Arcturus Zodiac Conrad (1855-1937) was a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

author, theologian, and pastor of

Park Street Church Park Street Church, founded in 1804, is a historic and active evangelical congregational megachurch in Downtown Boston, Massachusetts. The Park Street Church is a member of the Conservative Congregational Christian Conference. Typical attendance a ...

in Boston, Massachusetts from 1905 to 1937. He was born in 1855 on a farm in

Shiloh, Indiana Shiloh is an unincorporated community in southern Cass Township, Sullivan County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The community is part of the Terre Haute Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The community was likely named after the biblical ci ...

to a father who was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

minister on the frontier. Conrad was primarily of German and English ancestry. In 1882 Conrad graduated from

Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. Founded in 1866, it had 2,105 undergraduate students and 269 faculty members in fall 2016. The 200-acre main campus is between Northfield and the 800-acre Cowling ...

, a Congregationalist school in Minnesota. In 1885 he received a B.D. from Union Theological Seminary; during his years at Union his roommate was

Arthur Cushman McGiffert Arthur Cushman McGiffert (March 4, 18611933), American theologian, was born in Sauquoit, New York, the son of a Presbyterian clergyman of Scots-Irish descent. Biography He graduated at Western Reserve College in 1882 and at Union Theological Se ...

, later a noted church historian. Conrad went on to study at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, receiving a Ph.D. from that institution in 1885; in 1893 Carleton College awarded him a D.D. In 1885 he married Harriet Narcissa Adams from Portland, Maine. From 1885 to 1890 he served as pastor of Ainslie Street Presbyterian Church in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. He served as pastor of First Congregational Church in Worcester, Massachusetts, for twelve years. He then went west for a period to recover his health. Later he preached at a Congregational church in London, England, before being offered the pastorship of Park Street Church in Boston in 1905 by Pastor

John L. Withrow John Lindsay Withrow (1837–1909) was an American Presbyterian minister and theologian. Early life and education Withrow was born in Coatesville, Pennsylvania in 1837 to John Mitchell Withrow and Keziah Withrow. As a youth, Withrow studied at ...

. Withrow and Conrad served together until Withrow's death in 1909. Conrad served as pastor at Park Street until his death in 1937, when he was succeeded by

Harold Ockenga Harold John Ockenga (June 6, 1905 – February 8, 1985) was a leading figure of mid-20th-century American Evangelicalism, part of the reform movement known as "Neo-Evangelicalism". A Congregational minister, Ockenga served for many years as ...

. At Park Street, Conrad helped prevent the sale of the meeting house to developers.Garth M. Rosell, ''Boston's Historic Park Street Church: The Story of an Evangelical Landmark'' (Kregel Publications, 2009) Conrad is buried at

Mount Auburn Cemetery Mount Auburn Cemetery is the first rural cemetery, rural, or garden, cemetery in the United States, located on the line between Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts, Watertown in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middl ...

Works

*''Catastrophe and cataclysm. The great red dragon. : Anti-saloon sermons'' (1892) *''The religion of Jesus as exemplified in the life and sermons of Bishop Phillips Brooks'' (1893) *''Fraternity'' (1895) *''Flashes from my forge. : Excerpts from sermons and public addresses of'' (1897) *''Worcester's tribute to the ten years' work of Almon Gunnison, D.D. with the First Universalist Church : and a record of the esteem in which he is held by his Worcester Parish and friends'' (1899) *''Twenty reasons why revivals are desirable'' (1900)
Boston's Awakening; a Complete Account of the Great Boston Revival: Under the Leadership of J. Wilbur Chapman and Charles M. Alexander
(1909) *''Jesus Christ at the crossroads'' (1924) *''Comrades of the Carpenter'' (1926) *''The Seven Finalities of Faith'' (1926) *
The gospel for an age of thought
' (1928) *''Secret of the life sublime'' (1929) *''Radiant religion'' (1930) *''You must go right on'' (1931)
Commemorative Exercises at Park Street Church 1937 by Conrad

Works about Conrad

*''Twenty fifth anniversary: pastorate of Rev. A.Z. Conrad'' (Park Street Church) (1930) *George W. Harper, '' 'Christ’s Invitation Is a Broad One': A. Z. Conrad’s Preaching in Gilded Age America,'' Trinity Journal 37, no. 2 (Fall 2016): 235-249 *George W. Harper, '' 'It Is a Battle-Royal': A. Z. Conrad’s Preaching at Boston’s Park Street Church during the Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy,'' Fides et Historia 45, no. 1 (Winter/Spring 2013): 30-47 *G. Dewey Wigfield, ''A study of four contemporary preachers : Conrad, Fosdick, Holmes, and Newton'' (1937)

References

External links

Conrad Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conrad, Arcturus Z. 1855 births 1937 deaths American Congregationalists American evangelicals American people of English descent American people of German descent American Presbyterians American theologians Carleton College alumni Christian fundamentalism New York University alumni People from Sullivan County, Indiana Union Theological Seminary (New York City) alumni