The Evangelical Lutheran General Synod of the United States of America, commonly known as the General Synod, was a historical

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

denomination in the United States. Established in 1820, it was the first national Lutheran body to be formed in the U.S. and by 1918 had become the third largest Lutheran group in the nation. In 1918, the General Synod merged with other Lutheran denominations to create the United Lutheran Church in America. Both the General Synod and the United Lutheran Church are predecessor bodies to the contemporary

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is a mainline Protestant church headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA was officially formed on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three Lutheran church bodies. As of December 31, 2023, it ...

History

The General Synod was organized in 1820 at

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, as a union or federation of four regional

synods A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

: the Pennsylvania Ministerium, the North Carolina Synod, the New York Ministerium, and the Synod of Maryland and Virginia. The Pennsylvania Ministerium had suggested the creation of a general synod two years earlier and took the lead in organizing it. The Joint Synod of Ohio and the Tennessee Synod refused to join, citing concerns that the new body would be too

hierarchical A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an importan ...

. In 1823, the Pennsylvania Ministerium withdrew itself to pursue plans for a union with the Reformed churches in Pennsylvania based on the model of the

Prussian Union of churches The Prussian Union of Churches (known under multiple other names) was a major Protestant church body which emerged in 1817 from a series of decrees by Frederick William III of Prussia that united both Lutheran and Reformed denominations in P ...

. The New York Ministerium, which was started with the help of Johann Christopher Kunze, meanwhile, had ceased operations and would not become active again until 1837. Nevertheless, the second convention of the General Synod took place in 1823, with the newly established West Pennsylvania Synod becoming a member. Like many Protestant denominations, the General Synod was split over the issue of

slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

and the political and military conflict of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. In 1863, the southern synods were offended over Civil War resolutions passed by the General Synod. In response, they withdrew and formed a General Synod for the

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(later renamed the United Synod of the South). In 1866, the General Synod further split over theological issues when the

General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America The General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America, or, in brief, the General Council was a conservative Lutheran church body, formed as a reaction against the new "Americanized Lutheranism" of Samuel Simon Schmucker and the ...

was formed by dissatisfied members of the General Synod. Before these secessions, the General Synod claimed 164,000 communicants. This was about two-thirds of the entire Lutheran population in America. The resulting numerical losses totaled 76,000 communicants. In 1918, the General Synod, the General Council and the United Synod of the South were reunited with the formation of the United Lutheran Church in America, a predecessor of the

. By the time of the merger, the General Synod ranked third in size among the largest Lutheran bodies in America. In 1916, it reported 477,434 baptized members, 366,728 confirmed members, and 260,720 communicants.

Beliefs

The early history of the General Synod has been characterized as one of loose commitment to Lutheran

orthodoxy Orthodoxy () is adherence to a purported "correct" or otherwise mainstream- or classically-accepted creed, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical co ...

. Its constitution lacked references to the

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and the Lutheran confessions. Furthermore, distinctions were made between parts of the

Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession (), also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheranism, Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of th ...

, with some parts deemed "fundamental" doctrines and others labeled "non-fundamental". Fundamental doctrines alone were required to be believed. Fundamental doctrines included biblical teachings with which other Protestants agreed, and the General Synod did stand in opposition to the

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...

making inroads into other Lutheran bodies. The doctrines concerning baptismal regeneration and the

real presence The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, sometimes shortened Real Presence'','' is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way. Th ...

were rejected, however. In 1855, Samuel S. Schmucker, a supporter of revivalism and interdenominational agencies like the American Sunday School Union, proposed the ''Definite Synodical Platform''. The ''Platform'' proposed revisions to the Augsburg Confession in order to make it more acceptable to American sensibilities, namely

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

and American evangelical theology, a development that was termed "American Lutheranism" or "New School Lutheranism". The Platform specifically sought to eliminate references to baptismal regeneration and the real presence. By the 1850s, however,

Confessional Lutheranism Confessional Lutheranism is a name used by Lutheranism, Lutherans to designate those who believe in the doctrines taught in the ''Book of Concord'' of 1580 (the Lutheran confessional documents) in their entirety. Confessional Lutherans maintain th ...

was enjoying a resurgence. In 1864, the General Synod's constitution was amended to require synods to accept the Augsburg Confession as a correct presentation of fundamental doctrines. By 1913, all of the Lutheran confessions had been officially adopted by the General Synod. While doctrines and practices contradicting the confessions were still tolerated in the General Synod, the moves toward a more orthodox and confessional position made a merger with the Lutheran General Council a real possibility.

Organization

The General Synod was structured as a voluntary association of regional Lutheran church bodies called district synods. As a result, its authority over member synods was limited by its constitution. The General Synod was responsible for adopting

catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

liturgies Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a community, communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, ...

hymnal A hymnal or hymnary is a collection of hymns, usually in the form of a book, called a hymnbook (or hymn book). They are used in congregational singing. A hymnal may contain only hymn texts (normal for most hymnals for most centuries of Christia ...

s. The General Synod was also responsible for creating general boards to oversee the missionary and benevolent activities of the church, such as foreign and home missions. It could offer advice on doctrinal or disciplinary disputes when requested to by synods, congregations or ministers. The constitution required a convention to be held every two years. Member synods were entitled to send an equal number of clerical and lay delegates to conventions in proportion to the number of ministers belonging to each synod. For every ten ministers it possessed, a synod was awarded one additional clerical delegate and an equal number of lay delegates. An ordained minister was elected to preside over the convention as president. A secretary and a treasurer were also elected from among the deputies. Their term of office ended when the next convention met.

Institutions

Domestic missionary work was conducted by member synods. The General Synod sponsored foreign missions in Liberia and India, where it established the Arthur G. Watts Memorial College at

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in 1885. The Synod also sponsored a number of orphanages and nursing homes. Educational institutions included: * Carthage College *

Gettysburg College Gettysburg College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1832, the campus is adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield. Gettysburg College has about ...

and Gettysburg Seminary * Hamma Divinity School * Hartwick Seminary * Martin Luther Seminary (Lincoln, Nebraska) *

Midland College Midland College (MC) is a Public college, public community college in Midland, Texas. It was established as an independent junior college in 1972 and held its first classes on campus in 1975. Since that time, the campus has expanded to a main ...

* Susquehanna University * Western Seminary * Wittenberg College The General Synod published two periodicals: ''The Lutheran Quarterly'' and the ''Lutheran Church Worker and Observer''.

References

Notes

Bibliography

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