The Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC) denomination has long championed justice, community, and faithfulness to the gospel. This legacy is deeply embedded in its spiritual DNA, which has historically resisted forces of hate and exclusion. One such moment in history is the courageous stand of Rev. A.H. Jacobson, a Covenant pastor who faithfully served in the ECC throughout his career. At great personal risk, Jacobson exposed and resisted the Ku Klux Klan’s attempts to infiltrate Mead, Nebraska, in the 1920s, ultimately contributing to their decline in the region. His story is more than a historical anecdote; it provides a framework for understanding the Covenant’s commitment to justice, its evolving multiethnic identity, and the impact we each can have when we raise our voices on behalf of the oppressed.
A.H. Jacobson and Mead Covenant Church: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Courage
A.H. Jacobson was not a prominent national figure or a man of great political influence. He was a pastor who deeply cared for his congregation and his community. Born on February 17, 18701, in Madrid, Iowa, the second child to Jacob and Elizabeth,2 Jacobson’s journey into ministry was shaped by the strong Pietistic faith of his Swedish mother, who raised him and his siblings after Jacob suddenly passed away; through the trial of a serious teenage illness; and the influence of family and friends in a tight-knit Swedish community3, published by Covenant Press. This 115-page memoir reflects the everyday struggles and triumphs of a small-town pastor committed to the gospel. Jacobson passed away in Chicago in 1963.
Glenn L. Lindell, Director of Evangelism for the ECC in 1960 when Jacobson’s book was published noted, “He has never been elected to a high office in the denomination. He has never served a large church. Yet there is a quality of greatness about A. H. Jacobson that is endearing.”4 Lindell observed that Jacobson refused to grow old with a warrior’s determination, serving as an active pastor well past his 80th birthday.
Mission Covenant Church, the congregation he served in Mead, Nebraska, was founded in the late 19th century like many other Covenant churches – by Swedish immigrants who sought to preserve their faith while adapting to life in America.5 Originally formed in 1876 as Saron Evangelical Mission Church, it changed names several times, eventually becoming Mead Covenant Church. As recorded in the church’s historical archives, Swedish was the primary language used in services until 1930 when, under Jacobson’s leadership, the congregation transitioned to English, reflecting the church’s gradual integration into American society.6
Mission Covenant Church was rooted in faith, fellowship, and the shared immigrant experience. Its members faced the same economic struggles, social pressures, and questions of identity that many other congregations of the time did. This makes Jacobson’s stand against the Klan all the more remarkable – he was a pastor in a regular Covenant church, yet he took a stand when it mattered most.
The Ku Klux Klan in the Midwest
The 1920s saw a resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan across the United States, including in the Midwest. Unlike its earlier iteration, which primarily targeted Black Americans in the South, this wave of the Klan also directed its hatred toward Catholics, Jews, and immigrants. Nebraska was not immune to this movement; the Klan sought influence in small towns and communities, using fear and misinformation to recruit members. But consistent opposition from the time the Klan entered the state in 1921 resulted in their retreat by the end of the decade.7
The Klan sought to convince citizens that their ideology represented true Americanism. They portrayed themselves as the defenders of Protestant Christianity and claimed to uphold law and order while targeting groups they deemed “un-American.” In Omaha, The Monitor warned Nebraskans in 1921 that they would need to organize to fight the Klan, stating that members represented “intolerant, un-American suppressors of freedom who labeled themselves ‘100 percent Americans’ to justify their conduct.”8
Opposition to the Klan’s message came from a variety of sources. The True Voice, a Catholic newspaper in Omaha, criticized Protestant churches for associating with the Klan, warning that they “would regret” their involvement.9 Meanwhile, The Jewish Press urged Protestant leaders to publicly denounce the Klan, pointing out that neither Jews nor Catholics could effectively lead the charge against the group without being accused of being anti-Protestant or anti-American. The Jewish Press described the Klan as an ugly growth, “unhealthy in root, disgusting in progress, and sickening in results.”10
Resistance to the Klan’s activities also emerged within Nebraska’s political sphere. Omaha Republican Senator Robert Strehlow took legislative action, introducing an anti-masked organizations bill in the state legislature on January 10, 1923. The bill sought to prohibit private citizens from gathering in disguise and interfering with the legal system. Strehlow identified the Klan’s most dangerous threat was to lawful governance. He warned that allowing the Klan to operate unchecked would result in mob violence and vigilante justice, stating, “We will not wait again until the mob is organized. We will…prevent any direct action organization from growing so strong that it overshadows all law and all government.”11
Public opposition to the Klan intensified following the 1926 elections. The Omaha World-Herald editorialized against the Klan, urging Nebraskans to confront its influence “vigorously and boldly.”12 The editorial framed the issue as a battle between democracy and a covert force seeking to undermine representative government: “It is a question of whether we are to have a people’s government or an invisible government; or whether our campaigns are to be waged upon the character and qualifications of candidates and the merits of honest and important issues, or to be determined clandestinely, furtively, in the dark, on no other issue than an un-American, un-democratic and anti-social prejudice that strikes at the very vitals of our democratic society and representative government.”13
Rev. A.H. Jacobson’s Stand Against the Klan
In his book, The Adventures of a Prairie Preacher, Jacobson describes a turning point in the Klan’s efforts in Mead, Nebraska, where he served as pastor of the Covenant church. The Klan’s activities were led by a woman claiming to be a former nun who had escaped a Catholic convent. Later this was determined to be untrue. She traveled the region spreading anti-Catholic conspiracy theories, inflaming tensions, and rallying people to the Klan’s cause. The Klan’s recruitment efforts were bolstered by economic and social anxieties, leading to a deeply divided community.
Jacobson was initially unaware of the Klan’s full intentions. However, he soon realized the movement’s dangerous influence when he was invited to a Klan gathering by a friend under the pretense of a community event. Upon attending, he witnessed firsthand the group’s rhetoric, which openly promoted racial and religious hatred. Jacobson describes the pivotal moment when he was asked to stand alongside Klansmen in the room in support of the Klan’s principles. He remained seated and then declared, “Gentlemen, I was born in the State of Iowa, and I am a citizen of the United States. We have under the Constitution, liberty, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of choice, and the right to pursuit of life, liberty and happiness. My conscience and my best judgment forbid me to support any movement directed against the meaning and spirit of the Constitution of our country and the Bible. Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. So help me God.”14
This act of defiance made Jacobson a marked man in Mead. However, Jacobson remained resolute, using his position to speak out against the Klan. His public denouncement during a service at Mission Covenant Church of a Klan-organized petition aiming to remove a Catholic teacher, Miss McCabe, from the local school further galvanized his opposition to the Klan. “At the close of the service, men and women surrounded me and requested that I help them have their signatures removed from the petition,” he recounted.15 He tried to help them (although the Klan would not remove their names) and even met with the school board to speak in favor of Miss McCabe, presenting a petition to keep her. The Klan retaliated with intimidation tactics, including a bomb detonated in town and the burning of a cross outside Jacobson’s home. Of that night, Jacobson recounted: “I stood there in tears as I watched the symbol of God’s love to all mankind now being burned as a symbol of hatred and intolerance. I could do nothing at the moment but pray for those who had committed the deed – even as our Savior prayed on the cross, ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.'”16 After that fateful day, Jacobson said the town turned against the Klan and remaining members went into hiding.
Miss McCabe, despite the hostility stirred by the Klan, remained on the faculty at the school until her retirement. After leaving teaching, she entered the insurance business in another city. Every Christmas, Jacobson and his wife received a letter from her, a sign of their continued bond after the ordeal. Years later, while attending a convention in the city where she had relocated, Jacobson and his wife arranged to meet with her. In a quiet church sanctuary, Miss McCabe entered and took Mrs. Jacobson’s hands as tears rolled down her cheeks. “To her, this was the closing scene of a drama which was one of the most exciting in my entire life,” Jacobson reflected.17
The Covenant Church’s Multiethnic Vision and Modern Actions
Jacobson’s resistance to the Klan was not an isolated incident but part of a broader theological and ethical framework within the Evangelical Covenant Church. The Covenant’s roots in Swedish pietism emphasized personal faith, justice, and community responsibility. Though initially founded by Swedish immigrants, the church has continually expanded its vision to include a diverse body of believers. Jacobson’s legacy is one of many examples of individuals and moments in ECC history that have pushed for righteousness and inclusivity.
The African concept of Ubuntu, meaning “I am what I am because of who we all are,” resonates deeply with the Covenant’s understanding of community. As a family of believers, Covenanters are shaped by those who have come before, those who walk together with us today, and those who will carry the mission forward. This relational identity aligns with the Covenant’s theological emphasis on community and shared faith, as articulated by early leaders like David Nyvall. He helped shape the Covenant’s understanding of itself as a “förbund,” a fellowship bound by faith rather than rigid institutional structures.18
For much of the early and mid-20th century, the Covenant remained predominantly European American despite having shifted from Swedish to English. Up until 1969, the only churches not majoritively made up of people of European ethnicity that were formally affiliated were Iglesia Evangélica Misionera in La Villa, Texas, organized in 1950, and First Evangelical Covenant Church in Anchorage, organized in 1961. However, by the late 1960s, changes were taking place that signaled an intentional broadening of the denomination. In 1969, the ECC officially welcomed its first three Korean congregations, located in San Francisco and Chicago. The same year, Community Covenant Church in Minneapolis, which described itself as a multi-racial congregation, also joined the denomination. Additionally, Oakdale Covenant Church in Chicago had integrated five years earlier and was in the process of transitioning to Black pastoral leadership. Pastor Willie B. Jemison began his ministry there in 1970, becoming the first Black pastor of the congregation. Around the same time, Robert Dawson was working to establish Grace Covenant Church in Compton, California, which became the first predominantly Black Covenant church outside of Chicago.19
In 1964, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement, Covenant pastor Paul S. Rees wrote a powerful article titled “The Race Question: Is There a Solving Word?” in The Covenant Quarterly. In it, he explored the biblical foundation for racial reconciliation, drawing from the Apostle Paul’s relationship with the Gentiles. Rees highlighted how Paul, despite his Jewish heritage, suffered greatly to bring the gospel to those of a different race and culture. Rees wrote, “So intense and self-sacrificing was Paul’s love for them that he had suffered to within an inch of his life to bring them to Christ.”20 He encouraged believers to become agents of healing. His words were particularly powerful at a time when many churches hesitated to engage in racial issues.
The ECC’s commitment to multiethnic ministry deepened further in the 1990s. After the Rodney King beating and the subsequent unrest in 1992, Black Covenant pastors challenged denominational leadership to acknowledge the pain felt by communities of color. This catalyzed a renewed focus on racial justice and led to the formation of the Black Pastors Association, later renamed African American Ministers Association (AAMA).21
In the years that followed, the ECC continued expanding its diversity efforts. The denomination formally adopted the Racial Righteousness Resolution in 2008, acknowledging historical failures and calling for deep repentance. The resolution stated: “We resolve that all churches and individuals within those churches seek to participate in learning experiences that explore historical and present-day racial and ethnic injustices.”22
The Ministerios Hispanos de la Iglesia del Pacto Evangélico Association (now ALIPE) was formed in the mid-1990s. The Covenant Asian Pastors Association (CAPA), which included other Asian American and Pacific Islander pastors and leaders, was formally established in 2013. And in 2020, the Indigenous Ministers Association (IMA) was formally established.23
The ECC has also reaffirmed its commitment to welcoming immigrants, recognizing its own immigrant origins, through resolutions in 2006 and 2014. The Covenant’s historical immigrant identity shapes its present commitment to inclusivity, reflecting Karl A. Olsson’s insight that “it is only by knowing who we are that we avoid being made over in the likeness of others.”24 This awareness drives the ECC’s dedication to standing in solidarity with marginalized communities.
In 2004, following conversations within the ethnic commissions around measuring progress, Gary Walter, who was serving as executive minister of Church Growth and Evangelism, in cooperation with Harold Spooner, vice president with Covenant Ministries of Benevolence, penned a draft of what would become the progress test.25 The framework was designed to measure the denomination’s commitment to becoming a truly multiethnic church. What began with five questions was expanded to include a sixth question in 2018 and became known as the Six-Fold Test. It examines whether the Covenant reflects the demographics of its mission field in the areas of population, participation, power, pace-setting, purposeful narrative, and practicing solidarity. The goal is not to move forward structurally or mechanically as it is only through relationship and the power of the Holy Spirit that movement is accomplished.26 But the Six-Fold Test formalized the denomination’s long-standing commitment to racial righteousness and created a tangible way to assess and improve its multiethnic mission.27
In 2021, the ECC took another significant step by formally repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery, recognizing the church’s complicity in Indigenous dispossession and committing to support Indigenous ministries. The resolution affirmed that “God has created all humans in God’s own image and imbued each individual with God’s image (imago Dei).”28
Through these intentional actions, the Covenant has continued to evolve as a multiethnic church, embracing the biblical mandate to love one’s neighbor and stand against racial and systemic injustices.
Conclusion
Rev. A.H. Jacobson’s stand against the Ku Klux Klan in Mead, Nebraska, is a testament to the Evangelical Covenant Church’s long-standing commitment to justice and inclusivity. His courage reminds us that resisting movements of hate is not only an act of faith but a call to action for every generation.
Jacobson’s story is part of a larger narrative within the ECC, a denomination that has consistently sought to grow beyond its immigrant roots into a multiethnic mosaic. The ECC’s journey has been marked by key moments of advocacy, from Jacobson’s resistance to the KKK to the inclusion of African American churches in the 1960s, the adoption of racial righteousness resolutions, and the repudiation of the Doctrine of Discovery. These steps reflect a denomination willing to confront past failures and commit to a future rooted in justice.
Jacobson’s example serves as both a warning and an inspiration. The ECC’s history teaches us that faithfulness to the gospel requires standing against forces that seek to divide and oppress. Just as Jacobson spoke out against the Klan despite personal risk, today’s Covenant members are called to continue the work of justice, reconciliation, and inclusion and to live out the gospel with integrity. The church is not just a place for worship but a community actively engaging in the work of justice and healing. As Paul S. Rees wrote in 1964, “The victory of love in Paul can become the victory of love in you and me… I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”29 His words still ring true today. As the ECC moves forward, it carries the legacy of those like Jacobson who chose courage over complacency, ensuring that the church remains a beacon of hope, unity, and love for generations to come.
Bibliography
- “2008 Racial Righteousness Resolution.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2008. https://covchurch.org/resolutions/2008-racial-righteousness/
- “60th Anniversary Celebration of Mead Covenant Church.” North Park University Archives. https://collections.carli.illinois.edu/digital/collection/npu_histcc/id/5559
- Evangelical Covenant Church, The Six-Fold Test, (Chicago: Evangelical Covenant Church, 2019), https://covchurch.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Six-Fold-Test.pdf.
- Find A Grave. “A. H. Jacobson.” Find A Grave. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/34562470/a_h-jacobson#source.
- Hawkinson, James R. A Family of Faith: The Story of the Covenant Church. Covenant Publications, 1999.
- Hawkinson, James R. Glad Hearts: The Joys of a Covenant Companion. Chicago: Covenant Publications, 1994.
- Jacobson, A.H. Adventures of a Prairie Preacher. Covenant Press, 1960.
- Kansas State Historical Society. Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains 30, no. 2 (Summer 1961). Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.kansashistory.gov/publicat/khq/1961/1961summer_notes.pdf.
- March, Mary Chung. “On Mission Together: The Six-Fold Journey.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/2021/05/06/on-mission-together/
- Monitor, February 17, 24, 1921.
- NEGenWeb Project. “History of Mead Covenant Church.” Nebraska Genealogy Web Project. https://www.negenweb.net/NESaunders/1983hist/saco83-p86.html
- Olsson, Karl A. Covenant Roots: Sources and Affirmations of the Evangelical Covenant Church. Covenant Publications, 1989.
- Omaha World-Herald, November 9, 1926
- Ondrey, Hauna. “The Covenant Responds to the Black Manifesto (1969).” The Covenant Quarterly 77, no. 2 (2019). https://www.covquarterly.com/index.php/CQ/article/download/110/113
- Ondrey, Hauna. “Welcoming the Stranger: A Covenant Tradition.” The Evangelical Covenant Church, February 3, 2025. https://covchurch.org/2025/02/03/welcoming-the-stranger-a-covenant-tradition.
- Rees, Paul S. “The Race Question: Is There a Solving Word?” The Covenant Quarterly, November 1964. P. 29-30.
- “Resolution to Repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Resolution-for-the-Repudiation-of-the-Doctrine-of-Discovery.pdf
- Schuyler, Michael W. “The Ku Klux Klan in Nebraska, 1920-1930.” Nebraska History 66 (1985): 234-256. Accessed February 28, 2025. https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/doc_publications_NH1985Klan.pdf.
- “When Nebraskans Celebrated July 4th with KKK Cross Burning.” History Nebraska. https://history.nebraska.gov/when-nebraskans-celebrated-july-4th-with-kkk-cross-burning/
Footnotes
1 Find A Grave. “A. H. Jacobson.” Find A Grave. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/34562470/a_h-jacobson#source.
2 Find A Grave. “A. H. Jacobson.” Find A Grave. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/34562470/a_h-jacobson#source.
3 Jacobson, A.H. Adventures of a Prairie Preacher. Covenant Press, 1960.
4 Ibid, preface.
5 “60th Anniversary Celebration of Mead Covenant Church.” North Park University Archives. https://collections.carli.illinois.edu/digital/collection/npu_histcc/id/5559
6 NEGenWeb Project. “History of Mead Covenant Church.” Nebraska Genealogy Web Project. https://www.negenweb.net/NESaunders/1983hist/saco83-p86.html
7 Schuyler, Michael W. “The Ku Klux Klan in Nebraska, 1920-1930.” Nebraska History 66 (1985): 234-256. Accessed February 28, 2025. https://history.nebraska.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/doc_publications_NH1985Klan.pdf. P. 246.
8 Ibid, 247
9 Ibid, 240.
10 Ibid
11 Ibid, 248.
12 Ibid, 246.
13 Omaha World-Herald, November 9, 1926.
14 Jacobson, Adventures of a Prairie Preacher, p. 72
15 Ibid, 74
16 Ibid, 89.
17 Ibid, 75.
18 Hawkinson, James R. A Family of Faith: The Story of the Covenant Church. Covenant Publications, 1999. p. 3.
19 Ondrey, Hauna. “The Covenant Responds to the Black Manifesto (1969).” The Covenant Quarterly 77, no. 2 (2019). https://www.covquarterly.com/index.php/CQ/article/download/110/113. P. 10.
20 Rees, Paul S. “The Race Question: Is There a Solving Word?” The Covenant Quarterly, November 1964. P. 29-30.
21 March, Mary Chung. “On Mission Together: The Six-Fold Journey.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/2021/05/06/on-mission-together/
22 “2008 Racial Righteousness Resolution.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2008. https://covchurch.org/resolutions/2008-racial-righteousness/
23 March, Mary Chung. “On Mission Together: The Six-Fold Journey.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/2021/05/06/on-mission-together/
24 Hawkinson, James R. A Family of Faith: The Story of the Covenant Church. Covenant Publications, 1999. P. 1.
25 March, Mary Chung. “On Mission Together: The Six-Fold Journey.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/2021/05/06/on-mission-together/
26 Evangelical Covenant Church, The Six-Fold Test, (Chicago: Evangelical Covenant Church, 2019), https://covchurch.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Six-Fold-Test.pdf.
27 March, Mary Chung. “On Mission Together: The Six-Fold Journey.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/2021/05/06/on-mission-together/
28 “Resolution to Repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery.” Evangelical Covenant Church, 2021. https://covchurch.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Resolution-for-the-Repudiation-of-the-Doctrine-of-Discovery.pdf
29 Rees, Paul S. “The Race Question: Is There a Solving Word?” The Covenant Quarterly, November 1964. P. 29-30.
