John H. A. Bomberger Library
John Henry Augustus Bomberger (1817-1890) was the first graduate of Marshall College and later received the first Doctor's degree conferred by Franklin and Marshall College. After completing his studies at the Theological Seminary in York, Pennsylvania, he served as pastor of German Reformed churches in Lewistown, Waynesboro, Easton and Philadelphia.
During this time, Bomberger became the leader of the minority "low church," which countered the ritualistic form of worship, or "high church," advocated by Dr. John Williamson Nevin, President of Franklin and Marshall College from 1866-1876. This controversy grew for more than 20 years. The crucial point is: Dr. Bomberger and men of like thought, constituted a minority. Had they been the majority, Ursinus College would never have been founded. Dr. Bomberger served as President from 1870 until his death in 1890.
This collection is a digital representation of Dr. Bomberger's private library, containing many rare volumes (some of which were brought over from Europe by his grandfather) which helped form the basis of the first Library at Ursinus College. Much of the commentary for these books comes from the notes of Dr. Gerald H. Hinkle, who arranged the collection in the 1960s. Dr. Hinkle came to the Ursinus faculty as an assistant professor of English in 1963. A graduate of Franklin and Marshall College, Hinkle would later write his doctoral dissertation on "The Theology of the Ursinus Movement: Its Origins and Influence in the German Reformed Church."
In addition to Dr. Hinkle's commentary, we have included information from the Reverend John H. A. Bomberger, Doctor of Divinity; Doctor of Laws 1817-1890 Centenary Volume where relevant, and have added several transcriptions of handwritten notes found in the volumes. Whenever possible, links have been provided to the fully digitized texts in resources like HathiTrust Digital Library and the Internet Archive. To view the rare books in Myrin Library, please contact the Special Collections Department.
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Founders Day Presentation of Highlights From J. H. A. Bomberger's Library, Including Plant Specimens and Memorabilia
Andy Prock and Elizabeth Iobst
This sixteen minute MP4 video presentation was created to accompany Founders Day events at Ursinus College in 2019. This occasion marked the unofficial start of the college's sesquicentennial celebration and included a visit from Dr. Bomberger's descendent, John H. A. Bomberger IV. The presentation includes highlights from Dr. Bomberger's personal library, plant specimens, portraits, newspaper clippings and other memorabilia that cover events from his time as a seminarian to his death in 1890.
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The Consensus of the Reformed Confessions
Archibald Alexander Hodge
An offprint of an article (pages 266-304) published in the journal, The Presbyterian Review. Volume 5, Number 18, 1884.
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The Directory of Worship for the Reformed Church in the United States
Reformed Church in the United States
This 245 page book is the approved liturgy of the Reformed Church in the United States.
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Constitution of the Reformed Church in the United States
Reformed Church in the United States
This is a partial copy of the 1880 version of the Reformed Church constitution.
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Lectures on the Sensibilities and the Will
John Henry Augustus Bomberger
This 145 page student notebook contains handwritten notes from Dr. John H. A. Bomberger's lectures during his time as a teacher in the School of Theology at Ursinus College.
The notes contain sections on emotions, affections (parental, filial, fraternal, conjugal, social) and desires, as well as freedom of the will. Other sections of the book contain notes on such topics as: Reformed theologians Heinrich Bullinger, Peter Martyr Vermigli and Theodore Beza, the Thirty Years' War, Hesse-Kassel, Brandenburg, French refugees, Pietism, Theodor Untereyck, Joachim Neander, Friedrich Adolph Lampe, Gerhard Tersteegen, sublapsarianism, Johannes Piscator, and rationalism.
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Manual of Forms: For Baptism, Admission to the Communion, Administration of the Lord's Supper, Marriage and Funerals, Conformed to the Doctrine and Discipline of the Presbyterian Church
Archibald Alexander Hodge
This 64 page book outlines preparations for special services within the Presbyterian Church.
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Die Gleichnisse Christi: Nach Ihrer Moralischen und Prophetischen Bedeutung Betrachtet
Heinrich Wilhelm Josias Thiersch
This 173 page book is the second edition of a work on the teachings of Jesus Christ.
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Apologetik: Wissenschaftliche Rechtfertigung des Christenthums
Johannes Heinrich August Ebrard
This 1011 page book contains two volumes in one and focuses on religious doctrine and science.
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Die Schlacht von Cappel, 1531: Mit Zwei Planen und Einem Anhange Ungedruckter Quellen
Emil Egli
This 88 page book on the Battle of Kappel am Albis, Switzerland, 1531, contains maps.
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Proceedings Connected With the Semi-Centennial Commemoration of the Professorship of Rev. Charles Hodge, D.D., LL. D., in the Theological Seminary at Princeton, N.J., April 24, 1872
Princeton Theological Seminary
This 128 page book is a record of the celebration of Charles Hodge's 50th year teaching at Princeton Theological Seminary. It includes addresses and letters from students and faculty on Hodge's influence.
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The Scripture Doctrine of the Person of Christ
Wolfgang Friedrich Gess and John Adam Reubelt
This 456 page book is an English translation from the original German work, Lehre von der Person Christi entwickelt aus dem Selbstbewusstsein Christi und aus dem Zeugnisse der Apostel. It also contains Appendix A, "History of the dogma of the incarnation" and appendix B, "The origin of the human soul," added by J.A. Reubelt.
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Friedrich Wilhelm Krummacher: Eine Selbstbiographie
Friedrich Wilhelm Krummacher
This 279 page book is an autobiography of Friedrich Wilhelm Krummacher.
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Gottes Offenbarung Durch Heilige Geschichte: Nach Ihrem Wesen Beleuchtet in Einer Reihe Offentlicher Vorträge
Hermann Goltz
This 232 page book contains a series of public lectures by Hermann Freiherr von der Goltz and is printed in Gothic script.
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Bound Volume of Sermons, Discourses and Addresses, 1850-1868
John Williamson Nevin, Samuel Giesy, Philip Schaff, Ludovicus Steiner, William B. Sprague, Henry Boardman, E. A. De Schweinitz, Charles McIlvaine, and Charles W. Shields
This bound volume contains the following works:
Christ and him crucified. A Concio ad clerum, preached in Grace Church, Pittsburgh, November 18, 1863, at the opening of the first General Synod of the German Reformed Church in America by the Rev. J. W. Nevin.
Letter to the Rt. Rev. Alonzo Potter in vindication of the principle of Christian union for the propagation of the gospel.
The Crowning event: A Discourse on the occasion of the fall of Richmond, preached on Sunday, April 9, 1865, in Christ Evangelical Reformed Church, Green Street, near Sixteenth, Philadelphia, by the pastor, Rev. Samuel H. Giesy.
The Moral character of Jesus Christ by Philip Schaff.
A Catechism of Christian religion; Commonly called the Heidelberg catechism.
Religionis Christianae catechismus Heidelbergensis by Ludovicus H. Steiner.
The Calendar, civil and ecclesiastical by a layman of the German Reformed Church.
An Address delivered in the Evangelical Lutheran Ebenezer Church, Albany, on occasion of the funeral of Mrs. Susan C. Pohlman, wife of the Rev. Henry N. Pohlman, November 10, 1863 by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse commemorative of the late Rev. Robert Baird, delivered on occasion of the anniversary of the American and foreign Christian union, in the Reformed Dutch Church, corner of Fifth Avenue and Twenty-first Street, New York, on Sabbath evening, May 10, 1863 by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse delivered Sabbath morning, September 3, 1865, on occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the dedication of the Second Presbyterian Church, Albany, by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse addressed to the United Presbyterian Congregation, Troy, February 21, 1864, the Sabbath morning immediately succeeding the funeral of the Rev. Peter Bullions, their pastor, by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse addressed to the congregation in the Presbyterian Church on University Place, New York, Sabbath morning, October 23, 1864, commemorative of the Rev. George Potts, their late pastor, by William B. Sprague.
An Address delivered on the occasion of the funeral of the Rev. William James, in the First Presbyterian Church, Albany, Wednesday, February 19, 1868 by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse delivered in the First Congregational Church in Northampton, Mass., on the 26th of July, 1868, the Sabbath immediately succeeding the funeral of the Rev. William Allen by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse delivered in the Second Presbyterian Church, Albany, December 3, 1865, on occasion of the death of Mrs. Jemima Prentice, widow of the late Sartell Prentice by William B. Sprague.
An Address delivered on the 9th of August, 1865, before the Phrenakosmian Society of Pennsylvania College, Gettysburg, by William B. Sprague.
A Sermon addressed to the Second Presbyterian congregation, Albany, Sunday morning, April 2, 1865, on occasion of the death of Sylvester D. Willard, Surgeon-General of the State of New York by William B. Sprague.
A Sermon preached in the Second Presbyterian Church, Albany, October 18, 1863, the Sunday morning after the funeral of Joel Rathbone by William B. Sprague.
A Discourse addressed to the alumni of the Princeton Theological Seminary, April 30, 1862, on occasion of the completion of its first half century by William B. Sprague.
The Faithful servant crowned: A sermon on occasion of the death of the Rev. William T. Dwight, preached in the Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, on Sunday, November 5, 1865 by Henry A. Boardman.
A Sermon in memory of the Rev. Edward Rondthaler, professor in the Theological Seminary of the Moravian Church, and late pastor of the Moravian Congregation in Philadelphia by E. A. De Schweinitz.
How a minister of Christ may both save himself and them that hear him: A sermon by the Rt. Rev. Charles P. McIlvaine, delivered at the consecration of the Rt. Rev. Alfred Lee to the Episcopate of the Diocese of Delaware.
A Reformed and revived Christianity, our country's great necessity: A sermon preached on Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 1867, in the Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, by Henry A. Boardman.
What is truth? A discourse preached in the college chapel, Princeton, N.J., September 30th, 1866 by Prof. Charles W. Shields. -
Reformed, not Ritualistic, Apostolic, not Patristic: A Reply to Dr. Nevin's "Vindication"
John Henry Augustus Bomberger
This 156 page book was written at the request of German Reformed Church Elders in response to Dr. John Williamson Nevin's attack on Dr. Bomberger's criticism of the Reformed Liturgy.
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The Revised Liturgy: A History and Criticism of the Ritualistic Movement in the German Reformed Church
John Henry Augustus Bomberger
This 120 page book was written at the request of a group of Elders of the German Reformed Church. It provides a history of the Liturgical controversy, a criticism of the Revised Liturgy, and a remedy for the movement.
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A Discourse: Respectfully Dedicated to a Grateful People in Memory of the Worth of our Lamented Chief Magistrate, Abraham Lincoln, Delivered April 21st, 1865
Abraham Grater
This 8 page eulogy on the life and death of Abraham Lincoln was delivered by Reverend Abraham Grater one week after the assassination.
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Short Questions Concerning the Christian Doctrine of Faith, According to the Testimony of the Sacred Scriptures, Answered and Confirmed: For the Purpose of Instructing Youth in the First Principles of Religion
Christopher Schultz and Israel Daniel Rupp
This 140 page book is a translation of the author's Kurze fragen über die christliche glaubens-lehre, 1855, originally published (1763) under the title: Catechismus, oder Anfänglicher unterricht christlicher glaubens-lehre.
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The Elements of Morality, Including Polity
William Whewell
One of two volumes on a system of morality, including jurisprudence, reason, religion, polity and international law.
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Five Years' Ministry in the German Reformed Church: In Race Street, Below Fourth, Philadelphia
John Henry Augustus Bomberger
This 72 page book contains an anniversary sermon, preached January 8, 1860, and an ecclesiastical appendix detailing facts about the German Reformed Church.
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Wörterbuch der Deutschen Sprache: Mit Belegen von Luther bis auf die Gegenwart
Daniel Sanders
This German language dictionary consists of two volumes in three.
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The Child's Catechism: Based Upon the Heidelberg Catechism
First German Reformed Church of Philadelphia Sunday School
This 36 page book contains a child's catechism as well as hymns and prayers.
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Die Apostelgeschichte St. Lucä in Bibelstunden: Für die Gemeinde Ausgelegt
Wilhelm Friedrich Besser
This book, a study of Luke's Acts of the Apostles, contains two volumes bound in one.
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Infant Salvation in its Relation to Infant Depravity, Infant Regeneration and Infant Baptism
John Henry Augustus Bomberger
This 192 page book, written by Dr. John H. A. Bomberger during his time as pastor of the Race Street Evangelical Reformed Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, concerns the subjects of infant baptism and infant salvation.
