December 20 in Christian History

Dec 20, 2008 09:23 AM EST

1552 - Death of Katherine von Bora, 53, a former nun and the widow of German reformer Martin Luther. They married in 1525, when Luther was 42 and Katie was 26, and bore six children. Luther died in 1546; Katie, six years later.


1787 - A revival broke out among the Shakers of New Lebanon, Indiana, soon igniting a religious fervor among other denominations, especially in Kentucky and other colonial frontier regions.


1845 - Baldwin Institute was chartered in Berea, Ohio, by the Methodists. Changing its name in 1854 to Baldwin University, the college merged in 1914 with German Wallace College and adopted its present name: Baldwin Wallace University.


1856 - Newberry College was chartered in Newberry, SC, under Lutheran auspices. The campus moved to Walhalla, SC, in 1868, but returned to Newberry in 1877.


1961 - Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth wrote in a letter: 'What God chooses for us children of men is always the best.'


© 1987-2008, William D. Blake. Used by permission of the author, from

Almanac of the Christian Church