John George Lochman

Background

John George Lochman was born on December 2, 1773 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, the son of Nicolaus and Anna Maria (Schneider) Lochman.

Education

He graduated in 1789 from the University of Pennsylvania. Then he took up the study of theology under Helmuth's direction, supporting himself meanwhile by teaching.

Career

Lochman was licensed by the Ministerium of Pennsylvania at Reading in 1794, and was ordained at Hanover in 1800. As pastor at Lebanon 1794-1815 and at Harrisburg 1815-1826, he was respected and even venerated by his parishioners. His theological opinions were distinctly Lutheran though not rigidly orthodox; like his preceptor Helmuth he saw little value in precise theological definitions and had a warm appreciation for the work of other denominations. He trained about thirty candidates for the ministry. In 1818 he was president of the Ministerium of Pennsylvania. When the General Synod was organized at Frederick, Maryland, October 21-23, 1821, he was chosen president. Five years later, as a result probably of overwork, he suffered an apoplectic stroke. After months of invalidism he died at Harrisburg while the bells of his church were tolling for the deaths of Jefferson and Adams.

He was the author of Haupt-Inhalt der Christlichen Lehre (Lebanon, 1808); A Valedictory Sermon Preached at Lebanon (1815); An Inaugural Sermon Preached at Harrisburg (Harrisburg, 1815); The History, Doctrine, and Discipline of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (1818); Principles of the Christian Religion, in Questions and Answers, Designed for the Instruction of Youth in Evangelical Churches (1822; 4th ed. , 1834); and Hinterlassene Predigten (1828).

Achievements

• Lochman was an able and popular preacher and was held in high estimation by the church. One of his greatest services to the Church was his share in the formation of the General Synod, which was designed to bind all the Lutheran congregations of the United States into a general organization for the administration of common enterprises and the maintenance of educational and doctrinal standards. In 1818 he took the leading part in the negotiations with the Lutherans of the South and W.

Works

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• book

  • The History, Doctrine and Discipline of the Evangelical Lutheran Church (Classic Reprint)

    (Excerpt from The History, Doctrine and Discipline of the ...)

  • Hinterlassene Predigten von Johann Georg Lochman. (German Edition)

    ( This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923....)

  • HAUPT-INHALT DER CHRISTLICHEN LEHRE.NEBST EINER KURZGESZTEN KIRCHEN GESCHICHTE

Personality

Lochman was a man of solid though probably not extensive attainments, humane and charitable in disposition, modest and dignified in manner, industrious and wise in the discharge of his duties.

Connections

Lochman was married twice: on September 7, 1795, to Mary Magdalena Grotz of Philadelphia, who died, leaving him with two children; and on June 3, 1799, to Susan Hoffman of Philadelphia, who bore him thirteen children and outlived him by fifteen years. One of his sons, Augustus Hoffman Lochman, was a prominent clergyman of the next generation.

Father:

Nicolaus Lochman

Mother:

Anna Maria (Schneider) Lochman

Spouse:

Susan Hoffman

Spouse:

Mary Magdalena Grotz

Son:

Augustus Hoffman Lochman

1802 - 1891, clergyman

References

• Old Salem in Lebanon : a history of the congregation and town
• Memoirs of Rev. Jacob Goering, Rev. George Lochman, and Rev. Benjamin Kurtz (Classic Reprint)
• Annals of the American Pulpit Volumes 1-9