Sven Oftedal (March 22, 1844 – March 30, 1911) was a

Norwegian American Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...

Lutheran minister. He served as the 3rd president of

Augsburg University Augsburg University is a private university in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It was founded in 1869 as a Norwegian-American Lutheran seminary known as Augsburg Seminarium. Today, the u ...

and helped found the

Lutheran Free Church The Lutheran Free Church (LFC) was a Lutheran denomination that existed in the United States, mainly in Minnesota and North Dakota, from 1897 until its merger into the American Lutheran Church (ALC) in 1963. The history of the church body predate ...

Background

Sven Svensen Oftedal was born in

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. He was the son of Sven Larsen Oftedal (1812-1883) and Gunhild Omundsdatter Stokka (1809-1881). His father was a teacher at the Stavanger Cathedral School. His elder brother Lars Svendsen Oftedal (1838 –1900) was a Norwegian priest and social reformer. He was also the founding editor of ''

Stavanger Aftenblad ''Stavanger Aftenblad'' () (lit: ''Stavanger Evening Paper'') or simply ''Aftenbladet'' is a daily newspaper based in Stavanger, Norway, and owned by Schibsted Media Group. Norwegian owners held 42 percent of the shares in Schibsted at the end ...

'' and served as a Member of the Storting. He graduated from Stavanger Cathedral School in 1862. He studied at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

and earned his theology degree in 1871. He also studied languages, philosophy, and theology at several other European universities.

Career

He came to

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in 1873 to serve as a professor of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

at Augsburg Seminary, predecessor to

. Augsburg was the first seminary founded by

Norwegian Lutherans Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

in America.

August Weenaas August Weenaas (1835–1924) was a Norwegian American Lutheran minister and educator. August Weenaas was the founding President of Augsburg University. Biography August Weenaas was born in Norway and educated in the ministry at the University ...

, Augsburg's first president, had recruited both Sven Oftedal and

Georg Sverdrup Georg Sverdrup (born Jørgen Sverdrup; 25 April 1770 – 8 December 1850) was a Norwegian statesman, best known as one of the presidents of the Norwegian Constituent Assembly in Eidsvoll in 1814. He was a member of the Norwegian Parliament and ...

from Norway to join the faculty. Sven Oftedal and Georg Sverdrup were scholars from prominent

Haugean The Haugean movement or Haugeanism ( no, haugianere) was a Pietistic state church reform movement intended to bring new life and vitality into the Church of Norway which had been often characterized by formalism and lethargy. The movement emp ...

families in Norway who came to Augsburg, bringing with them a genuinely radical view of Christian education, centered on Scripture and the simple doctrines of Christianity. In time, both Oftedal and Sverdrup would serve as presidents of Augsburg. Additionally, Oftedal was chairman of the board of regents at Augsburg for 36 years. It was at Augsburg that Oftedal, along with Georg Sverdrup, founded the Lutheran Free Church. Sverdrup, Oftedal and others felt their beliefs were being compromised and broke away from the

United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America The United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America (UNLC) was the result of the union in 1890 of the Norwegian Augustana Synod (est. 1870), the Conference of the Norwegian-Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (1870), and the Anti-Missourian ...

, forming the Lutheran Free Church in 1897. The denomination would exist as a separate synod until 1963. In 1877, Sven Oftedal organized the

Folkebladet ''Folkebladet'' was a Norwegian American newspaper published in Minneapolis, Minnesota at Augsburg Seminary (now Augsburg University) from 1877 to 1952. Georg Sverdrup was the paper's creator and first editor. It identified itself as the "organ ...

Publishing Company which would merge in 1922 with the Free Church Book Concern. That company would in turn merge with Augsburg Publishing in 1963. Oftedal was also elected to the

Minneapolis School Board Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) or Special School District Number 1 is a public school district serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minneapolis Public Schools enrolls 36,370 students in pub ...

and was appointed to the Minneapolis Library Board. Additionally, Oftedal served as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Minneapolis for five years. Trinity Lutheran Church, which was founded in 1868, was originally a Norwegian immigrant Lutheran church, which would have roots in the Lutheran Free Church. Christian Cyclopedia: Lutheran Publication Houses

Personal life

He was married to Marie Gjertsen (1845-1926). They were the parents of four children. In 1908 he was appointed a Knight 1st Class in the Order of St. Olav. Oftedal died in 1911 and his widow in 1926; both were laid to rest at

Lakewood Cemetery Lakewood Cemetery is a large private, non-sectarian cemetery located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is located at 3600 Hennepin Avenue at the southern end of the Uptown area. It is noted for its chapel which is on the National R ...

References

Other sources

*Chrislock, Carl H., ''From Fjord to Freeway: 100 Years, Augsburg College'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg College, 1969) * Dyrud, Loiell O., ''The Quest for Freedom: The Lutheran Free Church to The Association of Free Lutheran Congregations'' (Minneapolis: Ambassador Publications. 2000) * Fevold, Eugene L., ''The Lutheran Free Church: A Fellowship of American Lutheran Congregations 1897-1963'' (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House. 1969) * Nichol, Todd W., ''All These Lutherans'' (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Publishing House. 1986) * Tavuchis, Nicholas (2013) Pastors and Immigrants: The Role of a Religious Elite in the Absorption of Norwegian Immigrants (Springer Publishing Company)

External links

Sven Oftedal Society at Augustana College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oftedal, Sven 1844 births 1911 deaths Clergy from Stavanger University of Oslo alumni 19th-century American Lutheran clergy 20th-century American Lutheran clergy Norwegian emigrants to the United States Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal