The Inner Mission (german: Innere Mission, also translated as Home Mission) was and is a movement of German
evangelists
Evangelists may refer to:
* Evangelists (Christianity), Christians who specialize in evangelism
* Four Evangelists, the authors of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament
* ''The Evangelists
''The Evangelists'' (''Evangheliştii'' in Roma ...
, set up by
Johann Hinrich Wichern
Johann Hinrich Wichern (21 April 1808 Hamburg – 7 April 1881 Hamburg) was a founder of the Home Mission (also translated as Inner Mission; German: ''Innere Mission'') movement in Germany.
Biography
Johann was born into a family of poverty, toget ...
in
Wittenberg
Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon language, Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the Ri ...
in 1848 based on a model of
Theodor Fliedner
Theodor Fliedner (21 January 18004 October 1864) was a German Lutheran minister and founder of Lutheran deaconess training. In 1836, he founded Kaiserswerther Diakonie, a hospital and deaconess training center. Together with his wives Friederik ...
. It quickly spread from Germany to other countries.
Like other
missions, the Inner Mission sought a "rebirth" of Christianity, by means of the doctrine of "brotherly love" and a social programme of charity (social service) and Christian education.
An inner mission or rescue mission is a project set up by Christian groups to aid the poor and sick in the home country of the group. The word inner reflects that mission is within a single country's boundaries – generally a "mission" is presumed to be overseas.
Specific inner missions
The
City Mission
The City Mission movement started in Glasgow in January 1826 when David Nasmith founded the Glasgow City Mission (Scotland). It was an interdenominational agency working alongside churches and other Christian agencies to provide for the spiritu ...
movement, with the
London City Mission
London City Mission was set up by David Nasmith on 16 May 1835 in the Hoxton area of east London. The first paid missionary was Lindsay Burfoot. Today it is part of the wider City Mission Movement.
History
The London City Mission's early work ce ...
and the
New York City Rescue Mission
New York City Rescue Mission, now a controlled affiliate of The Bowery Mission, was founded in 1872 by Jerry McAuley and his wife, Maria with the purpose of providing a soup kitchen and homeless shelter.
History
Homelessness was on the rise in ...
and the
Wesley Mission
Wesley Mission is a name used by three independent Uniting Church groups which are a part of the Uniting Missions Network of UnitingCare Australia. These predominantly grew out of inner city ''Central Methodist Missions'' of the Methodist Church ...
in Australia are examples.
Having grown up in Germany, birthplace of the movement, Rev.
Johannes Lauritzen
Johannes Rudolph Lauritzen (February 21, 1845 – September 26, 1923) was a German-American Lutheran clergyman.
Biography
Johannes Lauritzen was born in Bohemia, Germany on February 21, 1845. He emigrated to the United States in 1870, and became ...
served Lutheran churches in Knoxville, TN and established a rescue mission there about 1890. His congregational work and his work with the poor and imprisoned led him to produce a translation of the New Testament that was aimed at people with less education and exposure to Biblical concepts.
The Danish version was, for a time, run by
Vilhelm Beck Vilhelm is a masculine given name, the Scandinavian form of William and Wilhelm. Notable people with the name include:
* Vilhelm Ahlmann (1852-1928), Danish-Swedish architect
* Vilhelm Andersen (1864–1953), Danish author, literary historian a ...
.
See also
*
The Church Association for the Inner Mission in Denmark
The Church Association for the Inner Mission in Denmark ( da, Kirkelig Forening for den Indre Mission i Danmark), or in short form Inner Mission (Danish: ''Indre Mission'') is a conservative Lutheran Christian organisation in Denmark. It is the l ...
Notes
References
*
*
External links
Association of Gospel Rescue MissionsNew York City Rescue MissionThe EURopean network of Inner Mission Movements (founded 1984)
Christian missions
History of Protestantism in Germany
{{Germany-hist-stub