Johannes Andreas August Grabau (March 18, 1804—June 2, 1879) was an influential German-American Old Lutheran pastor and

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. He is usually mentioned as J. A. A. Grabau. Grabau was born in Olvenstedt,

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

(now a part of greater

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebu ...

, Germany). He was the son of Johann Andreas Grabau and Anna Dorothea Jericho. Grabau was educated at the grammar school in Olvenstedt (1809–1818), the Magdeburg Gymnasium (1818–1825) and at the

University of Halle Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university in ...

(1825–1829). After three years as a teacher in

and Sachsa bei Nordhausen, Grabau was ordained and installed as pastor of St. Andrew's Church in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

in June 1834. Grabau was jailed twice for refusing to use the Prussian union

Agenda Agenda may refer to: Information management * Agenda (meeting), points to be discussed and acted upon, displayed as a list * Political agenda, the set of goals of an ideological group * Lotus Agenda, a DOS-based personal information manager * Pers ...

and was permitted to immigrate to America in summer 1839 with members of Lutheran congregations in Erfurt and Magdeburg. They settled in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

, where he served as pastor of a Lutheran congregation for 40 years. On July 15, 1845, along with four pastors, Grabau founded "The Synod of the Lutheran Church emigrated from Prussia" (German: ''Synode der aus Preussen ausgewanderten lutherischen Kirche'') which became known as the Buffalo Synod. Grabau also founded the Martin Luther College in Buffalo. Grabau retained control of the Martin Luther College and remained as its rector. The official organ of Grabau's synod after 1866 was ''Die Wachende Kirche'', under his editorship. Grabau was married on July 15, 1834, to Christine Sophia Burgraf, the daughter of Johann Andreas Burggraf and Friedericke Louise Elizabeth Beulke. They had at least three children: Johann, Wilhelm, and Beata. Grabau died on June 2, 1879, in Buffalo, New York, shortly before the 40th anniversary of his arrival in the United States.''Johann Andreas August Grabau (1804-1879) Family Collection, 1840-1866'' (

Concordia Historical Institute Concordia Seminary is a Lutheran seminary in Clayton, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS). Founded in 1839, t ...

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References

Other sources

* Clifford E. Nelson, ''Lutherans in North America'' (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress Publishers. 1980)

External links

Lutherans - The Buffalo Synod
Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge

A biographical sketch of Grabau from Missouri's Central Methodist College ---- 19th-century German Lutheran clergy 19th-century American Lutheran clergy German emigrants to the United States 1804 births 1879 deaths Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod {{Lutheran-stub