1918. 1918. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 107-132. CHAPTER III NEW SWEDEN When William Penn in 1682 sailed up the Delaware River and selected the site for a city which was long afterwards to become the birthplace of American independence he chose a spot where j. j ci j- i -li j t j-i The Swedes on stood a Swedish village and a Lutheran . _ , i i m , „ , , -, , ,, tne Delaware church. The Swedes had been there for more than a generation before Penn arrived. They were part of that Lutheran settlement which Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, and hero of the Thirty Years' War, had planned before his heroic death and his prime minister had effected during the reign of the young Queen Christina. The first Swedish Lutherans arrived in 1638. They settled on the present site of Wilmington. Under con- tinued immigration from Sweden the colony grew and spread north and south on both sides of the Delaware. The country was Swedish held in the name of the Swedish chutX" sovereign and the colony was called New Sweden. Here for nearly two centuries there was a regular succession of devoted Lutheran pastors, thirty-five in total number, ministering to the colonists in at least six Swedish churches. With the second expedition in 1639 the Rev. Reorus Torkillus came to the colony. He was the first regular 41 42 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Lutheran minister in America, for this was eighteen years before even Goetwasser came to the Dutch Lu- therans of New Amsterdam. He con- Tlie First ducted services in the blockhouse that MintTeT had been erected at Wilmington. But in America * n 1^43 ne ^ e ^ a victim to a dreadful scourge that swept over the colony. A few months before Torkillus died a new governor, John Printz, had come to the colony at the head of a new expedition of immigrants. He brought with him another minister, whose name was John Campanius. He also brought detailed instructions The First £ ^ missionary work among the eh* T 311 Indians, to maintain worship and in- in America struction according to the Unaltered Augsburg Confession and to exercise tolerance towards the "Reformed religion." When Governor Printz changed his residence to Tinicum Island in the Delaware River, nine miles southwest of Philadelphia, Campanius accompanied him and built there the first Lutheran church ever erected in America. That was in 1646. There were now about five hundred people in the colony. The Swedes always lived peaceably with the Indians and laid the foundations for the celebrated Indian policy of William Penn. Campanius carried on mis- sionary work among them and trans- Catednlm lated Luther ' s Sma11 Catechism into their language. This was the first Protestant work translated into an Indian dialect, as it antedated the appearance of John Eliot's Indian New NEW SWEDEN 43 Testament by at least thirteen years. The Catechism, however, was not published for nearly fifty years. Before Campanius returned to Sweden in 1648 Rev. Lars Lock had arrived to take his place. For twenty- two years Lock served the churches at Tinicum and Wilmington. It was a large and growing parish and there were many discouragements. The neighboring Dutch had always contested the rights of the Swedes on the Delaware, and in 1655 when domestic troubles arose in Sweden, Governor Stuyvesant took advantage of the situation to conquer New Sweden and raise the Dutch flag over the Swedish forts. Thus the Swedish crown lost its power forever in the New World. But fortunately for our Lutheran settlers, the Dutch allowed them to keep their pastors and teachers. How- ever, many of the Swedish colonists, among them the most prominent men, returned to Sweden after the Dutch conquest, and the colony was much weakened. Moreover, all touch with the mother country was broken off, and immigration and supplies ceased. The people soon began to suffer for the want of spir- itual care. Pastor Lock began in 1669 to conduct ser- vices in the block house at Wicaco, north of the Schuyl- kill, now in the southern part of Philadelphia. But his matrimonial unhappiness and his increasing feebleness sadly disabled him in the service. After 1671 for several years he had ^Stuttan the able help of Jacob Fabritius, for- mer pastor of the Dutch church at New Amsterdam. 44 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY But in 1677 Lock gave up his work entirely, five years later Fabritius became totally blind, and the spiritual destitution of New Sweden became desperate. For some years two laymen tried to hold the congregations together, Andrew Bengtson at Tinicum and Charles Springer at Wilmington, conducting services and read- ing sermons. But the parish continued to disintegrate. All efforts to secure a pastor through the Dutch either from Amsterdam or New Amsterdam proved unavailing. Appeals to Sweden went unanswered, for the settlements on the Delaware were no longer a colony of Sweden. Dutch rule had been supplanted in 1664 by English rule, but petitions to the Lutheran consistory of London brought no response. The colony had been included in Penn's grant in 1681, but the great Quaker, though very friendly to the Swedes, could not help their spiritual condition. In His own way God provided for His people. Andrew Printz, a nephew of the former governor, on his Fr r d ffi s peo S le travels to America in 1690 happened to learn about his countrymen on the Delaware. He visited them, saw their great spiritual need, and on his return to Sweden contrived to relate his experience to King Charles XI. The king was deeply interested and after an interchange of letters with the Swedes in America he gave orders for the selection of ministers, for the publication of five hundred copies of Luther's Catechism as translated into the language of the Indians by Campanius, and for a large number of Bibles and other books desired by the colonists. The pastors who were commissioned for service in NEW SWEDEN 45 America were Andrew Rudman, Eric Bjork and Jonas Aureen. The arrival of these ministers among the Swedes on the Delaware in June, 1697, marked the advent of a new era in New Pastors the spiritual history of New Sweden. ®" w ^ Rudman took charge of Wicaco and Tinicum. Bjork became pastor at Wilmington; while Aureen ministered first at Elk River in Maryland and later among the people east of the Delaware in New Jersey. Soon the congregations began to build new churches. Holy Trinity at Wilmington (now known as "Old Swedes Church," and still standing) was dedicated June 4, 1699. Gloria Dei Church in Philadelphia, an interesting landmark New churches to this day, was dedicated just one year later. Both of these buildings are today in the possession of Episcopalians. Under the faithful ministry of these new pastors the Swedish settlements took on a new lease of life. There- after to the end of the colonial period, there was a con- tinuous stream of Lutheran ministers coming into the colony from Sweden. Some of these were men of high literary attainments. In 1703 when Rudman returned from his brief pastorate among the Dutch in New York, he together with ^^ aI Bjork and Andrew Sandel who had arrived from Sweden the year before, ordained Justus Falckner, the German, to labor among the Dutch and German churches in New York. But there was little sense of common interest between the Lutherans on the Delaware and those on the Hudson, and from the 46 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY beginning of the eighteenth century the Swedish Lu- therans began to cultivate those intimate relations with the neighboring Episcopalians that were even- tually to result in the loss of their Lutheran identity. We can mention only a few of the most influential among the successors of Rudman and Bjork. There was John Dylander, pastor at Wicaco from 1737 to 1741. He completely identified himself with the Ameri- cans by marrying a daughter of a Swedish-American. He ministered to the English and the Germans as well as the Swedes, and enjoyed a wide reputation as an eloquent preacher. Israel Acrelius eading came in 1749 and was pastor at Wil- mington. He organized stated confer- ences of the Swedish ministers and to his very complete "History of New Sweden" we are indebted for our knowledge of the history of the entire settle- ment. He returned to Sweden in 1756. But the greatest of them all was the learned and saintly Charles Mag- nus Wrangel. He arrived from Sweden in 1759 and soon became a very intimate friend and adviser of the patriarch Muhlenberg. He helped Muhlenberg to train Americans for the ministry. In his day the Swedish congregations numbered about three thousand souls. Wrangel's recall by the Swedish authorities in 1768 was deeply resented in America, and the Swedish congregations on the Delaware soon began to clamor for native American ministers and for independence from Sweden. After the Revolutionary War the Swedish archbishop recalled his missionaries. Thus a NEW SWEDEN 47 number of Swedish parishes on the Delaware became vacant. The younger element called for services in English, and as no Lutheran ministers could be had, either for Swedish or transition to „ t, ,. , ,, ,. the Episcopal for English service, the congregations churc u made amendments to their constitu- tions to the effect that their pastors might be either Lutheran or Episcopalian. The transition to the Prot- estant Episcopal Church was gradually completed. That the Lutherans of New Sweden failed to endure is to be explained by the short-sighted policy of the Swedish authorities. The American settlement was treated as a perpetual missionary outpost of the State- Church of Sweden. No effort was made to cultivate a sense of responsi- Mistaken bility and self-support on the part T ^u of the Americans. The pastors sent Authorities were taught to regard themselves as temporary missionaries in waiting for better positions at home. Laymen rarely assumed any responsibility. The pastorates were mostly brief and there was no thought of providing for a native American ministry or of securing the future independent development of the Swedish Lutheran Church in America; in a word, State-Churchism. QUESTIONS 1. When and where did the first Swedish Lutherans settle in America? 2. Who was the first Lutheran minister in America and where did he minister? 3. When and where was the first Lutheran church in America erected? 48 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 4. What dealings did the Swedish Lutherans have with the Indians? 5. How did the Swedes on the Delaware fare under Dutch rule? 6. How was their religious life revived in the days of William Penn? 7. Name some of the most influential among the Swedish Lutheran pastors in the eighteenth century. 8. How did the Swedish Lutheran churches make the transi- tion to the Episcopal Church? 9. What were the weaknesses of the policy employed by the church authorities in Sweden? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Reformation in Sweden Gustavus Adolphus The Motive of Swedish Colonization in America during the Seventeenth Century The Indian Catechism of John Campanius The Instruction for Governor Printz Gloria Dei Church in Philadelphia Old Swedes' Church in Wilmington The Place of Lutheran Laymen in Colonial Times Lutheran Missionary Work among the Indians during Colonial Times The State-Church of Sweden and the Swedish Lutheran Con- gregations on the Delaware SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Israel Acrelius Jonas Aureen Andrew Bengtson Eric Bjork John Campanius John Dylander Reynold Keen Lawrence Kock Peter Lawrence Koch Joran Kyn Lars Lock John Morton Andrew Printz John Printz Peter Rambo John Claudius Rising Andrew Rudman NEW SWEDEN 49 Sven Schute Charles Christopher Springer Reorus Torkillus Charles Magnus Wrangel BIBLIOGRAPHY Acrelius, Israel, A History of New Sweden. 1759. Translated by W. M. Reynolds, 1876. Bergendoff, Conrad, Olavus Petri and the Ecclesiastical Trans- formation in Sweden. 1928. Campanius, Thomas, The Province of Netv Siveden. 1702. Trans- lated by P. S. Du Poneau. 1833. Clay, J. C, Annals of the Swedes on the Delaware. 1834. Dodge, T. A., Gustavus Adolphus. 1895. Ferris, Benjamin, History of the Original Settlements on the Delaware. 1846. Fletcher, C. R. L., Gustavus Adolphus and the Struggle of Protestantism for Existence. Revised edition, 1928. Finck, W. J., Lutheran Landmarks and Pioneers in America. 1913. Pages 28-80. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in America. 1892. Pages 3-37, 75-87, 117-144, 333-408. Historical Society of Delaware Papers. II, III, VII, XXXVIII, XLIII. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 62-110. Johnson, Amandus, The Swedish Settlements on the Delaware, 16 38-166 U. 2 vols. 1911. (Including a complete bibliog- raphy.) , The Swedes on the Delaware. 1913. (An abridgement of the preceding work). , The Instruction for Johan Printz. 1930. Louhi, E. A., The Delaware Fiyins. 1925. Odhner, C. T., The Founding of New Sweden, 1637 -16 A2. 1876. Translated by G. B. Keen. Pennsylvania Magazine of His- tory and Biography, vol. Ill, 1879, pp. 269-284, 395-411. Reynolds, W. M., The Swedish Churches on the Delaivare. 1849. The Evangelical Review, vol. I, Oct., 1849, pp. 161-199. Richards, J. W., Penn's Lutheran Forerunners and Friends. 1926. Schmauk, T. E., A History of the Lutheran Church in Penn- sylvania, 1638-1820. 1903. Pages 36-63. Ward, Christopher, The Dutch awl Swedes on the Delaware, 1609-6U. 1930. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 133-168. CHAPTER IV GEORGIA Another Lutheran settlement in colonial times was in the far South. It began a full century later than the Lutheran settlements on the Hudson and the Delaware. But it has made a distinct contribution to the Lutheran element in our country. In 1734, the year after the founding of Georgia, a ship-load of Lutheran refugees sailed into the mouth of the Savannah and, led by General Oglethorpe, founded the town of Ebenezer, twenty-five miles north of Savannah. They were called Salzburgers from the province in Austria from which they had been expelled. For nearly two centuries these faithful „ . , followers of Luther had succeeded in maintaining their evangelical faith in this Catholic land in spite of terrible persecution and hardships. But in 1731 the archbishop of the province had trapped twenty thousand of them into recording their names and faith, and then, despite protests from the Protestant princes of Europe, had ruthlessly ordered them to quit the country at once. The winter march of the pious Salzburg exiles and the joyous expression of their faith as they passed through the various countries of Europe constitute a romance that has invited many pens. Through the intercession of Dr. Samuel Urlsperger of Augsburg the English people provided for the trans- 50 GEORGIA il portation of ±177 ia~„:is erf the Salzburgers tc :;.- new eolony thai >er.^rs.^ Irle:r.::7.T was fonnding .:. Aner:;a T;.v ~ere sertleci nndei most ifDera] ::_• ~::::r_5 fr:n :r.e giTer-zieiit and granted the rights :: English :irizenship and foil freedom xf ? . Urlsi^rger ir.i Jrai:'^ r_= 2 ~r:-rided die emigrants with pasv.rs in The --r- 7 -~ _ in Assies-Lea Zri: prospered ai settlers had arrr ureorgia eras .in-"^. It ws 1 ._-„.. ■: — -,- • :_-„ --- Tie: tn-E ?»-. ; .'i.'. '. nary iiTar. Ite^ deprecated sla reri i tnzriiies t: :a:::.:::i irder :r settle iispntes "":. 52 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY deeply impressed with the faith and piety of these Lutherans. Ten years after his arrival in America Gronau sickened and died. Dr. Urlsperger sent another Halle man to take his place, Hermann Henry Re-enforcements Lemke For ninet een years he labored Arrive in the closest harmony by the side of Boltzius, and this was the period of greatest pros- perity in the colony. Shortly after the middle of the century the settle- ment was augmented by three shiploads of Germans from Wurttemberg. With them came a third pastor, Christian Rabenhorst. Boltzius' advancing years and the increasing population of the colony made the labors of a third pastor very welcome. On the death of the beloved Boltzius in 1765 and his faithful co-laborer, Pastor Lemke in 1768, troubles began for the peace-loving colony. The fathers in Ger- many sent Christopher F. Triebner to take the place of the departed pastors. He was impetuous and dicta- torial and he soon had the colony Muhlenberg divided into factions and on the verge *" s e of distraction. Muhlenberg was sent Colony for. He travelled from Pennsylvania to the colony of the Salzburgers and soon restored peace among them. But two years later the War for Independence broke out and the Ebenezer colony fell a victim to its frontier location. The Salzburgers were warmly sympathetic with the cause of independence, and one of their number, John Adam Treutlen, became the first governor of the state of Georgia. But good GEORGIA 53 pastor Rabenhorst died broken-hearted in December, 1776, and Triebner proved to be a Tory. The British invaded the place, destroyed most of the property, scattered the inhabitants and rendered the town desolate. Jerusalem Church, built in 1767, is all that remains today to indicate the loca- tion of this Lutheran settlement in The Original colonial times. The people themselves _ ett eme " 1 Destroyed were scattered to other settlements of by War German Lutherans in the Carolinas. There, as well as in Georgia, their noble descendants dwell today in large numbers. QUESTIONS 1. What was the European origin of the Lutherans who first settled in the colony of Georgia? 2. Who were their first pastors and whence did they come? 3. How did the Salzburgers maintain themselves in their new home? 4. What evidences of spiritual growth among them? 5. How did their troubles begin? 6. How was the Lutheran settlement of Ebenezer dispersed? 7. What remains are there today of this colony of Salz- burgers? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Exodus from Salzburg Whitefield and the Wesleys in Georgia The Constitution of the Lutheran Church in Colonial Georgia The Attitude of the Salzburgers towards the Indians and the Negroes The Industrial System at Ebenezer Muhlenberg's Visit to Ebenezer Descendants of the Salzburgers America's First Protestant Orphanage 54 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY John Earnest Bergman John Martin Boltzius Israel Christian Gronau Hermann Henry Lemke Christian Rabenhorst Joseph Schaitberger John Adam Treutlen Christopher F. Triebner Samuel Urlsperger BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernheim, G. D., History of the German Settlements and of the Lutheran Church in North and South Carolina. 1872. Finck, W. J., Lutheran Landmarks and Pioneers in America. 1913. Pages 121-186. ■ , The Orphan House in the Salzburg Colony. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. XXXIII, Jan., 1914, pp. 91-101. Gilbert, D. M., Early History of the Lutheran Church in Georgia. 1897. The Lutheran Quarterly, April, 1897. Pages 156-174. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in Amer- ica. 1892. Pages 158-162, 553-605. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 150-186. Muhlenberg, H. M., Journal of a Voyage from Philadelphia to Ebenezer in Georgia, 177% and 1775. Translated by J. W. Richards. The Evangelical Review, Vol. I, Jan., Apr., 1850, pp. 390-419; 534-560; Vol. II, July, 1850, pp. 113-134; Vol. Ill, Oct., 1851, Jan., Apr., 1852, pp. 115-129, 418-435, 582-590; Vol. IV, Oct., 1852, pp. 172-203. Ochsenford, S. E., Salzburg and the Salzburg Lutherans. 1888. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. VII, July, 1888. Pages 294-311. Stevens, W. B., History of Georgia. 1847. Strobel, P. A., The Salzburgers and their Descendants. 1855. Urlsperger, Samuel, Die Salzburgische Nachrichten. In eighteen parts. 1735-1752. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 187-198. CHAPTER V PENNSYLVANIA While these Lutheran settlements were taking place in New York and along the Hudson, on the Dela- ware and in Georgia and the South, a Whole String of settlements, of Some- Pennsylvania what differing nature, was gathering . e , e . in Eastern Pennsylvania. They soon made Pennsylvania the center of the Lutheran popula- tion in all the colonies, so that to this day she has a larger Lutheran population than any other State in the Union. The earliest Lutheran settlements in Pennsylvania were the result of adversities in Europe and advertise- ments of America. The settlers came from Germany and William Penn was the benevolent instigator of the immigration. Among the German pietists and sectarians who were per- The Earliest secuted by the State-Church of Ger- LutI * era " s in the state many and whom Penn induced to settle near Philadelphia in 1682 and the following years were some of Lutheran views. In 1694 an erratic preacher, Heinrich Bernhard Koester, gathered some of these Lutherans together and held the first German Lutheran service in America. But this did not result in estab- lishing a congregation. After the first few years of the eighteenth century the number of Lutherans in eastern Pennsylvania in- 55 56 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY creased rapidly and resulted in the organization of Lutheran congregations. The long continued ravages of war and the frequent changes of A Stronge Tide religion in the Palatinate together o erman with the favorable reports from the Immigration Germans already in America caused a strong tide of German immigration to set in. At the same time the report of the unjust treatment accorded the Germans in the colony of New York reached Ger- many and served to divert the main stream of immi- gration from New York to Pennsylvania. The result was that Philadelphia was almost the sole port of entry for Germans during the rest of the colonial period. The great majority of these Germans were Lutherans and we soon hear of Lutheran congrega- tions at Falckner's Swamp (New Hanover, Mont- gomery County, 1703), at Germantown and in Phila- delphia. Later congregations were The First organized at Providence (the Trappe) , u eran ^ L ancas t er a t Earltown (New Hol- Congregations land, Lancaster County), and at Tul- pehocken (in the Lebanon Valley). The Lutherans at Tulpehocken came from New York. Dissatisfied with the continued injustice of the authorities in New York they left their homes in 1723, and, under the guidance of friendly Indians, made their way three hundred miles along the Susquehanna and finally settled in the Lebanon Valley. Here their most distinguished mem- ber was Conrad Weiser, the famous Indian agent and father-in-law of the Patriarch Muhlenberg. With succeeding waves of German immigration the Lutheran settlers of Pennsylvania pushed farther and PENNSYLVANIA 57 farther into the interior dotting the colony with "preaching stations" and beckoning spiritual guides to follow them, In the fourth decade they pressed across the Susquehanna £f terio * e and entered the valleys that lead south- ward to Maryland and Virginia. The high tide of German immigration into the colony came between 1735 and 1745, so that by the middle of the century there were at least forty thousand Lutherans in Pennsylvania. From the general circumstances attending their emigration it followed that these Lutherans did not bring teachers and pastors with them. For a short time they were visited by the Swedish Lutheran pastors on the Delaware. _f. c . ° Ministers But as the Swedish settlement declined and the Lutherans of Pennsylvania multiplied, their spiritual destitution became acute and in not a few cases they fell a prey to unscrupulous ecclesiastical tramps who took advantage of their unorganized con- dition to impose on them and almost rob them of their respect for the ministry and their love for the church. Several devoted pastors were, however, active among them. The first of these was Daniel Falckner, older brother of the Justus F a , m ^ Falckner who labored in New York. He was at first the American agent for a German Land Company. He seems to have gathered the Lutherans of Montgomery County into an organiza- tion at New Hanover about 1703 and to have minis- tered to them until 1708. He was thus the first regu- lar pastor of the first German Lutheran congregation 58 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY in Pennsylvania. After 1708 he went to New Jersey and labored there for thirty-three years. On the death of his brother Justus in 1723 his field for a few years extended as far north as Albany. Another of these pioneer preachers in Pennsylvania was Anthony Jacob Henkel. He came to America as an exile in 1717, and became the progenitor of a long line of distinguished ministers, physicians and busi- ness men. He first took up his abode at New Hanover and visited all the German settlements nt ony within reach, going as far south as Jacob Henkel . . _ , _ Virginia. He preached to the Lu- therans in Philadelphia and Germantown and perhaps was the founder of these two congregations. It is cer- tain that he replaced the old church at New Hanover with a new one and encouraged the building of a church at Germantown. He died in 1728. At the very time that Henkel died the Stoevers arrived in Philadelphia, father and son, bearing the same name, John Caspar. The father soon went to Virginia and for several years ministered to the Lutherans there. The son remained in Pennsylvania and became an important forerunner of the great patriarch. In the register of the ship that brought him to America he had called himself "missionary" and that word fitly describes his work. He first e toevers ma de his home at the Trappe, after- wards at New Holland, and finally in Lebanon County. But he was an untiring missionary and traveled about from place to place all over eastern Pennsylvania and made periodic visits into Maryland and Virginia. Wherever a few Germans had settled he held services PENNSYLVANIA 59 for them, baptized their children, began a church record, and encouraged them to build a church. It is easy to trace his unceasing missionary activity throughout the length and breadth of the colony. Not until 1733 did he succeed in getting someone to ordain him and his ministerial acts before that date were irregular. But for fifty-one years he continued his self- sacrificing work, many years after the arrival of Muhlenberg. He never attempted a general organiza- tion and for twenty years after Muhlenberg had organ- ized a synod, Stoever held aloof from it, finally joining in 1768. The last of the men who helped to prepare the way for Muhlenberg was John Christian Schulz. His stay in this country was very brief; he came in the fall of 1732 and left in the spring of 1733. It was he who ordained the Stoevers. His motives seem to have been rather mercenary. But his chief interest for our sub- ject lies in the fact that he united the three congregations of Philadelphia, g°^k Chri8tian the Trappe, and New Hanover into one parish and persuaded "the united congregations" to send him and two laymen on a collecting tour to Germany to secure more ministers and teachers and to solicit funds for churches and school houses. From this mission Pastor Schulz never returned to America but in the end the result of the enterprise was the coming of Muhlenberg. Nine years elapsed before the seed sown by the American delegation of 1733 bore fruit. They were years of anxiety and peril for the destitute Lutherans 60 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY of Pennsylvania. The delay was due to mutual mis- understanding. The appeal had been laid before Pastor Ziegenhagen, the court preacher at Fruitless London, and Professor Francke at , pp ?f 1 s Halle. These authorities insisted on for Help clear and definite arrangements in advance for the support of the pastor. Such arrange- ments the Pennsylvania congregations, though they embraced fifteen hundred families, firmly refused to make, arguing that they could not support a man "in a life of luxury" and that they did not want "a covetous man" as pastor. The negotiations dragged over years. But when in 1741 Count Zmzendorf, the Moravian, suddenly ap- peared in Pennsylvania, posing as a Lutheran, holding inter-denominational conferences, and assuming lead- ership among the shepherdless Lu- u en ierg therans of the colony, the Halle authorities, who knew Zinzendorf, were stirred to immediate action, and laying hands on Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, sent him to Pennsylvania to plant the Church on a firm foundation. With the coming of Muhlenberg the Lutheran Church in Amer- ica enters upon a new period of her history. QUESTIONS 1. Which state of the United States has the largest Lutheran population today? 2. Why did Pennsylvania become the chief home of Lutheran- ism in colonial times? 3. When, where, and by whom was the first German Lutheran service in America conducted? PENNSYLVANIA 61 4. What was the European origin of the Pennsylvania Germans? 5. Where were the first German Lutheran congregations organized in Pennsylvania. 6. What was the spiritual condition of the earliest German settlers? 7. Who was the first regular German Lutheran pastor in Pennsylvania and where did he labor? 8. Name four other German Lutheran pastors of Pennsyl- vania before Muhlenberg's arrival and tell where each minis- tered? 9. Why did Muhlenberg come to America? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Lutheran Churches in Germany at the Beginning of the Eighteenth Century The Origin of the Pennsylvania Germans The Piety of the German Lutherans in Colonial Pennsylvania Economic Conditions among the Lutherans of Colonial Penn- sylvania Manners and Customs among Pennsylvania Germans Colonel Conrad Weiser and Relations with the Indians The "Oldest Lutheran Church in America" Anthony Jacob Henkel and his Descendants The Ordination of the Stoevers Ecclesiastical Tramps in Colonial Times Count Zinzendorf in America Non-Lutheran Elements in Colonial Pennsylvania SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Peter Conrad Daniel Falckner Anthony Jacob Henkel Martin Keblinger Heinrich Bernhard Koester Francis Daniel Pastorius John Frederick Reichert John Daniel Schoener John Christian Schulz John Henry Sprogell John Caspar Stoever, Sr. John Caspar Stoever, Jr. Tobias Wagner Conrad Weiser Daniel Weissiger Martin Zundler 62 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY BIBLIOGRAPHY (A complete bibliography on the German element in the United States would embrace more than ten thousand titles. The most extensive bibliography published is that in Faust's work listed below. A selective bibliography is found in Kuhns' volume listed below.) Faust, A. B., The German Element in the United States. 2 vols. 1909. Volume I, pages 1-148. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lntherischen Kirche in Amer- ica, 1892. Pages 242-252. Hallesche Xachrichten. 1787. New edition, edited by Mann, Schmucker, and Germann, Vol. I, 1886, and Vol. II, 1895. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Chiirch in the United States. 1893. Pages 110-118, 133-149, 187-205. Kuhns, Oscar, The German and Swiss Settlements of Colonial Pennsylvania, 1901. Mann, W. J., Lutherans in America before Muhlenberg. 1887. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. 6, Oct., 1887, pp. 93-114. Pennsylvania German Society, Proceedings of. Various volumes, especially VII-XII, XIX, XX, XXIX. Richards, J. W., Penn's Lutheran Forerunners and Friends. 1926. Sachse, J. F., The Influence of Halle Pietism in the Provincial Development of Pennsylvania. 1901. The Lutheran Quar- terly, Vol. 31, Apr., 1901, pp. 170-176. , The Genesis of the German Lutheran Church in the land of Penn. 1897. The Lutheran Church Review. Vol. 16, Jan., Apr., July, Oct., 1897, pp. 60-76, 283-301, 435-452, 521-539. The German Pietists of Provincial Pennsyl- vania, 1691^-1708. 1895. The German Sectarians of Pennsylvania, 1708-17 %2. 1899. The German Sectarians of Pennsylvania, 17A2-1800. 1900. Schmauk, T. E., A History of the Lutheran Church in Pennsyl- vania, 1638-1820. Pages 64-576. (Only Vol. I appeared 1903, which brings the narrative down to about 1750 and includes detailed bibliographies, references to original sources and profuse illustrations. Wentz, A. R., The Beginnings of the German Element in York County, Pennsylvania, 1916. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 169-187. PART II AT THE BIRTH OF THE NATION (1740-1790) Unity of Organization CHAPTER VI THE PATRIARCH When Professor Francke at Halle in 1741 chose young Muhlenberg for the work of the Lutheran Church in America he chose more wisely than he knew. Muhlen- berg was precisely the man demanded by the situation. The parochial period in the life of the Church, like the colonial period in the , e , a " of the Hour life of the state, was about to pass and the organic unity of the parishes into the larger Church was about to parallel the federal union of the colonies into the American Republic. God in His wisdom equipped and directed the patriarch of the Church even as He raised up and guided the father of his country. At the time that Muhlenberg began his work in America the whole spirit of the American colonists was changing. They were still politically dependent upon England but they were becoming conscious of their distinctive American character. The population had grown from a quarter of a million in 1690 to a million and a half in 1750. The west- ern frontier had leaped the Blue Ridge The End and many of the settlers had turned ' , !?. a lon and Divergence their backs on the ocean. Large non- English elements had come in. The most numerous of these were the German Protestants who went mainly to the Carolinas and the middle colonies and especially 65 66 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY to Pennsylvania. Marvelous prosperity had begotten a spirit of self-reliance and intense local patriotism. Rapid social development had also taken place during the first half of the eighteenth century. So that by the year 1750 we have the mingling of all the elements of a new nation, young, strong, and slowly becoming conscious of its power. The period of isolation and divergence was drawing to an end. The situation was such that with the close of the wars against the French it needed only a proper occasion and capable leaders to bring about a political revolution and the birth of an independent nation. A parallel situation had developed in the spiritual life of the people. This was particularly true of the Lutherans. While still dependent upon Europe for missionary supplies they were becoming conscious of their own peculiar needs. Their numerical increase had far outstripped the European supply of pastors and funds for churches. In a single year (1749) as many as seven thousand Germans entered the port of Philadelphia alone. The few faithful Special Needs • t m.i h j.t_ • - j f Lth pioneer preachers, with all their devo- tion and abundant labors, simply could not cover the entire field, and their vision never rose above the parish to span the Church as a whole. No effort could be made to minister the means of grace to those enterprising Lutherans who pushed out into the new frontiers. Meanwhile special dangers in the forms of abounding immorality and waning spirituality threatened the congregations and the unchurched everywhere. Then, too, spiritual vagabonds and low THE PATRIARCH 67 deceivers wrought havoc among many congregations. Church unionists began to work, and that they partly succeeded among the Lutherans simply indicates a felt need for larger organization. Elements of strength were not lacking among the Lutherans in America. But their weakness lay in their scattered condition and their threatened absorption into other churches. By the middle of the eighteenth century this fact had become manifest and it needed but a leader with the ^organization proper talent of mind and heart to effect a beginning of that process of integration that led the Church out of its missionary and parochial epoch and created the independent and self-reliant Lutheran Church in America. The man providentially prepared for this great task and divinely called to perform it was Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. Muhenberg was thirty-one years old when he came to America. His training and experience had exactly fitted him for his work here. He had come from the electorate of Hanover Trainin^^ and had received his theological educa- tion at the University of Goettingen. Then for fifteen months he had taught various branches in the Halle Orphanage. Meanwhile he had acquired much facility in languages and in music. For a while he entertained thoughts of going as a missionary to India, but he was prevailed on to accept a call to the country church of Grosshennersdorf in the northeastern corner of Saxony. Two years later, 68 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY September, 1741, while on his way to his birthplace he chanced to visit Halle. It was just at the time when the situation in Pennsylvania was en- ~ 18 ,.~ a . n gaging Francke's mind. The call from Qualifications America was urged on the young pastor, and he promptly accepted it as a divine call. A fervent Christian and a firm Lutheran, strong in body and trained in mind, endowed with unusual tact and adaptability, a happy combination of self-made man and university-trained scholar, a rare balance of broad-minded vision and practical affairs — a chain of providences had prepared the right man for the work and had directed him to it. Muhlenberg first landed at Charleston and spent a happy week among the Salzburg Lutherans at Ebe- nezer. He arrived in Philadelphia November 25, 1742. He had come unannounced, as there had been no cor- respondence between the Pennsylvania congregations and the European authorities since 1739. He found the flock in Philadelphia confused and distracted, the majority following Zinzendorf while the minority had called the vagabond preacher, old Valentine Kraft, and were worshipping in a barn. At New Hanover, thirty- six miles northwest of Philadelphia, an unfinished log building was in use as a church, but the congregation was divided over the person of the ecclesiastical tramp and ex-druggist Em- piricus Schmid. At the Trappe, nine miles south of New Hanover, Kraft had also imposed himself on the congregation. But in four weeks Muhlenberg was able to gain full possession of his field, withdrawing his congregations from the confusing influence of Zinzen- THE PATRIARCH 69 dorf and ridding his parishes of the impostors. On December 27th he was installed by Rev. Tranberg, the Swedish pastor at Wilmington. The installation took place in Gloria Dei Church, Philadelphia. The three churches known as "the united congregations" now re- ceived him as their pastor. Muhlenberg took as his motto : Ecclesia Plantanda, the Church must be planted. It was a splendid im- perative that embraced in its compre- hensive scope not merely the three congregations over which he had been installed pastor but all the scattered Lutherans in Pennsylvania and other states, their permanent establishment and abid- ing welfare. This work of planting the Church Muhlenberg began by opening a school in each of his congregations. Then the congregation in Germantown was added as the fourth church in his charge. He covered the field by alternating between the city and the country, week by week. The congre- , eei ^ ir \ e . . , . , _, the Work gations grew and took courage. There was no salary for the pastor, nothing but maintenance, but he stuck to his post. His presence inspired new life in all directions and the following summer, 1743, new churches were begun. In a few years worthy edifices were dedicated by all four of the congregations. Meanwhile Muhlenberg's labors had begun to extend to other Lutherans of the dispersion. Calls for help began to reach him from broadening . , .the Field various quarters and wherever possi- ble he responded, giving himself unreservedly to the 70 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY work of catechizing, confirming, teaching, reconciling, establishing, building, preaching, and administering the sacraments. He rejoiced to see the people advanc- ing in faithfulness and spiritual strength. But Muhlenberg had his trials, and the vast field with its dire needs almost overwhelmed him. He needed helpers and sympathizers. He had kept in touch with Halle and sent minute re- R e ports of his work in America. The fathers at Halle, in order to keep the mission cause before the people, published from time to time extracts from Muhlenberg's letters and diaries. These publications constitute the famous "Halle Re- ports," the chief source of our information on this subject. One effect of these "Reports" was to bring Muhlen- berg re-enforcements in men and money. As early as the close of 1743 a layman, J. F. Vigera, came from the Ebenezer colony in Georgia and gave substantial assistance by taking charge of some Re-enforcements rf th(j schools> Anot her excellent teacher was found in J. J. Loeser. But Muhlenberg's heart was greatly cheered by the arrival in January, 1745, of three men from Halle, one pastor and two catechists. The pastor was Rev. Peter Brunnholtz, and the catechists were John Nicholas Kurtz and John Helfrich Schaum. They brought funds to help build the new churches. The two pastors divided the field, Brunnholtz taking charge of the churches in Philadelphia and German- town while Muhlenberg retained the country churches THE PATRIARCH 71 together with the general oversight of the field. The catechists were appointed as teachers of the schools. This arrangement made it easier to supply the means of grace to outlying Div e ide j districts and to undertake extended trips among the unorganized Lutherans. At the same time Muhlenberg gave notice that he had come to America to stay. For in April, 1745, he married Anna Mary Weiser, daughter of the famous Indian agent, whom he had learned to know two years before that when he visited Tulpehocken to adjust the difficulties among the factions in that congregation. The work of "planting the church" now expanded rapidly. Outposts were established at Upper Milford and Saucon (in Lehigh County), at Easton, Perkasie and other places. Two journeys of one hundred and twenty miles each were made across the Delaware to the Lutheran congregations on the upper waters of the Raritan River in order to settle troubles that had been stirred up by a clerical scamp. Lancaster, still further away, called for help against the Moravian Nyberg who had taken charge of the Lutheran church there. After at least two visits to Lancaster Pastor John Frederick Handschuh, Long Journe > s who arrived from Halle in 1748, was located there. In 1747, a journey was made to Frederick, Maryland, by way of Tulpehocken, Lancaster, York, Hanover, and the Monocacy. Everywhere on this trip Muhlenberg found traces of Nyberg's pernicious influence. To the distracted churches his coming was like life from the dead. He succeeded in reconciling jarring factions, encouraged organization, and brought the frontier 72 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY churches into vital relations with the older Eastern parishes and with the mother Church of Europe. But the greatest step forward in the work of "plant- ing the church" was the organization of a synod in 1748. It was the most important event in Muhlen- berg's career. In April of that year Muhlenberg and Brunnholtz and Handschuh had held a conference and agreed upon a uniform liturgy. It was essentially the "Common Service" of the present day. „ yno . , It needed to be submitted to the other Organized pastors. Moreover, by the month of August St. Michael's Church in Philadelphia was ready for dedication and the occasion promised to bring to- gether the representative men of the Lutheran Church in America. Then, too, the Tulpehocken charge was strongly urging the ordination of Nicholas Kurtz to become their pastor. Here was abundant occasion for the organization of a synod. The dedication and ordi- nation took place on August 25th and the organization of synod the following day. This first synod consisted of six ministers and twenty-four lay delegates besides the entire council of the Philadelphia Church. The ministers were Muhlen- berg, Brunnholtz, Handschuh and Kurtz, together with Hartwig of New York and Pro- The First vos t Sandin of the Swedish churches eeting o ag ac j v i sor y members. The lay dele- Synod gates represented ten congregations. Muhlenberg occupied the chair and in his opening address emphasized the importance of a closer union among the congregations. The lay delegates reported THE PATRIARCH 73 concerning the efficiency of their pastors, and the pastors reported concerning the condition of their parochial schools. The common liturgy was examined and adopted. Congratulatory addresses were made by Hartwig and Sandin, and the Synod adjourned to meet the next year in Lancaster. This small beginning was the first step in the prepa- ration for the independence of the Lutheran Church in America. The organization was known at first as the "United Pastors" and their parishes as the "United Congregations," but it is called today the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. Embracing at first only ten congre- gations out of the seventy in Pennsyl- vania and adjacent colonies, it never- ect ! ° . * e theless grew rapidly and set the example for synodical organization in other colonies. It taught the Lutherans of America to lay aside the narrow, parochial view of things and to take the larger, synodical view, or as Muhlenberg himself said, to "understand the connection and interest of the whole." It created the spirit of self-reliance and aggressiveness that saved the Church in times of dan- ger and cultivated the faith of the fathers both ex- tensively and intensively. Muhlenberg was easily the moving spirit of the Synod, and from the time of its organization he had the oversight and care of all the churches. One of the foremost problems that engaged his attention was the supply of ministers. The men who came from Europe were utterly inadequate to man the rapidly growing field. So Muhlenberg planned for a native 74 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY ministry. The year after the synod was formed he bought forty-nine acres of land in Philadelphia on which to erect a school and seminary Plans for an( j a h ome f or the aged. But war * . f^ 6 interfered and the project was not accomplished. Nevertheless Muhlen- berg gave his three sons to the ministry and took other theological students into his own home where he main- tained and taught them. Meanwhile troubles in several congregations in the province of New York called for a peacemaker. Muh- lenberg visited various congregations along the Hud- son and then preached in New York City. He was so impressed with the need in that city that he allowed himself to be prevailed on to spend six months there in the summer of 1751 and three months the following summer. He had to preach English, Dutch, and Ger- man every Sunday, but he brought unity and new life to the distracted congregations. Much time was also spent among the Lutheran churches of New Jersey. In 1753 another trip was made to the churches west of the Susquehanna as far as Frederick, Maryland. And even Charleston and Ebenezer, in the far south, required a visit in 1774. But permanent calls away from his Pennsylvania field the President of Synod could not accept. The Synod held no meetings from 1755 to 1759. The pastors were fairly overwhelmed with the avalanche of Lutheran immigration. There was some opposition to the synod on the part of laymen and on the part of those ministers who had no connection with Halle. The THE PATRIARCH 75 congregations were of a very heterogeneous composi- tion. There were tremendous discouragements in the work. There was a growing feeling in Muhlenberg's heart and among the iscourage- ments other "United Pastors that the au- thorities in Europe did not really understand the needs of their American "mission field" and were not making adequate efforts to supply those needs. It was a rather gloomy picture that the leaders of the synod painted in 1754 for the fathers in Halle. But with the close of the decade conditions improved somewhat. The French and Indian War subsided. The new provost of the Swedish churches, the learned and pious Wrangle, proved to be a most valuable coun- sellor and a warm personal friend. His coming raised the patriarch's spirits and encouraged him to revive the synod from its state yno evivet of suspended animation. This was done in 1760. The organization was improved, the elements of a consti- tution began to gather, and never after that did synodi- cal activity lag. In 1762 a congregational constitution was prepared for St. Michael's in Philadelphia. This was highly important. It embodied the results of many years of experience and obser- A Mod ei vation among German, Swedish and Church ^ Dutch Lutherans, and it became the model for similar constitutions throughout the country. A few more years and the patriarch's strength began to fail. But other able men were arising to be his helpers and afterwards to take his place. The Church was planted. People had been gathered into congre- 76 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY gations and congregations had been organized into a synod. Buildings had been erected and stable consti- tutions provided. A community of Muhlenberg's interest had been established and a Work „ . , stream of native theological students Completed , ._ had begun to now into the vacant pulpits. The ecclesiastical development of the Lutheran Church had kept pace with the political development of the colonies. The Church was fortified within and without against ecclesiastical dissipation, prepared to withstand the shock of the Revolution from European control and ready to resist the chilling blasts of ration- alism and religious indifference that were soon to sweep over the land. The Church was planted: let the nation be born. In 1779 the correspondence with Halle was inter- rupted by the war. It was not resumed The Church f or more than a generation, and the ecomes Church in America peaceably obtained Independent its independence. An American hymn- book was ordered in 1782 and prepared under Muhlen- berg's guidance. The liturgy and ministerial acts were printed. And the American Lutheran Church had been born. The Patriarch's public work was Passing of finished. He lived until 1787, but the the ratriareh , . distractions of the Revolution pre- vented any more large enterprises. He rejoiced in the loyalty of his beloved Lutherans to the cause of Ameri- can independence and took pride in the splendid politi- cal activities of his distinguished sons during that critical period. He received many honors in his age THE PATRIARCH 77 and after his death, but his chief monument is the American Lutheran Church. QUESTIONS 1. Show the timeliness of Muhlenberg's arrival in America. 2. What were the special needs of the Lutherans in America at the middle of the eighteenth century? 3. How had Muhlenberg been trained for his work in America? 4. What were his special personal qualifications for his new work? 5. How did he begin his ministry in America? 6. What was his motto and what did it mean? 7. What was his first charge? 8. How was his field broadened? 9. What was the origin of the Halle Reports? 10. How was the first Synod organized and what were the effects of the organization? 11. How did Muhlenberg plan for a supply of ministers? 12. How did Muhlenberg meet the language problem? 13. What discouragements attended Muhlenberg's work? 14. Give an estimate of Muhlenberg's work for the Lutheran Church in America. TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Pietistic Movement in Germany Eighteenth Century Halle The Growing Spirit of Ecclesiastical Independence in the American Colonies Jonathan Edwards, Muhlenberg's Greatest American Con- temporary Muhlenberg's Life to the Age of Thirty-one Muhlenberg's Relations with Zinzendorf Muhlenberg's Relations with Swedish Pastors and Churches Muhlenberg as "Overseer" of the Synod The First Constitution for a Lutheran Congregation in A.iYiGric3, The Liturgy of 1748 The Hymnbook of 1786 The Location and Strength of the Churches Uniting in the Organization of the Synod Muhlenberg in New York City 78 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Muhlenberg's Type of Lutheranism Lutheran Theological Education in America in Muhlenberg's Time Opposition to the Synod at Home and Abroad SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY John George Bager Peter Brunnholtz Gotthilf August Francke John Siegfried Gerock John Frederick Handschuh John Andrew Krug John Nicholas Kurtz Christopher Ludwig John Nicholas Martin Frederick Augustus Conrad Muhlenberg Gotthilf Henry Ernestus Muhlenberg John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg Lucas Rauss John Helfrich Schaum Henry William Stiegel John Albert Weygand Charles Frederick Wiesenthal Carl Frederick Wildbahn Frederick Michael Ziegenhagen BIBLIOGRAPHY Bacon, L. W., A History of American Christianity. 1897. Pages 155-229. Beard, Charles A. and Mary R., The Rise of American Civiliza- tion. 1927. Vol. I, pages 189-296. Documentary History of the Lutheran Ministerium of Pennsyl- vania. 1898. Elson, H. W., A History of the United States. 1904. Pages 220-340. Finck, W. J., Lutheran Landmarks and Pioneers in America. 1913. Pages 91-120. Frick, W. K., Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. 1902. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in Amer- ica. 1892. Pages 235-330, 371-382, 473-522. Hallesche Nachrichten. 1787. New edition, edited by Mann, Schmucker, and Germann, Vol. I, 1886, and Vol. II, 1895. Jacobs, H. E., The Confessional Problem in the Lutheran Church of America in 17 U2. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. XXXI, April, 1912, pp. 245-252. THE PATRIARCH 79 — — , A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 209-306. Mann, W. J., The Conservatism of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. 1888, The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. VII, Jan., 1888, pp. 18-46, _ . — . _ t Life and Times of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. 1887. Muhlenberg, H. A., Life of Major-General Peter Muhlenberg. 1849. Muhlenberg, H. M., Selbstbiographie, 1711-1743. 1881. Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography. Schaeffer, C. W., Muhlenberg's Defense of Pietism. 1893. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. XII, Oct., 1893, pp. 349-375. Schmauk, T. E., A History of the Lutheran Church in Pennsyl- vania, 1638-1820. 1903. Passim. Schmucker, B. M., The Organization of the Congregation in the Early Lutheran Churches in America. 1887. Stoever, M. L., Life and Times of H. M. Muhlenberg. 1856. Sweet, W. W., The Story of Religions in America. 1930. Pages 184-297. West, W. M., American History and Government. 1913. Pages 172-177. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 210-270. CHAPTER VII GROWTH AND EXPANSION The planting of the Church had come none too soon. Not only did the organization of the independent life of the Church on American soil prepare it to withstand the shock of the Revolutionary War, but it also pre- pared the Church to absorb, in some repare measure at least, the swelling numbers of Lutherans who were pouring into this country. The years that cover the span of Muhlen- berg's life in America witnessed not only the growth of organization but also a great numerical increase and geographical expansion of the Church. When Muhlenberg came to America the white popu- lation of the country numbered less than three-quarters of a million. At the outbreak of the Revolution, when all immigration ceased for a number of years, it numbered two and a half millions. A few years after Muhlenberg's death, when the first census was taken, it had grown to four millions. The increase in the number of Lutherans in the land more than kept pace with the increase in general popula- ncrease tion. When Muhlenberg arrived in in Numbers _^ , . ° , , Pennsylvania there were probably far less than twenty thousand people in the colony who were in any sense Lutherans. But two years after the organization of the synod the number had increased at least three-fold, and at the outbreak of the war it 80 GROWTH AND EXPANSION 81 is safe to say that seventy-five thousand of the one hundred and ten thousand Germans in the colony were Lutherans. In other colonies also, though not to the same degree as in Pennsylvania, the numbers of the Lutherans were steadily growing. Of course only a fraction of these were gathered into congregations. Moreover, this growing Lutheran constituency was no longer in 1790 concentrated about the chief ports and main waterways near the Atlantic. It had begun to scatter and spread into the interior. We have seen how some of the Germans on the banks of the Hudson as early as 1713 courageously moved out into the valleys of the Schoharie and the Mohawk and how from there ten years later thirty-three families made their way to Berks and Lebanon Counties, Penn- sylvania. The Lutherans of New York had also spread into New Jersey and peopled whole congregations there. The Ebenezer colony of Salzburgers had been scattered by the war, and its frag- egmning ments f urnished the nucleus for a number of Lutheran communities in the South. Lutheran congregations had been estab- lished at Charleston, at Orangeburg, and in Lexington County, South Carolina. In North Carolina the Lutheran settlement at New Berne had begun in that same emigration of Palatines that brought Kocherthal to New York, and other settlements of Lutherans soon followed in that colony. The Lutherans in Madison County, Virginia, had come largely from North Caro- lina. Baltimore also had its Lutheran Church. But the chief center of Lutheran expansion and dis- tribution in colonial times was Pennsvlvania. Even 82 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY before Muhlenberg arrived the Lutherans of Pennsyl- vania had begun to push out from Philadelphia and beyond the counties of Montgomery, Lancaster and Berks, towards the frontiers of the colony. In the fourth decade of the eighteenth cen- artmg rom ^ ^ crossed the Susquehanna. Pennsylvania - i Some of them kept east of the South Mountain and established Lutheran congregations in York County and at various points in Maryland as far as Frederick. Others went west of the mountain and followed the prolongation of the Cumberland Valley from Harrisburg to Hagerstown and far beyond into the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Even North Caro- lina, in its central and western parts, had been settled by Lutherans from Pennsylvania. Muhlenberg had been called to serve three congre- gations in 1742. But so rapid was the growth of organization and the increase in numbers that already in 1771 he reported eighty-one congre- Rapid Growth gations in Pennsylvania and the adja- cent provinces over which he was expected to exercise some kind of oversight. And there were about thirty Lutheran congregations in other parts of the country. Everywhere, as enterprising Americans pressed into the interior, subduing the hostile Indians, taming the wilderness, and beginning that long and thrilling romance known as "the winning of Among the the ^est," Lutherans were in the van of that great movement carrying along with them their faith and hope and love and beckoning for spiritual ministry to follow them. How to provide adequate spiritual leadership for the GROWTH AND EXPANSION 88 rapidly expanding Church was the most serious prob- lem pressing for solution at the close of the war for independence. Under the inspiration of Muhlenberg's "Halle Reports" a steady stream of able leaders came from the fatherland. Ne f*j of But their number was utterly inade- P'" tua Leaders quate to meet the growing need. Under the impulse of the ripening organization of the synod native Americans were trained in American parson- ages and ordained to the ministry. But their number, also, was almost infinitesimal compared with the need, and their training was often very indifferent. At the time of Muhlenberg's death there were not more than forty Lutheran ministers of any kind in all America. There were many noble spirits among them and several shining lights, such as J. N. Kurtz and J. H. C. Helmuth, and Cal1 for a Muhlenberg's sons-in-law, Kunze and M * ll . ve Schultze. But their number was all too few. Then, too, the Halle type of minister no longer predominated so exclusively as it once had. Moreover, Halle itself was changing. The teachers of Muhlenberg's acquaintance had passed off the scene and the new teachers were not so firmly Lutheran and evangelical nor did they inculcate the same religious fervor and warm Christian piety as the Franckes. All the more urgent was the need of providing a native American Lutheran ministry. The project of establishing a theological seminary had vanished with the outbreak of the Revolution, and after the smoke of the battle had lifted the times were not so favorable for such an enterprise and a new 84 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY generation of ministers had arisen unaccustomed to the heroic undertakings of a Muhlenberg. Only the organization of new synods covering Defa S Jj mina,T the whole country and the gathering of these into a general body could furnish the background for such an undertaking. That time was soon to come. But for the present the Lutheran Church in America was dependent on Europe for her ministry, even after the birth of the nation; and the supply of spiritual leaders from the native ranks, so necessary for the full maturity of the Church, waited for a new period in general American history. QUESTIONS 1. What was the numerical growth of the Lutheran Church in Muhlenberg's day? 2. How did the Church expand geographically in the eight- eenth centui'y? 3. What was the chief center of Lutheran distribution during colonial times? 4. What was the greatest need in the expanding Church? 5. How did the type of ministers change after the Revolu- tionary War? 6. How was the problem of ministerial supply to be solved? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Growth of Non-Lutheran Churches in America from 1750-1790 German Immigration to America, 1710-1775 Earliest Lutheran Settlements West of the Susquehanna The Lutheran Element in the "Winning of the West" Lutheran Migration into the Cumberland and Shenandoah Valleys Lutheran Schools in Colonial Pennsylvania The First Forty Years of the Pennsylvania Ministerium George Washington's Relations with Lutherans GROWTH AND EXPANSION 85 SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY August Crelle John Ulrich Giessendanner Peter Hartman Bernard Michael Hausihl Justus Heinrich Christian Helmuth John George Jung George Samuel Klug Adam Kuhn Daniel Kuhn John Christopher Kunze William Kurtz Daniel Lehmann John Christian Leps Baltus Pickel Conrad Roeller John Gottlob Schmeisser John Frederick Schmidt Daniel Schroeter Christopher Emanuel Schultze Christian Streit John Lewis Voigt Karl Frederick Wildbahn BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernheim, G. D., History of the German Settlements and of the Lutheran Church in North and South Carolina. 1872. Burgess, E. B., Memorial History of the Pittsburgh Synod. 1925 Pages 13-63. Cassell, Finck, and Henkel, History of the Lutheran Church in Virginia and East Tennessee. 1930. Documentary History of the Lutheran Ministerium of Pennsyl- vania. 1898. Faust, A. B., The German Element in the United States. 2 vols. 1909. Volume I, pages 53-285. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in Amer- ica. 1892. Pages 430-522, 563-605. Hallesche Nachrichten. 1787. New edition, edited by Mann, Schmucker, and Germann, Vol. I, 1886, and Vol. II, 1895. Hiller, Alfred, History of the Lutheran Church in New Jersey. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. XXVIII, Jan., Apr., 1898, pp. 98-130, 165-196. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 290-306. Nicum, J., Geschichte des Evangelisch-Lutherischen Minis- teriums vom Staate New York. 1888. Pages 32-46. 86 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Pohlman, H. N., The German Colony and Lutheran Church in Maine. The Evangelical Review, Vol. XX, July, 1869, pp. 440-462. Wentz, A. R., History of the Gettysburg Seminary. 1926. Pages 1-63. , History of the Maryland Synod. 1920. Pages 1-42. PART III IN THE YOUTH OF THE REPUBLIC (1790-1830) Cutting European Ties CHAPTER VIII GENERAL BACKGROUND The first forty years in the life of the American Republic were marked politically by rapid development of the national spirit. That spirit was painfully born amid the throes of the debates on the Constitution and its ratification by the _ e J!. 311 Republic states. Very feeble at first and barely able to exist, it gradually gained strength until near the end of the period now before us it attained its full stature of health and vigor. The rise of the national spirit meant that the thought of the people broke through the narrow limits of state lines and contemplated the broader and deeper ques- tions that arose out of the life of the whole country. It resulted in the centralization of power in the hands of the federal government and the con- sequent limitation of the powers of the Je^hiftion states. It also severed the bonds that tied the Americans to their European masters, and gave them independence in fact as the Revolutionary War had given them independence in name. This growth of the American spirit with its attendant sev- erance of European ties applied to the intellectual and religious life as well as the political. It helps to ex- plain the general trend of events in the Lutheran Church during this period. Let us observe first how the course of political events 89 90 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY served to strengthen the spirit of American national- ity. The national elections of representatives and senators for the Federal Congress, and the selection of presidential electors, recurring at short intervals, served to direct the attention of the people periodically to questions of national interest. The people of the whole country were made to engage in the same acts at the same time and for common national ends, and this meant that the period of isolation was forever gone. An unbroken succession of fed- roMing "P irit eral events unconsciously stimulated of IXatioiiahtv the sentiment of common concern, broadening the ideas and sympathies of the people and drawing them away from the narrow and opposing in- terests of state and section. This unconscious growth of national affection is well illustrated by the effects of Washington's journey from Mt. Vernon to New York to be inaugurated. It was a continuous triumph, and those who participated, those who witnessed, and those who read and heard about it, were thrilled with hope and pride over the auspicious beginning of the national government. Then, too, a whole series of legislative acts, embrac- ing all the leading measures of the Washington and Adams administrations, called into life national agents and national functions and subordinated the interests of section to those of nation. There was the protective tariff on imported goods. This served to increase the powers of the central government and gained support for the nationalist view of the functions of govern- ment. Then, the federal payment at their face value GENERAL BACKGROUND 91 of all debts incurred during the Revolutionary War, and the assumption by the United States of the state debts, the levying of an excise on distilled liquors (and incidentally its forced collection in western Pennsylvania), and above all F n j reas , m p * e the chartering of a United States Bank, all of these features of Hamilton's grand finan- cial system were conscious and extraordinary stretches of national authority which called into vigorous exer- cise the implied powers of the Constitution, gave con- crete proof of the strength of the national government, and rode rough-shod over all petty interests of locali- ties. Moreover, our foreign relations in this period are at once an indication and a cause of the growing prin- ciple of nationality. Washington's famous proclama- tion of neutrality as between France and England was a second declaration of independence which shook off forever the colonial n or , ei f n . . , , Relations habit of cringing dependence upon Europe. The popular rejection of the French minister Genet, the great indignation against England in 1793 and 1794, and the war fever kindled against France by the X YZ affair, — all looked in the direction of strengthening the nation at the expense of her com- ponent parts. So firmly established was the principle of nationality at the beginning of the nineteenth century that when the Federalists overleaped themselves and the reaction placed Jefferson in the presidential chair, that great Democrat, the firm advocate of strict construction, of 92 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY state sovereignty, and of limited national powers, found himself forced by circumstances to make use of the very powers he had opposed. In ouisiana ^g^ ^ e purchased the Louisiana Terri- 1 urchase tory although he himself acknowledged that he had no contitutional power to do so. This was the most important political event after the adoption of the Constitution. It nearly doubled the domain of the United States. It opened immense possibilities not only for the American nation but also for the Kingdom of God, and it greatly increased the self -consciousness of the young Republic. Then the English aggressions from 1803 to 1812 helped to swell the current of nationality. Even in New England where a strong sympathy for Old Eng- land had served to cultivate a sort of sectionalism, her chief statesmen were nevertheless all arrayed on the side of the national policy. The War of 1812 also greatly promoted the national spirit and when in 1817 Monroe was inaugurated as President the country was at the full tide of enthusiasm for nationality, in this respect the high-water mark of the nineteenth century. The National Bank had been re-estab- rpi 4417 £ _ e . „ ra ,.° „ lished with more than three times the Good Feeling capital and authority of Hamilton s Bank. The tariff rates, which had been doubled in 1812 to provide war revenue, were even increased in 1816 for protective reasons. Confident pride in the growing West and the experience of the war led Con- gress to vote lavish donations of public money for internal improvements. Chief Justice Marshall in his famous decisions interpreting the Constitution con- GENERAL BACKGROUND 93 sistently rendered verdicts in support of the national authority against that of the states. A striking rebuke was administered to the political grumblers assembled at Hartford, and for years the fall of the Federalist party served as a text for exhortations to national unity. President Monroe's tour of the states and his cordial reception everywhere stamped the period as the "era of good feeling." The jangling communities of the preceding century had been transformed into one great enthusiastic empire. Instead of the thirteen diverse and isolated commonwealths of colonial times we now have a grow- ing Union of States that have released themselves from colonial dependence n " lty .° Ut ° on a transatlantic power and have be- come conscious through common perils, victories and hopes, of national unity and life, and are proceeding in hearty accord to ordain institutes of national gov- ernment binding on all. This fact profoundly influ- enced the course of Church History in this period. Religiously also the period from 1790 to 1830 may fairly enough be called an "era of good feeling." This was made possible by the great change that had oc- curred in the status of the churches when the Republic was founded. The Separation of established churches of colonial times urc an State were deprived of all their special privi- leges and, with a few exceptions in New England, general recognition was given to the American prin- ciple of the non-interference of the state with religion and the equality of all religious communions before the law. 94 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY One result of this was that Old World animosities tended to disappear and the American denominations, compelled to live on the same level of privilege, were thrown upon their own resources of faith and love. Most of the churches made the transition from estab- lishment to the voluntary system with The Voluntary very little difficulty and manifested an System m amazing degree of enterprise and zeal for the progress of God's Kingdom. In Pennsylvania the voluntary system had always been practiced and no great change was necessary in the relations between Church and state, but the numerous communion of Lutherans in that state did not fail to catch the enthusiasm for practical Christian tasks that swept over the other communions in this period. Now there was abundant occasion in the youth of the Republic for a high spirit of enterprise and enthu- siastic practical endeavor on the part of all the Ameri- can churches. The opportunities for service were tremendous and there was no need for denominational rivalry, for there was glory enough for them all. It was a time of territorial expansion and numerical growth. The vast stretches of the Mississippi Valley were thrown open to enterprising settlers. Immeasur- able riches of forests and minerals and amazingly pro- ductive soils quickly drew tens of thousands of families to the great valley. The ambitious project of a French Catholic empire on that part of the continent had long since vanished and so there was opened to the Ameri- can churches an immense field for missionary activity. GENERAL BACKGROUND 95 While the territory of the Republic expanded two-fold the population multiplied more than three-fold, from four millions in 1790 to thirteen mil- lions in 1830. Agricultural communi- Opp°^ nitie9 lOF SCETVIC© ties still predominated and this in- sured that social democracy kept pace with political democracy. But there was a striking growth in city life : from only six towns of over six thousand in 1790 to thirty-two cities of over eight thousand in 1830. This meant a stimulus to intellectual activity, and a national literature began in the establishment of Niles' Register and the North American Revieiv and in the writings of such men as Irving, Cooper and Bryant. Thus the opportunities and problems of American Christianity were multiplied manyfold during this period. They were commonly accepted as opportuni- ties and problems peculiarly American, and it was felt that they must be met by methods peculiarly American. This developed a spirit of religious and ecclesiastical independence from Old World standards. The religious history of the period, therefore, runs exactly parallel to its political history. Quite naturally there were many pioneer methods of American church work and numerous religious . on ® c3 ^ sness makeshifts, but the religious life of the period is marked everywhere by the development of American self -consciousness in the churches and the growth of the spirit of co-operation in common Chris- tian tasks. This splendid philanthropy was often marked by a deplorable degree of confessional laxity and distinct losses to the denominational conscious- ness, yet it was a very decided improvement upon the 96 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY religious indifference and the utter moral deterioration that was witnessed by the two rationalistic decades following the Revolutionary War. The cause of this change is undoubtedly to be found in the evangelical movement and the widespread revivals that marked the beginning of the nineteenth century. The evangelical movement has its primary action in the sphere of the affections and its normal result is a clearer perception of the brotherhood of man and new zeal in the varied works Movement geIiCal ° f Christian love - So [t WaS that the Christians of the early nineteenth cen- tury, in the face of an unprecedented common task, became keenly conscious of the importance of what they held in common as Christians, as contrasted with what they held severally as members of various de- nominations. Denominational interests occupied them less; Christian and catholic interests occupied them more. The following, briefly, are the facts. In the opening year of the century (1801) the Gen- eral Assembly of the Presbyterians entered into the famous "Plan of Union," a compact with the General Association of Congregationalists of Connecticut. By this agreement the difference in polity between these two Churches was almost forgotten and something like organic unity was achieved, in order that the new settlements of the westward movement might be saved from local schisms and might be able to present full strength against real foes. A few years later a new denomination was born with the distinct purpose of GENERAL BACKGROUND 97 protesting against schism and sectarianism and with the avowed aim of bringing unity among the Christian churches. They have since become a separate sect known as the Disciples Co-operation of Christ. In the widespread revivals _" long . t e . Denominations of those years the Methodists and Baptists worked hand in hand, though at other points they were thrown into sharp competition. And some- times both Methodists and Baptists enjoyed the co- operation of the Presbyterians who differed from them both in matters which they all considered important. The Episcopal Church began to practice quite com- monly the interchange of pulpits, and in other ways to show herself in full sympathy with her fellow- Christians. Even the Roman Catholic Church was pro- foundly influenced by the spirit of devotion to common Christianity and manifested a startling disposition to obscure or obliterate some of the most characteristic features of her own system. Catholic churches were occasionally used for Protestant worship. Catholic priests and bishops actually preached to Protestant congregations. Jesuits served as trustees of Protest- ant colleges. There was a tendency to use the English language exclusively in the Roman worship. Lay "trusteeism" was quite general before 1830. All of which indicated a friendly feeling on the part of Catho- lics toward other Christians and a disposition to act with them as far as possible. Members of all these churches which we have men- tioned except the Catholic began to associate them- selves early in the century for various forms of Chris- tian philanthropy. It was not a federation of Church 98 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY bodies but only an organic union of individual Chris- tians of the various Protestant denominations for the performance of the high offices of the Church uni- versal. Such organizations were, first Organized f u ^ American Bible Society Philanthropy \ J (organized 1808), then the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (1810), the American Education Society (1813), the American Sunday School Union (1824), the American Tract Society (1825), the Seamen's Friend Society (1826), and the American Home Missionary Society (1828). These organizations were inter-denominational in their scope, and that so many of them date their birth from this period is striking evidence of the general tendency. The German-speaking American Church in its two branches, the Lutheran and the Reformed, had felt practically nothing of the Great Awakening of 1740, and now at the beginning of the nineteenth century they were somewhat slower than the other churches to feel the quickening evangelical influences that swept over the other churches at that time. This was due in part to the obstacles interposed by the Lutherans Feel differences of language, but more t e mencan \ aY g e \y to their intrinsic conservatism Impulse . . , of doctrine and practice and to their longer period of training in the methods and responsi- bilities of established churches. But when the new American impulse did begin to act vigorously upon them, say after 1810, they joined in the evangelical movement with intense fervor and manifested great zeal in co-operating with their fellow Christians in the works of Christian love. And not only so, but they GENERAL BACKGROUND 99 manifested an unusual degree of confessional laxity that for several decades threatened to obliterate the historic traits which had marked them among Chris- tians for almost three centuries. This belated move- ment continued in force long beyond 1830. It was stronger in the Lutheran Church than in the Reformed. In both cases it signified the development of a distinct American life in the churches and tended to separate them from European connections, and while this de- livered them in large measure from the open dangers of German rationalism in that period, at the same time it subjected them to the more insidious danger of American unionism and called for decisive measures of internal conservation. QUESTIONS 1. Define the new spirit that began to manifest itself in America at the beginning of the nineteenth century? 2. How did political events strengthen the spirit of nation- alism? 3. What was the effect on the strength of the federal govern- ment? 4. How did the purchase of the Louisiana Territory influence the national spirit? 5. What is meant by the "era of good feeling?" 6. Show how religious events paralleled political events be- tween 1790 and 1830? 7. What is the voluntary system in religion? 8. What new spirit came over American Christianity in the early life of the Republic? Why? 9. Give instances of co-operation among the denominations in this period. 10. What general associations for Christian work date from this period? 11. To what extent did Lutherans share the general spirit of the times from 1790 to 1830? 100 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Evangelical Revival and its Effects Moral Reform Movements in the Early Nineteenth Century The Beginnings of the Missionary Enterprise in America The Religious Life of George Washington The Beginnings of a Distinctively American Culture in Literature, Oratory and Painting Causes and Effects of the Spirit of Nationalism, 1790-1830 The Louisiana Purchase and its Effects on American History The Significance of the Western Frontier in American History Permanent Deposits of Nationalism in American Christianity SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Archibald Alexander Francis Asbury David Bacon Lyman Beecher David Brainerd Peter Cartwright Lorenzo Dow Timothy Dwight Robert Finley Wilbur Fiske Isabella Graham Adoniram Judson John Henry Livingston William MacKendree Bishop James Madison James Manning Henry Martyn Samuel J. Mills Philip William Otterbein Luther Rice William White BIBLIOGRAPHY Bacon, L. W., A History of American Christianity. 1897. Pages 230-261. Beard, Charles A. and Mary R., The Rise of American Civiliza- tion. 1927. Vol. I, pages 297-506. Dorchester, D., Christianity in the United States. 1888. Pages 259-558. Elson, H. W., History of the United States. 1904. Pages 342-508. GENERAL BACKGROUND 101 McMaster, J. B., History of the People of the United States. 1883 ff. Vols. I and II. Sweet, W. W., The Story of Religions in America. 1930. Pages 298-372. Turner, F. J., The Frontier in American History. 1920. Pages 1-38. West, W. M., American History and Government. 1913. Pages 378-463. CHAPTER IX EXPANSION Nothing is more characteristic of the Lutheran Church in the youth of the Republic than the west- ward expansion of her population. It -. . raised new issues, precipitated new CiXpansion problems, and forced her to new forms of activity. The lengthening of the cords called for strengthening of the stakes. The extension of national territory and the founding of new states, the end of Indian hostilities and the liberal land policy of Government, the aubes o development in steam navigation and the building of roads and canals, gave a strong impulse to migration from the older settle- ments in the East to the inviting valleys of the Ohio and the Mississippi. Pennsylvania was particularly active in internal improvements. Millions were spent in that state to create a system of turnpikes joining the eastern parts of the commonwealth with the western parts and Ohio. Hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians, including great numbers of Lutherans, crossed Successive ^he Alleghanies and settled in western Waves From Pennsylvania and in central Ohio, In- rennsyivania ,. ... diana and Illinois. The settlement took place in successive waves, each new wave pene- trating farther into the wilderness. During the first 102 EXPANSION 103 decade of the nineteenth century Ohio grew from forty- five thousand to four hundred and six thousand, and before the end of this period had a million people. In the second decade Indiana grew from twenty-four thousand to one hundred and forty-seven thousand, and in the third decade Illinois witnessed a similar growth. The migration followed in a general way the paral- lels of latitude. While the Lutherans of Pennsylvania were pouring into central Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, those of Maryland were following a similar line of march a little farther . , e „ r . m . es oi Migration south, those of New York were follow- ing the line of the Erie Canal, those of Virginia were moving into southern Ohio and Kentucky, and those of the Carolinas were pouring into Tennessee or find- ing their way north of the Ohio River. As the hardy Lutheran pioneer pressed forward with his family to encamp on the frontier and win a home for his children and at the same time to engage in the great American epic of subduing the wilderness and winning a continent for his nation, he carried with him his long rifle and „ a . ! °!" TT , . Spiritual Help his well-poised axe and usually also his Bible and his faith. Very early in this period, therefore, calls began to come back from the Lutherans on the frontier asking for spiritual help and inviting Lutheran pastors to come and minister to them in ser- mon and sacrament. These calls met a response. For a long time it had been the custom of the ministers who lived nearest to the frontiers to undertake missionary tours on their 104 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY own initiative traveling into remote districts, gather- ing together the scattered members of the Lutheran household, preaching the Word and administering the sacraments. Then, too, a great volume of pioneer work in the Lutheran Church west of the espouse Alleghanies was done by men who entered the field as "independent preachers," without any synodical connection, to answer the call of the destitute Lutheran frontiersmen. Such were Anton Liitge, John Stauch, J. M. Steck, Philip Muckenhaupt, J. C. Rebenach, J. Mechling, J. G. Lampbrecht, Peter Rupert, Karl W. Colson, John Reinhard, Henry Huet, George Foerster, and G. A- Reichert. Nearly all of these men afterwards became members of the Pennsyl- vania Ministerium or the Ohio Synod. Hundreds of flourishing congregations today trace their beginnings to this sort of volunteer missionary effort. But this work of home missions, as we call it today, was officially undertaken by the Ministerium of Pennsylvania in 1804. The plan of the synod, as it went into effect in 1806, provided for the sending out of two or three men each year during the summer months. These travel- ing missionaries were members of the synod, were commissioned and paid by the synod, and rendered their reports to the synod. One of the eminent names among these earliest home missionaries is that of Paul Henkel. Year after year, beginning in 1810, he left his charge at New Market, Virginia, and explored and supplied the thinly settled parts of Ohio, Kentucky, Western Virginia and Penn- sylvania. His diary tells of his contact with the camp- meetings and the nervous revival epidemics that EXPANSION 105 burned over the Cumberland country at that time. An- other of these devoted missionaries was John Stauch. After extensive labors in the Valley of Virginia he was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Ministerium in 1793 and began a remarkable career of missionary work in the western part of Pennsyl- , .ii • r\i • cn.-n „ Henkel, Stanch, vama and especially m Ohio. Still an- ' other energetic home missionary of this period was John Michael Steck. His son, Michael John, located at Lancaster, Ohio, in 1816, and by ap- pointment of the Ministerium made extensive mission- ary tours. About the same time the name of C. F. Heyer appears on the list of these traveling mission- aries, and he carried the work into Indiana and Ken- tucky. These and many other indefatigable and self-denying servants of the Church helped to roll the wave of mis- sionary operations westward abreast with the general expansion of population. They found many evidences of wickedness and spiritual destitution on the frontier, but everywhere they lsslonar y p i i work found pious and sincere Lutherans maintaining their daily devotions in their cabins, hungering after righteousness and fervently praying for spiritual shepherds. These they gathered into con- gregations and ministered to. But the work of the missionaries was sadly weakened by the lack of pastors with whom to man the congregations they organized. The needs of the home mission field were greatly increased during the . H e ee second half of our period. After the close of the war with England immigration from 106 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Europe, particularly from Germany, set in strongly again. The business depression in the East sent many of these immigrants forward to the inviting farm lands on the western frontier. In this way the missionary task of the Lutheran Church was vastly augmented. The numerical increase of the Church during this period, though not so striking a characteristic as her geographical expansion, nevertheless kept pace with the increase of the general population. In the twenty- five years preceding 1800 the Church added about ten thousand members but in the twenty-five years follow- ing 1800 she added more than twenty row* o thousand, so that by the year 1825 ihe Church , ' ,-,«., there were nearly forty-five thousand members in the Lutheran fold. Large numbers of Lutherans were scattered about without membership in any Church and without any kind of spiritual over- sight. They had severed the bonds that tied them to their spiritual guides in Europe and had failed to form similar bonds in America. That these were not gath- ered in was due to the lack of men to organize the congregations and become their pastors. The system of traveling missionaries was inadequate. It reached only a small fraction of the needy and its ministrations were very irregular. It soon became evident that if the Church in this country v/as to maintain her place in the spiritual life of the land and discharge her responsibilities to her own people, further synodical organization was necessary- The first synod to be organized after the Ministerium of Pennsylvania was the New York Ministerium. This organization took place before Muhlenberg's death. EXPANSION 107 Already in 1773 his son Frederick, who was then a pastor in New York, called a conference of all the Lutheran preachers in that colony. But the organiza- tion thus projected did not begin until 1785 when J. C. Kunze, Muhlenberg's son-in-law, succeeded in forming the Ministerium. The first meeting was held at Albany and was attended by two laymen and three of the eight pastors in the colony. The second meeting was not held until 1792. The organization grew very slowly. The main stream of German immigration had long before been diverted to Pennsylvania and did not return to New York. More- ®V\ York . . Ministerium over, the up-state pastors were spirit- ual heirs of Berkenmeyer and cherished an aversion to everything that came from Halle. But the new spirit that prevailed after the founding of the Republic per- mitted rapid growth of the Synod and before Kunze's death in 1807 it numbered fourteen pastors on its roll. The efforts of this Synod to extend its work northward into Canada proved fruitless, as the pastors sent thither one after another left the Lutheran Church for the Episcopal Church. Before the close of the period, however, a successful system of traveling mis- sionaries was introduced and a long row of counties in the central and northwestern parts of the state were occupied. Shortly after the turn of the century another Lutheran Synod came into being, this time in the South. For more than half a century there had been a number of Lutheran settlements in North Carolina. Many of these Lutherans had come from Pennsylvania 108 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY but some had come directly from Germany. Pastors had been furnished them at first by the Consistory of Hanover in Germany. But the Revolutionary War cut off this source of ministerial supply and soon the Lutherans of North Carolina felt the necessity of some kind of organization among themselves North Carolina ... , , , , , , ~ g d that would not be under any foreign supervision but would have power to examine and ordain men to the ministerial office. When therefore in 1800 and 1801 a tide of fanatical revival- ism threatened to sweep over their congregations, the pastors decided to form an organization to protect themselves and their people against false views and practices. The result was the North Carolina Synod, organized at Salisbury in 1803 by the four pastors, Arends, Storch, Miller and Paul Henkel, together with fourteen lay delegates. The synod soon took in the ministers and churches of South Carolina and Ten- nessee and southern Virginia. It grew rapidly and before 1820 numbered twenty-six ministers and cate- chists, about sixty congregations and more than six thousand members. Beginning in 1810 this synod, like the others, appointed each year a home missionary to organize into congregations the scattered Lutherans in North Carolina, southern Virginia, Tennessee, and South Carolina. It thus became the mother of all the southern synods. The New York Ministerium and the North Carolina Synod had been formed without making a breach in the ranks of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. They were constituted of congregations that lay outside the EXPANSION 109 bounds of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania and with two exceptions their pastors had not been connected with the old synod. But the fourth synod to be organized was formed on Dividing the the territory of the Mmistermm itself. „. . ; . As the missionaries were sent out year after year to follow the westward advance of the American frontier, to preach the Word and administer the Sacraments to the Lutherans in "the West" and "the South," as they took up their permanent abodes farther and farther from Philadelphia and eastern Pennsylvania, it became increasingly difficult for these missionaries and pastors to make the long journeys that would have been necessary to attend the meetings of the original synod. Still they longed to take counsel with their brethren and to have a part in the delibera- tions for the general good. The Ministerium therefore had early established "Special or Dis- trict Meetings" at which the pastors g he o ° hi ° and laymen of a particular region could meet as often as they desired for mutual edification and for counsel on certain subjects. In 1801 the Minis- terium had provided for seven such special conference districts. The "Western District" embraced all the territory west of Chambersburg. In 1812 the Lutheran pastors in Ohio organized their own conference. In 1817 they asked permission to establish their own ministerium. It was felt that this was necessary in order to secure candidates for the ministry and in order to stimulate interest among the congregations and bring about a more rapid development of their resources. The request was not granted but permis- 110 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY sion was given to license candidates for one year. But the next year the Ohio Conference quietly organized itself into the "Synod of Ohio and Adjacent States," and proceeded to ordain three men to the ministry. The first president of the new synod was the meritor- ious missionary Stauch, and the first secretary was Paul Henkel, who had traversed all of Ohio in a two- wheeled cart. The new body numbered at first fourteen ministers and eight lay delegates. The organization is known today as the "Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States." But the constituency of the body was completely changed after a generation. The elements that had formed the Synod of Ohio in 1818 separated from the body during the middle period of the nineteenth cen- tury and formed other synods in that state or helped to form the Pittsburgh Synod, so that today only the historic organization and not the present constituency of the "Joint Synod" can be traced to a "Special Con- ference" of the Pennsylvania Ministerium. The spirit- ual descendants of the original "Synod of Ohio and Adjacent States" are today embraced in the Ohio Synod of the United Lutheran Church. The Synod of Maryland and Virginia, organized in 1820, also grew out of one of the "Special Conferences" of the Pennsylvania Ministerium. This Conference had met at various places in Virginia since 1793. But that kind of organization proved inadequate to meet the needs of the growing Lutheran population of Maryland and the Virginia Valley. When, therefore, EXPANSION 111 the pastors of Maryland and Virginia asked permis- sion to organize a new synod on their territory the Ministerium of Pennsylvania granted the request in view of the immediate ^r 110 ^ of prospect of a more inclusive fraternity an ^rj° • . to be known as the General Synod. The organization took place at Winchester, Virginia, in October, 1820. Three months before that the Tennessee Synod had been formed by four of the pastors of the North Caro- lina Synod. The founders of this organization, two of whom were sons of Paul Henkel, could not agree with their synodical ^ enn ^ sse ^ brethren on the question of licensing clergymen, and because of the laxity in doctrine and practice in the older synods they strongly objected to the forming of a General Synod. So they withdrew and organized their own synod. In 1824 another division took place in the ranks of the North Carolina Synod. This time in peace and brotherly love the pastors and churches in South Caro- lina withdrew and formed the South Carolina Synod. The next year a South Carolina, number of pastors serving churches in es . 1 ennsj " vania and Pennsylvania west of the Susquehanna Virginia Synods River, without the consent of the Min- isterium of Pennsylvania, organized themselves into the West Pennsylvania Synod in time to attend the meeting of the General Synod that year. Still another synod dating its origin in this period is the Virginia Synod. In 1829 eight of the pastors belonging to the Maryland Synod but serving churches in Virginia 112 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY responded to the special needs of their churches and proceeded in a most friendly spirit to organize their own synod. This progressive formation of new synods was very tangible evidence of the expansion of the Church in this country. It was in reality a further development of Muhlenberg's organization and at the same time an expression of the new spirit of the times, the spirit of American aggressiveness and independence from Europe. It took place for the most igm cance o ^ > n p eace an( j am jty and it resulted New Synods f ^ * . . «. in much greater efficiency in the Church as a whole, establishing one after another new centers of light and power and occupying one after another the new territories reached by geographical expansion. Then, too, this process of multiplying synodical organizations logically pointed forward to some more inclusive union in the Church that would unify the parts in the interest of conservation and would overcome the division and weakening effects that might have resulted from the synodical movement. QUESTIONS 1. How did the westward trek of population in the early nineteenth century affect the distribution of Lutherans? 2. How did the Church meet the spiritual needs of her people on the western frontier? 3. Name some of the leading home missionaries of this period. 4. Show how the Lutheran Church grew from the Revolu- tionary War to 1825. 5. What was the weakness of the missionary methods applied at that time and where was the remedy to be found? 6. What success attended the efforts to organize Lutheranism in the State of New York? EXPANSION 113 7. How was the North Carolina Synod organized and what was its early history? 8. How did the progress of the synodical idea make a breach in the territory of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania? 9. Show how the formation of new synods advanced during the third decade of the nineteenth century. 10. What was the real significance of the expansion of the Church and the progressive formation of new synods? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY German Immigration between 1790 and 1830 Itinerant Lutheran Missionaries in the Early Nineteenth Century Paul Henkel's Journal Life and Labors of C. F. Heyer The "Special Conferences" of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania The Growth of Democracy in Lutheran Organizations in the Youth of the Republic The Celebration of the Tercentenary of the Reformation in 1817 The First Constitution of the New York Ministerium Doctrinal Differences in North Carolina The Origin of the West Pennsylvania Synod SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY John Gottfried Arends John George Butler William Carpenter John Peter Goertner Daniel J. Hauer Charles Henkel Paul Henkel J. George Lochman Robert Johnson Miller Jonas Mechling Henry Moeller Adolph Nussman Gabriel Adam Reichert John F. Ruthrauff David Frederick Schaeffer Jacob Scherer John Andrew Schultze Samuel Schwerdfeger John Stauch John Michael Steck 114 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Michael John Steck Charles Augustus Gottlieb Storch John Christian William Yeager BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernheim, G. D., History of the German Settlements and of the Lutheran Church in North and South Carolina 1872. Pages 274-401. and George H. Cox, The History of the Evan- gelical Lutheran Synod and Ministerium of North Carolina. 1902. Pages 1-26, 35-57, 85-93. Burgess, E. B., Memorial History of the Pittsburgh Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. 1925. Pages 1-63. Cassell, Finck and Henkel, History of the Lutheran Church in Virginia and East Temiessee. 1930. Pages 1-151. Fortenbaugh, Robert, The Development of the Synodical Polity of the Lutheran Church in America, to 1829. 1926. Pages 31-145 (with detailed bibliography). Hallman, S. T., History of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of South Carolina. 1924. Pages 17-57. Henkel, Socrates, History of the Evangelical Lutheran Tennes- see Synod. 1890. Pages 1-42. Nicum, J., Geschichte des Evangelisch-Lutherischen Minls- teriums vom Staate Netv York. 1888. Pages 47-123. Peter, P. A. and William Schmidt, Geschichte der Allgemeinen E vang ,-Lutherischen Synode von Ohio und anderen Staaten. 1900. Pages 1-36. Sheatsley, C. V., History of the Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Ohio and other States. 1918. Pages 9-109. Stump, A. and H. Anstadt, History of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of West Pennsylvania, 1825-1925. 1925. Pages 1-90. Wentz, A. R., History of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Manjland. 1920. Pages 33-81. CHAPTER X PROBLEMS With the steady expansion of her borders and the rapid increase in her numbers the Lutheran Church in the early days of the Republic found herself seri- ously confronted, as we have seen, with the age-long problem of men for the ministry. But even more seri- ous than this were several problems growing out of internal conditions in the Church. These sadly inter- fered with her peace and progress and at times threat- ened her very life. First, there was the problem of rationalism. The close contact of America with France during the Revo- lutionary War and during the making of the nation left a deposit of rationalistic thought among Ameri- cans that perpetuated itself far into the youth of the Republic. The Lutherans did not escape the infection. Then, too, the spirit of rationalism had crept into Halle and the other Ger- Raiionalism man universities, and before Muhlenberg's death there came to America a group of Lutheran ministers who knew not Spener and Francke and Muhlenberg. The results were evident in the Church. More than one generation was required to sever completely these ties of European thought and blot out of the Lutheran Church in America the last vestiges of unevangelical theology. In 1792 the constitution of the Pennsylvania Minis- 115 116 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY terium was revised. All references to the Lutheran confessions were stricken out. The more prominent members of the Ministeriurn were outspoken in their Lutheranism, but the omission from the constitution of all mention of the Augsburg Confession and the other symbolical books was a striking concession to the unevangelical spirit of the times. The candidates for ordination were pledged only to preach the Word of God in its purity, according to law and Gospel as presented in the catechism and hymn- In Pennsylvania , 1 mi ±'j- j_* £ j.i book. The constitutions 01 the congre- gations remained unchanged, but some very pro- nounced forms of rationalism were current in the rural districts of the Ministeriurn. There was no express antagonism to distinctive Lutheran doctrines but a general toning down of Lutheran convictions and many inconsistencies with sound Lutheran practice. Even from the young congregations in Ohio came complaints that their pastors were not faithful to the old Lutheran doctrine. This spirit continued throughout this period. In New York the infection of rationalism was felt much more strongly than in Pennsylvania. This was largely due to the great influence of Dr. Quitman. While Dr. Kunze lived he stood at the helm in the New York Ministeriurn and the spirit of unbelief was held in abeyance. Dr. Kunze was the most learned and influential man in the whole Church. He was very active in training men for the ministry. In 1804 he wrote to his brethren in Pennsylvania that he thought no member of his synod would deny the Redeemer, but that some of them gave him reason for apprehension. PROBLEMS 117 But three years later Dr. Kunze died and Dr. Quitman became president of the New York Ministerium and so continued for twenty-one years. Quitman was a disciple of Semler in Halle and was a thorough-going rationalist. In 1812 he prepared an English catechism as a substitute for Luther's. It was published with the consent and approval of the synod. It denied the inspiration and authority n ew of the Bible and set at nought all the main doctrines of the Lutheran Confessions and the Apostles' Creed. A few years later he published a hymnal and liturgy. This also was un-Lutheran and un-evangelical through- out, but it was officially accepted by the synod. Quit- man was a man of commanding presence and great in- tellectual force, and as president of the synod and instructor of ministerial candidates he scattered seeds of rationalism that could not be entirely uprooted for more than half a century But his skillful effort to Americanize German rationalism was heroically par- ried by some of the younger and more evangelical spirits of the New York Ministerium. The Quitman Catechism did not sell. A new English edition of Luther's Catechism was issued and widely intro- duced. New leadership was provided, and before the end of this period the European spirit of scepticism and unbelief was exorcised from the New York Min- isterium. In North Carolina also the same problem had to be met. Many of the Lutherans there had come from the rural districts of Pennsylvania. Long before the organization of the synod the pastors of North Caro- lina had secured the publication of the "Helmstaedt 118 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Catechism" of Dr. Velthusen. This was used for many years in North Carolina and was known as the "North Carolina Catechism." It was full of the spirit of Ger- man rationalism, and the consequence was that the Lutheran consciousness of the people in that state was blurred. When the Synod was organ- c ° r ized in 1803 neither pastors nor laymen felt any necessity for a confessional statement and the constitution of the synod did not contain the word Lutheran or any direct mention of the confessional writings of the Church. Quitman's rationalistic liturgy was officially recommended to the congregations using English and for the Germans the work of the German rationalist Seiler was used. But this synod soon caught the spirit of American indepen- dence and freed itself from the new European theology more rapidly than its northern neighbors. It was the first synod since Muhlenberg's time to make official avowal of the Augsburg Confession. This it did in the new constitution of 1818 and it is significant that this constitution also provided that only ministers ordained or licensed by a synod in the United States could be admitted to the Synod of North Carolina. The second problem that vexed the Church in the youth of the Republic was unionism, This was the religious counterpart of the national spirit. The gen- eral tendency among the American Churches to oblit- erate historic traits and to cultivate closer relations with others left its marks on the Lutheran Church also. The spirit of unionism was partly the offspring of religious indifference. Rationalism had shattered con- PROBLEMS 119 fessional convictions, and the points of difference among the denominations were obscured. Intellectual indolence and motives of expediency also played their part in the unionistic movement. In that day of great religious torpor when the ministry itself was poorly educated and largely secularized, union with other church bodies seemed the line of least resistance. The widespread revival at the beginning of the century also had much to do with it. Even so staunch a Lutheran as Paul Henkel had to be warned against participating in camp-meetings on his missionary tours. But doubtless the strongest factor in deadening the self-consciousness of the Lutheran Church and overcoming her intrinsic con- servatism of doctrine and practice was the infectious spirit of general good-will and co-operation that was so evident in the growing young nation and in all its parts. It was an "era of good feeling" and both Church and nation showed remarkable zeal in obliterating all differences among their constituent elements and emphasizing the features and interests common to all. For the Lutheran Church it meant the decline of her denominational consciousness, and for a time the new American impulse to union threatened the very exist- ence of the Church in this country. In New York the tendency was towards union with the Episcopal Church. Even Dr. Kunze fell under the charm of the idea and in 1797 it was resolved that on account of "the intimate relation subsisting between the English Episcopal and Lutheran churches, the 120 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY identity of their doctrine and the near approach of their discipline," the Ministerium of New York would never acknowledge a new Lutheran Church in places where her members could partake of the services of an Episcopal Church. Negotiations were begun looking towards organic union of the two bodies and episcopal ordination of the Lutheran pastors. The negotiations were not com- pleted but a number of individual congregations went over from the Lutheran to the Episcopal Church. There was great need for closer union among the Lutherans themselves to stimulate their denominational conscious- ness and save the life of their Church. In Pennsylvania union was projected with the Re- formed Church. Many of the church buildings in the rural districts of that state had been erected by the common enterprise of Lutheran and Reformed people. In not a few instances the congregations worshipping in the same building were united under one church council and merely alternated their services between Lutheran and Reformed pastors. Lutherans and Re- formed co-operated in managing the affairs of Frank- lin College at Lancaster and they had no compunctions about permitting a Catholic priest to be included among the trustees. The religious magazine founded by the Ministerium in 1812 made a special bid for Reformed and Moravian subscribers. in Pennsylvania Jn m7 appeared the "Common Hymn- Book" in German which took the place of the Muhlen- berg Hymnal, was endorsed by Dr. Quitman, and was recommended by both the Lutheran and Reformed Synods in Pennsylvania. The next year active efforts PROBLEMS 121 were afoot among these two churches to establish a Joint Theological Seminary, and many ministers in both churches favored the organic union of the two bodies. It may be that this trend towards union among these two conservative German-speaking bodies was partly due to their common reaction against rational- istic influences, but more weighty were the motives of expediency growing out of intermarriage, propin- quity, and a common language, and the fact that the vast majority of people and pastors knew little and cared less about the questions at issue between them. The North Carolina Synod reflected the unionistic tendencies both of Pennsylvania and New York. Union churches for Lutherans and Reformed were common among the Germans in the territory of that synod, and "common" hymn-books and catechisms were in use among the congregations. In a book prepared to cele- brate the tercentenary of the Refor- mation in 1817, Pastor Schober, one " J*. of the leaders of the synod, explained the articles of the Augsburg Confession in a Reformed sense and declared that among all the denominations of "those who worship Jesus as God there is nothing to prevent a hearty union." This book was endorsed and published by the synod. Moreover, the Lutheran Synod fraternized closely with the Episcopal Church in the South and both Episcopalians and Moravians officiated frequently for Lutheran congregations. In the third decade of the century, for reasons that will appear later, the tendency among Lutherans to lose their identity and merge with other Churches 122 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY began to decline and the younger synods organized after the second decade did not feel it much. But there was a third difficulty that impaired the progress of the Church in this period. It was the language problem. The polyglot character of the Lutheran Church in the world has been the cause of just pride to Lutherans, but the polyglot character of the Lutheran Church in America has been the cause of many dark pages in her history. Muhlenberg, as we have seen, preached in whatever language the people could best understand, and for that e anguage purpose mastered and used three rroblem languages. The generation that in- herited his spirit followed the same policy. Dr. Kunze was quite active in preparing literature to meet the needs of the English-speaking parts of the Church. But with the development of the national American spirit in the youth of the Republic the process of anglicizing the Church became much more rapid, and the conscious efforts to sever the linguistic ties that bound them to Germany excited intense feeling at many points during this period. Those who resisted the anglicizing current of the times were entrenched in the congregational and synodical organizations and the result was much bitter strife and great losses to the Church. The Synod in Pennsylvania changed its name in 1792, and introduced the word "German" into its title. In 1805 at German- town it took action forbidding the use of any other language than German in synodical sessions. But the PROBLEMS 123 English-speaking part of the congregation of St. Michael's in Philadelphia, led by General Peter Muhl- enberg, demanded that a third pastor be called who could officiate in English. By a nar- row margin in a congregational vote everm » their proposition was defeated. There- upon they founded St. John's English Lutheran Church. Ten years later the controversy broke out afresh in the same congregation. This time it was carried into the courts, and this time the German party lost. The argu- ment that seems to have convinced the court was based on the necessity of cultivating the American spirit and the futility of depending on the immigration of a "turbid current" of aliens for the future progress of any Church in the Republic. The times were not favorable to the maintenance of national distinctions within America. Other sections of the Church experienced the same trouble. At Lancaster Dr. H. E. Muhlenberg's congre- gation refused to contribute to the synodical treasury until young men should be educated to preach in Eng- lish. In the congregations in the New York Minis- terium English gained the ascendency more rapidly than in Pennsylvania, and in 1807 became the official language of the body. Very similar was the course of affairs in the South. Some of the arguments made in the course of the controversies on the language question seem amazing when viewed in the light of the developments in the last century- The Lutheran Church, it was said, can- 124 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY not exist apart from the German language. The Eng- lish language is the language of the Episcopal and Presbyterian Churches and is too mazing shallow to furnish an adequate trans- lation of Lutheran doctrinal and devo- tional literature. It was observed that the children of German parents, as they learned to speak English, became frivolous and indifferent in matters of religion. Then, too, much of the rationalism that made its way into the Lutheran Church in our country clothed itself in the English language, and for that reason many good people regarded the German as the bulwark of sound faith and evangelical theology. For example, the Evangelisches Magazin, established by the Penn- sylvania Ministerium in 1812, had the two-fold purpose of "conserving the German language and fighting ra- tionalistic unbelief." These persistent efforts to withstand the introduc- tion of English, so contrary to the spirit of Luther and so opposed to the policy of the osses ue o Muhlenbergs, alienated some of the Language best friends of the Lutheran Church and drove thousands of young people into the churches of other denominations, so that many of the strongest Presbyterian, Episcopalian and Methodist churches of today owe their origin to this fact. Such were the internal problems with which the Church had to deal in severing European ties. Some of them were fraught with possibili- The Problems ^ Qf ^^ rn the providence of God Solved . they were all solved in course of time. Their proper solution meant the permanence of the PROBLEMS 125 Lutheran Church in her own identity in this country. The bonds that tied American Lutherans to European rationalism were severed. Religious indifferentism ceased. Unionism vanished or ceased to threaten. Gradually, though reluctantly in many quarters, the use of English as the language of the nation came to be accepted as a fact. The Church returned to her own never again to accept the theological dictates from abroad. QUESTIONS 1. What were the sources of the rationalism that appeared in the Lutheran Church in the youth of the Republic? 2. How did rationalism manifest itself in Pennsylvania? 3. Who was the leader of the Lutherans in New York at this time and in what direction did he lead? 4. How did rationalism spread in North Carolina and how was it overcome? 5. What were the causes of unionism among American Chris- tians in this period? 6. What form did unionism take among the Lutherans of New York? 7. What steps were taken toward union of Lutherans and Reformed in Pennsylvania? 8. What were the indications of unionism among the Lutherans in the south? 9. Show how the language problem affected the Lutheran Church in Philadelphia. 10. What were the arguments against using English? 11. What was the general effect of the language problem among Lutherans? 12. In what way were these problems related to the general spirit of the times in America? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Rationalism in the Lutheran Churches of Germany before 1830 Dr. Quitman's Catechism The Helmstaedt Catechism The New Constitution of the Ministerium of Pennsvlvania in 1792 126 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Lutheran Losses on Account of Language The Beginnings of Franklin College Union Churches and Congregations in Pennsylvania The Plan for a Joint Lutheran and Reformed Seminary in Pennsylvania Luther's Views on Language as Related to Religion Dr. Helmuth and President Washington SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY John Ernest Bergmann Christian L. F. Endress Frederick William Geissenhainer, Sr. Frederick William Geissenhainer, Jr. Jacob Goering John Nicholas Martin Philip Frederick Mayer Frederick Valentine Melsheimer Jacob Miller Henry Moeller Henry Augustus Muhlenberg Frederick Henry Quitman John A. Quitman John William Richards Frederick Christian Schsffer George Strebeck John Caspar Velthusen BIBLIOGRAPHY Bernheim, G. D., History of the German Settlements and of the Lutheran Church in North and South Carolina. 1872. Carson, James, Trial of Frederick Eberle and Others. 1817. Giese, E. F., The Chasm- hetwen the German and English in the General Synod. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. VII, July, 1877, pp. 409-440. Graebner, A. L., Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in America. 1892. Pages 525-550, 584-714. Hull, William, The Lutheran Church in the Courts. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. VI, Oct., 1887, pp. 296-324. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 309-347. Nicum, J., Geschichte des Evangelisch-Lutherischen Minis- teriums vom Staate Neio York. 1888. Pages 63-100. Norlie, O. M., A Study of Lutheran Losses. American Lutheran, October, 1922, pp. 19-24. PROBLExMS 127 Schmucker, B. M., Luther's Small Catechism. Lutheran Church Review, Vol. V, Apr., July, 1886. Pages 87-113, 165-199. Wolf, E. J., The Lutheran Church in This Country One Hundred Years Ago, The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol, XIX, April, 1889, pp. 242-280. — — — — -— -, The Lutherans in America, 1889. Pages 271- 821, CHAPTER XI A GENERAL ORGANIZATION As the American nation expanded, the newly formed states and territories were bound to the older states and to each other by the Federal Government. This was at once the cause and the effect of the spirit of common nationality so strongly manifest in the youth of the Republic. Likewise in the Lutheran Church in this period, geographical expansion and the progres- sive organization of new synods logically called for some general organization that would answer to the sense of unity and com- mon brotherhood that still existed among Lutherans. Such an organization was demanded by the times in order to overcome the divisive effects of the synodical movement, to conserve the denominational conscious- ness, and to prevent absorption in more compact Church bodies. Moreover, the acute need for more men and better trained men in the ministry called for common action. What was more natural than for the Lutherans of America as they loosened the ties of relationship with Europe to seek closer relations among themselves ? The initiative came from the mother Synod of Penn- sylvania. It was in 1818, just after the tercentenary of the Reformation, that the first move was made. The New York Ministerium and the North Carolina Synod were at that time the only synods outside of the Penn- 128 A GENERAL ORGANIZATION 129 sylvania Ministerium. But there were prospects of territorial divisions within the Pennsylvania Minis- terium. The Ohio Conference was taking steps to- wards organizing a new synod, and similar action seemed probable on the part of the Conference of Maryland and Virginia, the Conference of West Penn- sylvania, and even the Lancaster Con- A "Plan ference. Accordingly the Ministerium , _. . „ acted upon a suggestion that had been made seven years before by the Lutherans of North Carolina who felt the weakness of Lutheran organiza- tion as compared with the compact organization of the Episcopal Church. It resolved that "in its judg- ment it would be well if the different Evangelical Lutheran Synods in the United States were to stand, in some way or other, in true union with one another." At the next meeting "A Proposed Plan" of union was adopted and ordered to be submitted to the other synods. The convention for the organization of a General Synod was held in Hagerstown, Maryland, October 22, 1820. Representatives were present from four synods, Pennsylvania, New York, North Carolina and Mary- land and Virginia. Only Ohio and Tennessee were not represented. The pastors of the Ohio Synod objected to the general organization because they feared a hierarchical trend and the possible prevalence of the English language in A General the new body. They had doubtless J 110 . observed that the strengthening of the Federal Government of the nation was taking place at the expense of the powers of the states. The little 130 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Tennessee Synod also objected to the rule of majorities in general church affairs and to the fact that no men- tion was made of the Bible or the Augsburg Confes- sion. But the four synods represented organized and drew up a constitution. A year later, October, 1821, three of the four Synods having adopted the constitu- tion, all except New York, the General Synod of the Lutheran Church in the United States held its first regular convention at Frederick, Maryland. The spirit and purpose of the general body are evi- dent from the constitution and the proceedings of the first convention. It is specified that the General Synod may propose to the District Synods "books and writ- ings such as catechisms, forms of liturgy, collections of hymns, or confessions of faith," but it specifically disclaims the "power of prescribing uniform ceremo- nies of religion." It provides for the organization of new District Synods with the consent of the general body. The General Synod has power to advise on disputed points of doctrine or discipline when cases are appealed to it by individuals, con- ts , p irit gregations or synods. It is also author- ized to devise plans for seminaries of education and missionary institutions as well as to provide aid for ministers and their families, and to take measures to "promote the practice of brotherly love and the furtherance of Christian concord." All this represented only a slight surrender of sovereignty on the part of the individual synods and ministeriums. It aimed only to effect such a federation of Lutheran bodies as would prevent discord and schisms among them and would provide the means and agencies neces- A GENERAL ORGANIZATION 131 sary to foster the spirit of Lutheran unity, to occupy the field more efficiently, and to fortify the Church's ranks against dissipation, The first business convention of the General Synod in 1821 proceeded to carry out the purposes for which it was organized. Among the various actions was one concerning a theological seminary. Already at the organization meeting in 1820 a committee had been appointed to form a plan for such an institution. In 1821 action was taken deferring for several years the actual establishment of the Seminary, but recommending that in the mean- * irs Convention time the congregations be prepared for the enterprise and that books be gathered for the library of the institution. The subject of home mis- sions was also considered and it was earnestly recom- mended to the several district synods that they send missionaries to answer "the earnest calls of the chil- dren of the Church and others, resident on our frontier countries." From these and other actions looking to- wards the intensive occupation of the field and the supply of an educated ministry for the Church, it was evident that the General Synod, even in its small begin- nings, was organized for action and intended to face aggressively the tasks confronting the whole Church. The organization of the General Synod assured the independence of the Lutheran Church in this country. It was fundamentally opposed to the schemes of union with the Reformed in Pennsylvania and with the Epis- copalians in North Carolina and elsewhere. It operated as an emphatic protest against the rationalistic ten- dencies in New York and other parts of the Church, 132 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY and presented an effectual barrier to the further im- portation into the Church of European deistic the- ology. It saved the Church from becoming rationalized as she became anglicized and Americanized. It main- tained the historical connection with the fathers and stood for the confession of a positive faith. Its first constitution, it is true, did not mention the Lutheran Confessions, else it would not have been adopted by the constituent synods. But before the end of this period, in the oath prescribed in 1825 for the professors in her theological seminary and in the model constitution for District Synods drawn up in 1829, the General Synod was working vigorously towards a specific definition of the Lutheran faith. It furnished a medium through which the inevitable or- ganization of new synods might minister to greater efficiency rather than greater weakness in the Church as a whole. It provided the means and agencies for prosecuting independently the educational, missionary, and charitable operations of the Lutheran Church. Above all, it gave to the Church in this country, even to those who did not at once become members of the Gen- eral Synod, a nation-wide outlook and interest and a sense of permanent citizenship in this Republic. As Dr. Krauth expressed it, "The General Synod was a declaration on the part of the Lutheran Church in America that she had no intention of dying or moving, that she liked this Western World and meant to live here." Certainly the size of the General Synod in its infancy is no measure of its significance. The General Synod was the logical outcome of the process of organization A GENERAL ORGANIZATION 133 begun by Muhlenberg in 1748. Theoretically the polity of the Lutheran Church in America is congregational. But just as the common necessities of the congregations led to Muhlenberg's D eV ef C ment organization of a synod so, seventy years later, the larger exigencies of the Church in this country led to the organization of the General Synod. The Church that Muhlenberg was determined to plant had been bearing abundant fruit after its kind and was about to scatter new seeds widely over the face of the earth. Thus the Lutheran Church in America was provided with a general organization, which, like that of the national government, was destined to grow in power and influence with the passing of the years. That it should have come into being in this period of our his- tory is easily understood. It paralleled the movement in the life of the nation. Just at the time that the American nation felt sufficiently solid and secure to issue its noli me tangere in the form of the Monroe Doctrine, the Lutheran Church in America achieved a federal organiza- ts lgm cance tion calculated to bid defiance to the agents of ecclesi- astical interference and intended to maintain its inde- pendent existence among the other Church bodies. As Washington and Jefferson and particularly Monroe had broken European bonds and announced to the Euro- pean nations that our national policy was "America for Americans," so the organization of a General Synod proclaimed to the religious world that the Lutheran Church in this country had reached its majority and announced the policy of "The Lutheran Church for 134 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Lutherans." One was not more significant than the other. Both were the outgrowth of the same spirit, the rising American spirit of independence and enter- prise. But the new organization encountered many difficul- ties in its early life, and for many years its "general" character was more a promise and a policy than a fact. After the organization meeting in 1820 the New York Synod allowed its membership to lapse for sixteen years. This was due to the indifference of most of the members of that body who regarded the project of a general Lutheran organization as impractical and hopeless. Even the Pennsylvania Ministerium with- drew temporarily from the movement. This was owing to strenuous hostility to the General Synod on the part of the congregations in the rural districts. Their prejudices had been played on by un- ElTounteTed scrupulous people outside of the Church until they were convinced that the new organization would be nothing less than "an aristo- cratic spiritual congress," a union of Church and state, that would rob them of their dearly bought liberties and impose on them the horrors of an ecclesiastical despotism. Theological seminaries were represented as useless and costly evils that would simply impose more taxes on the farmers. Moreover, it was felt that the General Synod would interfere with the cherished plans for union with the Reformed. In order to pre- vent further difficulties within the Ministerium the city congregations and the leaders yielded to the empty fears of the country districts and, while declaring their A GENERAL ORGANIZATION 135 unaltered conviction of the propriety and utility of the General Synod, voted to withdraw from the organiza- tion until those congregations should see their mistake. But thirty years passed before the Ministerium re- turned to the General Synod. The withdrawal of the mother synod, which con- stituted more than half of the Church, was a severe blow to the infant General Synod, and for a time threatened its life. The men of New York felt that the whole project had failed and refused to consider it seriously. The Ohio Synod, which had about decided to join the movement, reconsidered and never came in. It was a critical point in the history of the Church, and the General Synod was saved only by the vigorous exertions of Rev. S. S. The Schmucker, then only twenty-four „- e . n ? s> \ ania , , ' „ , J _ . , , „ Ministerium years old. His father was President of withdraws the Pennsylvania Ministerium when the "Plan of Union" was adopted. The young man was the best educated young man in the Lutheran Church and was profoundly impressed with the need for a revival of confessional subscription and for an educated ministry in the Church. Particularly con- cerned, therefore, to save the General Synod from dis- solution, in 1823 he succeeded in inspiring the dis- couraged synods and prevailing on them to send delegates. At the meeting in that year there were delegates from Maryland and Virginia, from North Carolina and from Ohio. There was also a delegation from the Conference of West Pennsylvania, which did not sympathize with the attitude of the rest of the 136 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Pennsylvania Ministerium and which joined the gen- eral body in 1825 as the West Pennsylvania Synod. Thus the General Synod and the ideals e enera £ or w j 1 j c j 1 ft s t od were kept alive. Its synod saved , r significance for the period in which it was organized, as we have seen, went far beyond the numbers of the synods and ministers embraced in the organization. But as time passed it drew to itself most of the new synods, especially the English-speak- ing synods, as they were successively formed on the Church's expanding territory, and after the close of the period now under review the General Synod made rapid strides both in size and in usefulness. QUESTIONS 1. What was the need for a general organization among the Lutherans of America in the early nineteenth century? 2. What were the first steps towards the organization of a general body? 3. When and where was the General Synod organized? 4. What Synods participated and why did some decline to participate? 5. Define the powers and purpose of the General Synod at the time of its organization. 6. What practical projects were considered by the General Synod at its first convention? 7. What was the function and influence of the General Synod in the Lutheran Church in America? 8. How did the organization of the general body of Lutherans parallel political events in that period? 9. What difficulties did the new organization encounter at the beginning? 10. Why did the Ministerium of Pennsylvania withdraw? 11. How was the General Synod saved from dissolution in 1823? A GENERAL ORGANIZATION 137 TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Lutheran Principles of Church Government The "Plan of Union" for Lutherans in 1819 The First Constitution of the General Synod The First Convention of the General Synod Critics of the Infant General Synod Carl Gock's Attack on Synods and Seminaries The Threatened Dissolution of the General Synod in 1825 The Ultimate Significance of the General Synod The General Synod's First Formula for the Government and Discipline of Congregations The General Synod's First Model Constitution for District Synods The General Synod and the Spirit of Muhlenberg SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Daniel Barnitz Peter Brua John Demuth William Henzel John Conrad Jaeger Peter Keller Christian Kunkel John Daniel Kurtz Abraham Reck Daniel Scherer Gottlieb Schober John Schorr John George Schmucker BIBLIOGRAPHY Anstadt, P., Life and Times of Rev. S. S. Schmucker, D. D. 1896. Pages 116-168. Documentary History of the General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. 1912. Pages 43-56. Early, J. W., The Ministerium of Pennsylvania and the Organi- zation of the General Synod. The Lutheran Church Review, Vol. XI, Jan., April, 1892, pp. 61-70, 172-186. Fortenbaugh, Robert, The Development of the Synodical Polity of the Lutheran Church in America, to 1829. 1926. Pages 146-202 (with detailed bibliography). Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 351-364. Krauth, Charles Philip, Our General Synod. The Evangelical Review, Vol. V, October, 1853, pp. 239-280. 138 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Kline, M. J., The Genesis of the General Synod. The Lutheran Church Quarterly, Vol. XLIX, Jan., 1919, pp. 44-60. Richard, J. W., The Confessional History of the General Synod. The lAitheran Church Quarterly, Vol. XXV, October, 1895, pp. 458-490. Sparks, C. E., The Development of the General Synod Lutheran Church in America. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. XXXVl, Oct., 1906, pp. 566-584. Wolf, E. J., History of the General Synod. The Lutheran Quar- terly, Vol. XIX, July, 1889, pp. 420-458. , The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 322-338. CHAPTER XII A THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY The principal object contemplated in the organiza- tion of the General Synod was a theological seminary. The enlightened spirits of the Church saw that the per- manence and independence of our Church in this country demanded that she be supplied with a learned and consecrated ministry trained in this country and trained by the Church herself. This Muhlenberg began to realize already in e , „ e ^ his day, and the need had become more acute and more evident with each new generation. In the youth of the Republic it was the foremost need of the Church. It was utterly vain to hope any longer for ministerial recruits from beyond the Atlantic. And it was perilous to depend on the schools of other de- nominations for the training of Lutheran ministers. Muhlenberg's own project for a theological seminary had disappeared in the smoke of the Revolutionary War. Dr. Kunze had tried to establish a school for ministerial candidates first independently, then in con- nection with the University of Pennsylvania in Phila- delphia, and afterwards in connection with Columbia College in New York. All of these undertakings failed, but Dr. Kunze * Sor * s of , . . . . , Dr. Kunze gave private instructions to many young men studying for the ministry. He translated the Catechism into English and published the first 139 140 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY English Lutheran hymn-book, and his students were the first English Lutheran pastors in America. In 1803 he was chosen by the New York Ministerium as the recognized professor of theology for the minis- terial students from that body. The Ministerium of Pennsylvania had hoped for much from Franklin College at Lancaster. But this institution was operated in conjunction with the Re- formed and Moravians, and it yielded very few candi- dates for the Lutheran ministry. The theological seminary which it was proposed to nva e establish jointly with the Reformed Instruction could not be realized. This synod also had to depend on private instruction for the education of its ministerial students, and from time to time it appointed pastors who were to be regarded as its offi- cial theological instructors. Likewise in North Carolina and Tennessee several efforts to begin a seminary had proved futile and candidates for the ministry were obliged to study privately under pastors. A more promising attempt was made in New York State. Pastor J. C. Hartwick, the eccentric minister at Rhinebeck and other places in New York, when he died in 1797, left his estate valued at $16,000 to found an institution for the training of missionaries to the Indians. A site was selected in Otsego Hartwick County in 1812 and the work of the seminary institution was finally begun m 1815 with Dr. E. L. Hazelius as professor in theology. The institution was not under synodical jurisdiction, and owing to difficulties with the bequest and the remote A THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 141 location of the school its work was seriously hindered for many years. The curriculum was not purely the- ological but general, and at first it did not reach a wide constituency. But the Church was growing. The home mission field was calling loudly for more laborers. The men who had been born and educated in Germany were gradually passing off the scene. No new supplies came from that source and none was sought. The chief place for the training of an American Lutheran min- istry continued to be the parsonages of busy American pastors. Dr. Helmuth and Dr. Schmidt in Philadelphia were specially active ron " nent in this work and trained many of the leaders of the next generation of pastors. Dr. Geissen- hainer in New York, H. E. Muhlenberg and his suc- cessor, Christian Endress in Lancaster, George Loch- man in Harrisburg, David F. Schaeffer in Frederick — all kept continuous streams of private students passing under their care. Jacob Goering had as many as twenty-two such students in the course of his pastorate at York and elsewhere. In many cases the parsonages furnished the ministerial candidates as well as their training. F. D. Schaeffer instructed his four sons in theology, and Paul Henkel did the same for his five sons. Many of the ministers trained in this way rose to places of great eminence and usefulness in the Church. But during the period now under review this method of ministerial education became increasingly burden- some to the busy pastors who undertook it and increas- 142 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY ing'ly inadequate to meet the needs of the times. The work of providing the ministerial candidates with an education of proper range and depth eman or wag c j ear jy ^e wor ^ f a special in= a Seminary , , , stitution, and in that period such an institution called for the support of a general organi- zation of the Church. The founding therefore of the first official synodical Lutheran Seminary in this coun- try waited for the organization and action of the Gen- eral Synod. It came in 1826. Andover Seminary had been established in 1808 in protest against the Unita- rianism of Harvard. It was the first Protestant semi- nary in this country, but in less than twenty years seventeen such schools had come into existence. Ameri- can Protestantism had come to realize that the indi- vidual churches must organize and act if they would perpetuate their ministries. Among the young men of the Lutheran Church at that time was one who discerned the signs of the times and was particularly zealous for an institution of theo- logical education for the whole Lutheran Church. It was S. S. Schmucker. His prodigious efforts to save the General Synod from dissolution in the dark days of 1823 were prompted primarily by his keen desire to see the Church establish her own seminary. He was concerned that the Lutheran Church §. S. Schmucker ^^ be regcued from « her f ormer lifeless and distracted condition," and to that end he believed that the Church should revive confessional subscription to the Augsburg Confession and should found a theological seminary. As early as 1820, while he was a student in the seminary at Princeton, he A THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 143 wrote to his father, who was then president of the Pennsylvania Ministerium, that he had visited his friend, F. C. Schaeffer, in New York, and that together they had resolved to labor "that the Augsburg Confes- sion should again be brought up out of the dust, and everyone must subscribe to the twenty-one articles, and declare before God, by his subscription, that it cor- responds with the Bible not quantum but quia; and we promised to do everything possible to promote learning among us." Dr. Schmucker kept the subject before the Church. Through the Synod of Maryland and Virginia, of which he was a member, he called the emphatic attention of the General Synod of 1825 to the committee appointed at the organization meeting in 1820. The result was that the General Synod at that meeting adopted the plan proposed by the Synod of Maryland and Virginia, appointed the time for the opening of the seminary, elected Dr. Schmucker the professor, chose a Board of Directors, opened a e , e ? era book of subscriptions for the cause, selected agents to canvass the Church in this country, and appointed Dr. Benjamin Kurtz to go to Europe to secure books for the library and funds for the endow- ment. At the same time the General Synod placed the seminary on the unmistakable basis of subscription to the Augsburg Confession by declaring: "In this semi- nary shall be taught, in the German and English languages, the fundamental doctrines of the Sacred Scriptures as contained in the Augsburg Confession." This was advanced confessional ground for those times. The seminary was begun in 1826 and was located at 144 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Gettysburg. If the Synods of Pennsylvania and New York had been in the General Synod at that time the school would probably have been established either in Philadelphia or New York City. Get- B ^in^ mmaTJ tysburg was chosen as most centrally located for the Lutheran Synods then in the General Synod. But many of the prominent individuals in the two older synods co-operated in establishing the Seminary. And the Pennsylvania Ministerium sent many of its students to the Seminary and long afterwards transferred its interest in Frank- lin College to the College of Gettysburg. The institution served the purpose for which it was founded. Dr. Schmucker's talents and learning pointed him out as a teacher. Before going to Princeton he had studied at the University of Pennsylvania and under his father and Dr. Helmuth. When he took up his pastorate at New Market, Virginia, r * c .T uc er he established in the parsonage there as President . . , . a pro-seminary for ministerial candi- dates. From 1820 to 1870 he was present at every meeting of the General Synod and much of that time was its leader, writing its organic documents and deter- mining its policies. For nearly forty years he con- tinued to be the head of the Seminary, and during this time about five hundred men were prepared for the ministry. During the next period of our history Dr. Schmucker's teachings became the subject of violent controversy because they ran counter to the great changes that were taking place in the Church as a whole. But no one doubts that in his work for the A THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 145 establishment of an official synodical seminary in this period of the Church's history he made a distinct and most vital contribution to the life of the Lutheran Church in America. It is™ ncance ° the seminary solved the problem of an adequate training for a native ministry and it even helped to increase the supply of candidates for the holy office. It was the work most fundamental to the independence and prosperity of the Church in this country. It also served notice that the Lutheran Church in America had reached her maturity and was now in a position to con- centrate her resources in such a way as to effect definite results whether in the educational or missionary work of the Kingdom. It constituted very tangible evidence of the fact that the thought of Lutherans had broken through the narrow limits of synodical lines and had begun to contemplate the broader and deeper questions that arise out of the life of the Lutheran Church as a whole. QUESTIONS 1. What was the chief need of the Lutheran Church in the youth of the Republic? 2. How did Dr. Kunze try to supply the need for a native ministry? 3. What efforts did the district synods make to supply a con- tinuous stream of ministers? 4. How did Hartwick Seminary begin and with what success? 5. Who were the most prominent of the private tutors in theology? 6. Why was the method of private tutoring inadequate? 7. Why did Dr. S. S. Schmucker become zealous for a theological seminary? 8. How were the first steps taken towards the founding of a church institution of ministerial training? 9. When and where was the General Synod's theological seminary established? Give the reasons for the location. 146 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 10. What were Dr. Schmucker's qualifications to be the head of the institution? 11. What was the place of the Seminary in the historical development of the Lutheran Church in America? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Lutheran Theological Education in America before Muhlenberg The Training of Lutheran Ministers in Muhlenberg's Time Muhlenberg's Plans for a Seminary The Educational Work of John Christopher Kunze Private Tutoring in Theology before 1826 Helmuth and Schmidt as Private Tutors in Theology The History of Hartwick Seminary The Location of the Gettysburg Seminary The First Curriculum of the Seminary The Seminary's Influence on the Church's Life to 1850 Non-Lutheran Theological Seminaries before 1830 Benjamin Kurtz's Trip to Europe, 1826-1828 S. S. Schmucker's Life and Teaching to 1846 SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY William Artz Charles A. Barnitz Henry L. Baugher A. T. Braun John Frederick Ernst John Harry John Christopher Hartwick Ernst Lewis Hazelius William Heilig Jacob Herbst John Herbst David Jacobs Benjamin Keller Benjamin Kurtz George A. Lintner Cyrus Mantz Frederick G. Mayer Charles Frederick Schseffer Samuel Simon Schmucker Frederick Sharretts Philip Smyser Thaddeus Stevens Charles G. Weyl Jacob Young A THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY i47 BIBLIOGRAPHY Anstadt, P., Life and Times of Rev. S. S. Schmucker, D.D. 1896. Conrad, F. W., The Influence of the Theological Seminary of the General Synod. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol, XIV, July, 1884, pp. 435-448. Haussmann, C. F., Kunze's Seminarium. 1917. Hefelbower, S. G., History of Gettysburg College. 1932. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 364-372. Memorial Volume of the Semi-Centennial Anniversary of Hart- wick Seminary. 1866. Morris, J. G., History of the Theological Seminary of the Gen- eral Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. The Lu- theran Quarterly, Vol. VI, Oct., 1876, pp. 525-554. Wentz, A. R., History of the Gettysburg Theological Seminary. 1926. Pages 1-156. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 339-348. PART IV A PERIOD OF INTERNAL DISCORD (1830-1870) Sectionalism and Sectarianism CHAPTER XIII GENERAL BACKGROUND The next period of American Lutheran history that moves into our view covers another round of forty years in the life of the nation and extends from about 1830 to 1870. It is characterized politically by the growth and culmina- Sectionalism versus tion of sectionalism in its conflict with „ . .. Nationalism nationalism. This was the consequence of conflicting sectional interests and habits, and it created an atmosphere that profoundly affected the whole of American Christianity. As early as Monroe's second term there is observable a slight but steady decline of the national conscious- ness. The zeal for internal improvements at national expense began to lag somewhat. The rapid growth of the West and Southwest had begun to undermine the national sentiment by bringing the sections slowly to realize that their interests were mutually conflict- ing. The manufacturing North, the cotton-raising South, the farming and wool-growing West, each was slowly developing self-consciousness. The merchant aristocracy of the East, the planter aristocracy of the South, and the pio- lversI *y ° neer community of the West, grew constantly more conscious of their own peculiar needs. The South began to protest against the protective tariff and the North demanded higher protection. The presi- 151 152 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY dential election of 1824 brought forward the "favorite sons" of the sections as candidates and the election was thrown into the House of Representatives. Still, despite these indications of germinating sectionalism, President Adams succeeded in maintaining throughout his administration until 1828 the policy of a strong national government controlling the interests of all parts of the country. It was left to the administration of Jackson to raise the issue concerning slavery and thus hurl the country headlong into a new and different period of its history. The roots of the contest over the institution of slavery go back far beyond 1830, but it was not until this period that sectionalism took slavery as its weapon and opposed itself consciously to the principle of nationality, thus precipitating what may rightly be called the "era of hard feeling." The facts here are so well known, even in their bear- ing upon this general topic, that we need not pause long to detail them. Their significance is plain. The Webster-Hayne debate of 1830 brought the issue squarely before the country. The ordinance of the South Carolina convention in 1832, annulling the fed- eral tariff acts, was the first effort at sectional resist- ance to the national principle. President Jackson's overthrow of the National Bank, and that too with the undoubted approval of the majority of American citizens, removed a strong support of the principle. Then the spirit of sectionalism ex- Civil War pressed itself in terms of anti-slavery and pro-slavery, and this momentous issue absorbed all other political questions until after the Civil War. Events moved rapidly. The controversies over the GENERAL BACKGROUND 153 annexation of Texas, over the admission of California and Kansas, the Congressional battle over the right of petition, the doctrine of nullification in the South together with the assertion of State sovereignty and threats of secession, the abolitionism of the North and the underground railway, the filibustering expedi- tions of the South — these are the facts that manifest the line of deep cleavage between the sections. The economic and social interests of the South demanded slavery, the interests and feelings of the North en- dangered slavery. And with the actual secession of the Southern States and the appeal to arms on the part of the North, sectionalization was complete. This was not a revolt of the South against the Nation. It was not a rebellion but a struggle between the North and the South over conflicting interests. Nor was this sectionalism healed immediately after the war. The South was treated like conquered terri- tory. It was a long while before the "era of hard feeling" began to soften. A new nationalism did not even begin to evolve until in 1870 the weapon that had been used to foster T on lctm ^ Interests Cease sectionalism and precipitate strife was permanently laid aside by the proclamation of uni- versal manhood suffrage. Thus was terminated by constitutional amendment the conflict of sectional in- terests in the old sense and the United States now began that career of unrivaled nationalism on which it might have entered in 1840, had not slavery blocked the way. Meanwhile what has been the trend in Church His- tory? Again the line of movement runs parallel to 154 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY that in politics. By the year 1830 the tendency toward unionism and co-operation among the churches had run its natural course and in the period now before us it bears its natural fruit in divisions and subdivisions. The quickening evangelical impulse that had visited American Christianity at the beginning of the century was not lost but it was itself differentiated and diffused among the denominations which had enomma iona enlisted in the common tasks of the t eehng Kevived Church catholic. For their co-operation soon revealed the fact that each of them had its own methods of doing Christian work. These methods were usually inherited from an honorable past and were associated with cherished memories of godly and heroic fathers. Each Church had a history. And as the mem- bers of each denomination entered with new energy on common Christian tasks, it became more and more plainly their duty and delight to do their work in the way it had been done by pious ancestors. For they naturally came to regard the men of by-gone genera- tions as their superiors not only in their knowledge of Christian truth and in their zeal for Christian work but also in their devotion to proper ecclesiastical standards. They sought to serve the God of their fathers after the pattern given to their fathers. Loy- alty to one's own Church once more came to be re- garded as a virtue, and this virtue was emphasized at the expense of the love for all Christian brethren. This brought about a new period in the history of American Christianity. The churches began to re- cover their historical perspective. The lively and ever- GENERAL BACKGROUND 155 increasing interest in the study of Church History during this second period is a striking phenomenon and it is highly significant. A study of bibliographies reveals the fact that during the thirty years preceding 1830 only forty works on Church History appeared, while in the thirty years following 1830 one hundred and fifty such works appeared. In the first period about five works are works of any importance, whereas in the second period fifty works may be regarded as of im- portance. It is remarkable, too, that , ,. , , . , .i , The Historical denominational histories greatly out- _ . . i • . Revival number the general works during this second period. This clearly indicates that in each denomination there was a vigorous development of its own historic life. With the recovery of the historical sense each Church began to assert itself more actively and to be more keenly conscious of a special mission of its own. What had invigorated the American Church as a whole was now indirectly infusing new vigor into its several component parts. But this time the pendu- lum swung across to dogmatism in religion and ethics. Schism was almost regarded as a virtue and the result was not only a parting of ways, but often an angry parting of allies, internal discords, divisions and strife. This period, therefore, is religiously a period of heated controversy and of unbrotherly strife, pre-eminently an "era of hard feeling" among the denominations. The spirit of the times was far more narrow than denominationalism. It was sectarianism. Controversies and schisms were the order of the day. Heresy trials abounded. Unlovely epithets filled the air. Party 156 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY feeling ran high in every sphere. It expressed itself in dogged polemics. The human spirit was highly sensitive and combative in all its in- * a ° „ terests. Acrimonious debates occupied pulpits, stages of theaters, and pages of public prints. Preachers studiously cultivated a rhetoric of paradox and hyperbole so as to astonish their hearers, inflame their passions and stir their prejudices. The great immigration that swept into the Mississippi Valley and beyond during this period fur- nished a wide field for the competitive energies of rival denominations and left permanent deposits in buildings and institutions that to this day bear eloquent witness to the infection of sectarian intolerance that prevailed during this Middle Age of American Chris- tianity. Many new sects arose between 1830 and 1850 to multiply the internal discord of American Christianity by contributing divergent currents to the general stream of religious life. Such were Mormonism, Spirit- ualism, Millerism, and Adventism in Sectarianism . x . i_j» • • -n its various subdivisions. Even so unlikely a place for controversy as the Unitarian denomination could not resist the infection of the times but took up the sword against the Universalists and the pantheists in its own ranks. Among the older and larger Churches all the distinctions of former times were recovered and intensified and in most cases in- ternal divisions were born. In the first place there was a sharp differentiation and even warlike antagonism between Protestants and GENERAL BACKGROUND 157 Catholics. American Catholicism was reverting to her true historical position and soon ceased to have any dealings with Protestants, But Protestantism as such had also awakened and had begun an active war on her old enemy. Rome was fiercely de- nounced by tongue and pen. And it Ca a t h i^ s was not merely a battle of pulpits and pamphlets. Numerous acts of violence against Roman Catholics were committed in various quarters. Mon- strous slanders were circulated. The zeal of the anti- Romanists was shown by the outrage upon the convent at Charlestown (Mass.), by acts of incendiarism at Charlestown and in New York, by tar and feathers in Maine, by bloody riots in Philadelphia, and by blood- shed in Kentucky. The kindly disposition manifested towards Rome during the earlier period has never returned. The Roman Catholic Church maintained of course her external unity, but her inner harmony was marred by many a discord. Sharp conflicts in all parts of the country arose over "trusteeism," that is, the demand of the laity in the Catholic Church to manage the Church property. The administrative abilities of the American bishops were £ OI "f J Internal put to a sharp test and more than one congregation was put under interdict before the laity could be forced to submit. The issue continued to vex the peace of the Church for more than three decades until in 1854 trusteeism was finally eliminated. But the harmony of the Church continued to be menaced by the jealousies of the various orders among the 158 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY monks and by the antagonisms of the different races and nationalities among the laity. Then, too, the Protestant Episcopal Church incurred the distrust and dislike of other Churches. With the year 1830 the High Church party began to predom- inate over the Low Church party, thus Parties in the strongly emphasizing the distinctive Church feature of this communion. In 1832 action was taken to exclude from Epis- copal pulpits ministers who had not taken Episcopal orders. Then came the Oxford movement within the Church, and accusations of Romanism from without, and the practical isolation of the Church from all co- operation with others. Moreover, the close federation of the Presbyterians and Congregationalists in the famous "Plan of Union" was not permanently satisfying. And in this period came the split. The doctrinal conservatism of the Presbyterians and their difference in Divisions polity from the Congregationalists led mong y^ qj^ g c h 00 i majority of the General Presbyterians Assembly m 1837 to abrogate the Plan of Union and to withdraw from co-operation with the Congregationalists in missions and in ministerial education. At the same time questions of orthodoxy and of Church polity led the Old School Presbyterians tc cut off the New School Presbyterians who consti- tuted four-ninths of the entire body. Each of these two bodies split again just before the War into North and South. GENERAL BACKGROUND 159 Both Methodists and Baptists began to assume sharply defined denominational attitudes and to with- draw from the unionistic benevolent societies into their own denomina= Methodists tional organizations for benevolence. *™ . , aptl9ts ,,..,, Divide Then, when the Methodists in the South found that slaveholders could not become bish- ops, and when the Baptists in the South found that slaveholders would not be employed as missionaries, these two Churches also split into North and South. In 1844 the German Reformed Church also began to rally from the effect of the evangelical movement and began to manifest the natural influence of that movement in the renewed energy of its own proper life as well as in its Troubles in the deepened spirituality and enlarged c f or ™ Christian activity. And in the next ten years this Church became more conscious than ever before of its denominational character and mis- sion. In this case the stimulus came from the so-called Mercersburg movement and its able leaders, Dr. Nevin and Dr. Schaff. The result was a long, fierce struggle within the Church, nearly ending in schism, and a bitter quarrel With her ecclesiastical twin-sister, the Dutch Reformed Church. In our own Lutheran Church after her disastrous experience with evangelicalism the revival of denomi- national consciousness runs quite parallel to that in other Churches except that here again we are some- what belated. By 1850, however, the return to his- torical Lutheranism was well under way. The Lu- 160 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY therans began to withdraw from co-operation with other Churches in benevolence. As early as 1841 Heyer had refused to go as a missionary under Denominational an y Du £ Lutheran auspices and hence- ea mong forth there were Lutheran missions. Lutherans In 1845 the Home Missionary Society of the General Synod was organized. Similar Lu- theran organizations in other spheres of benevo- lence followed rapidly. In matters of doctrine also the day of indifferentism was over. Doctrinal hostility to the Synod of North Carolina and to the newly-formed General Synod had led the Henkels to form the Ten- nessee Synod, and the fires of hostility burned hot during this period. The Joint Synod of Ohio, once favorably inclined toward the Reformed Church in that State, in this period reverted strongly to historic Lutheranism, so that for nearly a century it has been unable on account of its conservative and confessional standpoint to form a lasting union with any of the larger general bodies of Lutherans. In 1839 there ar- rived in Missouri a group of Saxon Lutherans imbued with a double portion of the spirit of confessionalism. Their fiery zeal for the whole body of Lutheran doc- trine was made even more intense by the ardor of their piety. This union of denominational zeal and religious fervor gave extraordinary power of propagandism, so that the few shiploads of Saxon pilgrims have grown into one of the largest of Lutheran bodies, the Missouri Synod. They have helped very materially to raise the general standard of confessional loyalty in this coun- try. It was in that same year, 1839, that a body of GENERAL BACKGROUND 161 "Old Lutherans," separatists from the Prussian Union in Germany, came to this country and shortly there- after formed the Buffalo Synod. These are some of the factors that contributed to and manifested the revival of Lutheran consciousness during this period. In part it was the result of the new vigor imparted to all American Christianity by the religious movement earlier in the century ; in part it was due to a revival Causes and of interest in the history and the doc- „ ec f ° ~, , T . Reaction trmes of our Church; in part it was due to the importation of rigid confessionalists from Germany and the Scandinavian lands. But this confes- sional reaction quite naturally led to internal contro- versies long continued and acute, and in its conflict with the laxity of the former period it led to further divisions of general bodies. In this respect the history of the Lutheran Church runs significantly parallel to that of other denominations and to that of American government. The era of disintegration in our Church corresponds to the era of sectionalization in the his- tory of our country. QUESTIONS 1. What was the general spirit of American civilization of the period from 1830 to 1870? 2. How did the diversity of interests foster the spirit of sectionalism? 3. In what political events did the spirit of sectionalism ex- press itself? 4. When and how did sectionalism cease? 5. What change came over the general spirit of American Christianity about 1830? 6. How was denominationalism converted into sectarianism? 162 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 7. What new sects arose at this time? 8. What were the relatons between Catholics and Protestants? 9. How was the internal peace of the Catholic Church dis- turbed? 10. What were the difficulties in the Protestant Episcopal Church? 11. How did the spirit of sectarianism express itself among Presbyterians? 12. Why were the Methodists and Baptists bisected? 13. What was the occasion of the trouble in the Reformed Church? 14. Show that the events in Lutheran history parallel the events among other American Christians in this period. 15. Summarize the causes and effects of the revival of Lutheran consciousness between 1830 and 1870. TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Permanent Deposits of Sectionalism in American Christianity Anti-Roman Outbreaks in America Trusteeism in the Roman Catholic Church The Slavery Question in American Fiction and Poetry Ecclesiasticism in England, Germany, and the Catholic Church in Europe from 1830 to 1870 The Origin of Spiritualism The Origin of Adventism The Origin of Universalism Divisions in the Presbyterian Church in America, 1830-1860 Divisions among Methodists in America, 1828-1860 Divisions among Baptists in America, 1831-1860 The Mercersburg Movement and Its Theology The Economic and Social Background of the Civil War Period in American History SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Archibald Alexander Albert Barnes Lyman Beecher Horace Bushnell Alexander Campbell Charles G. Finney Richard Fuller William Lloyd Garrison John B. Gough John Hawkins Charles Hodge Jacob Knapp John W. Nevin GENERAL BACKGROUND 163 Theodore Parker Wendell Phillips John Taylor Pressly Thomas Hewlings Stockton Harriet Beecher Stowe Francis Way! and BIBLIOGRAPHY Bacon, L. W., A History of American Christianity. 1897. Pages 261-350. Beard, Charles A. and Mary R., The Rise of American Civ- ilization. 1927. Vol. I, pp. 507-824; Vol. II, pp. 1-165. Dorchester, D., Christianity in the United States. 1888. Pages 363-755. Elson, H. W., History of the United States. 1914. Pages 509-812. Fish, C. R., The Rise of the Common Man, 1830-1850. Pages 179-199. Mac Master, J. B., History of the People of the United States. 1883 ff. Vols. VI-VIII. Sweet, W. W., The Story of Rcligio7is in America. 1930. Pages 373-494. West, W. M., American History and Government. 1913. Pages 463-641. CHAPTER XIV ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE One of the first witnesses to the revival of denomi- national zeal in this period is found in the sphere of practical benevolence. Hitherto most of the work of applying Christianity in benevolence at home and spreading it through missions abroad had been done by great national societies uniting Chris- Withdrawal tians of various names. But the recov- „ rom . ery of denominational loyalty brought Co-operation , , , with it the idea that the work of the Gospel in all its departments and in all lands is the proper function of the individual church as such. One by one the churches withdrew from co-operation in the nation-wide interdenominational organizations until all but a very few of these organizations permanently disappeared from American Christianity. The denomi- nations began to prosecute the practical tasks of Chris- tian love by organizing their own denominational agencies. In the course of a few decades these agencies of benevolence were actively ministering to the com- petitive spirit among the denominations and their various fractions. But for the Lutheran Church it meant the steady development of her benevolent and missionary operations until at the close of the period they were thoroughly organized and progressively active. We turn first to the work of home missions. We 164 ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 165 have seen that before the organization of the General Synod the work of caring for the scattered and needy of our Lutheran family went forward only slowly be- cause of the lack of men and the lack of organization. It devolved upon __ a . r y . ome ° r Missions individual pastors or churches, and later upon separate synods unprepared for the enter- prise. Most of the synods, as they came into being, adopted the plan of sending out each year one or two missionaries on preaching tours among the vacant pas- torates or the spiritually destitute communities in various parts of the country. This kind of work repre- sented great sacrifice on the part of the missionaries and it accomplished much good, particularly by calling attention to the need and by leading pastors to take up their abodes in the pioneer communities. But from the unorganized nature of the work it was necessarily of a desultory character and often temporary and in- effective. When the General Synod was organized in 1820 one of its expressed purposes was to devise plans for "missionary institutions." This meant the organiza- tion of agencies for administering the missionary operations of the Church. But for many years the project remained only Central an ideal. It was not realized because _ 18 f ,onar ' r Society of the strong antagonism at that time against the centralization of authority involved in such agencies. Not until 1835 was any kind of mis- sionary organization effected. Then the "Central Mis- sionary Society of the Evangelical Lutheran Church 166 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY in the United States" was formed by a missionary con- vention of Lutheran ministers called by the General Synod. The new "Society" met in connection with the meetings of the General Synod but it was not official as its membership was of individuals and not of repre- sentatives. It undertook to establish a "system of societies throughout the Church." In 1837 it reported that it had employed six missionaries. The chief work had been done by the Rev. C. F. Heyer who had ex- plored the chief parts of the Mississippi Valley, had traveled thousands of miles, had discovered fields for at least fifty missionaries, and had finally settled in the neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Other missionaries of the Society had labored in Boston, Western Pennsyl- vania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. A similar society was connected with the Pennsyl- vania Ministerium and worked in harmony with the "Central Missionary Society." Ezra Keller, afterwards founder of Wittenberg College, was for a time the missionary of the old Ministerium and in 1836 he reported that he had trav- eled three thousand miles through Western Virginia and Ohio into Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois, laying the foundations for many of the flourishing churches in those regions today. But the "Central Society" did not receive the sup- port of the synods and its work had to cease, while the work of the Pennsylvania Minis- Home Mission terium lagged on account of the atten- society tion paid to the new enterprise of for- eign missions. The next step forward in home mis- ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 167 sionary work came in 1845 when the sentiment for more adequate organization crystallized in the forma- tion of the "Home Missionary Society of the General Synod." This society had auxiliaries within the dis- trict synods and while it had no valid authority to act for the Church as a whole, yet for more than twenty years it carried on the general home missionary opera- tions of the General Synod section of the Church, receiving and disbursing several thousands of dollars annually and furnishing substantial aid to hundreds of missionaries in many different states. As a result of home missionary expansion during this period a number of new synods were born. The institutions at Hartwick and Gettysburg were furnish- ing an increasing number of young ministers who were able to preach in English and adapt themselves to the changing conditions any ! ew of American life. These pushed out into the expanding mission fields and one by one new synods were organized. Their names indicate the suc- cessive stages in the expansion of the Church and the westward movement of her organization. The Alle- ghany Synod was organized in 1842 and the Pittsburgh Synod three years later. The East Ohio Synod had been formed in 1838, the Synod of Miami in 1844, the Wittenberg Synod in 1847, and the District Synod of Ohio in 1861. In Indiana we have the Olive Branch Synod in 1848 and the Northern Indiana Synod in 1855. The Northern Illinois Synod came into being in 1851 and that of Central Illinois in 1862. The Synod of Iowa dates from 1855, the Canada Synod from 168 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 1861, the Synod of Kansas from 1868, and the Synod of Nebraska from 1871. In the South we have the Southwestern Virginia Synod in 1842, the Texas Synod in 1851, the Mississippi Synod in 1855, the Georgia Synod and the Holston Synod in 1860. Meanwhile the territory of Pennsylvania has been further divided and the East Pennsylvania Synod begins in 1842, the Cen- tral Pennsylvania in 1855, the Susquehanna in 1867. Nearly all of these synods ultimately found their way into the General Synod. The organization of the Pitts- burgh Synod in 1845 with its great missionary zeal and its apportionment system and the founding of Wittenberg College and Seminary that same year as a literary and theological center for the newly formed synods in that state, gave great impetus to the home missionary efforts of the General Synod. Meanwhile there was a growing feeling that the "Home Missionary Society" should be bound up organically with the life and prestige of the General Synod itself. This delicate change was begun in 1866 when the constitution of the Society „. e . °« e , was amended to make all the delegates Mission Board to the General Synod members of the Society. It was completed in 1869 at Washington, when the society transferred all its funds and inter- ests to the General Synod and the General Synod de- cided to assume direct control of its home mission affairs and committed the administration of the work to a Board as its representative. Thus was established the important principle that missionary work is the Church's own proper life and business. The Board ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 169 is the agent of the entire Church, it directs the work for the entire Church, it administers funds re- ceived from all parts of the Church and applies them to the entire field as the need and opportunity may demand and without regard to synodical bounds or the measure of synodical contributions. This method of organized benevolence continued in use throughout the remaining half century of the General Synod's life and it is the method in use today in The United Lutheran Church. Very similar was the development of organized benevolence in the department of foreign missions. The Central Missionary Society formed in 1835, of which we have already learned, had as one of its objects "ultimately to co-operate in sending the Gospel to the heathen Foreign world." The call to definite action on ^?^ nary the foreign mission project came through the strong appeals of the celebrated Gutzlaff of China and the indefatigable Rhenius of India. At a convention held in 1837 in connection with the meet- ing of the General Synod there was organized "The Foreign Missionary Society of the Evangelical Ger- man Churches in the United States." That title was used in the hope of drawing all Germans, Lutheran and Reformed, into the Society. The Ministerium of Pennsylvania was represented but the Reformed and Moravians declined to co-operate, so the title was changed from "German" to "Lutheran." The society formed auxiliaries in the various synods and proceeded to gather funds to help Rev. Dr. Rhenius at Palam- 170 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY cotta, India. Rhenius had been laboring under the Church Missionary Society of England, but his strong Lutheran convictions had led to his dismissal from the service of the Anglicans and his appeal to Lutherans throughout the world. Through the efforts of the Lutheran Foreign Missionary Society in America sub- stantial aid reached his hands. In 1840 the society determined to send its own mis- sionary to India. Rev. C. F. Heyer was appointed. He had read the interesting reports of those first Protest- ant missionaries who had gone out from Halle to India. But when the Society decided to trans- eyer oes ac £ .^ g b us i ness through the American Board of Commissioners "Father Heyer," as he was called, resigned the appointment, declaring that he did not want to "be dependent on other Christian denominations." The day of inter- denominational agencies was passing. Heyer offered himself to the Ministerium of Pennsylvania, which had maintained a separate missionary organization. After some hesitation this body decided to accept the respon- sibility, and Heyer sailed for India in October, 1841, the first foreign missionary sent out by the American Lutheran Church. He began work at Guntur. Two years later he was joined by Rev. Walter Gunn and his wife, who had been sent out by the general Foreign Missionary Society. The work in India made steady progress and new missionaries were sent out from time to time. The Pennsylvania Ministerium co-operated with the So- ciety of the General Synod. In 1850 the Rajahmun- ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 171 dry field was accepted from the hands of the North German Missionary Society which was in financial straits. In 1857 Dr. Heyer retired from the field and devoted himself to Expansion in home missionary work in Minnesota. ° re ! gn Missions But in 1869, after the General Council had been formed, Heyer, though seventy-seven years of age, returned to India just in time to organize the Rajahmundry field under the auspices of the General Council and thus prevent its delivery to the Church Missionary Society in England. That same year the General Synod decided to assume direct responsibility for the work of the Foreign Missionary Society both in India and in Liberia, Africa, where a mission had been started by Morris Officer in 1860. A board was appointed to have charge of the work, as had been done in the case of home missions, and so this depart- ment of benevolence was finally organized under the direct care of the Church. In 1853 a Church Extension Society was organized in much the same way as the Home Missionary Society and the Foreign Missionary Society had been organ- ized. The purpose was to give strength and perma- nence to the missions of the Church by granting them loans without interest when necessary. The aim from the beginning was to r urc . . , »«-«««« ^ ■, Extension raise a fund of $50,000. Only one- fourth of that amount was secured before 1869. Then the work was committed to a Board elected by the General Synod itself. This opened a new era in the work of Church Extension and this agency of 172 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY benevolence was one of the chief means of advance in the General Synod. It was in this same period that the foundations were laid for the organized eleemosynary work of the Church. Dr. W. A. Passavant, the founder of the Pitts- burgh Synod, took the lead in establishing institutions of mercy. He got his inspiration from Pastor Flied- ner, of Kaiserswerth, Germany. He of 'mT^ 0119 began with a hos P ital in Pittsburgh in 1849. Then came an orphanage at the same place, later transferred to Zelienople and Rochester, Pennsylvania. That same year he brought some Lutheran sisters from the Kaiserswerth institu- tions and thus introduced the Protestant order of deaconesses into this country. Hospitals were founded in Milwaukee, Chicago and Jacksonville, Illinois, and orphanages at Mt. Vernon, N. Y., Germantown, Pa., and Boston, Mass. Altogether Dr. Passavant secured more than a million dollars for his Lutheran institu- tions of mercy. From the growing spirit of benevolence and increas- ing loyalty to the Lutheran Church came the establish- ment of a number of new educational institutions in this period. The college at Gettysburg grew out of the necessity of preparing men for the New Seminary there and began in 1827. Educaiwi The establishment of Wittenberg Col- Institutions lege and Seminary in 1845 has already been referred to. The South Carolina Synod had begun a Seminary at Lexington in 1830 and from this came Newberry College in 1858. The Ohio Synod ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 178 began its Seminary at Canton in 1830 but the next year removed to Columbus. There in 1850 a collegiate department was established as Capitol University. Roanoke College in Virginia was founded in 1853 and North Carolina College at Mount Pleasant, N. C, in 1858. Meanwhile the westward expansion of home missions led to the establishment of Illinois State University in 1852 and from this came Carthage Col- lege in 1870. Difference of opinion within the General Synod led to the founding of the Missionary Institute (now Susquehanna University) at Selinsgrove, Pa., in 1858. And towards the close of this period organic division in the ranks of the General Synod resulted in the establishment of the Philadelphia Theological Seminary in 1864 and of Muhlenberg College in 1867. A number of Church periodicals came on the scene during this period to foster the benevolent operations of the Church, to furnish light on all manner of re- ligious and theological topics, and to add heat to the controversies of the times. During the preceding period several attempts had been made to establish official or synodical journals. Such were Das Evangelische Magazin of the „ " rc !! , i Griociicflls Pennsylvania Ministerium (1812), The Lutheran Intelligencer of the Maryland Synod (1826), The Lutheran Magazine of the Western Con- ference of New York (1827), and Das Evangelische Magazin of the West Pennsylvania Synod (1829). None of these lasted more than six years. But such was the ecclesiastical zeal during the period now under review that at least five journals beginning at this 174 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY time have been able to maintain themselves to the present day or until they were merged in larger under- takings. The first of these was the Lutheran Observer begun in 1831 by Dr. J. G. Morris of Baltimore. Ex- cept for a few years when it was in the possession of the Maryland Synod it was privately owned, and it became the mouthpiece for the less conservative ele- ment in the General Synod. In 1843 at New Philadel- phia, Ohio, Dr. Greenwald began the Lutheran Stan- dard, which still survives as the official weekly of the American Lutheran Church. Dr. Passavant of Pitts- burgh, unable to purchase the Observer, began in 1848 the Missionary as a means of fostering appre- ciation of historical Lutheranism. This was merged in 1861 with the Philadelphia Lutheran, which had been founded in 1856. This paper was the popular English mouthpiece for conservative Lutheran thought and practice in this period, and for many years car- ried the scholarly articles of Dr. Charles Porterfield Krauth, who was also its editor for several years. The Evangelical Review, begun at Gettysburg in 1849, is the oldest theological magazine of our Church in this country (after 1872 called the Lutheran Quarterly, and in 1928 merged with the Lutheran Church Review to constitute the Lutheran Church Quarterly) . For a long time it was the chief source of Lutheran theology for the English-speaking part of the Church. While all of these periodicals reflect the controversial spirit of those days, nevertheless they contributed immensely to the growth of Lutheran loyalty, the publishing of Lutheran information, and the progress of the organ- ized benevolence of the Church. ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 175 In all these lines of benevolence and literary activity additional luster was given to the chronicle of Lutheran achievements in this period by large and aggressive bodies of Lutherans newly arrived from Europe and now favorably located for the most part on the broad expanse of the ew rriva Mississippi Valley. These also we must consider if we would understand the general course of our history in this period of internal discord. QUESTIONS 1. What change took place in the general method of doing church work in the period of sectionalism? 2. What was the earliest method of doing home missionary work among Lutherans and with what results? 3. What was the Central Missionary Society and what did it accomplish? 4. What missionary work did Ezra Keller accomplish? 5. How and why was the Central Missionary Society super- ceded? 6. Show from the names of new Synods how the missionary work expanded between 1830 and 1860. 7. What new method of organized benevolence was begun before the close of this period? 8. How did the Lutheran Church in America respond to the foreign missionary call? 9. How was the first foreign missionary sent out? 10. How did the foreign missionary work expand? 11. What was the purpose and progress of the work for Church extension? 12. Who took the lead in founding institutions of mercy and what did he accomplish? 13. What new educational institutions marked the expansion and internal development of the Church from 1830 to 1870? 14. What new periodicals appeared during this period and what spirit did they reflect? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The History of Lutheran Journalism in America The First Volume of the "Lutheran Observer" 176 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY The Progress of Deaconess Work in America The Charitable Institutions of William A. Passavant The Lutheran Mission at Guntur The History of Wittenberg College The History of the Philadelphia Seminary Morris Officer and the Beginnings in Liberia The History of the Lutheran Church Quarterly The Rajahmundry Mission BIBLIOGRAPHY Anniversary Addresses. 1909. Pages 11-24; 133-149; 273-280. Breidenbaugh, E. S., Pennsylvania College Book. 1882. Clark, G. G., History of Wittenberg College. 1887. Diehl, M., Biography of Rev. Ezra Keller, D.D. 1859. Drach, George and C. F. Kuder, The Telugu Mission. 1914. Gerberding, G. H., Life and Letters of W. A. Passavant, D.D. 1906. Gotwald, F. G., Pioneer American Lutheran Journalism. The Lutheran Quarterly, vol. XLII, April, 1912, pp. 161-204. Hunt, J. R. E., Lutheran Home Missions. 1913. Hutter, E. W., Eulogy on the Life and Character of Rev. Ben- jamin Kurtz, D.D., LL.D. 1866. Imhoff, A. J., The Life of Rev. Morris Officer, A. M. 1876. Keiser, A., Lutheran Mission Work Among the American Indians. 1922. (With bibliography.) Laury, P. A., A History of Lutheran Missions. 2d edition, 1905. Lewars, Elsie Singmaster, The Story of Lutheran Missions. 1917. Ochsenford, S. E., Muhlenberg College, 1867-1892. 1892. Philadelphia Seminary Biographical Record. 1923. Wentz, A. R., History of the Gettysburg Theological Seminary. 1926. Pages 187-190. Wolf, L. B., After Fifty Years, A Sketch of the Guntur Mission. 1896. For the missionary "Societies" refer to the minutes of the General Synod. For the periodicals refer to the files of those mentioned in the chapter. For the beginnings of the new synods refer to the several synodical histories: the Alleghany by Carney (1918), the Pittsburgh by Burgess (1926), the Ohio by Mechling (1911), the Wittenberg by Ernsberger (1917), the East Pennsylvania by Hay (1892), the Virginia by Cassell, Finck and Henkel (1930), the Kansas by Ott (1907), and the Susquehanna by Manhart (1917). SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Isaac Baugher Theodore Fliedner ORGANIZED BENEVOLENCE 177 Emanuel Greenwald Walter Gunn Charles Gutzlaff Simeon W. Harkey John Peter Hecht Michael Jacobs Ezra Keller Charles Philip Krauth Frederick A. Muhlenberg Morris Officer William Alfred Passavant Henry N. Pohlman Francis Springer A. C. Wedekind CHAPTER XV IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION Out of the strenuous rivalries and antagonisms of the denominations during this period the student of history can trace a very substantial asset accruing to the Kingdom of God in this country. The sharpening of Church loyalty that characterized these four decades was the process by which the The Wonder of great jjead of the Church prepared mencan jr. g p e0 pi e £ mee t the sudden rush of L.hurch History a vast invasion of American shores. A veritable flood of immigration swept into the coun- try. It amounted to far more than the entire popula- tion of the country at the birth of the Republic, and it spread itself over a great domain more than four times the size of the original colonies. This alien multitude needed to be transformed into American citizenship and gathered into the fellowship of the Christian Churches. Nothing but the utmost zeal on the part of the Churches could have sufficed for the unprecedented task. Deprecate discord and contro- versy as we may, it is certain that the torpid ecclesi- astical uniformity of the preceding period would not have availed in the grave exigency of this period. Only the spontaneous and vigorous operation of a multitude of different agencies, each built on Church loyalty and invigorated by denominational zeal, each marshalling its own distinctive attributes and forging its own 178 IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 179 particular weapons, could have accomplished the wonder of American Church History, by gathering into the Churches the incoming millions, A variety of causes led to the great immigration during this period. The allurements of America were quite as strong an influence as the hardships in Europe. The attractions in front of the immigrants were the liberal homestead policy of the United States, the easy naturalization laws, the loud call for labor, the facility of transpor- _ aus f s ° . _ , Immigration tation, and the discovery of gold in California. The impulses behind were the repeated failure of crops, the over-population of the farming districts, the destruction of local industries through the new factory system, and the misgovernment of petty European rulers. In addition there were special causes for the immigration of particular groups, such as dissatisfaction with religious conditions in the homeland and desire to join friends who were already prospering in America. All these conditions applied with peculiar force to Germany, especially after the middle of the century. A little later a strong tide of immigration set in from the Scandinavian countries. The result was an enormous increase in the Lutheran population of America. The great increase in German immigration began about 1840. The crest of the wave was reached in the decade preceding Lutheran the Civil War, when nearly a million Germans reached American shores. After the close of the War they continued to come at the rate of about 180 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY one hundred and thirty thousand annually. Multitudes of these German immigrants were Roman Catholics. Great numbers also went to swell the churches and godless population of the land. But the greater por- tion of them were Lutherans. Their arrival imposed an enormous responsibility on the Lutheran Church in America and made a profound and indelible impression on every aspect of her history. Her numerical strength, her standing among the other Churches, her influence on the life of the nation, her benevolent and educa- tional activities, her doctrinal position — all were deeply and beneficially modified by the new arrivals in her midst. During the first forty years in the life of the Republic the communicant membership of the Lutheran Church had multiplied three-fold, just keep- ing pace with the general population of the country. But during this second period of forty years, while the population at large was increasing three-fold, the membership of the Lutheran Church increased more than nine-fold, reaching in 1870 a total of about 400,000 and standing fourth among the Protestant Churches. It was fortunate for the whole Church and specially significant for the course of history in this period that the advance guard of the great army of Lutheran immigrants were stoutly loyal to the Lutheran Confes- sions and abundantly able to give reasons for their faith. It was equally fortunate that A ^ ew Type this advance guard planted its out- of Lutheran , . ., . . _ ,, ,,, . . posts m the heart of the Mississippi Valley where the vast majority of the newcomers were IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 181 to find their homes. The older Lutheran elements that had come down in the line of the Muhlenberg develop- ment had for the most part solved their problems of rationalism and unionism, had developed their synod- ical organizations, and were prepared to put their hands vigorously to the task of absorbing the new arrivals. But of themselves they would never have met the responsibility imposed by the great immigra- tion. The majority of the incoming multitudes were to belong to an entirely different branch of Lutheran- ism in America, which was destined to help along the confessional reaction that had already begun within the bodies of Muhlenberg descent. This new accession to the Lutheran Church in America came into the country chiefly by way of the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River. The earliest arrivals, about seven hundred and fifty in number, settled at St. Louis and in Perry County, Missouri, in February, 1839. St. Louis thus became the chief gate of entrance for the ^ej™ 1 ™^ .in Missouri great stream of German immigration and the headquarters for the shepherding of these Lutheran multitudes into congregations. The first group of newcomers came from Saxony. They were characterized both by their intense pietism and their strict Lutheran orthodoxy. They had left Saxony be- cause of the rationalism that prevailed in the official Church circles there. The leader of the immigrants was Martin Stephan, a man of remarkable person- ality and great organizing ability, who had been pas- tor of St. John's Church in Dresden. Feeling himself 182 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY hampered by his ecclesiastical connections in Saxony, Stephan decided to gather a company of followers and emigrate. After conference and correspondence with Dr. Benjamin Kurtz, who had been in Germany to collect for the Gettysburg Seminary, he determined to lead his company to America. A glowing description of Missouri which he happened to read fixed his choice on that state as his location. But very shortly after the Saxons arrived in Mis- souri Stephan was convicted of gross wickedness and expelled from the colony. The leadership of the entire settlement of Missouri Lutherans then fell upon the youthful C. F. W. Walther. He was one of the six pastors who had accompanied the first group of immi- grants. From 1839 until his death in 1887 the history of Missouri Lutheranism is closely identified with the story of Walther's life and he takes his place with Muhlenberg, Schmucker and Krauth in the quartet of the most outstanding personalities in the life of the Lutheran Church in America. Walther was born in Saxony in 1811, in an old family of ministers. He studied at the University of Leipsic where rationalism then held sway. But he belonged to a little band of students who refused to accept the popular rationalism of the day and culti- vated their spiritual lives by studying C F W * , ' the Bible and other books of devotion. Walther In his father s library he found Luther's works and these he read with eagerness. After teaching a few years he became pastor of Braunsdorf, Saxony, in 1837. But here his evangelical IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 183 position soon involved him in difficulties with his rationalistic superiors. The oath of his office bound him to the Book of Concord, but this was a farce, for the entire liturgy, the hymn-book and the catechism that he was compelled to use were rationalistic and so were the text-books in the schools. His conscience was sorely oppressed by the situation. His efforts to introduce Lutheran doctrine and practice met with determined opposition. General religious conditions were deplorable and the young pastor's position was intolerable. Accordingly he welcomed most heartily the invitation to help establish an ideal Church in America. His talent and his training had prepared him for a great work in the land of his adoption. The exposure and banishment of their false leader left the Missouri colonists in great distress. Stephan had squandered the money in the general treasury and poverty stared them in the face. But even more seri- ous was the spiritual confusion that overtook them. They had followed a false guide. How could they justify their course before *? ist * e8 ! and ,_ .. , , Confusion the world and before their own con- sciences? Some of the pastors, Walther among them, began to doubt their call to the ministry. Some thought they should return to Germany. Many of the colonists felt that it was contrary to God's will that they had come to America. They doubted that they were really Christians or that the true Church of Christ existed among them at all. Divisions began to appear among them. The confusion and distress of conscience were indescribable. 184 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY It was Walther who was the divine agent to save the colonists from complete despair. He had continued his study of Luther and the Lutheran theologians, and early in 1841 he was ready to clarify the issues. By a series of propositions which he suc- Walther cessfully maintained in debate he es ores showed that the Church consists of an Confidence invisible communion of saints, that where the true faith is, there the true Church is, irrespective of the continuity of human organization, and that consequently these congregations of the colonists through their knowledge of the Christian truth must be regarded as part of the true Church of Christ and have full authority to call pastors. This not only quieted the minds of the colonists but also established the fundamental principles concerning the Church and its organization which have characterized the Missouri Synod to this day. A few weeks later Walther accepted the call to the congregation in St. Louis, which was to become the mother church of the Missouri Synod and the main- spring of all its activities in missions and benevolence. Here he gained a high reputation as . e t ms T ? r a preacher. But his talents were soon in at. Louis to be called to educational and execu- tive work. In 1844 he began the publication of Der Lutheraner to defend the Church of the Reformation against attack and to expound the doctrines and prin- ciples of Lutheranism. This attracted wide attention to his work and to the doctrinal positions of the Lutherans in Missouri. IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 185 The stream of German immigration continued to flow with constantly increasing volume, and in 1845 steps were taken to form a new synod. The organiza- tion was effected two years later at Chicago, and Walther became the first president of the "German Evangelical Lutheran * Iissouri synod Synod of Missouri, Ohio and other States." This organization, numbering at first only twelve congregations and twenty - two pastors, was soon to become the center and head of one of the largest and most vigorous bodies of Lutherans in America. At the time of Walther's death (1887) the Synod numbered about fifteen hundred congregations and nearly a thousand ministers, while the Lutheraner had a circulation of nearly twenty thousand. Repre- sentation in the synod is by congregations and no synodical resolutions are in force until they are rati- fied by the congregations. The confessional basis of the new synod was stated to be all the symbolical books as "the pure and uncorrupted explanation and state- ment of the Divine Word." Parochial schools were established. Inspection of congregations by district presidents was provided for. And every possible safeguard was erected to maintain purity of Lutheran faith and practice. The constitution and the entire spirit of this influential body came from the mind and heart of its youthful first president. But meanwhile other streams of ° ther Lutheran immigrants had come into mnu « ran .. . _, , . . ... Lutherans the country. They were akm in spirit to the Saxons of Missouri. Some of them helped to 186 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY organize the Missouri Synod in 1846 and the Synodical Conference in 1872, but most of them held aloof or separated from the Missourians and organized inde- pendent synods. Their history we must now sketch. When in 1817 the King of Prussia began his efforts to unite the Lutherans and Reformed in his kingdom into the "Prussian Union" he only succeeded in reviv- ing the lines of difference between the two confessions. And when in 1830 a royal decree abol- " a ,° ished the old church books and sought to enforce a uniform liturgy that was neither Lutheran nor Reformed, some of the most orthodox Lutherans separated from the State Church and were called "Old Lutherans." When they were persecuted in Prussia many of them emigrated to America. The first company came in July, 1839. Their leader was Pastor Grabau of Erfurt. They numbered nearly a thousand and settled in and near Buffalo, New York, a few months after the Saxon Lutherans had reached Missouri. For a short time it was hoped that some kind of union might be effected between these two bands of orthodox Lutheran colonists. But in December, 1840, Pastor Grabau sent a pastoral letter to vacant congregations warning them against ministers who had not been properly ordained. Some of the views set forth in this letter gave offense in Missouri. Walther detected the same false views of the ministry and of the Church whose fatal conse- quences he had witnessed in Stephan. This and other errors of the Buffalo Lutherans he regarded as thor- oughly Romanizing. The result was a long and bitter IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 187 controversy between the two pastors and their respec- tive followers. In 1853 Walther founded the monthly theological journal, Lehre unci Wehre, which he used as his chief medium of discussion. The Missourians succeeded in convincing a considerable number of pastors and congregations among the "Prussian Lu- therans" and in 1867 a majority of their pastors joined Missouri. This made the conflict very caustic. The Buffalo Synod was organized in 1845 and began to train its own pastors. It was very rigid in doctrine and discipline. It did not grow very rapidly and barely succeeded in holding the descendants of the original colonists. Another independent body of Lutherans growing out of the immigration in this period is the "Synod of Iowa and other States." It was organized in 1854 and was a breach in the rank of the Missourians. Rev. William Loehe, pastor at Neuendettel- sau, Bavaria, took great interest in owa yno developing the Lutheran Churches in America. In his own institutions he began to prepare men for the min- istry in America and later was instrumental in estab- lishing a theological seminary at Fort Wayne. His graduates entered the service of the Missouri Synod. But after 1850 a misunderstanding arose between Loehe and the Missourians. Walther and his brethren discovered in the writings of Loehe and in the views cf his followers the same errors concerning the Church and the ministry that they had so long debated with the Buffalo men. Walther v/ent to Germany and had a personal conference with Loehe, but the spirit of 188 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY divergence was abroad in the land and no permanent agreement was reached. The pupils of Loehe in America proceeded to organize the Iowa Synod in 1854. They feared that the extreme congregational- ism of Missouri would overthrow all church order. On the question of the ministerial office they took a position mid-way between Buffalo and Missouri. They protested against what they called "a legalistic misuse of the symbols" on the part of the Missourians. The Iowa Synod adhered firmly to all the symbolical books but insisted that there are certain "open questions," that is, doctrines that are not articles of faith and that should not be used to prevent fellowship of pulpit and altar among Lutherans. The chief spirits in the early history of the body were the Fritschel brothers, Sigmund and Gottfried. The Dubuque Seminary was the main source of ministerial supply and the work of the synod extended over a very wide territory. Before the end of this period the Missouri Synod had spread all over the country and was making its influence tell potently for more conservative Luther- anism than that of the older bodies in the East. Never for a minute did they depend upon any historical succession of ministry from Europe. From the very beginning they estab- Missouri lished their own educational institu- c ° ! ge "* Seminary tions and prepared their own pastors. The modest "institution of instruction and education," that began in 1839, a few months after their arrival in America, became a well equipped college in 1850 with Walther as president and professor of theology. IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 189 It was located in St. Louis. In 1861 the college was removed to Fort Wayne and in 1874 a seminary was organized at Springfield, Illinois. The theological de- partment remained at St. Louis where it has since become the largest Protestant seminary in America. In 1850 Walther retired from the presidency of the synod and gave all his time to writing and teaching and thus covered a wide field with the influence of his magnetic personality. The Missouri Synod became the rallying point for the German pastors as they came into the country with the multiplying waves of immigration. From all parts of Germany they came. The North Germans soon outnumbered the Saxons, and the University of Goettingen was fully as well represented as Leipsic. Many of the men were highly educated and many were filled with missionary zeal. A number of long-established American congre- ™ wt ° ..,,,. . , Missouri Synod gations with their pastors were also attracted to this center of ultra-conservative Luther- anism. The synod increased the number of its districts until they covered the whole country with a thorough organization. It soon occupied all the strategic points in the great Middle West. It had strong outposts in the very centers of the older bodies in the East, and it was looking very fondly toward the Northwest and the Far West. In 1872 a number of district synods united with the Missouri Synod to form the Synodical Con- ference. The organization because of its strictly con- gregational polity, is not very compact. But it is thor- 190 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY oughly homogeneous, because its constant emphasis has been on purity of teaching and practice. Walther's successor as president of the Synod was P. C. D. Wyneken. He had come to America in 1838 as a missionary among the scattered Germans. He had no relations with the Missouri Lutherans until he read the first issue of Walther's zl ' ' Lutheraner in 1844. Then he ex- Vr VTi tf* si. f* T\ claimed, "Thank God ! There are still some Lutherans in America." Shortly after that he severed his connections with the General Synod and entered into membership with the Synod of Missouri, where he soon became one of the most eminent leaders. But many of the conservative Lutherans who came to America at this time and found their way into the older congregations and synods in the eastern part of the country, did not follow Wyneken's example and withdraw from these connections immigration when they learned of the Missouri r^j° » -• Synod but remained where they were Older Bodies and made vigorous contribution of their loyal Lutheran spirit to these less conservative bodies. A number of influential Wuertembergers joined the Pennsylvania Ministerium and helped to deepen the current of confessional loyalty. More of the North Germans went into the New York Minis- terium, with a similar result. Others, imbued with a lively Lutheran consciousness, came from Germany and took their places in less conspicuous sections of the General Synod. These elements did not initiate the confessional reaction among the Lutherans in the IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 191 East ; they only helped to swell the tide of confessional loyalty that long before had begun to flow from a renewed study of the Church's confessional writings. The General Synod felt the confessional reaction in all its parts. The revolt against the Prussian Union in Germany inspired thousands of pens, and their literary products bristling with Lutheran orthodoxy were eagerly read by hundreds of American Lutheran ministers either in the original or in translations that appeared on the The pages of the Evangelical Review. Ger- ons ® rva lve man theology was studied and Lu- theran history expounded even outside the Lutheran Church, and this reacted profoundly on the English- speaking portion of the Lutheran Church in this coun- try. Walther's writings in the Lutheraner were widely read and discussed and clearly pointed the way back to historic Lutheranism. Loehe's Church News from Noi*th America frankly criticized the liberal element in the General Synod and praised the growing party of conservative Lutherans. Everywhere staunch advo- cates of "old Lutheranism" arose and materially in- fluenced the progress of events in the Church. Of course the movement towards historical Lutheranism encountered stout resistance at various points and resulted in all kinds of internal discord. But conser- vative principles spread like a contagion, and the ris- ing generation of ministers soon caught it. Men spoke of the period as "the present transition state of the Church," and such it was. 192 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Another stream of Lutheran immigration in this period that helped swell the tide of confessional re- action came from the Scandinavian can inavmn countries. The great volume of Scan- Imraigration dmavian immigration belongs to our next period, but the beginnings are found here. The Norwegians came first. In the thirties they began to settle in northern Illinois. The next decade they came in larger numbers to Wisconsin. They did not come because of religious motives, as so many of the Germans had come, and the consequence was that there was great spiritual destitution Norwegians among them. In 1843 Rev. C. L. Clausen came to labor among them, and the next year Rev. J. W. C. Dietrichson joined him. In 1853 they organized the "Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America." This body was strongly influ- enced by the Missouri Synod and co-operated in the Seminary at St. Louis. Other Norwegians united with Swedes in the Northern Illinois Synod which be- longed to the General Synod. Still others followed the practice of revivalism and organized small indepen- dent synods, such as the Eielsen and Hauge's. Swedish immigration began to flow perceptibly in the fifth decade. The Swedes have always kept in closer touch with the Americanized part of the Lu- theran Church than the Norwegians have. Rev. L. P. Esbjorn came over from Sweden in 1849 to minister to the spiritual wants of the immi- 8 grants. He received much help and encouragement from Dr. Passavant and others in the IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 193 eastern bodies. The earliest Swedes were connected with the Synod of Northern Illinois and Esbjorn be- came the Scandinavian professor of theology in the Lutheran school at Springfield, Illinois. The Swedes were strictly confessional in their Lutheranism. When in 1860 events within the General Synod made them feel insecure they dissolved their union with the Synod of Northern Illinois and severed their connection with the Illinois State University. That same year twenty- seven pastors and forty-nine congregations founded the Augustana Synod and established Augustana Col- lege. They thus gave notice that they intended to adhere strictly to the fundamental creed of Lutheran- ism. At the same time they prepared themselves, as no other organization could have done, to gather into their Lutheran fellowship the great multitude of their countrymen who were to come to America in the next period. The inner development of this vigorous body of conservative Lutherans calls for more detailed pres- entation in connection with the next period of our history. Such were the beginnings and the characteristics of the great body of Lutheran immigrants in the nine- teenth century. The total effect of their coming was profound and historically significant. This strong in- fusion of confessional elements into the body of the Lutheran Church in f *^ra°tion America not only stimulated the con- fessional reaction in the older organizations of American Lutherans, but it also stamped the Lutheran Church as a whole in the eyes of all other Churches 194 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY in this country as indelibly evangelical and forever doctrinally conservative. The large and sudden increase in Lutheran numbers compelled the attention of the other Churches in America and forced them to recognize the Lutheran Church as one of the greatest and by far the most rapidly growing of the Protestant Place of Churches in this country. These new Lutherans in Lutherans came without pomp or cir- Christianity cumstance and took their places quietly in the land. Their genuine spirituality, the solidity of their church life, and the vigor and warmth of their piety were patent to all who came to know them. They were untrained in the habits of free churches and humbled both by the circumstances of their emigration from Europe and by their strange surroundings when they arrived in the New World. But their training in the equable, systematic and methodical ways of State Churches, and their constant emphasis on thorough religious instruction and indoc- trination insured them against the irregular fervor of that revivalism that periodically burned over their neighbor churches. It helped to guarantee their inde- pendence and permanence in their adopted land. They had much to learn in matters of Church organization and administration and in the course of time they did learn their lessons along these lines. But from the beginning they also had much to teach to American Christianity in general on methods of theology and usages of worship, and their teaching has long since yielded visible results. Their unflinching loyalty to IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 195 the Lutheran confessions made them impervious to the religious whims that blew over most of the other Churches from time to time, and what has often been interpreted as lukewarmness in the presence of a great general inspiration is now seen in the perspec- tive of several generations to be the reliable spirit of intensive confessional loyalty that is the guarantee of steady but certain progress. That this characteristic spirit of conservatism should have been stamped upon the Church so forcibly during this discordant middle age of the nineteenth century was an accident of circumstances and must not be taken to mean that o ns,ervat * sl | l pugnacity and controversy and de- nominational competition are necessary accompani- ments of Church loyalty and doctrinal conservatism. But this fact could become manifest only in the course of subsequent periods of history. QUESTIONS i. What good result accrued to American Christianity from the sharpening of Church loyalty during the middle period of the nineteenth century? 2. What were the special causes of the great immigration during this period? 3. How did the great immigration affect the Lutheran Church? 4. What type of Lutheranism did most of the immigrant Lutherans represent? 5. Where did they settle and who were their leaders? 6. Discuss the career of Dr. C. F. W. Walther. 7. When was the Missouri Synod organized and what was its general spirit? 8. How did the Buffalo Synod originate and what were its relations with the Missouri Synod? 9. What differences among the German Lutherans resulted in the organization of the Iowa Synod? 196 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 10. What educational institutions did the Missouri Synod establish? 11. Show how the Missouri Synod expanded. 12. How did the conservative Lutheranism of the immigrants help to influence the older bodies in the East? 13. What were the beginnings of Norwegian Lutheranism in America? 14. What was the origin of the Augustana Synod and what was its influence? 15. What new place in American Christianity did the Lutheran Church take during this period? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Union Church of Prussia The Saxon Immigrants of 1839 The Loehe Foundations at Neuendettelsau The Organization of the Missouri Synod Why Missouri Stood Alone The Life and Letters of Dr. Walther Distinguishing Characteristics of the Buffalo Synod Relations Between the Missouri Synod and the Iowa Synod Early Norwegian Settlements in America Swedish Immigration to America in the Nineteenth Century The Influence of Nineteenth Century Immigrants Upon the Older Parts of the Lutheran Church in America SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Ernst August Brauer Theodor J. Brohm Claus Lauritz Clausen John William Christian Dietrichson Elling Eielsen Lars Paul Esbjorn Gottfried William Leonard Fritschel Sigmund Fritschel John Andrew Augustus Grabau Nicolai F. S. Grundtvig Hans Nielsen Hauge Ernst Gerhard Wilhelm Keyl William Loehe Adolph Carl Preus Herman Amberg Preus Gottlieb Schaller William Sihler Martin Stephan Hans Andreas Stub Carl Ferdinand Wilhelm Walther Friederick Conrad Dietrich Wyneken IMMIGRATION AND CONFESSIONAL REACTION 197 BIBLIOGRAPHY Dau, W. H. T. (editor), Ebenezer. 1922. Deindorfer, Johannes, Geschichte der Eva?igel.-Luth. Synode von Iowa und anderen Staaten. 1897. Distinctive Doctrines and Usages of the General Bodies of the Evangelical Lutherans in the United States. 4th edition, 1914. Chapters III, V, and VII. Flom, G. T., A History of Norwegian Immigration to the United States, to 1848. 1909. Gerberding, G. H., Life and Letters of W. A. Passavant, D.D. 1906. Pages 194-221, 354-389. Grabau, J. A., Life of J. A. A. Grabau. 1879. Hochstetter, Chr., Die Geschichte der Evang elisch-Lutherischen Missouri-Synode in Nord-Amerkia. 1885. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 393-415. Koehler, J. P., Geschichte der Allgemeinen Evangelisch-Luther- ischen Synode von Wisconsin und anderen Staaten. 1925. Leilinger, G. J., A Missionary Synod with a Mission, 1854-1929. (Iowa.) 1929. Norelius, E., The Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The Lutheran Church Review, vol. V, Jan., 1886, pp. 24-44. Norlie, 0. M., History of the Norwegian People in America. 1925. Reynolds, W. M., The Scandinavians in the Northwest. The Evangelical Review, vol. Ill, Jan., 1852, pp. 399-418. Rohne, J. Magnus, Norwegian American Lutheranism up to 1872. 1926. (With detailed bibliography.) Steffens, D. H., Doctor Carl Ferdinand Wilhelm Walther. 1917. Stephenson, G. M., The Founding of the Augustana Synod, 1850-1860. 1927. (With detailed bibliography.) ■ , The Religious Aspects of Swedish Immigration. 1932. Pages 1-331 (With complete bibliography.) Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 372-405. CHAPTER XVI "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" The rising tide of positive Lutheranism aroused opposition in some of the older bodies of the Muhlen- berg descent. The confessional movement found its antithesis in what was called "American Luther- anism." This was a Lutheranism that was strongly modified by the Puritan element of Opposing the American Christianity and was unable on essiona ^ Q gj^jj-g ff ^he denominational indif- Movement ferentism that had prevailed in the youth of the Republic. There were those who failed to see that the conservative type of Lutheranism would restore to the Church something of the ardor and earnestness of Muhlenberg and his co-laborers. They felt that such a strong infusion of historic Luther- anism would tend to divest the Church of all spiritual- ity and aggressiveness. They viewed with sincere alarm the confessional reaction that so completely cov- ered the horizon, and they set themselves steadfastly and methodically to resist it. To that end they pro- posed a modification of historic Lutheranism, its con- fessions and its practices, so as to infuse into it the vigor of Presbyterianism and the warmth of Method- ism. In short, they sought to adapt Lutheranism to American soil by divesting it of its distinctive traits and making it conform to the average American type of religion. 198 "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 199 These advocates of "American Lutheranism" were a small group, always in the minority both in the district synods and in the General Synod, but they were exceedingly ° ^ active and aggressive and their lead- ers were among the most influential men in the Gen- eral Synod. They refused to be silenced by the grow- ing strength of the conservatives. The real test of strength between these two antith- eses within the General Synod came about the middle of the century. The conservative wing in the general body had been growing steadily for some years. By the year 1850 it was clearly in the ascendancy. This fact was noted by European observers. Apart from the powerful conservative The influences coming from new Lutheran ° nserv ? u , ve Wing ot the bodies in the West, several weighty Genera i S y nod factors favored the increase of tradi- tional Lutheranism in the General Synod. The Book of Concord that had been translated into English by the Henkels of the Tennessee Synod was being widely circulated and studied. Influential men were studying the contemporary literature of Germany, particularly the writings of the rigid Lutheran theologians opposed to the Prussian Union. Schmidt's "Dogmatic Theol- ogy" was studied and a translation into English was begun. Church papers were founded to feed the appe- tite for positive Lutheran literature. The Evangelical Review, edited after 1850 by Prof. Charles Philip Krauth of the Gettysburg Seminary, was an effective medium for presenting sound Lutheran theology to 200 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY English readers. The Lutheran Standard of Colum- bus, Ohio, was firmly pleading for fidelity to the con- fessions. Dr. Passavant's paper, The Missionary, carried many positive and convincing theological articles from the pen of Dr. Charles Porterfield Krauth. The result of these and other facts enumerated in the preceding chapter was the dominance in the General Synod of the conservative party, a party which in its confessional advance went far beyond the position of the General Synod at the time of its founding. In consequence of this some of the very men who had helped to sustain the General Synod in the twenties as a bulwark of Lutheranism, a defence against union- ism and rationalism, now reacted against the positive Lutheran position assumed by the majority in that body. And in their reaction they became more lax in the fifties than they had been in the twenties and con- stituted what was called "the left wing of the General Synod." One of the leading advocates of "American Lu- theranism" was Dr. S. S. Schmucker, the head of the Gettysburg Seminary. We have already seen how zealous he was in his early ministry for the Lutheran Church and the Augsburg Confession. His enthusiasm for the General Synod in its infancy, his energetic exertions to save that body from dissolution in 1823, his translation of Storr and Flatt's "Biblical Theology," his many literary Schmucker's labors to make the Lutheran Church !j^ to the known to those beyond her bounds, his activities in establishing and directing a theological "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 201 seminary and a college for the more adequate train- ing of a native American ministry — all these are un- mistakable evidences of his loyalty to the Lutheran Church and his merit in maintaining her identity in this country in those critical times. The professor's pledge which he prepared for the constitution of the Theological Seminary in 1825 and the model constitu- tion for district synods which he drafted for the Gen- eral Synod four years later, show that in his confes- sional position at that time he was more positively Lutheran than most of his contemporaries. For sev- eral decades his great influence was exerted on behalf of conservatism. But there were elements in Dr. Schmucker's dispo- sition and training that made it impossible for him to keep ahead of the confessional advance that came in the forties and fifties. In his father's home he had acquired a distinct pietistic strain. Under Dr. Helmuth's instruction he had imbibed an aversion for sharp theological definitions. At Princeton Seminary, where he studied ls * era for two years, his training measurably influenced his theological views. His associations at this institution, while they stimulated his zeal for his own Church, nevertheless produced within him a broadmindedness and tolerance towards non-Lutherans that was destined to clash with the spirit of denomi- national exclusiveness that came to prevail about the middle of the century. In 1838 he issued his "Fraternal Appeal to the American Churches," calling for the reunion of the Churches on "the apostolic basis." He 202 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY was prominently identified with the formation in 1846 of the "Evangelical Alliance," a union of individual Christians to promote religious toleration and to counteract Romanism and infidelity. That same year he helped to send a circular letter to Germany dis- paraging the Lutheran view of the Lord's Supper and indicating points of similarity between the Gen- eral Synod and the Prussian Union. More and more his public utterances indicated his dissatisfaction with the general trend of events in the Lutheran Church in America and emphasized "the religion of the spirit" as against the "religion of forms." Dr. Schmucker had fallen behind in the progress of conservative Lutheranism and had lost his leadership in the Gen- eral Synod. Even in his own institutions at Gettysburg more conservative elements began to prevail. His position had not changed from what it was twenty- five years before. But his reaction to the growing conservatism of the Church now made him a leader of the opposition to the confessional movement. It alienated many of his former friends and clouded the evening of his days. Other leading advocates of "American Lutheran- ism" were Dr. Benjamin Kurtz and Dr. Samuel Sprecher. Dr. Kurtz was the stormy petrel of the movement, a keen debater and vigorous writer. As editor of the Lutheran Observer from Kurtz" 11 " 1833 to 1861 he exerted a tremendous influence on the English-speaking por- tion of the Church. During these years the pages of that paper brought repeated arraignments of Lu- "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 203 theran positions, particularly the Lutheran confes- sions. Even the Augsburg Confession was subjected to serious criticism. All liturgical worship was de- nounced as formalism. Revival methods were zealously advocated, and personal piety was exalted above everything else. Those who opposed these so-called "new measures" were called "head Christians" and "catechism Christians." Dr. Kurtz was sure that "proscriptive intolerance" lay on the side of what he called the "Old Lutheran System" and to this he opposed the "evangelical" methods of "American Lutheranism." Dr. Sprecher had been trained by Dr. Schmucker and adopted the theological views of his teacher. He was a brilliant teacher and a far more profound thinker than either Schmucker or Kurtz. As president of Wittenberg College for twenty-five years he exerted a far-reaching influence on behalf of the "new measures" and a modified Samuel ...... Sprecher Lutheranism. The institutions at Springfield, Ohio, were quite pronounced in their advocacy of "American Lutheranism" as they were without any of the conservative influences that counteracted the teaching of Dr. Schmucker at Gettysburg. These advocates of confessional modification and radical measures had a vigorous following. Their main contention was that the Lutheran Church can have a national development on American soil only 204 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY by adjusting itself to its environment. By this they meant that the Lutheran Church in America must make wide concessions to the revival- Position of j s tj c an( j puritanic spirit of the sur- encan rounding denominations. The party Lutneramsm . of American Lutneramsm was strongly repelled by the sharp polemics of the Mis- souri, Iowa and Buffalo Synods. Their contact with the anti-religious element among the German immi- grants, particularly those who came in the revolu- tionary year of 1848, persuaded them that a Luther- anism imported from Germany needed to be strongly modified by home-made practices and creeds before it could be expected to flourish in America. In its emphasis on Americanism and its attitude of conces- sion towards other denominations this movement was a generation late, but in its controversial spirit it was thoroughly up-to-date. Harsh criticisms were uttered. Unlovely epithets abounded. But the issues at stake were fought through to a conclusion. A real problem was involved in the antithesis between "American Lutheranism" and the confessional reaction. It is the problem of accommodating Lutheranism to the Amer- ican spirit. It is well for subsequent history that both sides of the controversy were so ably represented before the decision was reached. It gave a degree of finality to the decision. The issue was squarely joined. The growth of the strength of the "conservatives" increased the activities of the "liberals." The Hartwick Synod was formed from the western conference of the New York Minis- "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 205 terium in 1830. One of the reasons given for the new organization was that the Ministerium did not sufficiently favor revivals. In the doc- trinal basis of this Synod as set down Hartmck and FjpflQclccttii in 1837, the Augsburg Confession was gvmM ] 9 essentially modified so as to make it conform with the teaching of "all Protestant com- munions." But, even so, the Hartwick Synod was not sufficiently pious and "American" for some of its members, and as early as 1837 four of them separated and organized the Franckean Synod. This new body abandoned the Augsburg Confession entirely and pressed the "new measures" to the extreme. As it occupied the same territory as the Hartwick Synod the result was a number of bitter law suits between the two. The Franckean Synod long afterwards became the occasion of disruption in the General Synod. Efforts were also made to turn back the confessional tide in the older synods and in the General Synod. Dr. Kurtz was a member of the Maryland Synod but he tried in vain to commit that body to the "new measures." As to the confessions there was much uncertainty about the The Mar > land official position of the General Synod. ,.^"° „ . . , . "Abstract" The confessional basis recommended to the district synods by the general body was "that the fundamental doctrines of the Word of God are taught in a manner substantially correct in the doc- trinal articles of the Augsburg Confession." But great liberties were taken with the words "fundamental" and "substantially correct" and "doctrinal." In order, 206 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY therefore, to give definiteness to the pledge of the General Synod, Dr. Baugher, a decidedly conservative Lutheran and afterwards president of Gettysburg Col- lege, proposed in 1844 that the Maryland Synod pre- pare an "Abstract of Doctrines and Practices of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Maryland." The avowed purpose of this was to correct "various and repeated misrepresentations concerning the doctrines and practices of the Lutheran Church in the United States." But Dr. Kurtz got control of the committee appointed to prepare the "abstract" and the synod refused to adopt the report of the committee because it represented a modified or "American Lutheranism" and omitted or repudiated all distinctive Lutheran teachings. Both Dr. Schmucker and Dr. Sprecher were deeply interested in the Maryland Synod "Abstract." The next year the matter was submitted to the General Synod and Dr. Schmucker was made Rejected by the chairman of a committee to frame "a General Synod . . . clear and concise view of the doctrines and practices of the American Lutheran Church." But the General Synod no longer followed Dr. Schmucker's lead and the report of his committee, submitted in 1850, closely resembling the Maryland Synod "Ab- stract," was rejected by the General Synod. Meanwhile the Church in general continued to move in the direction of a stricter confessional basis. In 1853 the Pennsylvania Ministerium applied for re- "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 207 admission to the General Synod, after an absence of thirty years, and was admitted. The old Ministerium had made rapid confessional strides since 1823 and had recently come to The "acknowledge the Collective body Of Pennsylvania , , . , , , , , i . , Ministerium symbolical books as the histonco- R , confessional writings of the Evangeli- General Synod cal Lutheran Church" though giving special preeminence to the unaltered Augsburg Con- fession and Luther's Small Catechism. The cordial welcome of the Pennsylvania Ministerium into the General Synod, therefore, was another proof that the General Synod was making progress towards more advanced confessional ground. The return of the mother synod and the admission at the same time of the Pittsburgh Synod, the Synod of Northern Illinois, and the Synod of Texas, gave still greater strength to the conservative element in the General Synod. The advocates of "American Lutheranism" now made their last stand against the general awakening of Lutheran consciousness. As the variety of interpre- tation of the General Synod's confessional basis con- tinued, the sentiment increased that there should be some way of standardizing that inter- pretation. But before the General "Definite Synod itself could proceed to amend its J7 10 ,ca „ constitution there was published a small pamphlet called the "Definite Synodical Plat- form." This document appeared anonymously in Sep- tember, 1855, and was sent to many of the pastors. It was a revision of the Augsburg Confession and the 208 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY synods were urged to adopt it as their confessional basis. It claimed to find a number of errors in the Augsburg Confession, and these it specified as fol- lows : the approval of the mass, private confession and absolution, denial of the divine obligation of the Sab- bath, baptismal regeneration, and the real presence of Christ's body and blood in the Lord's Supper. The articles containing these "errors" were either to be modified or omitted. The "definite platform" claimed to be in accord with the General Synod's basis because it did not omit any "fundamental doctrine of Scripture." The authorship of the "definite platform" was not hard to guess. Dr. Schmucker afterwards acknowl- edged that his pen had drafted it and given it the finished form. The reception accorded the document greatly disappointed its authors. Only three small synods in Ohio, influenced by Dr. Sprecher, accepted it temporarily. Everywhere else it was vigorously rejected. Dr. Kurtz stoutly defended it in the Observer but to no avail. Everywhere Emphatically wr it er s and debaters arose to defend iicjcctcd the Augustana. Books were written and conferences were held, even among the newer Lutherans of Missouri and Ohio, and one after another the district synods of the General Synod expressed unqualified disapprobation of the attempt to revise the creed of generic Lutheranism. The emphatic re- jection of the "definite platform" pronounced the doom of "American Lutheranism" and the whole episode forcibly emphasized the real conservatism and the "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 209 Lutheran orthodoxy of the General Synod at that time. When Dr. Kurtz found himself unable to resist the conservative doctrinal tendency of the Maryland Synod he withdrew from that body in 1857 and with several kindred spirits organized the Melanchthon Synod. Dr. Kurtz had g e "j the pseudo-prophetic zeal that so often possesses those who know they are in the minority. The "declaration of faith" for this new synod con- sisted of the doctrinal standards of the Evangelical Alliance with slight modifications. The name of the new body is significant. Long years afterwards Dr. Sprecher, who lived long enough to see and acknowl- edge the whole mistake in "American Lutheranism," called the "Definite Synodical Platform" "the culmina- tion of Melanchthonianism." Such it was and the organization of another synod in the territory of the Maryland Synod merely on the basis of "elective affinity" was American Lutheranism's declaration of ecclesiastical nullification and secession. The Melanch- thon Synod lasted only eleven years. At its largest extent it embraced only eleven country pastorates, in central and western Maryland. It was admitted to the General Synod in 1859. This was not due to any lack of strength on the part of the conservative element in that meeting of the General Synod, but to the fact that Dr. Charles Porterfield Krauth, the leading theo- logian among the conservatives, was concerned to maintain the numerical strength of the general body and advocated the admission of the new synod on certain conditions which were met. The Melanchthon 210 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Synod was warned against schism and requested to withdraw its implied charges against the Augsburg Confession. This admission of the Melanchthon Synod was, however, one of the fruitful causes of the rupture in the ranks of the General Synod a few years later. The issue was settled. "American Lutheranism" was definitely defeated. The leading advocates of a modi- fied Lutheranism or Melanchthonianism, with all their great personal influence, were in a hopeless minority. After the incident of the "definite platform" their influence waned rapidly. It was the registered con- viction of the great host of Lutherans in America that Lutheranism can live and flourish in Definite Defeat ^jg coun try without giving away its o merican Qwn gpjyjj. or adulterating its own Lutheranism . . original life and character. The future of the Lutheran Church in America was to belong to the conservative type of Lutheranism. It was worth much to have that decided so that the experiment of "American Lutheranism" might never be seriously undertaken again. The Lutheran Church in 1860 was in a position, barring disruption and internal contro- versies, to make steady and rapid progress in the con- servation of her faith and the development of her doctrinal resources. QUESTIONS 1. What was the underlying motive of "American Lutheranism"? 2. What factors developed the conservative wing of the Gen- eral Synod? 3. How did Dr. S. S. Schmucker manifest his loyalty to the Lutheran Church? "AMERICAN LUTHERANISM" 211 4. How did Dr. Schmucker lose his leadership in the General Synod? 5. Who were the chief advocates of "American Luther anism" and where did they labor? 6. What is the real problem involved in the controversy on "American Lutheranism"? 7. Why were the Hartwick and Franckean Synods formed? 8. Why was there so much uncertainty about the real doc- trinal position of the General Synod? 9. What efforts were made to give the General Synod a clear doctrinal basis? 10. How had the Ministerium of Pennsylvania changed be- tween 1823 and 1853? 11. What was the "Definite Synodical Platform"? 12. Who were the authors and what was the fate of the "Definite Synodical Platform"? 13. What was the Melanchthon Synod and what was the sig- nificance of its organization? 14. What was the final outcome of the controversy on "Amer- ican Lutheranism"? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The History of the Melanchthon Synod S. S. Schmucker in 1826 and in 1864 The Definite Synodical Platform The Theology of the Tennessee Synod The Life and Work of Samuel Sprecher The Founding of the Missionary Institute "New Measures" in American Lutheranism Dr. Schmucker's Efforts at Church Union Schmidt's "Dogmatic Theology" Changes in Ohio Lutheranism between 1830 and 1860 The "Lutheran Standard" and Its Influence A Study of Schmucker's "Popular Theology" SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Henry L. Baugher Karl Rudolph Demme Lewis Eichelberger Benjamin Kurtz William Frederick Lehman Augustus Hoffman Lochman William Julius Mann George B. Miller William M. Reynolds Benjamin Sadtler 212 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Charles Frederick Schaeffer Henry I. Schmidt Samuel Sprecher Theophilus Stork Martin Luther Stoever Reuben Weiser Philip Wieting BIBLIOGRAPHY Anstadt, P., Life and Times of Rev. S. S. Schmucker, D.D. 1896. Pages 296-360. Bell, P. G., Portraiture of the Life of Samuel Sprecher. 1907. Ferm, V., The Crisis in American Lutheran Theology. A Study of the Issue betiveen American Lutheranism and Old Lutheranism. 1927. (With detailed bibliography and numerous quotations from Minutes and periodical lit- erature.) Hay, Charles A., Memoirs of Rev. Jacob Goering, Rev. George Lochman, D.D., and Benjamin Kurtz, D.D., LL.D. 1887. Pages 107-211. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 415-433. Mann, Emma T., Memoir of the Life and Work of William Julius Mann. 1893. Richard, J. W., The Confessional History of the Lutheran Church. 1909. Pages 601-623. Spaeth, A., Charles Porterfield Krauth, D.D., LL.D. 2 volumes, 1898, 1909. Vol. I, pp. 316-413; Vol. II, pp. 77-126. Strobel, P. A., Memorial of the Hartwick Lutheran Synod. 1881. Wentz, A. R., History of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Maryland. 1920. Pages 147-157, 165-168. , History of the Gettysburg Theological Sem- inary. 1926. Pages 106-127. CHAPTER XVII DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION The ultimate defeat of "American Lutheranism" as a movement did not establish the peace of the Church. The variety of elements, racial, linguistic, doctrinal and personal, that were found in the Church after the middle of the century furnished abundant material for internal discord. These antagonistic elements had always been present in Elements of the Church to some extent, but hith- j^ tern j erto conciliation and mutual tolera- tion had been the order of the day. Now the spirit of unrest and intolerance was abroad in the land. That spirit was aggravated by racial misunderstandings and the friction of strong personalities. Divisions and breaks took place on other than doctrinal and practical grounds. It was a day when the smallest angle of difference was the occasion for controversy and strife. The members of the same household were often the most bitter in their enmity against one another. We have already seen how the hot fires of doctrinal controversy raged among the orthodox Lutherans who had lately come from Germany and organized them- selves in Missouri, Iowa and Buffalo. These debates continued throughout the period we are now reviewing and caused many a division and re- alignment of organization. Missouri e at . e debated with Buffalo the doctrines of the ministry, the Church, and the office of the keys, 213 214 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY and the question concerning the ideal relation of the Church to the state. This controversy resulted in serious disruption among the men and congregations of Buffalo. With Loehe and the men of the Iowa Synod, Dr. Walther and his Missourians debated in addition the subject of "open questions," the binding character of the confessions, the divine obligation of Sunday, the right to take interest, whether the Pope is the anti-Christ, and other points of difference. But the most bitter controversy and the one that led to disruption in the ranks of the Missourians, was that concerning predestination. It continued far beyond the period we are now studying. It involved the Ohio Synod and the Norwegians as well as the men of Iowa and even aroused some of the theologians of the older bodies in the East. It resulted in the separation of the Norwegians from the Missouri Synod, further divisions among the Norwegians themselves, the with- drawal of the Joint Synod of Ohio from the Synodical Conference, and the exodus of a number of German pastors from Missouri to join Ohio. The literature produced by these controversies and breaks was enor- mous, and the spirit of exclusiveness and fraction was fed to a surfeit. Meanwhile the process of division had gone on apace among the Lutherans of Muhlenberg descent. New synods were formed, not in amity and peace as in the preceding period, but in the spirit of secession and protest. The formation of two new synods in the territory of the New York Ministerium, the Hartwick DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 215 in 1830 and the Franckean in 1837, led to vigorous protests from the mother Synod and serious conflicts between the two children. In Ohio a number of pastors of the Joint Synod g om ^ et ns became dissatisfied with the attitude of that body on the language question and other mat- ters and in 1836 they withdrew and formed the East Ohio Synod. This was only the beginning of divi- sions in that State, so that in the end all the elements of Muhlenberg descent that had entered into the orig- inal Synod of Ohio in 1818 separated and formed other bodies. Angry charges of "intolerance, oppression and inconsistency" were frequently heard there. East of the Susquehanna there was serious dissatisfaction in the ranks of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. This was due partly to the exclusive use of German in the sessions of the Ministerium, partly to the confessional and liturgical tendency of the Ministerium, and partly to a difference of view in regard to the General Synod and her institutions. In 1842 ten pastors, led by Dr. W. M. Reynolds, a professor at Gettysburg College, left the Ministerium and formed the East Pennsyl- vania Synod. This covered the same territory as the Ministerium and for many years there was much fric- tion between the two bodies. Farther south also the spirit of schism was active. The Maryland Synod resented the formation of the Melanchthon Synod on her territory in 1857. And in 1860 the Tennessee Synod was seriously weakened by the withdrawal from its ranks of pastors and congregations to form the Holston Synod. 216 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY But more serious than any of these divisions was the disruption in the ranks of the General Synod that occurred in this period. In 1860 the General Synod was more of a "general" body than at any other time in its history. It embraced almost all of the Muhlen- berg development and a considerable The General number of the more recent Lutheran J 110 a s immigrants. It numbered 864 out of Strength ^ ne 1>313 ministers and 164,000 out of the 245,000 communicants, a total of about two-thirds of the entire Lutheran Church in this country. Not a few of the Church leaders in that day cherished the hope of making the General Synod the center of a single organization embracing all the Lutherans in America. But from the very nature of the case, that hope was doomed to disappointment. During the next six years the General Synod suffered losses by exodus and disruption that deprived it of nearly half of its membership and postponed indefi- nitely the prospect of a really "general" organization including all the Lutherans in America. The first break in the strength of the General Synod came in 1860 with the exodus of the Swedes and Norwegians from the Synod of Northern Illinois. We have seen that in 1851 a large number of Swedes and a smaller number of Norwegians, under the leadership of Prof. L. P. Esbjorn, helped to form Exodus of the s d of Northern Hiiuojs a dis _ the swedes „ trict synod of the General Synod, and co-operated in the work of the Illinois State Univer- sity. As that synod simply affirmed the Augsburg DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 217 Confession to be "a summary of the fundamental doc- trines of the Christian religion substantially correct" the Scandinavians carefully guarded their rights on entering the body. In 1859 they constituted nearly half of the whole synod, and they exerted a measurable influence in favor of historic Lutheranism. But they feared that the General Synod might not remain doc- trinally sound, and because of the barrier of language, they could not impress their views on that body. They were much disturbed over the admission of the Melanchthon Synod to the General Synod in 1859, and began to contemplate a separate organization. The following spring personal troubles arose between Esb- jorn and the other professors at Springfield, with the result that he suddenly resigned and moved to Chicago, taking the Scandinavian students with him. Shortly after that all the Swedes and Norwegians formally severed their connections with the Synod of Northern Illinois, and in June, 1860, the Augustana Synod was formed. The Springfield school was purchased by the Missourians. One result of this secession of the Swedes was a great weakening of the conservative element in that part of the General Synod. The second rupture in the ranks of the General Synod was made in 1882. The Civil War was in progress and partisan rancor was intense. Such was the confusion and anxiety due to the war that the meeting of the general body had been postponed for a year. When it met in Lancaster in May, 1862, only one delegate was present from south of the Potomac River. It was easy to foresee that some declaration 218 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY would be made concerning the great conflict. It is indicative of the religious genius of the Lutheran Church and her essential conservatism tothe°w^ Ue that up to this time she had not allowed the purely economic and moral issue of slavery to make a division in her organization. The Methodists, Baptists and Presbyterians had all divided on that issue ten or fifteen years before the War came. But at the time of the Lancaster meeting of the General Synod the southern states had seceded and actual war had been going on for twelve months. The district synods, North and South, had all taken action supporting their respective governments. The southern synods, expecting that the political separa- tion between the North and South would be permanent, had taken action looking towards withdrawal from the General Synod of the United States and the forming of a General Synod of the Confederate States. The General Synod at Lancaster, therefore, took vigorous action on the whole subject. Naturally that action was very pronounced against the South. The resolu- tions were so framed that the southern pastors and congregations interpreted them to mean that their return to the General Synod would not be desired even after the Union of the States was restored. After the close of the war, Lutherans of the North made overtures to those of the South, suggesting their return to their former organic relationship. But the southern churches determined to continue their own General Synod, which they had begun in May, 1863. They cited the strong resolutions of 1862 and in addi- DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 219 tion explained that they now had their own peculiar problems requiring that they should maintain their own general organization and institu- tions and literature. Moreover, they J" 1 . 6 „ yno . ' J of the South pointed to the serious division among the northern synods that now seemed imminent, and they preferred to have no part in that factional strife. They placed themselves on a more positive confes- sional basis than that of the General Synod of the North and changed their name to comport with the change in political relations. The organization was later called the "United Synod of the South." This secession of the southern Lutherans withdrew from the old General Synod five of its district synods, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Western Virginia and Georgia, embracing one hundred and forty-six min- isters, two hundred and seventeen congregations, and over twenty-two thousand members. It further dimin- ished the strength of the conservative party in the General Synod. But the most serious disruption came with the with- drawal of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania and the organization of another general body on the territory of the General Synod. This was a process extending over four years. It began with the meeting of the General Synod at York in 1864, and was completed by the formation of the General Council at Fort Wayne in 1867. When the Ministerium of Pennsylvania affiliated with the General Synod in 1853 it carefully guarded the terms of its affiliation. The predominance of the 220 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY German language and German personalities in the Ministerium, and its strong trend toward conservative Lutheran positions, made its members suspicious of the Lutheranism in the more Ameri- Positionof the C anized parts of the Church. The ennsy vama action to unite with the General Synod Ministerium was not taken without a struggle. It was specified in joining the general body that the Ministerium retained all rights to control its internal affairs and that if the General Synod should ever vio- late its constitution and require assent to anything conflicting with the "old and long-established faith of the Evangelical Lutheran Church," the delegates of the Ministerium were required to protest and with- draw from the meeting. At the same convention the Ministerium pledged itself to all the symbolical books. It is clear that the old Ministerium had now reached confessional ground more advanced than the rest of the General Synod. Several incidents that occurred shortly after the Ministerium had joined the General Synod were disquieting to the conservative leaders in the Ministerium. The "definite platform" was over- whelmingly rejected, it is true, but the Melanchthon Synod was admitted in spite of the negative vote of the Ministerium's delegates. The conservative element easily predominated in the General Synod, but they were making concessions to the liberal element that the Ministerium regarded as unwarranted. In those days of universal discord, the spirit of unity had left the General Synod and it needed only an occasion to precipitate serious conflict between the two elements. DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 221 The crisis came at York in 1864. The Franckean Synod applied for admission to the General Synod. Now the Franckean Synod had never accepted the Augsburg Confession. It had its own "declaration of faith," in which the distinctive doctrines of Luther- anism were not contained. Its application was accord- ingly rejected until it should "give formal expression of its adoption of _. e , ™* at ^ , York, 1864 the Augsburg Confession as received by the General Synod." But the next day, when the delegates of the Franckean Synod explained that in adopting the constitution of the General Synod they thought that they had also adopted its confession of faith, the question was reconsidered. After a long and spirited discussion it was voted, ninety-seven to forty, to admit the Franckean Synod, but with the express "understanding that said synod, at its next meeting, declare in an official manner its adoption of the doctrinal articles of the Augsburg Confession." This action the minority regarded as unconstitutional and dangerous in principle, and they entered a formal protest against it. The delegation of the Pennsyl- vania Ministerium further presented a paper recalling the reservations under which their body had united with the General Synod in 1853, recording their con- viction that the recent action of the General Synod was unconstitutional and declaring their purpose therefore "to withdraw from the sessions of the Gen- eral Synod, in order to report to the Synod of Penn- sylvania at its approaching convention." The delegation from the Ministerium withdrew and 222 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY the die was cast. The delegation did not regard their act as the withdrawal of the Ministerium itself from the General Synod, and the Ministerium did not so interpret it. But others did so regard it, and events that transpired before the next meeting of the General Synod made the disruption practically complete. After the withdrawal of the Ministerium's ^ he *? e " eral , delegation from the York convention, its Constitution ^ ne General Synod at the same meet- ing adopted a resolution denying that there are any errors in the Augsburg Confession. It also provided for an amendment to its constitution fortifying its position as a conservative Lutheran body and clearly denning in that sense the confessional basis to be adopted by synods desiring to unite with the general body. This was done because the majority in the General Synod were anxious to conciliate the Ministerium and to guard against establishing a dan- gerous precedent by the admission of the Franckean Synod and because they wanted to express the confes- sional advance that had been made since 1829. This amendment was submittted to the Ministerium and was ratified by that body along with a large majority of the other district synods. But it was a time of war and not of peace. The passions of men were deeply stirred. Two things in particular prevented the restoration of peace in the General Synod, the estab- lishment of a new seminary and the conflict of strong personalities. Early in February, 1864, Dr. Schmucker had re- signed as the head of the Gettysburg Seminary. A DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 223 large number of the conservative element wanted Charles Porterfield Krauth as his successor. By his many publications Dr. Krauth had shown himself to be the most scholarly among the Lutheran theologians in America. By 1864 he had become thoroughly conservative in his confes- _ f w , seminary sional position. If the training of the future ministers of the Church could have been com- mitted to his hands, the Ministerium might have re- garded that as a sufficient guarantee against radical tendencies. But there were many who wanted a new seminary. The demand for German pastors was greater than Gettysburg could supply. The project to strengthen the force at Gettysburg did not seem feas- ible, and long before the events of 1864 a number of advocates were pleading for the establishment of a theological seminary in Philadelphia as Muhlenberg had planned and as many had hoped for since his day. After the break in York and with no prospect of hav- ing Dr. Krauth as Dr. Schmucker's successor, the Ministerium of Pennsylvania proceeded in July, 1864, to establish its own seminary in Philadelphia. Dr. Krauth was called to be its professor of systematic theology and Dr. C. F. Schaeffer, the German profes- sor at the Gettysburg Seminary, and Dr. W. J. Mann became the other professors. This event convinced many that a permanent breach in the ranks of the General Synod was now inevitable. A few weeks later Dr. J. A. Brown was elected head of the Gettysburg Seminary. Dr. Brown was well known for his conservative views, having been a pro- 224 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY nounced antagonist of Dr. Schmucker in his "Amer- ican Lutheranism." Dr. Krauth, Sr., the second pro- fessor at Gettysburg, was also known to be conserva- tive. But naturally the relations be- „ , . tween the two institutions became Keiations . strained at once. The sudden removal of one of the professors from the old seminary and the withdrawal of many of the students occasioned much bitter feeling. The representatives of the Penn- sylvania Ministerium who came as usual to attend the meeting of the Gettysburg Board of Directors were told that they had no place there. A literary war was waged between Dr. Brown and Dr. Krauth. Several of the leaders in the General Synod began to indulge in fierce condemnation of the Ministerium and its seminary. The withdrawal of the Ministerium's dele- gation at York began to be generally interpreted as the secession of the Ministerium itself from the Gen- eral Synod. When, therefore, the General Synod met at Fort Wayne, Indiana, on May 17, 1866, the atmosphere was charged with forebodings of serious conflict. The Ministerium of Pennsylvania sent a delegation, but their instructions breathed the spirit of defiance rather than charity. Both sides expected rupture. The purely German element in the Minis- j nicr terium was determined to separate from the General Synod. Indeed it was openly charged that the leaders in the Minis- terium, already before that meeting of the General Synod, had entered into negotiations looking towards DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 225 the forming of a new general body. On the other hand, the men in the left wing of the General Synod were loudly proclaiming their intention to exclude the Min- isterium from the general body at this convention if it could be done. But each side to the controversy wanted to place on the other the responsibility for schism in the Church. It happened that the president of the General Synod at that time was Dr. Sprecher. With others of the left wing he had planned his method of procedure. At the opening of the convention at Fort Wayne, he re- fused to receive the credentials of the delegates from the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. He declared that the Ministerium was in a "state of practical withdrawal from the govern- unwary procedure ing functions of the General Synod," and that the General Synod must first organize its con- vention by electing officers before it could receive the report of an act restoring practical relations of the Ministerium with the General Synod. When attention was called to the reservation made by the Ministerium when it joined the General Synod in 1853, Dr. Sprecher replied that the reservation was not recorded in the minutes of the General Synod and therefore could not be recognized by the officers of that body. An appeal was made from this decision but the synods already received sustained the chair. On this technicality and against the protest of delegates from other synods, the Ministerium's delegation was excluded from the election of officers. However, the new president of the General Synod 226 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY was Dr. Brown. He was one of those conservatives who wished to preserve the unity of the General Synod and did not want to exclude the Ministerium sum- marily but only wanted to annul the condition which the Ministerium had attached to its admission in 1853. The case of the Pennsylvania Synod Final was therefore thoroughly discussed Withdrawal by the General Synod in a debate that ° e , . lasted three days. The chief point of Pennsylvania Ministerium contention was concerning the right of a delegation to withdraw when an act which seemed to them unconstitutional was passed. At length it was decided to request the delegates from the Ministerium to "waive what might seem to them an irregular organization of this body and acquiesce in the present organization." This they agreed to do, provided the General Synod would acknowledge their constitutional right to be represented before the elec- tion of officers and to take part in it. Such acknowl- edgment the majority of the General Synod refused to make, because it would have perpetuated the dis- turbing reservation of 1853. Thereupon the delegation of the Ministerium withdrew for the last time. The break was complete, another strong support of con- servatism was withdrawn from the General Synod, and for fifty-two years the Ministerium of Pennsyl- vania had no organic relation with the other synods in the General Synod. But the principle of a general organization for Lu- therans had strongly commended itself in the forty- six years of experience of the General Synod. Accord- DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 227 ingly, after the break at Fort Wayne the hope was widely entertained of building a new general body that would be more thoroughly Lutheran in its spirit and more general in its extent than the old General Synod. The separation of the £ al1 f ? r a . New Organization Pennsylvania Mmisterium had been greeted with satisfaction in many quarters. The Ministerium, therefore, when it approved the course of its delegates at Fort Wayne and formally severed its connection with the General Synod, issued a call to all Lutheran Synods acknowledging the Unaltered Augsburg Confession, inviting them to participate in the organization of a new general body "on a truly Lutheran basis." In response to this call a convention was held at Reading, Pennsylvania, in December, 1866. Thirteen synods were represented. The principal business of the convention was the discussion and adoption of a set of theses that Dr. Krauth had pre- pared on "The fundamental principles of faith and church polity." These theses were unanimously adopted as the basis of the proposed organization. They placed the new body squarely on the doctrinal basis of the Unaltered Augsburg Confession and the other sym- bolical books because they are "in perfect harmony of one and the same scriptural faith." As to ecclesias- tical polity it was made clear that the new organiza- tion would allow the individual synods a wide range of freedom in regulating their own affairs. The required number of synods having adopted the "fundamental principles," the first regular convention of the "General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran 228 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Church of North America" was held at Fort Wayne in November, 1867. Eleven synods participated in the organization: The Ministerium of The General Pennsylvania, the New York Minis- Org^nLed terium, the English Synod of Ohio, the Pittsburgh Synod, the Wisconsin Synod, the English District Synod of Ohio, the Michi- gan Synod, the Augustana Synod, the Minnesota Synod, the Canada Synod, and the Illinois Synod. The Joint Synod of Ohio and the Iowa Synod sent dele- gates but did not unite with the Council because they could not be satisfied of its thoroughgoing Luther- anism. The Missouri Synod had been represented at the preliminary meeting in Reading, but did not favor the organization of a new general body and declined to unite with it. But from the beginning the General Council was four-fifths the size of the depleted Gen- eral Synod, and after a few years the younger body was the larger. The General Council at once took up the work of reorganizing the churches on the confessional basis it had adopted. A liturgy and Church Book were pre- pared. A model constitution for congregations was devised and debated and finally adopted. In all these lines the Pennsylvania Ministerium took the lead. In the benevolent operations of the its General Church few powers had been com- mitted to the general body, and this work continued to be carried on by the individual synods. From the general character of the Council and the purpose of its organization it followed that DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 229 its sessions were very largely occupied by discussions of principles and by debates on points of difference with other Lutheran bodies. For many years these debates absorbed the regular conventions of the body and engaged the literary activity of its teachers. It was somewhat disappointing that no agreement could be reached with the strictly orthodox Lutherans farther west so that the "general" character of the body might be more nearly realized. Moreover, the General Council had to reckon constantly with internal diversities of language, nationality and training. But in the rapid enlargement of the Church that soon took place the General Council fulfilled the primary purpose of its organization in maintaining purity of doctrine and developing sound cultus and practice. Through the formation of the General Council a number of district synods also suffered disruption. We have noted that a number of delegates from other synods cordially sympathized with the delegates of the Pennsylvania Ministerium in the events at York and Fort Wayne. When the Ministerium issued its call for the formation of a new general body these men tried to move their Di8ru P li ° n respective synods to separate from the General Synod and take part in the new organization. Thus there developed a new phase of internal discord. When the New York Ministerium decided to unite with the General Council seventeen ministers with- drew from the Ministerium to form the New York Synod, and as such joined the General Synod. For the same reason a minority in the Illinois Synod 230 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY formed themselves into the Central Illinois Synod and remained in the General Synod. In the Pittsburgh Synod the minority, refusing to abide by the decision of the majority to join the General Council, claimed the name of the original synod, and were recognized by the General Synod as the Pittsburgh Synod. This disruption of synods caused great distraction and last- ing bitterness. Congregations changed their synodical affiliations. Pastors were parted from their congrega- tions by their allegiance to one or the other of the general bodies. Congregations were often divided. Ex- pensive and humiliating lawsuits were begun for pos- session of the properties. Scholarly theologians sat for days in the witness stand of secular courts. When the issues depended on the question of essential Lutheranism the General Synod invariably won. But wounds were inflicted that two generations of time have scarcely been able to heal. As the result of this series of disruptions the Gen- eral Synod of 1870 was but a remnant of the large and hopeful body of 1860. Its numbers were seriously diminished. Its institutions were weakened. Its "gen- eral" character was impugned. And its most conser- vative elements were gone. The left ect on t e wing had been sobered by the events General synod of the decade and the conservative party was still in the ascendancy. But the withdrawal of the Pennsylvania Ministerium and other conserva- tive bodies deprived the General Synod of invaluable conservative scholarship and made the further ad- vance of that body in doctrine and cultus a slow and DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 231 painful process. The disruption was inevitable under the circumstances, but for the time at least it impaired the progress of conservatism in the Church as a whole. If we now inquire for the real cause of the disrup- tion that lay behind the events enumerated, we find them several. In the first place there was a real dif- ference in spirit between the majority of the General Synod on the one hand and the Pennsylvania Minis- terium and its friends on the other. This difference was partly doctrinal. The Ministerium had made great speed in its confes- . ® * erence sional advance and now accepted all the symbolical books. None of the other synods in the General Synod did this. The predominating influences in the Ministerium were German, and they harbored a strong aversion to the remnant of revivalism and Puritanism that still lingered in some parts of the General Synod. The Ministerium was in more direct touch with the Lutheran reaction in Germany and its inspiring literature, made more constant use of Lu- ther's Catechism and German hymns, and received a larger part of the immigrant German pastors. All this deepened the Lutheran convictions of the Ministerium beyond those of the other synods. The correspondence of the leaders of that period and the columns of the Church papers make it clear that doctrinal differences were a potent factor in causing the irritation that pro- duced disruption. Another element explaining the difference in spirit between the two parties is found in their dissenting views of Church government. The Pennsylvania Min- 282 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY isterium, so much older and larger than the other synods, was always jealous of its rights and unwilling to lose its life or merge its activity in that of any general organization. The Ministe- " p litT 6 " 1106 rmm claimed that the general organi- zation was only a conference and had only advisory powers, that the definition of doctrine, the founding of seminaries, the preparation of litur- gies and hymn-books, and the benevolent work of the Church, is the business of the district synods and not the General Synod. The majority in the General Synod, on the other hand, stood for centralization of power. They wanted a general church authority whose deci- sions would regulate the doctrinal and practical affairs of the synods. These two conceptions of church polity may be traced through all the events of disruption and reconstruction. As the events of the Civil War in- creased the centralization of power in the hands of the Federal Government, so the withdrawal of the Penn- sylvania Ministerium strengthened the centralizing theory of government in the General Synod, and some of the most important practical decisions in the his- tory of the General Synod were made in 1869. This difference of spirit, growing out of a divergence of confessional position and varied conceptions of church government, was further aggravated by per- sonal differences. Certainly personal differences were a potent factor in the establishment of erson ^ e new seminary in 1864, and the Difference* founding of the new school in turn greatly increased the conflict of personalities. Per- DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 233 sonalities also were the main factor in producing the tragic event at Fort Wayne in 1866. But party spirit was everywhere at its zenith. Religious verities were sometimes overshadowed by political expedients. The prevailing tone in all spheres was combat and strife. General unity was lacking in the Lutheran Church of Muhlenberg development, and at such a time in the history of the nation it was not to be expected that organic union of the Church would be preserved. It was better, no doubt, that each party should go its own way until in the providence of God the spirit of the times should have completely changed and the development of doctrine and cultus on the one hand and the progress of church polity and benevolent operations on the other hand should have brought the scattered members of the household together in true unity and organic union. QUESTIONS 1. What were the doctrinal controversies among the German Lutherans of America that kept them in tune with the factional spirit of the times? 2. What breaches among the district synods in the East be- tween 1830 and 1860 led to overlapping and competition? 3. What was the strength of the General Synod in 1860 and what were its prospects? 4. Why and how did the Swedes secede from the General Synod and with what effect? 5. How did the Civil War disrupt the ranks of the General Synod? 6. What was the origin of the United Synod of the South and how did its organization affect the General Synod? 7. What were the reasons for the strained relations between the Ministerium and the other parts of the General Synod about 1860? 8. What incident precipitated the crisis in the General Synod in 1864? 234 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 9. Why did the Ministerium of Pennsylvania establish its own Seminary and what was the effect on the course of events in the General Synod? 10. What events led to the final withdrawal of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania from the General Synod? 11. How was the General Council organized? 12. What was the spirit of the new organization and how "general" was it? 13. What new phase of internal discord grew out of the or- ganization of the General Council? 14. What was the difference in doctrine between the General Synod and the General Council? 15. What was the difference in polity between the General Synod and the General Council? 16. How did personal differences aggravate the situation? 17. What is the most charitable way of estimating this era of disruption? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Lutheran Views Concerning the Divine Obligation of Sunday "Open Questions" The Predestination Controversy among American Lutherans The Lutheran Doctrine of the Church and the Ministry The Lutheran Church and Slavery The Early History of Illinois State University The Formation of the United Synod of the South The Organization of the General Council The General Council's "Fundamental Principles" History of the Franckean Synod Lutheran Educational Institutions and the Civil War SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY John Bachman Gottlieb Bassler Daniel Howard Bittle David Frederick Bittle Samuel Kistler Brobst James Allen Brown David A. Buehler Charles Augustus Hay Lewis L. Houpt Benjamin Keller Charles Porterfield Krauth G. F. Krotel Henry Lehman Charles F. Norton DISRUPTION AND RECONSTRUCTION 235 Charles William Schaeffer Joseph Augustus Seiss Joel Swartz BIBLIOGRAPHY Bachman, C. L., John Bachman, D.D., LL.D., Ph.D. 1888. Distinctive Doctrines and Usages of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 4th edition, 1914. Jacobs, H. E., A History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States. 1893. Pages 445-475, 502-505. Neve, J. L., A Brief History of the Lutheran Church in America. 2d edition. 1916. Pages 205-228, 279-309. Ochsenford, S. E., Documentary History of the General Council. 1912. Pages 60-172. Rohne, J. Magnus, Norwegian American Lutheranism up to 1872. 1926. Pages 158-179, 202-243. Spaeth, A., Charles Porterfield Krauth, D.D., LL.D. 2 volumes, 1898, 1909. Vol. II, pp. 127-249. Stephenson, G. M., The Founding of the Augustana Synod, 1850- 1860. 1927. Pages 33-87. Van Alstine, N., Historical Review of the Franckean Synod of New York. 1893. Wentz, A. R., History of the Gettysburg Theological Seminary. 1926. Pages 157-214. Wolf, E. J., The Lutherans in America. 1889. Pages 464-475. (The controversial literature of the pei'iod is enormous in bulk. It is found largely in the periodicals of the several bodies. Much of it is in German and the Scandinavian tongues. One large volume in English that might serve for orientation on the predestination controversy is that edited by G. H. Schodde in 1897, under the title The Error of Modern Missouri : its Inception, Development, and Refutation.) PART V IN THE DAYS OF BIG BUSINESS (1870-1910) Expansion and Enterprise CHAPTER XVIII GENERAL BACKGROUND The next period of forty years in the history of the nation was characterized by the spirit of enter- prise. Beginning with the year 1870 the United States entered upon a career of phe- nomenal economic growth. This new Economic economy brought changes that affected every department of human interest. It profoundly modified the general trend both of politics and of religion. The population of the country increased during these forty years from forty millions to ninety-three millions. Nearly one-half of this increase was due to immigration. In constantly swelling numbers Euro- peans were again invading American shores. From 400,000 in 1870 the annual number of immigrants grew until during the last five years of this period it passed the million mark. Until the middle of the period the immigrants came most largely from central and northern Europe and Immi s ration gave themselves chiefly to agriculture in the Middle West and the Northwest. This greatly increased the resources and responsibilities of the Lutheran Church. But after 1890 the tide began to flow in increasing proportions from southern and eastern Europe. This new type of immigrant, with his illiteracy and low standards of living, helped to increase the crowded 239 240 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY conditions of the cities and raised a whole host of political and religious problems for solution. The city population of the nation grew from twenty per cent of the total in 1870 to forty-six per cent in 1910, and the farmers now numbered less than one-third of the total population. But while the population of the country was being multiplied by two and a half, the wealth of the nation was being multiplied by ten. This led to wholesale extension and consolidation of business. A striking illustration is found in the business of building and operating railroads. The opening up of the North- western states and territories and the Growth of rapid development of the natural re- sources of the whole country called for new lines and better facilities, so that in 1910 the total mileage reached the enormous figure of a quarter of a million. Railroads embraced one-seventh of the total wealth of the nation. More significant than the growth of the railroads was the consolidation of man- agement. In 1904 all the important lines were owned by seven or eight groups of capitalists. This destroyed competition and permitted discrimination in rates. Throughout the period efforts were made to regulate such abuses. But the business was too big for indi- vidual states to control. So in 1887 the national Con- gress legislated on the whole matter and created the Inter-State Commerce Commission to investigate com- plaints and punish violations. Opinions differ as to the success of this Commission in overcoming monopolies and preventing "conspiracies in restraint of trade." GENERAL BACKGROUND 241 But the point of importance here is that the federal government was forced to recognize the new situation created by "big business" and to assume new powers in the interest of the common good. The consolidation of capital and management that began in the field of transportation soon spread to other lines of production and commerce. Small indi- vidual enterprises gave way to large combinations. Small stores merged into department stores. Small firms grew into corporations. Cor- porations invented "trusts" of such ^^^ on size that competitors were quickly driven out of business and irresponsible monopolies were created. Trusts began with the Standard Oil Company, but they soon covered such important com- modities as meat, steel, and so forth. For many years the efforts to control the trusts occupied the public interest and influenced national politics. Another aspect of "big business" is found in the public service corporations. The great increase in the number of cities, together with the multiplying of inventions to minister to the comforts of life, led to combinations of capital to serve some single need of a whole city, such as water, electricity, gas, telephone, or street cars. These corporations furnished almost unlimited opportu- Pu I' I i c Service nities for political corruption, and the period abounds in instances of inefficient and dishonest city government. Public graft became an organized business. Occasional outbursts of public indignation, reflected in Church as well as state affairs, proved in- 242 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY effectual to uproot the evil until those outbursts grew into a mighty tide of reform about the opening of the new century. One effect of these developments in the sphere of business was a decided wave of social unrest. Social- ism grew until in the elections of 1910 it polled nearly a million votes. Despite the vast increase in national wealth, great multitudes of the people were worse off than their fathers had been, and one-fifth of the nation was in a constant state of pov- Combination ert Thig wag due ^ the centraliza . of Labor tion of wealth in the hands of the business specialist who was called the capitalist. Op- portunities to rise out of poverty were greatly dimin- ished. The typical laborer was the factory hand with practically no chance to become a capitalist. The rela- tions between employer and employee became wholly commercial. There were no more free lands to be had from the public domain. Trusts reduced the chances of the laborer to compete in the labor market. Women invaded the labor market and helped to reduce wages. In his desperation the laboring man took a leaf from the business man's book and began to organize and combine. Already in 1870 forty trades had national organizations. The spirit of enterprise that moved the captain of industry was caught by the artisan and craftsman, and the trust found its counterpart among the laborers in the national "union." The trades unions soon organized into the strong American Fed- eration of Labor, counting millions of members. With capital and labor thoroughly organized, war between GENERAL BACKGROUND 243 the two was inevitable. The weapon of violence most frequently used was the "strike." This weapon was used with increasing frequency and increasing suc- cess, but its disastrous effects upon the public led to a variety of efforts to control it and to adjust the differ- ences between employer and employee. But the subject had too wide a scope to be successfully handled by the state governments, and very soon the national govern- ment began to devise many kinds of political machin- ery calculated to lessen strikes and end the labor war. It will have been observed that every aspect of big business that we have sketched leads into the sphere of politics and finally engages the attention of the national government. The result was that a new spirit characterized the politics of this period. It was widely removed from the sectionalism of the preceding period. The spirit of enterprise that produced the business age and invaded . „Z ; pirit . . in Politics every sphere of human activity was not limited to any section of the country. The South, no longer distracted by political reconstruction, began to feel the new impulse during the seventies and to reap its share of the industrial development. Mines and forests were turned to economic advantage, manufac- tures began on a large scale, and the old agricultural South was slowly transformed into a new South of diversified industries. The new spirit, therefore, that animated political life during this period ignored geo- graphic bounds and covered the whole nation. The dominant spirit in the politics of this period may be called the New Nationalism. This must not be 244 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY confused with the spirit of nationality that dominated the youth of the republic. It did not mean the strength- ening of the federal government at the expense of the state governments. It meant the re-adjustment of all the functions of government, legisla- The New £• executive, and judicial, so as to Nationalism meet the new problems that had arisen. The radical social changes that grew out of the nation's marvelous economic growth created a new national consciousness that called for the exercise of new powers of government. The unmistakable ten- dency towards specialized organization in American practical affairs produced a situation in society at large that could no longer be met by traditional the- ories of American government. The business age had produced the business specialist or millionaire, and the labor specialist or union, and the political special- ist or boss. The continued progress of the nation, therefore, demanded the government specialist or re- former. From both of the great parties he came in generous numbers. He overturned many outworn political traditions and the result of his prophesying is known as the "new nationalism" because it answered to the new national consciousness, the new demand for social and industrial freedom, that had evolved since 1870. The new political spirit lid not have its home in any particular state or group of states. The earlier homogeneity of American society had been seriously impaired, and the mass of the people had fallen into definite social groups. The vertical lines of clepvage GENERAL BACKGROUND 245 that divided the political mass into states had come to be far less important than the horizontal lines of cleavage that divided the people into classes. The main political issues no longer concerned the respective powers and rights of states and fed- eral government. These were clearly £ hanged defined and the definitions were agreed to by all parts and parties of the nation. The chief political question was how to meet the social and industrial problems. Whether this was to be done through the exercise of state or federal power seemed to be a matter of little concern. But it was insisted that in every part of the complicated social fabric there must be either state or national control, so that no neutral sphere might be left open to predatory special interests. About the middle of this period a tide of moral earnestness began to swell in American political life. A group of aggressive young reformers began to appear in public life. A new meaning was infused into politics. A vigorous crusade began against vested wrong and problems of national dimensions were boldly attacked. But this progressive movement in politics had to forge new weapons for the strife with special privilege. New The Progressive ,.,. i i . . iii Movement political machinery was invented to prevent the secret rule of monopoly, to allow less power to the political middleman and to produce more direct democracy. Some of the new devices were ballot reform, direct primary nominations, provisions against corruption in elections, the recall of officials, direct 246 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY legislation by initiative and referendum, commission government of cities, and the direct election of United States senators. At the same time a formidable body of national laws, bureaus and commissions was de- vised to deal with questions that transcended the bounds of states. Moreover, a number of movements not related to legislative bodies gave substantial aid in checking social diseases and sweetening common life. In these ways did the progressive movement in politics express itself. Its total effect was to curb the tyranny of special privilege and at the same time to take the sting out of organized socialism. As a matter of practice, the new national spirit tended to strengthen the hands of the federal govern- ment. The business operations of the country had become nationalized and could be controlled only by the exercise of new national powers. The Interstate Commerce Commission was created and from time to time invested with powers touching a Federal great variety of public interests. The Government . . , , . , . , Stren thened national laws against trusts were given effective character and strength- ened the powers of the national government. The national Congress entered new fields also by giving aid to states in their warfare against noxious practices of various kinds. The provision of an elastic currency by means of federal reserve banks under federal con- trol increased the national authority. Of special sig- nificance was the doctrine of the conservation of national resources, the movement in the direction of federal ownership and control of forest lands, mineral GENERAL BACKGROUND 247 lands, swamp lands, water-ways, water-power sites, and so forth. These and many other measures indi- cate that the new nationalism not only strengthens the bonds of union among the states but also multiplies the powers of the central government and increases the force of the nation as such. But it must be empha- sized that this tendency does not for a moment dimin- ish the functions and joys of the individual states that compose the union. This is the chief point of distinction between the spirit of new nationalism that characterizes this period and the spirit of American nationality that characterized the first forty years in the life of the Republic. The churches also gathered new impulses from the age of big business. The communicant membership of the churches multiplied more than twice as rapidly during the period as the general population of the nation. It grew from six and one-half millions, or eighteen per cent of the population in 1870, to thirty- five millions or forty-three per cent of the population in 1910. This great New Problems increase in relative strength of Amer- J! r f ° Churches ican Christianity gave the churches a sense of increased responsibility. At the same time the growing complexity of American society forced them to deal with special problems. The immense stream of immigration that poured into this country during these forty years and the changing character of that immigration raised a score of problems affect- ing the churches. The Roman Catholic Church received the largest number of the newcomers, but the Lutheran 248 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Church was a close second. And all the churches were obliged to deal with the problems arising out of the congested foreign quarters in the cities, the discour- aging condition of "down-town" churches, the aban- doned country churches, the multiplication of lan- guages, and the sudden migrations from older to newer states. To solve these extraordinary problems a double spirit of enterprise was needed in American Chris- tianity. It was not lacking, because the same spirit of large undertaking that characterized men in the affairs of business and society in general, moved them also in their religious activities. The churches grew and prospered as they grew. The multiplying wealth of the nation was reflected in the department of Church finance. All over the country old and outgrown church buildings were re- placed with large and expensive structures. In every new community, suburban or rural, the church build- ings were among the first to appear. The refined tastes of cities and towns were mani- Stewardship fested in the erection of costly cathe- and Enterprise ., . n , , , „ , drals and large churches of modern character. Expensive church adornments and elabo- rate furnishings became the order of the day. Exact business methods were applied. Budgets were devised and the lists of items were often quite formidable. Local activities were multiplied and in general the calls of benevolence were met with liberality. With the increasing resources of church members a new spirit of stewardship and enterprise was awakened. The new machinery that was invented in the sphere GENERAL BACKGROUND 249 of politics had its religious counterpart in the more intensive organization of the churches. The American churches conceived the absorbing purpose of saving the world and transforming society. And the fulfill- ing of that purpose they reduced to a regular business. To that end they invented agencies and administrators of the widest variety. It was an age of specialists and the religious special- » ten8 » ve . , ., . . Organization ist came on the scene in many guises. Systematic and business-like organization was one of the outstanding characteristics of the Church. In its completeness and enterprise it resembled in many ways the great commercial projects of the period, and in some cases the volume of its transactions rivaled that of the trusts. The Gospel enterprise created com- mittees, societies, leagues, unions, and other organiza- tions innumerable, covering both sexes and every stage of human life, for study, for prayer, for praise, for service, applying to every sort of human need and aimed at every habitation of man. No exigency was overlooked. The churches were filled with a veritable enthusiasm of organization for big business. The new problems that faced American Christianity and the new activities that engaged the churches in these days of big business helped to bring it about that in their attitude towards one another the churches were characterized by a very different spirit from that which prevailed in the period of internal discord. During the middle period American Christians were busy cultivating J>«aiomination a l , . , , . . .j. Toleration schisms and promoting strife among themselves. It was a time of intolerant sectarianism. 250 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY But they were also more or less diligently studying church history. The history they studied was chiefly such as would at once deepen the interest of the indi- vidual denomination in its own inherited modes of thought and work. But continued far enough this study would also tend to weaken sectarian prejudices. The different churches continued to summon their members to a better knowledge of their own past and thus to stronger denominational attachments. But in addition they now began to summon their members to a cessation of denominational rivalry and strife. Each communion had become more conscious of its own historic life, but now also more conscious of a mightier life common to them all and historic in a far grander sense than any of them. The continued study of church history led men to see that the various types of Christian life represented in the various Christian Churches might be different without being necessarily in conflict. This did not mean a return to the conditions that prevailed in the youth of the Republic. Confessional laxity and the desire for uniformity among the de- nominations in matters of belief or ritual or adminis- tration that prevailed in the early period did not reappear, but there was simply an inextinguishable longing for something like intellectual The New toleration, for the laying aside of the Denomina- .<■<■ M1 , . , . , .-, ,. ill-will and jealousies and the consci- tionalism entious hostility that battled in the middle period. As in political life there had come to be a clear definition of rights as between states and GENERAL BACKGROUND 251 federal authority and a clear division of labor between them so as to cover the whole field of governmental need, recognizing that the nation must command the supreme allegiance of all the states and at the same time insisting that the rights of the states be freely asserted and frankly admitted by the national author- ity, so in religious life the supreme allegiance of the churches to Jesus Christ did not hinder them from remaining true to their separate histories and culti- vating their denominational consciousness, while yet arranging among themselves such a division of sphere and labor as should leave no territory unoccupied to become the camping ground of such special privilege as the world, the flesh, and the devil. Such was the spirit among the denominations: toleration for all Christians together with a deepening of denomina- tional life and interest. It runs quite parallel to the new nationalism that in large measure quenched the fires of sectionalism, and it may very well be termed "the new denominationalism." As a matter of practice this did not mean a trend in the direction of church union, but towards the con- solidation of the denominations, each within itself. Many facts illustrate this, such as the Pan-Presby- terian Alliance, the Ecumenical Methodist Confer- ences, the World-Baptist Congress, and the various efforts of the smaller sects to return to the larger bodies from which they Consolidating ■■I 1.1 «. *n j-i l Denominations had split off. All these movements began in this period. Unionism among the churches had passed, but sectarianism also was passing and the 252 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY dignified growth of tolerant denominationalism be- came the order of the day. At the beginning of the nineteenth century Christians had fought against sec- tarianism. But their results were not lasting because they were mistaken in their methods. By seeking to hide the manifold life of Christianity beneath the tem- porary cloak of evangelicalism they had threatened to turn the Church Universal into one vast sect. The reaction could not fail to come, and in the middle period men hugged sectarianism in fond embrace. The end of the century heard another protest against all forms of narrow sectarianism. But this time there was little effort at artificial fusion of the churches and no tendency whatever to surrender distinctive tenets, but a calm and frank recognition of a unity of motive in the diversity of method. This meant for American Christianity in general an increase in what is sometimes called churchliness. In some quarters it meant also an in- General crease in confessionalism, in others Significance . . ,. . ,. . - an increase m particular theories of church polity. Everywhere it meant a decided increase in the enterprise of evangelization, both at home and abroad. In the history of the Lutheran Church in this period, therefore, we shall expect to find a deepening of our Church consciousness and an Significance for increase in loyalty to historic Luther- anism in doctrine and worship and practice, while at the same time we shall expect to find a more tolerant attitude towards all Christians every- GENERAL BACKGROUND 253 where. We shall expect to witness the workings of a new spirit of enterprise and large undertaking in the proper business of our Church. We shall expect to learn of the rapid growth and zealous activity of new general bodies of Lutherans in this country. We shall expect to see "American Lutheranism" and internal discord give place to that 'Tan - Lutheranism" and mutual understanding that foreshadows an age of larger units. QUESTIONS 1. What changes in the population of the United States took place between 1870 and 1910? 2. Describe the economic expansion that took place during this period. 3. How did the consolidation of business affect the public interest? 4. What were the social results of big business combinations? 5. What were the political effects of the new economic developments? 6. What is meant by the New Nationalism in' politics? 7. What was the program of the progressive movement in politics? 8. What was the effect of the New Nationalism on the powers of the federal government? 9. What new problems for the Churches emerged from the changed economic conditions? 10. How did the Churches exhibit the spirit of enterprise? 11. How did the new spirit of the times change the general attitude of the Churches toward one another? 12. How did the new denominationalism of this period of big business differ from the unionism that prevailed in the youth of the Republic? 13. What does the new temper of the times mean for the gen- eral course of events among Lutherans in this period? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Theodore Roosevelt and the New Nationalism History of Socialism in the United States The New Immigrant 254 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY The Deepening and Broadening of Education in America since the Civil War The New South The Genesis of the Social Gospel Nullifying the Blue Laws Large Gifts for Benevolence Jane Addams and Hull House Social Agencies of the Churches The Relations of the Churches with Labor History of the Y. M. C. A. SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Susan B. Anthony Clara Barton Henry Ward Beecher W. D. P. Bliss William Booth Phillips Brooks Neal Dow Mary Baker G. Eddy Richard T. Ely Washington Gladden John B. Gough Julia Ward Howe Dwight L. Moody Francis G. Peabody Terence V. Powderly Walter Rauschenbusch Josiah Strong Graham Taylor Frances E. Willard BIBLIOGRAPHY Bacon, L. W., A History of American Christianity. 1897. Pages 351-373. Beard, Charles A. and Mary R., The Rise of American Civiliza- tion. 1927. Vol. II, pp. 166-479. Elson, H. W., History of the United States. 1914. Pages 813- 911. Nevins, Allan, The Emergence of Modern America, 1865-1878. 1927. Pages 318-348. Sweet, W. W., The Story of Religions in America. 1930. Pages 495-523. West, W. M., American History and Government. 1913. Pages 642-748. CHAPTER XIX GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE The confirmed membership of the Lutheran Church in the United States increased in this period from less than half a million to nearly two and a quarter mil- lions. This was the largest relative increase made during this period by any of the large denominations. The number of Lutherans passed the number of Pres- byterians, and the Lutheran Church advanced from fourth to third place JjJ^jJ^ among the Protestant Churches in the country. Only the Methodists and the Baptists sur- passed her numbers. Much of this increase was due to the strong tides of immigration that flowed into the country from Germany and the Scandinavian lands. It not only swelled the numbers of her membership and expanded her reach into the West and Northwest, but it also presented a great home missionary chal- lenge and infused the spirit of enterprise into every line of the Church's benevolence. The immigration of Germans had been greatly re- duced by the outbreak of the Civil War. But a few years after the close of the war a high wave began to roll in again. From 1866 until 1873 they came at the rate of one hundred and thirty thou- (; erman sand a year. Then the American panic „ . ___ , , .. , , , , Immigrants of 1873 reduced the numbers by about two-thirds. In 1880 another upward bound began and 1882 was the record year with more than a quarter 255 256 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY of a million German immigrants. After 1885 the numbers steadily declined, reaching the lowest point in 1898 with seventeen thousand immigrants. This was due to Germany's great growth as an industrial nation, less severe military duty, the disappearance of free land in America, and the increasing competition in the United States with cheap labor from southern and southeastern Europe. After the beginning of the twentieth century Germans came at the rate of about twenty thousand annually and directed their course chiefly to the western provinces of Canada. The German immigrants of the period, aggregating more than three million souls, were not uniformly devoted to the Church. Many of them were people of culture and education. But they differed from the German immigrants of earlier periods in that they were chiefly interested in gaining economic and com- mercial advantages. Many of them Their Motives became prominent in technical and and Location „ . . . , professional branches. Large numbers of them went to swell the churchless multitudes of the land. These Germans went to all parts of the country and greatly enlarged the responsibilities of the Lutheran Church all over the land. But the largest numbers of them settled on the belt that spreads west- ward between the Ohio River and the Great Lakes and onward into the neighboring two tiers of trans-Mis- sissippi states. All the large cities received tens of thousands of them, but the zone of densest German settlement lay along the shores of Lakes Ontario, Erie and Michigan, along the Ohio River and down the GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 257 Mississippi from St. Paul to St. Louis. The Lutheran bodies in the Middle West were confronted with a tremendous home missionary opportunity and every Lutheran synod in the land felt an unprecedented im- pulse to missionary activity. Another source of numerical increase of the Church at this time was Scandinavian immigration. More than a million and three-quarters of Scandinavians came to America during these forty years. They made essential contributions to the size and spirit of the Lutheran Church. One-half of them came from Sweden, one-third from Norway, and one-sixth from Denmark. The num- f^? inav ^ n ber of these Northmen who came dur- ing the middle period of the nineteenth century was never very large. Before the Civil War they did not average two thousand a year. But the glowing reports that these pioneers sent back to the fatherland, the alluring terms of the American homestead act of 1862, and the revival of business after the war, caused a rapid increase in the number of immigrants from these northern kingdoms until in 1882 it reached the high-water mark of more than one hundred thousand. Towards the end of the century financial stagnation in the United States produced a great decline in the number of immigrants. But the revival of prosperity in the first few years of the new century greatly swelled the number again until in 1903 seventy-seven thousand arrived. After that date the figures dimin- ished rapidly for the same reasons that German immi- gration also declined at that tjme. 258 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY The Scandinavian immigrants of this period came to America to better their economic conditions. This is indicated by the way their numbers fluctuated with the changes in American business conditions. It is also indicated by the location of their settlements in the New World. The stream of immigration from Scandinavian lands wore a definite Their Motives channel from eastern ports like New York and Boston to the gateways of the Northwest such as Chicago and Milwaukee. From these points it flowed out over the wilderness of the upper Mississippi Valley. It was the rich, unoccupied farming lands of that region that attracted them. Min- nesota became their chief home, and before the end of the period had a Scandinavian population of over a million. Other states that received large numbers of the Northmen were Wisconsin, the Dakotas, Illinois, Michigan, and Iowa. During the later decades, with an increase in the proportion of skilled laborers, espe- cially among the Swedes, some of the eastern cities, such as New York and Brooklyn and the cities of New England, have retained a considerable proportion. But fully three-fourths of them were massed in the fertile agricultural region of the Northwest. Nearly all of these Swedes, Norwegians and Danes were potential materials for the Lutheran Church in America. But they came in such huge numbers and were so thoroughly massed together on the American frontier that it was not possible for the Lutheran Church in America to reach them and assimilate them. GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 259 Then, too, they were so engrossed in their business and industrial occupations, and many of them were so glad to be free from the rigors of the State Churches in Europe, that they ^ h jj^jjjjjjjjj were not zealous in forming Church organizations among themselves. It is estimated that only seven per cent of the Danes joined any Church, not more than twenty per cent of the Swedes, and somewhat less than thirty per cent of the Norwegians. Nevertheless, the synods that had been formed among the Swedes and Norwegians during the preceding period received very large accessions from the new tide of immigration in this period. Ever since the Swedes and Norwegians withdrew from the Synod of Northern Illinois in 1860, the Scan- dinavian Lutherans in America have developed their work for the most part independently of the other Lutheran bodies. In 1870 the Scandinavian Augustana Synod, which had been organized ten years earlier as we have seen, separated peacefully into the Swedish Augustana and the Nor- TheAugustana wegian Augustana Synods. The for- mer, now a purely Swedish body, began to respond energetically to the great home missionary challenge arising out of the presence of such a large number of their countrymen. The spirit of enterprise took possession of the organization and in twenty-five years it grew from sixteen thousand members to a hundred thousand, and in the next twenty-five years doubled 260 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY that number. Meanwhile several educational institu- tions were established to supplement the work of the schools at Rock Island. Gustavus Adolphus College at St. Peter, Minnesota, dates from 1862, Bethany College at Lindsborg, Kansas, was opened in 1881, and Upsala College at Kenilworth, New Jersey, in 1893. The internal history of the Augustana Synod, as re- lated in the next chapter, clearly shows the effects of its remarkable progress in numbers and benevolence. The Synod was not without its inner conflicts, but the growth and activity of the body were exhilarating to its members and it succeeded in unifying the great Swedish constituency of the Lutheran Church in America. Its theological thought was steadily directed into conservative channels by Dr. T. N. Hasselquist, who for more than a quarter of a century was presi- dent of Augustana College and a teacher in the Theo- logical Seminary there and editor of the Augustana, the official organ of the Synod. But the Norwegians were even more successful in gathering their countrymen into the Lutheran Church. The Norwegian Lutheran Synod, organized in 1853, with only twenty-eight congregations, grew rapidly during this period until it embraced a membership of more than a hundred fifty thousand. For several years the Norwegian Synod was a member Lmher a r r s egian of the German Synodical Conference. But the largest body of Norwegian Lutherans was formed in 1890, when the strong Anti- Missouri Brotherhood, which had separated from the Norwegian Synod, united with the strong Norwegian- GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 261 Danish Conference, and the smaller Norwegian Augustana Synod, and organized the United Nor- wegian Church. This body numbered more than a quarter of a million members before the end of the period. Altogether the various organizations of Nor- wegian Lutherans in this country counted over half a million members in 1910. Their chief seminary is at St. Paul, Minnesota. Their largest college is St. Olaf College at Northfield, Minnesota, founded in 1874. Luther College at Decorah, Iowa, dates from 1861. Another large institution is Concordia College at Moorhead, Minnesota, which was opened in 1891. They have their official organs, the Norwegian in Lutheraneren, the English in The United Lutheran. With a variety of organization and a multitude of problems to distract them, the Norwegian Lutherans have yet labored manfully for unity among themselves, and they have manifested great zeal in all lines of missions and benevolence. The Danish immigrants effected two Church organ- izations. The first began in 1872 and is called the Danish Lutheran Church in America. It claimed to be a branch of the national church of Denmark and received aid from the Danish government, but it never numbered more than fifteen thousand members. The second organization began in 1884 when many of the Danes in the Nor- P anish t% • i r* j> ,,, , Lutheran Bodies wegian-Danish Conference withdrew from that body. In 1896 they united with those who had separated from the Danish Lutheran Church in America because of its false doctrine and its State- 262 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Church ideas, and formed the United Danish Lutheran Church in America. This organization is only slightly larger than the older body of Danish Lutherans. The Danes have been much distracted by factional differ- ences on questions of polity and of practice, and have not been so successful as the Swedes and Norwegians in gathering their immigrant countrymen into their churches or even in maintaining their hold on their own sons and daughters. From the figures that have been enumerated it will be seen that more than three-fourths of the Scandi- navian immigrants did not unite with the Lutheran Church. A very small percentage of them united with other American Churches. The vast majority of them, therefore, constituted a "Lutheran constituency" and presented a most inviting mission field for the Lu- theran Church in this country, espe- TheHome cially for the Lutheran Church of Challenge Scandinavian origin. The sturdy per- sonal qualities of the Scandinavians together with their uniform loyalty to historic Luther- anism impelled them to take up the challenge and enter the field. The result was a high spirit of enter- prise among the Swedes and Norwegians, a vigorous development of the practical activities of the Church, and as these Scandinavians constituted nearly one- fourth of all the Lutherans in America, their whole- some spirit reacted favorably on the entire Lutheran Church. Even apart from the increase due to the immigra- tion of European Lutherans, much of the growth in GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 263 the Church is accounted for by the natural increase of the Lutheran population in America and by the aggressive missionary spirit that began to pervade all branches of the Church. The impulse of big business was strongly felt in the benevolences and the practical affairs of the Church. We have seen that in 1869 the General Synod centralized its chief branches of benevolence and put them in the hands of general boards. In this way the Enterprise ^ i o j i ± in the Older General Synod was prepared to go „ ,. forward rapidly in its work when the new spirit of enterprise visited American Christianity. The energies and resources of the entire general body were marshalled behind the several lines of benevolent operation. Other general bodies were quick to see the practical advantages of thus unifying their benevolent forces instead of dividing them up among the district synods, and as rapidly as their theories of church polity would permit they proceeded to manufacture the new machinery necessary for the most effective combination of agencies. The result was seen not only in the more effective work in older lines of benevo- lence but also in the new branches of benevolence that began to receive cultivation and in the new fields that were opened by missionary agencies. The General Synod and the General Council vied with each other in sending their home mission agents westward across the Westward Mississippi Valley and then across Movement , , tv , . , j. j i t-» •/» °f tM e General the Rockies and on to the Pacific g . no(1 Coast. One by one the most strategic places were occupied. The only limit to the harvest 264 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY was the lack of laborers to man the fields. The Gen- eral Synod forces moved due westward from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, while the General Council claimed the great Northwest as its territory. The new synods that were formed indicate the line of march. We have seen that the Kansas Synod was organized in 1868 and joined the General Synod. Then came the Nebraska Synod in 1871, the Rocky Mountain Synod in 1891, and the California Synod the same year. The General Synod was specially concerned to care for the English Lutherans who had migrated from the East. But it also helped to organize the immigrant Germans. The German Wartburg Synod sprang from the Central Illinois Synod in 1872 and united with the General Synod, and the German Nebraska Synod, organized in 1890, also joined the General Synod. This westward expansion of the General Synod, to- gether with the increases in the older parts of the body more than tripled its membership. The spirit of large undertaking was infused into its work, so that while the numbers in the General Synod were tripled the benevolences of the body increased General Synod ten-fold. The Board of Home Missions was thoroughly organized to explore the land and plant the Church. In these forty years the Board expended more than a million and a half of dollars, and established over six hundred new congre- gations, which of themselves contributed more than five million dollars for benevolence. In this work sub- stantial aid was given by the Board of Church Exten- sion, whose assets at the end of the period were ap- proaching a million dollars. GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 265 The lack of pastors for the English Lutheran con- gregations of the western synods called for a college farther west than Carthage, Illinois. Accordingly, in 1887 Midland College was founded at Atchison, Kansas, and in connection with it the Western Theo- logical Seminary was opened in 1893. These institutions were afterwards „\, an College removed to Fremont, Nebraska. Not a few of the graduates from older institutions in the East heeded the call to the inviting fields in the West. The Germans of the General Synod were the special object of care to Dr. J. D. Severinghaus. He brought pastors for them from Germany, especially from Brek- lum Seminary. In 1883 he established a German Semi- nary in Chicago, but thirteen years later the Wartburg and the German Nebraska Synods took charge of the work and transferred it The Germans to Atchison. The German Nebraska gy n t ^ General Synod afterwards established its own seminary, the Martin Luther Seminary at Lincoln, Nebraska. The German element in the General Synod founded its own publishing house at Burlington, Iowa, and its own church paper, the Lutherischer Zionsbote. But the General Synod became constantly more En- glish and in 1910 only one-tenth of its pastors and congregations used the German language. The care of the Lutherans from Germany devolved most largely on other Lutheran bodies. In the General Council it was the Pittsburgh Synod that carried on home missionary work most exten- sively. It sent missionaries to Canada, Minnesota and 266 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Texas, and laid the foundation for the synods that were afterwards organized in these parts. The mov- ing spirit in this work was Dr. Passavant. The work was furthered and co-ordinated by the General Coun- cil's English and German Mission Westward Boards after these were established. Expansion rpj^ missionary operations were Council pushed with special zeal in the fertile Lutheran territory of the Northwest. Very early in this period when the principles of the General Council were finally determined, a number of the synods that had engaged in the earlier negotiations withdrew from the organization. Such were the Wis- consin, Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan Synods. All of these joined the Missourians in the Synodical Con- ference. But the General Council made good these losses by its missionary advance into the Northwest. In 1871 it organized the Chicago Synod, until 1896 called the Indiana Synod. Then in 1891 came the English Synod of the Northwest. This was organized in order to conserve the many English missions that the General Council had established at strategical points in Wisconsin, Minnesota, the Dakotas, Utah, and Washington. In that same year a number of Ger- man congregations in the Canadian Northwest were united in the Manitoba Synod. Then in the organiza- tion of the Pacific Synod in 1901 out of the western part of the Synod of the Northwest, the General Coun- cil also reached the Pacific Coast. Immediately the work was pushed northward, and the Nova Scotia Synod was formed out of the Pittsburgh Synod in GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 267 1903 while the Central Canada Synod was organized by the General Council Board in 1908. These new synods flourished, and to supply their educational needs new schools were established. Thiel College was established in 1870 and finally located at Greenville, Pennsylvania. Wagner College was founded at Rochester, New York, in 1883, and afterwards transferred to Staten Island. Dr. Passavant was in- strumental in establishing the Chicago Theological Seminary in 1891 and under Dr. Weidner's direction it grew to great New Colleges . and seminaries usefulness, particularly in furnishing ministerial supplies for the English congregations of the Northwest. The German Canada Synod and the Central Canada Synod drew their ministers largely from the Kropp Seminary in Germany, but when this source of supply was cut off in 1913 these two synods began to maintain their own seminary at Waterloo, Ontario. The Manitoba Synod has its school at Sas- katoon since 1913. The Pacific Synod in 1911 founded a theological seminary at Portland, Oregon, but soon removed it to Seattle, Washington. Thus the geo- graphical line of the educational advance also reached the Pacific Coast. But while the missionary forces of the Church were following the westward movement of the population across the continent, they were at the same time help- ing to solve the problems growing out of the enormous increase of city population in the East. The growth of urban population was one of the striking character- 268 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY istics of the business age. It called for a high spirit of enterprise on the part of the Church. All parts of the Lutheran Church responded to Emerge ^ the calL A variet y of methods were employed, many hands were laid to the work, and a multiplicity of organizations was formed to minister to the spiritual needs of the expanding population. City missions and inner missions came on the scene with their respective boards, committees, and superintendents. The result was that the eastern synods grew rapidly in size and strength. They gath- ered the same spirit of enterprise from the conscious- ness of their rapid growth as the newly formed synods farther west gathered from the enthusiasm of their youth. In greater New York City alone, where at the close of the Civil War there were only two English Lutheran churches and twenty-two others, and where in 1870 there were only thirty-four in all, in 1910 there were no less than one hundred and thirty-four Lutheran churches, and in 1918 one hundred and sixty-six. Lutheranism had become a force to be reck- oned with in the religious life of the nation's metropo- lis. Similar progress was made in the other large cities of the land. But with all her large increases in city population during this period, the Lutheran Church continued to be predominantly a rural Church. Her membership in the country districts did not show the losses that many other denominations showed but grew and multiplied, so that in 1910 three-fourths of her members were found in rural communities and towns of less than 25,000 people. GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 269 The spirit of enterprise that characterized the Church in this period is further indicated by her for- eign missionary achievements. In 1869 the field among the Telugus in India was divided, the Guntur station being assigned to the General Synod and the Rajah- mundry station to the General Council. The two mis- sions maintained most cordial rela- tions. The work was well supported JHmmwm™ by the Church both with men and with means. The number of the missionaries increased to thirty. The outstanding names are Unangst, Harp- ster and Uhl, of the General Synod, and Heyer, and Schmidt of the General Council. More than a thousand native workers were employed in Christian work. A hospital and a college were established at Guntur, and the medical and educational work of the mission re- ceived wide recognition. In 1910 the native mem- bership on this field was nearly fifty thousand. The mission established on the west coast of Africa by the General Synod through Morris Officer took an awful toll of the lives of missionaries because of the deadly climate. But reinforcements arrived from time to time and this n rica mission furnished many examples of heroic faith and courage. The name of Dr. David A. Day is closely associated with the mission because he succeeded in continuing his splendid labors on that field for more than twenty years before the dread African fever carried him off. In Japan the Lutheran Church of America was first represented by the United Synod of the South. In 270 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 1892 work was begun in the city of Saga on the island of Kyushu. The mission soon extended its work to other cities on that island. The Gen- ii japan era j Council co-operated in this work and in 1908 also established its own mission in Tokyo. Thus was laid the foundation of a large missionary undertaking in that progressive Empire. The total contributions for foreign missions in the General Synod, the General Council, and the United Synod of the South during the last biennium of this period reached the half million mark. The foreign missionary activity of the Joint Synod of Ohio and the German Synod of Iowa was carried on through the societies of Germany. The MfeT Fmtden work of the Missouri Synod calls for a separate statement. The Scandinavians responded right nobly to the call of the foreign mission enterprise. The Augustana Synod co-operated with the General Council in its work in India, and in addi- tion helped the societies of Sweden to carry on a very successful work in China. The Norwegian Lutherans in America also were very active in China, and their different bodies contributed $118,000 to this work in 1915. The Norwegians are likewise laboring exten- sively in the southern part of Madagascar. Altogether the various bodies of Lutherans in America in 1910 were making an annual expenditure for missions and other benevolences of two and a half millions of dollars and for local purposes an additional ten millions. These facts and figures, concerning the growth in the numbers of Lutherans and the expansion of their GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 271 benevolences, represent a splendid advance over pre- ceding achievements along all lines. They show that the Church was alert to avail herself of every oppor- tunity to help establish the Kingdom of God on earth. She was ready to employ all manner of organization that a highly organized society could suggest. She made use of the newest inventions of science and the most approved methods of business in that scientific business age. She quick- Significance , „ , , , , of the New ened all her movements to keep pace Advance with those strenuous times. She ac- cepted the peculiar responsibility devolving upon her tc minister the age-old Gospel to the new needs of a rapidly growing nation. She no longer apologized for her existence on this continent, nor did she try to tone down her distinguishing characteristics. With a strong appeal to her membership for deeper devotion and more intense loyalty she drew together her forces, conserved her faith and her talent, and quietly pro- ceeded to make her impress on the land of her adop- tion and to take her place as one of the outstanding forces in American Christianity of the twentieth cen- tury. But great as was the advance during the days of big business, these facts and figures are only a dim prophecy of much greater things yet to come. QUESTIONS 1. How did the number of Lutherans in America grow from 1870 to 1910 and with what effect? 2. Show the fluctuation of German immigration during this period. 3. What was new in the spirit of these German immigrants and where did they locate? 272 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY 4. Indicate the increase in immigration from Scandinavian lands during these forty years. 5. What were the chief homes of the Scandinavian im- migrants? 6. What was the attitude of the Scandinavian immigrants towards the Church? 7. Show how the Swedish Lutherans responded to their home missionary challenge. 8. How did the Norwegian Lutherans organize and develop their Church in America? 9. What are the two church organizations among the Danish Lutherans in America? 10. How did the presence of a "Lutheran constituency" affect the life of the Church? 11. Show by statistics and the names of district synods how the General Synod expanded westward. 12. What new educational institutions were established by the General Synod? 13. Show how the General Council expanded into the North- west. 14. How do the new colleges and seminaries indicate the educa- tional advance? 15. How did the Lutheran Church grow in the large cities of the land? 16. What progress was made on the foreign mission fields, in India, in Africa, in Japan, and in China? 17. What do these facts and figures indicate with reference to the general spirit of the Lutheran Church in America? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Lutheran Church and the Rural Districts German Immigration to America since the Civil War The Economic Influence of Scandinavians in America Baptists and Methodists among the Swedes in America Recent Religious Movements in the Scandinavian Countries Relations between the Norwegian Lutherans and the German Lutherans in America The History of St. Olaf College Mormons among the Danes in America A "Lutheran Constituency" Home Mission Relations between the General Council and the General Synod The Breklum-Kropp Seminary The Beginnings of English Lutheranism in the Northwest Lutheran Educational Institutions on Foreign Mission Fields The Career of Ole Bull GROWTH IN NUMBERS AND BENEVOLENCE 273 SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Samuel Bacon Barnitz Wilhelm Heinrich Berkemeier David A. Day- John Ericsson George Henry Gerberding John Henry Harpster Gjermund Hoyne Samuel Christian Kinsinger Anna S. Kugler John Diederich Lankenau Henry Warren Roth J. A. B. Scherer J. D. Severinghaus Georg Sverdrup Louis Thiel Lemuel L. Uhl Erias Unangst Revere Franklin Weidner BIBLIOGRAPHY Babcock, K. C, The Scandinavian Element in the United States. A Study of Scandinavian Immigration and Its Results. 1914. (With detailed bibliography.) Bille, J. H., A History of the Danes in America. 1896. Burgess, E. B., Memorial History of the Pittsburgh Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. 1925. Pages 121-164. Dau, W. H. T. (editor), Ebenezer. 1922. Pages 332-406. Drach, G. (editor), Our Church Abroad. The Foreign Missions of the Lutheran Churches in America. 1926. Faust, A. B., The German Element in the United States. 1909. Vol. I, pp. 391-591. Gerberding, G. H., Life and Letters of W. A. Passavant, D.D. 1906. Pages 194-220, 354-388, 501-574. , Reminiscent Reflections of a Youthful Octo- genarian. 1928. Nelson, O. N., History of the Scandinavians and Successful Scandinavians in the United States. 2 Volumes. 1900. Parson, W. E., Samuel Bacon Barnitz, Missionary and Western Secretary. 1905. Stephenson, G. M., The Religious Aspects of Swedish Immigra- tion. 1932. Pages 196-331. Trabert, G. H., English Lutheranism in the Northwest. 1914. Wenner, G. U., The Lutherans of New York. 1918. Pages 41-69. Wolf, L. B. (editor), Missionary Heroes of the Lutheran Church. 1911. Pages 145-170, 199-246. CHAPTER XX THE INNER DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD* Nowhere was the spirit of expansion and enterprise more evident in this period than among the Swedish Lutherans of America. It was the period of most rapid growth and greatest internal changes in the Augustana Synod. In order to understand this internal develop- ment it will be necessary to go back beyond the time when the synod was organized. For Historical the genera i character of the body and r oundations its main lines of progress rest back upon the earlier history of the congregations that helped to constitute the Synod in 1860. The founda- tions of the synodical structure were wisely estab- lished by the pioneers long before the swelling tide of immigration in this period put the edifice to its sever- est test. The Swedish settlements on the Delaware River in the seventeenth century lost all contact with old Swe- den in the next century, and all immigration from Sweden to America ceased. At the A N . ew . , beginning of the nineteenth century fm^adon the common P eo P le of Sweden knew nothing of the old colony of their countrymen on the Delaware, and when in the fifth decade of that century the spirit of emigration began to move again among the Lutheran parishes of * For most of the materials embodied in this chapter the author is indebted to the Rev. Conrad Bergendoff of the Augustana Synod. 274 DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 275 Sweden, the old Lutheran churches on the Delaware had passed out of Lutheran hands and so gave neither impulse nor direction to the new stream of Swedish immigration. It is wholly to this new current, there- fore, that the Lutheran Church of America owes her stalwart Swedish constituency today. At the beginning of that fifth decade of the nine- teenth century the King of Sweden inaugurated a liberal policy and gave his subjects the privilege of emigrating without securing a special permit and paying a heavy fee. As early as 1841 Gustaf Unonius and a number of companions took ad- vantage of that privilege and settled p. non T m f at a small colony of Swedes at Pine Lake, Wisconsin. Unonius became a familiar figure in the religious history of the early Swedish settlements in the West. But he and his party were not the sort to effect a successful settlement in a new country and their colony soon came to nought. Of greater vitality was the settlement under the leadershp of Erik Janson in 1846. The Jansonites were religious fanatics who believed in their leader's inspiration and their own sinlessness. Persecuted in Sweden they emigrated to America and set up a com- munistic regime in the Bishop Hill Colony in Illinois. To this place their e ansomtes perverted religious enthusiasm attracted hundreds of families from Sweden during the next ten years. The colony went the way of similar religious ventures and about 1860 internal dissension and immorality com- bined to dissolve the organization. But its members 276 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY must be counted among the vanguard of Swedish im- migration to America. But the great body of Swedish immigrants did not come, like the Jansonites, in search of greater civil and religious liberty. Their dominant motive was eco- nomic. The Swedes were by nature industrious and thrifty. But their opportunities in Sweden were lim- ited by land conditions over which the Emigration peasantry had no control. The land li 1*0 j"|i Suf don was poor and unequally divided. The wealth of the country and the best part of the land was concentrated in a few hands, and a large portion of the intelligent and prudent classes were compelled to drag out their lives in poverty. When, therefore, letters from America began to reach the quiet hamlets of Sweden telling of the great land of opportunity beyond the Atlantic, the fever of emigration spread among the people and thousands set their faces stead- fastly towards the West. Newspapers and other cur- rent literature spread the fever. Emigrant societies also aided the movement. And in the beginning of the sixth decade the tide of emigration began to flow strongly. Most of these Swedish immigrants found homes in the Middle West. Only small groups remained behind in Massachusetts and New York. En- Settling the tering at the port of New York their Middle West , , - , , , , usual route of travel was up the Hudson to Albany, from there on the Erie Canal to Buffalo, and then through the Lakes to Chicago. From this point they made their way inland to Illinois, DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 277 Iowa and Minnesota. Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin also received scattered bands. The chief agents in determining their course of travel were two Swedish preachers, the brothers Olof and Jonas Hedstrom, the one in New York, the other in Illinois. Not until the closing years of the century did the cities of the East offer industrial and commercial advantages attractive enough to detain any considerable number of the im- migrants there. Meanwhile individuals and groups struck out to distant points, such as Texas, Florida and California. Of late years in particular the Great Northwest has drawn large numbers to its forests and cities. So that within half a century Swedish immi- grants have penetrated to nearly every State in the Union. But the Middle West has always continued to be the home of the vast majority. Much that was distinctly Swedish these destitute pil- grims in a foreign land had left behind forever. But not their religious devotion or their Lutheran convic- tions. Amid the hardships of pioneer life they per- sistently cultivated their faith. At many places the settlers came together regularly each week and selected one of their own Calling for number to lead the Sunday worship until an ordained pastor could be obtained. Those early days do not present the picture of pastors seek- ing congregations but rather of congregations seeking pastors. The Church of Sweden paid little attention to her sons and daughters in America, and not until a native ministry could be trained were the congrega- tions even tolerably well cared for. 278 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY But among the pastors in Sweden were many who had witnessed with anxious eyes the departure of their parishioners for America. Not a few of these pastors felt that the Church of Sweden was Esbjorn g ^j reg p 0nS xble for those members. Such a one was Lars P. Esbjorn. With only a small subsidy from the Swedish Mission- ary Society he left his native Church and came to America in 1849. Following his countrymen west- ward his first field of labor presented itself at Andover, Illinois. Esbjorn is considered by Swedish Lutherans much as Muhlenberg is considered by those of German ex- traction. He was the real founder of the Augustana Synod. The labors of other pioneers may have been more evident in the superstructure, but the strong foundations were laid by Esbjorn. He was an indefatigable missionary and preached in new Swedish settlements near and far. He also traveled extensively among Eastern Lutherans to enlist their support of his work in Illinois. The patriarch of Swedish Lutherans in America en- countered many difficulties in his work. Not only did he contend with the poverty and hardship that was common to all pioneer communities, but he had also to face opposition within and without his Church. The immigrants held dearly to their Lutheran faith, but many of them were bitterly opposed Difficulties to the gtate church and its forms and From Within ... A » A representatives. As free Americans they stoutly refused to be bound again by what they DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 279 considered the "bonds and bands" of the Church of Sweden. Yielding somewhat to this spirit of opposi- tion, Esbjorn made certain changes in the forms pre- scribed by the Swedish Church Book. In matters of garb also compromises were made. But the opposi- tion was never strong enough to force changes in essentials, and gradually it became clear that Swedish Lutheranism in America did not mean a State Church regime. More stubborn and of greater injury was the oppo- sition that Esbjorn's work encountered from without. Interlopers were busy. Swedish Methodist ministers early sought to win the newcomers away from their traditional faith. In some communities they succeeded. The Hedstrom brothers were Methodist, and their strategic positions helped them in their efforts to turn the Swedish Lu- Opposition ^ therans to Methodism. Later came Baptist intruders and threw many a peaceful settle- ment into turmoil. From the first, too, the Episcopal Church tried to win the State Church Lutherans who had lived under episcopal organization in Sweden. As early as 1849 Unonius had organized a Scandinavian Episcopal Church in America, and as late as 1874 Bishop Whitehouse officially proposed a union of the Augustana Synod with the Episcopal Church. Against all these disrupting tendencies, however, the pioneer churches with few exceptions held their ground and grew constantly more Lutheran in conviction and practice. The discussions that grew out of these con- tacts with other churches only clarified the issues and 280 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY strengthened the faith both of the pastors and the congregations of Swedish Lutherans. And everywhere during those formative years the pioneers felt the steadying hand of Lars P. Esbjorn. The number of Swedish settlements in the land was constantly increasing as the tide of immigration con- tinued to flow, and the call for pastors grew louder and louder. The call met with only a small response in Sweden, but the sterling quality of the few who came did much to help fill the need. They were de- voted souls and wise leaders. Three Hasselqmst years after Esbjorn had begun his work in America, T. N. Hasselquist came to Galesburg, and the next year Erland Carlsson arrived at Chicago. Both of these men were to have a large part in determining the character of the Augus- tana Synod. They encouraged talented and consecrated young men of the congregations to prepare themselves for the Gospel ministry and to receive licensure and ordination. They themselves undertook the work of teaching these younger men and thus gradually built up a native ministry that developed the work along the substantial lines laid down by the leaders. The ten years preceding 1860 were decisive for the temper and policy of the future Augustana Synod. During this period congregations con- Carlsson tinued to grow in size and in number 5 through Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota. Immanuel Church in Chicago came to have an important place. This was due to the leadership of Erland Carlsson. In the constitution that he pre- DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 281 pared for his own congregation and the Swedish churches in Indiana he laid down the principles that were afterwards adopted by the congregations of the entire synod. His basis for membership in the con- gregations occupies middle ground between the com- prehensive character of a State Church and the exclu- sive nature of sectarian congregations. In external practice Carlsson fearlessly adhered to the forms of the Swedish Church, and in this respect he exerted a profound influence on his brethren. Several parties were striving at that time for supremacy in the Church in Sweden, but Carlsson wisely refrained from identifying himself with any of these. He was above all else a zealous Christian and he set an example of sane, practical religion that left its traces on the synod with whose early life he was so closely identified. In home mission activity and educational work Carlsson started lines of development that are still unfinished. At the same time that Carlsson was working in Chicago, Hasselquist in Galesburg and other places was impressing on the formative congregations some- thing of his own simple, earnest piety. His visits were everywhere appreciated and his preaching had lasting effects on the hungering souls to whom he ministered the Word. He was a Hasselquist e , i T-.M i .in Galesburg prince oi preachers and Bible exposi- tors and Swedish Lutherans still regard him as the ideal of the evangelical pulpit. Through the printed page Hasselquist reached countless more than he reached in person, and long before his periodical be- came the official organ of the Augustana Synod it 282 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY brought inspiration and edification to the new Swedish communities throughout the Middle West. Mention must also be made of 0. C. T. Andren, the gifted pastor of the church at Moline, Illinois. The devout Christian spirit and the effective organization developed in his congregation exerted a wide influence on the whole Church. Nor would the record for the decade be complete without the name Andren and £ Eric N ore K USi He was very active during this period in the missionary and educational work of the congregations. He after- wards prepared the congregational constitution that was adopted by the synod. For over half a century he was one of the leaders in the synod. During that same decade, also, the Swedish churches united with their Norwegian brethren in those parts to form the United Scandinavian Conference. This was a deliberative organization in which the pastors and laymen of both nationalities met to discuss mat- ters of common interest, such as congregational con- stitutions, care of vacant pastorates, The United religious instruction, church music, Scandinavian , „ ... ... , ,, r f matters of liturgy, relations to other Conterence OJ ' Lutheran bodies, and education of ministerial candidates. The last two of these ques- tions, external relations and ministerial education, were frequent subjects of discussion in the Confer- ence. For the United Scandinavian Conference be- longed to the Northern Illinois Synod, a district of the General Synod, and the Scandinavians were not alto- gether happy in that relationship. DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 283 When the Northern Illinois Synod was organized in 1851 Esbjorn was present. But he protested against the constitution then adopted, because of its declaration that the Augsburg Confession was "mainly- correct" as "a summary of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian religion." The next year when the Northern Illinois Synod joined the General Synod, the attitude of the ^^^ Swedes and Norwegians led to the statement that the union with the General Synod could not be taken to mean that everybody in the district synod agreed with the doctrinal position of the gen- eral body. In 1853 the word "mainly" was erased from the synod's constitution, and the Scandinavians joined the synod in supporting the newly established State University at Springfield, Illinois. A Scandi- navian professorship was established at the school, and Esbjorn became the first Scandinavian professor, taking charge in 1858. But the Scandinavians insisted on binding their pro- fessor to the Unaltered Augsburg Confession. This did not accord with the tastes of some of the other members of the Synod who were advocates of "Amer- ican Lutheranism." It soon became evident that there was a serious difference between the Lutheranism of the United Scandinavian Conference and that of the rest of the Northern The Break T11 . . , t, , ,. . - With Northern Illinois Synod. But open discussion of nii no j s the issues was avoided. However, the incident of the Definite Platform was disquieting to the Scandinavians, and finally the reception of the 284 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Melanchthon Synod into the General Synod together with the growing Lutheran consciousness of the Scan- dinavian churches made the break inevitable. Esbjorn had been dissatisfied with conditions at Springfield, and in 1860 he declared it impossible to remain there any longer. He went to Chicago and set up a semi- nary in Immanuel Church, and nearly all of the Scan- dinavian students left the school at Springfield. The Swedes and Norwegians were now free to de- velop their own synodical life. At a meeting of the Scandinavian Conference in the spring of 1860, Esb- jorn's action was approved, and it was resolved to organize a new synod. This resolution Augustana was carr i e( j [ n i effect at Jefferson Ch^anized Prairie, Wisconsin, in June, 1860, when the Augustana Synod came into being. There were then thirty-six Swedish congrega- tions, fifteen in Illinois, thirteen in Minnesota, three in Iowa, three in Indiana, one in New York, and one in Pennsylvania. The communicant membership of the Synod included 3,747 Swedish members, cared for by twenty-five pastors, eight of whom were ordained at that first meeting. In the progress of the Augustana Synod since its organization in 1860 three well-defined periods may be distinguished. The first witnessed the steady growth of the synodical idea, and this Periods of period covers a round decade. The Development , . . . , , . . , ,. next period is characterized by the growing importance of the conferences in the Synod. This process covered about twenty-five years. The DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 285 last period, that since 1895, has gathered the fruits of the first two periods in the form of continued growth and internal reorganization, The new synod started on a sound Lutheran basis, as its very name suggests. It soon began to attack its internal problems with vigor and thus early developed its synodical consciousness. The first problem was to establish its seminary and furnish it with thorough equipment. In 1863 this institution was removed from Chicago to Pax- e emmar ' r ton, Illinois, and Hasselquist succeeded Esbjorn, who had returned to Sweden. During those early years much aid and encouragement came to the struggling school through the efforts of 0. C. T. Andren. His mission to Sweden on behalf of the seminary was sig- nally successful. The seminary remained in Paxton until 1875 when it received its final home in Rock Island. Here it developed college and academy de- partments. To these other departments have gradually been added until the curriculum now approaches uni- versity proportions. The second problem for the synod during this first period was that of home missions. From the begin- ning the new body felt itself responsible for the vacant congregations and unorganized fields among the Swedes of America. To meet this responsibility a mis- sionary committee was elected, and through this agency the work of extending the synod went on. As rapidly as possible means were secured and men commissioned to carry the Home M,8sions ministry of the Word to the Swedish Lutherans in 286 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Kansas, in the Lake Superior region of Minnesota, in western Iowa, in New York State, in Massachusetts and Vermont, in Michigan and Nebraska. In this way the geographical borders of the synod were spread by leaps and bounds and the synodical consciousness of Augustana deepened year by year. In addition to these questions of internal policy, external relationships also occupied the attention of the synod in the first decade of its life. In 1867 Dr. Hasselquist was present at the organization of the General Council. He was sufficiently impressed to urge his own synod to join the new body. But his brethren were cautious, in part perhaps be- External cause they had painful memories of a former alliance. By 1870, however, doubts had disappeared and union with the General Council was agreed on. Even in those early days the exact status of the Augustana Synod in the Council was not fully understood. There was so much dis- parity between the Augustana Synod and the other district synods in the Council that in certain parts of the Augustana Synod the demand eventually arose for withdrawal from the Council. But in 1870 it was felt that certain tasks of the Church could best be under- taken in common with other synods, and a common adherence to the Lutheran Confessions was considered sufficient cause for union. Accordingly the Augustana Synod united with the Council. Before this union took place, however, the Norwegians in the Augus- tana Synod asked for a separate organization. This was peaceably agreed to. So in 1870 the synod DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 287 exchanged one ally for another, but for their Nor- wegian brethren the Swedes had only the kindliest feelings. When in 1870 the Augustana Synod joined the Gen- eral Council its ninety-nine Swedish congregations had attained a high degree of solidarity and had developed a clear consciousness of their own mission. Then began a new period in the history of the synod. The next twenty-five years were to witness a wide diversification of work among J? ore j* a P id them and this in turn made necessary a new definition of the relation of the congregations to the synod. This period brought a tremendous num- ber of immigrants from Sweden, and membership lists grew rapidly. The 16,000 members of 1870 were more than doubled in the next five years, and between 1880 and 1890 the membership doubled again. In 1895 the hundred thousand mark was passed, and the ninety- nine congregations had grown to 818, served by four hundred pastors. In the face of these conditions the old Mission Com- mittee of the synod gave way to a new agency called the "Central Committee." This, as its name implies, was mainly a clearing house for the missionary work of the conferences. As the synodical agency saw that it could not care for the whole field conference divisions were recognized Conferences and even subdivisions into districts. ^"™ e e Each conference became responsible for the missionary work on the territory it covered, though its mission board was subordinate to that of 288 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY the synod. This decentralization not only relieved the Central Committee of an enormous task but also prompted the conferences to the performance of that task. More and more the conferences became the units of work within the synod. Kansas, Nebraska and New York established their own institutions of learning in this period. Nebraska, Illinois and Minnesota started hospitals. Iowa, Kansas, New York and Illinois began orphanages. In general, these were years of intensive labor, and the comparative freedom given the confer- ences stimulated local endeavor. By 1880 the synod had so far recognized the work of the conferences as to establish a Synodical Council. This was made up of representatives from the con- ferences and was designed to prepare the work of each meeting of the synod. In 1894 the new constitu- tion of the synod officially approved of the conference organization and thus made permanent Synodical what necessity had originated. At the same session it became evident that the synod had now grown to such dimensions as to make impossible universal representation from the congre- gations. So it was decided that thereafter the con- ferences should elect representatives to the meeting of synod in proportion to their membership. The larger powers of the Church still remained in the hands of the synod, such as or- P° weT s dination of ministers, ministerial edu- etame y cation, and matters pertaining to the liturgy, the hymnal, and the cate- chism. The synod likewise retained the responsibility DEVELOPMENT OF THE AUGUSTANA SYNOD 289 of approving congregational constitutions and of fur- nishing the congregations with religious literature. A pension fund of almost a million dollars is also under synodical control. But of home mission work the synod had left to it after 1880 only such fields as were beyond the confines of the conferences. Such fields were on the Pacific Coast, in Mormon territory, and in Idaho, Montana, Alabama and Florida. All of these fields, except the Pacific Coast, are still cared for by the synod. But as its home mission field decreased, the synod became more and more interested in the foreign field. The proposed mission to the American Indians came to naught. But in 1880 the synod undertook to sup- port the work of the General Council among the Telugu peoples in India. From that date to the present the Augustana Synod has contributed i i I . ng . Organizations an annual celebration on Reformation Day and an annual banquet in the winter. Another such organization is the Lutheran Social Union of 378 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Philadelphia which for many years has brought the ministers and laymen of the different bodies together in a social way. Other cities had similar associations. The Young People's Lutheran Association, which in 1893 changed its name to "The Luther League," spread over all the general bodies and performed a splendid service in training the rising generation of church members into a sense of Lutheran unity that ignored synodical differences. A similar function was performed for other groups of Lutherans by such organizations as the pan-Lutheran missionary confer- ences among students, the conference of Lutheran educators, the conference of Lutheran editors, the Lutheran Brotherhood, the Laymen's Missionary Movement, the Lutheran Historical Society, the Lu- theran ministerial unions in various centers, and the Woman's Missionary Society. In all these ways the ministers and laymen of the three bodies frequently met together face to face in friendly consultation and thus there grew up a general spirit of fraternity and good-will that was very important in preparing the way for their ultimate union. Through the years also the internal problems of the several bodies, problems doctrinal, liturgical and practical, had one by one reached solutions that in every case tended to mutual rapprochement among the separated bodies. When the age of imes ipe larger units dawned the spirit of the for Union .... new denommationahsm had done its work and Lutherans began to face the fact that their various efforts to form "general" bodies had THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 379 been painfully unsuccessful. Lutheran unity, the pro- fessed aim of many a diet and conference, was now taken for granted, and Lutheran union, long and earnestly disclaimed, became a subject of discussion wherever representatives of different general bodies were gathered together. By the middle of the second decade in the new century the situation was such that it needed only some extraordinary occasion to bring about a merger of the three bodies. The occasion was furnished by the Quadri-Centen- nial of the Reformation in 1917. The plans for the celebration of the four hundredth anniversary were laid on a most elaborate scale. As early as 1909 the General Council invited the General Synod, the United Synod and other Lutheran bodies in the United States to co-operate in a worthy celebration. By 1913 the three eastern bodies had ™e Q uad »- . . , ... . , Centennial appointed committees to co-operate in 1917 and the next year these committees organized as the "Joint Committee on the Celebration of the Quadri-Centennial of the Reformation. The Joint Committee opened offices in Philadelphia and called an executive secretary, and it was within this Committee that the first formal step was taken to- wards organic union of the three bodies. At a meeting of the Joint Committee on April 18, 1917, several lay members of the committee presented a resolution that had been adopted the evening before by a gathering of eight laymen requesting the Joint Committee to arrange a general meeting of Lutherans to formulate plans for the unification of the Lutheran 380 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Church in America. After an all-day discussion, in which the laymen strongly pressed for immediate and organic union, the following resolu- tion was adopted by the Joint Com- mittee with practical unanimity: ''Believing that the time has come for the more complete organization of the Lutheran Church in this country, we propose that the General Synod, the General Council and the United Synod of the South, together with all other bodies one with us in our Lutheran faith, be united as soon as possible in one general organization to be known as The United Lutheran Church in America." The presi- dents of the three general bodies, who by this time were co-operating with one another quite regularly, were requested to appoint a committee to prepare a constitution for the new organization that might be submitted to the general bodies at their meetings that year. The committee on constitution was appointed, and after much strenuous labor the constitution for the merged body was completed. A few weeks later, June 20-27, 1917, it was solemnly ratified by the General Synod. The General Council adopted it October 24-29, 1917, and the United Synod of the South did likewise November 6-8, 1917. The instrument The Merger wag then submitted to the district Consummated *,-,».• synods and every one of the forty-six synods composing the three general bodies promptly ratified it in the prescribed manner, except the Au- gustana Synod, which because of its distinctive prob- lems and special needs formally withdrew from the THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 38i General Council. The three bodies appointed a joint Ways and Means Committee to prepare the founda= tion and set up the machinery for the operation of the new church. This committee performed its difficult and delicate task with eminent success. During the week of November 11, 1918, each of the general bodies held an adjourned meeting in New York City, completing their business as separate organizations, and then, November 14-16, all of them joined in the general meeting in that city, that constituted the first convention of The United Lutheran Church in Amer- ica. As the first president of the new organization the convention elected the Rev. Dr. F. H. Knubel, of New York City, a member of the New York Synod of the General Synod, and president of the National Lu- theran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare. The first secretary was the Rev. Dr. M. G. G. Scherer, a member of the South Carolina Synod and president of the United Synod of the South. The first treasurer was Mr. E. Clarence Miller, of Philadelphia, a mem- ber of the Pennsylvania Ministerium. The organization of The United Lutheran Church was the most complete example of denominational con- solidation ever attempted by any Protestant body in our country. It was accomplished with remarkable unanimity. It not only aroused the greatest enthusiasm among its own constituents but it also attracted wide attention on the part of the general public, for it became immediately one of the most potent forces to be reckoned with in Amer- ican Christianity. The new body embraced forty-five 382 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY district synods covering all parts of the United States and Canada and aggregating almost 800,000 confirmed members, with about 2,800 ministers and nearly 4,000 churches. It soon outnumbered the Missouri Synod in its baptized membership, and it is today the largest Lutheran body in America. The spirit and structure of The United Lutheran Church may be understood by considering several of the special characteristics of the new body. The objects of the organization are stated to be the exten- sion of the pure teaching of the Gos- ts vowe p e ^ £k e s t rell gthening of the Church in the unity of the true faith, the out- ward expression of the spiritual unity of Lutheran congregations, and the co-ordination and direction of the energies of the Church in training ministers, in prosecuting missionary work, in regulating the ex- ternals of worship, and in publishing literature. For its doctrinal basis The United Lutheran Church receives the canonical Scriptures as the inspired Word of God and the only infallible rule of faith and prac- tice, the three general creeds as important testimonies drawn from the Holy Scriptures, the Unaltered Augs- burg Confession as a correct exhibi- Basb° Ctrinal tl0n ° f the faith and d0ctrine 0f the Lutheran Church and the generic creed of Lutheranism, and the other symbolical books as in harmony of one and the same pure Scriptural faith. The preamble of the constitution invites all Evangelical Lutheran congregations and synods in America who agree with this doctrinal basis, to unite THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 383 with The United Lutheran Church on the terms of its constitution. Thus the door is left open for a still larger measure of denominational consolidation, The liturgy and hymnology recommended by the new body is The Common Service Book with Hymnal and the common book of ministerial acts that were completed by a joint te , JJ urg ^ ^ committee of the three bodies before the merger was consummated. Concerning the polity of the United Lutheran Church it may be observed that larger powers are conferred on the general organization than in any other body of Lutherans in this country. As one of the fundamental principles of the organization it is specifically stated that the congregations are the pri- mary bodies through which power committed by Christ to the Church is normally exercised. But by the pro- visions of the constitution and by-laws wide jurisdic- tion is expressly delegated by the synods to The United Lutheran Church. Legislative powers are vested in the biennial convention of the delegates from the constituent synods. These powers are absolute in such matters as the external relations of synods, conferences, or boards with gen- eral organizations or movements, in matters affecting the United Church as a whole, in inter-synodical affairs, in protecting the doctrinal basis, and in pub- lishing books of devotion and instruction. The judicial authority is the commission of adjudication, which interprets laws and principles and decides all disputed questions of doctrine and practice. 384 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY The executive functions of The United Lutheran Church are vested in the officers of the general body, in an Executive Board, and in a score or more of other boards and committees for special purposes. It is here that the greatest concentration of power is effected. Both the president and the secretary of the general T _ . body are salaried officials devoting Its Boards . , . . . , . their entire time to the duties of their offices. They are ex-officio members of the Executive Board. Wide jurisdiction is committed to the Execu- tive Board. It is required to carry out the resolutions of The United Lutheran Church, to fill vacancies not otherwise provided for, to receive reports from all the other boards, regulate their propaganda for funds and co-ordinate their work, to present a budget and propose apportionments to the conventions, and to represent The United Lutheran Church and attend to its business during the interim between conventions. It is specified that if any district synod should desire to continue its established lines of work for reasons satisfactory to the general body, such privilege may be granted, but it is evident from the general scheme of administration that the work of the Church is done through the general boards as representatives of the Church at large rather than through the individual synods or their agencies. This strong compact form of organization in the United Lutheran Church, involving Its General ,, .,,. j j? v. , the willing surrender of many a cher- ished right and the legal transfer of many millions of dollars worth of property, gave THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 385 notice from the beginning that the merger of the three general bodies in The United Lutheran Church was intended to be thorough-going, permanent and effective. Taking the organization as a whole its spirit and structure resembles the spirit and structure of the United Synod of the South in more respects than it resembles either of the other general bodies uniting in it. The general satisfaction with the union is due to the previous fact of genuine unity. The United Lutheran Church in America was the logical consum- mation of the events of half a century. The early years in the life of The United Lutheran Church were a period of adjustment. Sentiment had to be crystallized on various matters. Relationships had to be defined, both among constituent synods and with external organizations. The work of the several boards and general com- a Period of mittees had to be determined and cor- Adjustment related. A satisfactory financial plan had to be evolved. Model constitutions had to be set up both for congregations and for constituent synods. All the practical bearings of the constitution and by- laws of the new body had to be worked out. These and other problems were solved with great diligence by the officers of the Church and its Executive Board. The satisfactory solution was made possible only by the patient co-operation of the other boards and the rank and file of membership in the constituent synods. The largest step in defining the policies and rela- tionships of The United Lutheran Church in America was taken at its second convention in Washington, 386 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY D. C, in 1920. The Executive Board submitted a comprehensive statement "outlining fundamental principles." The statement has come to be known as the "Washington Declaration of Principles." It cov- ered the inner organization of the Church as well as its external relationships. It laid down a linguistic policy and definite principles concern- The Washington . relations with other Lutheran Declaration bodies and concerning co-operation among Protestants in general. By implication also it stated the position of The United Lutheran Church in America with reference to the debated questions of pulpit and altar fellowship and secret societies. The statement was thoroughly scrutinized by the conven- tion and with slight amendments was adopted. It helped to further the sense of security and solidarity within the Church and inspired an aggressive attitude in the practical work of the Church. It has been an important factor in preparing the way for the ulti- mate solution of important problems that still con- front the Church. During the first fourteen years of its life The United Lutheran Church has witnessed steady growth not only in numbers and achievements, but also in its sense of harmonious fellowship and its Lutheran conscious- ness. Its administrative agencies have Siz° W nd" 1 k een consolidated, notably its five Spirit home missionary boards and commit- tees into the Board of American Mis- sions. A successful campaign was carried on for a fund of four million dollars for ministerial pensions THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 387 and relief. In 1932 its 4,000 churches had increased to 5,646, its 2,800 ministers to 3,428, its 800,000 con- firmed members to 1,057,152. Its baptized membership had passed the mark of a million and a half. In the meantime the inner processes of unification have gone steadily forward, new lines of endeavor have been prosecuted, and new fields of labor occupied, until the old lines of cleavage have become very obscure and in most places have been forgotten in a common loyalty to Lutheran standards of faith and practice. This was in part the cause, in part the effect, of the readjustment of synodical boundaries all over the ter- ritory of the Church. This readjusting and merging of constituent synods calls for special mention. The United Lutheran Church in America was formed by the constituent synods that had constituted the General Synod, the General Council, and the United Synod of the South. It therefore healed the schisms that had been made in 1862 and 1864. It placed all of the forty-five synods on the same doc- trinal basis, committed them all to the same general practices, and made ° ne Effect them all to conduct their general ^ benevolent and missionary operations through the same general boards. It was to be ex- pected, therefore, that the organization of the larger general body would lead to the healing of the divisions among constituent synods that had grown out of the disruption during the period of internal discord. It was soon seen that The United Lutheran Church would not be a truly united church until all of its interests in 388 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY various synodical sections were thoroughly cemented into more compact units in their respective territories. To that end overlapping and competing synods began negotiations at once looking towards the readjust- ment of synodical lines that would unite the Lutheran forces in each district in one common aim and purpose. This work has made remarkable progress in the last few years. It is a distinct movement in the direc- tion of larger units. It means much not only for en- larged unity but also for increased efficiency. For the constituent synods, as the component parts of The United Lutheran Church, are directly charged with _ _. .„ the administration of affairs on the Its Significance ., . , ,- , _ territories where they operate, and no unifying power of general bodies is nearly so potent or effective as the bond of union that centers in the educational, missionary and benevolent institutions within a given territory. The process of merging con- stituent synods is only the completion of the merger in The United Lutheran Church. The first merger took place on the Pittsburgh ter- ritory within a year after the organization of The United Lutheran Church. The Pittsburgh district was the great battleground among Lutherans in 1867. The original synod had been organized in 1845 by eight clergymen and six laymen. It had grown vigorously and in 1867 included sixty-seven pas- itts urg j. org an( j one j lun( j re( j anc i thirty-six churches. Then came the division, one part adhering to the General Synod, the other to the General Council. Each body claimed the original name, THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 389 and for a long time there was much bitter feeling between the two. But the missionary spirit of the old synod was maintained in both of its divisions, and Lutheranism flourished on the Pittsburgh territory. On November 18, 1919, when the two divisions re- united in the spirit of unity and brotherhood, the merger convention enrolled 244 pastors, 318 churches, and 64,582 confirmed members. The new organization took the name of the original Pittsburgh Synod to preserve its historical continuity from 1845. It ranks today as the third largest synod in The United Lu- theran Church. It prepared to manifest continued vitality in various missionary endeavors, and organ- ized itself upon a strong basis calculated to make it an effective representative of Lutheranism among the teeming multitudes of the Pittsburgh district and in the general work of the Church at large. Several months later two mergers of constituent synods occurred on the same day. One of these was in the State of Illinois. The congregations in that state belonging to The United Lutheran Church were sepa- rated into four district synods. Three of these had belonged to the General Synod, the Northern Illinois Synod (organized in 1851), the Central Illinois Synod (organized 1862), and the Southern Illinois Synod (organized 1901). One of them had belonged to the General Council, the Chicago Synod (organized 1896), which, however, was only . partly in the State of Illinois. As the more effective administration of larger synodical units commended itself also to the Lutherans of Illinois, 390 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY negotiations were begun that resulted in the organ- ization on June 10, 1920, of the Illinois Synod, em- bracing practically all the congregations of The United Lutheran Church in that state. It enrolled one hun- dred and fifteen pastors and one hundred and twenty- six congregations with a confirmed membership of 24,000. Like the other large synods, it elected a salaried president for a term of five years. It outlined an aggressive home missionary policy and employed two field missionaries. It set up the machinery neces- sary for a vigorous administration of United Lutheran Church interests on that strategic territory. Another merger completed on June 10, 1920, was called the Michigan Synod of The United Lutheran Church. This was formed by the congregations of the Northern Indiana Synod of the former General Synod (organized 1855) and portions of the Chicago Synod lying in the State of Michigan. This merger was not according to state lines, but it was ic gan ^^ ^^ ^ e con g re g a ti ons i n the Synod State of Michigan would not be strong enough of themselves to take advantage of the splen- did home missionary opportunities in that state. So it was agreed that the entire Synod of Northern In- diana should for the present help to constitute the Michigan Synod, with the understanding that when the pastorates in Michigan number twenty-five the Michigan Synod congregations in the State of Indiana will unite with the Indiana Synod. The new synod numbered fifty pastors and eighty-seven congregations with about 12,000 confirmed members. THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 391 Two weeks after the Michigan Synod had been organized the Indiana Synod was born. This was the result of a merger of the Olive Branch Synod with a portion of the Chicago Synod. The Olive Branch Synod was organized in 1848 and belonged to the General Synod. At the time of the merger it embraced forty- five congregations with 7,500 mem- _ ,. c , Indiana synod bers, one-third of them in Kentucky and Tennessee, the rest in Indiana. On June 24, 1920, this synod united with twenty-five congregations and 2,500 members of the Chicago Synod to form the In- diana Synod. The merger included about fifty pastors and seventy congregations with about 10,000 con- firmed members. It lies south of Logansport, Walton and Portland, Indiana, and stretches southward to the southern boundary of Tennessee. It had eleven con- gregations in Louisville and Jefferson County, Ken- tucky, and one other congregation in southern Ken- tucky, and six congregations in Tennessee. The rest of its congregations are in Indiana. It is the expectation that eventually the congregations in the State of In- diana but now belonging to the Michigan Synod will be included in the Indiana Synod also. The new synod has large plans for the future and there are prospects of rapid growth, particularly in southern Indiana. That same year the tendency towards larger units of synodical organization brought practical results also in the State of Ohio. The congregations of The United Lutheran Church in that state . had been divided into four synods, each of them embracing about one-fourth of the 392 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY membership on that territory. Three of these synods had belonged to the General Synod, the East Ohio Synod (dating from 1836), the Miami Synod (dating from 1844), and the Wittenberg Synod (dat- ing from 1847). The District Synod of Ohio (dating from 1861) had belonged to the General Council and had congregations scattered over the entire state. The merger of these four bodies into the Ohio Synod of The United Lutheran Church was consummated in a fine spirit of harmony on November 3, 1920. The Ohio Synod is the fourth largest synod in the general body. It counted at the time of its formation about two hundred pastors and about three hundred congrega- tions with over 53,000 confirmed members. It elected a salaried president and organized for vigorous prose- cution of its educational and missionary work. Early in 1921 the Lutherans in the State of North Carolina bearing allegiance to the United Lutheran Church formed what is called the United Evangelical Lutheran Synod of North Carolina. For a hundred years the Lutheran forces in that state had been divided into two synods. The North Carolina Synod had been organized in 1803 but in on aro ma 1320 the Tennessee Synod was formed synod out of its ranks because the men of the Tennessee Synod took a decided stand for a dis- tinctive Lutheran faith and practice. In 1886 both of these synods united with other synods of the South in forming the United Synod of the South, but they con- tinued their separate synodical existence on the same territory in North Carolina. The Tennessee Synod was THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 393 insistent in its demand for sound Lutheran faith and practice. The North Carolina Synod became one of the most active and progressive synods in the Church, and gradually it came to adhere to a strict confessional basis and practically the same conception of Lutheran practice as that held by the Tennessee Synod. This fact, together with the impulse to larger units that came with the organization of The United Lutheran Church, led the two synods to vote for a merger of their interests. The merger was completed on March 2, 1921, and the separation of a hundred years was ended. The merged synod elected a salaried president for a term of five years, who has executive charge of the one hundred and thirteen pastors, the two hundred congregations, and the 27,000 confirmed members embraced in the organization. A second merger of synods that had previously be- longed to the United Synod of the South was effected on March 17, 1922. The Virginia Synod (organized 1829) united with the Southwestern Virginia Synod (organized 1842) and the Holston Synod (organized 1860) to form the Lutheran Synod of Virginia. The Virginia Synod numbered thirty-five pastors with a membership of about ir s"" a Synod 7,000. The Southwestern Virginia Synod included twenty-two pastors and a membership of 5,000. The Holston Synod in the eastern part of the State of Tennessee embraced eleven pastors and over 2,000 members. The three bodies had similar interests not only in location but also in education and missions. The negotiations looking towards a merger 394 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY had been going on for several years. The occasion for its completion came with the burning of Elizabeth College at Salem, Virginia, making it necessary for the three synods to meet and determine a common educational policy. The result of the joint meeting was the organic union of the three synods, forming a body that serves purposes of great usefulness in The United Lutheran Church. The next year two synods belonging to The United Lutheran Church and located in the north-central part of Pennsylvania were merged into one. These were the Central Pennsylvania Synod and the Susque- hanna Synod. Both of them had for- The Susque- merl belonged to the General Synod. hanna synod The Central Pennsylvania Synod was formed in 1855 out of the territory of the West Penn- sylvania Synod. The Susquehanna Synod was formed in 1867 out of one of the conferences of the East Penn- sylvania Synod. In 1918 they both helped to organize The United Lutheran Church in America. On Septem- ber 5, 1923, they united to form the Susquehanna Synod of Central Pennsylvania. The new synod en- rolled eighty pastors, 167 congregations, and 45,541 members. Of these numbers the Susquehanna Synod contributed about three-fifths while the Central Penn- sylvania Synod contributed about two-fifths. The name of the body was changed in 1932 to the Susque- hanna Synod. In Canada also the tendency to larger units made itself manifest. The original Canada Synod was organ- ized in 1861 as a result of the missionary work of the THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 395 Pittsburgh Synod. It was one of the synods that with- drew from the General Synod in 1867 to form the General Council. It was largely Ger- ., ... , j , The Canada man in its constituency and drew most g od of its pastors from the Kropp Semi- nary. On much the same territory there was organized in 1908 the Synod of Central Canada. This was one of the results of the English missionary activity of the General Council and its constituency was mostly English. These two synods of the General Council sup- ported the college and seminary at Waterloo, Ontario, and both of them joined in forming The United Lutheran Church in 1918. Then as the advantages of larger organizations began to appear and as the barriers of language began to disappear, they decided to merge into one synod. The merger took place on June 12, 1925. At the time of the merger the Canada Synod numbered forty-eight pastors, seventy-five con- gregations, and 21,799 members, while the Synod of Central Canada numbered eighteen pastors, seventeen congregations, and 3,123 members. The name of the united body is the Synod of Canada. The most recent merger among the constituent synods of The United Lutheran Church produced the second largest synod in the entire body, a close second in size to the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. It em- braced all the forces of The United Lutheran Church in the State of New I h< l N c ew . . York Synod York, in New England, and in north- ern New Jersey. Three synods were included in the union. The first of these was the New York Minis- 396 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY terium, which dated back to 1786 and included the oldest and the more German and more conservative elements of Lutheranism in the Empire State. The second was the New York and New England Synod, organized in 1902 largely on the issues of introducing the English language and prosecuting missionary work. The third was the New York Synod, which was organized in 1908 out of the Hartwick Synod (1830), the Franckean Synod (1837), and the New York and New Jersey Synod (1872). The first two belonged to the former General Council, the third to the former General Synod. The union took place at Albany, June 5, 1929. At the time of the merger the Ministerium of New York embraced 173 pastors, 147 congregations and 97,846 members. The New York and New England Synod embraced 111 pastors, 93 congregations, and 56,485 members. The New York Synod embraced 201 pastors, 162 congregations, and 59,345 members. Together these three synods constitute a large and widespreading body, but they have succeeded in form- ing a compact and enterprising organization. The merging of their overlapping interests has called for many adjustments both in congregational organiza- tions and in educational and missionary activities. In the meantime two new synods have been formed. In 1919 The United Lutheran Church The Slovak was asked by its Slav-Hungarian or Zion Synod Immigrants' Mission Board to sanc- tion the formation of a Slovak Lu- theran Synod that might embrace the Czecho-Slovakian ministers and congregations of western Pennsyl- THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 397 vania and other states. The organization took place at Braddock, Pennsylvania, on June 10, 1919. The new body is known as the Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Zion Synod. It embraced nineteen pastors and thirty- two congregations. The other new synod was born in Florida. The great influx of Lutherans from other states into Florida during the land boom of the early twenties presented a strong home missionary appeal on that field. Accordingly the Florida g e °" a Conference of the Georgia Synod organized itself into the Florida Synod of The United Lutheran Church in America. The new synod was born at Jacksonville, January 15, 1929, and was ac- cepted as a constituent synod of The United Lutheran Church the next year. It consisted of thirteen pastors, thirteen congregations, and about 1,900 baptized members. While these two new synods were being added to the number in The United Lutheran Church, the merging of others reduced the number by fourteen. So that the original forty-five number today only thirty-three. This means that the field has been expanded and at the same time solidified. A similar process of expanding activities and merging organizations has taken place in the boards of benevolence and the general commit- tees of the Church. The movement to organize or reorganize synods according to state lines or other geo- summary graphical boundaries goes on. It tends to heal the wounds in the body of the Church that 398 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY have been open since the period of internal dis- cord. It tends towards greater efficiency not only in the different districts but also in the Church at large. It makes the organization of The United Lutheran Church a positive reality with the promise of perma- nent power. It is part of the logic of events, an inci- dent to the spirit of the times in an age of larger units. QUESTIONS 1. May we regard the formation of the United Lutheran Church in America as a sudden event or the result of war psychology? 2. In the events leading up to the formation of the United Lutheran Church what part may be attributed to the Free Lutheran Diets and the General Lutheran Conferences? 3. How did the preparation of a Common Service smooth the way for a common organization? 4. What was the significance of the celebration in 1883? 5. What literature helped Lutherans to cultivate the nation- wide view? 6. What was the part played by the forces on the home and foreign missionary fields? 7. Name the inter-synodical organizations of special groups that helped prepare the way for ultimate union. 8. What was the special occasion that brought about the merger of the three general bodies? 9. How was the new body organized? 10. What are the express objects of the United Lutheran Church in America? 11. What is the doctrinal basis of the new body? 12. What is the polity of the United Lutheran Church in America? 13. How is the United Lutheran Church in America organized for its work? 14. What is the significance of the "Washington Declaration of Principles"? 15. How has the United Lutheran Church grown since its organization? 16. What synodical mergers have taken place among the con- stituent synods of the United Lutheran Church? THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA 399 17. What new synods have been formed on the territory of the United Lutheran Church? 18. What is the net result and what the significance of these internal readjustments in the United Lutheran Church? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Efforts of Non-Lutheran Bodies to Heal the Breaches between North and South The Doctrinal Basis of the United Lutheran Church Com- pared with Those of the Three Former General Bodies A Study of the Polity of the United Lutheran Church The Relative Value of Large and Small Synods The Celebration of the Quadricentennial of the Reformation The Problem of Theological Education in the United Lutheran Church A Study of the Washington Declaration of Principles in 1920 The Publications of the United Lutheran Church The Distribution of the Membership of the United Lutheran Church Among the States of the Union and the Provinces of Canada The Relations of the United Lutheran Church with Other General Lutheran Bodies The Women's Home and Foreign Missionary Society of the United Lutheran Church The German Element in the United Lutheran Church The Relations of the United Lutheran Church to General Co-operative Movements Among Protestants The Foreign Missionary Work of the United Lutheran Church The United Lutheran Church's Correlated Plan of Parish and Higher Education The Charitable Institutions of the United Lutheran Church and its Synods The Place of Laymen in the Organization and the Subsequent Life of the United Lutheran Church SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY David Henry Bauslin Ezra Keller Bell Gotlieb Conrad Berkemeier Charles Lafayette Brown Jacob Abraham Clutz Jacob Fry George Henry Gerberding Frederick Gebhart Gotwald Emil Hoffman Robert Christian Holland 400 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Henry Eyster Jacobs Frederick A. Kaehler William Daniel Casper Keiter George Washington Sandt John Jacob Scherer John Alden Singmaster Victor George Augustine Tressler Harvey Americus Weller BIBLIOGRAPHY Burgess, E. B., Memorial History of the Pittsburgh Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. 1925. Pages 165-186. Clutz, J. A., The United Lutheran Church in America. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. XLIX, Jan. and Apr., 1919, pp. 1-22, 313-329. Hiller, A., History of the First Ten Years of the Synod of New York. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. XLIX, Apr., 1919, pp. 247-268. Jorgensen, A. T., F. Fleisch, and A. R. Wentz, The Lutheran Churches of the World. 1929. Pages 321-330. Knubel, F. H. and M. G. G. Scherer (editors), Our Church. An Official Study Book. 1924. Lutheran World Almanac, The, 1921, pp. 71-92, 117, 144-146 1922, pp. 56-57, 60-61 1923, pp. 28-30 1924-1926, pp. 28-29 1927-1928, p. 23 1929-1930, p. 27 1931-1933, pp. 51-53 Proceedings of the Free Lutheran Diets (1877, 1878) and the General Conferences (1898, 1902, 1904) are listed under Chapter XXIII. Schmauk, T. E., Historical Report of the Merger, 1918. Minutes of the U. L. C. A. 1918, pp. 37-42. Smith, A. H., The Stjnod of Ohio, 1920-1930. The Lutheran Church Quarterly, Vol. IV, July, 1931, pp. 304-318. Trexler, Samuel, Crusaders of the Twentieth Century. A Lutheran Story in the Empire State. 1926. CHAPTER XXVII THE AMERICAN LUTHERAN CHURCH The urge to solidarity among Lutherans during this period of larger units produced another organic union in 1930. It is called The American Lutheran Church. It brought together three groups of Lutherans who had dwelt alongside of one another for three-quarters of a century and ^^ji ° f were closely related but had always West maintained separate organizations. They were the Joint Synod of Ohio, the Iowa Synod, and the Buffalo Synod. Their doctrinal and practical differences had gradually been resolved. They had many practical interests and problems in common. For their encouragement in their efforts to unite they had the example of satisfying mergers among the Nor- wegians in 1917, among the Germans in the North- west in 1918, and among the Lutherans of Muhlenberg descent in 1918. The times were propitious and the contagious spirit of unification brought about the com- pleted union of these three bodies in August, 1930. The negotiations for organic union of the three synods had been going on for more than a decade. In 1918 the Joint Synod of Ohio and the Iowa Synod, feeling the general impulse to greater unity, estab- lished pulpit and altar fellowship among the two bodies. This opened the way for a general discussion of organic union. It led to a frank and friendly inter- 401 402 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY change of ideas as to their historic differences and their common interests. It will be recalled that these two bodies had much the same constituency. In a certain sense the begin- nings of the Joint Synod of Ohio go back to the year 1818 when the Ohio Synod was organized from the Ohio Conference of the Ministerium The Joint of Pennsylvania. This synod estab- Synod of Ohio lished its theological seminary at Canton in 1830, and the next year removed it to Columbus. But in the fifth decade of the century the influx of recent German immigrants into the State of Ohio and their entrance into the con- gregations and institutions of the Ohio Synod changed the constituency of that body (see page 110) . The older elements, descended through the Muhlenberg line of development, and now largely anglicized, separated from the original body and formed other synods which joined the General Synod and the General Council and were later incorporated in The United Lutheran Church, where they merged in 1920 into the present Synod of Ohio. The older organization in that state, with its changed constituency, altered its doctrinal basis in 1847 to make it include not only Luther's Small Catechism and the Augsburg Confession, as heretofore, but all the confessions of the Book of Con- cord as "the pure and unadulterated explanation and exposition of the Word of God." In 1850 it founded Capital University at Columbus and the seminary, now twenty years old, became its theological depart- ment. Under the new name of the Evangelical Joint THE AMERICAN LUTHERAN CHURCH 403 Synod of Ohio and Other States it expanded from the state of Ohio and western Pennsylvania and began to include large sections of Indiana and Michigan and, after 1881, the great Northwest and Canada. It joined with the Missouri and other synods in organizing the Synodical Conference in 1871, but eleven years later withdrew from the Conference on account of the pre- destination controversy. It co-operated with other Lutheran bodies in tasks of great magnitude, but maintained an independent organization that at the time of the merger in 1930 had congregations in twenty-nine states and five provinces of Canada, a total of 1,134 congregations, 814 pastors and more than a quarter million baptized members. The second body entering the union that constituted the American Lutheran Church in 1930 was the Evan- gelical Lutheran Synod of Iowa, long known as the German Iowa Synod. This body also was the result largely of German immigration in the fourth and fifth decades of the nine- F 16 Germ * n Iowa hvnod teenth century. Large numbers of these immigrants, as we have seen, gathered into settlements on the broad plains of the Middle West and presented a serious home missionary problem to the Lutheran Church. Dr. Wyneken of the Missouri Synod succeeded in enlisting the interest of Wilhelm Loehe in Neuendettelsau, in Bavaria. Loehe poured a long stream of devoted pastors into the field. Most of them affiliated with the Missouri Synod. But after Loehe's breach with the Missourians on doctrinal grounds some of his men organized the Iowa Synod 404 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY as an independent body (see page 188). With Iowa as a center the Synod expanded into twenty-one states, chiefly Texas, Wisconsin, Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio, and the Dakotas. It developed its educational institutions and missionary operations at home and abroad. At the time of the merger in 1930 it listed 1,046 congre- gations, 610 pastors, and 217,000 baptized members. It always insisted on recognizing "open questions," that is, problems which have not been definitely settled by scriptural authority and on which there may be a certain amount of speculation within the limits set by the Bible and the confessions. Related in spirit and constituency to the Joint Synod of Ohio the Iowa Synod joined gladly in the negotiations for organic union which began in 1918. The first step towards the actual union of these two bodies was taken within the Iowa Synod. At the meet- ing of the eastern district in June, 1919, Pastor P. Kluepfel presented a paper on the subject which was afterwards used to circularize every : utua . pastor and teacher in the two synods. Approaches The eastern district asked the Execu- tive Board of the Iowa Synod to approach the Execu- tive Board of the Ohio Synod on the matter. Other districts and conferences took similar action later in the year. Thus the subject came before the synods themselves at their meetings in August, 1920. A joint committee of the two bodies was appointed to confer on the questions at issue. On the recommendation of this committee the two synods in 1922 appointed a larger committee representing the various interests THE AMERICAN LUTHERAN CHURCH 405 of each body to consider detailed plans for a merger and to draw up a definite policy for future action. This committee in 1924 agreed to recommend organic union. The Joint Synod at once referred the matter to its eleven districts and all of them voted in favor of the union. The nine districts of the Iowa Synod took an informal vote on the general proposition and this disclosed that a great majority of its pastors and lay- men favored the union. At this point in the negotiations the Buffalo Synod entered the scene. This synod we have learned to know also as a product of German immigration to America in the nineteenth century (see page 186.) When it was organized in 1845 it was called "The Synod of the Lutheran The Buffalo fevnod Church, which Emigrated from Prus- sia," but because of the location of its headquarters and its theological seminary, its name was changed in 1886 to the Lutheran Synod of Buffalo. From New York State it spread to Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, and Ontario in Canada. But the synod barely held its own in numbers and at the time of the merger in 1930 it listed forty-four pastors, fifty-three congre- gations, and about 11,000 baptized members. As the negotiations between Iowa and Ohio progressed to- wards a merger the Buffalo Synod in 1925 adopted a resolution in which it expressed its desire to become a part of the proposed new body provided satisfactory arrangements could be made. A joint commission was now created. It was com- posed of members of the three synods. It was in- 406 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY structed to prepare a constitution and by-laws for the proposed new body. The Iowa Synod in 1926 formally expressed its willingness to enter the D j ort organic union and expressed the hope that the new body might be consti- tuted in 1928, but raised some question about the wording of the confessional paragraph in the proposed constitution. The discussion of this question caused a delay of two years. In the phrasing of that portion of the confessional basis which pertains to the inerrancy of the Scriptures the men of Ohio pressed for a stricter statement of literalism than was acceptable to some of the men of Iowa. After long and patient discussion the stricter statement was retained and in spite of some opposition the Iowa Synod adopted the constitution. The Buffalo Synod had agreed to the pro- posed constitution from the beginning. The formal adoption of the constitution and ratifi- cation of the merger took place at Toledo, Ohio, August 11, 1930. The new body took The ,, the name, The American Lutheran Merger Church. As president the conven- tion elected the Rev. Dr. C. C. Hein, of Columbus, Ohio, who had been president of the Joint Synod of Ohio. For first vice-president the choice fell on Rev. K. A. Hoessel, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who had been president of the Buffalo Synod. The secretary chosen was Professor E. J. Braulick, of Seguin, Texas, a mem- ber of the Iowa Synod. The convention also elected a second vice-president, Rev. C. G. Prottengeier, of Charles City, Iowa, a member of the Iowa Synod, and THE AMERICAN LUTHERAN CHURCH 407 a third vice-president, Rev. Dr. Emanuel Poppen, of Grove City, Ohio, a member of the Joint Synod of Ohio. The various boards, committees and agencies of the three synods were instructed to merge their operations as quickly as possible and to operate as agencies of the American Lutheran Church. The new body officially began its existence on January 1, 1931. The American Lutheran Church is the third largest general Lutheran body in this country. It comprises 1,577 pastors, 2,019 congregations, and more than 500,000 baptized mem- Di str icts bers. Its assets total more than $7,000,000. The organization of the larger body has roused a lively enthusiasm in the constituent elements of the American Lutheran Church and called forth hearty co-operation on the part of the various agen- cies and the several districts. The new organization is cordially welcomed by the other Lutheran bodies. The general body meets biennially. It is divided into districts which meet annually. Of these nine were organized in 1930, the Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Eastern, Minnesota, Dakota, Central {i.e., Nebraska), Iowa, and Illinois. Four more were organized the following year, the California, Texas, Northwestern, and Canada. The names of the districts indicate the extent and distribution of the new church body. The American Lutheran Church has been busy com- pacting its forces. Its young people's organizations have been merged into ™ t .^ na . the Luther League of the Amer- ican Lutheran Church. The women's missionary 408 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY organizations have combined to form the Women's Missionary Federation of the American Lutheran Church. There are 216 home missionaries serving 315 mission stations in twenty-six states and four prov- inces of Canada. Its Board of Education supervises ten academies, colleges and seminaries. A brotherhood has been projected. Plans are being made to trans- fer the theological department of Capital University in Columbus to the Wartburg Seminary at Dubuque, Iowa. The two German weeklies were merged into the Kirchenblatt and the two English ones into the Lutheran Standard. The Church uses the "American Lutheran Hymnal," which was published in 1930. Along various other lines the work of internal organ- ization of this aggressive new body has proceeded with dispatch and general satisfaction. The American Lutheran Church takes pride in its correct Lutheranism. It declares against the "sepa- ratism" of the Missouri Lutherans ts ype o because they "refuse to recognize cer- Lutheramsm . tarn other synods as Lutheran, unless these others accept their method of presenting biblical truth as the only method permissible in the Lutheran Church, and .... carry this spirit so far that they will not even pray with these others." At the same time it declares against the "unionism" of the Lu- therans in The United Lutheran Church because they "fail to apply the Galesburg Rule: 'Lutheran pulpits for Lutheran pastors only and Lutheran altars for Lutheran communicants only' and continue to tolerate pastors who are affiliated with Masonic lodges and THE AMERICAN LUTHERAN CHURCH 409 permit pastors and congregations to engage in un- scriptural practices." But the American Lutheran Church co-operates heartily with a number of other Lutheran bodies in the work of the National Lutheran Council, the American Lutheran Conference, and the Lutheran World Convention. QUESTIONS 1. What groups united to form the American Lutheran Church? 2. What was the origin and general course of the Joint Synod of Ohio? 3. What was the origin and development of the Iowa Synod? 4. How did the negotiations for a union of Ohio and Iowa begin? 5. What was the origin of the Buffalo Synod? 6. What was the relative strength of the three synods at the time of their merger? 7. What doctrinal question delayed the negotiations for union and how was it decided? 8. Who were the first officers of the new body? 9. What is the size of the American Lutheran Church and what are its constituent parts? 10. How have the forces of the new church body been compacted? 11. What type of Lutheranism does the American Lutheran Church represent? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Foreign Missions of the American Lutheran Church The American Lutheran Church in Large Cities of the East A Study of the American Lutheran Hymnal The Attitude of the American Lutheran Church towards the Scriptures The American Lutheran Church and Secretism The Publications of the American Lutheran Church The Changed Constituency of the Ohio Synod during the Second Quarter of the Nineteenth Centurv Wilhelm Loehe and C. F. W. Walther The History of the Buffalo Synod German and English in the American Lutheran Church 410 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Institutions of Charity in the American Lutheran Church The Issue concerning Open Questions The Relations of the American Lutheran Church to Other General Lutheran Bodies SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Carl Abbetmeyer Heinrich Bergstaedt Emanuel Cronewelt Henry Paul Dannecker Johannes Deindoerfer Heinrich Ernst Gustav Adolf Fandrey G. M. Grossman Karl Hemminghaus Matthias Loy Friederich Lutz Theophilus Martin Konrad Mees Theodore Meier Edward Pfeiffer Wilhelm Proehl Henry Carl George von Rohr William Schmidt (b. 1855) George Henry Schodde Conrad Herman Louis Schuette Christian Spielmann Frederick William Stellhorn Walter Eugene Tressel BIBLIOGRAPHY Deindorfer, Johannes, Geschichte der Evangel-Luth. Synode von Iowa und Anderen Staaten. 1897. Distinctive Doctrines and Usages of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (Composite.) Fourth Edition, 1914. Pages 5-35, 69-92. Jorgensen, A. T., F. Fleisch, and A. R. Wentz, The Lutheran Churches of the World. 1929. Pages 331-338. Lutheran Standard, The, and the Lutherische Kirchenzeitung. The files for 1930. Peter, P. A. und Wm. Schmidt, Geschichte der Allgemeinen Evang-Lutherischen Synode von Ohio und Anderen Staaten. 1900. Sheatsley, C. V., History of the Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States. 1919. • , The Story of the First Lutheran Seminary of the West; 1830-1930. 1930. Wachende Kirche, from June, 1920, to September, 1922. Geschichte der Buffalo-Synode. Zeilinger, G. J., A Missionary Synod ivith a Mission (Iowa) . 1929. CHAPTER XXVIII CO-OPERATING GROUPS After the formation of the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America and The United Lutheran Church in America, the next logical step in an age of denomi- national consolidation was the formation of a larger group that would embrace both of these and yet other Lutheran bodies. ar s er m mi • . . Co-operation This step was taken in the organiza- tion of the National Lutheran Council. This new body was born of war-time conditions. It was the direct outgrowth of the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare. The National Lutheran Commission had been organ- ized in October, 1917, as an emergency organization to meet the necessity which the Church felt of minis- tering to her boys in the service of their country. It was the first general organization to include virtually all Lutherans of America. It performed a vast volume of work in a short time and rendered a splendid service to the Church and her ^ ' k J^ Ae men. The Commission employed one Commission hundred and fifty camp pastors, helped to appoint and equip seventy-eight army chaplains and eleven navy chaplains, sent commissioners to France to confer with the French Lutheran Church and render all possible assistance to chaplains and 411 412 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY service men over there, maintained four service houses in eastern cities, labored among interned aliens, ministered to the sick and dying in about sixty hos- pitals, vindicated the loyalty of the Lutheran Church in this country, and rendered a great variety of special services to individuals and families. The various Lutheran Church bodies, all except the Synodical Conference, co-operated with the utmost harmony in the work of the Commission. When the Commission asked for $750,000 to do its work, the Church responded with $1,360,000. Now the Commis- sion had been organized solely for soldiers' and sailors' welfare and its funds could not be _. - 1 er . ie used for any other purpose. But as Disclosed the Commission was the only general Lutheran organization and as it had a fine balance in its treasury it received a great many requests for services that lay outside its proper sphere of action. The war brought many changes and increasing needs. Before the National Commission was a year old an urgent need was felt for the prosecution of certain forms of missionary work in the growing industrial centers, especially in the munition plants and ship- building centers. Then, too, it was becoming evident that the Lutheran churches in Europe would stand in need of physical and moral aid in the reconstruction period that would follow the war. Moreover, there were several important matters of common interest here at home that invited common action by our church organizations, and the success that had attended the work of the Commission led many to CO-OPERATING GROUPS 413 believe that the sphere of practical co-operation could be enlarged with much benefit to the whole Church. The Norwegian Lutherans had united, the union of Muhlenberg Lutheranism was assured, and all the signs of the times pointed to further denominational consolidation. The presidents of the general bodies that had co- operated in the National Commission, together with one or more representatives from each of those bodies, held a preliminary meeting on July 17, 1918, and after a thorough discussion of the situation resolved to appoint a committee to formulate plans for the crea- tion of a National Council of Lu- therans. The situation seemed to de- The National •, . t i j. • in Council mand immediate action, even before « . , Organized the general bodies could meet and ratify the plans. So, on September 6, 1918, in Chicago, the National Lutheran Council was formally organ- ized by representatives appointed by the presidents of the general bodies in the ratio of one representative for every 150,000 communicant members or fraction thereof. Its officers were: President, the Rev. Dr. H. G. Stub, president of the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America; vice-president, the Hon. John L. Zimmerman, of The United Lutheran Church in America; secretary, the Rev. Dr. Lauritz Larsen, of the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America; treas- urer, the Hon. E. F. Eilert, of The United Lutheran Church in America. The objects and purposes of the new organization were stated as follows: 1. To speak for the Lutheran 414 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY Church and give publicity to its utterances on all mat- ters which require an expression of the common con- viction and sentiment of the Church. 2. To be the representative of The Lutheran Church in America in its attitude toward, or relation to, organized bodies outside of itself. 3. To bring to the attention of the Church all such matters as require common utterance or action. 4. To further the work of recognized agencies of the Church that deal with problems arising out of war or other emer- gencies; to co-ordinate, harmonize and unify their activities ; and to create new agencies to meet circum- stances which require common action. 5. To co- ordinate the activities of the Church and its agencies for the solution of new problems which affect the religious life and consciousness of the people, e.g., social, economic and educational conditions. 6. To foster true Christian loyalty to the state ; and to labor for the maintenance of a right relation between Church and state as distinct, divine institutions. 7. To promote the gathering and publication of true and uniform statistical information concerning the Lu- theran Church in America. The Council expressly dis- claims the right to interfere with the inner life of its participating bodies or in any way to prejudice their confessional basis. Each body co-operating in the execution of the pro- gram of the Council is entitled to one representative for every 100,000 confirmed members or one-third fraction thereof. The church bodies that officially ratified the organization of the National Lutheran CO-OPERATING GROUPS 415 Council were The United Lutheran Church, the Nor- wegian Lutheran Church, the Augustana Synod, the Joint Synod of Ohio, the Iowa Synod, ,.«... TT . , -r^ . -i ^11 i ,, Its Membership the United Danish Church, the Lutheran Free Church, the Danish Lutheran Church, the Icelandic Synod and the Buffalo Synod; but the Iowa Synod withdrew in 1920. When in 1930 the Joint Ohio, Iowa and Buffalo Synods merged to form the American Lutheran Church, the new body decided to co-operate in the work of the Council. Under the regulations governing the Council the administrative work was placed at first in the hands of an executive secretary. In Decem- ber, 1920, the office of executive secre- Its Operation tary was abolished, the duties of ad- ministration were committed to the president, and Dr. Larsen, formerly executive secretary, was chosen president. By a revision of the regulations in 1926 after Dr. Larsen's death, provision is made for an executive director under whose supervision and direc- tion the various activities of the Council are now carried on. This plan of organization makes it pos- sible for the Council to act quickly and effectively whenever an occason for action arises. The executive director from 1926 to 1930 was the Rev. Dr. John A. Morehead. Since then the office is held by the Rev. Dr. Ralph H. Long. The new organization lost no time in beginning its work. Immediately after the meeting of organization an office was opened in Washington and the Secretary of the Council was placed in charge. He kept in con- 416 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY stant touch with the various government agencies and thus the Church was enabled to pre- J? . . ce m sent that united front which was so Washington .1.1.1.1 necessary to secure the rights belong- ing to Lutherans and to counteract unjust misunder- standings of the Lutheran Church. Another serious problem immediately facing the Council at the time of its organization arose from various war-time industrial communities. The great needs in these communities called for co-operation in work of a home mission nature. The Council there- fore took up the work until the different home mission boards would be able to undertake it. This suggested that some action should be secured to eetmg prevent for the future the duplication and overlapping of home mission efforts on the part of the various Lutheran bodies in different sections of our country. Accordingly, the Council brought together representatives of the mis- sion boards who planned to co-ordinate their work and avoid future misunderstandings. A little later, March, 1919, the Council was instrumental in bringing to- gether a body of theologians, representing the bodies belonging to the Council, to discuss questions of doc- trine and practice which had hitherto been an obstacle to closer co-operation in various lines. The result of this general conference was complete agreement on all fundamental questions under consideration and a declaration that the way is open for complete co- operation among these bodies. Meanwhile it had become more and more evident CO-OPERATING GROUPS 417 that the Lutheran Church should have some central agency of publicity. For this purpose the National Lutheran Council secured the Lutheran Bureau of New York City, an organization that had grown out of the celebration of the Quadri-Centennial in 1917 and through the unselfish efforts of Lutheran laymen had been developed " . Iclty Service to a high state of efficiency. Its pur- pose is to gather information of every kind concern- ing the Lutheran Church at home and abroad, in the past and in the present, and to distribute this infor- mation as widely as possible through the public press and otherwise. It maintains a reference library and information bureau, a clipping bureau and a com- plete news service agency. Through the application of modern publicity methods it renders an increas- ingly large service to all parts of the Lutheran Church both in America and in Europe. The Council also has a department of statistics whose purpose it is to gather and publish true and uniform statistical information con- cerning the Lutheran Church in ^ th ,T an America. The Rev. Dr. G. L. Kieffer Almanac is the official statistician. Under the direction of an editorial committee headed by the Executive Director of the Council, Dr. Kieffer and Dr. 0. M. Norlie have prepared and published seven vol- umes of the "Lutheran World Almanac and Annual Encyclopedia." These volumes aggregate over three thousand pages of most valuable historical and statis- tical information concerning the Lutheran Church the 418 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY world over. Dr. Carroll, the government statistician of religious bodies, called the Almanac the "most am- bitious undertaking any body of Christians has, per- haps, yet attempted in this country, or, for that mat- ter, in any country." But even more valuable than the work of the Na- tional Lutheran Council for the Lutheran Church in America is the work that it has done European fo] . the Lutheran Chu rch in other Kehet parts of the world. The work of re- construction in Europe was taken up as early as Feb- ruary, 1919. Five commissioners were appointed to go to Europe and ascertain the needs. At the same time an appeal was made to the Church for $500,000 for European relief and reconstruction. The appeal brought more than $600,000. But the reports of the commissioners disclosed much greater needs than had been surmised. In October, 1919, a special appeal was made for clothing, especially for Poland and the Baltic provinces. In response to this appeal about eight hundred tons of clothing were received and distributed and an additional $250,000 for transportation, medical and other supplies. At the urgent request of the Coun- cil, the Rev. Dr. J. A. Morehead, one of the European commissioners, returned to Europe in February, 1920, to administer the relief work in person. He has been the standing representative of the Council in its European work and has been assisted at times by other special commissioners. To September, 1921, the Council had distributed more than a million and a quarter dollars in gifts of money and food among the CO-OPERATING GROUPS 419 sufferers in seventeen European countries, In addi- tion it applied gifts of clothing conservatively esti- mated to be worth two and a half millions of dollars. The main objectives of this relief work were the suf- fering Lutherans in Germany, Poland and France. Since the winter of 1921-22 the Council has given special attention to relief work in Russia. The Lu- theran commissioners worked in close co-operation with the American Relief Administration and their activities helped to save thousands of lives. When the worst famine condi- J 1 ?. 1 ™ w/ °i Kehei Work tions passed away relief funds were applied particularly to the rescue of Lutheran pastors and churches and the support of the newly estab- lished theological seminary in Leningrad. The de- mands for emergency relief have been greatly dimin- ished in recent years and the annual budget of the Council today on that account is less than forty thou- sand dollars. But the total expenditures of the Council since 1919 on account of European relief reaches the imposing figure of nearly eight millions of dollars. All this has been done on sound principles of charity and with a business system that has insured the utmost economy and efficiency. It would require many volumes to tell the full story of the good that has been accomplished by this World Service of the National Lutheran Council in strengthening the influence and work of the Church, in recovering faith, in alleviating suffering, and in saving life. In connection with this reconstruction work the distressed condition of Lutheran foreign missions 420 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY throughout the world was constantly brought to the attention of the Council. The Council was not author- ized to undertake missionary work but it requested the foreign mission boards of the various bodies to appoint representatives to meet together to study the Lutheran world situation and to frame some common policy. The result was the organization in January, 1920, of the Lutheran Foreign Mis- oreign sions Conference of America. This Conference conference took up at once the cause of the distressed Lutheran missions, assuring them of moral support and securing emer- gency appropriations for their relief. The Missions Conference then asked that the National Council in- clude in its campaign budget for 1920 the sum of $300,000 for the support of these missions. This was done, and more than $200,000 was paid toward the support of Lutheran foreign missions in China, Japan, India and Africa. Additional funds gathered and dis- tributed for this emergency work in foreign missions brought the total in 1930 to $701,274. From this brief summary of the activities of the National Lutheran Council in the short period of its existence it is clear that there is a wide field for such an organization among Lutherans in America. It was called into life by the emergencies of war times, but it is maintained by the needs of the times of peace, for it answers the call that comes in e ounci £ larger units. It does not Not Legislative & & attempt to assume the functions of a super-synod or to interfere in the slightest degree with CO-OPERATING GROUPS 421 the independence of action on the part of its partici- pating bodies. It only seeks to co-ordinate their efforts and to serve as an agency through which they can work together at tasks for which no one of them alone would be adequate. It also serves as a medium of ac- quaintance among the Lutheran bodies of America, enabling them to discuss their common difficulties and to discover the extent of their unity. In this sense it does form a bond of union among the participating bodies and constitutes the largest Lutheran agency in America, enlisting the co-operation of fully two-thirds of the entire Lutheran Church in this country. A stronger bond of fellowship is the American Lutheran Conference. This is not an organic union and so does not constitute a new general body of Lutherans. It is only a federation. But it is more than an official agency. It is a medium for the co-operation and cultivation of The American j. , , , ,. , Lutheran fraternal relations among a number Conference of Lutheran church bodies that have headquarters in the Middle West, feel themselves at one in faith and practice, and have declared pulpit and altar fellowship with one another. The new organ- ization was formed in 1930. It unites for co-operative purposes the Norwegian Lutheran Church of Amer- ica, the Augustana Synod, the American Lutheran Church, the Danish Lutheran Church in America, and the Lutheran Free Church. It will be observed at once that these bodies have many interests in common both by virtue of their geographical location and their lim- 422 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY ited history in America, and by virtue of their general outlook and attitude on questions of belief and life. The formation of the American Lutheran Confer- ence in October, 1930, was the culmination of events stretching over nearly a decade. Colloquies were held among the several groups of Scandinavians and be- tween those groups and the Lutherans ~ . ,. of recent German antecedents who Orgiuzation were afterwards to unite in the Amer- ican Lutheran Church. As a result of these approaches and associations each body decided to admit to its pul- pits and altars the pastors and communicants of the other bodies. Then theses were adopted as common ground upon which to build further efforts for closer affiliation. In 1929 and 1930 matters proceeded rap- idly. The presidents of the general bodies prepared a constitution and by-laws. This was promptly adopted by all the bodies individually. The presidents consti- tuted a committee on arrangements, and the organiza- tion meeting and first convention of the American Lutheran Conference was held amid great enthusiasm in Minneapolis, October 29-31, 1930. The officers elected were: President, Otto Mees, President of Capital University at Columbus, Ohio, and a member of the American Lutheran Church; vice-presidents, T. F. Gullixson (Norwegian), J. P. Nielsen (United Danish), and 0. H. Sletten (Free Church) ; secretary, P. 0. Bersell (Augustana) . The objects of the American Lutheran Conference, as stated in its constitution, are two-fold: "Mutual counsel concerning the faith, life, and work of the CO-OPERATING GROUPS 423 Church, and co-operation in matters of common inter- est and responsibility." The fields of co-operation are specified as follows: allocation of work in home mis- sion fields, elementary and higher Christian education, inner mission Its Purposes work (Christian social service), stu- dent service in state schools and universities, foreign missions, the publication of Christian literature, periodic exchange of theological professors, and such other interests as from time to time may call for con- sideration. The organization meeting of the Confer- ence instructed the Executive Committee to appoint a commission on each of these spheres of co-operation. These commissions are to bring to the next Confer- ence through the Executive Committee concrete pro- posals for action by the participating bodies. The bodies participating in the Conference retain their independence of organization and action. The Conference has only such powers as are specifically delegated to it by the participating or "constituent" bodies. Otherwise its province shall be limited to counsel and advice in mat- Jjf General ters of common interest and those in which its advice may be sought. The Conference, therefore, does not claim to be a new general body that will blot out the sovereignty of the co-operating bodies. Nevertheless, it is clear from the spirit of the Conference since its organization and from the activities of its commissions that it intends to be a vigorous organization that will not be content with biennial gatherings to debate questions of theory, but 424 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY will stride forward to accomplish practical tasks of no small magnitude. It is expected that this new federation, enlisting the interest of about one-third of the Lutherans in America, will help to solidify Lu- theran ranks, strengthen Lutheran consciousness, and lead to greater co-operation in practical tasks, par- ticularly the tasks of home missions, of inner missions and of educational activities. Another co-operative group that calls for mention alongside the National Lutheran Council and the American Lutheran Conference, but much older than either of them, is the Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America. The The Synodical Synodical Conference was organized Conference in 1872 and has already been men- tioned in connection with the work of the Missouri Synod (chapter XXI) . Here we pause only to point out that the Synodical Conference is a federa- tion of the participating synods and not an organic union. It secures co-operation among synods embracing about one-third of the Lutherans in this country. The stated purposes of the Conference are "to give an expres- sion of the unity of spirit existing among the respective synods ; mutual encouragement as to faith and confes- sion; promotion of unity as to doctrine and practice and the removal of any threatening disturbance thereof; co-operation in matters of mutual interest; an effort to establish territorial boundaries for the synods, provided the language used does not separate them ; and the uniting of all Lutheran synods of Amer- ica into one orthodox American Lutheran Church." CO-OPERATING GROUPS 425 Thus we see that nearly all the Lutherans in Amer- ica are gathered into three main groups. These are the Synodical Conference, The United Lu- theran Church, and the American * he Thre f Lutheran Conference. Each of these Lutherans comprises about one-third of the strength of Lutheranism in this country. The United Lutheran Church differs from the other two organiza- tions in that it is a compact organic union while they are federations, partly advisory and partly co-opera- tive. The thirty - three constituent synods of The United Lutheran Church in America embrace 1,424,386 baptized members. The five bodies federated in the American Lutheran Conference embrace alto- gether 1,406,919 baptized members. The five synods federated in the Synodical Conference embrace a total of 1,369,622 baptized members. Outside of these three groups we have the Eielsen Synod with 1,087 members, the Church of the Lu- theran Brethren with about 2,000 members, the Danish Church with ' nde P endent 19,758 members, the Icelandic Synod with 8,524 members, the Finnish Suomi Synod with 35,479 members, the Finnish National Church with 7,890 members, the Finnish Apostolic Church with about 50,000 members, and eighty independent con- gregations with about 24,000 members. Of these non- federated groups the Icelandic Synod and the Suomi Synod co-operate with The United Lutheran Church in missionary work. These facts testify to the high degree of solidarity 426 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY that has come to expression among the Lutheran forces in America, particularly in this period of larger units that began in all American life about 1910, QUESTIONS 1. What was the work of the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare? 2. What wider fields for co-operation of American Lutherans were disclosed during the World War? 3. How was the National Lutheran Council organized? 4. What were the expressed purposes of the Council? 5. How is the Council constituted at present and who ad- ministers its work? 6. What has the Council accomplished for home and foreign missions? 7. What has the Council done for Lutheran publicity? 8. What has been the work of the Council for European relief? 9. What is the character and constituency of the American Lutheran Conference? 10. How was the American Lutheran Conference organized and what are its objects? 11. What is the Synodical Lutheran Conference of North America and what are its purposes? 12. What are the three main groups of Lutherans in America and what is their relative strength? 13. What proportion of Lutherans in America are in in- dependent synods? TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY The Origin, Work, and Dissolution of the National Lutheran Commission for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare Lutheran Chaplains and Camp Pastors in the World War Charges of Disloyalty against Lutherans during the World War Analysis of the Lutheran World Almanac Pulpit and Altar Fellowship among American Lutherans The Lutheran Church in War-Time Community Centers The American Lutheran Missionary Council The Lutheran Bureau The Lutheran Church and Publicity The Statistical Service of the National Lutheran Council The Voice of Lutherans before the American Government The Commissions of the American Lutheran Conference The Work of the Synodical Conference of North America CO-OPERATING GROUPS 427 SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY The personalities who were active in the history of the National Lutheran Council and the Synodical Conference and in the formation of the American Lutheran Conference were prominent also in the work of the participating bodies, and those who have passed away are listed in the chapters dealing with those bodies. Special mention should be made of Lauritz Larsen who sacrificed his life in the work of the Council. BIBLIOGRAPHY Lutheran World Almanac, The, 1921, pp. 492-515 1922, pp. 106-108 1923, pp. 38-40 1924-1926, pp. 35-39 1927-1928, pp. 28-30 1929-1930, pp. 35-38 1931-1933, pp. 66-68, 91, 285 Annual Report of the National Lutheran Council, December 7, 1920. 104 pages. November 3, 1921. 91 pages. CHAPTER XXIX THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION The Lutherans in America are only a small fraction of the Lutherans throughout the world. How large ,that fraction is depends on the method Lutherans of of computation. The Lutheran bodies the World of North America have on their rolls a total baptized membership of nearly four and a half millions. But in addition to those actually enrolled as members there are great numbers of adherents to Lutheran churches. These are not members in any church, but have Lutheran antece- dents and Lutheran preferences. If these are added to the figures of Lutheran membership it is found that the Lutheran population of North America reaches the imposing total of nearly twenty millions. This is the method of computation used by Catholics every- where and by most of the other churches outside of the United States. On this method of calculation the Lutherans of America constitute a little less than one- fourth of the Lutheran population of the world. If the fraction is computed on the basis of enrolled mem- bership only, they constitute about one-fifteenth. With the many international contacts that have come since 1910 it was to be expected that the Lu- therans of America would establish relationships with the many other Lutherans of the world. The process of widening horizons was bound to suggest ecumenical 428 THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 429 movements among Lutherans. Lutheran congrega- tions, as we have seen, began to unite into synods as early as 1748. f ^.® Lutheran synods began to unite into contacts general bodies in 1820. General bodies of Lutherans began to merge into larger units in 1917. Among these larger units federations were formed and co-operative agencies established. Such were the National Lutheran Council and the American Lutheran Conference. The next logical step in the historical process would seem to be some international Lutheran agency or organization. The immediate occasion of this new Lutheran world consciousness on the part of American Lutherans was the work of the National Lutheran Council during and after the World Suffering War of 1914-1918. The war brought BreTren" untold distress and suffering to the many millions of Lutherans in the various countries of Europe. The Lutherans of America, who had felt little of the ravages of war, were moved to undertake the ministry of mercy among their suffering European brethren in the faith. Before the armistice was con- cluded the National Lutheran Council had commis- sioners in Europe to survey the needs and to plan for reconstructive work among European Lutherans as soon as actual hostilities should cease. During the year following the war these commissioners visited eighteen countries, administering the relief funds of the Coun- cil and helping to rehabilitate Lutheran churches and institutions. 430 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY More important than the administration of funds were the personal contacts that were formed and the sense of fellowship that developed. A World q u £ f j-j^g came the thought to some Pro osed ' °^ ^ ne commissioners that it might be well to form some world federation of Lutheran churches for purposes of common encour- agement and support. The first public suggestion for such an organization was made by Dr. John A. More- head in the report of the European commissioners to the National Lutheran Council in 1919. The idea ac- corded with the prevailing spirit of international interest. It commended itself to the Council as a practical suggestion with great possibilities for the Kingdom of God. The Council recommended the idea to its participating church bodies and at the same time appointed a committee to draft tentative plans and to enter into negotiations with the Lutherans of Europe through the chairman of the European com- mission. In Europe there were general bodies of Lutherans which could easily be approached on this matter of an international Lutheran federation. The General For fifty g there wag ^ Q _ Conference , „ in Germany ization called the General Evangelical Lutheran Conference. This was made up chiefly of representative men from the Ger- man Lutheran state churches. Men from the Free Churches also joined the Conference about thirty years ago. It met at intervals of several years and gave its time almost entirely to doctrinal and theoret- THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 431 ical discussion. During the last twenty-five years men from countries outside of Germany joined in the meet- ings of the Conference. These came from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and occasionally from other coun- tries. Sometimes the General Council of America was represented. Besides the General Conference in Germany there was the Lutheran League (Lutherischer Bund). This was organized in 1907 by the stricter Lutherans who withdrew from the The Lutheran General Conference at that time be- League cause the General Conference admit- ted to full membership those "Union Lutherans" who remained in the Prussian Union. The league was a very much smaller body than the Conference. In the Scandinavian lands also there was much in- tercourse among Lutherans across the boundaries of the individual countries. From the middle of the nineteenth century in F *J,"^ vian these northern lands regular and stated conferences had been taking place among rep- resentatives of deaconess motherhouses, foreign mis- sions, Lutheran students, Lutheran bishops, and min- isters' associations. The international relationships in that part of Europe had become quite intimate. It was easy therefore to establish contacts with these Lu- therans of the north through the General Lutheran Conference centering in Germany. To these two groups of European Lutherans — the General Conference and the Lutheran League — the National Lutheran Council in America sent its sug- 432 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY gestion for a world convention of Lutherans. The plan met with the approval of these bodies. Mean- while the general bodies in America, Committee as ^ ev met m 1920, acted favorably on the proposition. A joint committee was named by the General Conference and the National Lutheran Council, the representatives of the League by their own choice holding a purely advisory relation to the committee. The joint committee prepared for the convention. The plans were drafted by the American part of the committee and transmitted to the European members where they were approved with modifications. Eisen- ach in Germany was finally agreed upon as the place of meeting and August, 1923, was fixed as the time. The invitations were issued jointly by the National Lutheran Council and the General Lutheran Confer- ence. When the official roll of the first Lutheran World Convention was called in Eisenach on August 19, 1923, one hundred and fifty-one delegates w^m" 8 * responded to their names. The num- Convention ^er was P ur POsely kept small in order to promote the possibility of personal contacts and thus provide for the free exchange of information and ideas on matters of common interest. Thousands of visitors attended the sessions. The dele- gates came from twenty-two nations as follows: United States, Canada, France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Holland, Finland, Esthonia, Latvia, Poland, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Jugo-Slavia, Roumania, THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 433 Russia, Hungary, Austria, India, China, Australia, and South Africa. Spain was also represented in the personal greetings of Theodore Fliedner. From Amer- ica there were seventeen official delegates, chosen by the general bodies. They represented every general body except Missouri. The convention lasted six days. Coming as it did, at the time of the highest inflation of the German currency, it exhibited to the utmost the dire needs of the German Lu- Its Program therans and humbled men into testi- mony of first principles. Bishop Ihmels of Saxony was chosen to preside over the convention. The pro- gram included a number of main addresses. These covered such topics as the plans and progress of inter- national relief, the ecumenical character of Lutheran- ism, what Lutherans can contribute to Christian unity and so forth. In connection with each of the main addresses a general discussion was held. One of the special features was a celebration at the Wartburg with a public act of confession in the Wartburg court- yard, the united recital of the Creed and the rendition of Luther's battle hymn in genuine harmony of time, but in great variety of tongues. So strong was the consciousness of Lutheran unity that a continuation of the World Convention was de- cided upon. A brief doctrinal basis was adopted and a permanent organ- rt or . . a. . , mt • • Organization ization effected. The organization pro- vided for two committees, an executive committee of six and a large committee for purposes of contact. The 434 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY executive committee consists of two members from America, two from Scandinavian lands and two from Germany. It was charged with the preparations for the next assembly of the World Convention and with a long list of other practical tasks, such as the har- monizing of Lutheran relief and reconstruction work, regular and emergency, the care of migrating Lu- theran groups, provision for emergency co-operation in foreign missions, unity of utterance and action among Lutherans when grave reasons call for it, ex- change of visitors and the collection and dissemina- tion of significant church news and accurate statis- tics. Dr. Morehead was chosen chairman of the Exec- utive Committee, the plan of organization was ap- proved by the church bodies participating in the Eisenach convention, and the Lutheran World Con- vention became a permanent reality of church history. Thus the Lutheran Church in America entered recip- rocally into the life of all the other Lutheran churches of the world. The Executive Committee of the Lutheran World Convention secured the appointment of the large com- mittee by the various Lutheran bodies c . and entered vigorously upon its as- signed tasks. Meetings of the commit- mittee were held annually in various European cen- ters and in connection with these meetings deputation work was carried on over wide areas. The outstanding problem at first was that of relief, particularly for the Lutherans in Russia. The budget of the committee called for about $75,000 a year. The other objectives THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 435 of the World Convention were also pursued with vigor and tact. Plans were laid for a world-wide celebration of the four hundredth anniversary of Luther's Cate- chism in 1929 and the four hundredth anniversary of the Augsburg Confession in 1930. Preparations were also made for a second gathering of the World Con- vention in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1929. In order to prepare the way for this convention the Executive Committee arranged for the publication of a hand- book of world Lutheranism in order to awaken intelli- gent interest and accurate information about all the Lutheran churches of the world. The second convention met in Copenhagen, June 26 to July 4, 1929. The sessions of one day were held in Lund, Sweden. The personnel of the convention was about the same in ^/ e ,^ e ° size and distribution as that of the Convention first convention six years earlier. Dr. Morehead was chosen to preside. The program pro- vided for more general discussion and for more con- sideration of practical issues than the Eisenach meet- ing. The proceedings of Copenhagen, like those of Eisenach, were issued in a separate volume. The Executive Committee reported its acts during the interim between conventions, its meetings and surveys, its deputation work among Lutheran minorities, its work of relief ccom - i j- 4- j j j plishments among weak, distressed and endan- gered Lutheran churches totaling over $133,000, its regular publication in English and German of a News Exchange Bulletin, its publication in English, German 436 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY and Danish of a handbook of world Lutheranism en- titled, "The Lutheran Churches of the World," the success of its efforts to make the convention at Copen- hagen more representative and official than the one at Eisenach had been. The Copenhagen convention appointed a committee on organization. On recommendation of this commit- tee it was decided that the Lutheran orwar World Convention shall continue to be ateps a free assembly without binding power, with an organization as simple as possible and that the complete autonomy of all co-operating churches shall be fully recognized. It was also decided that the official church bodies co-operating in the World Convention should each appoint its own com- mittee to further the cause and the special objects of world Lutheranism within its own bounds. On recom- mendation of the committee on resolutions the con- vention laid in the hands of the Executive Committee a long list of old and new mandates and responsibili- ties. These relate to Lutheran unity, works of mercy, social problems, publicity, foreign missions, and the exchange of students, professors, and literature. The members of the Executive Committee were re-elected. Dr. Morehead was again chosen the head of the com- mittee, now as president of the Lutheran World Con- vention. Upon his return to America he resigned his post as Executive Director of the National Lutheran Council and since then has been giving his full time to the work of the Lutheran World Convention. The committee has continued the several lines of THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 437 activity begun before the Copenhagen convention. It continues to devote much care and attention to the weak and suffering Lutheran churches throughout the earth, particularly in f esent Soviet Russia. It reports about $75,000 Activity a year spent for this purpose, includ- ing the maintenance of the Lutheran Seminary in Leningrad. But additional problems have been pre- sented by the world-wide economic depression, the trials of the Lutheran minorities in the states bor- dering on Russia, the turn of the tide of European immigration to South America, the appeals of the host of Lutheran refugees from Russia gathered at Harbin in Manchuria and the necessity of transporting them to South America, and other special conditions. A vast field for international Lutheran endeavor has opened before the World Convention movement and as soon as economic conditions permit a great volume of work along these lines will be vigorously projected and executed. In the meantime the ecumenical spirit among Lu- therans all over the world has made considerable progress. It was clearly evident already at Copen- hagen in 1929 that the efforts to cultivate acquaintance and common interest among diverse j. T ,, ill • i Ecumenical groups of Lutherans had borne rich Lutheranism fruit. There can be no doubt that this process has continued, that the Lutherans of the world are moving towards a unified intelligence and a con- sciousness of solidarity and in consequence of that are lifting their eyes above the limitations of language 438 THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICAN HISTORY and nation and ecclesiastical organization. In the con- scious efforts towards this end the Lutherans in America have had a leading part. In thus sharing and furthering the new world consciousness the Lutheran Church of America takes a logical step forward in its own historical development and at the same time fits precisely into the background of general American sentiment. QUESTIONS 1. How does the number of Lutherans in America compare with the number in other countries? 2. How were the Lutherans in America brought into close contact with the Lutherans in Europe? 3. What was the origin of the idea of a world federation of Lutherans? 4. What federations of Lutherans existed in Europe? 5. Who arranged for the first Lutheran World Convention? 6. How was the first Lutheran World Convention con- stituted? 7. What was the general character of the program of the first Lutheran World Convention? 8. What was the permanent organization formed and with what objectives? 9. What was accomplished by the Executive Committee before the second meeting of the Convention? 10. How did the Copenhagen Convention advance beyond the Eisenach Convention? 11. What are the fields of the Lutheran World Convention today? 12. Show that the work of American Lutherans in the Lutheran World Convention is in line with the logic of Lutheran history in America. TOPICS FOR SPECIAL STUDY Methods of Computing Religious Statistics The Ravages of the World War among the Lutherans of Central Europe The Sufferings of Lutherans in Soviet Russia The Strength and Character of Lutheranism in the Various Countries of Europe THE LUTHERAN WORLD CONVENTION 439 The History of the General Evangelical Lutheran Conference in Germany The Eisenach Convention of Lutherans in 1923 The Second Lutheran World Convention, Copenhagen, 1929 The Doctrinal Basis of the Lutheran World Convention The Four Hundredth Anniversary of Luther's Catechism The Quadricentennial of the Augsburg Confession The Lutheran Theological Seminary in Leningrad Lutheran Personalities of International Significance Lutherans of the Dispersion The Universal Appeal of the Lutheran Faith An International Lutheran Theological Faculty The Lutheran Church and Social Problems SUBJECTS FOR BIOGRAPHY Lars W. Boe Ludwig Ihmels Alfred Th. Jorgensen August Marahrens John A. Morehead Wilhelm von Pechmann Per Pehrsson Nathan Soderblom BIBLIOGRAPHY American Committee on Arrangements. Lutheran World Con- vention. The Minutes, Addresses and Discussions of the Conference at Eisenach, Germany, August 19 to 26, 1923. Jorgensen, A. Th., F. Fleisch, and A. R. Wentz (editors), The Lutheran Churches of the World. 1929. Lutheran World Almanac, The, 1924-1926, pp. 26-28 1927-1928, pp. 21-23 1929-1930, pp. 17, 21-26, 112- 113, 186 1931-1933, pp. 43-50, 91 Wentz, A. R., The First Lutheran World Convention. The Lutheran Quarterly, Vol. LIII, October, 1923, pp. 408-420. Wentz, A. R. (editor), The Second Lutheran World Convention. The Minutes, Addresses and Discussions of the Conference at Copenhagen, Denmark, June 26 to July \, 1929. INDEX Aasgaard, J. A., 361. Abolitionism, 153. Acrelius, Israel: "History of New Sweden", 46. Adams, President, 152. Adams' Administration, 90. Adventism, 156. Africa: 269, 290, 361, 420. Akron Declaration, 328ff. Akron, Ohio, 328. Alabama, 289. Alaska, 361. Albany, N. Y., 31, 33, 34, 37, 107, 276, 396. Alleghany Synod, 167. Allegheny Mountains, 102, 104. Allies, The, 342. American Bible Society, 98. American Board op Commis- sioners, 170. American Board of Commis- sioners for Foreign Mis- sions, 98. American Education Society, 98. American Federation o f Labor, 242. American Home Missionary Society, 98. American Homestead Act of 1862, 257. American LutheranChurch : 174, 401ff; original synods, 402ff; merger, 406; size and districts, 407 ; unification, 407f; type of Lutheranism, 408, 415, 421, 422. American Lutheran Confer- ence: 291, 409; organiza- tion, 422; purposes, 423; character, 423; 424, 425, 429. American Lutheran Hymnal, 408. American Lutheranism": opposes confessional move- ment, 198 ; a minority party, 199; Schmucker leads, 200; Kurtz and Sprecher, 202ff; vs. Missouri, Iowa, Buffalo, 204; birth Hartwick and Franckean Synods, 205; Maryland repudiates it, 206; rejected by G. S., 206; Definite Synodical Platform, 207f ; doomed, 208; Melanch- thon Synod, 209; definitely defeated, 210; 213, 224, 253, 283. American Nationalism and Federalization, 89ff. American Relief Adminis- tration, 419. American Republic: As an infant, 89 ; union attained, 93; wealth of, 94. American Self - Conscious- ness in Religion, 95. American Sunday School Union, 98. American Tract Society, 98. Americanism, 204. Amsterdam, 31, 32, 34, 37, 44. Andersen, R. — Lutherske Kirkes I Amerika, 7. Andover, 111., 278. 441 442 INDEX Andover Seminary, 142. Andren, O. C. T., 282, 285. Anglicanism: In the South, 28; 170; see also Episcopal Church. Ann Arbor, Mich., 864. Anti-Missouri Brotherhood: 260, 335, 357, 359. Apostles' Creed: 117, 310, 311, 332, 433. Arends, J. G., 108. Arensius, Bernhard, 34. Argentina, 297. Articles of Union (Norwe- gian), 359. Association op English Churches, 290. Atchison, Kas., 265. Athens, N. Y., 37. Atlantic Ocean, 81, 139, 276. Augsburg Confession : 42, 115, 118, 121, 130, 142, 143, 200, 203, 205, 207, 208, 210, 216-7, 221, 222, 227, 283, 320f, 333, 382, 402, 435. Augustana, see Augsburg Confession. "Augustana" (periodical), 260. Augustana College, 193, 260. Augustana Synod: 193 ; formed, 217; 228; separated into Swedish Augustana and Norwegian Augustana Syn- ods, 1870, 259; 260, 270; his- torical foundations, 274f; Esbjorn arrives, 278; oppo- sition, 279; Hasselquist and Carlsson, 280; Andren and Norelius, 282; Break with Northern 111. Synod, 283; Synod organized, 284; Its Seminary, 285; Missions, 285; external relations, 286; joins G. C, 287; Since 1895, 289; Significance, 292; 380, 415, 421. Aureen, Jonas, 45, Australia, 433. Austria, 50, 433. Baltic Provinces, 418. Baltimore, Md., 81, 329. Baptists, 97; divide, 159; 218, 255, 279, 364. Barmen Training School, 365. Basel Missionary Society, 365. Basel, Switzerland, 364, 366. Baugher, H. L., 206. Benevolence, Organized, be- comes denominational, 164. Bengtson, Andrew, 44. Bente, F. — American Luther- ism. Vol. I, Early History of American Luther anism and the Tennessee Synod. St. Louis, 1919. 237 pages. Vol. II, The United Lutheran Church. St. Louis, 1919. 243 pages: Review of, 14. Berkenmyer, William Chris- topher, 37, 107. Berks County, Pa., 81ff. Bersell, P. O., 422. Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kas., 260. Bible: Printed for Delaware Swedes, 44; with the pio- neers, 103; 130, 143, 182, 281, 323. Bibliographical Note, Gen- eral, 9. INDEX 443 Bibliography : Method of choice, 7 ; extent, 9-10 ; va- riety, 10; 30, 39, 49, 54, 62, 78, 85, 100, 114, 126, 137, 147, 163, 176, 197, 212, 235, 254, 273, 293, 303, 318, 337, 354, 371, 400, 410, 427, 439. Biographical Collections, 5-6. Biography : Present interest in, 5; relation to history, 6. Bishop Hill Colony, 111., 275. Bjork, Eric, 45. Blue Laws, 26. Blue Ridge Mountains, 65. Board of Church Extension, 264. Board of Colored Missions, 301. Board of Education, 408. Board of Home Missions, 264. Boltzius, Martin, 51. Book of Concord, 183, 199, 324, 325, 402. Boston, Mass., 166, 172, 258. Braddock, Pa., 397. Brandt, N. O., 358. Braulick, E. J., 406. Braunsdorf, Saxony, 182. Brazil, 296. Breklum Seminary, 265. Brooklyn, N. Y., 258. Brown, J. A., elected head Gettysburg Seminary, 223, elected pres. G. S., 226. Brunnholtz, Peter, 70, 72, 305. Bryant, William Cullen, 95. Buffalo, N. Y., 186, 276, 364. Buffalo Synod: 161, contro- versy with Missouri, 186, 214; organized, 187, 188; 204, 213 ; helps form Amer- ican Lutheran Church, 401ff ; 415. Burlington, Iowa, 265. Butler, J. G., 311. California, 153, 179, 277. California Synod, 264. Campanius, John, Indian Cat- echism, 42. Canada, 107, 256, 265, 266, 295, 296, 297, 394, 403, 408, 432. Canada Synod, 167, 228, 394f. Canton, Ohio, 173, 402. Capital, 241. Capitol University, 173, 402, 408, 422. Carlsson, Erland, 280f. Carolinas, see North and South Carolina. Carroll, H. K., 418. Carthage College, 173. Carthage, 111., 265. Catechisms: Campanius' In- dian, 42; Quitman's, 117; Helmstaedt, or North Car- olina, 118-19; Luther's, 42, 44, 117, 207, 316, 320, 402, 435; Kunze's, 139. Catholics, see Roman Cath- olics. Catskill Mountains, 36-7. Central Canada Synod, 267. "Central Committee", 287f. Central Illinois Synod, 167, 264, 230, 389f. 444 INDEX Central Missionary Society of the Evangelical Lu- theran Church in Amer- ica, 166ff, 169. Central Pennsylvania Synod, 168; 394f. Chambersburg, Pa., 109. Charles XI, 44. Charleston, S. C, 74, 81, 334. Charlestown, Mass. : con- vent outrage, 157. Charles City, Iowa, 406. Chicago, 111., 172, 185, 258, 265, 276, 280, 281, 284, 413. Chicago Synod, 266, 389f, 391. Chicago Theological Sem- inary, 267. China, 169, 270, 298, 342, 360, 361, 420, 433. China Mission Society, 290. Chiliasm, 325. Christ Church, N. Y., 38. Church Extension Fund, 299. Church Extension Society, 171. Church Missionary Society of England, 170, 171. "Church News from North America", 191. Church of England: 26, 28, see also Anglicanism, Epis- copal Church. Church of Sweden, 277, 279, 291. Church of the Lutheran Brethren, 425. Church Union: see Union- ism. Church Year, 307. 316. Civil War, 152, splits denomi- nations, 158; 179, 217, 232, 255, 257, 268. Clausen, C. L., 192, 358. Colonies, American: Slow be- ginnings of, 21; Lutheran element in, 22; political va- riety in, 22; lack of com- munication in, 23; isolation, 23; political trend of, 24; social and religious life in, 24-28. Colonies, Dutch: In New Netherland, 31ff. Colonies, Middle : Political and industrial conditions in, 24. Colson, Karl W., 104. Columbia College, N. Y., 139. Columbia Seminary, 334. Columbus, Christopher, 21. Columbus, Ohio, 200, 402, 406, 408, 422. Columbus Seminary, 173. Commission of Adjudication, 383. Commission on Practical Co- operation, 377. Committee on Arbitration, 377. Common Hymnbook, 120. Common Service, etc., see Lit- urgy. Communism, 364. Concordia College, Moor- head, Minn., 261. Concordia Cyclopedia, 7. Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, 297. Conferences: Special of Penn- sylvania Ministerium, 109. INDEX 445 Confessions: 117, 132; Laxity of, 95, 99; Action of Pa. Min., 116; Basis North Car- olina Synod, 118. Congregationalists, 96, break ■with Presbyterians, 158. Congress, 90, 92, 240, 246. Connecticut, 96. Conservatism of Lutherans, 194-95. "Conservative Reformation and Its Theology", 330. Constitution of the U. S., 89 ; Use of implied powers of, 91. Constitution of St. Michael's, 75. Constitutions, Synodical: Pennsylvania Ministerium, 115-16; General Synod, 130; Model for District Synods, 132. Copenhagen Conference, 435ff. Copenhagen, Denmark, 435. Cooper, James Fennimore, 95. Co-operation among denomi- nations, 97ff. Council of Church Boards of Education, 344. Council of Women for Home Missions, 344. Cumberland Valley, 82ff. Czecho-Slovakia, 396, 432. Dakotas, The, 258, 266, 404. Danes, 258, 259, 261f. Danish Lutheran Church in America, 261, 415, 421, 425. Danish-Norwegian Confer- ence, 357. Das Evangelische Magazin, 124, 173. Day, David A., 269. Deaconesses, begun, 172. Declaration of Independ- ence, 22. "Definite Synodical Plat- form", 207ff, 283. Delaware River, 4 Iff, 274-75. Delegate Synod, 296. Demme, C. R., 307. Denmark, 257, 261, 431, 432. Denominationalism : revived, 154 ; zeal among Lutherans, 160; tolerance in, 249; a new denominationalism, 250 ; consolidated, 251 ; revival of, 350f. "Der Lutheraner", 184 ; growth, 185; 190, 191, 298. Detroit, Mich., 365. Dietrichson, J. W. C, 192, 358. Disciples of Christ, 97. District Synod of Nebraska, 308. District Synod of Ohio, 167, 3921 Dubuque, Iowa, 408. Dubuque Seminary, 188, 408. Dutch, 28ff. Dutch Reformed Church: quarrels with German Re- formed, 159. Dutch West India Company, 31. Dylander, John, 46. Earltown, 56. East Ohio Synod, 167, 215, 3921 East Pennsylvania Synod, 168, 215. Easton, Pa., 71. 446 INDEX Ebenezer: Founding of, 50; 68, 70, 74; see also Salz- burgers. Ecclesia Plantanda, 69. Ecumenical Methodist Con- ference, 251. Eielsen, Elling, 357. Eielsen Synod, 192, 362, 425. Eilert, E. F., 413. Eisenach Convention, 432f. Eisenach, Germany, 432. Eliot, John — Indian New Tes- tament, 42. Elizabeth College, Salem, Va., 394. Elk River, Md., 45. Empire State, 396. Endress, Christian, 141. England, 31, 36, 65, 9 Iff, 105. English Synod of Missouri, 314. English Synod of Ohio, 228. English Synod of the Northwest, 266. Episcopal Church: 97, 107, tendency towards union with, 119; 121, 124, 129, 131, 279, 306, see also Anglican- ism, Church of England. Episcopate, 28. "Era of Good Feelings", 93, 119. "Era of Hard Feelings", 156. Erie Canal, 103, 276. Esbjorn, Lars P., 192, 193. 216, 217, 278, 279, 283, 284, 285. esthonia, 432. Europe, 25, 50, 66, 72, 75, 84, 106, 112, 175, 179, 188, 194, 239, 256, 349, 412, 417, 418, 429. "Evangelical Alliance, The", 202, 209. Evangelical Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States, 403. Evangelical Lutheran Church, Eielsen Synod, The, 358. Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Wisconsin and Other States, 363, 368, see also Joint Synod of Wisconsin. Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Iowa, 403, see also German Iowa Synod. Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America, see Synod- ical Conference. Evangelical Movement, The, 96. "Evangelical Quarterly Review", 6. "Evangelical Review, The", 174, 191, 199. Executive Board U. L. C. A.: its duties, 384, 385, 386. Executive Board of the Iowa Synod, 404. Executive Board of the Ohio Synod, 404. Executive Commission of the Lutheran World Con- vention, 434f. Executive Committee, 423. Executive Director of the National Lutheran Coun- cil, 417, 436. Fabritius, Jacob, 33, 43, 44. Falckner, Daniel, 35, 57. INDEX 447 Falckner, Justus: His parish, 35, 37, 45, 57. Falckner's Swamp, 56. Far East, 342. Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America, 344f . Federalists, 91, 93. Federation of Women's Boards of Foreign Mis- sions, 344. Finland, 432. Finnish Apostolic Church, 425. Finnish National Church, 425. Finnish Suomi Synod, 425. First Edition this book, 4. First General Conference of Lutherans in America, 1898, 374. First German Lutheran Service in America, 55. First Lutheran Church in America, 42. First Lutheran Congrega- tion in Pennsylvania, 56. First Regular Lutheran Pastor in Pennsylvania, 58. Fliedner, Th., 172, 433. Florida, 277, 289, 397. Florida Conference of the Georgia Synod, 397. Florida Synod of the U. L. C. A., 397. Foerster, George, 104. Foreign Missionary Society of the Evangelical Ger- man Churches in the United States, 169, 171. Foreign Missions Confer- ence of North America, 343, 344. Foreign Relations: Washing- ton's Administration, 91ff. Fort Orange, N. Y., 31. Fort Wayne, Ind., 187, 189; the schism at, 224ff, G. C. convention at, 228 ; 229, 233. "Four Points, The", 325ff. France, 91, 115, 411, 419, 432. Francke, Hermann, 51, 60, 65, 68, 83, 115. Franckean Synod, 205, 215, cause of disruption, 221, 222, 396. Franklin College, Lancaster, Pa., 120, 139, 144. Fraternal Appeal to the American Churches, 201. Frederick, Md., 71, 74, 82, 130, 141. Free Churches, 430. Free Lutheran Diets, 373, 374. French and Indian War, 75. French Lutheran Church, 411. Fritschel, Geoi'ge J. — Ge- schichte der Lutherischen Kirche m Amerika. Erster Teil, 1896. 432 pages. Zweiter Teil, 1897. 432 pages: Review of, 13. Fritschel, Gottfried, 188. Fritschel, Sigmund, 188. Galesburg, 280, 281, 328. Galesburg Rule, The, 327ff, 408. Geissenhainer, F. W., 141. General Assembly, 158. General Assembly of Pres- byterians, 96. General Association of Con- gregationalists o f Con- necticut, 96. 448 INDEX General Board of Support, 299. General Council: 171, 219; organized, 227f; constituent synods, 228; general spirit, 228ff ; actual causes of break with G. S., 231ff; westward movement of, 266f ; foreign missions, 269, 286; Augus- tana joins, 287f ; Augustana leaves, 290f; 300; Liturgy, 304ff; confessional standing, 323; doctrinal basis, 324f; questions of practice, 325; "The Four Points", 326; Krauth President, 330; Lan- guage problem, 331f; 363; 366; 367; helps form the U. L. C. A., 372ff ; 402, 431. General Evangelical Lu- theran Conferences, 430f. General Synod: 111; organ- izes, 129; first convention, 130; spirit and purpose, 131; opposes Rationalism, 131 ; influence, 132 ; development and significance of, 133; en- counters difficulties, 134; saved, 136; need for a Sem- inary, 139; 142; acts on Seminary question, 143 ; es- tablishes Seminary at Get- tysburg, 143 ; 160 ; home mis- sions, 165ff; constituent syn- ods, 167-68; 169; Church Extension Society, 17 If, 172, 173, 174, 190, confes- sional reaction, 191, 192; Swedes and, 193; and "American Lutheranism", 199ff; Penna. Min. returns, 207; at its greatest strength, 216; the Swedes leave, 216f ; Southern synods leave, 217f ; Penna. Min. withdraws, 219ff; in 1870, 230; causes of disruption, 231f ; western movement, 263f ; foreign missions, 269; 282, 283, 284, 291; Liturgy, 304ff; confes- sional development, 320f ; resolutions of 1895 and 1901, 321-22; Statements of 1909, 323; doctrinal restate- ment of 1913, 324; 366, 367; helps form U. L. C. A., 372ff ; 402. General Synod of Wisconsin, 367. General Synod of the Con- federate States, 218, 332. General War-Time Commis- sion, 346. Genet, French Minister, 91. Georgia, 50-52. Georgia Synod, 168, 332. German Canada Synod, 267. German Evangelical Lu- theran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States, 185, see Missouri Synod, German Immigration : see New Amsterdam, New York, Salzburgers, etc., strong tide sets in, 56; high point of in Penna., 57; in 1749 at Phila., 66, see also Immigration. German Land Company, 57. German Nebraska Synod, 264, 265. German Synod of Iowa, 270, 325, 403. German Synod of Minnesota and Other States, 366. German Synodical Confer- ence, 260. INDEX 449 German Wartburg Synod, 264, 265. Germantown, Pa., 56, 57, 69, 70, 122, 172. Germany, 37, 55, 102, 106, 108, 141, 161, 179, 182, 183, 187, 189, 190, 191, 199, 202, 204, 213, 231, 255, 305, 364, 365, 419, 431, 432, 434. Gettysburg College, 144, 172, 206, 215, 329. Gettysburg, Pa., 144, 174, 203. Gettysburg Seminary: estab- lished, 143; significance of, 145; Schmucker president, 144; 167, 182, 199, 200; Schmucker resigns presi- dency, 222; Brown succeeds him, 223; Holman Lectures, 322; 329. Gloria Dei Church, Phila., 45, 69. Gloria in Excelsis, 311. Gloria Patri, 311. Goering, Jacob, 141. Goetwasser, John Ernst, 32, 42. Gospel, The, 249, 271, 382. Grabau of Erfurt, 186. Graebner, A. L. — Geschichte der Lutherischen Kirche in Amerika. Erster Teil. St. Louis, 1892, 726 pages: Re- view of, 12. Great Awakening: Lutherans and Reformed in the, 98. Great Lakes, 256, 276. Greenwald, E., 174. Grove City, Ohio, 407. Gronau, Israel Christian, 51, 52. Grosshennersdorf, Saxony, 67. Gulf of Mexico, 181. Gullixson, T. F., 422. Gunn, Walter, 170. Guntur, India, 170, 269, 376, 377. Gustavus Adolphus, 41. Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, Minn., 260. Gutzlaff, K. F., 169. Hagerstown, Md., 82; General Synod organized at, 129. Hague, The, 342. Halle, 38, 51, 52; Pennsyl- vania Lutherans negotiate with, 50; 65, 68, 74, 83, 107; Rationalism in, 115; 117, 170. Halle Reports, 70, 83. Hamburg, 37ff. Hamilton, Alexander: His financial system, 91. Handschuh, John Frederick, 71ff, 305. Hankow, China, 298. Hanover, Germany, 71; Con- sistory of, 108. Harbin, Manchuria, 437. Harpster, J. H., 269. Harrisburg, Pa., 82, 141. Hartford, Conn., 93. Hartwig, J. C, 72, 73. Hartwick, J. C, leaves money for Seminary, 140. Hartwick Seminary, 140, 167. Hartwick Synod, 204, 205, 214-15, 396. Harvard, Unitarianism at, 142. 450 INDEX Hasselquist, T. N., 260, 280, 281, 285, 286. Hauge, H. N., 358. "Hauge's Norwegian Evan- gelical Lutheran Synod of America", see Hauge's Synod. Hauge's Synod, 192, 357ff. Hawaii, 342. Hazelius, Ernest L. — History of the American Lutheran Church. . . . Zanesville, 0., 1846. 300 pages. 12 mo.: Review of, 11. Hazelius, Ernest L., prof, at Hartwick, 140. Hedstrom, Jonas, 277, 279. Hedstrom, Olof, 277, 279. Hein, C. C, 406. Helmstaedt Catechism, 118- 119. Helmuth, J. H. C, 83, 141, 144, 201. Henkel, Anthony Jacob, 58. Henkel, Paul, 104, 108, 110, 111, 119, 141 Henkels, The, 160, 199. Heyer, C. F., 105, 160; works as Home Missionary, 166; 170, 171, 269, 366. History, Lutheran: Two kinds, 9; seven general his- tories, 11-15. History, Political: Parallels with religious life, 3, 21; also in all other "back- ground" chapters. History, Revival of literature, 135. Hoessel, K. A., 406. Holland, 31, 432. Holman Lectures, 322 Holston Synod, 168, 215, 333, 393f. Holy Trinity Church, Wil- mington, Del., 45. Home Missions, early, 165. Home Missions Arbitration Commission, 377. Home Misions Board, 168. Home Missions Council, 344. Home Missionary Society of the General Synod, 160, 167, 168, 171. Homiletical Magazine, 298. Hospitals Organized, 172. House of Representatives, 152. Hudson River, 31ff, 276. Huet, Henry, 104. Hungary, 433. Hymnals, see Liturgy. Icelandic Synod, 415, 425. Idaho, 289. Ihmels, Bishop, 433. Illinois, 102ff, 166, 192, 258, 264, 276, 277, 278, 280, 284, 288, 389, 404, 405. Illinois State University, 173, 193, 216, 283. Illinois Synod, 228, 229, 266, 300, 301, 325, 389f. Immanuel Church, Chicago, 280, 284. Immanuel College, Greens- boro, N. C, 301. Immigrant and Seamen's Missions, 289. Immigrants' Mission Board, 396. Immigration: Contribution to Lutheranism around 1850, 175; causes of, 179; peak of German, 179; Catholic, 176; INDEX 451 Scandinavian, 192; 1870- 1910, 239; German, 255f; Scandinavian, 257; Swedish, 274f ; German, 364. India, 67, 169; Missions in, 170, 171; 270, 290, 298, 366, 420, 433. Indiana, 166, 167, 264, 277, 280, 281, 284, 366, 391, 403. Indiana Synod, 266, 390, 391. Indians, American : Mission- ary work among, 25, 42 ; re- lations with Swedes, 42; re- lations with Salzburgers, 51; 82, 289, 361. Inner Missions, 290. Inter-Church World Move- ment, 346f. Inter-State Commerce Com- mission, 240, 246. Internal Improvements, 92, 102. International Council of Religious Education, 344. Iowa, 258, 277, 280, 284, 286, 288, 364, 404. Iowa Synod: formed, 188; 204, 213, 228, 326, 334, 335; helps form American Lu- theran Church, 401ff; 415. Irving, Washington, 95. Jacobs, Henry Eyster — A His- tory of the Evangelical Lu- theran Church in the United States. N. Y., 1893. 539 pages: Review of, 13; 375-6. Jackson, Andrew, 152. Jacksonville, 111., 172. Jacksonville, Fla., 397. James II: Roman Catholic ag- gressiveness of, 34. Jamestown, Va., 21. Janson, Eric, 275. Jansonites, 2751 Japan, missions in, 269, 377, 420. Jefferson, Thomas, 91, 133. Jefferson Co., Ky., 391. Jefferson Prairie, Wis., 284. Jensson, J. C. — American Lu- theran Biographies, 6. Jerusalem Church, Ebenezer, Ga., 53. Jesuits, 97. Jesus Christ, 251, 326, 383. Joint Commission on the Celebration of the Quad- ricentennial of the ref- ormation, 379. Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States, 110, 160; withdraws from Synodical Conference, 214; 215, 228, 270, 300, 314, 325, 334; helps form American Lutheran Church, 401ff; 415. Joint Synod of Wisconsin, 363. Joint Synod of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan and Other States, 367, 369. Jugo-Slavia, 432. Kaiserswerth, Germany, 172. Kansas, 153, 286, 288, 296. Kansas Synod, 264. Keller, Ezra, 166. Kentucky, 103-105; 157, 166, 366, 391. Kieffer, G. L., 417. Kilbourne Road, 365. King of Prussia, 186. King of Sweden, 275. "Kirchenblatt", 408. Kluepful, P., 404. 452 INDEX Knoll, Michael Christian, 37ff. Knubel, F. H., pres. U. L. C. A., 381. Kocherthal, Joshua, 36, 37, 81. Koester, Heinrich Bernhard, 55. Kraft, Valentine, 68. Krauth, Charles Philip, 199, 224. Krauth, Charles Porterfield, 6, 132, 174, 200, 209; called to Mt. Airy Seminary, 223; his part in organizing G. C, 227ff; early career, 329; in- fluence, 330f ; his "Conserva- tive Reformation", 330. Kropp Seminary, Germany, 267, 395. Kunze, J. C, 83, 107; opposes Rationalism, 116ff ; views on union, 119; 122, 139, 306. Kurtz, Benjamin, 143, 182; advocates "American Lu- theranism", 202 ; organizes Melanchthon Synod, 209. Kurtz, John Nicholas, 70, 72, 83. Kyrie, 311. Kyushu, Island of, 270. Labor, 242. Lake Erie, 256. Lake Michigan, 256. Lake Mills, Iowa, 362. Lake Ontario, 256. Lake Superior, 286. Lampbrecht, J. G., 104. Lancaster, Pa., 56, 71, 72, 105 ; language problem at, 123; 141, 217, 218. Langenburg Mission Society, 365. Language Problems, 122ff; English triumphant, 125. Larsen, Lauritz, 413, 415. Latin America, 341. Latvia, 432. Lausanne, Switzerland, 348. Lay "Trusteeism", 97, 157. Laymen's Missionary Move- ment, 378. League of Nations, 343, 349. Lebanon Co., Pa., 58. Lebanon Valley, Pa., 56. Lehigh Co., Pa., 71. "Lehre und Wehre", 187, 298. Leipsic, University of, ration- alism in, 182; 189. Lemke, Hermann Henry, 52. Leningrad Seminary, 419, 437. Lexington, S. C, 172. Lexington Co., S. C, 81. Liberia, Africa, 171. Lindahl, S. P. A., 291. Lintner, G. A., 308. Literature, American, 95. Liturgy: Muhlenberg's, 72, 120; American hymnal, 76; Quitman's, 117, 306; Seller's, 118; "Common Hymn Book", 120; Kunze's Hymnal, 139, 306; development, 304f; de- mand for uniformity, 304; Liturgy of 1748, 305; Lit- urgy of 1786, 306; N. Y. Lit- urgy of 1817, 306; Penna. Liturgy of 1818, 307; Lit- urgies of 1842 and 1845, 307; English translation of 1860, 307; Church Book of 1868, 307; Liturgy of 1832, 308; Liturgy of 1847, 309; Liturgy of 1856, 310; Wash- ington Service, 311; Pro- INDEX 453 visional Liturgy, 311; Com- mon Service, 312ff; pub- lished 1888, 314; Abridged Common Service of 1895 and the Common Service Book and Hymnal of 1917, 316f; Significance, 317; 374, 383; American Lutheran Hymnal, 408. Lochman, George, 141. Lock, Lars, 43ff. Loehe, Wilhelm, 187, 191, 214, 365, 403. LOESER, J. J., 70. Logansport, Ind., 391. London, England, 37, 44, 60. Long Island, N. Y., 35. Long, Ralph H., 415. Lord's Prayer, 310. Lord's Supper, 202, 208, 327. Louis XIV, 36. Louisiana Purchase, 92. Louisville Co., Ky., 391. Lund, Sweden, 435. Lutge, Anton, 104. Luther College, Decorah, Iowa, 261. Luther Jubilee of 1883, see Quadricentennial of Luther's Birth. Luther League, 290, 378. Luther League (Lutherischer Bund), 431f. Luther, Martin, works, 182, 297. Luther Society of New York City, 377. "Lutheran and Missionary", 330. Lutheran Brotherhood, 290, 378. Lutheran Bureau of N. Y. City, 417. Lutheran Confessions, 180, 195, 203, 286, 323. "Lutheran Church Review", 174. "Lutheran Ch u r c h Quar- terly", 174. "Lutheran Churches of the World, The", 436. Lutheran Cyclopedia, 7. Lutheran Free Church, 415, 421. Lutheran Foreign Mission- ary Council of America, 420. Lutheran Foreign Mission- ary Society in America, 170. Lutheran Historical So- ciety: Statistics, 10; 378. Lutheran History, see His- tory, Lutheran. "Lutheran Intelligencer, The", 173. Lutheran Laymen's League, 297. "Lutheran Magazine, The", 173. "Lutheran Manual, The", 376. "Lutheran Observer", 174, 202, 208. "Lutheran Quarterly, The", 174. Lutheran Social Union of Philadelphia, 377. "Lutheran Standard, The", 174, 200, 408. Lutheran Statistics: 1750, 57; 80; 1775-1825, 106; 180, 194, 216, 255, 268, 284, 289, 295, 297, 382, 387, 389ff, 403, 404, 407, 417, 425. 454 INDEX Lutheran Synod of Buffalo, 405. "Lutheran, The", 174. "Lutheran Witness", 298. Lutheran World Almanac and Annual Encyclopedia, Vol. 7, 7ff; for 1931-33, 15; 417. Lutheran World Conven- tions: 409, 428ff; World Lutheranism, 428f; General European organizations, 430f ; 1st World Convention at Eisenach, 432f ; 2nd World Convention, Copen- hagen, 435; Ecumenical Lu- theranism, 437. "Lutheraneren", 261. "Lutherischer Zionsbote", 265. Luther's Battle Hymn, 433. Luther's Small Catechism, see Catchisms. Madagascar, Africa, 270, 360, 361. Madison County, Va., 81. Maine, 157. Manhattan Island, 31. Manitoba Synod, 266, 267. Mann, W. J., 223. Marshall, Chief Justice John, 92. Martin Luther College, New Orleans, 301. Martin Luther Seminary, Lincoln, Neb., 265. Martinsburg, W. Va., 329. Maryland, 57, 58, 103, HOff, 209. Maryland Synod, 111, 174, 205, 206, 209, 215. "Maryland Synod Abstract": 205f; Kurtz controls com- mittee on abstract, 206. Masonic Lodges, 408. Massachusetts, 276, 286. Mechling, J., 104. Mees, Otto, 422. Melanchthon Synod, 209, 215, 220, 284. Membership, see Lutheran Statistics. Mercersburg Movement, 159. Mercy, Institutions of, 172. Merger of Synods: Pittsburgh, 388; Illinois, 389; Michigan, 390; Indiana, 391; Ohio, 391; North Carolina, 392; Vir- ginia, 393 ; Susquehanna, 394; Canada, 395; New York, 395; Slovak, 396; Florida, 397. Methodism, 198, 279. Methodists, 97, 124; divide, 159; 218, 255, 279, 364. Miami Synod, 392f. Michigan, 258, 277, 286, 364, 390, 403, 405. Michigan Synod, 228, 266, 325, 365f, 390f . Michigan Synod of the U. L. C. A., 390. Middle Age of Am erica n Christianity, 156. Midland College, Atchison, Kas., 265. Migration, Causes of, 102. Miller, E. Clarence, 381. Miller, R. J., 108. Millerism, 156. Milwaukee, Wis., 172, 258, 365, 406. Ministerium of New York, see New York Ministerium. INDEX 455 MlNISTERIUM OF PENNSYL- VANIA: 73, 104, 105, 108, 109; division of, 109-11; Constitution revised, 115f ; 124, 128-29; withdrawal from G. S., 134; 140, 143, 144, 166, 169, 170, 173, 190, 206; returns to G. S., 207; 215; withdraws from G. S., 219ff; fathers G. C., 227ff; 229, 231; Liturgy of, 305ff; 320f ; 365, 381, 395. Minneapolis, Minn., 357, 361, 422. Minnesota, 171, 258, 265, 266, 277, 280, 284, 286, 288, 296, 364, 366. Minnesota Conference, 290. Minnesota Synod, 228, 266, 300, 301, 325, 367f. Missionary Institute, 173. Missionary Labors on the Frontier: 102ff; inad- equate, 106. Missionary Synod of the West, The, 365. "Missionary, The", 174, 200. Mississippi River, 181, 257. Mississippi Synod, 168. Mississippi Valley, 94, 102, 156, 166, 175, 180, 258, 263. Missouri, 182, 184, 186, 364. Missouri College and Sem- inary, 188. Missouri Lutherans: Arrive, 160; conservatism, 160; 181ff ; distress and confusion among, 183; Walther re- stores confidence, 184; 190; oppose "American Luther- anism", 208 ; purchase Springfield School, 217 ; 266, 334, 408. Missouri Synod: 160, 184; formed 1847, 185; its meth- ods and confessional basis, 185; 186; controversy with Buffalo, 186, 214; Iowa leaves 187; 188; growth, 189 ; Walther, 190 ; influences Norwegians, 192; 204, 213, 228, 270; work of, 295ff; origin and growth, 295; pol- ity and schools, 296; Colleges and Seminaries, 297; Publi- cations and missions, 298f; charities, 299 ; Synodical Conference, 300 ; work among negroes, 301; spirit, 301-2; 325, 358, 367, 368, 382, 403, 424, 433. Mohawk River, 35, 81. Moline, 111., 282. Monocacy River, 71. Monroe Doctrine, 133. Monroe, President James, 92, 93, 133, 151. Montana, 289. Montgomery Co., Pa., 57ff. Moravians, 120ff, 140, 169. Morehead, John A., 415, 418, 430, 434, 435, 436. Mormonism, 156, 289, 364. Morris J. G., editor Lutheran Observer, 174; 373. Mount Airy Seminary : begun, 223; 330, 331. Mount Pleasant, N. C, 173. Mount Vernon, N. Y., 172. Mount Vernon, Va., 90. Muckenhaupt, Philip, 104. Muelhaeuser, John, 365. Muhlenberg, Frederick, 107. Muhlenberg, General Peter Gabriel, 123. Muhlenberg, H. E., 123, 141. 456 INDEX Muhlenberg, Henry Mel- chior: 6, 38, 46, 52, 56, 59, and a new epoch in Penna., 60; personal equipment, 65; his education, 67 ; visits Ebenezer, and arrives in Phila., 68; drives out impos- tors, 68; his motto, 69; early success, 69; reinforced and divides the work, 70 ; mar- ries Anna Mary Weiser, 71 ; his long journeys, 71; or- ganizes a synod, 72; controls the new synod, 73 ; plans for native ministry, 74; visits to New York, 74 ; faces discour- agement, 75; his work done, 76; dies 1787, 76; his chief monument, 77; 80, 82, 83, 84, 106, 112, 115, 118; hymnal, 120; as a linguist, 122; 133, 139, 181, 198, 214, 216, 223, 233, 278, 305, 312, 332, 369, 372, 373, 401, 402, 413. National Bank, overthrown by Jackson, 152. National Lutheran Commis- sion for Soldiers' and Sailors' Welfare, 291, 381, 411ff. National Lutheran Council : 291, 409; its work, 411f ; or- ganized, 413f; objects, 414; membership, 415; operation, 415; accomplishments, 416f; Almanac, 417; European re- lief, 418f; not legislative, 420; on missions, 420; 424, 429, 430, 431f. Nationalism : vs. Sectional- ism, 151 ; a new national- ism, 153; revival of, 349f. Nebraska, 286, 288, 404. Nebraska Conference, 368. Neuendettelsau, Bavaria, 187, 403. Neve, J. L. — A Brief History of the Lutheran Church in America. First edition, 1903. Second revised and enlarged edition, 1916. 469 pages. Burlington, Iowa : Review of, 14 ; 376. Nevin, J. W., 159. New Amsterdam, 31; becomes New York, 33; 42-44. New Berne, N. C, 81. New England: 23, democracy and industry in, 24; 27, 93, 258. New Hanover, Pa., 56ff, 68. New Holland, Pa., 56, 58. New Jersey, 74. New Market, Va., 104, 144. New Nationalism, 243f. New Netherland, 31. New Philadelphia, Ohio, 174. New Sweden, see Swedish Lu- therans on the Delaware. New Ulm, Minn., 367. New World, 194, 258. New York: 28, 34, change in personnel of, 35; 37; Ger- mans diverted from, 56; 103, Rationalism in, 116, 140, 143, 276, 277, 284, 286, 288, 405. New York and New Eng- land Synod, 306. New York and New Jersey Synod, 396. INDEX 457 New York City, 157, 258, 268, 381. New York Ministerium : 106, formation, 107; 116, cleansed of rationalism, 117; 120, English gains favor in, 123; 128, 129, withdraws from G. S., 134, 140, 190, 204-5, 214, 228, 229, Liturgy of 1817, 306; 320, on Pulpit and Altar Fellowship, 327; 365, 381, 396f. New York Synod, 395f . New York Tract Society, 365. Newberry College, 172, 334. Newburgh, N. Y., 36. News Exchange Bulletin, 435. Nicene Creed, 333. Nielsen, J. P., 422. "Nile's Register", 95. Norelius, Eric, 282. Norlie, O. M. — Norsk Lu- therske Prester I Amerika, 7; Outline History of the Lutherans in America. (Lu- theran World Almanac, 1931-33, 15; 417. North America, 428. "North American Review", 95. North Carolina, 81, 82; Ra- tionalism in, 117; 140. North Carolina Catechism, 118. North Carolina College, 173. North Carolina Synod, 107, 108, 111; new constitution for, 118; 128, 129, 160, 219, 332, 392f. North German Missionary Society, 171. North, The: manufacturing, 151; endangers slavery, 153. Northern Illinois Synod : 167, 192; enters G. S., 207; 216; Swedes leave, 217; 259, 282, 283, 389f. Northern Indiana Synod, 167, 390. Norway, 257, 358, 431, 432. Norwegian Augustana Synod: 259, 261, 357. Norwegian-Danish Confer- ence, 261. Norwegian Evangelical Lu- theran Church in Amer- ica, 192. Norwegian Lutheran Church in America, 363, 411,413,415,421. Norwegian Lutheran Free Church, 362. Norwegian Lutheran Synod, 260, 270, 301. Norwegian Synod op the American Evangelical Lu- theran Church, 362. Norwegians: 192, 214, 216, 258, 259, 262, 282, 283, 284, 286, 287, 334, 335; mergers among, 356f; organization and confessional basis, 356f ; 401ff. Nothstein — Lutheran Makers of America. Brief sketches of Sixty-eight Notable Early Americans. 1929, 6. Nova Scotia Synod, 266. Nullification, Doctrine of, 153. Nyberg, The Moravian, 71. Officer, Morris, 171, 269. Oglethorpe, General, 50. 458 INDEX Ohio, 102-04, 109; Rational- ism in, 116; 166, 208, 264, 366, 391, 402, 403, 404, 405. Ohio Conference of the Min. of Pa., 110, 402. Ohio River, 102, 256. Ohio Synod, 104, 172, 208, 214, 309, 326, 334, 392f, 402. Ohio Synod of the U. L. C. A., 110, 392. Ohio Valley, 102. "Old Lutherans", 161, 186, 191, 203. "Old Swedes Church", Wil- mington, Del., 45. Olive Branch Synod, 167, 391. Olson, O., 291. Ontario in Canada, 405. Orangeburg, S. C. 81. Ordination: Requirements for, 116. Organization Begun, 128ff. Otsego Co., N. Y., 140. Ottensen, J. A., 358. Oxford Movement, 158. Pacific Ocean, °,63, 266, 267, 289. Pacific Synod, 266, 267. Palamotta, India, 169-70. Palatinate: Uninterrupted war in and fugitives from, 36, 56. Panama Canal, 342. "Pan-Lutheranism", 253. Pan-Presbyterian Alliance, 251. Panic of 1873, 255. Pantheists, 156. Passavant, W. A. — 6, eleemo- synary work, 172; 174, 192, 200, 266, 267, 366. Paxton, Illinois, 285. Peace Conference, 343. Penn, William, 41, 42, 44 ; ad- vertises Pennsylvania, 55. Pennsylvania: Religious tol- erance in, 27; unity in di- versity, 28; center of Lu- theranism, 55; immigration sets in in earnest, 56; first Lutheran congregation in, 56; westward movement in, 57; lack of ministers in, 57; the Stovers in, 58 ; Lutheran growth in, 66ff ; 104; Ration- alism in, 116; Unionism in, 120, 166, 168, 284, 366, 396, 403. Pennsylvania Ministerium, see Ministerium of Pennsyl- vania. Penobscot River, 31. Perkasie, 71. Perry Co., Mo., 181. Perspective, Historical, Dis- cussion of, 4, 8. Philadelphia, Pa., 43, port of entry for Germans, 50; 57, 59, 109, 139, 141, 157, 174, 348, 379, 381. Philadelphia Theological Seminary, 173, see Mount Airy Seminary. Philippines, 342. Pilgrim Mission at St. Chrischona, Switzerland, 366. Pine Lake, Wis., 275. Pioneering : Lutherans, 82 ; need for pastors, 83; 103. Pittsburgh, Pa., 166, 329. INDEX 459 Pittsburgh Synod, 110, 167, 168, 172; joins G. S., 207; 228, 230, 265, 266, 366, 388f ; 395. "Plan op Union", 96, 158. Poland, 418, 419, 432. Pope, 214. Poppen, Emanuel, 407. Population : In colonial times, 22; at outbreak of Revolu- tion, 22; Lutherans in Pa. by 1750, 57; in Muhlenberg's time, 65 ; at outbreak of Rev- olution, 80 ; Lutheran growth, 80; 1790-1830, 95; growth in Ohio, Indiana and Illi- nois, 103; Lutherans 1775- 1825, 106; 1870-1910, 239; see Lutheran Statistics. Portland, Ind., 391. Portland, Ore., 267. Porto Rico, 289, 342. Potomac River, 217. Predestination : Debate on, 214; controversy, 334, 358. Presbyterianism, 198. Presbyterians: 97, 124, break with Congregationalists, 158; "Old School" and "New School", 158; 218, 255, 348. Preus, H. A., 358. Princeton University, 142, 144, 201. Printz, John, 42. "Proposed Plan of Union", 129, 135, 308. Protestant Episcopal Church: Sectionalism in, 158; High Church and Low Church parties in, 158; 347. Protestant Seminary, 142. Protestants: vs. Catholics, 156-7, 180. Prottengeier, C. G., 406. Providence. 56. Prussia, 186. Prussian Lutherans, 187. Prussian Union, 161, 186, 191, 199, 202, 431. Pulpit and Altar Fellow- ship, 327ff. Puritan, 198. Puritan Church, 27. Quadricentennial Luther's Birth, 375, 377. Quadricentennial Luther's Catechism, 435. Quadricentennial Lutheran Reformation, 299, 359, 379, 417. Queen Anne, 36. "Questions": Purpose, 5; 29, 38, 47, 53, 60, 77, 84, 99, 112, 125, 136, 145, 161, 175, 195, 210, 233, 253, 271, 292, 302, 317, 335, 353, 369, 398, 409, 426, 438. Quitman Catechism, 117. Quitman, John A., 116, 117, 120, 306. Railroads, 240. Rabenhorst, Christian, 52. Rajahmundry, India, 170f, 269, 377. Raritan River, 7. Rationalism: 96, 99; Luther- ans infected, 115ff; Univer- sity of Leipsic, 182; 306, 364. Readers: appointed by Falck- ner, 36. Reading, Pa., 227, 228. Rebenach, J. C, 104. Red Cross, 299. Reformation, 184. 460 INDEX Reformed Church: In Hol- land, 31; established in New Amsterdam, 32ff; tolerance towards, 42; 98, 99, pro- jected union with, 120, 131 ; project of forming joint Seminary with, 140; quar- rels within and with Dutch Reformed, 159f; 169, 186. Reichert, G. A., 104. Reinhard, John, 104. Remensnyder, J. B., 376. Revolutionary War: Popula- tion at outbreak of, 22, 80; 46, 51, 80, 89; payment of debts contracted during, 91; 96, 108, 139. Reynolds, W. M., 215. Rhenius, K. E., 169. Rhine River, 36. Rhode Island: Religious tol- erance in, 27. Ries, J. F., 38. Roanoke College, 173. Rochester, N. Y., 365. Rochester, Pa., 172. Rock Island, 260, 285. Rocky Mountain Synod, 264. Rocky Mountains, 263. Roman Catholics, 97; war on, 157; internal troubles, 157; 180, 247, 347, 364, 428, Romanism, 158, 202. Rome, 157. Roumania, 432. Rudman, Andrew, 35, 45. Rupert, Peter, 104. Russia, 419, 433, 434, 437. Sabbath, 208. Sacred Scriptures, 143, 333. Saga, Japan, 270. Saginaw Seminary, 366, 368. Saint John's Church, Dres- den, 181. Saint John's English Lu- theran Church, 123. Saint Louis, Mo., 181, 184, 189, 257. Saint Louis Seminary, 192, 297, 298, 358. Saint Mark's, Phila., 329. Saint Michael's Church, Phila.: 72; a constitution for, 75; split in, 123. Saint Olaf College, North- field, Minn., 261. Saint Paul, Minn., 257, 261, 360, 366. Saint Paul Seminary, 361. Salisbury, N. C, 108. Salzburgers: Expulsion of and arrival in Georgia, 50; new groups arrive, 51; views on slavery and the Indians, 51; trouble in Ebenezer, 52; destroyed by the British, 53. Sandel, Andrew, 45. Sandin, Provost, 72, 73. Saskatoon, Canada, 267. Savannah, 50. Savannah River, 31. Saucon, 71. Saxon Lutherans, 160, 185, 189. Saxony, 67, 181, 182, 295, 433. Scandinavian Episcopal Church in America, 279. Scandinavians, 161, 179, 217, 255; immigration, 257; 259, call to Home Missions, 262; 270, 282, 283, 422, 434. SCHAEFFER, C. F., 223. SCHAEFFER, F. C, 143. SCHAEFFER. F. D., 141. SCHAFF, P., 59. INDEX 461 Schaffer, David F., 141. Schaum, John Helfrich, 70. Scherer, M. G. G., 381. Schmauk, T. E., 6, 332f. Schmid, Empiricus, 68. Schmid, Frederick, 364, 365. Schmidt, . . ., 141 — Dogmatic Theology, 199; 269, 322, 358. Schmucker, B. M., 308, 310. Schmucker, S. S.: 6; saves G. S., 135; desire to establish Seminary, 142 ; at Princeton, 142; elected prof. Gbg. Sem- inary, 143 ; elected president, 144; leader of G. S., 144; "American Lutheranism", 200ff; his service to the Church, 200; liberal ten- dencies, 201; "Definite Syn- odical Platform", 207ff; re- signs from Seminary, 222 ; on Liturgy Committee, 310. Seamen's Friend Society, 98. Seattle, Wash., 267. Secret Societies, 326. Sectarianism, 155, 156,; van- ishing, 252. Sectionalism : vs. National- ism, 151; 152f. Seguin, Tex., 406. Seiler. G. F., 118. Seiss, J. A., 373. Seminary, see Theological Seminary, also under names of each Seminary, as Gettys- burg Seminary. Semler of Halle, 117. Severinghaus, J. D., 265. Shenandoah Valley, Va., 82. Sieker, J. H., 367. Slavery, 152, 218. Sletten, O. H., 422. Slovak Evangelical Luther- an Zion Synod, 397. Slovak Synod of America, 301. Socialism, 242. Soederblom, Archbishop, 347. South, The: cotton-raising, 151; demands slavery, 153; 1870-1910, 243. South Africa, 433. South America, 342, 437. South Carolina, 108. South Carolina Convention, 1832, 152. South Carolina Synod, 111, 172, 219, 332, 381. Southern Illinois Synod, 389f. Southwest, The : rapid growth, 151. Southwestern Virginia Synod, 168, 332, 393f. Spain, 433. Spanish-American War, 341. Spener, Philip, 115. Spiritualism, 156. Sprague, W. B. — Annals of the American Lutheran Pul- pit, 6. Sprecher, Samuel: advocates "American Lutheranism", 202ff; pres. G. S., 225ff. Springer, Charles, 44. Springfield, 111., 193, 217, 283, 284, 297. Springfield, Ohio, 189, 203. Standard Oil Co., 241. Starr and Flatt — Biblical Theology, 200. State Church, 259, 261-2, 278, 279, 281, 358. State-Churchism, 26, 47. State Sovereignty, 153. 462 INDEX Staten Island, 267. Statistician of the National Lutheran Council, 8. Statistics, Church, 247. See also Lutheran Statistics. Stauch, John, 104, 105, 110. Steck, John Michael, 104, 105. Steck, Michael John, 105. Stephan, Martin, 181ff; wick- edness of, 182; 186. Stewardship and Enterprise, 248. Stockholm, 347. Stoever, John Caspar, Sr., 58. Stoever, John Caspar, Jr.: 58; work and ordination of, 59. Stoever, M. L. — Reminiscenses of Deceased Lutheran Min- isters, 6. Storch, C. A. G., 108. Strikes, 243. Stub, H. G., 358, 361, 413. Stuyvesant, Governor Peter, 32ff. Subjects for Biography: Purpose, 5; 29, 39, 48, 53, 61, 78, 85, 100, 113, 126, 137, 146, 162, 176, 196, 211, 234, 254, 273, 293, 303, 318, 337, 354, 370, 399, 410, 427, 439. Suffrage, Universal Manhood, 153. Sunday School Council of Evangelical Denomina- tions, 344. Susquehanna River, 56, 57, 74, 82, 215. Susquehanna Synod, 168, 394f. Susquehanna Synod of Cen- tral Penna., 394. Susquehanna University, 173. Sward, P. J., 291. Sweden, 41, 43, 44, 192, 257, 270, 274, 285, 287, 292, 347, 431, 432. Swedes, 192; in North. 111. Synod, 193; 216, 258, 259, 262, 283, 284, 287, 331. Swedish Augustana Synod, 259, 332. Swedish Missionary Society, 278. Swenson, Carl, 291. Symbolical Books, 116. Synod of Canada, 395. Synod of Central Canada, 395. Synod of Iowa, 167. Synod of Iowa and Other States, 187. Synod of Kansas, 168. Synod of Maryland and Vir- ginia, 110, 129, 143. Synod of Miami, 167. Synod of Missouri, see Mis- souri Synod. Synod of Nebraska, 168, 264. Synod of New York, 144, see New York Minislerium. Synod of Northern Illinois, see Northern Illinois Synod. Synod of Ohio, 402. Synod of Ohio and Adjacent States: Organized, 110. Synod of Pennsylvania, 144, see Ministerium of Pennsyl- vania. Synod of Texas, see Texas Synod. Synod of the Lutheran Church, Which Emigrated from Prussia, The, 405. Synod of the Northwest, 266, 367. INDEX 463 Synod of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 358. Synodical Conference, 186; formation, 189; 214, 266, 300, 358, 362, 367, 368, 403, 412; history, 424, 425. Synodical Council, 288. Synodical Mergers, see Mer- gers of Synods. Synodical Organization Begins, 106ff. Tamils of East India, 298. Tariff, Protective, 90, 92, 151. Taxes, Religious, 26. Telugus in India, 269, 289. Tennessee, 103, 108, 140, 391. Tennessee Synod, 111, 130, 160, 199, 215, 333, 392. Tercentenary of the Refor- mation, 121, 128. Texas : Annexation of, 153; 266, 277, 296, 404. Texas Synod, 168; joins G. S., 207; 219. "Theological M o n t h l y", 298. "Theological Quarterly", 298. Theological Seminary : Planned by Muhlenberg, 74; disrupted by war, 74; 83, de- layed, 84; Union Seminary projected, 121; 131, 134; need for, 139; demand for, 142. T h i e l College, Greenville, Pa., 267. Tinicum Island, Del., 42-44. Tokyo, Japan, 270. Toledo, Ohio, 406. Topics for Special Study: Purpose, 6; 29, 39, 48, 53, 61, 77, 84, 100, 113, 125, 137, 146, 162, 175, 196, 211, 234, 253, 272, 293, 302, 318, 336, 354, 370, 399, 409, 426, 438. Torkillus, Reorus, 41, 42. Tranberg, P., 69. Trappe, The, 56, 58, 59, 68. Treutlen, John Adam, 52. Triebner, Christopher, F., 52; proves a Tory, 53. Trinity Church, N. Y., 37. Trusteeism, see "Lay Trustee- ism". Tulpehocken, Pa., 56, 71, 72. Uhl, L. L., 269. Unangst, Erias, 269. Unionism, Insidious danger of, 99; problem of, 118ff ; in New York, 119ff; in Penn- sylvania, 120; in North Car- olina, 121; declines, 121ff; 1870-1910, 251; 306, 347f, 408. Unitarianism : at Harvard, 142. Unitarians: vs. Universalists, 156. "United Congregations, The", 59; see Philadelphia, New Hanover, and The Trappe. United Danish Lutheran Church in America, 262, 415. United Evangelical Luther- an Synod of North Car- olina, 392. 464 INDEX United Lutheran Church in America: 291; Impor- tance, 372 ; background, 372f; organized, 380; sig- nificance, 381; objects and doctrinal basis, 382; Litur- gy and polity, 383; boards and general character, 384 ; Washington Declaration, 386; growth, 387; 413, 415, 425. "United Lutheran, The", 261. United Norwegian Church, 261. United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America: formed, 351f; significance, 360. United Scandinavian Con- ference, 282, 283, 284. United States, 153, 179; Economic growth, 239 ; wealth, 290 ; growth of trusts, etc., 241; political corruption and graft, 241f ; Labor organizes, 242; pro- gressive movement, 245 ; Federal government strengthened, 246f; new problems for the churches, 247; growth of Lutheran Church in, 255; 257, 295, 297; Era following World War, 341f; a world power, 341; Revival of Nationalism, 350; Economic depression in, 352; 428, 432. United States Bank: 91; re- established, 92. United Synod of the South, 219; missions, 269f; 291, 313 ; confessional basis, 332f ; helps form U. L. C. A., 372f ; 402. Universal Conference on Life and Work, 347. Universalists, 156. University of Pennsylvania, 139, 144, 330. Unonius, Gustaf, 275, 279. Upper Milford, Pa., 71. Upsala College, Kenilworth, N. J., 260. Urlsperger, Samuel : Inter- cedes for Salzburgers, 50ff. Utah, 266. Velthusen, J. C, 118. Vermont, 286. Vigera, J. F., 70. Virginia, 23, 57, 58, 103, 104, 105, 108, 110, 166. Virginia Synod, 111, 219, 332, 393f. Voluntaryism, 93, 94. Wagner College, Rochester, N. Y., 267. Waldenstromian Contro- versies, 291. Walther, C. F. W., 6; 182ff; battle with rationalism, 183; studies Luther, 184; saves Missouri, 184; dies, 185; 186; debates with Loehe, 187; pres. Missouri College and Seminary, 188; his successor, 190; Influence in General Synod, 191, 214, 295, 300, 334, 358. Walton, Ind., 391. War of 1812, 92. Wartburg Seminary, 408. Wartburg, The, 433. Washington, D. C, 168, 311, 386, 415. INDEX 465 Washington Declaration op Principles, 386. Washington, George, 22 ; inaugural, 90; 133. Washington Service, 311ft\ Washington State, 266. Waterloo, Ontario, 267, 395. Watertown, Wis., 365. Ways and Means Committee, 381. Webster-Hayne Debate, 152. Weidner, R. F., 267. Weinnmann, John, 365. Weiser, Anna Mary, 71. Weiser, Conrad, 56. Wentz, A. R. — History of the Gettysburg Seminary, 6. Wesley, John and Charles, 51. West Pennsylvania Synod, 111, 136, 173. West, The: Rapid growth, 151. Western Conference op New York, 173. Western Theological Sem- inary, Fremont, Neb., 265. Western Virginia Synod, 219. Westward Expansion : 102 ; from Pennsylvania, 102 ; call for pastors, 103; mission- aries arrive, 104. Whitepield, George, 51. Whitehouse, Bishop, 279. Wicaco, Del., 43, 45, 46. William of Orange, 34. Wilmington, Del., 41-46. Winchester, Va., Ill, 329. Wisconsin, 192, 258, 266, 277, 364, 365, 368, 404, 405. Wisconsin Synod, 228, 266, 300, 301, 325; organized 365; 366f. Wittenberg College and Seminary, 166, 168, 172; Sprecher president, 203. Wittenberg Synod, 167, 392f. Wolf, Edmund Jacob — The Lutherans in America. . . . N. Y., 1889. 549 pages: Re- view of , 11; 375. Woman's Home and Foreign Missionary Society, 290, 378. Women's Missionary Feder- ation op the American Lu- theran Church, 408. World-Baptist Congress, 251. World Conference on Faith and Order, 347f . World War, 22, 341; the U. S. in, 342; 429. Wrangel, Charles Magnus, 46, 75. Wrede, Wilhelm, 365. Wuertembergers, 190, 365. Wurttemberg, 52. Wyneken, F. C. D., 190, 403. X. Y. Z. Affair, 91. York, Pa., 71, 141, 219; The Crisis at York in 1864, 221; 224, 310. York Co., Pa., 81. Young Men's Christian As- sociation, 343. Young People's Lutheran Association, 378. Young Women's Christian Association, 343. Zelienople Orphanage, Pa., 172. Zetskoorn, Abelius, 33. Ziegenhagen, F. M., 60. Zimmerman, John L., 413. Zinzendorf, Count, 60, 68. Date Due ;? ■-' ' *i in . §AYp* :■ ' 1 5. MAY 9 *43 IBf 1 S '45 i . JUN 3 '49 AUG e '51 NOV 13 DEC 3 WM 2* JAN 14 8* AUG 2 jtcta** SEP 2 4 \ • .-. irr Duke University Libraries D00552479W Sch.R. 384.1 W481La 262C29 SdboolofR Sibtx