Old Lutherans refers to those German
LutheransLutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the 16th century German reformer Martin Luther. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
who refused to join the
Prussian Union (Evangelical Christian Church)The Prussian Union was the merger of the Lutheran Church and the Reformed Church in Prussia, by a series of decrees - among them the Unionsurkunde - by King Frederick William III...
in the 1830s and 1840s.
Attempted suppression of the Old Lutherans led many to immigrate to
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
and the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, resulting in the creation of significant Lutheran
denominationsA Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity.Worldwide, Christians are divided, often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and another are...
in those countries.
The legacy of Old Lutherans also survives in Lutheran denominations in modern
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
.
The Prussian Union
In 1799 King
Frederick William III of PrussiaFrederick William III was king of Prussia from 1797 to 1840. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel .-Early life:...
issued a decree for a new common
liturgical AgendaThe name Agenda is given, particularly in the Lutheran Church, to the official books dealing with the forms andceremonies of divine service.- The Term; its Equivalents Before the Reformation :...
(service book) to be published, for use in both the Lutheran and
ReformedThe Reformed churches are a group of Christian Protestant denominations formally characterized by a similar Calvinist system of doctrine, historically related to the churches that first arose especially in the Swiss Reformation led by Huldrych Zwingli and soon afterward appeared in nations...
congregations. To accomplish this, a commission to prepare a common agenda was formed.
After more than 20 years of effort, a common liturgical agenda was finally published in 1821. The agenda was not well received by many Lutherans, as it was seen to compromise in the wording of the
Words of InstitutionThe Words of Institution are those used, inserted into a narrative of the Last Supper, in Christian Eucharistic liturgies to recall those used by Jesus on that occasion...
, to the point where the
Real PresenceReal Presence is a term used in various Christian traditions to express belief that in the Eucharist, Jesus Christ is really present in what was previously just bread and wine, and not merely present in symbol, a figure of speech , or by his power .Not all Christian traditions accept this dogma...
of
ChristChrist is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed". It is a translation of the Hebrew . The term "Christ" was a title rather than a proper name. In the four gospels in the New Testament, the word "Christ" is nearly always preceded by the definite article...
in the
EucharistThe Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, Sacrament of the Table, the Blessed Sacrament, or The Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance, generally considered to be a commemoration of the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his...
was not proclaimed.
The
ProtestantProtestantism is a branch within Christianity, containing many denominations with some differing practices and doctrines, that principally originated in the sixteenth-century Protestant Reformation. It is considered to be one of the major divisions within Christianity, together with the Roman...
congregations were directed in 1822 to use only the newly formulated agenda for worship. This met with strong objections and non-compliance from Lutheran pastors around Prussia.
The liturgical agenda was subsequently modified to appease many of the objections of the dissenting Lutherans, and in 1830 Frederick William ordered all Protestant congregations in Prussia to celebrate the
Lord's SupperThe Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, Sacrament of the Table, the Blessed Sacrament, or The Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance, generally considered to be a commemoration of the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his...
using the new agenda.
Rather than having the unifying effect that Frederick William desired, the decree created a great deal of dissent among Lutheran congregations.
In a compromise with dissenters, who had now earned the name “Old Lutherans”, in 1834 Frederick William issued a decree which stated that Union would only be in the areas of governance and liturgy, but the respective congregations could retain their confessional identities. In addition to this, dissenters were forbidden from organizing sectarian groups.
In defiance of this decree, a number of Lutheran pastors and congregations continued to use the old liturgical agenda and sacramental rites of the Lutheran church.
Becoming aware of this defiance, officials sought out those who acted against the decree. Pastors who were caught were suspended from their ministry. If suspended pastors were caught acting in a pastoral role, they were imprisoned.
Among the leaders of the Old Lutherans was
Johann Gottfried ScheibelJohann Gottfried Scheibel was a Lutheran leader.-Education and Ministry:Johann Scheibel was born in Breslau, Silesia, and studied at the University of Halle from 1801 to 1804. He went on from there to be the assistant minister at St Elisabeth's church in Breslau from 1804 to 1818...
(1783-1843). Scheibel was a professor of
theologyThe term "theology" literally means the study of God, deriving from the Greek word theos, meaning 'God', and the suffix -ology from the Greek word logos meaning "discourse", "theory", or "reasoning"...
in Breslau from 1818 until 1830 when he was suspended from his post for his dissenting views.
Scheibel came to prominence as a leader of the Old Lutherans in the dissent against the Prussian Union. He spoke, preached and wrote against the Union, which consequently resulted in suspension from his post as theological professor.
Undaunted, Scheibel continued in his dissent as he moved to new cities. He was at
DresdenDresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
in 1832 where he was ordered to leave that same year. He moved to
HermsdorfHermsdorf may refer to the following places:*in Germany:**Hermsdorf, Brandenburg, in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, Brandenburg**Hermsdorf, Saxony-Anhalt, in the Börde district, Saxony-Anhalt**Hermsdorf, Saxony, in the Weißeritzkreis district, Saxony...
, where likewise he was asked to leave in 1836, then on to
GlauchauGlauchau is a town in Germany, in Saxony, on the right bank of the Mulde, 7 miles north of Zwickau and 17 miles west of Chemnitz by rail. It is part of the Zwickau district....
and
NurembergNuremberg is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. It is situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal and is Franconia's largest city. It is located about 170 kilometres north of Munich, at 49.27° N 11.5° E. The population is...
.
He died at Nuremberg about the time that he was being restored to his post as professor at Breslau.
After Scheibel, Eduard Huschke became the leader of Old Lutherans. Other famous Old Lutherans included
Henrik SteffensHenrik Steffens , was a Norwegian-born Danish philosopher, scientist, and poet.He was born at Stavanger, Norway. At the age of fourteen he went with his parents to Copenhagen, where he studied theology and natural science...
, H. E. F. Guericke,
KahnisKarl Friedrich August Kahnis was a German Neo-Lutheran theologian.- Earlier Life. Professor at Breslau :Despite the poverty of his parents, Kahnis...
and Rudolf Rocholl.
Union also caused a
confessional LutheranConfessional Lutheran is a name used by certain Lutheran Christians to designate themselves as those who accept the doctrines taught in the Book of Concord of 1580 in their entirety, because they believe them to be completely faithful to the teachings of the Bible...
counter-reaction called
Neo-LutheranismNeo-Lutheranism was a 19th century revival movement within Lutheranism which began as a reaction against theological rationalism and pietism. This movement focused on a reassertion of the identity of Lutherans as a distinct group within the broader community of Christians, with a renewed focus on...
.
Upon Frederick William's death in 1840, persecution of the Old Lutherans eased substantially. However, Old Lutherans continued to find themselves marginalized, especially the clergy who did not have many of the same rights and support accorded to clergy of the Union church.
Old Lutherans formed several
synodsA synod is a council of a church, usually a Christian church, convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application...
, which through various mergers eventually resulted in the present-day
Independent Evangelical-Lutheran ChurchThe Independent Evangelical-Lutheran Church is a confessional Lutheran church body of Germany. It is a member of the European Lutheran Conference and a member of the International Lutheran Council...
(SELK).
Emigration to Australia and America
By 1835 many dissenting Old Lutheran groups were looking to emigration as a means to finding religious freedom. Some groups emigrated to Australia and the United States in the years leading up to 1841.
Australian migration
The first Lutherans to come to Australia in any significant number were
immigrants from PrussiaGerman settlement in Australia began in large numbers in 1838, with the arrival of immigrants from Prussia to Adelaide, South Australia. German immigrants became prominent in settling South Australia and Queensland...
, who arrived in 1838 with
PastorThe term pastor usually refers to an ordained person within a Christian church. In some countries the term is more usually used in traditional Protestant churches but is also used in reference to priests and bishops within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox churches. The...
August KavelAugust Ludwig Christian Kavel . Pastor Kavel was a founder of Lutheranism in Australia.-Training and Early Ministry:...
. These immigrants created three settlements at
KlemzigKlemzig is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Port Adelaide Enfield. It is the location of the first settlement of German emigrants to Australia in the 19th century and is named after a village near the city of Zuellichau in southeastern Brandenburg in the German state of Prussia, where they...
,
HahndorfHahndorf is a small town about 30 minutes drive out of Adelaide, South Australia along the South Eastern Freeway . The town was settled by Lutheran migrants largely from in and around a small village then named "Kay" in Prussia...
, and
Glen OsmondGlen Osmond is a small suburb of Adelaide in the City of Burnside located in the foothills of the Adelaide Hills....
. In 1841, a second wave of Prussian immigrants arrived, led by Pastor
Gotthard FritzscheGotthard Daniel Fritzsche was one of the first founding pastors of Lutheranism to immigrate to Australia...
. His group settled in
LobethalLobethal is a town in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Hills Council local government area, and is nestled on the banks of a creek between the hills and up the sides of the valley. It used to have a large wool processing mill, but that has now closed...
and
BethanienBethany is a small village located about 2 km south east of Tanunda in the Barossa Valley. It was originally named Bethanien, but was changed during World War I in an attempt to remove all German place names from Australia....
.
The Lutherans in western Australia established the Killalpaninna Mission (
BethesdaBethesda, originally referring to the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem , may also refer to:-Other:*Bethesda Athletic F.C...
) Station at Cooper's Creek.
Johann FlierlJohann Flierl , was a pioneer Lutheran missionary in New Guinea. He established mission schools and organized the construction of roads and communication between otherwise remote interior locations. Under his leadership, Lutheran evangelicalism flourished in New Guinea...
, the pioneer missionary of
German New GuineaGerman New Guinea was a former German protectorate from 1884 to 1914, consisting of the northeastern part of New Guinea and several nearby island groups. German New Guinea is now entirely part of Papua New Guinea....
, served there for seven years (1878-1885). When he left for Kaiser-Wilhelmsland in 1885, his cousin, also named Johann Flierl, replaced him at the mission.
North American migrations
Numerous waves of Old Lutherans immigrated to the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as well during this time period. Among them was a group from
PrussiaPrussia was a historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries this state had substantial influence on German and European history...
of about 1000 Old Lutherans. They were from
ErfurtErfurt is the capital city of Thuringia and is the main city nearest to the geographical centre of Germany, located 100 km SW of Leipzig, 150 km N of Nürnberg and 180 km SE of Hannover. Erfurt Airport can be reached by plane via Munich. It lies in the southern part of the Thuringian...
,
MagdeburgMagdeburg , the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, is situated at the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe. Emperor Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor, lived during most of his reign in the town and was buried in the cathedral after his death...
and the surrounding area, led by J.A.A. Grabau. They immigrated to the United States in summer 1839. Grabau and his friends founded the "Synod of Lutherans immigrated from Prussia", afterward called Buffalo Synod.
Thousands of other Old Lutherans settled in the Midwest and Upper Midwest of the United States during this period, forming synods that eventually joined in union as the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaThe Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches and currently has about 4,633,887 baptized members...
.
In addition to Old Lutherans there were also immigrants from the German
Kingdom of SaxonyThe Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...
, where there was not evangelical union. Lutheran pastor
Martin StephanMartin Stephan was pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Dresden, Germany during the early 19th century. He organized the Saxon emigration to the United States in the early 1800s.- Biography :...
and nearly 1100 other Saxon Lutherans left for the United States in November 1838, eventually settling in and around
St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008, it is the principal municipality of Greater St. Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States...
. These were the predecessors to the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
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