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5 DanishReligion,FolkSchools, andFraternalOrganizations E ducation, social organizations, and religion helped Michigan’s Danes maintain their ethnic identity.7 Danish parents and folk schools used education to create and cultivate an appreciation of Danish culture and language. Danish social organizations fostered and promoted Danish culture by emphasizing holidays and mores. Michigan’s Danes were also linked with Denmark through religion, which provided an intellectual, cultural, and spiritual framework. Danish Religion Religion was a dominant factor in Danish history and played an important role in the lives of many Danish immigrants. Christianity arrived in Denmark around the eighth century, but the Danes were reluctant to convert and many initially held on to their traditional beliefs. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries Christianity became the dominant religion. Roman Catholicism was the state religion until the 1530s when Protestantism swept into Denmark from Germany and took over. The 1849 Constitution maintained the Lutheran state church; however, provisions were made for religious freedom and dissent. Fractures soon emerged. In the late nineteenth century 6 Howard L. Nicholson and Anders J. Gillis the Danish religious landscape was dominated by debates about Lutheran theology; the two major camps were the Grundtvigian and the Inner Mission. Nikolaj Frederik Severin Grundtvig (1783–1872) was a Lutheran academic and pastor whose thoughts and writings incorporated aspects of classic European liberalism. His willingness to confront other religious figures made him controversial. Nevertheless, many Danes liked his concepts, which blended religion and nationalism. On the other hand, those of the Inner Mission were opposed to Grundtvigian ideas, believing that an overemphasis on nationalism was a needless distraction to Christian living. The debates between the Grundtvigians and Inner Mission believers pitted revisionists versus traditionalists. For the Grundtvigians the Bible was important but not completely infallible.8 Furthermore, Grundtvigians felt a strong sense of nationalism, though they often rejected the particular brand of nationalism taught by Denmark’s state church.9 Michigan’s Grundtvigian Danes tended to cling more tightly to their Danish heritage than the traditionalists; for example, Grundtvigians were central to the establishment of folk high schools that emphasized Danish language and culture. These schools were usually founded, taught, and attended by people with a Grundtvigian background. Grundtvigians believed that nationalism was in no way a hindrance to their faith and that being a good Christian was essential to being a good Dane. The Inner Mission toed a tighter line: the Bible was authoritative. Inner Mission followers believed that Grundtvigians overemphasized their nationalistic convictions to the detriment of their faith. Grundtvigians rebutted that the Inner Mission followers were dogmatic. Reconciliation among clergy was difficult. In America the Reverend Peter Sørensen Vig, a devout member of the Inner Mission, and the Grundtvigian Frederik Lange Grundtvig (the son of the famous Danish bishop) engaged in heated polemics. The Inner Mission clergy taught that to reach people Danes needed to go beyond the boundaries of traditional Danish culture. For them, the Grundtvigian school of thought created a subculture of Danishness that made it difficult to proselytize . As a result, the Inner Mission members were more ready to accept Americanization.10 Many Danes cared little for clerical quarrels. After interviewing Danes in Montcalm County, Michigan, in the late-twentieth century John Bille noted that “none of them were clear as to what the quarrel was about.”11 Before DANES IN MICHIGAN 7 1870 most Danes lived in areas where there were too few Danes to form a local congregation, let alone quarrel about complicated doctrinal matters. In such cases, Danes joined other Scandinavian Lutheran churches, as well as Adventist, Baptist, and Unitarian churches among others.12 In areas where there were enough Danes to fill out a congregation, they often built and supported a local Danish church. For example, Danes living in Ludington, in Mason County, attended a church where they joined with Norwegians and Swedes until 1878 when they formed Bethany Lutheran Church, an independent Danish congregation . The Ludington Danes relied initially on pastors from Manistee and Muskegon to come and serve the congregation. As the church grew, it became able to support resident pastors, who helped solidify the church as a pillar of Danish culture in the community. The church’s Vacation Bible School taught children the Danish language in addition to religion. Many of the church’s activities were organized by Danish women. The Ladies Sewing Society, founded in 1887, raised funds and did routine maintenance to keep the church running. Children’s Sunday School classes were established by local Danish...

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