Terry Koenig Oral History

Abstract

Oral history interview with Terry Koenig conducted by Lauren Helmer in Lawrence, Kansas, on November 16, 2010. In this interview, Terry Koenig discusses her childhood growing up as a member of the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, the importance of German ethnicity to the culture of the denomination, and her involvement with the church as a young adult. She describes the incidences of gender discrimination and sexual improprieties by church leadership that led to her involvement in efforts to defrock a priest and her subsequent decision to leave the church. She also discusses children's programs within the church, the doctrines and rituals of the church, and the efforts of one church to assemble a pipe organ. This interview was conducted for the Religion in Kansas course at the University of Kansas taught by Dr. Timothy Miller in the fall of 2010.