‘Surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses’
In 1926, the Evangelical Covenant Church (then called the Swedish Evangelical Mission Covenant of America) held its 42nd Annual Conference in Minneapolis. A picture was taken of pastors and church delegates gathered outside of Minnehaha Academy, the wonderful school that was birthed by the Northwest Conference (then called the Northwestern Missionary Association) and remains affiliated with it.
While serving as the Superintendent of the NWC, we had the aforementioned picture enlarged and converted into wallpaper. It covers a long wall in the conference room at the Northwest Conference office where many important decisions have been made over the past years.
Following its installation, I reminded our staff and executive board members that we are indebted to the faithful saints who have preceded us and that we continue to be blessed by their labors and sacrifice. The picture represents these dear children of God, even though the names and faces of these men and women may be unknown to us. But God knows, for He was present with them, even as He is with us!
The mid-1920s were an important transitional era for the Denomination. While congregations maintained a strong, foundational Pietistic heritage, the Church was navigating the gradual transition of printed material and proceedings from the Swedish language into English. The 1926 Annual Meeting reflected this shift, focusing on how to serve an increasingly Americanized and multigenerational community.
During this time, the Denomination and local regional Conferences addressed critical community-building measures. These included seeking a more formal cooperation between the Covenant, the Augustana Lutheran Synod, and other Swedish-American denominations. Regional Conferences also prioritized outreach, appointing committees to visit indifferent church members and nurture them back to active attendance. Moreover, the Denomination continued to give birth to new congregations and an expanded emphasis on global mission priorities, even while laying the groundwork for new regional Conferences and camps.
It was a time where leaders were being raised up, churches were being strengthened and the mission of spreading the good news of Jesus Christ in an increasingly pluralistic society was moving forward in new ways.
And so, as we reflect on pictures such as this, it is the right and faithful thing to be about the same work, even as the mission of the Northwest Conference remains, “Developing Leaders. Thriving Churches. Forward in Mission.”
As stated earlier, we do not know the names or stories of many of our forebears pictured outside of Minnehaha in 1926. However, it may be that there are those in our midst who do recognize some of the people in the photo; grandfathers, grandmothers, great-grandfathers or great-grandmothers; maybe early pastors that look familiar from pictures you have seen at your church. I would invite readers to click on this link as it will take you to a high resolution version of the photo. Please let Cheryl Theilen at the NWC office know who you might recognize!
It was my honor to serve in a long line of those dedicated to spreading the good news of Jesus through the mission of the Northwest Conference. It remains an honor to continue to support its mission today.
By the Rev. Mark R. Stromberg, former Superintendent of the Northwest Conference