Newsline: John Kline manuscript rediscovered

[CoBNews <CoBNews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service, News Director Cheryl

Brumbaugh-Cayford, 800-323-8039 ext. 260, cobnews@brethren.org

Out of a small green box: A rediscovered manuscript on John Kline.

(Feb. 10, 2011) Elgin, IL -- Terry Barkley, director of the Brethren

Historical Library and Archives at the Church of the Brethren General

Offices in Elgin, Ill., provided the following report on newly

rediscovered historical material related to Civil War-era Brethren

>leader John Kline:

Shortly after assuming the directorship of the Brethren Historical Library

and Archives on Nov. 1, 2010, I examined a small green box in my office

labeled, "Original Penciled Manuscript of book LIFE OF JOHN KLINE by

Funk." I quickly realized that I was looking at Benjamin Funk's original

hand-written manuscript (partial) for his book, "Life and Labors of Elder

>John Kline."

Elder John Kline (1797-1864) was a Civil War-era Brethren leader and

martyr--a preacher, healer, and moderator of the Brethren Annual Meeting

from 1861 until his murder in 1864. He was ambushed and killed on June

15, 1864, near his home in Rockingham County, Va., after falling under

suspicion for making frequent trips across the lines between north and

south, as he served the Brethren on both sides during the war.

As the story goes, Benjamin Funk reportedly destroyed John Kline's

original diary shortly after publishing his book in 1900. Why Funk felt

that he needed to do this has always been open to speculation and

controversy. What was in Elder Kline's diaries that Funk didn't want

others to see? Thus, this "discovery" of Funk's partial penciled manuscript

and additional data is cause for celebration and scholarly examination.

Notations in the box indicate that the manuscript is incomplete, covering

only the diary entries that Elder Kline wrote from March 1844 to August

1858. There is also some additional material in the manuscript, which

apparently was not included in Funk's book. This additional material

includes sermons (at least one by Peter Nead) that are incomplete in

>beginnings and endings.

Jeffrey Bach, director of the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist

Studies at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College, is presently working with the

Funk/Kline material. Dr. Bach will give a presentation for the John Kline

Homestead on April 9 regarding the history of the Brethren and slavery.

In his presentation he plans to touch on the Funk/Kline manuscript. Bach

also is the speaker for an insight session sponsored by the Brethren

Historical Committee at the 2011 Annual Conference of the Church of

the Brethren, to be held in Grand Rapids, Mich., on July 4.

>----------

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to

continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its

faith in community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and

Pietist faith traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It

celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts some 123,000 members

across the United States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister

churches in Nigeria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and India.

># # #

>For more information contact:

>Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford

>Director of News Services

>Church of the Brethren

>1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120

>800-323-8039 ext. 260

>cobnews@brethren.org