See also
- American Evangelical Lutheran Church, the other Danish-American Lutheran church body
| United Evangelical Lutheran Church | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | United Church |
| Classification | Lutheran |
| Region | United States |
| Origin | 1896 Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Merger of | Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church Association in America and Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America |
| Merged into | The American Lutheran Church (1960) |
| Congregations | 164 (1959) |
| Members | 66,623 (1959) |
| Ministers | 197 (1959) |
| Other name(s) | United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church (1896–1946) |
The United Evangelical Lutheran Church (commonly known as the United Church) was one of the many denominations formed when Lutherans came to the United States from Europe. Originally known as the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church, the United Church merged with other Lutheran groups to form the American Lutheran Church in 1960, which endured until 1988.
The Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church Association in America (or Blair Church) was formed in 1884 by a group of Danish members who left the Conference of the Norwegian-Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Many of Blair Church pastors were supportive of the Inner Mission. The Blair Church was based in Blair, Nebraska.
The Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America (or North Church) was formed in 1894 when seminary president Kristian Anker and professor Peter Sørensen Vig, along with a number of pastor and congregations, left the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America over theological differences. These two churches merged in 1896 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to form the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church (in addition to being known as the United Church, this new church continued to be referred to as the "Blair Church").
The United Church quickly formed a system of education, centered in Blair, Nebraska. The center-piece was Trinity Seminary, an institution designed for the training of pastors. Trinity was supported by the Dana School. The Dana School was originally intended to provide future pastors with a pre-seminary education, and others in the community with a secondary education. The school eventually became a two-year college, and then a four-year college, now known as Dana College.
In 1946, as the second and third generation of Danes in America started to merge into the American culture, the word "Danish" was dropped from the official name of the church. In 1960, the United Church merged with churches that were ethnically German and Norwegian to form the American Lutheran Church. In 1959, just before its merger into the ALC, the United Church had 197 pastors, 164 congregations, and 66,623 members. [1]
In 1988, the American Lutheran Church became a part of the largest Lutheran denomination in America, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. As a result of the merger, Trinity Seminary closed its doors, becoming a part of Wartburg Theological Seminary. Dana College in Blair continued to be a college of the ELCA until its closure in 2010.
In the 19th century, the Lutherans in Denmark were divided into three different camps. Many in the church followed the ideas of the theologian and hymn writer N. F. S. Grundtvig. Another group, known as Inner Mission, was strongly influenced by European Pietism. This group was so opposed to the ideas of Grundtvig that they were often referred to as the "Anti-Grundtvigians". Finally, a third group known as the Centerists attempted to keep the church together by incorporating ideas from both groups.
The United Church fell firmly in the Inner Mission or Anti-Grundtvigian camp. There was a strong emphasis on personal holiness in the United Church, and not much talk about the sacraments. This emphasis led to the United Church being known as the "sad Danes" or "holy Danes". While other Danish Lutherans in America tended to prefer pastors and leaders trained in Copenhagen, the United Church more quickly moved toward pastors trained in America in order to avoid the influence of Grundtvigian theology. [2]
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a mainline Protestant Lutheran church headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA was officially formed on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three Lutheran church bodies. As of 2022, it has approximately 2.9 million baptized members in 8,640 congregations.
Dana College was a private college in Blair, Nebraska. Its rural 150-acre campus is approximately 26 miles (40 km) northwest of Omaha and overlooks a portion of the Missouri River Valley. The campus was planned to be purchased by Midland University, which expressed its intention to re-open the campus in 2015 or 2016, but dropped plans in early 2016.
Mark S. Hanson is an American bishop who served as the third Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Before being elected presiding bishop, he served as bishop of the Saint Paul Area Synod as well as pastor of three Minnesota congregations: Prince of Glory Lutheran Church, Minneapolis; Edina Community Lutheran Church; and University Lutheran Church of Hope in Minneapolis. In addition to serving as Presiding Bishop, Hanson was the 11th President of the Lutheran World Federation.
The Lutheran Free Church (LFC) was a Lutheran denomination that existed in the United States, mainly in Minnesota and North Dakota, from 1897 until its merger into the American Lutheran Church (ALC) in 1963. The history of the church body predates its official organization, and a group of congregations that did not join the ALC formed the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations.
The American Lutheran Church (ALC) was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States and Canada that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters were in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, The ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House, also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher. The Lutheran Standard was the official magazine of The ALC.
1517 Media, formerly Augsburg Fortress Press, is the official publishing house of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). It also publishes for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada as Augsburg Fortress Canada. Headquartered on South Fifth Street in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the former headquarters of the American Lutheran Church, Augsburg Fortress publishes Living Lutheran, the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), the Lutheran Study Bible, and Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), as well as a range of academic, reference, and educational books. Tim Blevins has served as the CEO of 1517 Media since August, 2018. Beth Lewis served as the CEO of Augsburg Fortress since September 3, 2002.
The Lutheran Church in America (LCA) was an American and Canadian Lutheran church body that existed from 1962 to 1987. It was headquartered in New York City and its publishing house was Fortress Press.
Luther Seminary is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is the largest seminary of the ELCA. It also accepts and educates students of 41 other denominations and traditions. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and the Association of Theological Schools. It also has theological accreditation through the ELCA as well as the United Methodist Church.
The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church was a Lutheran church body in the United States that was one of the churches that merged into the Lutheran Church in America (LCA) in 1962. It had its roots among the Swedish immigrants in the 19th century.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELC) was a Lutheran denomination that existed from 1917, when it was founded as the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America (NLCA), until 1960, when it joined two other church bodies to form the second American Lutheran Church.
The American Evangelical Lutheran Church (AELC) was one of the many denominations formed when Lutherans immigrated to America. Originally known as the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (DELCA), the predominantly Danish-American church was informally known as "the Danish Church."
The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois. LSTC is a member of the Association of Chicago Theological Schools (ACTS), a consortium of eleven area seminaries and theological schools. It shares the JKM Library and portions of its campus with McCormick Theological Seminary. LSTC is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools and regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
Trinity Lutheran Seminary at Capital University is an Evangelical Lutheran seminary in Columbus, Ohio.
Theodore Marcus Hansen was a Danish-American Lutheran pastor, educator, and church leader. Ordained as a pastor in the United Evangelical Lutheran Church (UDELC) in 1915, Theodore Marcus served eleven Lutheran congregations. He was also President of Dana College (1925–29) and Trinity Seminary, and served in many leadership positions in the UDELC.
Herbert W. Chilstrom was an American religious leader, who served as the first Presiding Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). He was re-elected to a four-year term at the 1991 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Orlando, Florida. He served as bishop of the Minnesota Synod of the Lutheran Church in America, one of the three church bodies which merged to form the ELCA on Jan. 1, 1988.
Anton Marius Andersen was an American Lutheran minister and the founding President of Trinity Seminary at Dana College.
Gottlieb Bender Christiansen was an American Lutheran Minister who served as President at Trinity Seminary in Blair, Nebraska and was the first president of the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Richard Alvin Jensen was an American theologian who served as the Carlson Professor of Homiletics Emeritus at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.