TLHP 16 A Source of Distress: The Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the West with special guest host Tim Grundmeier and Ben Phelps

The Lutheran History Podcast

The subject of this discussion can be found in the 2021 summer article of the CHIQ.
Image: Rev. "Colonel" John Jacob Lehmanowsky. Note the scar on his face supposedly from the battle of Austerlitz.
The small Lutheran Synod called the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the West existed for barely more than a decade (1835-1846). In Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri, isolated Lutheran pastors vainly attempted to rally around an institution intended to be the preeminent Lutheran synod in a large and rapidly populated geographical area. From its beginning, the synod’s leaders continuously struggled to find enough pastors and to keep up with the region’s population explosion. In search of solutions to perplexing challenges, ambitious plans to establish a seminary and publishing house were proposed. Yet the largest challenge proved to be meeting the needs of German immigrants, who began to overtake the number of American-born members. The Synod of the West did not ultimately have the foresight to anticipate the multitudes of German-speaking Lutherans who moved into their sphere at an ever-increasing rate.
Friedrich Wyneken, a member of the synod, was troubled by the distress of German Lutherans in the West. They lacked pastors and leadership, and the Lutheran synods available to them were too weak to minister effectively and struggled with doctrinal error and indifference. The Synod of the West serves as the backlighting for Wyneken’s famous The Distress of the German Lutherans in North America (the Notruf), which called forth an incredible response from Lutherans in Europe. Understanding this synod’s history is essential to understanding the context and cause for Wyneken’s dissatisfaction with the condition of the Lutheran Church in America. The Synod of the West, more than anything, embodied the distress of the Church.
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• About the Host
  • Benjamin Phelps is a 2014 graduate from Martin Luther College with a Bachelor of Arts with a German emphasis. From there went on to graduate from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in 2018.
    Ben loves all things history and enjoys traveling. A descendant of over a dozen Lutheran pastors, Ben has an interest in his family roots, especially 19th-century Lutheranism, and has written several papers and journal articles on the topic. His 2018 thesis on Wyneken won the John Harrison Ness award and the Abdel Ross Wentz prize. He is also the recipient of two awards of commendation from the Concordia Historical Institute.
    Ben is currently a doctoral student in historical theology through Concordia Seminary's reduced residency program in St. Louis.