South Side Lutheran church celebrates 150 years
Holy Cross experiences turnaround after long decline
By Jim Merkel
Photo by Erica Burrus
When Holy Cross Evangelical Lutheran Church was founded in 1858, the area around it was farmland, with the exception of Concordia Seminary next door.
The area grew, along with the church. At its height, around 1935, the church at 2650 Miami St. had about 3500 members, 2500 of whom were communicants and could take communion.
After WW II, the church declined, as members moved to places like Melville, St Ann and Des Peres, and joined churches there. The school which had 450 students in 1935, closed in 2001.
But as Holy Cross celebrates its 150th year, there is evidence of a comeback.
Under Pastor Timothy Wilkins, a carpenter-turned-minister, Sunday attendance has grown from about 90 four years ago to about 130 now. Members dug deep into their pockets to make $300,000 worth of renovations to their 141 year old building.
The basement was remodeled, new carpet and lights were placed in the sanctuary, air conditioning was installed and the big clock in the church steeple was fixed.
For the first time in 50 years, the Gravois Park neighborhood church is growing, said Wilkins.
When he came to the church in July of 2003, Wilkins said, he asked 40 people if the church would survive five years. Only one person said it would.
“When the congregation saw the attendance was rising, it unplugged a lot of energy.” He said.
Wilkins said he began to encourage a loving environment that would make them want to invite their friends and family.
While there were four children in Sunday worship four years ago, there are now about 30, Wilkins said. The church now has a relationship with about 70 children through Vacation Bible School, Sunday School and the Lutheran Community Center in the school building, he said.
The one person who went against the crowd in Wilkins’ story and predicted the church would survive is Lay Minister Robert Lehr, 72, whose family goes back several generations in the church.
“It’s all in the Lord’s hands and if he wants us to be here, we’ll be here,” said Lehr.
He said some things had started to look shabby before the church started growing again.
To celebrate the turnaround and the 150th anniversary, the church recently held an anniversary dinner at the German Cultural Society, 3653 S. Jefferson Ave. Other anniversary events will be a homecoming service and picnic June 22 and a Reformation Service event Oct. 26. All Sunday services are at 10:30 a.m.; Bible classes at 9:15 a.m.
Located in South St. Louis with Lutheran Medical Center, Concordia Seminary and, still to this day, Concordia Publishing House nearby, Holy Cross was established as part of a citywide group of congregations consisting of Holy Cross and Trinity on the South Side and Emmanuel and Zion on the North Side. Each congregation became independent in 1887 following the death of C. F. W. Walther, the founding pastor of Holy Cross. Walther was the first president of Concordia Seminary and the first president of the church body that would become the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod.
The church shares its campus with Orphan Grain Train, an international relief agency, Family Shield, a Christian radio program broadcast on KFUO AM, and the Lutheran Community Center, a ministry to children and families.
Journal Newspapers, reprinted with permission
© 2007, Holy Cross Ev. Lutheran Church. Web design by Rev. James Likens, www.jdlvideo.com.
All content and images are the sole property of Holy Cross Ev. Lutheran Church.
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