What unwisdom even to attempt to build up the Lutheran Christian life
in free, aggressive Protestant Anglo-Saxon civilization without
Luther's writings in good Anglo-Saxon! Muhlenberg (b. 1711; d. 1787)
and Wesley (b. 1703; d. 1791) came to America about the same time.
Wesley returned home in 1738 after a stay of two years in the south.
Muhlenberg spent his ministerial life of 45 years (1742-1787) in
America, in the Keystone state, in and near Philadelphia, the
metropolis of the new world. When the two Palatinate Germans from
Limerick County, Ireland, Philip Embury and Barbara Heck, a
lay-preacher and a godly woman, held the first Methodist service in
America, in 1766, in New York City, the Lutheran faith had been
planted here by the Dutch since 1657 in the same city, by the Swedes
on the Delaware since 1639, (Torkillus), by the Germans since 1708
(Kocherthal); Muhlenberg had arrived in Philadelphia in 1742, built
churches the following year in Philadelphia and "The Trappe", and
organized the Synod of Pennsylvania among its 60,000 Lutherans in
1748. All these Lutherans to some extent learned, preached and
confirmed in English. Muhlenberg was naturalized in 1754 as a subject
of Great Britain. This and his stay in England gave an Anglican turn
to his German pietism. When we became a free people in 1776, the
Methodists had only 20 preachers and 3418 members in America and less
than 76,000 followers in Europe from which to receive immigrant
members, while the Lutherans were strong here and in Europe. Today
American Methodists report 60,737 churches, and the Lutherans 13,533.
Why did Wesley's followers become the dominating religious force in
America? Not because Wesley and his writings were greater than Luther
and his writings. Methodists did not bear Wesley's name, but they did
have his spirit and writings. Even to the present day every Methodist
preacher must pass an examination in Wesley's writings before
ordination. Where were Luther's spirit and writings among his early
American followers?

Language is no more a barrier to Luther's spirit than to Wesley's.
Methodism forged its way from English into German, Norwegian, Danish
and Swedish and among Indians, Mexicans and Negros. People, regardless
of language, color or condition, could not help but learn what real
spiritual Methodism is. It was preached and sung in such simple, plain
Anglo-Saxon, and in good translations, that it could not be
misunderstood nor misreprese