Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Historical Lutherans You Should Know”
On January 14, the ELCA commemorates Eivind Berggrav. Born in Stavanger, Norway in 1884, Eivind was the son of Otto Jensen, a Church of Norway priest who would later become a bishop. (As an adult, Eivind changed his last name to that of his paternal grandmother, Berggrav.) Berggrav entered the University of Kristianiain Oslo in 1903, studying theology. He graduated …
Born in Minneapolis in 1935, Barbara Andrews attended Edina Community Church as a child. Disabled by cerebral palsy, she spent her life bound to a wheel chair. Though she depended on family and friends for mobility assistance, she refused to be defined by her disability. Susan Thompson recalls blaming a mistake on her ethnicity and Andrews responding, “It’s all right …
Born in Hamburg in 1808, Johann Hinrich Wichern was the eldest of seven siblings. His middle class upbringing included attending a private school. However, upon the death of his father the family’s circumstances changed. Thus, Wichern started working as a private tutor at the age of 15 to support his family. Eventually, he did complete his high school work, and …
Born on 9 November 1522 in Treuenbrietzen, Brandenburg (present-day Germany), Martin Chemnitz was the third and final child of wool merchant Paul Chemnitz. Paul Chemnitz ran a prosperous business, but the family’s finances deteriorated after Paul’s death around 1533. Chemnitz showed promise as a student, and learned Latin while in school at Madgeburg. Upon graduation, he worked as a weaver’s …
On October 31st, Lutherans celebrate Reformation Day, the day Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of All Saints Church in Wittenberg. His action started the series of events that became The Reformation. Martin Luther was born on November 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Saxony, then part of the Holy Roman Empire. His family soon moved to Mansfeld, …
Born in Strasburg in 1497 to a large artisan class family, Katharina Schutz was the fifth of ten children. Katharina received sufficient education to read and write fluently in German, but not Latin. Devout, she attended church, performed good works, and read the Bible in German. She considered herself a “Church mother,” someone who cared for all people without respect to …
Born in Fort Wayne, IN in 1963, Bradley Schmeling moved with his family to Cincinnati in 1970. The Schmeling family attended churches belonging to the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. Though not clergy, his parents served in leadership roles. After graduating from high school in 1981, Schmeling attended Ohio University, majoring in Telecommunications/Journalism. During college, he joined the LCA, a predecessor …
On October 4, the ELCA commemorates Rev. Theodor Fliedner. Born in Eppstein, Germany on January 21, 1800, Theodor Fliedner was the son and grandson of Lutheran pastors. Though studious as a child, Fliedner also helped both his parents with their daily activities. In 1813 the Napoleonic Wars brought troops to Eppstein, and “camp pestilence” came with them. Fliedner’s father took …
Rev. Elizabeth Platz, the first woman ordained by the LCA, was born and raised in Pittsburgh. When she received a scholarship to attend college, her parents, though not college educated themselves, encouraged her to take advantage. Platz graduated from Chattham University in 1962 with a degree in history. While at Chattham, she discovered an interest in theological history and decided …
Frederick Valentine Melsheimer. The “Father of American Entomology,” was born in Regenborn, Brunswick (now part of Germany) in 1749. The son of the Duke of Brunswick’s Superintendent of Forestry, Melsheimer claimed entomologist August W. Knoch as a childhood friend. At the University of Helmstedt in Brunswick, Melsheimer studied sciences and religion from 1769 to 1772. Afterward, he served as a …