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| ABOUT |
In 1893 a small group of Lutherans began meeting for worship in the home of H. Wettermann, a farmer, whose home was on the West Yegua Creek near Loebau. The shepherd of this growing flock was the Rev. Johannes Mgebroff who had been sent by the St. Krischona Mission Institute of Switzerland to Texas. Rev. Mgebroff was a missionary, ministering to Christians in the Central Texas area. As the number of worshippers increased, the Wettermann farm house became too small for the group, thus the services were moved to a schoolhouse near the Wettermann farm, then the Methodist Church, then the Masonic Hall, then the Lee County Courthouse.
On June 10, 1894 a meeting was held to organize the congregation. The congregation chose the name Evangelical Lutheran Martin Luther Church of Giddings, Texas. The congregation now needed a more permanent place of worship. They agreed to rent a large room in the old Giddings school house for $25 per year. On July 1, 1894, the President of the First Lutheran Texas Synod dedicated the school house room to the glory and service of the Lord. This house of worship was furnished with pews, altar, pulpit, picture of Christ, picture of Martin Luther, two brass candle holders, a brass Crucifix, communion ware, baptismal table and bowl, three artificial flower wreaths, two vases with artificial flowers, a rug for the front of the altar, organ and chair, heater, collection plates, four wall lamps and an altar and pulpit Bible. The entire property of the congregation at the time had a net worth of $170.
On October 13, 1895 a block (10 city lots) was bought from Rice Institute for a permanent home of the Martin Luther Church. A four-room parsonage for a resident pastor had been built, and on November 20, 1895, the building of a permanent home for worship for the Martin Luther Congregation began. The joy of the new church was short-lived. On Tuesday, July 17, 1897, at 9:00pm, lightning struck the church and fire completely destroyed the newly dedicated church building. The church was rebuilt by the same plan as the first edifice.
The beautiful Gothic altar with its custom-made sculpture scene of the crucifixion was an idea conceived by Rev. Mueller. This altar, with the matching pulpit, lectern and baptismal font were in place when the congregation celebrated its 20th Anniversary in June of 1914.
1941 to 1945 saw our nation at war. 54 men from Martin Luther Lutheran Church served their country in the armed forces during these years. As a reminder of the service they were giving, a white banner with a blue star for each service-man was hung in the church. If a service-man was wounded, the star was changed to red, and if he should lose his life while in the service the star was changed to gold.
On Sunday, June 12, 1947, the cornerstone for the Educational Building was laid, containing a Bible, copies of church bulletins, program of the Cornerstone Laying Service, copies of The Giddings News, The Giddings Star, The Lutheran Standard, The Giddings Volksblatt, the 1944 Golden Anniversary booklet of Martin Luther Lutheran Church and a record of the building to that date. In 1957 a new parsonage was built, and then the congregation moved on to building a new church building. The contract price for the building project was $81,678.89. On June 28, 1959 the congregation began worshipping in the old white frame church and then processed into the new building. The bell from the old church was moved into the new. The altar, pulpit, font, and lectern were repainted and the gold leaf was replaced and moved into the new chancel. The white frame church building was sold to Mr. August Symmank, torn down, and cleared from the property to make room for the annex to the Educational Building, which was completed and dedicated in 1960.
In 1975 the congregation purchased land for a Boy Scout and Youth Center, and in the summer of 1979 completed the Youth Center.
In 1992 an enlarged narthex, additional classrooms, covered driveway and entrance and a covered walkway from the Educational Building was added.
The round Ascension stained glass from 2005 is a Pratho family memorial that depicts Jesus ascending into heaven as recorded at the end of Matthew's gospel, when "Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:18-20 NRSV).
The Helen Hannes Memorial Pipe Organ was a gift to Martin Luther Lutheran Church from Mr. Emmett Hannes in memory of his wife. Mrs. Hannes was Organist, Youth and Children's Choir Director at MLLC for over 40 years. The organ, originally built in 1887 by Carl Barckhoff, was found in New York, installed at Martin Luther, and dedicated December 24, 2006.
The free-standing altar was commissioned by Pastor Walloch for the one hundred fifteenth anniversary celebration in June of 2009. It was paid for by an anonymous donor and built by Bill and Jeremy Matejcek and member Brian Brinegar of Giddings and consecrated by the Bishop.
Pastors:
1893-5 Pastor Johannes Mgebroff
1895-9 Pastor Carl Baer
1900-1 Pastor M. Moehl
1901-42 Pastor William Mueller Sr.
1942-5 Pastor Walter Tillmanns
1946-50 Pastor Siegfried Schroeder
1951-86 Pastor Fred Mgebroff
1987-90 Senior Pastor Charles Ager
1988-92 Associate Pastor Patti Luebben
1991-6 Senior Pastor Don Marquart
1993-8 Associate Pastor Walter Miller
1997-2006 Senior Pastor Ralph Lien
1998-2010 Visitation Pastor Ed Schwanke
2008-Present Senior Pastor Jeremy Walloch
(Abridged, corrected, and updated from Margaret Kriegel's 1994 History of Martin Luther Lutheran Church)
Copyright © 2012 Martin Luther Lutheran Church in Giddings, Texas. All rights reserved.