Introduction

Biography

Frederick was the son of min­is­ter Fred Backe­mey­er and Ca­rol­ine Syk­er.

He gra­du­at­ed from Morn­ing-Side Col­lege in Sioux Ci­ty, Io­wa, and Mc­Cor­mick Theo­lo­gic­al Se­mi­na­ry, Chi­ca­go, Il­li­nois (where he was lat­er pre­si­dent of the board of di­rect­ors).

He served pas­tor­ates in Mon­ti­cel­lo, In­di­ana, and at the Me­ri­di­an Heights Church, In­di­an­apo­lis, In­di­ana, then be­came ex­ecu­tive sec­re­ta­ry of the Pres­by­ter­ian Sy­nod of In­di­ana for se­ven years.

In 1925, Backe­meyer re­ceived an hon­or­ary doc­tor of div­in­ity de­gree from Han­ov­er Col­lege.

In 1929, he be­came pas­tor of the First Pres­by­ter­ian Church in Ga­ry, In­di­ana, where he served 29 years, be­com­ing pastor-eme­ri­tus in 1954.

He later served as mod­er­at­or of the Lo­gans­port Pres­by­te­ry and the In­di­ana Sy­nod.

Works

• This Abid­ing Creed: An Un­con­ven­tion­al Ap­proach to the Apos­tles’ Creed, with John Ti­mo­thy Stone, 1940