Church and Religion

Herzog Russia Church

The magnificent church in Herzog, Russia

In an effort to avoid repetition of the religious conflicts of central Europe that had plagued most of the eighteenth century, the Volga German colonists were assigned to colonies based largely upon their religious affiliation. One, therefore, finds colonies made up primarily or exclusively of one of three religious groups: Evangelical (what we would today call Lutheran); Reformed; and Roman Catholic.

Protestant (Lutheran and Reformed) Parishes

Despite the preponderance of Protestants among the colonists, few pastors came to minister to them. Those who came were faced with meager salaries congregations often numbering over 2,000 souls scattered in parishes across the Russian steppe. The lack of pastors became an acute problem, exemplified by the fact that in 1805 one finds only fourteen resident pastors among the entire Volga German colonies: Messer, Grimm, Beideck, Galka, Dietel, Frank, Norka, Stephan, Yagodnaya Polyana, Rosenheim, Warenburg, Bettinger and two in Katharinenstadt. One pastor was also located in Saratov, for a total of fifteen serving in the Volga German settlement area.
The University of Dorpat (now Tartu) in Estonia was the nearest theological seminary, but during the early settlement years the distance and expense prevented enrollment by all but a few Volga German men.