Paul Henkel
Encyclopedia
Paul Henkel was a native of North Carolina
who became an itinerant evangelist for the Lutheran church in the eastern United States.
He was born in Rowan County, North Carolina
, in 1754. His family moved to what is now West Virginia
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~janelle/lutherans.htm while he was still young. In that environment, he developed a solid acquaintance with orthodox Lutheran works. He grew to become a cooper
by trade, and was obliged to provide enough for his substantial family. Despite these demands on his time, he always gave his highest priority to conducting religious services. He took advantage of the numerous prayer meetings and Bible classes in his area to help him focus on spiritual values.
By 1781, he preached his first sermon
, first in German
, then in English
. This began a period of missionary work which would continue for the next forty years. He was licensed as a preacher by the Ministerium of Pennsylvania
in 1783 to begin his work, being ordained by the same body in 1792. He worked in the area of Virginia
, North Carolina
, Tennessee
, Kentucky
, Ohio
, and Indiana
. Although he did receive some financial assistance for his missionary work, the majority of the expenses were paid for out of his own pocket. His work included preaching, baptizing, and creating new congregations in the communities he visited. He also worked to organize clergy for the organization and administrative purposes. He helped to found the North Carolina Synod in 1803. This group helped provide discipline and moral support for the people of the area, and also helped its members withstand the great degree of emotionalism which was a regular feature of several revival movements of the time.
He returned to Virginia in 1806. There, he began distributing books through his son's printing house, which thus became the only Lutheran publishing house in the country for many years. He also continued his missionary travels, and helped form the Joint Synod of Ohio in 1818 and the Synod of Tennessee in 1820. He used his prominence to help argue against the ideas of Samuel Simon Schmucker
, which he considered far too liberal. Henkel actively resisted cooperating with Schmucker in his hope of uniting all the evangelical churches, as he was staunchly opposed to the appearance of ideological compromise which he thought would be given by such an alliance. His strict adherence to the traditional doctrine, including the Augsburg Confession
, served as one of the basis for the strong confessional movement which would later flourish in many parts of the North American Lutheran community.
A paralytic stroke Henkel suffered in 1823 substantially limited his activities. He did however remain an active preacher and writer until just six weeks before his death in 1825.
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
who became an itinerant evangelist for the Lutheran church in the eastern United States.
He was born in Rowan County, North Carolina
Rowan County, North Carolina
-Demographics and economics:As of the census of 2010, there were 138,428 people, 53,140 households, and 37,058 families residing in the county. The population density was 270.7 people per square mile . There were 60,211 housing units at an average density of 117.7 per square mile...
, in 1754. His family moved to what is now West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~janelle/lutherans.htm while he was still young. In that environment, he developed a solid acquaintance with orthodox Lutheran works. He grew to become a cooper
Cooper (profession)
Traditionally, a cooper is someone who makes wooden staved vessels of a conical form, of greater length than breadth, bound together with hoops and possessing flat ends or heads...
by trade, and was obliged to provide enough for his substantial family. Despite these demands on his time, he always gave his highest priority to conducting religious services. He took advantage of the numerous prayer meetings and Bible classes in his area to help him focus on spiritual values.
By 1781, he preached his first sermon
Sermon
A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
, first in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, then in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. This began a period of missionary work which would continue for the next forty years. He was licensed as a preacher by the Ministerium of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Ministerium
The Pennsylvania Ministerium was the first Lutheran church body in North America. With the encouragement of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the Ministerium was founded at a meeting of German-American Lutheran clergy on August 26, 1748...
in 1783 to begin his work, being ordained by the same body in 1792. He worked in the area of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, and Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
. Although he did receive some financial assistance for his missionary work, the majority of the expenses were paid for out of his own pocket. His work included preaching, baptizing, and creating new congregations in the communities he visited. He also worked to organize clergy for the organization and administrative purposes. He helped to found the North Carolina Synod in 1803. This group helped provide discipline and moral support for the people of the area, and also helped its members withstand the great degree of emotionalism which was a regular feature of several revival movements of the time.
He returned to Virginia in 1806. There, he began distributing books through his son's printing house, which thus became the only Lutheran publishing house in the country for many years. He also continued his missionary travels, and helped form the Joint Synod of Ohio in 1818 and the Synod of Tennessee in 1820. He used his prominence to help argue against the ideas of Samuel Simon Schmucker
Samuel Simon Schmucker
Samuel Simon Schmucker was a German-American Lutheran pastor and theologian. He was integral to the founding of the Lutheran church body known as the General Synod, as well as the oldest continuously-operating Lutheran seminary and college in North America .Later in his career, Schmucker became a...
, which he considered far too liberal. Henkel actively resisted cooperating with Schmucker in his hope of uniting all the evangelical churches, as he was staunchly opposed to the appearance of ideological compromise which he thought would be given by such an alliance. His strict adherence to the traditional doctrine, including the Augsburg Confession
Augsburg Confession
The Augsburg Confession, also known as the "Augustana" from its Latin name, Confessio Augustana, is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Lutheran reformation...
, served as one of the basis for the strong confessional movement which would later flourish in many parts of the North American Lutheran community.
A paralytic stroke Henkel suffered in 1823 substantially limited his activities. He did however remain an active preacher and writer until just six weeks before his death in 1825.
External links
- Wolf, Edmund Jacob. The Lutherans in America; a story of struggle, progress, influence and marvelous growth. New York: J.A. Hill, 1889.
- Christian Cyclopedia article on the Henkel Clan
- Section on Henkel family in Bente, F. American Lutheranism Volume II St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. 1919.