Norwegian Synod. 1853-1917.

The Norwegian Synod, often known simply as the Synod, was the synod among Norwegian-Americans most concerned with theological orthodoxy and preserving the practices of the Church of Norway. J.W.C. Dietrichson, an ordained clergyman from Norway founded the the Synod 1853. The Synod originally trained its pastors at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, but later founded Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. The Synod fostered close ties with C.F.W. Walther and the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod which embroiled it in controversies over slavery and predestination. The predestination controversy led to a split in the Synod in 1888, out of which came the Anti-Missourian Brotherhood. In 1917, the Synod joined with the United Church and Hauge’s Synod to form the Norwegian Lutheran Church in America.