Includes bibliographical references and index.

Acknowledgements -- Abbreviations -- Notes on the Translation and the Text -- Introduction: A Struggling Community, A New Republic, and an Immigrant Pastor -- 1 A "Salzburger Saga" -- 2 Ebenezer -- 3 Dissension -- 4 Revolution and War -- 5 The Aftermath -- 6 The Early Life and Times of Johann Ernst Bergmann -- 1 The Lord is Bringing Me to America 1786 -- 2 Nothing but Sorrowful Circumstances 1787-1788 -- 3 Resolved to Persevere in the Georgia Desert 1789-1790 -- 4 Gone to a Dark Place 1791-1795 -- 5 Golden Depictions of American Freedom 1796-1799 -- 6 Some Blessing upon My Meager Labor 1800-1801 -- 7 I no Longer Complain Timidly 1802 -- 8 Through the Great Judgment of God, a Hidden Blessing 1803 -- 9 The American Way of the World 1804 -- 10 Great Distress Everywhere 1805-1806 -- 11 I Have Always Remained at the Place of My Call 1818-1822 -- Epilogue: My Late Revered Father's Ministrations 1828-1829 -- Appendix 1: Chronological Table of Letters -- Appendix 2: Persons Frequently Mentioned in Bergmann's Letters -- Bibliography -- Index.

The Letters of Johann Ernst Bergmann , edited and translated by Russell Kleckley, chronicles the experiences and perceptions of a German Lutheran pastor called to serve a struggling community in the American South soon after the Revolutionary War. Written mostly to Bergmann's superiors at the important center of German Pietism in Halle, the letters not only report on conditions in Ebenezer, Georgia, established over a half-century earlier by religious refugees from Salzburg, they also offer a distinctive and often critical look at American culture, religion, and politics from an outsider's viewpoint. Bergmann stresses the practical and corrosive impact of American notions of freedom in everyday life while also commenting on a wide range of other issues, including Georgia's relationship with Native Americans and the practice of slavery.

Description based on print version record.