Fritz Berger (preacher)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fritz Berger (born March 12, 1868 in Dürrgraben, today Heimisbach in the municipality of Trachselwald in Emmental, Switzerland; † March 1, 1950 in Brenzikofen ) was the founder of the Evangelical Brothers Association, which has been calling itself the Church for Christ since 2009 .

Childhood and time to conversion

As the son of a small farmer and day laborer, he came from a very poor background. He learned the Wagner trade , married Anna Antenner († 1929) in 1890, but could hardly make ends meet financially. He poached and spent a lot of time and money in the inn because he believed he would find customers there. At the time he was in debt, addicted to nicotine and addicted to card games, and himself referred to card games, bowling, cursing, lying and smoking as the five sins that he could not give up. He found this condition very stressful, but did not manage to change his lifestyle.

Conversion and rebirth

He has been attending church services for a long time and through his craft he had contact with various brothers from the revival movement. On February 11, 1899, he said, there was a conversion. He then attended the meetings of the Blue Cross , signed a declaration of abstinence and radically changed his life. He paid back stolen goods and tried to repay his debts according to his fortune. He particularly quarreled with the " poor sinner song ", which said that despite all efforts, one remains a poor sinner. Three years later, on February 12, 1902, he received the assurance that his sins were forgiven, which he called being born again.

Berger as a preacher

Very soon after his conversion, he went to revival meetings and occasionally spoke there and was then invited to various places. In 1900 he was accepted into the Evangelical Society , where he was a member until 1908 and from 1902 he also took over the management of the Dürrgraben branch of the Blue Cross. The association grew rapidly under his leadership and from 1906 to 1908 he was the Blue Cross travel agent. Around 1908 there was a rift with the Evangelical Society and the Blue Cross, which were organizationally related. His view of sanctification in particular led to controversy, and Berger's special opinionated character also played a role. Berger was banned from speaking in the Evangelical Society and was dismissed as a travel agent at the Blue Cross. In 1909 he founded the Dürrgraben Association of the Free Blue Cross . This ambiguous name was abandoned in 1914 and was now called the Evangelical Brothers Association , which in 2009 was renamed Church for Christ. Berger managed this from 1916 to 1932 from Hasle near Burgdorf and from 1932 to 1950 from Brenzikofen. Shortly before his death, his son-in-law Max Graf became his successor.

Berger never had a qualified training as a theologian or preacher and read few books. He remained skeptical of the theology studied, and was radically hostile to the critical theology of the Tübingen School .

family

Berger married Anna Antenner, a poorly educated shepherd's daughter and maid, who had six children, three of whom died early. Anna died in 1929. His second marriage in 1930 was Louise Flümann, a nurse who had previously looked after his wife.

Works

  • Of the exuberant grace of God in my life. Self-published, Brenzikofen 1940. Most recently: Verlag des Evangelischen Brüderverein, Herbligen 2001.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ On Grace, p. 22

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Berger, Fritz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss free church, founder of the Evangelical Brothers Association
DATE OF BIRTH March 12, 1868
PLACE OF BIRTH Trachselwald
DATE OF DEATH March 1, 1950
Place of death Brenzikofen