ABSTRACT
Since 1742 Pietist pastors from Halle, Germany served in multiple congregations in Pennsylvania. Due to the continuously rising need for more ministers, early on pastors began thinking about a way to educate future theologians in North America. This chapter investigates the several attempts of Lutheran pastor John Christopher Kunze (1744–1807) to establish a preacher seminary on North American soil and discusses the various obstacles he had to face. Particularly, Kunze’s major disagreements on church policy with his colleague in Philadelphia Justus Henry Christian Helmuth prevented a fruitful cooperation among the pastors. The question, whether English should be accepted as second worship language, divided Lutheran clergy in North America and lead to different educational concepts.
