Lutherans in America: A New History

by Mark Granquist

Publisher:

Fortress Press

, 2015

Overview

In this lively and engaging new history, Mark Granquist brings to light not only the varied and fascinating institutions that Lutherans founded and sustained, but also the people that lived within them. The result is a generous, human history that tells a complete story—not only about politics and policies but also the piety and the practical experiences of the Lutheran men and women who lived and worked in the American context.

Tracing the story from the earliest colonial settlers to the present day, and complementing with new charts, maps, images, and sidebars, Granquist ably covers the full range of Lutheran expressions—bringing order and clarity to a complex and vibrant tradition.

With Logos Bible Software, this volume is enhanced with cutting-edge research tools. Scripture citations appear on mouseover in your preferred English translation. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Powerful topical searches help you find exactly what you’re looking for. Tablet and mobile apps let you take the discussion with you. With Logos Bible Software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.

Key Features

• Offers a compelling account of Lutherans in America
• Discusses major institutions and ministries, as well as everyday worship and church life
• Exposes the significant figures and ordinary human faces behind the history

Contents

• Introduction
• The European Background to American Lutheranism
• Beginnings, 1619–1720
• Early Colonial Developments, 1720–1748
• Establishment of Eastern Lutheranism, 1748–1781
• Lutherans in a New Nation, 1781–1820
• Expansion and Conflict, 1820–1855
• Mass Immigration, 1855–1888
• Structuring an American Lutheranism, 1888–1918
• Becoming Americans, 1918–1940
• Lutherans in War and Peace, 1940–1965
• Turmoil, Change, and Consolidation, 1965–1988
• Uncertain Present, Uneasy Future, 1988–2013
• Epilogue
• Chronology
• Table of Acronyms

Top Highlights

“Peter was a Lutheran pastor in Woodstock, Virginia, but left his position in early 1776 to become an officer in the Continental Army (rising to the rank of major-general), and enlisted a number of his parishioners to join the army with him.” (Page 108)

“Luther wanted to debate abuses within the church; the church wanted him to shut up and retract his criticisms, and applied immense pressure to get him to do both. Over the next four years (1517–1521), Luther was attacked constantly by theologians and church leaders, and in defending himself he was pushed further in a more radical direction. By the year 1520, Luther had issued three seminal works that demonstrated how far he had come in the previous three years: ‘The Babylonian Captivity of the Church,’ ‘The Letter to the Christian Nobility of Germany,’ and ‘The Freedom of a Christian.’” (Page 10)

“The Lutherans immediately applied to Amsterdam for another pastor, though it was not until 1669 that they received Pastor Jacob Fabritius, a refugee from Hungary. Although he began his work with a flourish, the New York Lutherans found him rather odd, and when he decided to move down into the Delaware River valley, no one seemed to be too upset. The third Lutheran pastor from Holland, Bernard Arnzius, arrived in 1671 and served the New York Lutherans until his death in 1691.” (Page 43)

“These Dutch Lutheran congregations were some of the first ‘free’ Lutheran congregations, free in the sense that they were independent, voluntary congregations supported and governed without the efforts of the Dutch Republic. The example of these free Dutch Lutheran congregations served as a model for later Lutherans in colonial America, coming through the struggles of Dutch Lutherans in New Amsterdam to form their own independent Lutheran congregations within that colony.” (Page 42)

Praise for the Print Edition

An immensely interesting, comprehensive, and necessary update of American Lutheran history. A good deal of its interesting quality has to do with Granquist’s new interpretative lens—more sober and critical than earlier histories—and with his inclusion of an excursus after each chapter dealing with the ordinary, daily lives of Lutherans in the period under discussion.

—Robert Benne, Jordan Trexler Professor Emeritus and Research Associate, Roanoke College

Mark Granquist adds texture to previous general histories of American Lutheranism by giving recurring attention to matters of worship, participation by African Americans, and institutional ministries. He places Lutheran developments in their American cultural context and provides instructive statistics. His extension of the narrative into the twenty-first century is both bold and valuable. Granquist offers an honest, if sometimes provocative, account that will spark debate and shape future evaluation of recent events.

—L. DeAne Lagerquist, professor of religion, St. Olaf College

Finally—a long-overdue revision and updating of the Lutheran experience in the United States! Deftly blending broad generalization with necessary, specific, and differentiating detail, Granquist has crafted a lively and engaging narrative that will be the standard for scholars, students, and curious lay persons for years to come!

—James W. Albers, professor of theology, Valparaiso University

Product Details

• Title: Lutherans in America: A New History
• Author: Mark Granquist
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• Print Publication Date: 2015
• Logos Release Date: 2016
• Pages: 375
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Lutheran Church › United States--History; Lutherans › United States--History
• ISBNs: 9781451472288, 9781451494297, 1451472285, 1451494297
• Resource ID: LLS:LTHRNSMRC
• Resource Type: text.monograph.church-history
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T01:22:32Z

About Mark Granquist

Mark Granquist is associate professor of church history at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. Previously, he taught at St. Olaf College and Gustavus Adolphus College. Among other books, he is coauthor of The Augustana Story: Shaping Lutheran Identity in North America.

Sample Pages from Lutherans in America: A New History