"This study of the Evangelical Congregational Church brings into
focus one of the oldest indigenous denominations of Christianity in
North America, of which it is a direct descendant. The early
nineteenth century German American revivalists, who were followers
of a remarkable lay preacher, Jacob Albright, represented a
distinctive confluence of Methodist theology and polity with a
spirituality expressed in the genre of German Pietism, particularly
its Reformed and Radical varieties. Unlike the more staid immigrant
German church bodies (Lutheran, Reformed, Mennonite), their joyful
choruses, fervent preaching, and wide ranging itinerating branded
them as the “bush meeting Dutch” (Yoder). The work of an able body
of scholars in the Albright tradition, this study serves both as an
institutional history and an interpretation of a distinctive
American religious culture. It is also a source book in the annals
of the American pulpit, from the Revolutionary War era to the
present, as found in the German-American context. Unlike many
denominational histories, it reflects the view from the pew: showing
how Evangelicals thought and lived over the past two centuries, as
their denomination sought to respond to a plethora of missional
challenges. As such, it is a case study in the forming of American
church life, that can be instructive for students of American
religion, as well as the heirs of the Albright tradition."
-- J. Steven O’Malley, Asbury Theological Seminary
About the
Authors:
Terry M. Heisey, Ph.D., holds undergraduate and graduate
degrees in history and serves as Seminary Librarian and Professor of
Bibliography at Evangelical School of Theology in Myerstown, PA. He
is also Archivist of the Evangelical Congregational Church. He has
contributed articles to Methodist History and Journal of Library
History.
Robert G. Hower, Th.D., is Professor Emeritus of Church History
at Evangelical School of Theology. An ordained minister of the
Evangelical
Congregational Church, he has served as Eastern Conference Historian
and President of the Board of Trustees of the EC Historical Society.
Leon O. Hynson, Ph.D., has served as Professor of Philosophy and
Religion at Spring Arbor College, President of Evangelical School of
Theology, Professor of Historical Theology at Asbury Theological
Seminary, and Wesley Scholar-in-Residence at Evangelical School of
Theology. He is the author of numerous articles and two books, To
Reform the Nation (1984) and The Wesleyan Revival (1999).
John E. Moyer, D.Min, is Professor Emeritus of Preaching at
Evangelical School of Theology. He has a distinguished career of
leadership in the Evangelical Congregational Church, including terms
as District Superintendent and Bishop.
