Pastors and Immigrants : The Role of a Religious Elite in the Absorption of Norwegian Immigrants

## PREFACE talism and orthodoxy, alcohol and schooling. One senses their sincerity mixed with stubbornness, their eagerness to contribute to the whole whilst at the same time setting themselves apart. A significant part of the elite wants separate schools till adolescence, with instruction in Norwegian and a due amount of biblical orthodoxy. Today this is known as parochialism and even as segregationism, and with this "holier than thou" attitude, by no means unknown in Norway, there is small wonder that the official religious elite came out in favor of slavery. Even the signals from the theological faculty in Norway were unclear: slavery was a sin "in and by itself," but not an unconditional sin. The Norwegian reader feels at home, in short. Thus, it is a pleasure to recommend the present work to the reader. It gives a vivid picture of the drama of the immigrants it opens for some interesting chapters in US-Norwegian relations, and it contributes significantly to the sociological theory of immigration. Front Matter....Pages I-XV The Theoretical Framework of the Study....Pages 1-11 The General Setting and Historical Background of Norwegian Migration to the United States....Pages 12-36 The Common School Controversy....Pages 37-54 The Slavery Issue....Pages 55-70 Conclusions....Pages 71-81 Back Matter....Pages 82-84