Reviews
Lutherans in America: A New History

This is the main textbook for one of our AFLC seminary classes, "Lutheranism in America." Other fine histories have been used over the years for this course, and they are still good resources for studying past events as well as important personalities. The last major text, however, was published in1980, and a lot has happened within American Lutheranism since then. There was need for a more up-to-date text, to tell the story of the formation of the ELCA, for example, and this is what Dr. Granquist has provided for us.
Lutherans in America includes a fine survey of the past as well as an overview of more recent developments that have changed the face of our denomination. A unique feature is the inclusion of an “excursus” with each chapter that, in my opinion, helps to personalize the subject material. His graphs are helpful, too, and the list of abbreviations and acronyms in the back of the book is a great resource as we wade through the often confusing Lutheran alphabet soup. An annotated bibliography provides lots of possibilities for more directed study.
I find it especially interesting to read Granquist’s last chapter, “Uncertain Present, Uneasy Future,” which expresses his concerns about current American Lutheranism, the nature of which he clearly documents. His final paragraph highlights the importance of the local congregations, “for if there is a future for Lutheranism in America, it will come through those channels and be built off these insights” (p. 350). He also includes a brief epilogue entitled “Hope,” encouraging his readers to reach back into our history and find “creative ways to reappropriate their theological and spiritual traditions to meet the needs of the future” (p. 356).
Are you interested in learning more about your American Lutheran roots? If so, I cannot recommend a better and more current resource for you to acquire and enjoy.
Pr. Robert L. Lee
FLBCS Professor of Church History
and Editor of The Lutheran Ambassador
Plymouth, Minnesota

An Interview with Diane Brubakken

Opening Chapel Time
