New Church History Published

For those interested in the history of our church, a new book has been published by Friends of Lutheran Archives.  ‘The Other Kavels’ tells the story of the first Lutherans who emigrated to Australia from Prussia in 1838, led by Pastor August Kavel.

Through the lens of various members of the Kavel family, the story is told of the persecution of the Old Lutherans in Prussia who refused to join the king’s union church, the difficulties of gaining permission and funding to emigrate, and the challenges of establishing themselves and their church in the infant colony of South Australia.

The result of years of meticulous and exhaustive research into previously untapped sources, the book provides many new insights into the foundational narrative of the Lutheran Church in this country. It also tells the human story of the little-known members of the wider Kavel family, Pastor Kavel’s parents, three brothers and sister, who witnessed and participated in the events of those turbulent years.  The author, John Schubert, is a descendant of Pastor Kavel’s sister, whose husband August Fiedler was Kavel’s right-hand man both in Prussia and South Australia, and who pioneered the Barossa Valley wine industry.

The book will be launched in Tanunda, South Australia, on 25 October.

Books can be obtained from Friends of Lutheran Archives ($35 plus p/h); email: fola@lca.org.au (please include your postal address). Books will be posted and an invoice emailed. All proceeds will go towards the work of Lutheran Archives.