Schmucker, S.S.

▪ American theologian

in full  Samuel Simon Schmucker 

born February 28, 1799, Hagerstown, Maryland, U.S.

died July 26, 1873, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

      theologian and educator who was a principal exponent of the American Lutheran movement, which sought to create a particularly American expression of Lutheranism.

      Schmucker joined in the establishment of the General Synod (1820) that coordinated the various Lutheran churches in the United States and helped found Gettysburg Seminary (1826; now Lutheran Theological Seminary) and Pennsylvania College (chartered in 1832 as Gettysburg College). In his Definite Synodical Platform (published anonymously in 1855) he reinterpreted the Augsburg Confession in terms of 19th-century liberal theology, Pentecostal piety, and the need for a distinctly American version of Lutheranism that would be integrated with other churches. He collaborated in organizing the Evangelical Alliance (1846) and wrote Elements of Popular Theology (1834) and The Unity of Christ's Church (1870). His Definite Platform was rejected by the Lutheran membership, which had recently been increased by conservative immigrants.

* * *