Addie Graves (1922-2007) grew up in Wilcox County, Alabama, which at the time was a center of Lutheran African-American missions. After moving to Columbus, Georgia, in the early 1950s, she became the first black member of a Lutheran church in the city (Lutheran Church of the Redeemer). This is significant because most other churches in Columbus did not desegregate until decades later. It was also prior to any official desegregation action by the Lutheran Church -Missouri Synod. She could have joined a different church, but she evidently felt strongly about her Lutheran faith and identity. In 1963, she helped establish Bethlehem Lutheran Church in her neighborhood, seeking to spread the gospel and benefit her neighbors. She did this, not out of an identification with Black Lutheranism, but because of her confessional, theologically conservative Lutheran faith.
","abstract_html":"<p>Addie Graves (1922-2007) grew up in Wilcox County, Alabama, which at the time was a center of Lutheran African-American missions. After moving to Columbus, Georgia, in the early 1950s, she became the first black member of a Lutheran church in the city (Lutheran Church of the Redeemer). This is significant because most other churches in Columbus did not desegregate until decades later. It was also prior to any official desegregation action by the Lutheran Church -Missouri Synod. She could have joined a different church, but she evidently felt strongly about her Lutheran faith and identity. In 1963, she helped establish Bethlehem Lutheran Church in her neighborhood, seeking to spread the gospel and benefit her neighbors. She did this, not out of an identification with Black Lutheranism, but because of her confessional, theologically conservative Lutheran faith.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Chariton, Jesse David"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Art in History","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"History and Geography","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Gary Sprayberry","Dr. Sarah Bowman","Joseph Miller"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:45:01Z","subjects":["Lutheranism","Race And Ethnicity","Civil Rights","Lutheran Church Of The Redeemer","Bethlehem Lutheran Church","Columbus Georgia","History","History of Religion"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/341","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Gary Sprayberry","Dr. Sarah Bowman","Joseph Miller"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Chariton, Jesse David"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2020-01-23T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History and Geography"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Art in History"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Lutheranism","Race And Ethnicity","Civil Rights","Lutheran Church Of The Redeemer","Bethlehem Lutheran Church","Columbus Georgia","History","History of Religion"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/341"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Addie Graves (1922-2007) grew up in Wilcox County, Alabama, which at the time was a center of Lutheran African-American missions. After moving to Columbus, Georgia, in the early 1950s, she became the first black member of a Lutheran church in the city (Lutheran Church of the Redeemer). This is significant because most other churches in Columbus did not desegregate until decades later. It was also prior to any official desegregation action by the Lutheran Church -Missouri Synod. She could have joined a different church, but she evidently felt strongly about her Lutheran faith and identity. In 1963, she helped establish Bethlehem Lutheran Church in her neighborhood, seeking to spread the gospel and benefit her neighbors. She did this, not out of an identification with Black Lutheranism, but because of her confessional, theologically conservative Lutheran faith.
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