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[German Version] (Count; Sep 13, 1853, Rogau, Silesia [today Rogów, Poland] – Mar 31, 1924, Schedlau, Upper Silesia [today Szydłowiec Śląski, Poland]). Pückler, who began as a jurist, was deeply affected by his conversion (Görlitz, 1878), occasioned by the force of the words of institution at the Lord’s Supper. Despite initial hesitation to engage in full-time lay ministry, in 1886 he resigned from the civil service to become president of the Christliche Gemeinschaft St. Michael (1886–1924), which…

[German Version] (Aug 2, 1852, Schottgau, near Breslau [Sadków, near Wrocław] – Dec 15, 1911, Berlin). Severely wounded at Sedan in 1870 (right leg amputated), the young former officer cadet served as a forestry official with the Berlin court chamber until 1896. In 1883 F. v. Schlümbach recruited him as president of the first German Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in Berlin. He worked primarily as a pastor among young men and left his mark on the first generation of the YMCA in Germany. He was also closely associated with the Community movement ¶ through his long-time friend Cou…

[German Version] Because of the importance of preaching the gospel, Protestant clergy, especially in Reformed churches, were long called Prediger (“preachers”; e.g. Domprediger, “cathedral preacher”; Hofprediger, “court preacher,” Universitätsprediger, “university preacher”; cf. Predigerseminar, “theological seminary”). The same was true of full-time ministers in the ¶ Free churches, who have been called pastors since the 1970s. In German-speaking Europe today, full-time ministers are also called preachers, especially in the Gemeinschaftsbewegung (Community move…

[German Version] The Community movement ( Gemeinschaftsbewegung) established so-called Bible schools (today mostly renamed theological seminaries) for the training of preachers. Today the Gnadauer Verband includes the Bible school of the mother house of deaconesses at Aidlingen (founded 1927), the Wuppertal biblical seminary in Radevormwald (founded 1960), the Evangelische Missionsschule in Unterweißach (founded 1906 in Preußisch Bahnau, since 1948 in Weißach im Tal), the Johanneum school of ¶ evangelism in Wuppertal, the Gnadau theological seminary in Falkenber…

[German Version] (Aug 10, 1833, Rostock – Nov 14, 1893, Hamburg). After abandoning a career as an officer, and making an unsuccessful attempt at farming, v. Oertzen had a meeting with J.H. Wichern in Berlin in 1868 which was an important influence on the rest of his life. In 1870 he became head of the Rauhes Haus (institution for boys with behavioral problems) in Hamburg-Horn. Subsequently he became director of the newly founded Hamburg City Mission (1875–1884). At the same time he was director of…