Bethel Lutheran Church celebrates century of faith

Bieker is author of a church history, “Bethel Lutheran Church: 100 Years of Memories.” Church visitors don’t have to look far to roll back those years. Services are held in the original sanctuary, built in 1921 at a cost of about $2,500. The worship space features the original 96-year-old altar.

The original pulpit is there, although it hasn’t gotten much use since the 1980s.

“I’ve used it once,” said the Rev. Korey Finstad, who prefers to preach from floor level, in front of his congregants. “I think it was Christmas Eve.”

Right next to the building is the church cemetery, with a personal reminder of the founding generation. It’s a prominent white marble cross inscribed “Hjertaas.” The first pastor died in 1922, and his final resting place is a few yards from his old pulpit.

“His wish was to be buried in the shadow of the church steeple,” Bieker said.

“The steeple has been gone for 50 years,” she noted.

That was one of many transitions over the last century, including the church name. It was Norwegian Lutheran Skjold Congregation until 1927.

Bethel Lutheran is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The church at 12919 N.E. 159th St. has more than 300 members; the combined attendance for two Sunday services is about 140, said Dean Sutera, centennial committee member.

Bethel Lutheran has been remodeled and expanded several times, although each project has preserved the original worship space.

The church now is something of a multipurpose facility that includes an education wing and a gymnasium. Its large basement has become a community resource, home of the nonprofit Rocksolid Community Teen Center. Other community groups also use the facility.

There also have been about 20 leadership changes. The first transition was in 1922, when the Rev. Otto Lock became interim pastor after the death of Hjertaas (it’s pronounced “yur-toss,” Bieker said).

‘Gethsemane’ legacy

Lock was there for less than a year, but he left a lasting legacy. He painted a copy of Heinrich Hoffman’s “Christ at Gethsemane” — a popular image in Lutheran churches of that era — that hangs above Bethel Lutheran’s altar.

Finstad, the current pastor, arrived with his family in October. Finstad has been learning a lot about those who came before him.

“Every community has a story, but we don’t always know it,” Finstad said. “It’s neat to be part of a community that carries that memory.”

Finstad’s contribution to the centennial smorgasbord included some hands-on work. He was in the kitchen when several people teamed up to make lefse, the traditional griddle-cooked Norwegian flatbread.

“Half the freezer is filled with 300 pieces of lefse, and the other half is filled with Swedish meatballs,” Bieker said.

Some of the church’s smorgasbord lore has been preserved in Bieker’s book. One entry actually involved a significant chapter of regional history. In 1962, a smorgasbord was scheduled for the weekend of the Columbus Day storm, said Kirsten Elson, who designed the church’s centennial book.

Power went out when the storm knocked down electrical lines. As utility crews worked frantically to replace the power lines, many women wound up cooking with wood stoves.

In addition to holding the smorgasbord on schedule, “They fed the linemen” who were restoring power, Elson said. “I thought that was really cool.”