A Tale of Two Churches.

If you are visiting Light Pass, in South Australia’s Barossa Valley, you may wonder why, in such a small village, there are two  Lutheran churches within 200 metres of each other. To find the answer, we must go back to the very early days of Light Pass (originally called Light’s Pass) and even a quick trip back in time to Prussia in the 19^th century.

Religious refugees (or ‘what happens in Prussia does not stay in Prussia’)

Light Pass was settled by predominantly Prussian immigrants. In the early 1800’s in Prussia, after three centuries of religious freedom, the Prussian King, Friedrich Wilhelm III, decreed that the Reformed Church and the Lutheran Church must merge. The Reformed Church held very rationalistic beliefs, whereas the ‘Old Lutherans’ emphasised the importance of doctrine, scripture and the confessions. The new Church Book compiled by the king excluded all that was essentially Old Lutheran. This forced union did not sit well at all with the Prussian Lutherans. Their doctrine, and the ability to practice their faith as they saw fit, was of great importance to them. Now their practices and beliefs were declared illegal. Worshippers were driven from their churches by armed soldiers. Pastors and those practicing or supporting the Lutherans were imprisoned, people’s homes and livestock were confiscated. They were publicly decried as rebels and dissenters.

Many, however, still practiced in secret. And when the chance came, many were willing to set sail to a new land, where they could worship with freedom. A meeting between one of the leaders of the ‘Old Lutherans’ – Pastor August Kavel – and the influential English merchant George Fife Angus eventually enabled many to come to South Australia. Assisted financially with loans by Angus, Pastor Kavel organised the first shipload of Lutherans to South Australia. They docked in Adelaide in 1838. It was with great joy that the first Lutheran service on Australian soil was held in Adelaide on November 25^th.

Settlements quickly happened in Adelaide, the hills, and the nearby valleys. Small holdings were established, and dwellings built. The settlers soon became known for their industry, hard work and strong faith. Churches and church schools were amongst the first buildings to be erected and were the centre of the communities. But doctrinal differences that existed in the old country quickly surfaced and plagued the new settlement in Australia. Because many who immigrated did so because they felt so strongly about their beliefs, it’s not surprising that they clung tightly to doctrines they believed were right and important and were often not willing to compromise. Differences in ideas of how things should be run also caused schisms. Areas of disagreement were many, from how the church should be structured and where authority should lie, to land management, who could be baptised and given communion, whether dancing should be allowed, and even the adoption of communist principles.

The big one, though, that caused the most dissent, was opposing beliefs about the doctrine of ‘chialism’ – the belief that in the last days there will be a Messianic Age on Earth, ie. that Christ will reign on Earth for a thousand years before the Last Judgment. Pastor Kavel believed in it, Pastor Fritzsche (another influential early pastor) did not, and their efforts to find a compromise and not allow the issue to cause dissension were not successful. This issue reared its head in the early days and became the fundamental issue that resulted in separation of congregations and communities. Eventually this resulted in two separate Australian Lutheran Synods. They did not reunite for another 100 years.

The schism at Light Pass

Fast forward to the young settlement at Light Pass, first settled by Prussian Lutherans in 1845. It was not immune to the conflict in doctrine and beliefs, and in fact became one of the epicentres, and a place of great influence in Australian Lutheran church history.

In its early days church services were held in the school building, with Pastor Kavel travelling there every 6 weeks. It must have been an exciting time when the first church was built in 1850 on the Immanuel church site (not the grand white building we see today, but a simple pug building with dirt floors. It had no seating – people had to bring their own chairs and logs if they didn’t want to sit on the ground!).

Finally in 1858 the congregation could afford to call its very own pastor – however at this stage the young Australian church had struggled to find or train new pastors. A private church member applied to the State church in Wuerttemberg, and they sent out Pastor Staudenmayer to take charge of the Light’s Pass-Ebenezer parish.  It was said that “He was a gifted and well-educated man” and “he made a good impression. His sermons especially appealed to the people” (Hebart 1938).  There must have been so much rejoicing and giving thanks and praise to God for the blessing of their church and community. One can imagine them working together in these early years to build the church, singing and worshipping together, sharing celebratory meals, happy to be in a land of religious freedom.

Yet, almost immediately, there were serious disagreements.  The new pastor disagreed with Kavel on matters of the Constitution, on voting, and who could be baptized. Sure of himself, he wanted to change things immediately. People began arguing – some wanting to follow Staudenmeyer, others wanted to stay close to the teachings of Kavel. Many were not happy – the heads of 25 families at Light’s Pass wanted to bring a complaint about Staudenmeyer to Synod in 1860 (held shortly after Kavel’s death), but Staudenmeyer prevented it from being heard. GJ Rechner, the well-respected schoolteacher, left his post because of strained relationships with Staudenmeyer. The rift spread amongst other congregations. The wider church tried to bring in a compromise, letting many issues be a matter of conscience, so that members of the same congregation could uphold either Kavel’s ideas or Staudenmeyer’s. However, in practice this did not work. In December 1860, some members of the congregations of Langmeil, Light’s Pass, Gruenberg, Nain and North Rhine formerly decided to sever connections with Staudenmeyer and his followers.

In Light Pass, the 25 families left and began their own congregation. They chose the name Strait Gate (a biblical reference to the narrow way to heaven). This group asked their schoolteacher, GJ Rechner, to be their pastor. He knew them and their situation, and they knew of his piety, great faith and many abilities. He was able to be ordained and served the congregation tirelessly until his death in 1900. He and Kavel’s pupil, Pastor Auricht, worked together to serve their flock, establish churches and missions, train pastors and build the branch of the church which became the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia (U.E.L.C.A). Meanwhile, Pastor Staudenmayer and Pastor Keppler, from Tanunda, also formed their own synod – the Tanunda-Light’s Pass Synod, which revoked Kavel’s Protestations and aligned itself with the church in Victoria.

Rumour has it that the new Strait Gate congregation built its church on the main road near the intersection so that Immanuel worshippers would be forced to pass it on their way to church! The more accurate explanation for its position is that the Strait Gate church was built on land owned and sold to them by GJ Rechner.

One wonders how this split affected the Light Pass community.  Obviously there had already been strong disagreements. Did neighbours who had once been close and supportive stop talking? Did they still exchange greetings when they passed in the street? In such a small village, where, unlike today, there wasn’t the opportunity to do business or work elsewhere, one imagines the residents would still have to co-exist together. And church life at that time was also one’s social life. Were social ties cut?  Were wives who were once friends now unable to talk to each other? Did it affect the children? Strait Gate congregation quickly began its own school, so children who had been school-fellows would suddenly be separated. Did they still play together outside of school?  The separation had some long, on-going effects. Kim Michelmore, a former Light Pass resident, said that even recently he spoke to an elderly Light Pass lady asking about someone else in the community. She sniffed and said “I wouldn’t know – she belongs to the other side!”.

One good outcome, though, is that Light Pass now has two beautiful churches, both with lovely bell-towers and bells, and world-class pipe organs. And they are very different – one a beautiful traditional building, the other a wonderful example of 1960’s modernism.  If you are in Light Pass, be sure to visit them.

The two congregations continue to be separate at this time, although some discussion about their future has occurred as both have declined in numbers in recent decades. Services at each are now irregular, commonly twice a month.  There is some encouragement for each to join with the other on Sundays when there are no services at one or the other. The current pastor is Damien Martin and, in addition to these two congregations, he serves another six in the area.

Immanuel Lutheran Church

The first church, built in 1850, had pug walls and a thatched roof. After years of wear and tear due to exposure to the elements a new church was built with stone walls and an iron roof and was dedicated in 1886. Previously known as the Light’s Pass Church, at this time it became the Evangelical Lutheran Immanuel church – Immanuel meaning ‘God with us’.

Over the years a sanctuary, vestry and bell tower have been added. In 1961 the church installed a magnificent pipe organ, built by Davis & Laurie Pty Ltd, of Melbourne. It is the only organ in the Valley to possess a roller schwellen for progressively increasing or decreasing the sound.

 

Strait Gate Lutheran Church.

The original church and adjacent manse (now the Mission House) were built in 1861. The original church was of stone, with a thatched roof, and the bell tower was added in 1874. The new, modernist church was built in 1961 and designed by the renowned architect Erik Von Schramek. He considered it his finest contemporary church. It has a beautiful stained-glass window behind the altar, best viewed in the afternoon when it is illuminated by the setting sun. It was created by artist Stan Ostoja Kotkowski. The beautiful pipe-organ, installed in 1925, is said to be the last single manual organ made by J.E. Dodd and is one of only three still in existence.

Listen to the Strait Gate bell, calling worshippers on Sunday morning.

Strait Gate bells

 

Fascinated? Click on the links to read more:

The United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia (U.E.L.C.A.) : its history, activities and characteristics, 1838-1938 (Written by TH Hebart, this is a very interesting and extremely comprehensive history of the Prussian dissent and the beginnings of the Lutheran Church and German settlements in Australia).

Triple celebrations for Immanuel Light Pass – SA/NT  District

Prussian Union (Evangelical Christian Church)

Biography – Gotthard Daniel Fritzsche – Australian Dictionary of Biography

Immanuel Lutheran Church Light Pass

Strait Gate Lutheran Church Light Pass Road, Light Pass organ

If you like historical fiction, you’ll love Lee Boehm’s book The Journey. It tells the story of Prussian immigrants settling in Light Pass, and Lee really brings alive what it was like in Prussia, and the hopes of the settlers for their new life. Thoroughly researched, it’s also a great read. Find out more about Lee’s book here.