A few weeks ago I posted about this church as a
“SentimentalSunday” post and mentioned that I would be attending the memorial service for
the church on May 26. I did attend that service and want to share some of that
with you.
Sunday morning I arrived early and was able to walk around
the church admiring the beautiful woodwork and windows but also noting that the
building was suffering from mold damage.
There were two rooms full of things being auctioned off in a silent
auction. Shelves, pictures, offering plates, windows, dishes. Great photos can be found on a blog called
Life in Claremont.
There were also quite a few books that were
free for the taking. I was excited to find a German hymnal and also a
shape-note hymnal. I bid on several
things but at the end of the day, I ended up with a small box and one of 7
large stained glass windows! I must say I am very excited to get it later in
the summer.
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Published by:
Mennoniten von Nord-Amerika 1893 |
The church filled up quickly and even to overflowing. The
Bergthal Facebook page says about 350 people were there. The service began with singing.
Beautiful harmonies of familiar hymns. But it was hard not to feel the pain in
knowing that it had been sometime since this many voices rang in these walls.
And it will not ever be so again.
Charlotte (Life in Claremont blog) also made a great video that includes singing and put it on
YouTube.
But one of the most beautiful moments of the day was the message that Pastor Lynn Schlosser gave. I have spent many hours trying to write about her sermon and
find myself quoting nearly the entire sermon.
Her words seem to echo all our feelings and answer all our
questions. Lynn seemed
to know the questions everyone was asking themselves.
“If
it feels like you’ve come to a funeral today, well you have, kind of. People
often talk about how given the choice they hope their loved ones might come to
see them one more time while they’re still living rather than wait and come for
the funeral. That’s what we’re doing here today. I am thankful so many of you
have come home, one more time, to tell this people, this place, this church how
much you have loved her and what she has meant to you. . . .
And
as is often the case at funerals, I want to talk about resurrection this
morning. . . . Resurrection is woven
into the very structure of who we are and how we are. Resurrection is the very
essence of life. . . .
Look
around you and see evidence of resurrection. . . . And know this. We represent
but a drop in the ocean of lives Bergthal Mennonite Church has reached out and
touched in her 138 years. Our brothers and sisters circle this globe. Bergthal’s
influence ripples out, with a never-ending gentle touch that shapes and
nurtures.”
She goes on to
give a touching recount of the final events of the movie “Les Miserables” and
how the story impacted her as she thought about her beloved church, Bergthal
Mennonite. She reads the lyrics of the triumphant song “When Tomorrow Comes”
and then comments:
“In
a similar way, I can hear those original founding ancestors from 1875, their
children and grandchildren, your parents and grandparents, I can hear them
singing.
We’ve
dealt with such a mix of emotions these last few years - grief, anger, shame,
disappointment, relief, confusion. In the book of Philippians Paul says, “ I am
confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it
to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.” This sounds like truth. We take it
on faith. But sometimes it’s hard to really believe it. How can a church’s
death be a victory? How do we celebrate the loss of someone so dear. Surely
we’ve let all those good people who labored hard to build this church, surely
we’ve let them down. We see through a mirror but dimly.
But
if we listen closely, we might just hear their voices raised in a song of
triumph. I believe they stand together this day singing a song of hope and
faith. They see what we can only intuit. They are enfolded by a resurrection we
long for, their vision unhindered. I believe they see Bergthal’s good, long
life, the many ways in which God’s Kingdom has been revealed in our midst. They
see also the many ways in which Bergthal will continue to move and live, there
in the realm of resurrection.”
Yes, I realize I quoted almost her entire message. But not quite. I am putting it all on a page
"Pastor Schlosser's Message." It is worth reading in it's entirety. She gave me permission to use it "however you see fit."
She is found in their home in the 1900, 1910 and
1920 censuses. Her mother died in 1919 and her father died in 1927. In the 1930 census, she is found in the home of her brother Abraham and his
wife, Lena, in Kiowa County, Kansas.
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