Volbrecht Nagel, was a German missionary known for his efforts in church planting and humanitarian ministry in Kerala, India. Nagel was born in a Godly family but lost his parents at a very young age. At the age of 18, he happened to hear the gospel from a cobbler and accepted Lord Jesus as his Savior. With a deep desire to do the missionary work, Nagel moved to Basel, Switzerland, and joined the Basel Mission Training Institute in 1886.
Biography:
Birth: 03-11-1867
Death: 27-01-1935
Native Place: Florstadt-Stammheim
Country: Germany
Place of Vision: India
He was ordained as a pastor in Evangelical Lutheran Mission and was sent to India for missionary work. In 1893, Nagel reached Kannur on the Malabar coast and began his ministry as a Basel Mission school teacher. He soon became the head of Basel Mission Centre in Vaniankulam.
However, Nagel felt that the burden of managing the schools and other administrative works of Basel Mission is hindering his missionary objective. Despite the danger of losing all funding and financial resources, Nagel resigned from the Basel Mission, believing that He Who called him is faithful.
Volbrecht Nagel ministry in india
Nagel moved further south and started ministering among the people in Kunnamkulam. In God’s providence, there Nagel met Harriet Mitchell, an Anglo-Indian teacher, and married her. His association with English Brethren missionary Handley Bird drove him towards an extensive church planting ministry in Nellikunnu, Paravoor, British Cochin, and Trichur.
He also established a Rehoboth Girls’ Orphanage in Nellikunnu, which still operates to nurture hundreds of unfortunate children. In 1914, Nagel went to Germany for his children’s educational purpose, hoping to return within six months.
However, the start of the World War I prevented him from coming back to India. So, he took up teaching in Weidenest Bible School and worked there till he received his home call in 1935. Although back in Germany, he continued to correspond with the believers on the Malabar coast, encouraging them spiritually. His words reflect his love for them “My sweetest treasures are in India. My heart belongs there.”