Landing at Maryland, 1697

On June 24, 1697, two young Lutheran pastors, Andreas Rudman and Erik Björk, stepped ashore in Maryland after a long Atlantic crossing. The Swedish and Finnish settlers were astonished; no letter had arrived to say help was coming. Yet their arrival answered years of pleading for faithful preaching, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper among scattered families who feared their children would grow up without shepherds or sound teaching.

Andreas Rudman

Rudman came with the steady courage of a man sent, not merely adventurous. He carried more than books and vestments—he carried a conviction that Christ gathers His people by the Word and keeps them by the means of grace. In a wilderness where distances were measured in days and dangers were ordinary, he served with patient firmness, urging families to return to public worship, to repent of sin, and to trust the Savior who truly forgives.

Erik Björk

Björk shared the same resolve, combining pastoral tenderness with seriousness about truth. He listened to weary settlers, instructed the young, and labored to restore order to congregations that had been stretched thin by isolation. His work required humility: to be unknown, to be far from home, and to build quietly. Yet such hidden faithfulness is a kind of heroism, proving love by endurance rather than applause.

Ministry in the Delaware Valley

From their landing point, they pressed on toward the Delaware Valley, where Swedish and Finnish communities clustered along river settlements and outlying farms. They traveled to preach in simple churches and homes, administered baptism to infants and new believers, and brought the Lord’s Supper to those starved for spiritual nourishment. Their preaching aimed not at mere comfort, but at awakening the careless and strengthening the fainthearted, fulfilling the charge: “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and careful instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). Their presence also reminded lonely Christians of God’s covenant faithfulness: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). Through ordinary pastoral labor, Christ proved He does not forget His church.