The Sunday School movement is generally considered to have begun in 1780 in England under the leadership of Robert Raikes, though some Brethren historians in the early twentieth century tried to claim this honor for the Brethren, citing young people’s meetings at...
In the previous post, I mentioned that the scattered nature of the Brethren family from the east coast to the west coast by the 1840s and 50s led to a sense that greater unity was needed to hold the family together. Another effort, besides Annual Meeting, that...
The Brethren Church had its origins in a division within the German Baptist Brethren in the early 1880s. In the next series of posts, I would like to explore the issues that brought about this division and the various parties that were part of this three-way...
One of the most influential elders among the Brethren in the first half of the 1800s was George Hoke (1783-1861). Though not as much is known about Hoke as those who came shortly after him, like Henry Kurtz, John Kline, and Peter Nead, he played significant...
Perhaps no man changed the trajectory of the German Baptist Brethren more than Henry Kurtz, at least until Henry Holsinger came on the scene. Holsinger would credit Kurtz with inaugurating the progressive era in Brethren history. Henry Kurtz (1796-1874) was born in...
A man who is revered by all Brethren groups as a martyr of the faith and an example of the best of the Brethren tradition is John Kline (1797-1864). Kline’s forebears were Brethren; they originally settled in Pennsylvania, but his father moved the family to...
The Brethren Church is pleased to announce the hiring of Dan Acker as our Coordinator of Vitality. Dan began his work in this new role on Monday, March 9, 2026. For nearly two decades, Dan has been a pastor at Summit Ridge Community Church in Tucson, Arizona. As...
The Brethren Church is pleased to announce the hiring of Jack Radcliffe as our Coordinator of Church Multiplication. Jack began his work in this new role on Monday, March 9, 2026. Jack is a seasoned leader in the church and missional innovation spaces. He is...
With this post, I want to introduce several of the influential leaders of the German Baptist Brethren during the mid-nineteenth century. One such leader was Peter Nead (1796-1877). He was born into a staunch Lutheran family in Hagerstown, Maryland. ...
The only other hymnal authorized by The Brethren Church was published in 1909. The previous year the General Conference of The Brethren Church had authorized a committee of three “to take steps for the adoption of a hymn book for use in the Brethren...