The Concordia Story: A Fifty-Year History of Concordia Lutheran Church 1951-2001

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✦ Right: Pastor Merkens utilizes a makeshift speaker’s stand during the cornerstone laying, September 16, 1951. Below: Sunday School began at Concordia on the day of the first service, November 4, 1951. Although the host of miracles that comprise the 50-year story of Concordia Lutheran Church started at that booth at Earl Abel’s, the founding pastor was well equipped to make his dream a reality. Merkens was born in Aberdeen, South Dakota, son of a Lutheran pastor who, at one time, rode on horseback to serve a circuit of churches on the Midwestern prairie. Merkens’ father, Dr. A.G. Merkens, was soon called to a city parish in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where young Guido spent his childhood and youth. First Trinity Lutheran Church was a typical eastern urban Lutheran church, serving primarily second and third generation immigrant families. The church was older than the Missouri Synod, having celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1937. For Merkens the church was his life from birth onward. “The Wednesday after I was born I was baptized and then I was in church every Sunday from then on,” he recalls. “I never did really seriously think about being anything else but a pastor. I had in the back of my mind that if I didn’t do that I wanted to play baseball or be a lawyer. But the ministry prevailed. “My father was a good model and I just always loved the idea of serving the Lord full-time.” While in seminary, Merkens had an opportunity to play professional baseball for the Detroit Tigers organization. He turned it down, however, to continue preparation for the ministry. Merkens began his formal education at the University of Pittsburgh and Concordia College in Bronxville, New York. Then he entered Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. “At that time you went to the seminary for four years,” he said. “I wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps, and planned to earn a doctorate in communication. I really liked the academic environment.” But a summer experience changed his ministry direction. “After two years I was ready to go out on vicarage. I was in line to be the first campus pastor, as a vicar, at Stanford University. I was really excited about that. Then I went to Detroit with a friend of mine on a short vacation and I met his father, who was a pastor there. The father had missed getting a vicar that year and he 6 ✦ THE CONCORDIA STORY
✦ Left: The original chapel served as a Sunday School room in addition to being the worship sanctuary. This photo is from November 1952. Below: Sunday School classes were also held in the Merkens’ home in 1951 and 1952. asked me, if he could arrange it with the officials, would I consider coming as his vicar. “I really liked Detroit. It was right after World War II and the city was booming and very innovative. I accepted the vicarage at Peace Lutheran in Detroit.” The pastor, Enno Claus, became Merkens’ mentor and bishop, and the experience in Detroit forever changed Merkens’ life. “Pastor Claus had a great influence on me. I saw his love of people, his faithfulness to the Word, and his attention to detail, and all of that really had an impact on me.” Merkens also met Barbara during his year at Peace in Detroit. The couple was married a year later. Merkens recalls that he was among the first to be allowed to marry while studying at Concordia Seminary. “In fact,” Merkens notes, “for a hundred years you couldn’t even get engaged until your third year of seminary. ” The experience at Peace also helped shape Merkens’ vision of what a growing, inventive, soul-winning Lutheran church could be. “I remember going into the church, robed for the first time, walking with the pastor behind the choir on the first Sunday in September. That was the first time I saw a Lutheran church that was packed to the walls. You just don’t see that in the East, where I had spent most of my life. So I wondered how it would be at the second service. It was the same thing: packed to the walls with enthusiastic people under Pastor Claus’ wonderful leadership.” Chapter I ✦ 7
Page 1 and 2: THE CONCORDIA STORY A Fifty-Year Hi
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Page 5 and 6: ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I first came to Co
Page 7: gregations across the U.S. and in m
Page 11 and 12: Rast that this aggressive, young pa
Page 13 and 14: that would express God’s love thr
Page 15 and 16: Address Record, which gave us the n
Page 17 and 18: School led to action. A companion b
Page 19 and 20: they kept in mind Merkens’ commen
Page 21 and 22: was sent gratis by CPH to every pas
Page 23 and 24: We tried to get everything done in
Page 25 and 26: Perhaps the innovation in which Mer
Page 27 and 28: format was to be a series of semina
Page 29 and 30: other congregations, all of which h
Page 31 and 32: ✦ Left: “They come to play and
Page 33 and 34: prospective members, and over one h
Page 35 and 36: ✦ Above: At Easter Sunday service
Page 37 and 38: ice.’ So they came that week and
Page 39 and 40: The year 1982 marked the publicatio
Page 41 and 42: ✦ Left: Concordia operated a bus
Page 43 and 44: The day was planned so the dedicati
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Page 47 and 48: eally selling short the good people
Page 49 and 50: Still the period beginning in Janua
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✦ Left: Carl Steiger, right, serv
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gage. And it was not the kind of pr
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✦ Left: San Antonio Mayor Howard
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two full-time pastors and two part-
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✦ Left: Concordia’s Men’s Min
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Seminar speakers, like Paul Maier,
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Concordia who live in the area and
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Prior to the arrival of the Prieto
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✦ Far left: Concordians Mike Manu
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✦ Above: Concordia’s administra
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P ASTORS W HO H AVE S ERVED C ONCOR
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✦ Above: Adult Bible Class is hel
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Sunday School, 1952. Vacation Bible
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The Concordia Story: A Fifty-Year History of Concordia Lutheran Church 1951-2001

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