Birthdays on May 1

Birth of Jacob Albright, founder of the Evangelical Association, which, in 1968, merged with the United Methodist denomination, near Pottstown, Pennsylvania. His parents were German Lutheran immigrants. He served in the Revolutionary War, and became a successful fanner and honest tile-maker. For most Americans the early years after the Revolution were spiritually barren. Albright, however, was brought to an active commitment to Christ through a severe shock to his personal life. In 1791, several of his children died suddenly. One of the funeral sermons aroused his conscience. Shortly thereafter, Albright came in contact with a Methodist class and developed an intense concern for the Gospel. He started several classes to teach a large German population, embracing the Wesleyan doctrines. Local Methodists rebuffed them, afraid of a large influx of Germans. So the Germans started their own denomination which eventually became "The Evangelical Association."