AN URBAN MINISTRY

By Linda Linonis

City church ‘embedded’ in neighborhood

Martin Luther Lutheran Church marks its 150th milestone as members focus on mission in the present and future.

The pastor and congregation of Martin Luther Lutheran Church in Youngstown appreciate its rich 150-year history. They’re proud of their legacy as an inner-city church and that past serves as motivation to continue its urban ministry in the present and future.

“We’re embedded in the neighborhood and feel blessed to be here,” said the Rev. Paul Heine of the church’s location at the corner of Hudson and Clearmount avenues. “We don’t have to look for mission opportunities. … It’s around us.” Pastor Heine speaks from the perspective of living in the neighborhood next to the church.

Recently, the pastor, and Judy Armeni, chairwoman of the anniversary committee, and members Mardell Ritter, Gordon Mitchell and Jerry Baker, and choir director, Ruth Stevenson, met to talk about the ministry and anniversary.

The first Martin Luther Lutheran Church was organized in 1859, and the original church at Wood Street was dedicated in 1862. But the church was sold in 1930 when the city and the Erie Railroad needed all the property on the south side of Wood Street, including the church, to eliminate dangerous grade crossings in the downtown area. The church bought property at Hudson and Clearmount in 1924.

“We’re where a church needs to be … too many main-line denominations have abandoned the city. That’s a sad state of affairs,” Pastor Heine said. He has been in ministry for 35 years, in urban ministry 20 years and at Martin Luther for three years.

The congregation wanted to stay in the city and decided to move to where the city was growing,” Mitchell said. “I’ve been a member all my life.”

The groundbreaking took place in March 1931, and the cornerstone was laid in May of that year. Mitchell said services took place in the fellowship hall before the church was completed.

“This was during the Depression,” he said. “And about 12 members mortgaged their homes and businesses and borrowed on life insurance to keep construction going.” He noted his father, John Mitchell, was among those faithful. “They put their faith into action … and the belief then and now is that God wanted this church here.”

And here’s why. Mitchell, who said he was 12 years old when the groundbreaking took place, recalled that the day was rainy and there was lightning. Water had accumulated on the roof of the tent set up for the event and lightning traveled through it into a tree near the parsonage. “It was taken as a sign that the Holy Spirit wanted us to be here,” he said.

That sentiment was echoed by other members.

“Our congregation is excited to be here and wants to stay here,” Armeni said.

“I feel that the 150th milestone is not so much an occasion to look back but to look forward.”

“People feel welcome and comfortable here,” Baker said.

“Members who come here are excited to be here,” Stevenson said.

“I feel that we are meant to be here for the purpose of doing God’s work,” Ritter said.

And addressing that purpose involved having a strong children’s ministry. To that end, Loisjean Haynes Paige is the director of children’s ministries. A teacher at Choffin Career Center, Paige has helped the church develop ministries to engage neighborhood children and their parents.

“Children in the neighborhood don’t have a lot to do,” Pastor Heine said, noting that Sheridan Park, which has playground equipment, is padlocked.

The church offers a Sunday school that provides fellowship for the school-age youth. “The focus on Sunday morning is feeding by word and sacrament,” Pastor Heine said. He estimated about 25 youth are involved.

The church also sponsors a weeklong summer day camp, an expanded vacation Bible school, at which children have breakfast and lunch, participate in Bible study and recreational and educational activities.

Another neighborhood outreach, Ritter said, is the church food pantry. “It’s available to those with unexpected needs,” Ritter said.

Pastor Heine said the church has what he termed a “drop-in ministry” for people with many needs such as food, advice about personal situations and how to find resources. “If each church paid attention to its neighborhood, Youngstown would be a beautiful place,” the pastor added.

The West of 50s group is for seniors, and meets monthly for a meal and program. It offers sustenance for the mind and body. Baker added that church also has women’s circles among activities.

It has plenty of space for activities; the church features a sanctuary, 22 classrooms, gym, fellowship hall with stage and kitchen, parlor complex with dining room and kitchen, library and offices.

The church has broadened its membership of 250 to include blacks and reflect the demographic of the neighborhood. Recently, the church welcomed six new members, including four more blacks.

“People who come here for different reasons stay because they like what they experience,” Pastor Heine said. “And it’s about experiencing the word of God.”

Though the church concentrates its efforts on its neighborhood, the congregation also understands the need for its participation as an urban church to support other inner-city ministries. “We’ve had a long-term relationship with the Needle’s Eye,” Pastor Heine said of the Christian counseling center.

Ritter also noted that the church gives support to the Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley.

Money for various projects comes in part from fundraisers including fish fries and a trash-and-treasure sale.

Pastor Heine described the church as regional because “members come from all directions.” And the church also is a mother church of other sites, including Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Poland, which recently marked its 50th year, and St. Paul and St. Luke, now closed. Mitchell noted that Martin Luther also is mission partner with a church in Kentucky.

Though reaching outside its walls is a priority of the congregation, they draw their resolve from their faith expressed in worship and their lives. “We believe in the priesthood of all believers,” said Pastor Heine. “We’re saved by the grace of God and not by our own works. … Our understanding of being saved is everything to us. It’s about everyone having a place in God’s kingdom.”

Pastor Heine said the church is more orthodox in its practices and definitely not trendy. “We adhere to the historical Lutheran liturgy … that has a history and excellent music. We strive for worship that is majestic, music that is transcendent and outreach that is grass roots.”

Much of the liturgy is sung, the pastor and Stevenson said, and the small choir is there to enhance the experience.

“Lutherans love to sing,” Pastor Heine said, noting that Lutheran services are about participation. He described the hymn “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” as the Lutheran fight song.

linonis@vindy.com