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A history of the Swedish Baptist churches of California

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A history of the Swedish Baptist churches of California

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Content A HISTORY OF T H E
SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCHES OF CALIFORNIA
A T h esis
P re se n te d to
th e F a c u lty o f th e School o f R e lig io n
U n iv e rs ity o f S outhern C a lif o r n ia
In P a r t i a l F u lfillm e n t
o f th e R equirem ents f o r th e Degree
M aster o f A rts
by
Edwin John Omark
F ebruary 1944
UMI Number: EP65136
All rights reserved
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D issertatierv PW hlisNng
UMI EP65136
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This thesis, written by
........ EDWIN. JOffl...OMAK[C...........
under the direction of h.As Faculty Committee,
and approved by all its members, has been
presented to and accepted by the Council on
Graduate Study and Research in partial fulfill
ment of the requirements for the degree of
MASTER OF ARTS
Secretary
D tz /e ...X e b r u a r x ..l 9 .4 4 .......
Faculty Com m ittee
man
TABLE-OF C O N T E N T S
CH A ETER-^ page
PREFACE........................................... 1
I . EARLY SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCHES IN THE UNITED.
STATES........................................................................... 6
F i r s t Swedish c o lo n y ....................................... 5
"America F e v e r " ................................................. ......... 6
P io n ee r men and c h u rc h e s.............................. 7
I I . BEGINNINGS A N D DEVELOPM ENT IN THE BAY AREA. . 12
E a rly work among th e Swedish p eo p le . . . . 12
O a k la n d .................................................................. 15
San F r a n c i s c o ....................................................... 24
San J o s e ........................................ 31
I I I . CHURCHES IN THE SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY ...... 38
K in g s b u r g .............................................................. 38
T urlock . .................................................................... 46
IV . SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHURCHES........................ 64
Los A n g e le s ......................................................... 64
/
San D i e g o .............................................................. 69
P asad en a............................................................................. 77
V. CHURCHES W ITH D RA W N FRO M CONFERENCE OR D IS -. .
BANDED............................................. 82
C h i n o ...................................................................... 82
L i m e .................................................................................. 83
Oak V a lle y ............................................................. 84
CHAPTER page
Tuolumne................................................................... 86
Hughs o n ............................................................................. " 86
San F ra n c is c o , Salem ....................................... 87
R edlands—Y u c a ip a ............................................ 91
V I. COOPERATIVE MISSIONARY ENDEAVORS.................. 93
C a lif o r n ia M issio n ary S o c ie ty . . . . . . . 93
A m issio n a ry s o c ie ty in S o u th ern C a lif o r n ia 96
Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia . . 98
V II. THE INNER LIFE OF THE CHURCHES....................... 104
The g en iu s o f Swedish B a p tis t c h u rc h e s. . . 104
C o n t r o v e r s i e s ..................................................... 109
D is c ip lin e .............................................................. I l l
V III. CONCLUDING CHAPTER................................................. 113
A ch ie v en e n ts ........................................ 113
R e s o u r c e s ............................................. 113
P r o s p e c t s .............................................................. 116
BIBLIOGRAPHY...................................................................................... 117
APPENDIX A By-Laws o f S ta te O rg a n iz a tio n s . 123
APPENDIX B A r tic le s o f I n c o r p o r a t i o n ...................... . 129
APPENDIX C A r tic le s o f C o o p e r a tio n ............ 132
APPENDIX D E a rly M eetings o f S ta te C onference. . . 134
APPENDIX E C h ro n o lo g ic al T a b l e ...................... 136
APPENDIX F C o n fessio n o f F a i t h ...................... 136
APPENDIX G Swedish B a p tis t P a c if ic Home. . . . . . 146
APPENDIX H Membership S t a t i s t i c s ................. 148
PREFACE
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purp o se o f t h i s stu d y i s to w rite a h is to r y o f
Swedish B a p tis ts in C a lif o r n ia , th e s to r y o f t h e i r churches^
and m issio n a ry o u tre a c h . At p r e s e n t th e re a re e ig h t a c tiv e
ch u rch es com prising th e Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a li
f o r n i a . These ch u rch es fU rn ish m ost o f th e h i s t o r i c a l m a ter
i a l a v a ila b le f o r t h i s su rv ey . They have had a lo n g e r h i s
to r y th a n th e s e v e r a l chu rch es v ^ ic h d isb an d ed a f t e r a few
y e a rs , and t h e i r re c o rd s a re more com plete and a c c e s s ib le .
P rim a rily t h i s w i l l be a c h ro n ic le o f ev en ts b ased
la r g e ly upon o f f i c i a l re c o rd s o f th e c h u rc h e s. Due to th e
sk etch y manner in which such m in u tes a re v /r itte n , th e y do
n o t d e s c rib e th e s i g n i f i c a n t in n e r l i f e o f th e c h u rc h e s.
C onsequently th e r e i s a d e a rth o f in t e r p r e t iv e m a te r ia l.
A t r e a t i s e o f t h i s n a tu re should be v a lu a b le f o r sev
e r a l re a s o n s . In th e f i r s t p la c e , i t w i l l se rv e as a r e f e r
ence book, w r itte n in th e language o f second and t h i r d g en er
a tio n Swedish-Am e r ic a n s , acquauinting them w ith th e f a i t h and
deeds o f t h e i r f a t h e r s . S econdly, i t w i l l throw l i g h t on th e
A m eric an iz atio n o f fo re ig n -s p e a k in g g ro u p s, i n t h i s in s ta n c e
showing how th e Swedes in C a lif o m ia have g ra d u a lly adopted
th e language and c u ltu r e o f t h e i r ad o p tiv e la n d w ith o u t r e
lin q u is h in g e s s e n ti a l v a lu e s i n t h e i r r e lig i o u s f a i t h and
2
p r a c tic e - F u rth erm o re, t h i s survey w i l l c o n s titu te a page
in th e r e lig i o u s h is to r y o f C a lif o r n ia , and may p ro v e v a lu
a b le to f u tu r e s tu d e n ts o f r e lig i o u s movements in t h i s com
m onwealth .
PROCEDURE
M a te ria ls f o r t h i s t h e s i s have b een g a th e re d o v er a
p e rio d o f th r e e o r fo u r y e a rs - In th e c a p a c ity o f p a s to r , and
m o d erato r o f th e C a lif o r n ia C onference B oard, th e w r ite r h as
had a c ce ss to th e o f f i c i a l re c o rd s o f th e ch u rc h e s. He has
v i s i t e d a l l th e churches t h a t p a r t i c i p a t e in th e work o f th e
S ta te C onference, c o n fe rrin g w ith p a s to r s , church c le r k s , and
o th e r o f f ic e r s * O f f i c i a l re c o rd s were made a v a ila b le to him ,
and from them he g a th e re d m ost o f th e h i s t o r i c a l m a te r ia l in
c o rp o ra te d in t h i s t h e s i s .
G ra titu d e i s h ereb y ex p ressed to p a s to rs and church
c le r k s who have g e n e ro u sly p la c e d ch u rch re c o rd s a t th e d i s
p o s a l o f th e w r i te r . W ithout t h e i r a s s is ta n c e t h i s th e s i s
co u ld n o t have been w r itte n .
The r e a d e r 's a t te n t io n i s c a lle d to th e f a c t t h a t th e
lo n g h i s t o r i c a l s e c tio n s , co v e rin g in d iv id u a l ch u rch e s, a re
su b d iv id ed a c c o rd in g to p a s to r a l ch an g es. The a r r i v a l o f a
new p a s to r u s u a lly m arks th e b e g in n in g o f a new p e rio d in th e
h is to r y o f any c h u rc h .
REVIEW OF LITERATURE A N D SOURCES
Two h i s t o r i c a l sk e tc h e s in th e same f i e l d have p r e
v io u s ly been w ritte n * "En k o r t h i s t o r i s k o v e r s k r if t av
sv en sk a b a p t is te m a s i C a lif o r n ia v erk sam h et, 1884 - 1926"
was w r itte n by th e R everend Swan A. E ngw all, M. A ., a t th e
r e q u e s t o f th e C a lif o r n ia S ta te C o n feren ce. In i t M r. Engw all
tr a c e s th e o r ig in and grow th o f th e Swedish B a p tis t Churches
in C a lif o r n ia , t r e a t i n g them s in g ly and c h ie f ly in ch ro n o lo g
i c a l o r d e r . A b r i e f c h a p te r i s dev o ted to th e C a lif o rn ia S ta te
C o n feren ce. The a u th o r d id n o t have a c c e ss to much im p o rta n t
so u rce m a te r ia l v h ic h a n o th e r h is t o r i a n , M r. P e te r Benson,
l a t e r o b ta in e d . No a tte m p t was made by Mr. Engw all to stu d y
developm ents in chtirch a d m in is tra tio n and p o l i t y . H is work i s
v a lu a b le to th o se who seek a c o n se c u tiv e s to r y o f h i s t o r i c a l
d a ta up to 1926.
" H is to ric a l Review o f th e A c ti v itie s o f th e S^vedish
B a p tis ts in C a lif o r n ia C overing a P e rio d o f F i f t y - f iv e Y ears,
1884 - 193 9 ," was w r itte n by P e te r Benson a t th e re q u e s t o f th e
C a lif o r n ia S ta te C o n feren ce. I t i s in two p a r t s . P a r t I —The
P io n e e r P erio d o f F if te e n Y ears, P a r t I I —The C onference P e rio d
o f F o rty Y ea rs. The m ajor p o r tio n o f th e p r e s e n ta tio n i s de
v o te d to th e P io n e e r P e rio d , re c o rd in g th e founding o f each
church in t h i s p e rio d and th e p re p a ra to ry work t h a t p reced ed
th e a c tu a l o r g a n iz a tio n . P a r t I I does n o t a c tu a lly cover th e
4
many a c t i v i t i e s o f th e f o r t y y e a rs b u t sim ply c o n s id e rs th e
new churches founded d u rin g t h a t p e r io d . The e a rly e f f o r t s
o f th e churches to u n ite in m issio n a ry endeavor a re eilso
tr a c e d , in c lu d in g th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e p r e s e n t S ta te Con
fe re n c e .
Mr. B en so n 's p r in c ip a l c o n trib u tio n to Swedish B a p tis t
h is to r y in C a lif o r n ia i s th e v a lu a b le so u rce m a te r ia l w hich he
e n tru s te d b e fo re h is d e a th to th e p re s e n t w r i te r . In o rd e r to
supplem ent th e re c o rd s p o sse sse d by th e ch u rch es th em selv es,
he engaged a form er jo u r n e ilis t, E rik S jb s tra n d , to p e ru se e a rly
volum es o f Nya V ecko-P osten, a Swedish B a p tis t d en o m in atio n al
p ap e r o f n a tio n -w id e c i r c u l a t i o n , in w hich news item s from th e
C a lif o r n ia ch u rch es w ere r e p o r te d . P a s to rs and v i s i t i n g m in is
t e r s w rote th e s e a r t i c l e s to inform Swedish B a p tis ts in o th e r
p a r t s o f th e co u n try o f w hat th e C a lif o r n ia churches were doing.
A ll th e a r t i c l e s o r e x c e rp ts show th e d a te o f p u b lic a tio n .
The p r in c ip a l so u rce s u sed by th e p r e s e n t w r i te r a re th e
o r ig in a l re c o rd s o f th e c h u rc h e s. These a re w r itte n in th e
Swedish language ex c e p t th e m in u tes o f r e c e n t y e a rs . Some v o l
umes o f church m in u tes a re m is s in g , a sad in d ic a tio n o f neg
l e c t . H is to r ic a l sk e tc h e s and a n n iv e rsa ry books p u b lis h e d by
th e churches have a ls o fu rn is h e d v a lu a b le m a te r ia l.
The p rim ary so u rce m a te r ia ls t h a t p e r ta in to c e r ta in
churches a re grouped to g e th e r in th e B ib lio g ra p h y . T his a r
rangem ent f a c i l i t a t e s th e fin d in g o f a l l m a te r ia ls , p u b lish e d
and u n p u b lish e d , f o r any g iv e n ch u rch .
CHAPTER I
EARLY SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCHES IN THE UNITED STATES
The f i r s t c o lo n iz a tio n o f Swedes on American s o i l to o k
p la c e i n 1638. They s e t t l e d on th e banks o f th e Delaware
R iv er in D elaw are, New J e rs e y and P e n n sy lv a n ia. As a p o l i t i
c a l u n i t th e New Sweden Colony la s te d only se v en te en y e a rs ,
from 1638 to 1666. The number o f s e t t l e r s d u rin g th e Swedish
governm ent o f th e colony was n ev er la r g e —o n ly th r e e o r fo u r
hundred s o u ls a t th e m o st, in c lu d in g some Dutchmen, and, a f t e r
th e e a r l i e s t y e a rs , some F in n s , and a few p e rso n s o f o th e r
n a t i o n a l i t i e s . Under D utch and E n g lish r u le th e s e ttle m e n t
became s tr o n g e r .
W e s h a l l n o t tr a c e th e changing fo rtu n e s o f t h i s colony
b ecau se th e re i s no h i s t o r i c a l lin k betw een New Sweden in
D elaw are and th e l a t e r waves o f im m igration w hich produced
S w edish-speaking ch u rch es o f s e v e ra l d en o m in atio n s.
S c a rc e ly had th e l a s t tr a c e s o f th e Delaware Colony
d isa p p e a re d b e fo re a new m ig ra tio n o f S can d in av ian s had begun.
The Swedish movement began ab o u t 1841 w ith th e s e ttle m e n t o f
G ustav U nonius and a sm all colony a t P ine LaJce, W isconsin.^
In 1843 Sweden removed th e r e s t r i c t i o n s to e m ig ra tio n , making
IG eo rg êT î. S tep h en so n , A H isto ry o f Am erican Immigra
t i o n , p . 3 1 .
6
p o s s ib le th e su b seq u en t exodus o f Swedish s u b je c ts to Ameri
can s h o re s .
The u n d e rly in g cau ses o f e m ig ra tio n from Sweden a re
summ arised in th e fo llo w in g q u o ta tio n :
Hard tim e s , crop f a i l u r e s , d i f f i c u l t y o f se c u rin g
lo a n s , money s trin g e n c y , low w ages, men o u t o f w ork, th e
demand f o r la b o re rs and housem aids in A m erica, a c e r t a in
d i s s a t i s f a c t i o n w ith Church and S ta te , th e propaganda o f
s t a t e s and e m ig ra tio n a g e n c ie s , l e t t e r s from e n th u s ia s tic
in m iig ran ts, an u n f a ir s o c ia l system —a l l c o n trib u te d to
th e same end. The "America f e v e r " —a p o p u la r term in
Sweden and Norway—sw ept p a r is h a f t e r p a r is h . Going to
A m erica was n o t an " in d u s try ," i t was a co n tag io u s d i s
ease .2
While th e d e s ir e f o r m a te r ia l b e tte rm e n t was undoubt
ed ly a p o te n t f a c t o r , th e re i s evidence t h a t many em ig ran ts
l e f t Sweden to f in d r e lig i o u s freedom in th e U n ited S ta te s o f
A m erica. L ike th e P u rita n s and H ugenots, th e y l e f t t h e i r
n a tiv e co u n try to escape o p p re ssio n and p e rs e c u tio n . A l i s t
o f th e s e "p ilg rim f a th e r s " from Sweden would in c lu d e such men
as Jo n as Hedstrom (1838), G,. U nonius (1841), E rik Ja n so n
(1846), L . P . E sb jo rn (1,849), E . N o re liu s (1850), G u sta f Palm*
q u i s t (1851), T. N. H a s s e lq u is t 0-852), Anders W iberg (1862),
and F . 0 . N ilss o n (1863). These had a l l been in flu e n c e d to
some e x te n t by George S c o tt, th e M eth o d ist clergyman: from
E ngland, by h i s d i s c i p l e , C, 0 . R o sen iu s, and by th e F in n is h
p r i e s t , F . G. H edberg.^
^ ^ i d . , p . 31.
^ C a rl G .* L ag e rg ren , E f te r S ju tti o A r, p p . 9 , 10.
7
Three o f th e s e men, G u staf P a lm q u ist, Anders W iberg
and F* 0* N ilsso n were d e s tin e d to become Swedish B a p tis t
p io n e e rs - A L u th eran h i s t o r i a n , D r. E* N o re liu s , as quoted
by D r. C. G. L ag erg ren , g iv e s u s th e fo llo w in g in fo rm a tiv e
sta te m e n t :
Among them t h a t em ig rated to Am erica in 1850 were many
s o - c a lle d 'L u th e r r e a d e rs " o r "H edbergians" who, d isc o n
t e n t w ith th e S ta te Church, purposed to e s ta b lis h a gen
u in e (Swedish: " â k ta " ) L u th eran Church where th e y m ight
f r e e ly u se th e "o ld b o o k s." To accom plish t h i s g o a l th ey
endeavored b e fo re t h e i r d e p a rtu re to se c u re a te a c h e r who
m ight fo llo w them to Am erica as soon as p o s s ib le . W hile
w a itin g in G evle f o r th e d e p a rtu re , th e y s e n t a d ep u ta
tio n to Stockholm w ith an i n v i t a t i o n to Anders W iberg,
vho had n o t y e t gone o v er to th e B a p tis t s , to become t h e i r
p a s to r . Because he was u n w illin g to a c c e p t th e c a l l , he
recommended to th e d e p u ta tio n t h a t th ey in v it e G u sta f
P a lm q u ist, a sc h o o l te a c h e r. He was th e r e f o r e c a lle d and
accep ted th e i n v i t a t i o n , p ro m isin g to come to Am erica th e
n e x t y e a r o r a s soon a s p o s s ib le
T his group t h a t c a lle d G u sta f P alm q u ist belonged to a
s tro n g p i e t i s t i c movement among th e L u th eran s t h a t f lo u r is h e d
in n o rth e rn Sweden. They were v io le n tly p e rs e c u te d and sought
a haven i n th e New W orld. When G u sta f P alm q u ist a r r iv e d (1861)
he found th e group s c a tte r e d w id ely , and he was w ith o u t a
p o s it io n .
A fte r m aking e x te n s iv e jo u rn e y s in Iow a, M innesota and
W isconsin, he came to G alesb u rg , I l l i n o i s , in th e s p rin g o f
1862. He had h e a rd ab o u t a r e v iv a l in th e American B a p tis t
Church and t h a t msiny Swedes had a f f i l i a t e d w ith 'th e church.
^ L ag erg ren , E f te r S ju tti o A r, p* 10.
8
R ecognizing th e r e v iv a l a s a work o f God, he made a c a re fu l
stu d y o f B a p tis t b e l i e f s and p r a c t i c e s , and d ecid ed to o a s t
h is l o t w ith t h i s p e o p le . He was immersed on c o n fe s sio n o f
h is f a i t h June 27, 1862, and a month l a t e r o rd ain e d to th e
'g o s p e l m in is tr y .^
The fo u n d in g o f th e f i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church in
Am erica i s s u c c in c tly r e l a t e d by an o th e r w r i t e r :
S h o rtly a f t e r h is o rd in a tio n P alm q u ist p roceeded to
Rock I s la n d , I l l i n o i s v h ere a good many Swedish im m igrants
had s e t t l e d . There he began h is g o sp e l m in is tr y . A few
were c o n v e rte d , and on A ugust 1 3 , 1852 th r e e o f th e s e
c o n v e rts were b a p tiz e d and o rg an iz ed in to a ch u rch . T his
em bryonic o rg a n iz a tio n h o ld s th e honor o f b e in g th e f i r s t
Swedish B a p tis t Church on Am erican s o i l . 6
G u sta f P alm q u ist tr a v e le d e x te n s iv e ly and la b o re d in c e s s a n tly
u n t i l he was b ro k en in h e a lth and re tu rn e d to Sweden. He d ie d
in Stockholm in 1867.
Anders W iberg was a s p i r i t u a l p io n e e r whose c o n trib u tio n
can n o t be o v e re s tim a te d . In th e f a l l o f 1852 we f in d him in
New York engaged a s a seam en's m issio n a ry by th e Am erican
B a p tis t P u b lic a tio n S o c ie ty . He had been immersed by F . 0 .
N ils s o n in Copenhagen on J u ly 23, 1862, w h ile e n ro u te to Amer
i c a . The fo llo w in g y e a r he to o k a p re a c h in g to u r th ro u g h o u t
th e M iddle W est, v i s i t i n g many Swedish s e ttle m e n ts and a id in g
B a p tis t churches founded by h is countrym en. L a te r he was em-
6 L ag erg ren , E f te r S ju tti o I r , p . 1 1 .
6 J,. 0 . B acklund, Swedish B a p tis ts i n A m erica, p . 3 9 .
9
p lo y ed by th e A m erican B a p tis t P u b lic a tio n S o c ie ty a s c o lp o rte r
and w r i te r o f books and pam phlets on d o c tr in a l su b je c ts * H is
e x p o s itio n o f C h ri-stia n d o c trin e g ain ed him l a s t i n g fame on
b o th s id e s o f th e A tla n tic *
F . 0 . N ils s o n 's name f ig u re s p ro m in en tly i n a l l Swedish
B a p tis t h i s t o r i c a l s tu d ie s co v e rin g th e e a r ly days* Through
C a p tain G* W. S ch ro ed er, who v i s i t e d Sweden in 1846, N ilsso n
was le d to c o n s id e r th e m eaning and mode o f New Testam ent
b a p tism , w ith th e r e s u l t t h a t he w ent to Hamburg, Germany, i n
1847, where he was b g p tiz e d A ugust 1 in th e E lbe R iv er by J* G.
Oncken* Two y e a rs l a t e r he was o rd a in e d by th e B a p tis t church
in Hamburg.
R etu rn in g to Sweden, he was b randed a s a h e r e tic and
b an ish ed from h is f a th e r la n d . W ith h is w ife and a p a r ty o f
lik em in d ed countrym en, he cro sse d th e A tla n tic and th e n t r a v
e le d to Rock I s la n d , I l l i n o i s * He became in s tru m e n ta l i n
fo u n d in g Swedish B a p tis t churches in B u rlin g to n and New Sweden,
lOwa; in H ouston, S can d ia, Chisago L ake, W astado, C arver and
Grove C ity , M in n eso ta.
In 1846 he re tu rn e d to Sweden as a m issio n a ry employed
by th e T w e n ty -fifth S tr e e t B a p tis t Church i n New Y ork. Hav
in g been b a n ish e d , he now made a s u c c e s s fu l ap p e al to C h arles
XV and re c e iv e d h i s p ard o n on December 1 1 , 1860.
As p re v io u s ly n o te d , th e f i r s t Swedish B a p tis t churdh
i n Am erica was o rg a n iz e d in Rock I s la n d , I l l i n o i s , Septem ber
10
26, 1852 by G u sta f P a lm q u ist, bavii%g s ix c h a r te r members*
in 1875 th e membership in Rock Is la n d reac h ed a peak o f one
hundred s e v e n ty -th re e , b u t i t s s tr e n g th waned i n th e decades
t h a t fo llo w e d ,
O ther e a rly ch u rch es and th e d a te s o f t h e i r orgainiza-
t i o n a re th e fo llo w in g : C hicago, I l l i n o i s , 1853 (? ), New Swe
den , Iowa, 1853, V illa g e C reek, Iowa, August 10, 1863, H ouston,
M in n eso ta, August 1 8 , 1863, Swede Bend, Iowa, 1856, A lto n a,
I l l i n o i s , 1857, S can d ia, M in n eso ta, A ugust 1 , 1855, Chisago
L ake, M innesota, 1866, W astado, M innesota, J u ly 5 , 1867, C arv er,
M in n eso ta, 1858, V asa, M in n eso ta, Meirch 17, 1860, A cton, Minn
e s o ta , 1869 o r 1860 embers d is p e rs e d 1862 by a tta c k o f Sioux
I n d ia n s ) , and Cam bridge, M in n eso ta, June 17, 1860.
A g e n e ra l m e etin g o f r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s from th e churches
was h e ld June 20 - 25, 1866. Four churches o u t o f e lev en were
r e p re s e n te d : C hicago, Rock I s la n d , V illa g e Creek and New S w e d e n .^
T his g a th e rin g may be co n sid e re d as th e em bryonic form o f th e
S can d in av ian B a p tis t G en eral C onference t h a t was o rg an ized i n
V illa g e C reek, Iow a, June 12 - 14, 1879. I t i s a ls o reg ard ed
as th e in c e p tio n o f th e Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f I l l i n o i s
alth o u g h th e I llin o is - I o w a C onference had been o rg an iz ed
June 17, 1864.8
7L agergren, E f t e r S j u tt i o A r, p . 3 1 .
SBacklund, Swedish B a p tis ts in A m erica, p . 136
11
I n M innesota th e sm all s c a tte r e d churches a ls o f e l t
th e need o f an o rg an iz e d fe llo w sh ip f o r m u tu al e d if ic a ti o n
and m issio n a ry en d eav o r. At a m eeting i n S can d ia, Septainber
19 , 1858, th e Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f M innesota was
o rg a n iz e d , c o n s is tin g o f fo u r ch u rch es: H ouston, S can d ia,
Wastado and C hisago L ake, th e t o t a l membership b e in g one hun
d red and s ix ty
The y e a r 1870 m arks th e b e g in n in g o f a new p e rio d in
Sw edish B a p tis t h i s t o r y , so a summary o f achievem ents p r i o r
to t h a t y e a r w i ll conclude t h i s c h a p te r .
From th e in s i g n i f i c a n t group o f s ix c h a r te r members i n
Rock Is la n d th e number had grown to an e s tim a te d one th o u san d .
Twenty-rfour churches had been o rg an ized in e ig h te e n y e a rs —
more th a n one a y e a r . The churches had no d en o m in atio n al
p e r io d ic a l d u rin g th e s e f i r s t y e a rs and no tr a in i n g sch o o l f o r
m in is te r s Such in d is p e n s a b le a d ju n c ts o f d en o m in atio n al
work were s t a r t e d e a rly in th e fo llo w in g p e rio d u n d er th e a b le
le a d e rs h ip o f John A le x is Bdgren.
^ A .. G. H a ll, Svenska B a n tis te rn a s H is t o r i a , p . 3 9 .
C. G. L ag e rg ren , "De f ÿ r a h u v u d p erib d ern a i v a r h i s -
t o r i a sâsom e t t sv e n sk t b a p tis ts a m fin d i Am erica (1852 - 1 929),
Svenska S ta n d a re ti A p ril 22, 1930.
C H A P T E R I I
BEGINNINGS A N D DEVELOPM ENT IN THE BAY AREA
EARLY W O R K A M O N G THE SWEDISH PEOPLE
The h is to r y o f Swedish B a p tis ts in C a lif o r n ia goes back
to th e e ig h te e n hundred e ig h tie s when t h e i r f i r s t churches
were o rg a n iz e d . The p o p u la tio n o f C a lif o r n ia a t t h a t tim e was
c e n tr a liz e d around th e San F ra n c isc o Bay a r e a . Q u ite n a tu r
a l l y , th e n , th e r a t h e r sm all p e rc e n ta g e o f Swedish p eo p le was
found m ainly in th e same re g io n . The p o p u la tio n o f C a lif o r
n i a 's le a d in g c i t i e s was sm a ll i n 1880 compared w ith p re s e n t
p o p u la tio n f i g u r e s . A ccording to th e U n ite d S ta te s census o f
1880, San F ra n c isc o had a p o p u la tio n o f 233,369, O akland
34 ,6 5 5 , Lbs A ngeles 1 1 ,1 8 3 , and San Diego 2 ,6 3 7 .
The e a r l i e s t r e lig i o u s work among th e Swedish p eo p le
o f w hich th e re i s re c o rd was s t a r t e d by th e L u th eran s in 1860.
They o rg an iz ed a sm a ll church in 1861 b u t i t was s h o r t- liv e d ,
a s w ere o th e r sp o ra d ic e f f o r t s to e s ta b li s h L u th eran churches
in th e l a t e s i x t i e s and e a rly s e v e n tie s .^
In 1873 a c e r t a i n P . W. Sundbom i s s a id to have a r r iv e d
in San F ra n c is c o . L i t t l e i s known ab o u t h i s background and
t r a i n i n g , b u t he g a th e re d th e p eo p le f o r p re a c h in g s e r v ic e s .
^ E rn s t S k a r s te d t, C a lif o r n ia och d e s s sv en sk a b e fo lk -
n in g , p p . 179, 180.
13
Through h i s e f f o r t s a u n io n church was o rg a n iz e d , o f w hich he
became th e p a s to r . G rad u ally v a rio u s d en o m in atio n al groups
s p l i t o f f from th e co n g reg a tio n to s t a r t s e p a ra te ch u rch es,
r e s u l t i n g in th e d is s o lu tio n o f th e U nion C h u r c h T h e f i r s t
Swedish M eth o d ist %)iscopeûL Church o f San F ra n c isc o was
founded in 1876. Two y e a rs l a t e r th e f i r s t Swedish M issio n
Covenant Church, a ls o lo c a te d in San F ra n c is c o , was o rg a n iz e d .
The E benezer L u th e ra n Church was founded in 1882
A number o f Swedish B a p tis ts were l i v i n g in th e Bay
re g io n a t t h i s tim e , b u t m ost o f th a n b elo n g ed to th e American
B a p tis t churches w hich were a lre a d y e s ta b lis h e d . Bonds o f
language and t r a d i t i o n drew them to g e th e r , and th e y m et f r e
q u e n tly in m eetin g s o f t h e i r own f o r s p i r i t u a l e d i f i c a t i o n .
Some o f them f e l t v e ry k een ly th e need o f an o rg an iz e d Swedish
B a p tis t Churchy b u t th e y la ck ed le a d e r s h ip .
P a s to r G u sta f L i l j e r o t h from P o rtla n d , O regon, was th e
f i r s t Swedish B a p tis t m in is te r to la b o r in C a lif o r n ia . He
came a f t e r r e c e iv in g in q u ir ie s from M rs. R ina O lson and N. P .
Jo h n so n , b o th liv i n g in O akland, re g a rd in g th e p o s s i b i l i t y o f
s e c u rin g a p re a c h e r f o r th e San F ra n c isc o Bay a r e a . In s te a d
o f sen d in g a n o th e r. P a s to r L i l j e r o t h d ec id ed to come h im s e lf,
and a r r iv e d June 13, 1884. The f i r s t m eetin g was h e ld in
^ San F ra n c is c o , H is to ry o f F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t.
C hurch, 1889 - 1914, p p . 4 and 5 .
^ S k a r s te d t, C a lif o r n ia och d e ss sv en sk a b e fo lk n in g ,
p p . 180, 187, 191.
14
Mrs* R ina O lso n ’s home th e n e x t e v e n in g .4
P a s to r L i l j e r o t h h e ld th e o p in io n t h a t work sh o u ld be
s t a r t e d i n San F ra n c isc o f i r s t , and made e f f o r t s acco rd in g ly *
S e rv ic e s were h e ld i n th e F i r s t B a p tis t Church and l a t e r in a
r e n te d h a l l . G re a te r su c c e ss a tte n d e d th e work in O akland,
how ever, and f h r th e r e f f o r t s i n San F ra n c isc o w ere te m p o ra rily
su sp en d ed .^
As p re v io u s ly in d ic a te d , G u sta f L i l j e r o t h came to C al
i f o r n i a from P o rtla n d , O regon. In t h a t c i t y he had been in
s tru m e n ta l in o rg a n iz in g a S candinavian B a p tis t Church on
Jan u ary 1 , 1884. P r io r to t h a t he had la b o re d i n S e a t tle ,
W ashington, where th e F i r s t S can d in av ian B a p tis t Church o f
S e a t tle was o rg a n iz e d June 3 , 1883. T h is was th e f i r s t Scan
d in a v ia n B a p tis t church on th e P a c if ic C o a st. Due c r e d i t
sh o u ld be g iv en O laus O kerson f o r h is p io n e e r work i n S e a t tle ,
b u t t h a t i s somewhat beyond th e scop’e o f t h i s s tu d y . H is
name i s m entioned, how ever, b ecau se i t was h i s p le a f o r min
i s t e r s t h a t had b ro u g h t G u sta f L i l j e r o t h to th e Coast.®
L i l j e r o t h was f r a i l in h e a lth b u t la b o re d f a i t h f u l l y ,
b e in g g r e a tly a id e d by h is g i f t e d w ife who was a s tu d e n t o f
^ San F ra n c is c o , H isto ry o f F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch. 1889 - 1914, p . 6 .
® I b i d . , p p . 6 — 7 .
® P.. B enson, B e g v n n e lse tid e r av Svenska B a p tis te m a s
V erksam het p i V a s tk u s te n . p p . 4 4 -4 5 .
16
m e d ic in e . T his man o f God re tu rn e d to Sweden l a t e r and
p a sse d to h is e t e r n a l rew ard J u ly 3 1 , 1891, b e in g o n ly f o r ty
y e a rs o ld .^
OA K LA TO ^
E vents le a d in g up to th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e F i r s t
S can d in av ian B a p tis t Church o f O akland have been tr a c e d in th e
p re c e d in g s e c tio n . On F eb ru ary 1 , 1886 fo u rte e n c h a r te r mem
b e rs banded th e n s e lv e s to g e th e r as a church f o r th e advance
ment o f th e cause o f C h r is t. T h e ir names w ere: Mrs* L . G.
O lso n , M rs. Anna S o d e rstra n d , J o e l Lund, th e R everend G u sta f
L i l j e r o t h and w ife . M iss L in a J . H agstrom , M iss K a tie B o lin ,
M iss Anna B o lin , M iss B e ata C h r is to f f e r s o n , M iss M artha Sands,
N. P . Jo h n so n , P . G. C a rlso n , A. W ernquist and M rs. G ustava
P a u lso n .
P a s to rs who a s s i s t e d a t th e o rg a n iz a tio n w ere: G. L i l j e
r o t h , D r. S a w te lle , D r. A bbott and Mr. M orse. G* L il j e r o t h
became th e f i r s t r e g u la r p a s to r .
A C ouncil o f R e co g n itio n was h e ld June 16, 1885, and th e
fo llo w in g J u ly 12 a p u b lic s e rv ic e was h e ld a t th e San Pablo
Avenue B a p tis t Church in w hich th e new S candinavian B a p tis t
Church was re co g n ize d by i t s s i s t e r B a p tis t ch u rch es-
^ A,. G. H a ll, Svenska B a n tis te rn a s H is to r ia . I I , p . 250.
8
S ources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
B ib lio g ra p h y u n d e r: O akland, C a lif o r n ia , F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch.
16
On O ctober 5 , 1886 th e church v o te d to a f f i l i a t e w ith
th e C e n tra l B a p tis t A s s o c ia tio n . On th e same d a te a d e c is io n
was made to b u ild a church home. A s i t e was p u rch ased a t
T enth and M agnolia S t r e e t s . When com pleted, th e ch u rch ,
in c lu d in g s i t e , c o s t # ,6 6 0 .0 0 .
On November 36, 1885 th e name o f th e church was changed
by s u b s t itu ti n g th e word "Swedish" f o r "S can d in av ian ."
P a s to r L i l j e r o t h r e p o rte d in an a r t i c l e ap p e arin g in
Nya V eck o -P o sten . August 19, 1885 :
W e a re as happy as we can b e . I know o f none among u s
who i s d i s s a t i s f i e d , none who d e s ir e s to dom inate o r c r i
t i c i z e , none who i s i l l - d i s p o s e d . In d eed , we a re a happy
p e o p le . W e have had c o n s id e ra b le expense b u t no one has
com plained.
One o f th e c h a r te r members, M iss L in a J . H agstrom , w ent
to th e Chicago M issio n ary T ra in in g School and l a t e r re tu rn e d
to la b o r z e a lo u s ly f o r th e cause o f C h r is t i n th e Bay A rea.
She worked f r u i t f u l l y in th e O akland church o v e r a lo n g p e rio d
o f y e a rs .
P a s to r L i l j e r o t h c lo se d h is work J u ly 5 , 1887, the
membership h av in g grown to t h i r t y - s i x .
A Sunday School was s t a r t e d May 1 0 , 1895 w ith te n c h i l
d re n e n r o lle d . N. P . Johnson was chosen th e f i r s t s u p e rin
te n d e n t .
C. M. N elson
P a s to r G. M. N elson and fam ily came to O akland in
17
Septem ber, 1887 from Clay C e n te r, K ansas. He had g r e a t z e a l
f o r th e L o rd 's c a u se , evidenced by e x te n s iv e m issio n ary jo u r
neys w ith in th e s t a t e in a d d itio n to in c e s s a n t la b o rs w ith in
th e O akland c h u rc h . San Jo se and K ingsburg were v i s i t e d ,
and th ro u g h h is e f f o r t s th e m issio n in San F ra n c isc o was r e
v iv e d . In th e l a t t e r f i e l d he m a in ta in ed r e g u la r s e rv ic e s
u n t i l a church co u ld be o rg an ized F ebruary 15, 1889. T h irte e n
o f th e f o u rte e n c h a r te r members i n San F ra n c isc o came from th e
Oakland ch u rch .
The church grew r a p id ly d u rin g t h i s p e r io d , p r in c ip a lly
from th e la rg e in f lu x o f p eo p le who came from th e e a s te rn
s t a t e s and Sweden. P a s to r N elson serv ed th e church th r e e y e a rs
and e ig h t m onths, re c e iv in g in to th e church one hundred and
seven members. T h irty o f th e s e he im m ersed, f iv e came on
sta te m e n t o f e x p e rie n c e , and seventy-tw o b ro u g h t l e t t e r s o f
d is m is s io n from o th e r c h u rc h e s. The t o t a l membership was
e ig h ty -fo u r when he c lo s e d h is work in May, 1891. F . 0 . N elson
se rv e d a s p a s to r ad in te rim d u rin g th e rem ain in g months o f
1891. D uring th o s e m onths th e church p u rch ased a b u ild in g
s i t e in K ingsburg, p la n n in g to s t a r t r e g u la r work t h e r e . M is
s io n a ry e f f o r t s were a ls o p u t f o r th in San J o s e .
A l l f r i d S jo la n d e r
The n e x t p a s to r was A l lf r i d S jo la n d e r from M in n eap o lis,
and h is fam ily a r r iv e d in O akland Ja n u ary 20, 1892. The
18
church made ste a d y p ro g re s s u n d er h is le a d e r s h ip . F in a n c ia l
d i f f i c u l t i e s were en co u n tered due to h a rd tim e s , n e v e rth e le s s
th e church succeeded w e ll f in a n c i a l l y . The c o m e r l o t a d jo in
in g th e church p ro p e rty was p u rch ased a t an o u tla y o f e ig h te e n
hundred d o l la r s .
Work among th e young p eo p le had been su p e rv is e d by th e
church m is sio n a ry , M iss L in a Hagstrom , b u t th e re was no form al
o rg a n iz a tio n u n t i l 1892j The K in g 's Host became i t s name.
Encouragem ent c o n tin u ed to be g iv e n to work in o u tly in g
com m unities such a s San Jo se and Red B lu f f , idiere Churches
were o rg an ized in 1892.
P a s to r S jo la n d e r c lo se d h is work J u ly 1 , 1897, having
la b o re d in th e church f iv e y e a rs and f iv e m onths • The t o t a l
membership was th e n one hundred tw o.
A. W. Backlund
A s h o r t vacancy was f i l l e d by Amsindus Johnson, D. D.
and J . T. N orrby u n t i l A. W. Backlund a r r iv e d from Los A ngeles
to assume th e p a s to r a l r e s p o n s i b ilit y in Septem ber, 1897.
The church grew in s tre n g th u n d er h is le a d e rs h ip and began to
p la n f o r a la r g e r house o f w o rsh ip . A b u ild in g fund was
s t a r t e d and s u b s t a n tia lly augm ented. The e f f o r t s p u t f o r t h .
i n K ingsburg came to f r u i t i o n i n th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f a church
th e r e in A p ril, 1901. T his new church c a lle d P a s to r Backlund
to be i t s sh ep h erd , a c a l l which he ac ce p ted in F e b ru a ry , 1904,
19
c lo s in g h is work i n O akland. The membership had now grovm to
one hundred and f if t y - tw o .
J . A lfre d E rick so n
Conspicuous p ro g re s s was made u n d er th e le a d e rs h ip o f
P a s to r J . A lfre d E rick so n who came to O akland in Septem ber,
1904. In A ugust, 1904, j u s t b e fo re h is a r r i v a l , th e church
had v o te d to p ro ceed w ith th e c o n s tru c tio n o f a new church
e d if ic e as soon as f e a s i b l e . The o ld b u ild in g was s o ld to a
D anish L u th eran church and moved away, m aking room f o r th e new
a t th e same lo c a tio n . S e a tin g c a p a c ity o f th e new church was
f iv e hundred, ex c lu d in g a d jo in in g rooms which co u ld be opened
to th e main s a n c tu a ry . The c o s t was # 9 ,0 0 0 .0 0 , and th e l o t
was v alu ed a t # 0 0 0 .0 0 .
A church p ap e r c a lle d "The Church M essenger" was
launched by th e p a s t o r . I t was a m onthly p u b lic a tio n .
A sewing s o c ie ty , "L in n ea," composed o f young women,
was o rg a n iz ed in 1906.
When P a s to r E ric k so n l e f t in A p r il, 1910, f o r a new
f i e l d in R ockford, I l l i n o i s , th e membership re c o rd co n tain e d
two hundred and fo rty -o n e nam es. The o rg a n iz a tio n o f two nev/
Swedish B a p tis t ch u rch es in T u rlo ck and B ighson in 1908 had
drawn some members from th e O akland church vho re s id e d in
th o s e com m unities.
20
B. L . C a rlto n
P a s to r B. L • C a rlto n came from F a rg o , N . D. , b eg in n in g
h i s work in O akland on O ctober 8 , 1910.
S e v e ra l Im provem ents were made in th e a d m in is tra tio n
o f th e ch u rch , n o ta b ly in I t s f in a n c e s . Weekly c o n trib u tio n s
f o r c u rre n t expenses and m is s io n s , u s in g d u p lex en v elo p es,
w ere in a u g u ra te d , d is p la c in g th e m onthly o f f e r in g s #L ich had
b een p r a c tic e d s e v e r a l y e a r s . The f i r s t s te p s i n t r a n s i t i o n
fforn Swedish to E n g lish were a ls o ta k e n . Two s e rv ic e s a month
u s in g th e Stoglish language were ag reed upon in o rd e r to m in is
t e r more e f f e c t iv e ly to th e young p e o p le .
In Septem ber, 1916 th e church a c te d as h o s t to th e
an n u al m eetin g o f th e Swedish B a p tis t G en eral C onference o f
A m erica.
P a s to r C a rlto n c lo se d h is work A ugust 11, 1919, h av in g
a c ce p te d a c a l l to M o lin e, I l l i n o i s . He had re c e iv e d in to th e
church a t o t a l o f one hundred members d u rin g h is n in e -y e a r
p a s t o r a t e . T h ir ty - e ig h t o f th e s e had been b a p tiz e d . The
m embership was two hundred and n in e when he l e f t .
John P rib o rg
The Reverend Jo h n F rib o rg became p a s to r ^ in te rim in
Septem ber, 1919, b u t one month l a t e r he was in v ite d to become
th e r e s id e n t p a s to r , w hich c a l l he a c c e p te d .
The q u e s tio n o f moving to a new lo c a tio n was r a is e d a t
V
th e an n u al m eetin g o f th e church januarj^ 1 , 1921, th e re a s o n
b e in g t h a t c o lo re d p eo p le w ere moving in to West O akland. As
an i n i t i a l s te p th e t r u s t e e s were ap p o in ted to be on th e lo o k
o u t f o r a new s i t e . These o f f i c e r s were a ls o a u th o riz e d on
Septem ber 2 8, 1922 to s e l l th e o ld church e d if ic e f o r f i f t e e n
thousand d o l l a r s , th e minimum p r ic e to be tw elv e thousand
d o lla r s w ith o u t th e p ip e o rg an o r f o u rte e n thousand w ith i t .
Consummation o f th e s a le d id n o t ta k e p la c e u n t i l F ebruary 26,
1926. On t h a t d a te th e tr u s te e s were a u th o riz e d to s e l l th e
church to th e B eth Eden B a p tis t Church fo r a minimum o f tw elve
thousand d o l l a r s . The l a s t m eetin g i n th e o ld b u ild in g was
h e ld August 1 6 , 1926*
In th e m eantim e a lo c a tio n had b een p u rch ased a t 1 5 th
S t r e e t and T h ird Avenue by v o te o f th e ch u rch on O ctober 3 0 ,
1924. The p u rch ase p r ic e was # 4 ,6 4 6 * 5 7 . At t h i s lo c a tio n a
b e a u tif u l and sp a c io u s e d if ic e was e re c te d c o s tin g $ 3 4 ,9 8 9 .8 4 .
The d e d ic a tio n was h e ld A ugust 2 6 , 1926.
P a s to r P rib o rg clo se d a s u c c e s s fu l p a s to r a te on Decan-
b e r 3 1 , 1926. The membership was two hundred s e v e n ty -th re e
when he l e f t f o r a n o th e r f i e l d o f se rv ic e *
N . C, P arso n s
The new m in is te r who succeeded John P rib o rg was N. C.
P arso n s who a r r iv e d on th e f i e l d A p ril 1 , 1927. The i n t e r v a l
b e fo re h is coming had been f i l l e d by th e R everend C h arles A splund.
22
S e v e ra l changes in th e o rg a n iz a tio n and a d m in is tra tio n
o f th e ch u rch were in a u g u ra te d u n d er th e new le a d e r s h ip . An
E x ecu tiv e Committee was ap p o in ted Jan u ary 2 , 1928 w ith a u th o r
i t y to tr a n s a c t b u s in e s s betw een th e r e g u la r b u s in e s s m e etin g s.
T h is com m ittee was composed o f p a s to r , cheiirmen o f deacons
and t r u s t e e s , p r e s id e n ts o f women's and young p e o p le 's s o c ie
t i e s , and th e church tr e a s u re r*
A J u n io r C hurch, w hich had been sponsored by th e young
p e o p le 's s o c ie ty , became to o la rg e f o r them to s u p e rv is e e f
f i c i e n t l y , whereupon th e church to o k i t o v e r and ap p o in ted a
com m ittee to have o v e rs ig h t o f t h i s im p o rta n t work*
On Jan u ary 1 , 1931 a recom m endation was adopted to ap
p o in t a R e lig io u s E d u catio n C ouncil to have charge o f work in
th e Sunday School and among th e young p e o p le . The Sunday
School s u p e rin te n d e n t. P rim ary S u p e rin te n d e n t, p r e s id e n t o f
th e B. Y. P . Ü ., th e chairm an o f th e Board o f Deacons and th e
p a s to r c o n s titu te d t h i s c o u n c il. P au l B. Stone was ap p o in ted
D ir e c to r o f R e lig io u s Work.
An a s s i s t a n t p a s to r , P* P e te rs e n , was engaged Jan u ary
3 0 , 1930. He had been p a s to r o f th e D anish- Norwegian B a p tis t
Church w hich d isb an d ed i n 1929. Teh o f i t s members u n ite d w ith
th e Swedish church*
A hew o rd e r o f s e rv ic e s f o r Sunday m ornings was adopted
p r o v is io n a lly on Ja n u ary 2 , 1933, and l a t e r approved, a s fol-*
lo w s: Sunday S ch o o l, te n o 'c lo c k , Swedish s e r v ic e , t e n f i f t e e n .
and E n g lish s e rv ic e e le v e n o 'c lo c k . T his arrangem ent has con
tin u e d to th e p r e s e n t tim e .
F o r th e p u rp o se o f re a c h in g th e community more e f f e c t
i v e ly , th e name o f th e church was changed to L ak esid e B a p tis t
Church on Septem ber 27, 1935.
P a s to r P arso n s su b m itte d h is r e s ig n a tio n August 7 ,
1938, to be e f f e c t iv e November 30 o r u n t i l th e new p a s to r
sh o u ld a r r i v e .
Reuben A. O lson
The p re s e n t p a s to r assumed h is d u tie s Ja n u ary 1 , 1939.
He i s b u ild in g s o li d ly upon th e work o f h is p re d e c e s s o rs , and
th e church i s re sp o n d in g to h is le a d e r s h ip . The membership
was fo u r 1 hundred and e le v e n a t th e c lo s e o f 1942.
The L ak esid e B a p tis t Church h as produced s e v e ra l m in is
t e r s and m is s io n a r ie s . I t s lo c a tio n n e a r th e U n iv e rs ity o f
C a lif o r n ia and th e B erk eley B a p tis t D iv in ity School has drawn
in to i t s membership s tu d io u s young p eo p le from s m a lle r com
m u n itie s who have p re p a re d th em selv es f o r f h ll- tîm e C h r is tia n
s e r v ic e .
O u tle ts f o r C h r is tia n s e rv ic e have b een found by th e
young p eo p le in a b ran ch Sunday School in E a s t O akland, th e
C h r is tia n F rie n d sh ip C en ter in West O akland, and th e Open Door
M issio n .
24
SAN FRANCISCO^
As p re v io u s ly re c o rd e d , work among Swedish B a p tis ts was
begun i n San F ra n c isc o i n 1884, b u t th e f i r s t church was n o t
o rg a n iz ed u n t i l F eb ru ary 15, 1889. There w ere f o u rte e n c h a r
t e r members whose names w ere: M. P au lso n , John A lm q u ist, Alma
A nderson, Anton P e te rs o n , M rs. H ild a P e te rs o n , W. O. P e te rs o n ,
J . 2 . Jo h n so n , H. V. H ed lin d , M a th ild a H ed lin d , E lle n Rehn-
strom V ire n , C a ro lin e Hammarlünd, M ath ias H ordlund, T ina John
son and C h r is tin N elso n .
The o rg a n iz a tio n to o k p la c e i n th e F i r s t Am erican Bap
t i s t Church, whose p a s to r , D r. W illiam K in k a id , serv ed a s
chairm an o f th e m e etin g . The Reverend G. M. N elso n , D octor
0 . B. A bbott and th e R everend C. B. W right a lso a s s i s t e d .
Mr. M. P au lso n was e le c te d chairm an o f th e ch u rch , and
he p reach ed q u ite r e g u la r ly u n t i l th e Reverend A ugust O lson
from Los A ngeles became th e f i r s t s e t t l e d p a s to r o f th e new
c h u rc h . P a s to r O lson was welcomed O ctober 10, 1889. Under
h is le a d e rs h ip th e church made c o n s id e ra b le p ro g re s s . He
c lo se d h i s m in is tr y w ith t h i s church December 15, 1892, and
no su c c e s so r was se cu red f o r a whole y e a r.
® S ources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
th e B ib lio g rap h y u n d e r: San F ra n c is c o , C a lif o r n ia , F i r s t
Swedish B a p tis t C hurch.
26
C. M. N elson
On November 7 , 1893 th e church is s u e d a c a l l to th e
Reverend C. M. N elso n . He la b o re d d i l i g e n t l y , e s p e c ia lly in
an e f f o r t to p ro v id e a more s u ita b le m eetin g p la c e th a n th e
one in w hich s e rv ic e s w ere b e in g h e ld . Not only were funds
s o l i c i t e d in Sah F ra n c is c o , b u t th e p a s to r to o k a s p e c ia l
t r i p to th e B ast i n o rd e r to r a i s e fu n d s. A p p aren tly he was
cooly re c e iv e d by many churches b ecau se o f h ard tim e s , and th e
money c o lle c te d d id n o t co v er h is ex p e n ses. He te rm in a te d
h is s e rv ic e in 1895.
M atts C arlso n
The R everend M atts C a rlso n serv ed th e church o n ly s ix
m onths, from F eb ru ary to J u ly , h av in g p re v io u s ly prom ised a
church in M ora, Sweden, t h a t he would become i t s p a s to r a f t e r
s ix m onths. H is b r i e f m in is try was f r u i t f u l and p ro m isin g ,
b u t he could n o t be p ersu ad ed to remaiin.
C h arles Palm
P a s to r C h a rles Palm was c a lle d from Evanston^ I l l i n o i s ,
and to o k up th e work in Ja n u a ry , 1897. p i March th e purch&se
o f a b u ild in g s i t e on 1 0 th S tr e e t betw een Howard and Folsom
S tr e e ts v/as consummated. C ost o f th e l o t was $2,500, o f w hich
# ,9 0 0 was p a id in c a sh . S tep s were teiken im m ediately to e r e c t
26
a house o f w o rsh ip . The f i r s t m eetin g was h e ld in th e low er
au d ito riu m on Septem ber 16, 1897. Owing to la c k o f fu n d s,
th e m ain au d ito riu m and g a lle r y were l e f t u n fin is h e d f o r sev
e r a l m onths. On May 8 , 1898 s e rv ic e s were h e ld in th e com
p le te d church home, a s tr u c tu r e s e a tin g upw ards o f f iv e hun
d re d p e o p le . The t o t a l c o s t, e x c lu siv e o f f r e e la b o r, was
$8,000.
C o n sid erab le p ro g re s s was made u n d er P a s to r P alm 's
le a d e r s h ip . N in e ty -fiv e members were re c e iv e d in to th e f e l
low ship o f th e church d u rin g h is fo u r and o n e -h a lf y e a rs as
p a s to r . He was a b ly a s s is te d by M iss H ulda L o fg ren , a Sun
day School m is s io n a ry . Two m issio n Sunday Schools were
sponsored by th e c h u rc h . He l e f t San F ra n c isc o in Ju n e , 1901.
p . A. Hjelm
S h o rtly b e fo re th e a r r i v a l from Chicago o f th e R ever
end P . A. H jelm , th e church b u ild in g was damaged by f i r e on
June 1 3, 1901. The e s tim a te d lo s s o f f i f t e e n hundred d o lla r s
was covered by in s u ra n c e , and a f t e r r e p a i r s were made, th e
b u ild in g became more a t t r a c t i v e th a n b e f o r e .
P a s to r Hjelm was a w ise le a d e r . N u m erically th e
church d id n o t grow much because p eo p le w ere b eg in n in g to
move to o u tly in g d i s t r i c t s , b u t th e church was h e a lth y and
u n ite d . E arly i n 1906 he te n d e re d h is r e s ig n a tio n , in te n d
in g to le a v e San F ra n c isc o on J u ly 1 s t . H is p la n s were u p s e t
27
by th e g r e a t earth q u ak e and f i r e o f A p ril 18, 1906. No
th in g rem ained o f th e church b u ild in g , b u t n o t a s in g le mem
b e r o f th e church fam ily had p e ris h e d in th e h o lo c a u s t.
The Emmanuel B a p tis t Church was re n te d and u se d f o r
th e r e g u la r s e rv ic e s u n t i l a new church co u ld be e r e c te d .
The p a s to r rem ained on th e f i e l d to h e lp th e church in t h i s
em ergency. He r a is e d betw een f iv e and s ix thousand d o lla r s
tow ard th e proposed new e d i f i c e . In December, 1906 he l e f t
f o r C hicago, h a v in g ac c e p te d an o th e r c h a rg e .
A b e t t e r lo c a tio n f o r th e new church was p u rch ased a t
th e c o rn e r o f 1 7 th and D earborn S t r e e t s . A c o n tr a c t was l e t
to B erg er and Wengard f o r th e c o n s tru c tio n o f an e d if ic e
c o s tin g te n thousand d o l l a r s . Accumulated fUnds in s p ire d
th e hope o f d e d ic a tin g th e new church f r e e o f d e b t b u t t h i s
was n o t to b e . Through th e f a i l u r e o f th e C a lif o r n ia S afe
D ep o sit Company, th e church l o s t n e a rly f iy e thousand d o l
l a r s —a s ta g g e rin g l o s s . A fte r some d e la y , a loam was secu red
and th e work co u ld p ro c e e d . C o n s tru c tio n was begun in No
vem ber, 1907. In A p r il, 1908 th e Sunday School au d ito riu m
was read y f o r occupancy, and on May 17, 1908 th e s e rv ic e o f
d e d ic a tio n was h e ld . T o ta l c o s t o f th e b u ild in g , in c lu d in g
l o t and f u r n is h in g s , was n e a rly $21,000. T his e d if ic e i s
s t i l l b e in g u sed by th e church b u t a new lo c a tio n would be
d e s ir a b le .
J . p . R o sq u ist
B eing w ith o u t a le a d e r , th e co n g reg a tio n tu rn e d to
th e Reverend J . P . R o sq u ist f o r tem porary p a s to r a l h e l p . He
a r r iv e d soon a f t e r New Y e a r 's , 1907, and rem ained u n t i l
e a r ly in 1909. M isu n d erstan d in g s and d i f f i c u l t i e s a ro s e ,
co n cern in g w hich Swan A. Engw all h as w r itte n as fo llo w s :
S h o rtly a f t e r h is a r r i v a l a m otion was made t h a t he
sh o u ld he c a lle d f o r an in d e f in i te tim e . When th e f u l l
im p o rt o f t h i s a c tio n became c l e a r , i t caused d e p re s sio n
among many o f th e church members. The co u rse o f ev en ts
le d to th e w ith d raw al o f some t h i r t y members who founded
a new o rg a n iz a tio n c a lle d th e Salem B a p tis t C h u r o h . 10
The fo llo w in g p a ra g ra p h , tr a n s l a te d from th e Sw edish,
i s co p ied from th e H is to ry o f th e F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church
o f San F ra n c is c o , p u b lis h e d in 1914, pages 15 and 16:
The church became in v o lv ed in many m isu n d erstan d in g s
d u rin g t h i s tim e and l o s t ab o u t s e v e n ty -fiv e members, o f
whom tw e n ty -fiv e to t h i r t y now b elo n g to th e new ch u rch .
W ithout g o in g in to d e t a i l s , i t should s t i l l be s ta te d
t h a t th e c o n te n tio n s o f th e F i r s t Church in a l l th e s e
m a tte rs have been su p p o rted o f f i c i a l l y and unanim ously
by th e r e g u la r d en o m in atio n al c o u n c ils . The F i r s t Clmrch
has been and i s read y f o r r e c o n c ilia tio n because i t r e
g ard s th e d iv is io n as b e in g v ery im p ra c tic a l and a r e
g r e tta b le w eakening o f Swedish B a p tis t work i n th e c i t y ,
and an in d e fe n s ib le w aste o f h a rd -e a rn e d m is sio n fU nds,
e s p e c isilly in view o f th e f a c t t h a t th e new s i s t e r church
has n o t ta k e n up a new m is sio n f i e l d i n th e c i ty b u t has
s e t t l e d down in th e same s e c tio n w ith th e F i r s t , Church.
The co u rse o f e v e n ts d u rin g th e p a s t f iv e y e a rs have i n
v a r ia b ly confirm ed th e s e c o n te n tio n s . May th e L ord, who
can tran sfo rm e v e ry th in g , b rin g th e s e a m b ig u itie s (Swedish:
" tv e ty d ig h e te r ” ) to a good r e s u l t , to th e g lo ry o f H is
name.
E leven y e a rs l a t e r th e Salem Swedish B a p tis t Church
Swan A. E ngw all, E a S o rt, O v e rs ik t, p . 11.
29
d isb an d ed , due to th e d is r u p tiv e in flu e n c e o f th e "Tongues
Movement," and many o f i t s members r e tu rn e d to th e m other
ch u rch .
The church was p a s to r le s s a y e a r and th r e e m onths
a f t e r R o sq u ist l e f t . D uring t h a t tim e th e S ta te M issio n ary ,
F . 0 . N elso n , se rv e d as tem porary p a s to r f o r ap p ro x im ately
s i x m onths, g u id in g th e Church w ise ly d u rin g a m ost c r i t i c a l
p e rio d .
S e v e ra l men w ere c a lle d , w ith o u t s u c c e s s , to th e p a s
t o r a t e u n t i l f i n a l l y th e Reverend A lfre d B. L indberg o f Bos
to n answ ered fa v o ra b ly and a rriv e d i n th e c i t y A p ril 7 , 1910.
The church responded to h is le a d e r s h ip , grow ing in member
sh ip and ex ten d in g th e scope o f i t s i n t e r e s t s . I t i s i n t e r
e s tin g to n o te t h a t p a s to r L in d b erg conducted c la s s e s in
Swedish f o r c h ild r e n . T his was a common p r a c tic e in th o se
d a y s .
Magnus Johnson
Mr. L indberg re s ig n e d in 1916, b e in g succeeded by th e
Reverend Magnus Jo h n so n , who a r r iv e d in A ugust, 1916. He was
a s tro n g B i b lic a l p re a c h e r and f a i t h f u l p a s to r . When he
c lo se d h is work i n 1919 th e membership o f th e church was one
hundred and tw e n ty -th re e .
30
J . S * Lundgren
In November, 1920 a nev/ p a s to r , J . S* Lundgren, came
to th e f i e l d . He le d th e church forw ard and a ls o b ro u g h t i t
in to c lo s e r c o n ta c t w ith th e o th e r churches o f th e c i t y . He
rem ained w ith th e church u n t i l F e b ru ary , 1 9 ^ .
David M * Anderson
The Reverend David M. A nderson came to th e church in
A ugust, 1927 to assume th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s re lin q u is h e d by
h is p re d e c e s s o r. E x ten siv e a l t e r a t i o n s were made on th e
church b u ild in g in 1928, and a hew p ip e o rg an c o s tin g $5,000
was p u rch ased . The t o t a l e x p e n d itu re Amounted to ap p ro x i
m ately # 7 ,6 0 0 , o f w hich n e a rly te n tho u san d d o lla r s was
su b sc rib e d a t th e d e d ic a tio n - P a s to r Anderson i s remembered
f o r h is so u l-w in n in g m in is tr y . He l e f t San F ra n c isc o in
A p r il, 1934..
David Youngdahl
The Reverend D avid Youngdahl, who was com pleting h is
s tu d ie s a t th e B erk ely B a p tis t D iv in ity S chool, v/as engaged
on a tem porary b a s is u n t i l August 17, 1934, when a perm anent
c a l l was te n d e re d him . The church p ro sp e re d u n d er h is le a d
e r s h ip , and became w e ll known, n o t o n ly in B a p tis t c i r c l e s ,
b u t a ls o in th e la r g e r fe llo w s h ip o f P r o te s ta n t ch u rch es.
31
On March 1 , 1935, th e name o f th e church was changed
f o r a d v e r tis in g p u rp o ses to Temple B a p tis t Church, i t s c o r
p o ra te name rem ain in g unchanged.
P a s to r Youngdahl re c e iv e d appointm ent as a c h a p la in
in th e U n ite d S ta te s Army in A p r il, 1942. On F ebruary 7 ,
1943 th e sh ip w hich was c a rry in g him to th e European war a re a
was to rp ed o ed and he went down w ith th e s h ip . He i s th e
f i r s t Swedish B a p tis t c h a p la in to g iv e h is l i f e in th e p re
s e n t w ar.
H is su c c e sso r in San F ra n cisc o i s th e Reverend Magnus
B erglund who has been on th e f i e l d about a y e a r.
As p re v io u s ly s t a t e d , th e Temple B a p tis t Church needs
a new lo c a tio n b u t w i l l have to w a it f o r more fa v o ra b le tim es
b e fo re a b u ild in g program can be la u n ch ed . S ince A p ril 26,
1940 th e deacons and tr u s t e e s have c o n s titu te d a com m ittee
to stu d y c o n d itio n s r e l a t i v e to fin d in g a new lo c a tio n , w ith
in s tr u c tio n s to r e p o r t t h e i r fin d in g s from tim e to time* The
membership was re p o rte d a t two hundred t h i r t y - t h r e e in 1942.
S A W JOSE^^
The c i t y o f San J o s e , lo c a te d in S an ta C la ra V a lle y ,
had an e stim a te d Swedish p o p u la tio n o f f iv e hundred in 1892.
11 Sources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d i n
th e B ib lio g rap h y u n d e r: San J o s e , C a lif o r n ia , F i r s t Swedish
B a p tis t Church.
32
Among them th e Swedish B a p tis t Church o f O akland, o n ly f o r ty
m ile s d i s t a n t , endeavored to s t a r t a m is sio n . P a s to r C. M.
N elson h e ld fre q u e n t m eetings in 1891, r e s u l t i n g in two bap
tism s* A y e a r l a t e r r e g u la r s e rv ic e s were h e ld in th e Y. M.
C. A. h a l l , and fo rm al o rg a n iz a tio n o f a church was deemed
a d v is a b le .
The o r ig in a l m inutes co v e rin g th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e
San Jo se church have n o t been p re se rv e d n o r any co p ies th e r e
o f , b u t th e e s s e n ti a l f a c t s can be g lean ed from o th e r con
tem porary s o u rc e s .
The o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e Swedish B a p tis t Church o f Sah
Jo se to o k p la c e oh A ugust 16, 1892, w ith f iv e c h a r te r members.
The O akland and San F ra n cisc o Swedish B a p tis t churches s e n t
r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s to a s s i s t in th e o r g a n iz a tio n . P a s to r C. M.
N elson was e le c te d M oderator and G ust G u stafso n , C le rk . The
Reverend August O lson a ls o a s s is te d in th e p ro c e e d in g s. The
f i r s t p a s to r was th e Reverend F . Ferre'^, and th e f i r s t p la c e
o f w orship a re n te d church b u ild in g a t San C arlo s and O rchard
S t r e e t s •
The o u tlo o k had seemed h o p e fu l b e fo re th e o rg a n iz a
t i o n b u t v a rio u s circu m stan ces made th e work v e ry d isc o u ra g
in g from th e s t a r t . The a tte n d a n c e d e c lin e d and P a s to r F erré '
rem ained o n ly u n t i l March 1 , 1893, hav in g sta y e d s ix m onths.
33
J - 0 . Johnson
A new p a s to r , J . 0 . Johnson o f C hicago, a r r iv e d t h a t
same m onth, M arch, 1893, to le a d th e sm all s tr u g g lin g g ro u p .
H is annual r e p o r t in Ja n u a ry , 1894, re c o rd s a g a in o f s ix
new members, m aking a t o t a l o f ten* S e v e ra l su b seq u en t r e
m ovals convinced th e few rem ain in g members t h a t f u r th e r e f
f o r t s a t c o n tin u in g th e work were f u t i l e . On F ebruary 13,
1895, th e church fo rm a lly d isbanded and th e members ra n a in -
in g in San Jo se v o te d to u n ite w ith th e F i r s t B a p tis t Church.
A. B* O rgren
Resum ption o f th e work in San Jo se r e s u lt e d from th e
e f f o r t s o f A. B. O rgren o f San Diego who moved to San Jo s e
on F ebruary 1 , 1898. He re n te d a h a l l oh h i s own acco u n t and
conducted m e e tin g s. The a tte n d a n c e was f a i r l y good, n e c e ss
i t a t i n g a la r g e r m eetin g p la c e . A M eth o d ist ch ap el a t 92 San
ih ito n io S tr e e t was p u rch ased on A p ril 18, 1898 f o r tw elve
hundred d o l l a r s . A fte r re n o v a tin g i t , th e f i r s t s e rv ic e was
h e ld June 19 .
The r e v iv a l o f th e work r e s u lte d in th e o rg a n iz a tio n
o f th e Swedish B a p tis t Church o f San Jo se on O ctober 9 , 1898,
h av in g fo u rte e n c h a r te r members. S e v e ra l v i s i t i n g m in is te rs
were p r e s e n t: C. M. N elson, A. ¥ . Backlund and C h arles Palm,
a ls o P a s to r Young o f th e F i r s t B a p tis t C hurch, San J o s e . A
Sewing C ir c le , Sunday School and Young P e o p le 's S o c ie ty were
34
s t a r t e d on th e same o c c a sio n .
Â. B. O rgren was in v ite d to become th e r e g u la r p a s to r .
H is s a la r y was s e t a t s ix hundred d o l l a r s , o f which th e church
ag reed to pay th r e e hundred d o lla r s - The b a la n c e was p a id by
th e Home M issio n S o c ie ty . P a s to r O rgren rem ained u n t i l A p ril,
1901. The membership o f th e church was th e n t h i r t y - f i v e .
John Hedeen
The R everend John Hedeen, who had j u s t come from Swe
d en , was c a lle d to th e p a s to r a te . He commenced h is work on
A p ril 7 , 1901, and rem ained u n t i l F ebruary 1 , 1906. M issio n
a ry work was s t a r t e d in Edenvale and M ay field d u rin g t h i s
p e r io d . The membership o f th e church had in c re a s e d to f if ÿ y -
two when M r. Hedeen l e f t .
C. 0 . Dalhed
The n ex t p a s to r was C. 0 . D alhed from P rin c e to n , I l l i
n o is . He se rv e d th e church th r e e y e a rs , J u ly 1 , 1906 to June
1 , 1909, w ith c o n s id e ra b le s u c c e s s . His su c cesso r became
C. J . C h ris tia n s o n . He had come to San J o s e to l i v e , and
was in v ite d to se rv e th e church te m p o ra rily . A fte r th r e e
m onths he became th e r e g u la r p a s to r , and se rv e d from O ctober 1 ,
1909 to F ebruary 1 6 , 1911.
36
A lb in Holmer
A lb in Holmer eirriv ed O ctober 1 , 1911 from Des M oines,
low a to become p a s t o r . Under h is le a d e rs h ip th e p r e s e n t
church b u ild in g was e re c te d on th e s i t e o f th e o ld ch u rch .
The d e d ic a tio n to o k p la c e O ctober 13, 1912, and th e church
c e le b r a te d i t s F if te e n th A n n iv ersary a t th e same tim e .
P a s to r Hblmer c lo se d h i s work F ebruary 1 , 1916. The member
sh ip was s ix ty -tw o .
J . W. H je rtstrc m
Alm ost a y e a r ela p se d b e fo re th e church could se c u re
a new le a d e r . F in a lly J . W. H je rtstro m o f Chicago prom ised
to come, n o t as r e g u la r p a s to r b u t tem p o rary , because o f
f e e b le h e a lth . He se rv e d from January 26 to November 1 ,
1917, r e tu r n in g to h is home in C hicago.
J . 0 . L arson
The church was p a s to r le s s a g a in u n t i l March 9 , 1919,
when th e Reverend J . 0 . L arsoii to o k up th e w ork. He la b o re d
f a i t h f u l l y u n t i l November 2 , 1924, when he was succeeded by
P a s to r C h arles A splund from Tacoma, W ashington. A sp lu n d 's
m in is tr y in San Jo s e was o f b r i e f d u ra tio n due to th e i l l n e s s
o f h is w ife , f o r whom th e d o c to r ad v ised a change o f c lim a te .
They moved from San Jo se on Jan u ary 13, 1926. A p arsonage
36
was p u rch ased Ju n e 1 , 1925 a t a c o s t o f f iv e th o u san d d o lla r s
C. A. A ldeen
The n e x t p a s to r was th e Reverend C* A. A ldeen o f C hi
cag o . He a r r iv e d Septem ber 8 , 1926. Because o f i l l h e a lth
he rem ained o n ly two y e a rs , c lo s in g h is work on Septem ber 2,
1928. The membership was how e ig h ty -tw b .
A fte r h av in g s e v e r a l s h o rt-te im p a s to r s , th e church
was now f o rtu n a te in o b ta in in g th e s e rv ic e s o f A xel C arlso n
from P re s to n , W ashington, who s t a r t e d h is work M arch 14,
1929, and has j u s t now in th e f a l l o f 1943 r e lin q u is h e d h is
p o s itio n *
These r e c e n t y e a rs have w itn e sse d s e v e r a l im p o rtan t
ch an g es, n o ta b ly in re g a rd to language and name o f th e church
L ike th e o th e r Swedish ch u rc h e s, t h i s church experim entêd
w ith v a rio u s p la n s u n t i l th e com plete t r a n s i t i o n to E n g lish
was made.
Cn May 2 , 1929 th e church v o te d to t r y h o ld in g E h g lish
s e rv ic e s every Sunday n ig h t in s te a d o f a l te r n a te n ig h ts a s
th e r e to f o r e . W ith in a y e a r th e p la n was changed q u ite d r a s
t i c a l l y , making a l l th e m orning s e rv ic e s E n g lish and u s in g
Swedish on Sunday ev e n in g s. S ince A p ril 3 , 1940 th e E n g lish
language has been u sed in a l l th e s e r v ic e s , and a t t h a t
37
tim e th e name o f th e ehureh was changed to B ethany B a p tis t
Church. On November 14, 1941, th e new name was le g a lly
changed and th e in c o rp o ra tio n o f th e church made p e rp e tu a l..
Two members o f th e ch u rch , M r. and M rs. H arry W atkins,
a re m is s io n a rie s in th e B e lg ia n Congo u n d er th e American
B a p tis t F o re ig n M issio n S o c ie ty . M rs. W atkins, fo rm e rly M iss
L inda E ric k so n , was com m issioned on J u ly 3 0 , 1930,' and l e f t
soon a f t e r f o r A f r ic a . She met h e r fu tu re husband in Leo
p o l d v i l l e , A fric a . He v/as commissioned on March 1 , 1936.
The B ethany B a p tis t Church h a s n ev er been la r g e , and
1
w i l l rem ain sm all due to i t s u n fo rtu n a te lo c a tio p a c ro s s th e
s t r e e t fnom the., la r g e F i r s t B a p tis t C hurch. F o r mâny y e a rs
th e need o f a new lo c a tio n has been k een ly f e l t b u t no s te p s
have been ta k en in t h a t d ir e c tio n .
D esp ite i t s sm all s i z e , th e church h as made a r e l a
t i v e l y Isirge c o n trib u tio n to th e cause o f C h r is t. A th r iv in g
Sunday School has been one o f th e en co u rag in g p h ases o f th e
w ork, i n 1930 th e en ro llm en t was one hundred se v e n te e n , in '
1941 i t was one hundred tw e n ty -fiv e .
CHAPOER I I I
CHURCHES m THE SA H JOAQDIH VAIIEY
KIHGSBüRgI
An Am erican B a p tis t Church was o rg a n iz ed in K ingsburg
ab o u t 1888 b u t ceased to fu n c tio n a f t e r a s h o r t p e rio d o f
tim e* The H isto ry o f th e F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church o f
K ingsburg, w r itte n in 1926, c o n ta in s w e ll-su p p o rte d inform a
t i o n to prove th e e x is te n c e o f t h i s church b u t th e d a te o f
i t s d isb a n d in g was n o t a v a ila b le from th e m eager r e c o r d s .
The p ro p e rty o f t h i s church was p urchased by th e F i r s t Swed
is h B a p tis t Church o f O akland, which had hopes o f u s in g i t
f o r Swedish B a p tis t w ork. E v e n tu a lly th e p ro p e rty was d is
posed o f to a p r iv a te ow ner.
M issio n ary e f f o r t s were made in K ingsburg by s e v e ra l
m in is te r s who p re p a re d th e way f o r th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch. The names o f G. M. N elson,
L . J . A hlstrom and A. ¥ . Backlund should be re c o rd e d f o r th e
work th ey d id . The la st-n a m e d , d u rin g h is p a s to r a te in Oak
la n d , made r e g u la r t r i p s to K ingsburg u n t i l th e Swedish
B a p tis ts th e re w ere read y to o rg a n iz e .
The church was o rg an iz ed May 19, 1901, w ith t h i r t e e n
I S ources o f materisuL f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
th e B ib lio g rap h y u n d e r: K ingsburg, C a lif o r n ia , F i r s t Swedish
B a p tis t Church.
39
c h a r te r members : Mr* and Mrs* G ust S e tte rb e rg , Mr. and M rs.
C. J . A. P e te rs o n , Mr. and M rs. Anton P e te rs o n , Mr. and M rs.
L . E . W ilen, Mr. and M rs. David C a rlso n , M iss I n g rid E ric k
so n , Jo sh u a C arlso n and C. F . 0 . E ric k so n . P a s to rs from
s e v e r a l Swedish and Am erican churches were p r e s e n t.
Im m ediately a f t e r th e o rg a n iz a tio n , th e v i s i t i n g min
i s t e r s v o te d to recommend th a t th e church be re c e iv e d in to
th e membership o f th e San Jo a q u in V alley B a p tis t A s s o c ia tio n .
A b u s in e s s m eetin g was h e ld th e fo llo w in g day, May 20,
to e l e c t o f f ic e r s • The church a ls o v o te d to r a i s e tw en ty -
f iv e d o lla r s p e r month tow ard th e su p p o rt o f t h e i r p a s to r ,
th e Reverend J . P . R o s q u is t. At t h i s m eetin g a com m ittee was
ap p o in ted to seek a s u ita b le p la c e f o r th e s e rv ic e s and a ls o
a b u ild in g s i t e . R ochdale H a ll was u sed about two m onths,
and th e n th e m eetin g s were moved to th e C anal School House.
In Septem ber o f th e same y e a r th e N o rth e rn C a lif o r n ia
B a p tis t C onvention was re q u e s te d to a p p ro p ria te th r e e hun
d red d o lla r s tow ard th e su p p o rt o f th e p a s to r . Presum ably
t h i s a id was g ra n te d , th e r e b e in g no re c o rd o f a r e f u s a l .
P urchase o f a b u ild in g s i t e was a u th o riz e d Jan u ary 1 ,
1902. At th e n e x t b u s in e s s m eeting th e t r u s t e e s re p o rte d
th e p u rch ase o f a tria n g le -s h a p e d l o t , (the one s t i l l b e in g
u se d ) f o r sev en ty d o l l a r s .
40
S . C. N ie lse n
S. C. N ie ls e n was c a lle d as p a s to r on A p ril 1, 1903,
and prom ised to p re a c h two Sundays a m onth. He clo se d h is
work on March 1 , 1904.
The f i r s t house o f w orship b u i l t by th e church was
d e d ic a te d O ctober 2 6 , 1903. I t was a sim ple s tr u c t u r e , c o s t
in g one thousand d o l l a r s , and was f r e e o f d e b t when d e d ic a te d .
G od's b le s s in g a tte n d e d th e la b o rs o f t h i s l i t t l e
f lo c k . They worked harm oniously and z e a lo u s ly . A Sunday
School had been s t a r t e d v /ith t h i r t y p u p ils and fiv e te a c h e rs*
D uring th e y ea r 1903 th ey added seven members, making a t o t a l
o f tw enty a t th e end o f t h a t y e a r.
A. W. Backlund
The Reverend A. :W . Backlund was c a lle d from O akland, and
n o t if i e d th e church i n F e b ru a ry , 1904 t h a t he would come as
soon a s p o s s ib le . H is s a la r y was to be f o r t y - f i v e d o lla r s
p e r month u n t i l a id co u ld be re c e iv e d from th e Home M ission
S o c ie ty .
P a s to r B acklund a r r iv e d on th e f i e l d A p ril 1 , 1904,
and commenced a p e rio d o f e f f e c tiv e m in is tr y which was d e s
tin e d to co n tin u e n e a rly t h i r t e e n euid o n e -h a lf y ears* Under
h is e n e rg e tic and s p i r i t u a l le a d e r s h ip , th e church grew
s t e a d i l y , in c re a s in g from tw enty odd to th r e e hundred tw enty
41
members a t h is d e c e a se . The m ain re a s o n f o r t h i s rem ark ab le
grow th was th e g r e a t in f lu x o f Swedish B a p tis ts to th e K ings
b u rg a r e a . Among them were many a b le p erso n s who had a c tiv e
ly p a r tic ip a te d in th e work o f o th e r churches b e fo re t h e i r
rem oval to C a lifo rn ia * The re c o rd s in d ic a te , how ever, t h a t
n o t a l l th e a c c e ssio n s were by l e t t e r s o f d ism issio n from
o th e r churches* One hundred t h i r t y - f o u r p erso n s were r e
ce iv ed by b ap tism and tw enty by r e s t o r a t i o n .
The grow ing c o n g re g a tio n re q u ire d a la r g e r house o f
w orship* A b u ild in g p la n was su b m itted and ado p ted November
25, 1904, and c o n s tru c tio n was s t a r t e d e a rly i n 1905. The
new b u ild in g , s e a tin g th re e hundred f i f t y p e rso n s, was d e d i
c a te d in O cto b er, 1905. The a c tu a l c o s t was only $2,928*
P a s to r Backlund was d e e p ly in te r e s te d in prom oting
m issio n a ry work i n com m unities where l i t t l e o r no B a p tis t
work was b e in g d one. Tuolumne and T urlock were among th e
p la c e s he v is ite d * D e c lin in g h e a lth , how ever, caused him to
r e s t r i c t h is m in is try b o th in K ingsburg and elsewhe^*®* H is
sudden d e a th to o k p la c e August 11, 1917, h is age b e in g only
f i f t y - f o u r y e a rs and e ig h t months* The e n t ir e community
mourned th e lo s s o f t h i s beloved p a sto r*
J . P* R o sq u ist se rv e d a s tem porary p a s to r alm o st a y ea r
D uring th e in te rim a p arsonage was b u i l t on th e l o t w est o f
and a d jo in in g th e church p ro p erty *
42
C a rl V ingren
The new p a s to r , C a rl V in g ren , came from th e F i r s t
Swedish B a p tis t Church o f M inneapolis* He began h is work on
O ctober 1, 1918. The church was i n a p ro sp e ro u s c o n d itio n ,
and co n tin u ed to advance u n d er th e new le a d e r s h ip . The o ld
b u ild in g , which had been en la rg e d s e v e ra l tim e s , d id n o t m eet
th e n e e d s, so a l a r g e r and more p r e te n tio u s e d if ic e was con
s tr u c t e d . A u th o riz a tio n to th e B u ild in g Committee to l e t th e
c o n tra c t was g iv e n by th e c o n g re g a tio n on December 4 , 1919,
th e e stim a te d c o s t b e in g #64,854. The b e a u tifU l new house o f
w orship was d e d ic a te d i n Ja n u a ry , 1921.
By t h i s tim e a peak had been reac h ed in th e grow th o f
th e ch u rch , from w hich a d e c lin e to o k p la c e . The "Tongues
Movement" made s e rio u s in ro a d s , a t t r a c t i n g ap p ro x im ately f i f
ty p e rso n s who w ithdrew to u n ite w ith th e lo c a l P e n te c o s ta l
C hurch. The an n u al r e p o r ts f o r 1922 and 1923 r e v e a l lo s s e s
o f tw elve and tw e n ty -fo u r r e s p e c tiv e ly to th e new movement.
T h is schism d iv id e d f a m ilie s and caused much a n x ie ty in th e
c h u rc h . N um erical lo s s e s a ls o r e s u lte d from economic d i f f i
c u ltie s * Many v in e y a rd s and f r u i t faim s had been purch ased
when p r ic e s were abnorm ally h ig h , and now a r e a c tio n s e t i n .
Some p eo p le l e f t t h e i r farm s and th o se who rem ained fa c e d a
le a n p e r io d . P led g es to th e new church b u ild in g could n o t
be p a id , and th e d eb t became a d e p re s sin g burden* In Septem
b e r , 1924 th e re was a d e f i c i t in th e c u r r e n t fund o f # , 5 0 0 .
43
In view o f such c o n d itio n s , one m ust commend th e p e rs e
v eran c e o f th e members who c a r r ie d on and hoped f o r b e t t e r
days* M oreover, th e nu m erical lo s s e s were more th a n o f f s e t by
ac ce ssio n s* D uring th e s ix - y e a r p e rio d , 1918 - 1924, one
hundred fo u rte e n jo in e d by le t t e r * P a s to r V ii^ re n c lo se d h is
work December 1 , 1924*
Axel L indgren
The R everend Axel L in d g ren became th e n e x t p a sto r*
The sc h ism a tic movement was s t i l l s tr o n g , as in d ic a te d by
th e e ra s u re o f t h i r t y - f o u r names d u rin g 1926, b u t th e church
lo o k ed h o p e fu lly forw ard and r a l l i e d lo y a lly under i t s new
l e a d e r .
B eginning Ja n u ary 1 , 1927, th e deacons were e le c te d
f o r a term o f th r e e y e a rs , an improvem ent o v er th e fo im er
p r a c tic e o f a p p o in tin g f o r l i f e o r good b e h a v io r.
The language q u e s tio n was c o n sid e re d from tim e to tim e.
On Jan u ary 1 , 1927 a m otion to u se th e E n g lish language on
Sunday n ig h ts was d efeated * One y e a r l a t e r , Jan u ary 1 , 1928,
th e E n g lish language re c e iv e d a fa v o ra b le v o te by r e q u e s t o f
th e young p e o p le .
An example o f p r a c t i c a l C h r is tia n ity i s reco rd ed in th e
church m inutes u n d er d a te o f Jan u ary 3 0 , 1931* Because one o f
th e members v/as u n ab le to v/ork, i t was d ecid ed t h a t th e men
o f th e church sh o u ld prune hiS" v in e y a rd f o r him , and a com-
44
m itte e o f women was ap p o in ted to p re p a re m eals d u rin g th e
p ru n in g b e e .
A nother language change was made F eb ru ary 1 , 1933, when
i t was d ecid ed to have Swedish s e rv ic e s th e f i r s t and t h i r d
Sunday forenoons each m onth, and E n g lish on th e second, fo u rth
and f i f t h Sunday m ornings. A f i n a l d e c is io n to conduct a l l
s e rv ic e s in th e E n g lish language was re a c h ed Jan u ary 1 , 1935.
8 . W illa rd Samuelson
In th e m eantime P a s to r L indgren had l e f t , J u ly 18,
1933, and th e Reverend S. W illa rd Sam uelson had come on Sep
tem ber 1 , 1934, to assume th e p a s to r a te . He was a young man,
and h is m in is try was d i s t i n c t l y American r a t h e r th a n Swedish
in i t s r e l a t i o n to th e community. The church c o -o p e ra te d
w ith o th e r churches in work among th e m ig ra n t la b o re rs and
a ls o among th e Jap an ese who had s e t t l e d in K ingsburg. A
j o i n t com m ittee engaged a m issio n a ry to th e Ja p a n e se , and
th e churches su p p o rted h e r by v o lu n ta ry o ffe rin g s *
Mr* Samuelson re s ig n e d March 20, 1941, and c lo se d h is
work on May 7 .
The Reverend Rudolph A * D a h lq u ist a c ce p ted th e c a l l o f
th e church and a r r iv e d Septem ber 5 , 1941. He i s th e p re s e n t
p a s to r , and en jo y s th e lo y a l su p p o rt o f h is p e o p le .
45
TÜELOCK^
The c i ty o f T urlock i s lo c a te d in th e n o rth e rn p a r t
o f San Jo a q u in V a lle y , ab o u t one hundred m ile s s o u th e a s t o f
O akland. Many Swedes have s e t t l e d in T u rlo ck , a f a c t which
can he tra c e d in p a r t to th e c o lo n iz a tio n e f f o r t s o f a Swed
is h M issio n Covenant p a s to r , N ils 0 . H iltb e rg , who had been
a m issio n ary in A lask a. H is p ro m o tio n al p u b lic ity lu re d
many Swedes from th e rig o ro u s E a s te rn c lim a te to th e "p ara
d is e o f e te r n a l summer." The colony was in te n d e d p a r t i c u l a r
ly f o r M issio n Covenant f o lk , b u t p erso n s o f o th e r denom ina
t i o n a l co n n ectio n s a ls o came to T u rlo c k .
The f i r s t Swedish B a p tis ts came in December, 1902.
Mr. Jo e Samuelson and h is w ife , who became v ery a c tiv e in th e
B a p tis t Church, a r r iv e d th e fo llo w in g m onth. Soon o th e rs
came and a group o f B a p tis t b e lie v e r s was form ed. The f i r s t
Swedish B a p tis t m in is te r s t h a t v i s i t e d them were A. W. Back
lu n d from K ingsburg and P . 0 , N elso n , S ta te M issio n a ry , who
moved to T u rlo ck w ith h is fa m ily in 1907.
M eetings were h e ld in th e homes u n t i l th e c o n v ic tio n
deepened t h a t a Swedish B a p tis t church sh o u ld be o rg a n iz e d .
The m a tte r was d is c u s s e d a t a m eetin g in th e Axel Hagstrom
home e a rly in M arch, 1908, a d e c is io n b ein g reach ed to e f f e c t
2 S ources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
th e B ib lio g ra p h y u n d e r: T u rlo ck , C a lif o r n ia , Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch.
46
an o rg a n iz a tio n . At a su b seq u en t m eetin g , h eld in th e home
o f th e Reverend P . 0 . N elso n , th e d a te f o r th e o rg a n iz a tio n
m eetin g was s e t , Sunday, March 22, 1908. I t was v o te d to
i n v it e a l l th e Swedish B a p t i s t ,churches in C a lif o r n ia w ith
t h e i r p a s to r s to a tte n d #
The o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e Swedish B a p tis t Church o f Tur
lo c k to o k p la c e March 22, 1908, in th e home o f th e Reverend
P . Of N elso n , 329 South Broadway. V is i t in g p a s to r s who were
p r e s e n t and a s s i s t i n g in th e p ro cee d in g s w ere A. W * B acklund,
K ingsburg, J . A lfre d E ric k so n , O akland, and C. H. C a rlso n ,
Hughson. The two firs t-m e n tio n e d se rv ed as m oderator and
s e c r e ta r y r e s p e c tiv e ly .
There w ere n in e te e n c h a rte r members : Mr. and M rs. Jo e
Samuels on, Mr. and M rs. G. A. N ystrom , th e Rev. and M rs. P .
O. N elso n , M iss N e llie N elso n , Mr. and M rs. Axel Hagstrom ,
Mr. and M rs. John C a rlso n , J . E. E cklund, Andrew G. Johnson,
Mrs* M a th ild a A nderson, M rs. Anna A lk v is t, Andrew N elson,
Mr. and M rs. W illiam T ern stro m , and Mrs* Anna N elso n .
Having d e c la re d t h e i r in te n tio n to o rg an iz e a ch u rch ,
th e members jo in e d hands in a c i r c l e w h ile th e Rev. J . A lfre d
E rick so n invoked G od's b le s s in g upon them . A ddresses s u i t
a b le to th e o c c a sio n were th e n g iv e n by th e v i s i t i n g m in is
t e r s .
The f i r s t o f f i c e r s o f th e newly o rg an iz ed church were
th e n e le c te d : chairm an, C. A. Nystrom ; s e c r e ta r y , J . E. Eck-
47
lundÿ v ic e s e c r e ta r y , Andrew G* Johnsonj t r e a s u r e r , Jo e Sam-
u e ls o n . Deacons were Axel Hagstrom and John A. C eirlsoh*
t r u s t e e s ; Jo e Sam uelson, A xel Hagstrom and C. A. N ystrom .
. Jo e Samuelson o ffe re d to d onate two l o t s on South
Broadway a s a s u ita b le s i t e f o r a church e d i f ic e , an o f f e r
w hich was re c e iv e d w ith th a n k s .
S e rv ic e s w ere h e ld in V ig n o la H a ll on E a st Main S tr e e t
f o r n e a rly f iv e m onths, b u t th e seven d o lla r s m onthly r e n t
seemed a t th e tim e more th a n th e church co u ld a f f o rd to p ay .
The S ta te M issio n a ry , F . 0 . N elson, who p reach ed fre q u e n tly
f o r th e l i t t l e g ro u p , o ffe re d th a n th e f r e e u se o f h is home
a t 329 South Broadway a s a m eeting p la c e , an arrangem ent
w hich was adopted August 1 , 1908. R eg u lar p re a c h in g s e rv ic e s
w ere h e ld , conducted by F . 0 . N elso n , C. A. Nystrom and C. H.
C a rlso n . W eek-night m eetin g s were h e ld in th e v a rio u s homes.
A b u ild in g fund was s t a r t e d and a b u ild in g cdm m ittee
ap p o in te d to e r e c t a p la c e o f w orship on th e s i t e p re v io u s ly
d o n ated . John A. C arlso n su p e rin ten d e d th e c o n s tru c tio n ,
u s in g v o lu n te e r la b o r . Oh E a s te r Sunday, A p ril 11, 1909, th e
h a lf-c o m p le te d b u ild in g was d e d ic a te d . I t was a day o f r e
jo ic in g and th a n k s g iv in g . V is itin g p a s to r s , A # W . Backlund
from K ingsburg and C. 0 . D alhed from San J o s e p a r tic ip a t e d
in th e s e r v ic e . The o f f e r in g f o r th e b u ild in g fund amounted
to $113.41. The Women's S o c ie ty v o te d to d o n ate tow ard th e
p u rc h ase o f an organ th e p ro ceed s from eggs l a i d by t h e i r hens
48
on Sundays fo r s ix m onths. Q uoting P a s to r S jo la n d e r: "So,
th an k s to th e s e f e a th e r e d , n o isy s e rv a n ts , t h i s much needed
in stru m e n t was o b ta in e d f o r th e n o b le m in is try o f m usic • "
F . 0 . N elson r e lin q u is h e d h is d u tie s w ith in th e church
on Novonber 1 , 1910, h av in g a c c e p ted a c a l l to P earso n , Wash
in g to n . In h is p la c e th e Reverend P aul Jo hnson, who had r e
c e n tly a r r iv e d from C olorado, was in v ite d to se rv e as supply
p re a c h e r, w hich he d id f o r s ix m onths.
A. B. C o lv in
A. B . C o lv in a r r iv e d i n T urlo ck d u rin g th e summer o f
1911 to se rv e a s th e new S ta te M issio n ary engaged by th e
C a lif o r n ia Swedish B a p tis t C o n feren ce. On A ugust 2 0 , 1911
th e C onference Board a u th o riz e d him to su p e rv is e th e T urlock
church in a d d itio n to h is w id er d u tie s . He was w e ll lik e d
and re c e iv e d a c a l l to become th e r e g u la r p a s to r . The c a l l
was a c c e p te d , and he became th e f i r s t s e t t l e d p a s to r o f th e
T urlock ch u rch , assum ing h is d u tie s November 1 , 1912. The
membership o f th e church was tw enty a t t h i s tim e . When th e
F i f t h A n n iv ersary was c e le b ra te d on Mardh 22 and 23, 1913,
th e membership had r i s e n to fo rty -tw o .
In 1912 th e two sm all Swedish B a p tis t churches a t
Hughson and Tuolumne d isb a n d ed , w ith th e r e s u l t t h a t th e Tur
lo c k church re c e iv e d b o th members and money a f t e r th e p ro
p e r t i e s were s o ld . From Bhghson came th r e e members and
49
^ 6 1 .7 6 in c a sh ; from Tuolumne two members, C. Nystrom and
F red O strom , who b ro u g h t t h i r t y d o lla r s each a s t h e i r sh a re
o f th e d iv id e d p r o p e r ty .
The church b u ild in g was improved by th e a d d itio n o f
two rooms in th e r e a r , and a f r o n t p o rc h . The f i r s t b a p t is
m al s e rv ic e was h e ld th e f i r s t Sunday in A ugust, 1913, when
O lga C arlso n and F lo re n c e Nystrom were immersed on p ro fe s s io n
o f t h e i r f a i t h .
D uring t h i s p e rio d th e church was re c e iv in g two hun
d red d o lla r s p e r y e a r from th e N o rth ern C a lif o r n ia B a p tis t
C onvention and an eq u al amount from th e C a lif o r n ia Swedish
B a p tis t C onference f o r th e su p p o rt o f t h e i r p a s to r .
P a s to r C o lv in c lo se d h is work in M arch, 1914, and was
succeeded in May, 1914 by th e Reverend E . S . L in d b la d , ^ o
came from Selm a, C a lifo rn ia * He was com pelled by o th e r d u tie s
to g iv e up h is p a s to r a l s e rv ic e a f t e r s e rv in g only s ix and
o n e -h a lf months*
A xel W all
P a s to r Axel W all from S e a t t l e , W ashington became th e
n e x t shepherd o f th e f lo c k , b eg in n in g h is work December 1 ,
1914. He rem ained only one y e a r and two m onths, b u t u n d er
h is le a d e rs h ip th e s o - c a lle d "New Movement" reach ed T u rlo ck ,
c a u sin g a g r e a t s t i r . T his was a "to n g u es" movement which
aro u sed commendable fe r v o r among th e p eo p le b u t a ls o tended
50
to d iv id e and d e s tr o y . A more b alan ce d le a d e rs h ip a t t h i s
tim e co u ld p erh ap s have guided and p re se rv e d t h i s new i n t e r
e s t b e t t e r to th e r e a l b u ild in g up o f th e ch u rch .^
L arge numbers o f p eo p le a tte n d e d th e s e rv ic e s d u rin g
t h i s p e rio d , and th e b u ild in g became to o s m a ll. Some were
co n v erted and b a p tiz e d . A b u ild in g com m ittee was ap p o in ted
c o n s is tin g o f G. A. N ystrom , V. H agberg, L . 0 . H arve, C h arles
C a rlso n , Jo e Sam uelson and F . 0 . Swedin, and a s i t e was p u r
chased fo r $2,000 a t th e c o m e r o f L o cu st and Columbia S ts .
A ta b e r n a c le - lik e s tr u c tu r e was e r e c te d , in te n d e d t o be a
tem porary home o f th e c o n g re g a tio n , b u t i t serv ed tw enty-tw o
y e a rs , o r u n t i l 1937. The o ld church b u ild in g was d isp o sed
o f in 1915.
E . S . L in d b lad
Mr. W all c lo s e d h is work th e l a t t e r p a r t o f Ja n u ary ,
1916, whereupon th e Reverend E . S . L in d b lad re tu rn e d on Feb
ru a ry 1 , 1916 to be p a s to r a second tim e and ta k e over a
r a t h e r d i f f i c u l t s i t u a t i o n . The F . 0 . N elson fam ily re tu rn e d
to T urlock a t th e same tim e , a notew orthy f a c t due to th e
conspicuous c o n trib u tio n th ey have made to th e church l i f e
th ro u g h o u t i t s h is t o r y . The co n g re g a tio n responded to th e
a b le le a d e rs h ip o f S . S. L in d b lad . When he l e f t on A ugust 1,
? T u rlo ck , C a lif o r n ia , T. G ideon S jo la n d e r in B r ie f
H is to ry o f Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, 1938.
6 1
1922, he had won th e esteem and a p p re c ia tio n o f church and
community. The p r e s e n t parso n ag e was b u i l t d u rin g t h i s tim e
a t a c o s t o f ^ ,1 8 5 .1 9 . In c o rp o ra tio n o f th e church to o k
p la c e Septem ber 28, 1916.
An in te rim o f n in e m onths was f i l l e d by th e fo llo w in g
m in is te r s : P . 0 . N elso n , J . P . R o s q u is t, O scar S chuleen and
John R osen.
E ig h t members o f th e church who re s id e d in B scalon
re q u e s te d on Jan u ary 3 0 , 1923 t h a t th e y be g iv en l e t t e r s o f
d is m is s io n i n o rd e r to o rg a n iz e a Swedish B a p tis t church in
t h e i r community. The S ta te M issio n a ry , Magnus B erg lu n d , f u r
n ish e d th e le a d e rs h ip in t h i s a tte m p t, b u t no fo rm al o rg a n i
z a tio n was e f f e c te d due to d iv is io n s w ith in th e g rW p . The
S ta te C onference communicated to th e T u rlo ck church on O cto
b e r 2 , 1923 t h a t th e e f f o r t to found a Swedish B a p tis t church
in B scalon had b een abandoned. The young p e o p le 's s o c ie ty in
T u rlo ck made many su b seq u en t t r i p s to B scalon to h o ld m eetings
f o r th e p eo p le r e s id in g t h e r e .
Swan A. Engw all
The n e x t p a s to r was th e Reverend Swan A. Engw all from
Chicago who a r r iv e d w ith h is fam ily A p ril 20, 1923. D uring
h is tim e th e need f o r E n g lish p re a c h in g was f e l t , so i t was
v o te d to h o ld one E n g lish Sunday evening s e rv ic e a m onth.
Engw all serv e d w e ll b u t ac c e p ted a c a l l from Pasadena a f t e r
62
th r e e y e a rs , p r in c ip a lly because he needed a change o f c lim a te
on acco u n t o f hay f e v e r . H is r e s ig n a tio n was te n d e re d A p ril
20, 1926, and he commenced h is work in Pasadena August 1 ,
1926.
K. S . B yleen
J . P . R o s q u ist serv ed as in te rim p a s to r a g a in u n t i l
th e a r r i v a l o f th e Reverend K. E. B yleen and h is fam ily who
were welcomed on Septem ber 9 , 1926. He sta y e d n in e y e a rs and
worked c o n s c ie n tio u s ly . The B u ild in g Fund w hich had been
s t a r t e d in 1920 in c re a s e d to o v er seven thousand d o lla r s d u r
in g h is tim e . On December X, 1935 he c lo se d h is work and
removed to G re ele y , C olorado.
T. G ideon S jo la n d e r
The p r e s e n t p a s to r , T. G ideon S jo la n d e r, began h is
work A p ril 3 , 1936. S tep s tow ard th e c o n s tru c tio n o f a new
church e d if ic e were ta k e n in th e f a l l o f t h a t y e a r. E stim
a t e s were b ro u g h t in by th e B u ild in g Com m ittee, and on Sep
tem ber 14 th e church v o te d to b u ild as soon as p o s s ib le .
On December 17, 1936 a b id o f $14,372 was acce p te d w ith th e
u n d e rsta n d in g t h a t th e back rooms and basem ent were to rem ain
u n f in is h e d . These rooms were n o t l e f t u n fin is h e d , how ever,
and th e T urlock church r e jo ic e s o v er a b e a u tif u l and fU lly
equipped house o f w o rsh ip . When th e church was com pleted
63
A ugust 26, 1937, o n ly th e sm all sum o f $3,500 had been b o r
row ed. T his m ortgage was burned in 1942.
The Swedish language i s u sed in a s e rv ic e t h a t i s h e ld
a t te n f i f t e e n o 'c lo c k Sunday m ornings d u rin g th e Sunday
School h o u r; o th e rw ise th e t r a n s i t i o n to E n g lish i s q u ite
com plete* The p ra y e r m eetings have been conducted in E n g lish
s in c e M arch, 1939. A new name was r e c e n tly ado p ted —C alvary
B a p tis t Church.
The T urlock church i s n o ta b le f o r i t s m issio n a ry z e a l
as evidenced by l i b e r a l g iv in g and numerous v o lu n te e rs f o r
home and fo re ig n m is s io n s . A P ra y e r C ir c le , s t a r t e d in 1925,
has done much to prom ote m issio n ary i n t e r e s t . M eetings were
h e ld every S atu rd ay n ig h t f o r many y e a rs , and o f fe rin g s r e
ce iv ed f o r m issio n s* T his C irc le i s now c o n s o lid a te d w ith
th e r e g u la r p ra y e r m eeting on Thursday n ig h ts w ith th e empha
s i s on m issio n s s t i l l b e in g made. Two n a tiv e w o rk ers, one
each in Assam, I n d ia and th e B e lg ia n Congo, a re su p p o rted by
f r e e w ill o f f e r in g s .
CHAPTER IV
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHURCHES
LOS ANGELES
The e a r l i e s t m eetings h e ld by th e Swedish B a p tis ts in
Los A ngeles were p reced ed by g a th e rin g s o f Swedish p eo p le in
g e n e ra l d u rin g a p e rio d o f s e v e r a l months * Some o f th e p eo p le
a tte n d in g th e s e m eetin g s were B a p tis ts who seem to have f e l t
th e need o f h o ld in g Swedish s e rv ic e s u n d er d i s t i n c t i v e l y Bap
t i s t a u s p ic e s . A m eeting p la c e was found in th e Sunday School
ch a p el o f th e F i r s t B a p tis t Church, S ix th and Broadway, v\hich
th u s became th e c ra d le o f Swedish B a p tis t work in Los A n g eles.
O ccasio n a l m eetin g s were a ls o h e ld in homes*
A ccording to th e "H isto ry o f T v/enty-five Y e a rs," a
m eetin g was h e ld May 13, 1887 to d e lib e r a te th e q u e s tio n o f
o rg a n iz a tio n . A d e c is io n was made to o rg a n iz e a Swedish Bap
t i s t church on th e fo llo w in g Sunday, May 1 5 , a f t e r th e reg u
l a r p re a c h in g s e r v ic e . Twelve p erso n s p r e s e n t in d ic a te d
t h e i r w illin g n e s s to become c h a r te r members.
On th e ap p o in te d day a company o f ap p ro x im ately seven
ty p erso n s a tte n d e d th e m eeting h e ld a t th e F i r s t B a p tis t
Çhurch, M iss B etsey Anderson b e in g th e s p e a k e r. At th e con
c lu s io n o f th e m e e tin g , th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e F i r s t Swedish
B a p tis t Church o f Los A ngeles to o k p la c e . D r. J . A* Edgren
was p re s e n t as le a d e r and c o u n s e llo r.
65
No m inutes o f th e o rg a n iz a tio n p ro cee d in g s a re p r e
se rv e d , b u t th e e s s e n t i a l f a c t s have been g lean ed from l a t e r
re c o rd s* ^ There were t h i r t e e n members who c o n s titu te d th e
ch u rch . Two e ld e r s were e le c te d , R eihhold Stone and P e te r
L in d q u is t. They se rv e d u n t i l th e f a l l o f 1889 when th e o f
f i c e o f e ld e r was d is c o n tin u e d . J . A. B jo rk lu n d was th e
f i r s t deacon, and a ls o se rv e d as t r e a s u r e r ; H. W. S e llin g
became th e f i r s t s e c r e ta r y . A second deacon, A lexander L ar
so n , was e le c te d June 5 , 1887, to se rv e w ith J . A. B jo rk lu n d .
P e te r A nderson
P e te r A nderson was c a lle d from th e Swedish B a p tis t
T h e o lo g ic a l Sem inary in Strom sburg, N ebraska, to se rv e as
p a s to r . He a r r iv e d June 3 0 , 1887, to ta k e up th e p a s to r a l
d u tie s in th e new ch u rch , b u t he rem ained only u n t i l Jan u ary
1 , 1888. When he c lo s e d h is work th e re were tw e n ty -s ix mem
b e r s . A ll th e a c c e s s io n s had been by l e t t e r ex cep t one,
M a th ild a O lson, who was b a p tiz e d .
P e te r August O lson
P e te r August O lson from Wahoo, N ebraska, became th e
second p a s to r , b eg in n in g h is work Jan u ary 1 , 1888, and c lo s in g
i n O cto b er, 1889. I t i s in t e r e s t i n g to f in d a re fe re n c e to a
1 S ources fo r m a te r ia l i n t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
th e B ib lio g ra p h y u n d e r: Los A ngeles, F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch.
66
Swedish Sunday School c la s s in th e m inutes u n d er d a te o f
F eb ru ary 6 , 1888. P a s to r O lson was th e r e g u la r te a c h e r, and
two s u b s t itu te te a c h e rs were a p p o in te d . T his was e v id e n tly
a c la s s f o r a d u l ts . Two b ranch Sunday S chools were a ls o
s t a r t e d , one on Vernon Avenue and th e o th e r on Boyle H e ig h ts.
S u p e rin te n d e n ts were e le c te d f o r b o th th e s e sch o o ls on A p ril
26, 1888.
A C ouncil o f R e c o g n itio n , h e ld O ctober 14, 1888, r e
cognized th e church as a r e g u la r ly o rg a n iz e d B a p tis t church
o f J e s u s C h r is t. Two days l a t e r th e church was ad m itte d in
to th e Los A ngeles B a p tis t A sso c ia tio n in s e s s io n a t Pasadena.
N ic h o las Hayland
N ich o las Hayland o f W eston, N ebraska, a r r iv e d on th e
f i e l d as p a s to r May 1 , 1890. He sta y e d u n t i l O ctober 3 0 , 1891
D uring t h i s p e rio d a m issio n a ry group known as 'V in g a rd sa r-
b e ta rn e " (The V ineyard L a b o re rs) was o rg an iz ed to prom ote
m issio n a ry i n t e r e s t among i t s members. D ev o tio n al m eetings
were h e ld every Sunday one hour b e fo re th e evening s e r v ic e .
M onthly dues and o th e r r e c e ip ts were s e n t to h e ld su p p o rt a
m is s io n a ry , E rik a Bergman i n T elu g u lan d , I n d ia . T his organ
iz a ti o n disbanded in F e b ru a ry , 1894.
F . 0 . N elson*
The n ex t p a s to r to se rv e th e church was F . 0 . N elson,
57
who came from O akland, C a lif o r n ia . He to o k up t h i s work in
Ja n u a ry , 1892. Under h is le a d e rs h ip th e church made c o n sid
e ra b le p ro g re ss n u m e ric a lly , adding te n members by b ap tism ,
th ir ty - s e v e n by l e t t e r , and two by c o n fe s s io n . R eferen ces
a re made i n th e m in u tes to a sew ing c i r c l e w hich c o n trib u te d
tow ard th e expenses o f th e ch u rch . A nother wcmaen's o rg a n i
z a tio n was a ls o in a u g u ra te d , known as "G lada B udskapet (The
G lad T id in g s ). I t s members m et th e second Sunday o f each
month f o r B ib le stu d y and p ra y e r. M onthly dues were u sed f o r
m is s io n s .
P a s to r N elson had m issio n a ry v is io n w hich c a r r ie d him
beyond th e im m ediate f i e l d o f s e r v ic e . At one tim e he sp e n t
s e v e r a l weeks p re a c h in g in B u tte , M ontana, th e f r u i t o f which
was th e su b seq u en t founding o f th e F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t
Church in t h a t c i t y .
In M arch, 1893, th e church became s e lf - s u p p o r tin g .
S in ce Septem ber, 1887, i t had re c e iv e d f in a n c ia l a id from th e
Am erican B a p tis t Home M issio n S o c ie ty . B esid es t h i s , th e
church re c e iv e d much encouragem ent from th e F i r s t B a p tis t
Church o f Los A n g eles, in whose b u ild in g s e rv ic e s were h e ld
u n t i l F eb ru ary , 1889. C o n trib u tio n s from an o rg a n iz a tio n
w ith in t h a t c h u rc h , " P a rk e r's A s s o c ia tio n ," were a ls o r e
ce iv e d in th e e a rly d a y s.
68
A. W. Backlund
P a s to r N elson c lo se d h is work in Septem ber, 1893, and
A. ¥• B acklund, who was a lre a d y a member o f th e church, ac»
cep te d a c a l l to become i t s p a s to r . At th e tim e he was s e rv
in g as m issio n a ry f o r a r e c e n tly o rg an iz ed (February, 1893)
M issio n ary S o c ie ty f o r S o u th ern C a lif o r n ia , c a rry in g on Gos
p e l work among th e Swedish p e o p le . At th e r e q u e s t o f th e
M issio n ary S o c ie ty , he was p e rm itte d to spend one Sunday every
month on th e m is sio n f i e l d o u ts id e o f Los A ngeles a f t e r b e
coming p a s to r o f th e ch u rch .
In F e b ru ary , 1894, a Young P e o p le 's U nion was formed
fo llo w in g th e d is s o lu tio n o f "V in g a rd sa re b e ta m e . " The Sun
day School p u rch ased E n g lish language song books to m eet th e
demand f o r E n g lish songs a t t h i s tim e .
The end o f th e f i r s t decade found th e church hope
f u l l y and m an fu lly c a rry in g on i t s work d e s p ite d isc o u ra g in g
c irc u m sta n c e s. The p a s to r in h is annual m essage a t th e c lo se
o f 1896 r e f e r s to th e d i f f i c u l t i e s , b u t v o ic e s th e a ssu ran ce
t h a t th e p e rio d o f d ro u g h t w i l l be fo llo w ed by seaso n s o f r e
f r e s h in g . The t o t a l membership a t th e c lo s e o f 1896 was 117,
an in c re a s e o f 104 s in c e th e fo unding o f th e ch u rch .
M eetings had been h e ld th u s f a r in fo u r d i f f e r e n t p la c e s
o f w o rsh ip . At th e v ery b eg in n in g th e Sunday School ch ap el
o f th e F i r s t B a p tis t Church was u se d . In F eb ru ary , 1889, th e
basem ent o f th e fo rm er S t. V in c e n t's C ollege on H ill S tr e e t
69
was r e n te d . The n e x t lo c a tio n was a t 464 South H i l l S t r e e t ,
from May, 1890 to June 1892. A fte r th u s moving ab o u t from
p la c e to p la c e , th e members r e jo ic e d a t th e d e d ic a tio n o f
t h e i r own house o f w orship lo c a te d a t 717 West E ig h th S t r e e t ,
th e d e d ic a tio n ta k in g p la c e June 6 , 1892. The l o t was p u r
chased f o r $ 2 ,0 0 0 , b u t th e a c tu a l c o s t to th e church was only
$ 1 ,6 0 0 , due to a d o n a tio n by P e te r Stone o f a p a r c e l o f
ground which was a c ce p te d a s p a r t paym ent o f th e l o t . The
F i r s t B a p tis t Church don ated i t s Sunday School ch a p el which
was moved to th e l o t a t a c o s t o f $160. E x ten siv e im prove
m ents and a d d itio n s were made on th e ch a p el d u rin g th e summer
o f 1897.
F . 0 . N elson
Mr. Backlund c lo se d h is m in is try in Septem ber, 1897,
hav in g accep ted a c a l l te n d e re d by th e O akland, C a lif o r n ia ,
Swedish B a p tis t C hurch. F . 0 . N elson was c a lle d to succeed
him , and ac c e p ted th e c a l l , b u t d id n o t sir r iv e u n t i l th e end
o f May, 1898. The lo n g in te rim betw een p a s to r s was b rid g ed
o v er by D r. A ugust Jo h n so n , m issio n a ry from K ansas, and C. M.
N elson from San F ra n c is c o . P a s to r F . 0 . N e ls o n 's second
p e rio d o f s e rv ic e in th e church la s te d n e a rly two y e a rs , o r
u n t i l A p ril 3 0 , 1900, when he re q u e s te d r e le a s e frcxn h is p a s
t o r a l d u tie s in o rd e r to make a co n tem p lated t r i p to A lask a.
The church v o te d to r e s p e c t i t s p a s t o r 's w ish e s, and J . P .
60
R o sq u ist was engaged to su p p ly th e p u l p i t . However, a t th e
b u s in e s s m eetin g on Mgy 16, th e church v o te d to postpone
a c tio n on th e p a s t o r 's r e s ig n a tio n , and th e m in u tes do n o t
s t a t e a d e f i n i t e c o n c lu sio n o f th e m a tte r. On December 4 ,
1900, F . 0 . N elson was c a lle d f o r th e th i r d tim e . He se rv e d
from J a n u a ry , 1901, to May 1 , 1901.
In s p it e o f fre q u e n t p a s to r a l changes, w ith r e s u l t i n g
in te r r u p ti o n s , a good s p i r i t pervaded th e chu rch , and th e
s e rv ic e s were q u ite w e ll a tte n d e d . The Sunday School was
p ro g re s s in g though s tr u g g lin g w ith th e q u e s tio n o f lan g u ag e.
The E n g lish language had been u sed f o r some timeiÿ b u t in
A p ril, 1900, th e Swedish was r e s to r e d . The women's o rg a n iz a
tio n s were c a rry in g on a h e lp f u l m in is tr y , th e Sewing C irc le
g iv in g no sm all f in a n c ia l a id .
P e te r Ostrom
On May 4 , 1901, th e church welcomed th e Reverend P e te r
O strom , who sh o u ld ered th e r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s o f th e p a s to r a te
w ith d ev o tio n and en erg y . L ike h is p re d e c e s s o rs , he v i s i t e d
o u tly in g p re a c h in g s t a t i o n s , se e k in g to re a c h com m unities
where l i t t l e o r no r e l ig i o u s work was b e in g done- im m ediately
a f t e r h i s a r r i v a l th e church g ra n te d him p e rm issio n to v i s i t
Chino tw ice each m onth, where a Swedish B a p tis t Church had
b een o rg an iz ed in 1888.
The m issio n a ry o u tre a c h o f th e church was f u r th e r
61
extended a t t h i s tim e by th e d e p a rtu re o f M iss Selma Moberg
f o r th e m issio n f i e l d in C hina. M iss Moberg re c e iv e d no
s a la r y from any s o u rc e , b u t depended on f r e e - w i l l g i f t s . The
Young P e o p le 's S o c ie ty gave h e r a q u a r te r ly c o lle c tio n , and
g i f t s were s e n t by in d iv id u a ls .
P a s to r O stro m 's m in is try was b ro u g h t to a c lo se by
d e a th on March 23, 1905, h is age a t d e a th b ein g f if ty - s e v e n
y e a rs .
John F rib o rg
P a s to r John F rib o rg o f H a rtfo rd , C o n n ecticu t succeeded
O strom , am *iving November 17, 1905. He found th e church ready
to s e l l i t s p ro p e rty and b u ild an e d if ic e t h a t would more
ad e q u ate ly m eet th e needs o f a grow ing c o n g re g a tio n .
The o ld church b u ild in g was re p o rte d f r e e o f d eb t on
May 3 , 1901, and th e v a lu e o f th e p ro p e rty was in c re a s in g .
On Jan u ary 3 0 , 1906, th e E ig h th S tr e e t p ro p e rty was s o ld f o r
$16,000. A l o t was p u rch ased on th e c o rn e r o f E lev en th and
Denver (now B ix e l) S t r e e t s , th e c o s t b ein g $7,000. A b u ild
in g com m ittee, headed by th e p a s to r , secu red b id s f o r th e
c o n s tru c tio n o f a new ch u rch . On A ugust 2 4 , 1906, a u th o rity
was g ra n te d by th e church to l e t th e c o n tra c t to th e lo w est
b id d e r, J . W. L inds tro m , whose b id was $10,346. The f i r s t
m eetin g was h e ld in th e Sunday School room o f th e new church
on F ebruary 12, 1907. The d e d ic a tio n to o k p la c e th e second
62
Sunday in A p ril, 1907, in c o n n ectio n w ith th e an n u al m eetin g
o f th e C a lif o rn ia Swedish C onference, v/hich was h e ld in Los
A ngeles t h a t y e a r . The t o t a l c o s t o f th e new ch u rch , in c lu d
in g l o t , b u ild in g and i n t e r i o r f u r n is h in g s , was ap p ro x im ately
$26 ,0 0 0 . W ith th e money re c e iv e d f o r th e E ig h th S tr e e t p ro
p e r ty p lu s s u b s c rip tio n s from members, th e in d eb ted n e ss
amounted to $500 in a d d itio n to a g i f t m ortgage o f f iv e hunA-
d rëd d o lla r s from th e Am erican B a p tis t Home M issio n S o c ie ty .
In 1906 th e s o - c a lle d "Tongues Movement" sp ran g up in
Los A ngeles, p r e c i p i t a t i n g a d iv is iv e c o n tro v e rsy re g a rd in g
th e m ih is ti^ and g i f t s o f th e Holy S p i r i t . More th a n a sc o re
o f members w ithdrew from th e fe llo w sh ip o f th e church d u rin g
t h i s p e rio d o f te n s io n .
In November, 1910, th e church re q u e s te d i t s members
l i v i n g in S u n rise H eig h ts to o rg a n iz e t h e i r neighborhood Sun
day School as a branfehco'f tth e: m ain church sc h o o l. C h a irs,
songbooks, and l i t e r a t u r e w ere d o n ated .
The tw e n ty - f if th a n n iv e rsa ry o f th e founding o f th e
church was c e le b ra te d May 12 - 1 9 , 1912. In th e fo llo w in g
December th e p a s to r te n d e re d h is r e s ig n a tio n , e f f e c tiv e
March 22, 1913.
V. B. Hedberg
D m iediate s te p s were ta k e n to f i l l th e im pending v a
can cy , b u t i t was n o t u n t i l O ctober 5 t h a t th e new p a s to r .
63
V. E . Hedberg from M in n e a p o lis, a r r iv e d to assume th e le a d
e rs h ip o f th e c o n g re g a tio n . P a s to r Hedberg co n tin u ed th e
work begun by h is p re d e c e s s o r, w inning th e esteem o f th e
p e o p le .
S h o rtly a f t e r h is a r r i v a l a change in th e e le c tio n
o f deacons was e f f e c t e d . In s te a d o f b e in g a p p o in ted f o r l i f e ,
th e deacons w ere h e n c e fo rth to be e le c te d f o r th re e -y e a r
te rm s , d o u b tb le ss a d i s t i n c t im provem ent. A nother innova
t i o n was th e in tr o d u c tio n o f th e in d iv id u a l communion s e r
v ic e , w hich was v o te d F eb ru ary 5 , 1914.
The m in u tes c o n ta in fre q u e n t re fe re n c e s to th e Sun
r i s e H eig h ts Sunday S ch o o l. In J u ly , 1914, a la r g e r h a l l was
re n te d , and th e ch u rch gave th e grow ing sc h o o l an o ld organ
and a number o f c h a ir s and pew s. At th e an n u al m eeting o f
Jan u ary 1 , 1916, i t was re p o rte d t h a t Sunday School No. 2
had p ro sp ered d u rin g th e y e a r to th e e x te n t t h a t a d d itio n a l
te a c h e rs and la r g e r q u a r te r s w ere needed. D ev o tio n al m eet
in g s had been h e ld on F rid a y n ig h ts in w hich th e p a s to r and
Dr. E ric Lund had a s s i s t e d w henever p o s s ib le . L ikew ise th e
m ain Sunday School had in c re a s e d in a tte n d a n c e .
The f i r s t a t ta n p t s to h o ld E n g lish s e rv ic e s i s in d i
c a te d by a d e c is io n o f F eb ru ary 17, 1916, to have one Eng
l i s h sermon a month f o r th r e e m onths, presum ably as an ex
p e rim e n t. What th e r e a c tio n was cannot be d isc o v e re d i n th e
m in u te s, b u t E n g lish m eetin g s were e v id e n tly c o n tin u e d .
64
On M arch 25, 1917, a g i f t o f one hundred and f i f t y song books
by an anonymous donor f o r u se in th e E n g lish m eetin g s was
re p o rte d to th e ch u rch .
C a rl A ntonson
M r. Hedberg c lo se d h is m in is try in Los A ngeles n e a r ■
th e end o f 1918, hav in g ac c e p ted a c a l l te n d e re d him by th e
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church o f C hicago, I l l i n o i s . The r e
s u l t in g vacancy was f i l l e d by John F rib o rg who se rv e d u n t i l
th e a r r i v a l o f th e Reverend C a rl A ntonson, O ctober 5 , 1919.
The new m in is te r had conducted a s e r ie s o f h elp fU l ev an g el
i s t i c m eetin g s f o r th e church d u rin g A p r il, a f t e r w hich he
was c a lle d to become th e s e t t l e d p a s to r . S h o rtly a f t e r h is
a r r i v a l th e church v o te d to h o ld two E n g lish s e rv ic e s a
month on Sunday evenings* T his arrangem ent was d is c o n tin u e d
Septem ber 23, 1925, when th e church d e c id ed to u se only th e
Swedish language a t th e Sunday evening s e r v ic e s .
In a n t ic i p a tio n o f e v e n tu a l need o f a new church e d i
f i c e o r e x te n siv e a d d itio n s to th e o ld , a b u ild in g fund was
s t a r t e d in A p r il, 1920. An a p p ro p ria tio n o f one hundred d o l
l a r s from th e C u rren t B2q>ense Fund was m ade, and te n p e r c e n t
o f f u tu r e r e c e i p ts f o r c u rre n t expenses to be added
m o n th ly . A fte r th r e e and o n e -h a lf y e a rs i t was deemed ad
v is a b le to p u rch ase a b u ild in g s i t e , and a com m ittee was
ap p o in ted f o r t h i s p u rp o se . On November 21, 1923, th e com
66
m itte e recommended th e p u rch ase o f a s i t e lo c a te d a t th é
c o rn e r o f T w elfth and W estlake S tr e e ts - The p r ic e was s e t
a t $31,000, which in c lu d e d th r e e fram e houses occupying th e
two l o t s - P urchase o f t h i s p ro p e rty was a u th o riz e d and duly
consummated. The hopes o f e r e c tin g a new church b u ild in g
have n o t y e t been r e a l i z e d , though more th a n tw enty y e a rs
have p assed sin c e th e p ro p e rty was p u rc h a se d .
On A p ril 1 7 , 1921, th e church had th e p r iv ile g e o f
s e t t i n g a p a r t one o f i t s d a u g h te rs . M iss E lle n Hofftaan, to
m issio n a ry s e r v ic e . She d e p a rte d f o r B o liv ia w ith th e p ra y
e r s and b e s t w ishes o f h e r many f rie n d s in th e ch u rch .
A d e c is io n was made November 15, 1923, co n cern in g
th e S u n rise H eig h ts Sunday School and M issio n , by w hich th e
church re lin q u is h e d i t s r e s p o n s i b i l it y . The work had grown
s t e a d i l y , and th e c h a p e l on L orena S tr e e t became in a d e q u a te .
T here were th o se i#io fa v o re d tu rn in g th e m is sio n o v er to th e
Los A ngeles B a p tis t C ity M issio n S o c ie ty , w hich had p r e v i
o u sly a id ed in i t s s u p p o rt. They f e l t t h a t th e f i e l d needed
an Am erican B a p tis t C hurch. A fte r much d is c u s s io n , a d e c i
s io n was reach ed on November 15, 1923, to s u rre n d e r t h i s
f lo u r is h in g b ran ch Sunday School to th e B a p tis t C ity M issio n
S o c ie ty . Under i t s s u p e rv is io n a B a p tis t church was l a t e r
o rg a n iz e d , w hich h as been b le s s e d o f God. As a r e tu r n fa v o r,
th e C ity M issio n S o c ie ty a rran g e d to r e le a s e th e congrega
t i o n from th e g ift-m o rtg a g e o f $500 h e ld by th e American
B a p tis t Home M issio n S o c ie ty a g a in s t th e church b u ild in g a t
1 1 th and B ix e l S t r e e t s .
P a s to r A ntonson te n d e re d h is r e s ig n a tio n on June 13,
1926, e f f e c tiv e O ctober 1 . Thus he com pleted a se v en -y ear
term o f s e r v ic e . The Reverend C. W. Anderson was in v ite d
to se rv e as p a s to r ad in te r im .
M o rris P e te rso n
D octor M o rris P e te rs o n o f K ingsburg, C a lif o r n ia , was
th e n c a lle d to th e p a s to r a te , b eg in n in g h is work May 1 ,
1927. Im m ediately th e new p a s to r re c o g n iz e d th e n e c e s s ity
o f u s in g th e E n g lish language in th e Sunday evening s e rv ic e s
H is w ish es i n t h i s m a tte r, as p re s e n te d by th e deacons and
t r u s t e e s , provoked an anim ated d is c u s s io n . When p u t to a
v o te , th e proposed change re c e iv e d a tw o -th ird s m a jo rity .
D uring D r. P e te r s o n 's p e rio d o f s e rv ic e th e q u e s tio n
o f b u ild in g a new church was s e r io u s ly c o n s id e re d , and th e
s a le o f th e o ld e d if ic e as a p re lim in a ry s te p was d ecid ed
upon i n M arch, 1929. The p ro p e rty was l i s t e d a t # 6 ,0 0 0 ,
b u t no s a le was e f f e c te d . At fre q u e n t in te r v a ls th e a d v is
a b i l i t y o f ad d in g a Sunday School u n i t o f some k in d had been
c o n sid e re d b ecau se th e f a c i l i t i e s f o r th e e d u c a tio n a l work
o f th e church w ere in a d e q u a te . However, th e a c tio n to s e l l
th e church checked f o r th e tim e b e in g a l l p ro s p e c ts o f ex
p a n sio n on th e o ld s i t e .
67
D r. P e te rs o n re s ig n e d a t th e end o f 1929, hav in g ac
ce p ted a c a l l te n d e re d by th e F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church
o f W o rcester, M a ssa c h u se tts. In View o f h is b r i e f m in is try
in Los A ngeles, th e church so u g h t to d issu a d e him from le a v
in g , b u t he was fix e d in h is p u rp o se, and th e fa re w e ll r e
c e p tio n to o k p la c e March 12, 1930.
Edwin J . Qmark
A gain th e church tu rn e d to C. W . A nderson f o r le a d e r
s h ip d u rin g th e in te rim b e fo re a new p a s to r could re a c h th e
f i e l d . He was a member o f th e ch u rch , and se rv e d ab ly u n t i l
Septem ber 16, 1930, when th e p r e s e n t p a s to r , Edwin J . Omark,
a r r iv e d from B ellingham , W ashington, to assume th e p a s to r a l
d u t i e s .
In th e f a l l o f 1931 th e church a g a in faced th e is s u e
o f p ro v id in g more space f o r i t s B ib le S chool, and f o r a J u n io r
Church w hich had r e c e n tly been s t a r t e d . An a r c h i t e c t was
engaged who su b m itted a p la n which would p ro v id e a sm all a s
sembly room o r ch a p el s e a tin g e ig h ty , e ig h t classro o m s, a
s e c r e t a r y 's o f f ic e and o th e r f a c i l i t i e s . B esid es t h i s , th e
s id e room a d jo in in g th e m ain au d ito riu m was e n la rg e d and im
provem ents made i n th e k itc h e n . The p la n was adopted and
th e work begun im m ed iately . T o ta l c o s t o f th e annex w ith
fu rn is h in g s and equipm ent was $ 5 ,8 1 0 .6 2 . The d e d ic a tio n o f
th e new u n i t to o k p la c e Jan u ary 31, 1932.
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The u se o f th e E n g lish language had become in c r e a s
in g ly e s s e n t i a l . On December 3 1 , 1931, th e o f f i c i a l la n
guage o f th e church was changed to E n g lis h .
S e v e ra l im provem ents were made in th e o rg a n iz a tio n
o f th e church and i t s f i n a n c i a l system . A budget was adop
te d f o r 1932 and f o r each su cceed in g y e a r, w ith a g ra d u a l
in c re a s e i n th e d e s ig n a tio n s f o r Home and F o reig n m is s io n s .
In November, 1938, th e church had th e p r iv ile g e o f
sen d in g two o f i t s members, John and Ruth Newley, to th e
m issio n f i e l d in N icarag u a, u n d er th e C e n tra l American M is
s io n . A pproxim ately tw o -th ird s o f t h e i r s a la r y i s p a id by
th e ch u rch .
D uring th e y e a r 1940 th e name o f th e church was
changed to E lev e n th S tr e e t B a p tis t C hurch. Conforming to
t h i s d e c is io n , th e u se o f Swedish in th e p r in c ip a l w orship
s e rv ic e s was a ls o d is c o n tin u e d . The demand f o r some Swed
is h s e rv ic e s was m et by a rra n g in g to h o ld such m eetin g s
tw ic e a month in th e ch ap el a t th e elev en o 'c lo c k hour on
Sundays. T his arrangem ent i s s t i l l in e f f e c t .
The church would p ro b ab ly b e n e f i t by moving to a
neighborhood h av in g a more s ta tio n a r y p o p u la tio n th a n t h a t
w hich su rro u n d s th e p r e s e n t lo c a tio n . A b u ild in g fund has
been s t a r t e d , lo o k in g tow ard th e e v e n tu a l e r e c tio n o f a
new b u ild in g in a b e t t e r lo c a tio n .
The p r e s e n t p a s to r c lo se d h is work November 1 , 1943.
69
SAN DIEGQS
The B e th e l B a p tis t Church o f San Diego was o rg an ized
O ctober 1 8 , 1892, h av in g f i f t e e n c h a r te r members* T his new
church was th e r e s u l t o f m issio n a ry la b o rs by th e Reverend
A. B. O rgren who came from C hino, C a lif o r n ia to San Diego
on T hanksgiving, 1891. S e rv ic e s were h e ld in th e American
B a p tis t Church u n t i l J u ly , 1892, when th e new church b u ild
in g was com pleted. D e d ic a tio n o f t h i s house o f w orship was
s e t f o r O ctober 20, 1892.
Two weeks p r i o r to th e d e d ic a tio n , th e b e l ie v e r s ,
f i f t e e n in number, h e ld a m eetin g to c o n s id e r th e wisdom o f
o rg a n iz in g a B a p tis t ch u rch . Three d e c is io n s were made:
1 ) to o rg an iz e a church on O ctober 18 in c o n ju n c tio n w ith
th e San Diego A s s o c ia tio n w hich was to m eet in th e American
B a p tis t Church a t t h a t tim e ; 2 ) to seek re c o g n itio n as a
r e g u la r B a p tis t church and to a f f i l i a t e w ith th e San Diego
B a p tis t A s s o c ia tio n ; 3 ) t h a t th e d e d ic a tio n o f th e church
b u ild in g should ta k e p la c e in co n n e ctio n w ith th e A sso cia
t i o n m e etin g , and t h a t e f f o r t s should be made to pay th e
c o s t o f th e p ro p e rty .
In o rd e r to c le a r th e d e b t more q u ic k ly , i t was v o te d
t h a t o n ly a f i f t y - f o o t fro n ta g e o f th e p ro p e rty on which th e
church was b u i l t sh o u ld be p u rch ased f o r th e tim e b e in g a t a
c o s t o f $500. I t was a ls o v o te d to in v i t e th e Swedish Bap-
2 Sources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
B ib lio g ra p h y u n d e r: San D iego, B e th e l B a p tis t Church.
70
t i s t Church o f Los A ngeles to p a r t i c i p a t e in th e o rg a n iz a
t i o n and d e d ic a tio n e v e n ts-
The church was d u ly o rg an ized and th e o th e r d e c is io n s
c a r r ie d o u t- F if te e n names a re in clu d ed in th e l i s t o f
c h a r te r members : A. B. O rg ren , M rs. A. B. O rgren, M iss Ruth
E . O rgren, O scar A nderson, M rs. Sophia A nderson, M rs. M aria
B engtson, M iss B e tty Swanson, J o e l A nderson, Theodore Ander
so n , M rs. J u s t in a A nderson, A lfre d A nderson, L ydia A nderson,
M rs. M aria K. E ric k so n , L . G. B engtson and C. W. Lang. The
f i r s t o f f i c e r s w ere : Theodore Anderson and O scar A nderson,
d eaco n s; J o e l A nderson, c le r k ; A lfre d A nderson, t r e a s u r e r ;
J o e l A nderson, L. B engtson, C h arles Lang, Theodore Anderson
and O scar A nderson, t r u s t e e s . The p a s to r and c le r k were
a u th o riz e d to ta k e n e c e ssa ry s te p s to in c o rp o ra te th e ch u rch .
A. B. O rgren
The Reverend A. B . O rgren became th e f i r s t r e g u la r
p a s to r , c o n tin u in g th e good work w hich he had begun p r i o r to
th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e c h u rc h . A g ift-lo a m o f fo u r hundred
d o lla r s to pay o f f th e in d e b te d n e ss o f th e church was a c c e p t
ed May 1 , 1893 from th e American B a p tis t Home M issio n S o c ie ty
A Women's M issio n S o c ie ty was o rg an ized s h o r tly a f t e r
th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e ch u rch , and a Sunday School was
s t a r t e d June 26, 1894. T hat m issio n a ry work was dom inant in
th e th in k in g o f th e new church i s evidenced by a d e c is io n
71
made J u ly 8 , 1896. A ccording to t h i s a c tio n ^ th e M issio n s
C oranittee o f th e Young P e o p le 's S o cie ty was to d iv id e th e
church and c i t y in to d i s t r i c t s , and s u b s c rip tio n s f o r m is
s io n s from th e s e d i s t r i c t s were to be s o l i c i t e d .
P a s to r O rg re n 's an n u al s a la r y was s ix hundred d o l l a r s ,
o f w hich th re e hundred d o lla r s was p a id by th e American
B a p tis t Home M issio n S o c ie ty . T his a id from th e S o c ie ty was
red u ced to two hundred d o lla r s th e n e x t y e a r.
At th e c lo s e o f 1896 th e church had fo rty -o n e members,
b u t th e number d e c lin e d to t h i r t y in 1897. P a s to r O rgren r e
sig n e d from th e p a s to r a te dn A p ril 14, 1897, b e lie v in g , as
he s a id , t h a t th e coming o f a new man would r e s u l t in g r e a te r
a c t i v i t y and more so u ls sav ed .
The Reverend H. P . P alm q u ist to o k up th e p a s to r a l du
t i e s l a i d down by O rg ren , and la b o re d u n t i l A ugust, 1899.
The n e x t p a s to r was C$ J . C h ris tia n s o n who c lo se d h is work
November 1 , 1901.
D uring th e s e y e a rs th e membership d e c lin e d , drop p in g
to tw e n ty -th re e i n Septem ber, 1900, o f which f i f t e e n were
r e s id e n t members. F in a lly th e church became to o fe e b le to
m a in ta in i t s e l f , and a c tio n to d isb an d was ta k e n . The Board
o f T ru s te e s , m eetin g F eb ru ary 24, 1905, v o te d to s e l l th e
p ro p e rty to th e F i r s t B a p tis t Church o f San D iego.
P a s to r Jo h n F rib o rg from Los A ngeles v i s i t e d San
Diego in 1906, g a th e r in g th e few rem ain in g Swedish B a p tis ts
72
and en couraging them to resum e th e w ork. Through h is e f
f o r t s th e S ta te M issio n a ry , F . 0 . N elso n , came to Sari Diego^
and th e church was re o rg a n iz e d a t a m eetin g h e ld on Septem
b e r 16, 1907. When th e work s ta r t e d a g a in , i t was e v id e n tly
co n tin u ed u nder th e o ld c o rp o ra te name, B e th e l B a p tis t Church
o f Sari D iégo, ju d g in g by th e m in u te s. The membership was
e le v e n , b u t new names were soon added to th e r o l l and th e
work looked h o p e fu l a g a in .
A new church b u ild in g was e re c te d and com pleted in
tim e f o r th e an n u al m eetin g o f th e C a lif o r n ia Swedish B a p tis t
C onference which was h e ld in Sari Diego i n May, 1909. The
R everend C. M. N elson was shepherd o f th e flo c k now, having
ta k e n up th e work F eb ru ary 1 , 1908. He f in is h e d in F ebru
a r y , 1911.
K. E . B yleen
The Reverend K. E . B yleen serv ed as p a s to r from June
1 , 1911 to December 14, 1913. Through h is e f f o r t s enough
money was r a is e d to pay o f f a d e b t o f one th o u san d d o l l a r s .
C o n sid erab le improvem ent was a ls o made on th e b u ild in g . The
an n u al r e p o r t f o r 1913 showed a membership t o t a l o f 4 7 .
J . A. C arlso n
P a s to r J . A. C a rlso n a r r iv e d March 1 , 1914 to com
mence a m in is try t h a t l a s t e d o v er seven y e a rs .
73
I n t e r e s t in s o c ia l is s u e s i s evidenced by an a c tio n
o f th e church a t a s p e c ia l m eeting h e ld A p ril 7 , 1918. War
tim e p r o h ib itio n was u n d er c o n s id e ra tio n , and th e church
v o te d to s ig n a p e t i t i o n d ir e c te d to P re s id e n t W ilson and
C ongress re q u e s tin g te rm in a tio n o f th e m anufacture o f s p i r -
ito u s liq u o r d u rin g th e w ar.
The I n te r church World Movement, w hich was a g g re s s iv e ly
prom oted in a l l th e la rg e d en o m in atio n s, re c e iv e d no su p p o rt
from t h i s ch u rch . On A p ril 5 , 1920 th e y v o te d n o t to co-op
e r a te .
J . A. C a rlso n l e f t th e f i e l d on A ugust 15, 1921, b e in g
fo llo w ed by C. H. C arlso n a s in te rim p a s t o r .
The language q u e s tio n came up f o r c o n s id e ra tio n in
O cto b er, 1921, when i t was d ecid ed to u s e th e E n g lish la n
g a g e f o r th e b e n e f i t o f th e young p eo p le a t th e evening s e r
v i c e s . At th e an n u al m eetin g h e ld Jan u ary 2 , 1922, t h i s
a c tio n was re s c in d e d and th e u se o f Swedish resum ed. An
o th e r u n s u c c e s s fu l a tte m p t to adopt th e E n g lish language
was made l a t e in 1922.
K. A. Johanson
The n e x t p a s to r was K. A. Jo h an so n , who came to San
Diego June 1 , 1922, and rem ained u n t i l J u ly 1 , 1926.
In d iv id u a l communion s e rv ic e had b een d is c u s s e d and
ta b le d from tim e to tim e , b u t f i n a l l y re c e iv e d a m a jo rity
74
v o te (81 to 9 ) a t th e annual m eeting on Ja n u ary 1 , 1925,.
There was e v id e n tly some disharm ony w ith in th e
ch u rch , and th e p a s to r was asked by th e deacons and t r u s t
ees to r e s ig n , to which he a c q u ie sc e d , e f f e c tiv e J u ly 1 ,
1925.
Edward Carneh
The Reverend Edward C am eh, S ta te M issio n ary f o r th e
C a lif o r n ia C o nference, came to th e f i e l d on Septem ber 1,
1925 to a s s i s t th e church te m p o ra rily . L a te r he was te n
d ered an i n v i t a t i o n to rem ain a s r e g u la r p a s to r , which he
a c c e p te d on November 29, 1925. At th e v e ry b eg in n in g o f
h is work he s tr e s s e d th e im portance o f u s in g a language
w hich th e c h ild re n grow ing up in th e church could u n d e r
s ta n d . Hence i t was v o te d on Jan u ary 1 , 1926, to u se th e
E n g lish language on th e second and f o u rth Sunday evenings
o f th e m onth. About two y e a rs l a t e r , F ebruary 6 , 1928,
a f t e r some e x p e rim e n ta tio n w ith o th e r p la n s , th e church
v o te d to u se th e Swedish language f o r a l l m orning s e rv ic e s
and E n g lish f o r th e evening s e r v ic e s .
The p u rch ase o f a c a r f o r th e p a s t o r ’s u se was au
th o riz e d on F eb ru ary 10, 1926.
S ix y e a rs l a t e r th e language q u e s tio n was ag a in u n d er
c o n s id e ra tio n . The Sunday School te a c h e rs recommended on
J u ly 15, 1934 t h a t th e m orning s e rv ic e s in August and Sep-
75
tem ber be conducted in E nglish* E v id e n tly t h i s p ro p o s a l
c a r r ie d . On Ja n u a ry 1 , 1935 i t was d ecid ed to w rite th e
church m inutes in th e E n g lish language t h e r e a f t e r .
V ic to r M. Johnson
Edward Carneh c lo se d h is work on August 3 1 , 1934. No
one was found to succeed him u n t i l June 1 , 1935 when V ic to r
M, Johnson came to th e f i e l d . C o n sid erab le encouragem ent
came to th e church d u rin g th e en su in g m onths, e s p e c ia lly i n
i t s work among s e rv ic e men s ta tio n e d in San D iego.
A new name f o r th e church was adopted Jan u ary 1 , 1936—
E vangel B a p tis t C hurch. The n e c e s s ity o f fin d in g a new name
became ap p a re n t s e v e r a l y e a rs e a r l i e r when i t was d isc o v e re d
t h a t a c o lo re d church i n San Diego a ls o was u s in g th e name,
B e th e l B a p tis t C hurch.
The work o f th e church was s e r io u s ly hampered by i t s
p o o r lo c a tio n , and th e le a d in g members re c o g n iz e d t h a t some
move was n e c e ssa ry to av o id e v e n tu a l d isb a n d in g o f th e ch u rch .
In M arch, 1935, a com m ittee had b een ap p o in ted to d ec id e upon
a new lo c a tio n f o r th e ch u rch . L a te r t h a t y e a r th e s a le o f
th e o ld p ro p e rty was a u th o riz e d i f a bu y er could be fo u n d .
V ic to r Johnson c lo se d h is work w ith th e church on
March 31, 1938. Mr. A* Lewis C oates was in v ite d to se rv e as
p a s to r ad in te rim b e g in n in g June 1 9 , 1938. A t th e b eg in n in g
o f th e new y e a r, Ja n u ary 1 0 , 1939, he became th e r e g u la r
76
p a s to r , a p o s itio n which he re lin q u is h e d on Septem ber 3 ,
1939, in o rd e r to com plete h is c o lle g e e d u c a tio n . I t was
d u rin g h is s ta y in San Diego t h a t th e church c o n tra c te d f o r
th e p u rch ase o f a b u ild in g s i t e on C ollege Avenue n e a r S I
C ajon B o u lev ard , ab o u t seven m ile s from th e o ld lo c a tio n .
S ubsequent ev en ts have co if irm ed th e wisdom o f t h i s a c tio n .
Edwin R. Greene
â new p a s to r , Edwin R. G reene, to o k up th e work on
Ja n u ary 1 , 1940. On March 14, 1940 c o n s tru c tio n was begun
on a new church b u ild in g . On J u ly 20 i t was read y f o r oc
cupancy, and on J u ly 28 , 1940 th e new house o f w orship was
d e d ic a te d .
From a sm all g ro u p , c o n sid e ra b ly l e s s th a n one hun
d re d , th e membership h as grown to a p r e s e n t t o t a l o f two
hundred t h i r t y , and i t i s s t i l l grow ing. The b u ild in g i s
d e b t - f r e e , and th e co n g reg a tio n lo o k s forweird to th e day when
a la r g e r e d if ic e may be e re c te d to m eet th e grow ing n e e d s .
The San Diego ch u rch , known now as th e C ollege Avenue B a p tis t
Church, i s a s t r i k i n g example o f w hat can be done by a p ro
g r e s s iv e church and p a s to r in a fa v o ra b le lo c a tio n .
77
P A S A D E U aS
The f i r s t e f f o r t s to c a rry on p re a c h in g s e rv ic e s
among Swedish B a p tis ts i n Pasadena were made in 1907 w h ile
th e Reverend John F rib o rg was p a s to r in Los A ngeles- He h e ld
fre q u e n t m eetin g s in homes, and a ls o a rra n g e d to have th e
S ta te M issio n a ry , A. B. C o lv in , v i s i t P asadena. L a te r C. J .
A lm q u ist, as S ta te M issio n a ry , h e ld m onthly m eetin g s in th e
F i r s t B a p tis t Church f o r th e Swedish f r ie n d s , and s im ila r
m onthly m eetin g s were arran g ed by th e Reverend V. E . Hedberg
when he became p a s to r o f th e Los A ngeles Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch.
A Women’s M issio n ary S o c ie ty was o rg a n iz ed Jan u ary 7 ,
1915, a t th e home o f M r. and M rs. A. L undin. T his s o c ie ty
became th e n u cleu s o f th e church imhich l a t e r was o rg a n iz e d .
D uring th e y e a rs o f 1919 and 1920 th e work was c a r
r i e d on q u ite a c tiv e ly by J . P . R o s q u is t, and i t f e l t t h a t a
church sh o u ld be o rg a n iz e d . At a m eetin g h e ld May 5 , 1920,
in a home, th e q u e s tio n was r a is e d ; "S h a ll o u r work go on
u n d er th e name o f ’Swedish B a p tis t M is s io n ’ o r s h a l l a church
be o rg an ized ?" I t was d ecid ed to o rg a n iz e a ch u rch , and a
com m ittee was a p p o in te d . The o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e church was
e f f e c te d November 2 8 , 1920, a t a Sunday a fte rn o o n m eetin g
3 S ources o f m a te r ia l f o r t h i s s e c tio n a re l i s t e d in
th e B ib lio g rap h y u n d e r: P asadena, C a lif o r n ia , Swedish Bap
t i s t C hurch.
78
h e ld in th e German L u th eran Church, where th e group had o f te n
m et p re v io u s ly . P a s to r J . A. C a rlso n from San Diego was ap
p o in te d chairm an o f th e m e etin g , and I s r a e l O lson, c le r k .
F if te e n c h a r te r members v o te d to c o n s titu t e them selves a l o
c a l B a p tis t ch u rch .
The f i r s t o f f i c e r s o f th e church were e le c te d a t a
b u s in e s s m eetin g h e ld December 2 , 1920, when C. E. Lundgren
was e le c te d chairm an o f th e ch u rch , W. M arker, c l e r k , and
I s r a e l O lson, t r e a s u r e r . Two deacons were e le c te d , A. Lundin
and C. A. Swanson.
J . A. C arlso n
J . A. C a rlso n o f San Diego was c a lle d to be th e f i r s t
r e g u la r p a s to r by a c tio n o f th e church Jan u ary 6 , 1921. He
ac c e p te d th e c a l l , b u t could n o t b e g in h is work u n t i l th e
f i r s t o f O cto b er. J . P . R o sq u ist occupied th e p u lp i t in th e
m eantim e. P a s to r C a rlso n rem ained in charge o f th e work un
t i l J u ly 1 , 1926. The membership had grown to s e v e n ty -e ig h t
by t h a t tim e .
A fte r i t s o r g a n iz a tio n , th e church co n tin u ed h o ld in g
i t s p u b lic s e rv ic e s in th e German L u th eran C hurch, an a r
rangem ent which co u ld n o t c o n tin u e i n d e f i n i t e l y . A lthough
th e membership was v e ry sm all a t t h a t tim e , only tw en ty -
th r e e , s te p s were ta k e n to se c u re a house o f w orship f o r
th e m selv es. A l o t was p u rch ased f o r ^ , 0 0 0 , and th e b u ild -
79
in g i t s e l f amounted to ^ ,7 6 4 , n o t in c lu d in g la b o r, which
was donated by members and p a s to r . An in d e b ted n e ss o f
$2600 was p a id up in l e s s th a n two y ears* The d e d ic a tio n o f
th e new house o f w orship to o k p la c e A p ril 22, 1922, a jo y
ous o c c a sio n f o r th e sm all b u t courageous group o f b e lie v e r s .
A p arsonage was a ls o b u i l t on th e same l o t .
At th e f i r s t b u s in e s s m eetin g in th e new ch u rch , a
d e c is io n was made to o rg an iz e a Sunday S ch o o l. Mr. I s r a e l
O lson was ap p o in te d S u p e rin te n d e n t. A Young P e o p le ’s S o c ie ty
was o rg an iz e d Septem ber 16, 1922, w ith n in e members.
Swan A. Engw all
The new m in is te r who succeeded P a s to r C a rlso n was
Swan A. Engw all from T u rlo ck , C a lif o r n ia , v/ho was welcomed
A ugust 1 , 1926. Under h is le a d e rs h ip th e church co n tin u ed
to show rem ark ab le i n t e r e s t in m is s io n s . D uring th e f i r s t
te n y e a rs o f i t s h is to r y o v er seven th ousand d o lla r s was
c o n trib u te d to m is s io n s , w h ile c u r r e n t expenses amounted to
$22,000, and n e a rly $12,000 had been handled in th e b u ild in g
fu n d .
An a d d itio n to th e b u ild in g was made in 1929 to p ro
v id e more space f o r th e Sunday S ch o o l. T h is a d d itio n c o s t
$ 1 ,2 3 6 .
I n December, 1934, an arrangem ent was made to h o ld
an E n g lish s e rv ic e every Sunday m orning. A Swedish s e rv ic e
80
was h e ld a t 10 o ’c lo c k , fo llo w ed by Sunday School a t 1 0 :4 6 .
Then a r a th e r b r i e f E n g lish s e rv ic e was h e ld a t 1 1 :4 6 .
P a s to r Engw all te n d e re d h is r e s ig n a tio n on March 10,
1936, to become e f f e c t iv e June 16, a t w hich tim e he l e f t to
become th e p a s to r o f th e C e n tra l Avenue B a p tis t Church in
C hicago, I l l i n o i s . The membership o f th e church was eighty-
f iv e in November, 1936, when th e F if te e n th A n niversary was
c e le b r a te d .
H arold M artin so n
C. A. A ldeen se rv e d as tem porary p a s to r u n t i l Ju n e ,
1936, when H arold M artin so n w ith fam ily a r r iv e d from L in d s-
b o rg , K ansas. Under h i s le a d e rs h ip th e Sunday School e s
p e c ia l ly d isp la y e d f in e i n t e r e s t . On F eb ru ary 6 , 1938, th e
name ^'Bethel B a p tis t Church" was ad o p ted , dropping th e
Swedish name. A nother change p e r ta in in g to language o ccu r
re d Jan u ary 3 1 , 1940, when i t was v o te d to d isp e n se w ith
th e Swedish s e rv ic e on Sunday m o rn in g s. N a tu r a lly , a Swed
is h c la s s was r e ta in e d in th e Sunday S ch o o l. P a s to r M a rtin
son c lo se d h is work December 3 1 , 1941, h av in g se rv e d f iv e
and o n e -h a lf y e a rs -
Floyd B e rg fa lk
H is su c c e sso r was th e R everend Floyd B e rg fa lk who
came to P asadena on May 1 , 1942. D uring th e in te rim b e -
81
tw een p a s to rs th e p u l p i t was occupied by th e Reverend David
Mob erg o f D u lu th , M in n eso ta. The church i s now ex p e rie n c in g
a d e f i n i t e u p tu rn in i n t e r e s t and grow th w hich bodes w e ll
f o r th e f u tu r e . E vidence o f a c t i v i t y i s found in th e re c e n t
p u rch ase o f a p arso n ag e a t 1700 B ev erly D riv e . The o ld p a r
sonage a d ja c e n t to th e church w i l l be u sed f o r Sunday School
c la s s e s p r i n c i p a l l y .
CHAPTER V
CHURCHES W ITH D RA W N FR O M CONFERENCE O R DISBANDED^
CHINO
Through th e e f f o r t s o f th e R everend A. B. O rgren, a
c o n s id e ra b le number o f Swedish peo p le s e t t l e d in th e Chino
d i s t r i c t , lo c a te d about f o r ty m ile s e a s t o f Los A n g eles.
The F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church o f Chino was organ
iz e d May 6 , 1888, h av in g n in e te e n c h a r te r members. Mr. Or
g re n was e le c te d p a s to r . O th er o f f ic e r s w ere: a c le r k ,
t r e a s u r e r , two d eaco n s, and f iv e t r u s t e e s .
B esid es th e r e g u la r p reac h in g s e r v ic e s , th e re were
o th e r a c t i v i t i e s such as Sunday S chool, Young P e o p le ’s So
c i e t y , and a L ad ies ’ Aid S o c ie ty . The i n t e r e s t was encour
ag in g and e v e ry th in g looked p ro m isin g , b u t th e com plexion
o f th e church changed q u ic k ly . Some o f th e Swedes moved
away, and A m ericans, even M exicans, moved in . In 1891 th e
church was co n v e rted in to an American B a p tis t ch u rch , and i t
i s s t i l l a c tiv e to d a y . In th e S ta te C onvention Year Book
f o r 1942 th e m embership was re p o rte d a t e ig h ty -o n e .
^ P r in c ip a l so u rce s f o r t h i s c h a p te r ^ e :
Swan A. E ngw all, S a K o rt H is to r is k O v e r s k r if t»
P . Benson, H istO T-lcal E s ris z ? Ig,84,„- .1939;.
Nva V ecko-P osten, T ra n s c rip t o f L e t t e r s , N o tic e s,
and A r t ic le s , 1886 - 1899.
83
hmm
The community o f LinneT i s lo c a te d sev en o r e ig h t
m ile s from Paso R obles- In th e e a rly days a number o f Swed
is h f a m ilie s s e t t l e d th e r e , among whom w ere some B a p tis ts
who d e s ire d to have a church o f t h e i r own.
P u ttin g t h e i r d e s ir e s in to a c tio n , th e Swedish Bap
t i s t Church o f L inne was o rg an iz e d on J u ly 11, 1888, a t a
m eetin g in th e home o f th e Reverend A. 0 . Malmberg, who had
c a lle d th e m e e tin g . Three American p a s to rs from Paso R obles
were p r e s e n t; Mr. James Lamber, Mr. H am ilton and Mr. Long.
There were tw elv e c h a r te r members, as fo llo w s : A. 0 .
Msilmberg, P . S . A nderson Edward 0 . M almberg, E. P . E ric k so n ,
C h r is tin a E rik so n , E ngla E lis a b e th M almberg, E lis a b e th €•
M almberg, Anna K a th a rin a Enokson, C h r is tin a S tra n d b e rg ,
C h r is tin a A nderson, P e te r Johnson and In a Johnson.
A* 0 . Malmberg was th e le a d e r and f i r s t p a s to r , and
h is m in is try c o n tin u e d , w ith some in te r r u p tio n s , u n t i l he
became a n o n ag en arian . Those who have serv ed in a p a s to r a l
c a p a c ity from tim e to tim e a r e : August W esterb erg , E . P .
E ric k so n , J . J . B e rg s te d t, A. W . Backlund and C. M. N elson.
D uring th e e a rly y e a rs o f i t s e x is te n c e , th e church
enjoyed some p ro g re s s . The h ig h e s t membership re p o rte d in
th e G en eral C onference Year Book was 39 as o f December,
1897, b u t th e number g ra d u a lly d e c lin e d . S p e c ific re a so n s
f o r t h i s d e c lin e a re n o t in d ic a te d in th e a v a ila b le so u rce s-
84
Swan A. Engw all a llu d e s to "circu m stan ces which n e c e s s ita te d
2
th e rem oval o f th e members from th e l o c a l i t y . " In 1926
s c a rc e ly te n members rem ained, and th e church has s in c e th en
ceased to e x i s t . A c o n trib u tin g f a c t o r to t h is c o n d itio n has
been th e tendency among th e young p eo p le to a f f i l i a t e w ith
th e American B a p tis t Church in Paso R o b les.
O A K VALLEY
A Sunday School was s t a r t e d in 1891 by Swedish Bap
t i s t s liv i n g in Oak V a lle y , n e a r Red B lu f f , un d er th e d ir e c
tio n o f Mr. S . H ayland. L a te r, h is b r o th e r , th e Reverend
N. H ayland, moved to Oak V a lle y and a id e d th e work o f th e
m issio n g r e a t ly .^
The F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church o f Oak V a lle y was
o rg a n iz e d on A p ril 8 , 1892. The Reverend George Hadman o f
Red B lu ff se rv ed a s m o d e rato r, and th e Reverend C. M. N elson
o f O akland as c le r k . There were e le v e n c h a r te r members, o f
whom s e v e r a l had o r ig in a l ly come from th e F i r s t Swedish Bap
t i s t Church o f O akland. N. Hayland became th e f i r s t p a s to r ,
and J . A. W inlund was e le c te d deacon.
No in fo rm a tio n ab o u t th e p ro g re ss o f t h i s church i s
a v a ila b le . E v id e n tly i t e x is te d from s ix to e ig h t y e a rs and
th e n d isb an d ed , due to rem oval o f i t s members to o th e r p la c e s .^
^ Swan A. E ngw all, ^ K ort H is to r is k O v e r s k r if t, p . 9 .
y J . A. W inlund in Nya Vecko-P o ste n , March 23, 1892.
C. M. N elson i n Nva V ecko-P osten, A p ril 13, 1892.
Swqn A. E ngw all, En K o rt H is to r is k O v e r s k r if t, p . 24.
85
TU O LU M N E
Tuolumne i s lo c a te d n e a r Yosemite P a rk , ab o u t tw elve
m ile s from S onora, in th e tim b e r re g io n where lum bering op
e r a tio n s a re c a r r ie d on. In th e s p rin g o f 1904 a number o f
Swedish lu m b e r-ja ck s a r r iv e d in Tuolumne to work f o r th e
West Side Lumber Company, among whom were some B a p tis ts .
These g a th e re d f o r p ra y e r m eetings in a company-owned b u ild
in g , b u t l a t e r e re c te d t h e i r own c h a p e l. Two b r o th e r s ,
W illiam and Leonard Holm, seem to have been th e le a d in g s p i
r i t s in th e w ork. R eg u lar s e rv ic e s and a p ro m isin g Sunday
School b ro u g h t en co u rag in g r e s u l t s . A v i s i t i n g D anish m is
s io n a ry , P . P e te rs e n , immersed some o f th e s e co n v erts*
The o rg a n iz a tio n o f a church in A p r il, 1906 r e s u lte d
from v i s i t s by P a s to r A. W. B acklund o f K ingsburg. There
w ere n in e c h a r te r members: Mr. and M rs. W illiam Holm, Mr*
and Mrs* Leonard Holm, F red O strom , P e te r B acklund, O le A lle n ,
C la ra E ric k so n , and Mrs* K a ro lin e B o q u ist.
T his church was n o t d e s tin e d to su rv iv e long* In
1912 th e o rg a n iz a tio n was d is s o lv e d and th e p ro p e rty sold*
Removal o f s e v e ra l m anbers had made th e lo a d to o heavy f o r
th o se who rem ained* Only two p e rs o n s , Mr. and Mrs* W illiam
Holm, rem ained in Tuolumne a f t e r th e church had disbanded*
The r e s t s c a tte r e d , and some o f them b elo n g to o th e r Swed
is h B a p tis t ch u rch es. Two u n ite d w ith th e T urlock ch u rch ,
and b ro u g h t w ith them t h i r t y d o lla r s each , w hich was t h e i r
sh a re when th e p ro p e rty was so ld and th e p ro ceed s d iv id e d .^
HJGHSON
Hughson i s a sm all community lo c a te d about e ig h t
m ile s from T u rlo ck . D uring th e w in te r o f 1907-08 a few
Swedish B a p tis ts l iv i n g in th e v i c i n i t y g a th e re d f o r p u b lic
s e rv ic e s u nder th e le a d e rs h ip o f th e R everend C. H. C a rlso n ,
who had lo c a te d in Hughson. Soon th e y d ecid ed to o rg a n iz e
a ch u rch , and ag ree d to h o ld th e o rg a n iz a tio n m eetin g on
March 8 , 1908.
D ele g ate s from o th e r B a p tis t churches came by in v i
t a t i o n , and a Swedish B a p tis t Church was o rg an iz e d on March
8 , 1908, c o n s is tin g o f e ig h t members. G. H. C arlso n became
th e f i r s t p a s to r . A Sunday School was o rg an iz ed im m ediately,
and r e g u la r church work commenced. A ch a p el was b u i l t and
d e d ic a te d .
W e ll-a tte n d e d s e r v ic e s , w ith some co n v ersio n s and
b a p tism s, augured w e ll f o r th e f u tu r e , b u t th e church d id
n o t fu n c tio n lo n g . An American B a p tis t Church was o rg an iz ed
in th e community, r e s u lt i n g in a g i t a t i o n to merge th e Swed
is h w ith th e A m erican ch u rch . Documentary re c o rd s a re n o t
a v a ila b le to f b rn is h a l l th e f a c t s , b u t Swan A. E ngw all, in
h i s h i s t o r i c a l m onograph, in d ic a te s th a t th e S ta te C onvention,
6 Based on in fo rm a tio n su p p lie d by th e Rev. T. Gideon
S jo la n d e r; and rec o rd ed by P. Benson in n o te s on "Tuolumne."
87
th ro u g h i t s s e c r e ta r y , e x e rte d c e r t a in p re s s u re on th e Swed
is h ch u rch , m aking some o f i t s members d isc o u ra g e d . Some o f
them s o ld t h e i r homes and moved from Hughson, le a v in g too
sm a ll a group to c a rry o n .?
When th e church disbanded in 1912, th e rem ain in g mem
b e rs u n ite d w ith th e lo c a l B a p tis t Church o r w ent e lse w h e re .
The church b u ild in g was so ld and th e p ro ceed s tu rn e d o v er
to th e Swedish S ta te C onference, vdiich in tu r n p re s e n te d th e
f u l l amount, $351.75, to th e T urlo ck Swedish B a p tis t Church.
SAN FRANCISCO ^
SA LEM SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCH^
T his church was a s p l i t - o f f from th e F i r s t Swedish
B a p tis t Church o f San F ra n c is c o , a r e s u l t o f s e rio u s d i v i
s io n w ith in t h a t ch u rch . The o f f i c i a l m in u tes o f th e Salem
Church c o n ta in no e x p l i c i t re fe re n c e to th e a c tu a l cause o f
th e schism , and th e o r ig in a l re c o rd s o f th e F i r s t Church f o r
t h i s p e rio d a re m is s in g .
The p ro b a b le cause i s in d ic a te d by Swan A. Engw all in
9
a p re v io u s q u o ta tio n to which th e re a d e r i s r e f e r r e d . J . P .
R o sq u ist had been in v ite d to se rv e th e F i r s t Church as tem
p o ra ry p a s to r , b u t he e v id e n tly d e s ire d to become perm anent
? Swan A. E ngw all, En K o rt H is to r is k O v e rs ik t, p* 25.
^ P r in c ip a l so u rce o f m a te r ia l fo r t h i s s e c tio n :
San F ra n c is c o , M inutes o f Salem Swedish B a p tis t Church.
9 p . 28.
88
p a s to r , o r a t l e a s t h is s u p p o rte rs d e s ire d to r e t a i n him as
su ch . A ctio n was soon ta k e n to c a l l him f o r an in d e f in i te
tim e , th e e q u iv a le n t o f an i n v i t a t i o n to rem ain a s s e t t l e d
p a s to r . O p p o sitio n d ev elo p ed , r e s u l t i n g i n th e w ith d raw al,
o f P a s to r R o sq u ist and a la rg e group o f members, tw e n ty -fiv e
o f which o rg an iz ed th e Salaii Swedish B a p tis t Church.
The o rg a n iz a tio n o f th e Salem Church v/as s t a r t e d Ja n
u a ry 24, 1909. T w enty-five names o f c h a r te r members a re
l i s t e d , m ost o f whom had been d en ied l e t t e r s o f d is m is s io n
from th e F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch. Two weeks l a t e r ,
F eb ru ary 7 , 1909, th e o rg a n iz a tio n was com pleted, and two new
members had been re c e iv e d m eanw hile, b rin g in g th e a c tu a l num
b e r o f c o n s titu e n t members to tw en ty -se v en .
O ffic e rs e le c te d w ere: P a s to r and M oderator, J . P .
R o s q u ist J C le rk , Emil C ed erb lad j T re a s u re r, O. B. Lundburg;
F in a n c ia l S e c re ta ry , N ils L u n d q u isti O rg a n is t, M iss Jenny
R o s q u is t; Sunday School S u p e rin te n d e n t, M rs. J* Johanson.
Em il C ederblad was e le c te d as deacon a t a su b seq u en t m eetin g
h e ld on A p ril 19, 1907.
A h a l l was re n te d on 2 4 th S tr e e t n e a r Howard, th e
f i r s t m eeting b e in g h e ld th e r e th e fo llo w in g Sunday. I t was
v o te d to h o ld Sunday School im m ediately fo llo w in g th e morn
in g s e r v ic e .
The o rg a n iz a tio n m eeting on F ebruary 7 c lo se d w ith th e
o bservance o f th e L o rd ’s S u p p er.
89
S tra in e d f e e lin g s betw een th e two churches e x is te d
f o r s e v e r a l y e a r s —à r e g r e tta b le s t a t e o f a f f a i r s upon which
th e w r i te r has no d e s ir e to d w e ll. The F i r s t Church i n s i s t e d
upon th e r e tu r n o f i t s members as th e o n ly s o lu tio n and r e
fu se d to re c o g n iz e th e seced in g group as a duly o rg an ized
B a p tis t ch u rch . The l a t t e r , on th e o th e r h an d , rem ained ad
am ant, convinced t h a t God had a m issio n f o r them as a se p a
r a t e c o n g re g a tio n . In th e end re c o g n itio n was g iv e n June 6 ,
1913, by an ad jo u rn ed s e s s io n o f a c o u n c il o f re c o g n itio n
t h a t had f i r s t convened on March 10, 1911. In A p ril, 1914,
th e new church was re c e iv e d in to th e fe llo w s h ip o f th e C al
i f o r n i a Swedish C o n feren ce.
J . p . R o sq u ist w ithdrew from a c tiv e work in A p ril,
1910 due to i l l n e s s . A. B. L y s e ll o f Anaconda, M ontana, b e
came th e n e x t p a s to r , assum ing h is d u tie s December 1 , 1910.
By t h i s tim e th e c o n g re g a tio n was m eetin g in a more
s u ita b le h a l l lo c a te d a t 3026 2 4 th S tr e e t . A nother change
was made F eb ru ary 1 9 , 1911 when th e church a u th o riz e d th e
p u rch ase o f a d w e llin g house a t 866 Capp S tr e e t , to be r e
m odeled a t nom inal ex p en se. The c o s t o f t h i s p ro p e rty was
$ 8 ,0 0 0 . The church membership grew slow ly b u t s te a d il y , a
t o t a l o f seventy-tw o b e in g re p o rte d a t th e c lo se o f 1919.
A new ch a p el was d e d ic a te d December 12, 1916, made
p o s s ib le by th e l i b e r a l i t y o f Mr. and M rs. M a rtin S* Show.
They b u i l t th e ch a p e l and p re s e n te d i t as a g i f t to th e
90
ch u rch , th e o n ly s t i p u l a t i o n b e in g t h a t th e co n g re g a tio n
sh o u ld r a i s e $500 to pay on a second m ortgage a g a in s t t h e i r
p ro p e rty , and t h a t an a d d itio n a l tho u san d d o lla r s sh o u ld be
r a is e d to apply on th e rem ain in g in d e b te d n e ss o f th e church'.
The Reverend A. E. L y s e ll c lo se d h i s work on F ebruary
28, 1916, and a new p a s to r , O scar S chuleen o f W o rcester,
M a ssa c h u se tts, became h is su c c e s so r on March 1 , 1916.
A c ti v itie s o f th e church d u rin g th e f i n a l y e a rs a re
n o t covered by th e a v a ila b le m in u tes which c lo s e w ith an
e n try f o r A ugust 27, 1918.
The harm onious s p i r i t w hich had p r e v a ile d w ith in th e
church was d is tu rb e d i n l a t e r y e a rs by th e s o - c a lle d
"Tongues Movement, " cau sin g th e e v e n tu a l d is s o lu tio n o f th e
church in 1920.^^ The d isb a n d in g o f th e church was re p o rte d
to th e Annual M eeting o f th e S ta te C onference in Sam J o s e ,
May 13 - 16, 1920. Many o f th e members had been a t t r a c t e d
to th e "Movement," b u t th e r e s t w ent back to th e m other
c h u rc h . The p ro p e rty o f th e Salem Church was s o ld amd th e
p ro ceed s d iv id e d , # ,6 0 0 to th e F i r s t Swedish Church and
$2,000 to th e N o rth e rn C a lif o r n ia B a p tis t S ta te C onvention.
10 On "Tongues Movement" see C hapter V II, s e c tio n on
C o n tro v e rs ie s .
These f ig u r é s were s ta te d to th e w r ite r by D r. ^
John Johanson o f San F ra n cisc o who su p e rv ise d th e d is p o s itio n
o f th e p ro p e rty .
9 1
RE0LAHDS~TOCAIPA^^
The b e g in n in g o f Swedish B a p tis t a c t i v i t y in R edlands
a re d e s c rib e d in an a r t i c l e by th e Reverend P e te r A nderson,
from which th e fo llo w in g i s an e x c e rp t:
T his c i t y , h av in g ap p ro x im ately fo u r thousand in h a b i-
t m i t s , ^ i s moving forw ard r a p i d l y . I t has a b e a u tif u l
s i t u a t i o n , and tw enty o r t h i r t y o f o u r countrym en l i v e
h e re , m ost o f them b e in g s tr a n g e rs to God- W e contem
p la te h o ld in g m eetin g s f o r them , and f o r t h a t p urpose
th e American B a p tis t Church w i l l be open to u s f r e e o f
c h a rg e .13
Mr. M. P au lso n a s s is te d in th e w ork, and to g e th e r
th e s e two men m a in ta in e d th e work f o r ab o u t fo u r y e a rs , work
in g w ith t h e i r hands f o r t h e i r li v i n g . A fte r th e y moved
away, th e r e g u la r m eetin g s were d is c o n tin u e d .
A fte r s e v e r a l y e a rs th e work was resum ed because more
Swedes moved in to th e community, and a new le a d e r came, th e
Reverend C. J . A lm q u ist, who lo c a te d in R edlands in 1908.
The group became s tro n g enough to o rg a n iz e a ch u rch .
The F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church o f R edlands was o r
g an ized F eb ru ary 18, 1912, a t a m eetin g h e l d lin th e F i r s t
B a p tis t Church. N ine c h a r te r members com prised th e c h u rch .
The Reverend A. W. Backlund o f K ingsburg serv ed as m oderator
o f th e c o u n c il. O th er d e le g a te s were th e R everend John
1^ M a te ria l f o r t h i s s e c tio n drawn p r in c ip a lly from
P . Benson, H is to r ic a l Review, p . 7 .
13 T ra n s c rip t from Nya V ecko-P osten, O ctober 19, 1892.
92
F rib o rg o f Los A ngeles and r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s o f th e F i r s t Bap
t i s t C hurch, R ed lan d s. C. j . A lm q u ist, a t t h a t tim e anployed
by th e C a lif o r n ia S ta te C onference as m issio n a ry f o r South
e rn C a lif o r n ia , was e le c te d , in a d d itio n to t h i s w ork, to
se rv e as p a s to r o f th e new c h u fch .
The R edlands church n ev e r became s tro n g b ecau se r e l
a t iv e l y few Swedes s e t t l e d in th e community. L a te r , n^en
Y ucaipa V a lle y was developed as a f ru it-g ro w in g d i s t r i c t ,
s e v e r a l o f th e members moved to Y ucaipa, m aking i t d e s ira b le
to tr a n s p la n t th e church a c t i v i t y .
E v e n tu a lly some Am erican B a p tis ts moved in to th e com
m unity , and th e q u e s tio n o f s t a r t i n g an Am erican B a p tis t
church was r a is e d . Upon th e ad v ice o f D r. ¥ . H arp er, S ecre
ta r y o f th e S o u th ern C a lif o r n ia B a p tis t S ta te C onvention,
th e E n g lish -sp e a k in g B a p tis ts u n ite d w ith th e Swedish B a p tis t
C hurch, b u t on th e c o n d itio n t h a t th e church sh o u ld th e n c e
f o r t h be an Am erican B a p tis t C hurch. T his arrangem ent was
e f f e c te d O ctober 28, 1920. T h e re a fte r a l l th e s e rv ic e s were
conducted i n th e E n g lish lan g u ag e, and th e church adopted th e
name: F i r s t B a p tis t Church o f Y ucaipa.
The new church has grown and become i n f l u e n t i a l i n th e
community. I t s membership in 1942 was one hundred and s ix t y -
th r e e .
CHAPTER VI
COOPERATIVE MISSIONARY ENDEAVORS
CALIFORNIA MISSIONARY SOCIETY
In common w ith m ost e v a n g e lic a l C h r is tia n s , Swedish
B a p tis ts were p o sse sse d o f a d e s ir e to p ro p ag ate th e te a c h
in g s o f th e B ib le . They w ere p a r t i c u l a r l y concerned f o r th e
w e lfa re o f t h e i r countrym en in C a lif o r n ia who were s t r i v i n g
to b e t t e r th em selv es m a te r ia lly b u t w ere f o r g e ttin g t h e i r
s p i r i t u a l n ee d s. In d iv id u a l m in is te r s and chu rch es made
sp o ra d ic e f f o r t s a t m issio n a ry endeavor, b u t some form o f
u n ite d e f f o r t was deemed im p e ra tiv e .
A co n feren ce was th e r e f o r e h e ld on O ctober 9 , 1890 in
O akland to fo rm u la te p la n s f o r a m issio n a ry program in C a li
f o r n ia . Pour ch u rch es were r e p re s e n te d : O akland, San F ran
c is c o , L im e and Los A ngeles- A. 0 . Malmberg se rv ed as Mod
e r a t o r and Axel Ostrom as C le rk . A fte r due d e lib e r a tio n , a
r e s o lu tio n was adopted to o rg a n iz e th e Swedish B a p tis t M issio n
S o c ie ty o f C a lif o r n ia .^ The p urpose o f th e S o c ie ty was s t a t
ed in th e b y-law s t h a t were ado p ted O ctober 11, 1890:
The p u rp o se o f th e S o c ie ty s h a l l be to made C h ris t
and H is g o sp e l known, and, to th e g r e a t e s t p o s s ib le ex-
^ M in u tes, Swedish B a p tis t M issio n ary S o c ie ty o f C al-
P. Benson, H is to r ic a l Review, p . 4 .
94
t e n t , seek to prom ote th e p r a c tic e o f b i b l i c a l C h r is tia n
i t y among o u r p eo p le w ith in t h i s S ta te ; and, in o rd e r to
accom plish t h i s p u rp o se , to send o u t and su p p o rt a s many
g o sp e l w itn e s s e s a s p o s s ib le , w herever th e need i s ap p ar
e n t and th e Lord opens a w ay.^
A Board o f D ire c to rs was p ro v id ed by th e b y -law s, f iv e
ex e c u tiv e members p5us an a d v iso ry group re p re s e n tin g th e
churches on a n u m e ric al b a sis* The f i r s t E x ecu tiv e Board
c o n s is te d o f th e fo llo w in g men: N. H ayland, Los A ngeles, A.
0 . M almberg, L in n e , August O lson, San F ra n c is c o , G. M. N elson
and p . Jo hnson, O akland. O ffic e rs e le c te d w ere: N. H ayland,
chairm an, C. M. N elson, s e c r e ta r y , and P . Johnson, t r e a s u r e r .
An amendment o f th e b y -law s, adopted August 26, 1892,
p ro v id ed f o r a b o ard o f elev en members, o f whom f iv e o f f i
c e r s , e le c te d by th e B oard, sh o u ld c o n s titu te th e E x ecu tiv e
Com m ittee.
The R everend L. J . A hlstrom became th e f i r s t m issio n
a ry o f th e S o c ie ty , s e rv in g one y e a r o n ly , p r in c ip a lly in
K ingsburg and v i c i n i t y . H is r e p o r t to th e S o c ie ty i s men
tio n e d in th e m in u tes o f th e f i r s t annual m eeting h e ld in
San F ra n c is c o , Septem ber 24 - 29, 1891. A y e a r l a t e r ,
A ugust 25 - 28, 1892, th e R everend C. M. N elson i s r e f e r r e d
to a s th e S o c ie ty ’s m is sio n a ry . A ccording to th e m in u tes o f
th e E x ecu tiv e B oard, Ja n u ary 14, 1892, he was c a lle d f o r one
y e a r, to assume h is d u tie s F eb ru ary 1 , 1892.
2 See Appendix A.
95
At th e an n u al m eetin g in 1892 th e m issio n a ry gave a s u r
vey o f th e needs and o p p o rtu n itie s th ro u g h o u t th e S ta te .
San B ern ard in o , S a n ta B a rb a ra , San P edro, R iv e rs id e , Temple
to n , Paso R o b les, Sacram ento, San J o s e , Humboldt and Mendo
cin o C ounties w ere m entioned as needy f i e l d s where Swedish
p eo p le were l i v i n g .
A ccording to th e r e p o r ts a t th e t h i r d an n u al m eetin g ,
h e ld in San F ra n c isc o Septem ber 28, 1893, s e v e r a l m issio n ary
p a s to rs re c e iv e d su p p o rt d u rin g th e y e a r: C. M. N elson,
p a r t o f th e y e a r, N. H ayland, a la rg e p a r t o f th e y e a r, F .
F e rre * , s ix m onths, J . 0 . Jo hnson, seven m onths, and J . T.
H orrby, two m onths. These men had la b o re d p r in c ip a lly in
th e c e n tr a l and n o rth e rn p a r ts o f th e S ta te . A pproxim ately
$750 had been d is b u rs e d d u rin g th e y e a r. T his amount re v e a ls
c o n s id e ra b le f in a n c ia l p ro g re ss when compared w ith th e d i s
bursem ents in 1891 and 1892, # 9 0 .5 0 and # 4 0 r e s p e c tiv e ly .
The fo u rth and l a s t annual m eeting o f th e S o c ie ty was
h e ld August 30 - Septem ber 1 , 1894, in O akland. The t r e a s
u r e r re p o rte d t h a t th e S o c ie ty had succeeded in su p p o rtin g
a m issio n a ry t h a t y e a r a ls o , th e d e f i c i t b e in g only $38.
How much he had expended i s n o t re c o rd e d . The m issio n ary
r e f e r r e d to was J . 0 . Johnson who sp e n t s e v e r a l months in
San J o s e .
M inutes o f two m eetin g s o f th e E x ecu tiv e Board d i s
c lo s e d w indling r e c e i p t s . On November 8 , 1894, 'th e o p in io n
96
was rec o rd ed t h a t th e S o c ie ty could n o t pay th e m issio n ary
any s ti p u la t e d s a la r y f o r th e l a s t q u a r te r b u t would do i t s
b est* A l e t t e r ad d re sse d to th e American B a p tis t P u b lic a
tio n S o c ie ty was o rd e re d s e n t, recommending t h a t th ey p la c e
a c o lp o rte r on th e f i e l d .
The l a s t re c o rd e d m in u tes cover th e Board m eetin g in
San F ra n cisc o J u ly 18, 1896. Chairman G. M * K elson re s ig n e d
from h is o f f ic e and from membership on th e B oard. J . T.
K orrby, s e c r e ta r y , sig n e d th e m inutes* Ko fo rm al v o te to
d isb a n d i s recorded* th e S o c ie ty sim ply ceased to fu n c tio n .
A MISSIOHARY SOCIETY IH SOUTHERN CALIPOEMIA^
An o rg a n iz a tio n to prom ote m issio n a ry work among
S can d in av ian s in S o u th ern C a lif o r n ia was founded F ebruary
18 - 20, 1893, in Los A ngeles u n d er th e d ir e c tio n o f P a s to r
F* 0 . K elson. He was a ze a lo u s so u l who la b o re d u n c e a sin g ly
f o r th e s p i r i t u a l w e lfa re o f h is countrym en.
On th e d a te s m en tio n ed , a m issio n a ry (x^nference was
c a lle d , to which d e le g a te s from Los A ngeles, L inne*, and
San Diego came. They o rg an iz ed a m issio n a ry s o c ie ty , en
t i r e l y s e p a ra te from th e Swedish B a p tis t M issio n ary S o c ie ty
o f C a lif o r n ia . The f i r s t o f f ic e r s w ere: chairm an, F* 0 .
Kelson* v ic e chairm an, A. B. O rgren; s e c r e ta r y , P e te r Stone*
^ See a r t i c l e by A. W . B acklund, Kya V ecko-P osten,
March 15, 1893.
97
v ic e s e c r e ta r y , A ugust W esterbergf t r e a s u r e r , Axel W ernlund.
The Reverend A. W. Backlund had moved w ith h is fam ily
to Los A ngeles to r e g a in h is h e a lth . He was c a lle d as m is
s io n a ry a t an an n u al s a la r y o f $800, and la b o re d e f f e c t iv e ly
u n t i l Septem ber 1 , 1893 , when he became p a s to r o f th e Los
A ngeles ch u rch . He had v i s i t e d n in e te e n com m unities, p re a c h
in g th e G ospel to a l l who would l i s t e n . Among th e com m unities
v i s i t e d w ere: S an ta B a rb a ra , C a rp e n te ria , V en tu ra, P asadena,
San P edro, C hino, R ed lan d s, San B e rn a rd in o , M entone, C o lto n ,
R iv e rs id e , O range, Pomona, O n ta rio , M onrovia, San D iego,
S an ta Ana and Coronado, b e s id e s Los A ngeles. A fte r Mr. Back
lu n d had become p a s to r o f th e Los A ngeles ch u rch , he was
g ra n te d p e rm is sio n to d ev o te one Sunday a month to f i e l d w ork.
A second s e s s io n o f th e co n feren ce was h e ld in San
Diego on F ebruary 25 and 2 6 , 1893, where th e q u e s tio n o f sup
p o r tin g a fo re ig n m issio n ary was c o n s id e re d . I t was v o te d
to send a l e t t e r to a l l Swedish B a p tis t churches on th e Pa
c i f i c C oast in q u ir in g about t h e i r w illin g n e s s to su p p o rt a
m issio n a ry in th e h e a th e n w o rld . C. F# W iking was named sis
th e p ro s p e c tiv e m is s io n a ry , b u t th e re seemed to be only
s l i g h t hopes o f se c u rin g him . P erhaps God would r a i s e up
some one from t h e i r own ra n k s in s te a d -
Such am b itio u s hopes o f th e l i t t l e group n ev er m a te r
i a l i z e d . In f a c t , th e S candinavian M issio n ary S o cie ty
ceased to e x i s t th ro u g h la c k o f s u p p o rt. The women o f th e
98
Los A ngeles church a rran g ed a " m is s lo n fe s t" on A p ril 7 ,
1894, to pay up a d e f i c i t in th e tr e a s u ry o f th e S o c ie ty .
A pparently th e S o c ie ty e x p ire d i n th e s p rin g o f 1894.
A rrangem ents were made by th e Los A ngeles church to pay o f f
a sm a ll d e f i c i t i n th e tr e a s u r y . The R everend August Wes-
te r b e r g , th e second and l a s t m issio n a ry employed by th e So
c i e t y , sp e n t o n ly th r e e m onths on th e f i e l d .
SWEDISH BAPTIST CONFERENCE OF CALIFORNIA^
A fte r th e s e rio u s economic d e p re s s io n o f 1893 to 1895
had p a s se d , and c o n d itio n s had im proved somewhat, th e churches
were soon read y to p r o je c t a new m issio n a ry e n te r p r is e . A
m eetin g o f d e le g a te s from San F ra n cisc o and Oakland was h e ld
in Oakland O ctober 10, 1898, to d is c u s s th e m a tte r . The
Los A ngeles church had v o te d on Septem ber 14, 1898, to sug
g e s t t h a t a Sunday School m issio n a ry f o r th e S ta te should be
em ployed.5
An o p p o rtu n ity to c o n s id e r th e m a tte r more f u l l y was
a ffo rd e d in May, 1898, i n San F ra n cisc o in co n n ectio n w ith
th e an n u al May m eetin g s (fo re ru n n e rs o f th e N o rth ern B a p tis t
C onvention) o f th e American B a p tis t s . The Swedish d e le g a te s
from C a lif o r n ia ag reed to rem ain and h o ld a s e p a ra te s e s s io n
to d is c u s s th e o rg a n iz a tio n o f a Swedish c o n fe re n c e. A ccord-
^ See so u rc e s in B ib lio g rap h y u n d er: C a lif o r n ia Con
fe re n c e .
^ P . B enson, H is to r ic a l Review , p . 5 .
99
in g ly th e Swedish d e le g a te s m et in th e Swedish B a p tis t
Church o f San F ra n c isc o June 2 , 1899• P a s to r C h arles Palm
was chosen as m o d erato r and F. 0 . N elson s e c r e ta r y . T his
p re lim in a ry m eetin g to o k no d e c is iv e a c tio n b u t v o te d to
c a l l a n o th e r m eetin g on June 19 in San F ra n c isc o f o r f i n a l
a c tio n . On t h a t d a te d e le g a te s from f iv e o f th e seven
Swedish B a p tis t chu rch es m et in San F ra n c isc o to c o n fe r and
d ec id e ab o u t a c o n fe re n c e . The O akland, Los A ngeles, San
F ra n c is c o , San Jo se and San Diego churches w ere re p re s e n te d
by d e le g a te s* th e L inne church had s e n t a w r itte n communica
t i o n . In a l l th e r e were e ig h t d e le g a te s re p r e s e n tin g a t o
t a l membership o f 4 9 9 . O ffic e rs e le c te d f o r th e m eeting
w ere: m o d erato r, C h a rle s Palm* c le r k , N. P . P alraq u ist. By
unanim ous v o te The Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia
was o rg a n iz e d , a f t e r which th e d e le g a te s g a th e re d i n a c i r
c le h o ld in g h an d s, and God'*s b le s s in g was invoked.
A c o n s titu tio n was adopted and an e x e c u tiv e b o ard
e le c te d f o r one y e a r, as fo llo w s : chairm an, D r. J . A. Bd-
gren* c le r k , C h a rles Palm* t r e a s u r e r , ¥ . W erner.^
J . P . R o sq u ist was th e f i r s t m issio n a ry employed by
th e S ta te C onference. In th e Los A ngeles m inutes o f Feb
ru a ry 8 , 1901, h is appointm ent i s m entioned, b ein g announced
by th e chairm an o f th e E x ecu tiv e Board in a l e t t e r to t h a t
ch u rch . The e x a c t d u ra tio n o f h is s e rv ic e i s n o t re c o rd e d .
^ S e e Appendix A f o r c o n s titu t io n .
100
A fte r J . P . R o sq u ist c lo se d h i s work th e re was no
d u ly ap p o in ted m is sio n a ry u n t i l 1907 when F . 0 . N elson was
a p p o in te d . In th e m eantim e, how ever, A. W. Backlund from
K ingsburg had se rv e d th e C onference by fre q u e n t m issio n ary
t r i p s to com m unities where Swedes had s e t t l e d .
F . 0 . N elson sp e n t c o n s id e ra b le tim e in San Diego
where th e work had been com pletely dorm ant, and succeeded
in re v iv in g i t . He la b o re d s u c c e s s fu lly a ls o in Hughson
and T urlock where churches were founded in 1908.
A. B. C o lv in became th e s t a t e m issio n a ry in 1911. He
made h is home in T u rlo ck and sp e n t much o f h is tim e th e re
because th e church was n o t a b le to su p p o rt a p a sto r* Many
o th e r com m unities were a ls o v i s i t e d .
In 1913 and 1914 a m issio n ary fund was r a is e d , o f
w hich th e a c c ru in g i n t e r e s t should be u sed f o r m issio n a ry
work w ith in th e S t a t e . The Reverend C. J . A lm quist was th e
man who r a is e d t h i s fu n d , th e g o a l b e in g $10,000. Appar
e n tly th e mark was n o t reach ed b u t a s iz e a b le sum was con
tr ib u te d by in d iv id u a ls in th e v a rio u s c h u rc h e s. As o f
A p ril 3 0 , 1943 t h i s m issio n fu n d , in c lu d in g r e a l e s ta te lo an s
and cash in bank, t o ta le d n e a rly $9 ,0 0 0 .
In r e c e n t y e a rs su g g e stio n s have b een made t h a t th e
p r in c ip a l sum sh o u ld be re le a s e d f o r m issio n a ry w ork. Un
f o r tu n a te ly th e m in u tes o f th e C onference a c tio n a re n o t
p re s e rv e d , and th e te im s o f th e o r ig in a l g i f t s cannot be
101
a s c e r ta in e d . L eg al o p in io n i s b e in g so u g h t b e fo re any en
croachm ent upon th e p r in c ip a l i s v o te d .
C. J . A lm quist serv ed th e S ta te C onference as m is-:
s io n a ry from 1916 to 1919.
From 1917 to 1919 F . 0# N elson se rv e d th e C onference
a g a in , t h i s tim e as c o lp o r te r m is s io n a ry .
A l e t t e r d a te d O ctober 1 6 , 1918, ft*om C* W . B rin s ta d ,
G eneral S e c re ta ry o f th e N o rth ern C a lif o r n ia B a p tis t Conven
t i o n , to th e S ta te C onference B oard, re c o rd s th e a p p o in t
ment o f th e Rev. A lfre d Ohman as D i s t r i c t M issio n ary among
th e Swedes and o t h e r s . His la b o rs were c o n c e n tra te d c h ie f ly
i n E ureka and F o rt B ragg.
J . P . R o sq u ist was engaged by th e C onference Board
to work in P asadena, Long Beach and San B ernardino a t a s a l
a ry o f $1,200 p lu s tr a v e lin g ex p en ses. He commenced h is
work December 1 , 1919, b u t co n tin u ed o n ly f iv e m onths.
In th e meantime Reverend M. B erglund was c a lle d ,
Jan u ary 28, 1920, to se rv e as m issio n a ry f o r th e e n t ir e S ta te ,
and h is ac ce p tan c e i s reco rd ed as o f March 29, 1920. He
s p e n t much tim e in E sc a lo n , hoping to o rg a n iz e a church b u t
t h i s hope n ev er m a te r ia liz e d due to " d is tu rb in g e le m e n ts."
E ureka and F o rt Bragg a ls o claim ed much o f h is a t te n t io n .
In th e l a t t e r p la c e he became tem porary p a s to r on March 1,
1924, th u s te rm in a tin g h is m in is try as S ta te M issio n a ry .
A new m is s io n a ry , th e R everend Edward C arneh, s t a r t e d
h is work on Jan u ary 9 , 1925. A fte r one y e a r he ac ce p ted a
c a l l to become p a s to r o f th e San Diego ch u fch .
John F rib o rg o f O akland became h is su c c e s so r in Ja n
u a ry , 1926, and c a r r ie d on f o r te n y e a rs . He la b o re d d i l i
g e n tly , p a r t i c u la r l y in Pomona and San B e rn a rd in o , b u t no
churches were o rg an iz ed in th e s e p la ces* E v id e n tly th e
Swedish language was no lo n g e r adequate in th e p ro s e c u tio n
o f Kingdom work. P eople would g a th e r to h e a r Swedish s e r
mons b u t th ey would n o t band them selves to g e th e r to e s ta b
l i s h new ch u rch e s.
In 1932 i t was v o te d to te rm in a te th e s e rv ic e s o f the
f u ll- tim e m issio n a ry b ecau se th e p ro s p e c ts f o r Swedish work
were n o t b r i g h t . T h en c efo rth a sm all m onthly s tip e n d p lu s
c o lle c tio n s was p a id to M r. F rib o rg who e le c te d to s ta y on
u n d er th e new p la n .
When he d is c o n tin u e d h is s e rv ic e s in 1936, th e C onfer
ence Board ap p o in te d David E. T illm an to f i l l th e vacancy,
in s t r u c tin g him to su rv ey th e f i e l d and c a rry on as oppor
tu n it y was a ffo rd e d . He rem ained in th e s e rv ic e o f th e Con
fe re n c e u n t i l A p r il, 1940, when d i r e c t su p p o rt was w ith
draw n. S ince t h a t tim e Mr. T illm an h as m a in ta in e d r e g u la r
p re a c h in g s e rv ic e s in Pomona and San B e rn a rd in o , r e c e iv in g
c o lle c tio n s and p e rs o n a l d o n a tio n s .
M issio n ary work u n d er C onference a u sp ic e s h as dwind
le d alm o st to n o th in g , b u t a d e s ir e to co o p e ra te in some
103
m issio n a ry e n te r p r is e s t i l l p e r s i s t s among th e churches*
N e g o tia tio n s a re in p ro g re s s lo o k in g tow ard th e ad o p tio n o f
a w orthy fo re ig n m issio n a ry program . A p r o je c t w ith in th e
S ta te would be l i k e l y to d u p lic a te work a lre a d y b ein g done
by Am erican B a p tis ts o r o th e r groups* F or th is rea so n a
f o re ig n m issio n a ry p la n i s d e s ir e d .
CHAPTER V II
THE INNER LIFE OF THE ÇHDRCHES
THE GENIUS OF SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCHES
Having su i^ ey ed and rec o rd ed th e p r in c ip a l ev e n ts in
th e h is to r y o f th e s e c h u rch e s, i t becomes n e c e ssa ry to ana
ly z e , i f p o s s ib le , th e in n e r l i f e o r g en iu s which g iv e s
m eaning to th e events* O bviously th e re m ust be some u n d er
ly in g s p i r i t which e x p la in s th e p r e s e rv a tio n and c o n tin u in g
a c t i v i t y o f th e c h u rc h e s.
In th e o p in io n o f th e w r i te r , th e g en iu s o f th e s e
churches i s t h e i r in te n s e d e v o tio n to th e S acred S c rip tu re s
o f C h r is t ia n i ty . T h e ir f a i t h and p r a c tic e stem from an un
shaken co n fid en ce in th e B ib le as th e i n f a l l i b l e Word o f God
T his b a s ic lo y a lty to th e S c rip tu re s fin d s e x p re ssio n
in a c o n s e rv a tiv e d o c tr in a l p o s itio n . H is to r ic a lly B a p tis ts
have n ev er adopted a cree d o r sta te m e n t o f f a i t h u n iv e r s a lly
b in d in g upon a l l B a p tis t s . T h eir churches a re autonomous
and re c o g n iz e no form o f e p is c o p a l o r h ie r a r c h ic a l a u th o rity
I n d iv id u a l churches may ad o p t d o c tr in a l sta te m e n ts o r n o t,
as th e y choose. U n iv e r s a lly , how ever, th e y a c c e p t th e New
T estam ent as th e s ta n d a rd o f f a i t h and p o l i t y .
B a p tis t churches have ac cep ted o r su b sc rib e d to s t a t e
m ents o f f a i t h from tim e to tim e , and some o f th e s e s t a t e
m ents have become c l a s s i c . The New Hampshire C o n fessio n has
105
had wide a c cep tan c e in t h i s c o u n try . I t d a te s hack to 1830
when th e New Hampshire B a p tis t S ta te C onvention, h o ld in g i t s
s e s s io n a t Concord, N. H ., June 2 4 th , a u th o riz e d th e p re p a r
a tio n o f a d e c la r a tio n o f f a i t h which m ight se c u re th e ap
p ro v a l and se rv e th e purpose o f a l l th e B a p tis t churches in
t h a t s t a t e . T his D e c la ra tio n was adopted in 1833. There
have been some su b seq u en t m o d ific a tio n s b u t none t h a t h as
a l te r e d th e d o c tr in a l s u b s t a n c e T h e re a d e r i s r e f e r r e d to
th e Appendix f o r a copy o f th e New Hampshire Coif e s s io n .
A nother s ta te m e n t o f f a i t h , w hich b r i e f l y s e t s f o r t h
th e c o n s e rv a tiv e p o s itio n , i s reproduced below . T his s t a t e
ment i s t h a t o f th e N a tio n a l A sso ciàtio n o d fC E v an g elicals
f o r U n ited A c tio n . I t h as n o t been adopted by any conven
t i o n o f Swedish B a p tis t s , b u t, in th e w r i t e r 's o p in io n , i t
e x p re sse s a c c u ra te ly t h e i r d o c tr in a l v ie w s. B eing a s t a t e
m ent f o r e v a n g e lic a ls o f any d en o m in atio n , i t n e c e s s a r ily
o m its a l l re fe re n c e to th e o rd in an c es o f b ap tism and th e
L o rd 's S upper.
S tatem en t o f F a ith
1 . W e b e lie v e th e B ib le to be th e in s p ir e d , th e only
i n f a l l i b l e , a u t h o r it a ti v e word o f God.
2 . W e b e lie v e t h a t th e re i s one God, e te r n a lly e x is
t e n t in th r e e p e rs o n s : F a th e r, Son, and Holy S p i r i t .
3 . W e b e lie v e in th e d e ity o f C h r is t, in H is v i r g in
^ Edward T. H iscox, D. D ., The New D ire c to ry f o r
B a p tis t C hurches, p p > 535 - 5 4 2 /
106
b i r t h , in H is s in l e s s l i f e , in H is m ir a c le s , in H is
v ic a r io u s a to n in g d e a th th ro u g h H is shed b lo o d , in H is
b o d ily r e s u r r e c ti o n , in His a s c e n s io n to th e r i g h t hand
o f th e F a th e r, and in H is p e rs o n a l r e tu r n in power and
g lo r y .
4 . W e b e lie v e t h a t f o r th e s a lv a tio n o f l o s t and s in -
f ü l man re g e n e ra tio n by th e Holy S p i r i t i s a b s o lu te ly
e s s e n t i a l .
5 . W e b e lie v e in th e p r e s e n t m in is try o f th e Holy
S p i r i t by whose in d w e llin g th e C h r is tia n i s en ab led to
l i v e a godly l i f e .
6 . W e b e lie v e in th e r e s u r r e c tio n o f b o th th e saved
and th e lo s t* th e y tth a t a re saved u n to th e r e s u r r e c tio n
o f l i f e and th e y t h a t a re l o s t u n to th e r e s u r r e c tio n o f
dam nation.
7 . W e b e lie v e in th e s p i r i t u a l u n ity o f b e lie v e r s in
C h r is t.^
Orthodoxy in d o c trin e among Swedish B a p tis ts i s lin k e d
up w ith s i n c e r i t y o f p urpose to a c c e p t b o th th e p r iv ile g e s
and r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s o f th e C h r is tia n f a i t h . In o th e r w ords,
obedience to S c r ip tu r e te a c h in g i s reg ard e d as a n e c e ssa ry
concom itant o f sound th e o lo g y .
Three c h a r a c t e r i s t i c a s p e c ts o f v i t a l s p i r i t u a l ex
p e rie n c e a re d is c e r n ib le : 1 ) p e rs o n a l accep tan ce o f C h r is t
a s Savior* 2) p r a c t i c a l e x e m p lific a tio n o f C h r is tia n c h a ra c
t e r i n a l l r e la tio n s h ip s * 3 ) p ro cla m atio n by p re a c h in g and
w itn e s s in g o f v i t a l C h r is t ia n i ty . D e ta ile d e lu c id a tio n o f
th e s e p o in ts seems u n n e c e ss a ry . They a re th e essen ce o f
v i t a l C h r is tia n ity ; knowing C h r is t, li v i n g C h r is t, and p ro -
^ C o n s t i t u t i o n , N a tio n a l A ss o c ia tio n o f E v a n g e lic a ls
f o r U n ited A c tio n , 120 Tremont S t r e e t , B oston, M a ssa c h u se tts.
107
claim in g C h r is t. S p i r i t u a l p e r f e c tio n i s n o t a t t r i b u t e d to
Swedish B a p tis ts * t h e i r h ig h id e a ls a re sim ply a ffirm e d .
They would be th e f i r s t to acknowledge c o n t r i t e ly t h e i r s h o r t
comings .
I f d e v o tio n to th e S c rip tu re s i s th e g en iu s o f Swed
is h B a p tis ts , one r a ^ w e ll in q u ire as to i t s so u rce and
c a u s e s . T his in v e s tig a tio n w i l l c a rry u s back to Sweden, to
th e t r a d i t i o n a l background o f th e p eo p le who em ig rated to
A m erica. W hether L u th eran s o r D is s e n te rs , th ey had im bibed
deep r e s p e c t f o r th e Word o f God. They had s tu d ie d such
B i b lic a l s u b je c ts as B ib le H isto ry and th e Catechism in “ th e
p u b lic sc h o o ls. To be s u re , C h r is tia n ity d id n o t become v i
t a l to many, b u t s t i l l th ey re s p e c te d th e S c r ip tu r e s .
A nother e x p la n a tio n o f Swedish B a p tis t d e v o tio n to
th e S c rip tu re s i s found in th e ty p e o f m in is te r s who have
se rv e d th e churches th ro u g h o u t th e y e a rs . W ithout any known
e x c e p tio n , th e y have been e v a n g e lic a l men o f su’d e n t f a i t h
in th e S c r ip tu r e s . The re c o rd s o f th e C a lif o r n ia churches
c o n ta in no in tim a tio n t h a t any o f th e p a s to r s w ere ta in te d
w ith lib e r a lis m . T h is i s n o t s tra n g e because th e th e o lo g i
c a l t r a i n i n g re c e iv e d by th e s e men had b een s t r i c t l y B ib le -
c e n te re d . The o ld e r men had s tu d ie d in th e Swedish D ep art
m ent o f th e D iv in ity School o f th e U n iv e rs ity o f C hicago.
A fte r v a r ie d f o r tu n e s , t h i s th e o lo g ic a l sch o o l o f Swedish
B a p tis ts was e s ta b lis h e d in St* P a u l, M in n eso ta, and i s now
108
known as B e th e l T h eo lo g ical Sem inary, a d ep artm en t o f B e th e l
3
I n s t i t u t e . From i t s classroom s th e younger g e n e ra tio n o f
Swedish B a p tis t m in is te r s have come. Throughout i t s h is to r y
o f se v e n ty -th re e y e a rs t h i s th e o lo g ic a l sch o o l has rem ained
uncom prom isingly c o n s e rv a tiv e . I t s g ra d u a te s have gone o u t
as p a s to r s , m is s io n a r ie s , te a c h e rs and e v a n g e lis ts to p ro p a
g a te e v a n g e lic a l C h r is t ia n i ty . Under t h e i r c a re th e churches
have n a tu r a lly co n tin u ed to e x a lt th e S c rip tu re s as th e in
f a l l i b l e Word o f God.
The t y p i c a l a t t i t u d e o f th e churches tow ard l i b e r a l
ism in th eo lo g y i s r e f l e c t e d in th e fo llo w in g r e s o lu tio n s ,
adopted a t S ta te C onference m eetin g s in 1919 and 1920:
R e so lu tio n
R esolved t h a t we as a C onference p r o t e s t m ost s e r io u s
ly a g a in s t th e c u rre n t tendency to combine a l l denom ina
tio n s . T hat we s e r io u s ly p r o t e s t a g a in s t th e tendency
to o rd a in and send o u t men and women as p re a c h e rs and
m is s io n a rie s who do n o t b e lie v e in th e in s p i r a tio n o f
th e B ib le , th e d e ity o f C h r is t, H is s u p e rn a tu ra l concep
ti o n , H is a to n in g d e a th . H is r e s u r r e c tio n . His a s c e n s io n .
In a w ord, 'They have ta k e n away o u r L ord. '
That we have re c e iv e d w ith g r e a t an g u ish th e i i f onna-
ti o n t h a t o u r Am erican M issio n ary .S o c ie tie s a re e x c ^ n g -
in g f i e l d s on w hich B a p tis ts have w orked, and a re g iv in g
them o v er in to th e haiids o f o th e r d en o m in atio n s. T his
i s n o t B i b l i c a l , and, th e r e f o r e , o b v io u sly n o t B a p tis -
t i c , f o r w hich re a s o n we c o n s id e r t h a t we can n o t c o n s e il
e n tio u s ly encourage our churches to c o n trib u te money
tow ard t h e i r s u p p o rt.^
3 H isto fy Of th e T h eo lo g ic al Sem inary o f Swedish Bap
t i s t s i n M e r i c a , p p T T -4 4 .
^ C onference Board M in u tes, p p . 3 7-38. R e so lu tio n
t r a n s l a te d by Edwin J . Omark.
109
R e so lu tio n
Inasmuch as c e r t a i n p re s e n t-d a y te n d e n c ie s , which
th r e a te n to in ju r e and d e s tro y o u r ch u rc h e s, a re making
them selves f e l t * on th e one sid e th e s o - c a lle d h ig h e r
c r iti c is m , an e v o lu tio n a ry th e o ry w hich c o n tra d ic ts th e
B ib le d o c trin e s o f c r e a tio n , re g e n e ra tio n , th e second
coming o f C h r is t, m ir a c le s , e tc .* on th e o th e r s id e th e
s o - c a lle d to n g u es movement, th e f r u i t s o f which in many
r e s p e c ts c o n tr a d ic t i t s claim s o f b e in g b y , o f and
th ro u g h th e Holy S p irit* we do m ost e a r n e s tly warn o u r
churches a g a in s t p re a c h e rs and o th e rs who fo llo w th e s e
te n d e n c ie s , and to ab id e by th e Word o f God which h as
p ro v en i t s e l f to be th e power o f God u n to s a lv a tio n and
a t r u l y C h r is tia n l i f e .
CONTROVERSIES
A lthough th e ch u rch es in C e ilifo rn ia have n o t been d i
v id e d o v er lib e r a lis m and co n serv a tism , s t i l l th e r e have
been d o c tr in a l c o n tro v e rs ie s , e s p e c ia lly co n c ern in g th e doc
t r i n e o f th e Holy S p i r i t . The second o f th e two fo re g o in g
r e s o lu tio n s r e f e r s to th e "tongues movem ent."
The h i s t o r i c a l s k e tc h is s u e d by th e Los A ngeles church
in 1912 c o n ta in s th e fo llo w in g s ta te m e n t, tr a n s l a te d from th e
Sw edish;
Among th e d i f f i c u l t i e s , we d e s ir e to m ention a ls o th e
s o - c a lle d "to n g u e s-sp ea k in g movement" w hich b ro k e f o r th
in Los A ngeles in th e s p rin g o f 1906. B oth t h e i r te a c h -
conduct and s p i r i t , were in ju r io u s and h in d e rin g to th e
p ro g re s s and sound developm ent o f th e ch u rch , which o th
e r churches a ls o had ex p e rien ce d . Between tw enty and
t h i r t y l e f t th e church th ro u g h t h i s movement, and no
p ro g re s s was p o s s ib le i n th e work f o r a lo n g tim e
^ C onference M in u te s, 1920-1941,p p . 4 8 -4 9 .
G Los A ngeles, H is to ry o f T w enty-five Y ears, p . 13.
1 1 0
There i s a d e a rth o f m a te r ia l on t h i s s u b je c t, b u t
o c c a s io n a l r e fe re n c e s in th e re c o rd s o f th e churches in d i
c a te t h a t th e churches b o th in th e n o rth and so u th were a f
f e c te d . The c h a r a c t e r i s t i c te a c h in g o f th e "tongues move
m ent was e v id e n tly i t s em phasis upon th e "baptism o f th e
S p i r i t . " T his p o s t-c o n v e rs io n ex p e rie n ce was a lle g e d ly c o r
ro b o ra te d by "sp eak in g in to n g u e s . " S im ila r te a c h in g f lo u r
is h e s to d ay in c e r t a in r e lig i o u s g ro u p s, b u t Swedish B a p tis t
churches in C a lif o r n ia a re n o t d iv id e d o v er t h i s d o c trin e
7
to d a y .
A nother so u rce o f d iv is io n has been th e change from
one cup to in d iv id u a l g la s s e s in th e a d m in is tra tio n o f th e
communion s e r v ic e . Seem ingly r a t h e r t r i v i a l , t h i s q u e s tio n
has caused sh arp d if f e r e n c e s o f opinion* Some o f th e o ld e r
members deemed th e u se o f in d iv id u a l communion cups an in
n o v a tio n t h a t d e p a rte d from New T estam ent p r a c tic e and sym
b o lism . An i n t e r e s t i n g example o f t h i s c o n tro v e rsy i s
found in th e re c o rd s o f th e San Jo se c h u rc h . A fte r in d iv id
u a l cups were in tro d u c e d , a sm a ll group i n s i s t e d upon u s in g
a s in g le cup. C o n seq u en tly , th e c o n g re g a tio n was d iv id e d
in to two groups f o r th e observance o f th e L o rd 's Supper—a
s tra n g e s ig h t , in d e e d i A ll th e churches a re now u s in g i n
d iv id u a l cups e x c lu s iv e ly . An o c c a s io n a l aged p erso n can
Frank L Ïïiâ b la a , The S p i r i t Which Is . From God,
p p . 112 - 116.
I ll
s t i l l be found who can n o t c o n s c ie n tio u s ly re c e iv e th e emblem
o f C h r i s t 's b lo o d in an in d iv id u a l g la s s , and m ust th e r e -
f p re r e f r a i n from ta k in g communion w ith th e congregation*
DISCIPLINE
The e a rly re c o rd s o f th e churches c o n ta in more f r é
q u en t re fe re n c e s to d is c ip li n a r y a c tio n th a n th e l a t e r .
One m ight in f e r t h a t church members la p se d from C h r is tia n
s ta n d a rd s o f conduct more fre q u e n tly in th o s e e a rly d a y s,
o r t h a t th e ch u rch es th e n w ere more s t r i c t ab o u t d e a lin g
w ith s i n whenever i t ap p e ared . U su a lly th e b reach o f con
d u c t o r b e l i e f i s s p e c if i c a l ly s ta te d , such a s : d ru nkenness,
u n c h a s tity , s p ir i t i s m , h e re s y , n o n -atte n d a n c e a t s e r v ic e s ,
an u n fo rg iv in g s p i r i t . O c c a sio n a lly a more g e n e ra l term ,
" u n c h ris tia n c o n d u c t," m e rc ifu lly c o n c eals th e s p e c if ic i n
f r a c t i o n . One church had a h e re sy t r i a l in 1897. Two men
w ere t r i e d f o r h o ld in g and p u b lic ly d e c la rin g d o c trin e s
" c o n tra ry to th e S c rip tu re s and B a p tis t te a c h in g ." The m ain
p o in ts o f h eresy were t h e i r c o n te n tio n s t h a t th e r e i s no
d e v il o r h e l l , and t h a t o n ly b e lie v e r s in C h r is t have e t e r
n a l ex iste n c e * hence th e re w i l l be no e t e r n a l punishm ent o f
th e vficked. At a l a t e r d a te one o f th e o ffe n d e rs was ex
clu d ed upon h is own re q u e st* th e f a t e o f th e second was h o t
re c o rd e d .
Some re fe re n c e to th e a t t i tu d e o f th e churches tow ard
"w orldly amusements" should be made a t t h i s p o in t. Such
amusements in c lu d e d an cin g , th e a te r-g o in g and c a rd -p la y in g .
A r e s o lu tio n adopted by th e Oakland church in 1916 d e p lo re s
th e d e trim e n ta l e f f e c t o f dancing in th e p u b lic sc h o o ls,
and u rg e s t h a t th o se in a u th o r ity p r o h ib it sam e.^ A sim i
l a r r e s o lu tio n by th e K ingsburg ch u rch , ad d ressed to th e
Board o f T ru ste e s o f th e J o i n t U nion High S chool, p r o te s te d
th e a c tio n o f th e Board o f T ru ste e s in allo w in g d an cin g to
be ta u g h t in th e High S chool. "W e b e l i e v e , " th e r e s o lu tio n
r e a d s , " th a t d an c in g te n d s to b re a k down th e s p i r i t u a l as
w e ll a s th e m oral w e ll-b e in g o f our y o u th .
The churches o f today have n o t changed t h e i r s ta n
d a rd s o f f i c i a l l y , b u t in d u lg en ce i n th e s e p astim e s seldom
r e s u l t s in d is c ip lin a r y a c tio n .
8 O akland, F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church. M in u te s,
May 14, 1916.
9 K ingsburg; F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, MÈ
March 6 , 1938.
CHAPTER V III
CONCLUDING CHAPTER
T his co n clu d in g c h u t e r w i l l he an a tte m p t to we%h
p a s t ach iev em en ts, a p p ra is e p re s e n t re s o u r c e s , and p r e d ic t
f u tu r e developm ents among Swedish B a p tis ts in C a lif o r n ia .
S t a t i s t i c s a re u s u a lly o ffe re d to in d ic a te grow th
and s u c c e s s, b u t th ey may be m is le a d in g . The re c o rd s show
tw e n ty -s ix members in C a lif o r n ia in 1885. T his was th e
membership o f th e O akland church a t th e end o f t h a t y e a r.
At th e c lo s e o f 1942 th e re were e ig h t churches h a rin g a to
t a l membership o f n in e te e n hundred and t h i r t y - f i v e , as r e
p o rte d in th e Annual o f Swedish B a p tis t Churches o f America
f o r 1942—1943. The n u m e ric al s tr e n g th would have been con
s id e ra b ly g r e a te r i f no churches had dropped o u t o f th e
S ta te C onference d u rin g th e y e a rs . From th e same Annual we
g le a n th e fo llo w in g s t a t i s t i c s , as o f December 3 1 , 1942:
Sunday School e n ro llm e n t, 1,514* members o f Young P e o p le 's
S o c ie tie s , 343*. members o f Women's S o c ie tie s , 544* p ro p e rty
v a lu e , #290,050* c u rre n t e^qpenses f o r 1942, #58,428.20*
m issio n s and b e n e fic e n c e f o r 1942, $ 1 7 ,4 5 9 .9 1 .
The g r e a t e s t c o n trib u tio n s o f th e se o r any o th e r
churches cannot be m easured o r numbered b ecau se th e y have
been woven in to p e r s o n a l i t i e s . Boys and g i r l s , men and wo
men, have been tran sfo rm ed by th e dynamic G ospel p ro claim ed
114
from p u lp it s and in c la s s rooms* A nxious, care-w orn so u ls
have found r e le a s e th ro u g h w orship and p ray er* The demands
o f C h r is tia n s e rv ic e have produced n o b le , d is c ip lin e d w orkers
who know th e m eaning o f co n se c ra te d o b ed ien ce . Through th e
m issio n a ry ap p e al o f th e ch u rc h e s, h o riz o n s have been w idened
and r e c r u i t s f o r m issio n s have c a r r ie d C h r i s t 's g o sp e l to th e
u tte rm o s t p a r t s . Swedish B a p tis ts o f C a lif o r n ia have made
such c o n tr ib u tio n s , th e f u l l re c o rd o f w hich i s k e p t by th e
Head o f th e C hurch.
The r e l a t i v e n u m erical w eakness o f th e s e churches
m ight c r e a te a p e s s im is tic view o f th e f u tu r e were i t n o t f o r
c e r t a in tre n d s w hich seem to augur w e ll f o r coming d ay s. A t
p re s e n t th e re a re o n ly e ig h t a c tiv e ch u rc h e s, hav in g a t o t a l
m anbership o f ap p ro x im a tely two th o u sa n d . F or s e v e ra l y e a rs
th e y have n o t had a u n ite d m issio n a ry program o f any conse
quence, due to th e la c k o f o p p o rtu n ity to prom ote work among
S w edish-speaking p e o p le . A c o n tin u a tio n o f t h i s c o n d itio n
would r e s u l t in th e d is s o lu tio n o f th e C a lif o rn ia C onference
and e v e n tu a l a b s o rp tio n o f th e churches in to th e S ta te Con
v e n tio n s o f N o rth ern and S outhern C a lif o r n ia B a p tis ts .
To o b v ia te mi sunder s ta n d in g , i t sh o u ld be s ta te d t h a t
th e churches a re s u p p o rtin g m issio n s l i b e r a l l y , sen d in g t h e i r
money thro u g h th e Swedish B a p tis t G eneral C onference o f
A m erica and o th e r c h a n n e ls. I t i s in t h e i r work th ro u g h
th e S ta te C onference t h a t th e churches have done l i t t l e m is-
116
Sion work in re c e n t y e a rs .
Grounds f o r optim ism a re found in th e c u rre n t nego
t i a t i o n s o f th e S ta te C onference Board w hich lo o k tow ard th e
a d o p tio n o f a f o re ig n m issio n a ry p r o je c t t h a t s h a l l he la rg e
enough to c h a lle n g e th e c h u rc h e s. Such ah e n t e r p r is e , f o r
w hich th e chu rch es a re a s k in g , w i l l s tre n g th e n th e t i e s b e
tw een them .
A nother o p tim is tic tre n d i s seen i n th e p la n s o f s e
v e r a l churches to e r e c t houses o f w orship i n lo c a tio n s more
s u ita b le th a n th e p r e s e n t. There i s an e v id e n t w illin g n e s s
to work s a c r i f i e i a l l y f o r th e prom otion o f th e G ospel, even
when t h a t means b e g in n in g o v er a g a in in a new community*
The C o lleg e Avenue B a p tis t Church o f San Diego i s a case in
p o in t. The p o st-w ar e r a may w itn e ss much b u ild in g a c t i v i t y
among th e ch u rch e s.
A t h i r d re a s o n f o r h o p e fu ln e ss i s found in th e lo y a lty
o f th e young p eo p le w ith in th e Swedish ch u rch e s. To an a s
to n is h in g d eg ree th e y c o n tin u e to su p p o rt th e work, and f a
v o r th e c o n tin u a tio n o f fe llo w sh ip betw een th e churches t h a t
once were w holly Sw edish. They would h o t endorse any a t
tem pt to d is s o lv e th e S ta te C onference o r th e Swedish Bap
t i s t G eneral C onference o f A m erica.
T his re fe re n c e to th e Swedish c h a ra c te r o f th e church
es c a l l s f o r a sta te m e n t co n cern in g th e p re s e n t u se o f th e
Swedish language in th e s e c h u rc h e s. In th e e a rly days a l l
116
th e s e rv ic e s were conducted in th e Swedish lan g u ag e, in
c lu d in g even th e Sunday Schools* G ra d u a lly , how ever, th e
i n s i s t e n t demand f o r E n g lish h as p re v a ile d Bo t h a t th e
b e a u tif u l language o f th e p io n e e rs i s l i t t l e u se d . Most o f
th e churches have a B ib le c la s s in Swedish fo r th e o ld e r
f o lk . The Los A ngeles church h as a ls o a s e p a ra te Swedish
s e rv ic e in a sm a ll ch ap el tw ice a month a t th e e lev en
o ’clo ck h o u r. R e tire d m in is te rs w ith in th e church p reach
a t th e s e s e r v ic e s . In k eep in g w ith th e change in lan g u ag e,
a l l o f th e churches have now adopted new names in w hich th e
word "Swedish" does n o t a p p e a r. They a re th e re b y making a
w id er ap p e al to th e community.
F if t y - e i g h t y e a rs ago th e f i r s t Swedish B a p tis t church
in C a lif o r n ia was o rg an ized in O akland, th e fo re ru n n e r o f
f o u rte e n o th e r chu rch es t h a t were su b se q u en tly o rg a n iz e d .
Today th e e ig h t rem ain in g churches a re p re a c h in g th e same
g o sp e l as in th e e a rly years* They have p roven i t s power
and have found no ad eq u ate s u b s t i t u t e . I n numbers th e y a re
r e l a t i v e l y weak, n o t o n ly in com parison w ith th e la rg e Amer
ic a n d en o m in atio n al g ro u p s, b u t a ls o when compared w ith
Swedish B a p tis t s t a t e co n feren c es in o th e r s e c tio n s o f th e
c o u n try . N o tw ith stan d in g t h i s f a c t , th e s e churches a re im
bued w ith a s p i r i t o f lo y a lty to J e s u s C h r is t which w i l l
keep them f a i t h f u l u n t i l t h e i r m in is try i s consummated.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
■ CH U RCH RECORDS
K ingsburg
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, M in u tes, 6 v o ls .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, H is to ry , 1901—1926* E d ite d
by H is to r ic a l C om m ittee, 1926.
Los A ngeles
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M in u tes, 6 v o ls .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, H isto ry o f Tw entV -five Y ears,
1887—1912. E d ite d by H is to r ic a l Com m ittee, 1912.
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, F if t y Y ears in R e tro s p e c t,
1887—1937. E d ite d by H is to r ic a l Com m ittee, 1937.
O akland
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M in u tes, 4 v o ls .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, Annual r e p o r t s , 1909—1941.
R ep o rt f o r 1933 m is s in g .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, A S h o rt S ketch o f F if ty Y e a rs'
H is to r y , 1935. E d ite d by Joseph O la n d e r. U n p u b lish ea.
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, H is to ry , 1885—1905. Pub
lis h e d by H is to r ic a l Com m ittee.
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, H is to ry , 1885—1925. P u b lis h -
by H is to r ic a l Com m ittee.
P asadena
Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M in u tes, 3 v o ls .
Swedish B a p tis t Church, H is to r ic a l S ketch f o r F if te e n th
A n n i v e r s a r y . November 28, 19351 E d ite d by G ertru d e H.
Johnson.
119
San Diego
B e th e l Swedish B a p tis t Church, M in u tes, 5 v o ls . Volume Ho. 2
i s m is sin g .
San F ra n c is c o —F i r s t
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M inutes, 3 v o ls . M inutes from
December, 1902 to November, 1923 a re m is sin g .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, Membership R e g is te r.
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M inutes o f Sewing S o c ie ty ,
" A rb e ts b ie t, " March 6 , 1896—December, 1909.
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M inutes o f Women’s S o c ie ty ,
^V ankretsen, " 3 v p ls .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, H is to ry , 1889—1914. P u b lish e d
by J u b ile e Com m ittee.
Temple B a p tis t C hurch, Our Year o f J u b il e e , 1889—1939.
P u b lish e d by J u b ile e Com m ittee.
San F ra n c is c o —Salem
S ala# Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M in u tes, 1 v o l.
San Jo se
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t Church, M in u tes, 3 v o ls . V ol. 2 o f
m in u te s, 1906—1911, i s m is sin g .
F i r s t Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, H is to r ic a l S k etch . M an u scrip t
by G. A. L in d g ren , O ctober 9 , 1933.
T urlock
Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, M in u tes, 3 v o ls .
Swedish B a p tis t C hurch, B r ie f H is to ry , M an u scrip t w r itte n by
T. Gideon S jo la n d e r f o r T h irty Year C e le b ra tio n , M arch,
1938.
Swedish B a p tis t Church, H is to r ic a l S k etch , co v e rin g t h i r t y
y e a rs o f Women’s S o c ie ty . M anuscript p re p a re d f o r
a n n iv e rsa ry c e le b r a tio n , A p ril 14, 1939.
120
CONFERENCE RECORDS
Swedish B a p tis t M issio n ary S o c ie ty o f C a lif o r n ia , M in u tes,
from O ctober 9 , 1890 to J u ly 1 8 , 1896.
Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia , M in u tes, 1920—
Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia , M inutes o f Board
m e e tin g s, May 1 6 ,t 1917 to O ctober 24, 1941.
Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia , R ep o rts o f Con
fe re n c e B oard, 1929—1941.
Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia , S upplem ental Re
p o r t s , 1935—1940. R ep o rts o f churches to an n u al m eet
in g s o f S ta te C onference.
BOOKS A N D BROCHURES
B acklund, J . 0 . , Swedish B a p tis ts in A m erica. C hicago:
C onference P r e s s , 1933.
Benson, P . , B eg rv n n else-tid er av Svenska B a p tis te rn a s V erk-
sam het p â V a stk u a te n . S e a t t l e , 1916.
B enson, P . , H is to r ic a l Review o f th e A c ti v itie s o f th e Swed
is h B a p tis ts in C a lif o r n ia , 1884—1939. W ritte n and
mimeographed by re q u e s t o f Swedish B a p tis t C onference
o f C a lif o r n ia , 1939.
E ngw all, Swan A ., En K o rt H is to r is k O v e rs ik t av Svenska
B a p tis te rn a s i C a lif o r n ia V erksam het, 1884—1939.
U npublished h i s t o r i c a l s k e tc h , 1926.
H a ll, A. G ., Svenska B a p tis te rn a s H is to r ia , 1848—1898.
■ C hicago; 2 v o l s .
H iscox, Edward T ., New D ire c to ry f o r B a p tis t C hurches,
P h ila d e lp h ia ; Ju d so n P re s s , 1902
L ag erg ren , C a rl G ., E f te r S .iu ttio A r. S t. P a u l, M inn., 1922
L in d b la d , F ran k , The S p i r i t Which i s From God. S e a t t l e , 1924
121
Scîim idt, Emanuel, Svenska B a p tis te rn a s i Amerika T eo lo g isk a
Sem lnarium , 1 8 ?1 --1 9 2 1 . Chicago ; C onference P re s s ,
1921.
S k a r s te d t, E rn e s t, C a lif o r n ia .Prh d a ss Svenska B e fo lk n in g .
S e a t t l e , 1910.
S tephenson, Qeorge M ., A JH istory o f Am erican Im m ig ratio n .
B o ston: Ginn and Company, 1926. •
Swedish B a p tis t P a c if ic Home, Lbs A ngeles, A H is to r ic a l
S k e tc h . T en-year h is to r y p u b lis h e d by th e Board o f
D ir e c to r s , 1929.
Swedish B a p tis t P a c if ic Home, H e p rin t o f S o c ia l Study by
S ta te D epartm ent o f S o c ia l W e lfare, A ugust 3 l , I 9 l 2 .
ARTICLES A N D LEAFLETS
Nya VeckoGBùs t e n . C hicago, I l l i n o i s . T ra n s c rip t o f L e t t e r s ,
N o tic e s , ana A r tic le s p e r ta in in g to Swedish B a p tis t
churches i n C a lif o r n ia . Copied by E ric k S jo s tra n d a t
th e re q u e s t o f P . Benson. Owned by Edwin J . Omark.
L ag erg ren , C a rl G ., * * D e f y r a h u v u d p erib d ern a i v a r h i s t o r i a
sâsom e t t sv e n sk t b aptistsam fU nd 1 A m erica, 1852—
1 9 2 9 .” Svenska S ta n d a r e t $ A p ril 22, 29 and May 6 , 1930.
N a tio n a l A s so c ia tio n o f E v a n g e lic a ls f o r U n ite d A ctio n ,
C o n s titu tio n . H e a d q u a rte rs: 120 Tremont S t . , B o sto n .
APPSMDIX
APPENDIX A
BY-LAWS OF STATE ORGANIZATIONS
SWEDISH BAPTIST MISSIONARY SOCIETY OF CALIFORNIA
I
To o rg a n iz e a m issio n a ry s o c ie ty u n d er th e name o f
The Swedish B a p tis t M issio n ary S o c ie ty i n C a lifo rn ia *
I I
The purpose o f th e S o c ie ty s h a l l be to make C h ris t and
H is G ospel known, and to th e g r e a t e s t p o s s ib le e x te n t, seek
to prom ote th e p r a c t ic e o f B i b lic a l C h r is tia n ity among o u r
p e o p le w ith in t h i s S ta te ; and, in o rd e r to accom plish t h i s
p u rp o se, to send o u t and su p p o rt as many G ospel w itn e sse s as
p o s s ib le , w herever th e need i s ap p a re n t and th e Lord opens
a way.
I I I
Members o f t h i s S o c ie ty s h a l l c o n s is t o f a l l b e lie v
in g and b a p tiz e d C h ris tia n s who c o n trib u te an n u a lly tow ard
th e su p p o rt o f t h i s m is s io n .
IV
T his S o c ie ty s h a l l have a g o v ern in g b o a rd , c o n s is tin g
o f (a) e x e c u tiv e and (b) a d v iso ry members. The ex e cu tiv e
members, f iv e in num ber, c o n s titu t in g th e E x ecu tiv e Com m ittee,
124
s h a l l be chosen a t th e an n u al m eetin g , and s h a l l from t h e i r
own number e l e c t a chairm an, s e c r e ta r y , and t r e a s u r e r . I t
s h a l l be t h e i r d u ty to r e c e iv e and a d m in is te r funds f o r m is
s io n a ry p ro m o tio n ; to e n l i s t a id from th e Am erican s o c ie
t i e s ; to c a l l and send s u it a b le m is s io n a rie s and su p p o rt
them on th e f i e l d as f a r a s funds p e rm it. The A dvisory
members s h a l l be chosen by t h e i r r e s p e c tiv e c h u rc h e s, one
f o r each church o f f o r ty members o r l e s s , and one b e s id e s
f o r every a d d itio n a l tw e n ty -fiv e members o r f r a c t i o n th e r e
o f . T h e ir d u ty s h a l l be to g a th e r money by s u b s c rip tio n o r
o th e r m eans, each one in h is own f i e l d , d e liv e r in g s a id
funds to th e t r e a s u r e r , and to a s s i s t th e E x ecu tiv e Commit
te e by co u n sel and d ee d .
V
The S o c ie ty s h a l l m eet a n n u a lly th e l a s t Thursday in
Septem ber to a u d it th e b o o k s, r e p o r t on th e w ork, e l e c t ex
e c u tiv e members, and c o n fe r about th e work in g e n e ra l.
VI
These r u le s may be amended a t th e an n u al m eetin g s o f
th e S o c ie ty as need a r i s e s -
As o rd e re d ,
N. H A Y LA N D
Adopted by g e n e ra l v o te a t m eeting o f th e S o c ie ty in
O akland,. C a lif o r n ia , O ctober 1 1 , 1890. Axel O strom , C le rk .
126
m m m m T o f a r t i c l e iv
The fo llo w in g amendment was adopted a t th e an n u al
m eetin g o f th e S o c ie ty , A ugust 26, 1892:
T his S o c ie ty s h a l l have a g o v ern in g b o ard c o n s is tin g
o f elev en members who s h a ll be e le c te d a t th e annual
m eeting o f th e S o c ie ty and s h a l l from t h e i r own number
e l e c t a chairm an, v ic e chairm an, re c o rd in g s e c r e ta r y ,
co rresp o n d in g s e c r e ta r y , and a t r e a s u r e r . These f iv e
members, e le c te d to th e s e p o s it io n s , s h a l l c o n s titu te
th e E x ecu tiv e Committee o f th e M issio n ary S ociety*
They s h a l l re c e iv e and a d m in is te r fu n d s fo r m issio n ary
p ro m o tio n , e n l i s t a id from th e Am erican s o c i e t i e s , and
a ls o c a l l and su p p o rt m is s io n a rie s on th e f i e l d * The
e n tir e Board o f elev en members, in a d d itio n to th e
m is s io n a ry , s h a l l c o l l e c t money f o r th e tr e a s u ry on
t h e i r r e s p e c tiv e f ie ld s *
L . H agstrom , S e c re ta ry
A M E N D M E N T OP ARTICLE V
A Committee on Change o f By-law s recommended t h a t
A r tic le V be amended, changing th e tim e f o r th e an n u al m eet
in g o f th e S o c ie ty from th e l a s t Thursday o f Septem ber to
th e l a s t Thursday o f A ugust ; and a lso recommended t h a t th e
number o f E x ecu tiv e Committee members be in c re a s e d from
f iv e to sev en .
The recom m endations were adopted Septem ber 29, 1891.
(By-laws and Amendments, found in M inutes o f Swedish
B a p tis t M issio n ary S o c ie ty o f C a lif o r n ia , tr a n s l a te d by
Edwin J . Omark. )
126
SWEDISH BAPTIST CONFERENCE OF CALIFORNIA
A r tic le I
Name
The name o f t h i s co n feren ce s h a l l b e : % e Swedish
B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif o r n ia .
A r tic le I I
Purpose
The p urpose o f t h i s C onference s h a l l b e : a ) to c r e a te
a c lo s e r a s s o c ia tio n betw een th e Swedish B a p tis t churches o f
C a lif o r n ia and o th e r a d ja c e n t s t a t e s ; b ) by means o f such
a s s o c ia tio n to accom plish a more e f f e c tiv e m issio n a ry work
among o u r p eo p le in th e f i e l d s and p la c e s w hich th e C onfer
ence may be le d o f God to ta k e u p .
A r tic le I I I
Membership
Every r e g u la r Swedish o r S can d in av ian B a p tis t Church
can be ad m itted to th e C o n feren ce. Such a chu rch , when seek
in g ad m issio n , sh o u ld send a w r itte n a p p lic a tio n to th e Ex
e c u tiv e Com m ittee. The a p p lic a tio n w ill be p re s e n te d to th e
Annual M eeting o f th e C o n feren ce, s a id C onference h av in g au
t h o r i t y to a c c e p t o r r e j e c t th e a p p lic a tio n by v o te .
ARTICLE IV
M eetings
127
The C onference s h a ll convene every y e a r f o r an an
n u a l m e etin g , and sem i-an n u al o r q u a r te r ly m eetings a t tim e
and p la c e to be s e t by th e C onference i t s e l f o r i t s Execu
t i v e Com m ittee.
A r tic le V
D ele g ate s
Every church o f f i f t y o r l e s s members i s e n t i t l e d to
send th r e e d e le g a te s p lu s one d e le g a te f o r each a d d itio n a l
f i f t y members o r f r a c tio n th e r e o f .
A r tic le VI
O ffic e rs
The C onference w i l l e l e c t a t each an n u al m eetin g : a )
a M o d erato r, V ice-M o d erato r, S e c re ta ry , and V i ce-S e c re ta ry
fo r th e m eetin g ; b ) an E x ecu tiv e Committee which w i l l con
s t i t u t e th e Board o f T ru s te e s , co m prising seven members,
o r m ore.^
A r tic le V II
D u tie s o f O ffic e rs
1 . The M o d erato r, o r , in h is ab sen ce, th e V ice-M oder
a t o r , s h a ll p r e s id e o v er th e d e lib e r a tio n s and m a in ta in o rd e r
in th e m eetin g . The S e c re ta ry s h a l l c a r e f u lly re c o rd th e
p ro cee d in g s o f th e m eetin g to p re s e rv e them . The T re a su re r
^ The co n clu d in g words "or m ore" have been in te r p o
la te d in p e n c il by an anonymous p e rs o n .
128
s h a l l re c e iv e a l l û in d s fo r th e C onference and d is b u rs e them
a c co rd in g to th e d e c is io n s o f th e C onference or th e E x ecu tiv e
Cdnuiiittee, and re n d e r an annual r e p o r t in w ritin g to th e
C o n feren ce.
2 . The E x ecu tiv e Com m ittee, as d ec id ed by th e C onfer
en ce, s h a l l a d m in is te r th e a f f a i r s o f th e c o rp o ra tio n a c
co rd in g to in s tr u c tio n s from th e C onference, make p la n s p e r
t a in in g to d e c is io n s o f th e C onference, p re p a re program s f o r
th e annual m eetin g s o f th e C onference, and subm it a w r itte n
r e p o r t to th e A nnual M eeting o f i t s w ork.
(These By-Laws, t r a n s l a te d by Edwin J . Omark, a re
found in s id e th e f r o n t co v er o f C onference Board M in u tes,
1 9 1 7 —1941. They a re u n d a te d . A com m ittee to re v is e th e
By-Laws and t r a n s l a t e them in to E n g lis h , h as been ap p o in ted
by th e C o n feren ce.)
APPENDIX B
ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION
SWEDISH BAPTIST CONFERENCE OF CALIFORNIA
RESOLVED by th e Swedish B a p tis t C onference o f C a lif
o r n ia , t h a t t h i s r e p r e s e n ta tiv e body o f th e Swedish B a p tis t
Churches o f th e S ta te o f C a lif o r n ia , in c o rp o ra te i t s e l f a s a
r e lig i o u s c o rp o ra tio n , under th e p ro v is io n s o f th e C iv il
Code o f th e S ta te o f C a lif o r n ia , and p a r t ic u l a r ly u n d er th e
p ro v is io n o f S e c tio n 608 o f s a id Code, and t h a t th e p r e s id
in g o f f i c e r s and S e c re ta ry o f t h i s body ta k e such s te p s as
may be n e c e ssa ry to e f f e c t such in c o rp o ra tio n .
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, as to such c o rp o ra tio n , in
c o n n e ctio n w ith th e p ro v is io n s o f s a id S e c tio n as fo llo w s :
F i r s t : T hat i t s name s h a l l be "SWEDISH BAPTIST CONFERENCE
OF CALIFORNIA."
Second; T hat th e p la c e where i t s p r in c ip a l b u s in e s s i s to
be tr a n s a c te d s h a l l be th e C ity and County o f San F ra n c is c o ,
S ta te o f C a lifo rn ia *
T h ird : T hat th e term f o r which i t i s to e x i s t s h a l l be F i f t y
Years*
F o u rth : T hat th e number o f i t s d ir e c to r s s h a l l be sev en .
F i f t h : T hat th e fo llo w in g named p erso n s be and th ey a re h e re
by e le c te d d ir e c to r s o f s a id c o rp o ra tio n f o r th e f i r s t y e a r;
Rev. J . A lfre d S rik s o n , Chairm an, O akland, C a lif o r n ia ;
130
Rev. A. W . B acklund, V ice Chairm an, E in g sb u rg , C a li
f o r n ia ;
Mr. J . A. N ofdeen, S e c re ta ry , San J o s e , C a lif o r n ia ;
Rev. John F rib o rg , V ice S e c re ta ry , Los A ngeles, C al
if o r n i a ;
Mr. J . M. C a rlso n , T re a s u re r, San F ra n c is c o , C a lif o r
n ia ;
Rev. C. M. N elso n , San D iego, C a lif o r n ia ;
Mr. John E. G u sta fso n , O akland, C a lif o r n ia .
S ix th : That th e p u rp o ses f o r # iic h s a id c o rp o ra tio n i s foim ed
s h a l l be as fo llo w s :
To conduct and s u p e rv is e th e a f f a i r s o f th e Swedish
B a p tis t D enom ination in th e S ta te o f C a lif o r n ia , and to a c
q u ire in every manner and form , in c lu d in g p u rc h a se , g i f t ,
d e v is e , and b e q u e s t, r e a l and p e rs o n a l p ro p e rty o f ev ery
k in d and i n t e r e s t s and e s ta te s th e r e in o f every c h a ra c te r;
and to buy, s e l l , h o ld , o p e ra te , m a in ta in , u s e , co n d u ct,
le a s e , convey, m ortgage and incum ber, r e a l and p e rs o n a l p ro
p e r ty o f every k in d and c h a r a c te r , and a l l i n t e r e s t s and es
t a t e s th e r e in and to do a l l a c ts and th in g s o f every k in d ,
n e c e ss a ry o r co n v e n ien t f o r o r connected w ith o r r e l a t i n g to
th e Swedish B a p tis t D enom inational Work in th e S ta te o f C a li
f o r n ia , and a l l and s in g u la r th e fo re g o in g enum erated p u r
p o s e s ; to g e th e r w ith such o th e r p u rp o ses as in th e judgm ent
o f th e p re s id in g o f f i c e r and s e c r e ta ry o f t h i s r e p r e s e n ta tiv e
131
body s h a ll be a d v is a b le to i n s e r t in th e a r t i c l e s o f in c o r
p o ra tio n o f s a id c o rp o ra tio n ; p ro v id ed t h a t none o f th e r e a l
o r p e rs o n a l p ro p e rty o f th e c o rp o ra tio n s h a l l be a lie n a te d
o r encumbered by th e Board o f D ire c to rs w ith o u t p re v io u s au
t h o r i t y g iv e n by th e By-Laws o r by le g a l v o te a t a m eetin g
o f th e members o f th e c o rp o ra tio n ; b u t t h i s p ro v iso s h a l l
n o t l i m i t th e power to d is b u rs e money in th e conduct o f th e
o rd in a ry a f f a i r s o f th e c o rp o ra tio n .
(From p r in te d program o f th e 1 2 th an n u al m eeting o f
th e S ta te C onference, h e ld in th e Swedish B a p tis t Church,
O akland, May 25—3 0 , 1 9 1 0 .)
APPENDIX C
ARTICLES OF COOPERATION
BETW EEN THE SWEDISH BAPTIST CONFERENCE OF CALIFORNIA A N D
THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA BAPTIST CONVENTION A N D THE SO UTHERN
CALIFORNIA BAPTIST CONVENTION
! • The Swedish C onference s h a l l be re c o g n ise d by th e
two co n v en tio n s a s an a s s o c ia tio n in c o o p e ra tio n w ith th e
C o n v en tio n s.
2 . The e n t ir e s t a t i s t i c a l ta b le s o f th e Swedish Con
fe re n c e s h a l l be p u b lis h e d in th e two C onvention annuals*
3 * ? . The program o f m issio n a ry work to be done among
th e Swedish ch u rch es o f C a lif o rn ia s h a l l be worked o u t in
co n feren ce w ith th e s e c r e ta r ie s o f th e two C onventions, and
by them su b m itted to t h e i r r e s p e c tiv e b o ard s f o r a d o p tio n ,
each co n v en tio n in c o rp o ra tin g in to i t s own program t h a t p o r
t i o n o f th e Swedish work t h a t i s w ith in i t s own C onvention
t e r r i t o r y .
4* The Swedish Churches o f C a lif o r n ia s h a l l be ap
p o rtio n e d f o r S ta te M issio n s on th e same b a s is a s th e Ameri
can ch u rch e s, and th e Swedish C onference assum es re s p o n s i
b i l i t y f o r c o l le c tin g th e s e ap p o rtio n m en ts and o f p ay in g
them in to th e tr e a s u r y o f each C onvention r e s p e c tiv e ly .
6 . A g e n e ra l w orker among th e Swedish p eo p le o f th e
e n t i r e S ta te may be ap p o in ted j o i n t l y by b o th C onventions
133
on recom m endation o f th e Swedish C onference.
6 . The s a la r y o f any such g e n e ra l w orker employed
f o r work among th e Swedish p eo p le in th e S ta te o f C a lif o r
n ia s h a l l be p a id pro r a t e , acco rd in g to tim e sp e n t in each
C onvention.
7 . A ll work done e x c lu s iv e ly in each co n v en tio n t e r
r i t o r y s h a l l be b orne by th e co n v en tio n in which s a id work
i s done.
8 . The s u p e rv is io n o f th e g e n e ra l w orker s h a l l be
u nder th e s e c r e ta r ie s o f th e two C onventions, and i n con
fe re n c e w ith th e B oard o f th e Swedish C o nference.
9 . A ll ap pointm ents f o r work among th e Swedish peo
p le s h a l l be made by th e C onvention b oard in which th e work
i s to be done. The b o ard o f th e Swedish C onference s h a l l
have th e r i g h t to nom inate s a id w o rk e rs.
(These A r tic le s o f In c o rp o ra tio n a re found in th e
San Diego B e th e l B a p tis t Church m in u te s, volume 5 , p p . 283—
286, o v er th e s ig n a tu re o f A. L . P ie rs o n . There a re no
comments n o r re c o rd o f d e c is io n . No d a te i s g iv e n , b u t
th e t r a n s c r i p t o f th e A r tic le s o f C o o p eratio n o ccu rs be
tw een th e m in u tes o f A p ril 11 and May 3 , 1 9 2 0 .)
APPENDIX D
EARLY MEETINGS OF STATE CONFERENCE
The fo llo w in g ta b le in d ic a te s when and where some o f
th e e a rly annual S ta te C onferences were h e ld . No m in u tes o f
th e s e m eetin g s a re a v a ila b le .
Los A ngeles May 25 - 27, 1900
L inne May 3 -4 , 1901
San F ra n c isc o May 23 - 25, 1902
San Jo se May 8 - 10, 1903
Oakland May 6 - 8 , 1904
K ingsburg A p ril 13 - 15, 1905
O akland A ugust 16 - 19, 1906
Los A ngeles A p ril, 1907
San F ra n c isc o May, 1908
San Diego June 3-6 , 1909
APPENDIX E
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
SWEDISH BAPTIST CHURCHES OP CALIFORNIA IN C H R O N O LO G IC A T,/ OR.
. . DER OF THEIR ORGANIZATION
PLACE W H E N ORGANIZED
CHARTER M EM BERS
Oakland F eb ru ary 1 , 1886 14
Los A ngeles May 16, 1887 13
Chino May 6 , 1888
19
Linne J u ly 11, 1888 12
San F ra n c is c o , F i r s t Ja n u ary 15, 1889 14
Oak V alley A p ril 8 , 1892 11
San Jo se A ugust 16, 1892 5
San Jo se (reo rg - ) O ctober 9 , 1898 14
San Diego O ctober 18, 1892 15
K ingsburg May 19, 1901 13
Tuolumne A p ril 5 , 1905 8
Hughsbn March 8 , 1908
8
T u rlo ck March 22, 1908 19
San F ra n c is c o , Salem Jan u ary 24, 1909 25
R edlands—
Y ucaipa
F eb ru ary 1 8 ,
O ctober 28,
1912
1920
9
P asadena November 28, 1920 15
APPENDIX F
N EW HAMPSHIRE CONFESSICW^
A r tic le s o f F a ith
1 / THE SCRIPTURES
W e b e lie v e t h a t th e Holy B ib le was w r itte n by men d i
v in e ly in s p ir e d , and i s a p e r f e c t tr e a s u r e o f h eavenly i n
s t r u c t i o n ; t h a t i t has God f o r i t s a u th o r, s a lv a tio n f o r i t s
end, and tr u t h w ith o u t a iÿ m ix tu re o f e r r o r f o r i t s m a tte r;
t h a t i t re v e a ls th e p r in c ip le s by w hich God w i l l judge u s ;
and th e r e f o r e i s , and s h a l l rem ain to th e end o f th e w o rld ,
th e tr u e c e n tre o f C h r is tia n u n io n , and th e supreme s ta n d a rd
by which a l l human co n d u ct, c re e d s , and o p in io n s sh o u ld be
t r i e d .
II.. THE TRUE G O D
W e b e lie v e th e S c r ip tu r e s te a c h t h a t th e re i s o n e, and
o n ly o n e, li v i n g and tr u e God, an i n f i n i t e , i n t e l l i g e n t S p ir
i t , whose name i s JEHDVAH, th e Maker and Supreme R u le r o f
Heaven and E a rth ; in e x p re s s ib ly g lo rio u s i n h o lin e s s , and
w orthy o f a l l p o s s ib le h o n o r, co n fid en ce and lo v e ; t h a t in
th e u n ity o f th e Godhead th e re a re th r e e p e rs o n s , th e F a th e r,
th e Son, and th e Holy G host; eq u al in ev ery d iv in e p e r f e c tio n ,
and e x e c u tin g d i s t i n c t b u t harm onious o f f ic e s in th e g r e a t
work o f red em p tio n .
T. H isco x , New D ire c to ry f o r B a p tis t C hurches,
P P . 543— — 563.
137
I I I . THE FALL OF M A N
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t Man was c re a te d
in h o lin e s s , u n d er th e law o f h is M aker; b u t by v o lu n ta ry
tr a n s g r e s s io n f e l l from t h a t h o ly and happy s t a t e ; in con
sequence o f which a l l mankind a re now s in n e r s , n o t by con
s t r a i n t b u t c h o ic e ; b e in g by n a tu re u t t e r l y v o id o f t h a t
h o lin e s s re q u ire d by th e law o f God, p o s it iv e l y in c lin e d to
e v i l ; and th e r e f o r e u n d er j u s t condem nation to e te r n a l r u in ,
w ith o u t d efen se o r ex cu se.
IV . GOD'S PURPOSE OF GRACE
W e b e lie v e th e S c r ip tu r e s te a c h t h a t e le c tio n i s th e
e te r n a l purpose o f God, ac c o rd in g to v h ic h He g ra c io u s ly r e
g e n e ra te s , s a n c t i f i e s and sav es s in n e r s ; t h a t b e in g p e r f e c t
ly c o n s is te n t w ith th e f r e e agency o f man, i t comprehends
a l l th e means i n co n n ectio n w ith th e end; t h a t i t i s a m ost
g lo rio u s d is p la y o f G od's so v e re ig n goo d n ess, b e in g i n f i n i t e
ly f r e e , w ise , h o ly and unchangeable ; t h a t i t u t t e r l y ex
c lu d es b o a s tin g , and prom otes h u m ility , lo v e , p ra y e r, p r a is e ,
t r u s t in God, and a c tiv e im ita tio n o f H is f r e e m ercy; t h a t
i t encourages th e u se o f means in th e h ig h e s t d e g re e ; th a t
i t may be a s c e r ta in e d by i t s e f f e c t s i n a l l who tr u l y b e
lie v e th e G ospel; t h a t i t i s th e fo u n d a tio n o f C h r is tia n
a ssu ra n c e ; And t h a t to a s c e r ta in i t w ith re g a rd to o u rse lv e s
demands and d e se rv e s th e u tm o st d ilig e n c e .
138
V. THE W A Y OF SALVATION
W e b e lie v e th e S c r ip tu r e s te a c h t h a t th e s a lv a tio n o f
s in n e rs i s w holly o f g ra c e ; th ro u g h th e m e d ia to ria l o f f ic e s
o f th e Son o f God; who a c c o rd in g to th e w ill o f th e F a th e r,
assumed our n a tu re , y e t w ith o u t s i n ; honored th e d iv in e law
by H is p e rs o n a l o b ed ien ce, and by H is d e a th made a f u l l
atonem ent f o r o u r s in s ; t h a t h av in g r i s e n from th e d ead , He
i s now enth ro n ed in heaven; and u n itin g in H is w onderful p e r
son th e te n d e r e s t sym pathies w ith d iv in e p e r f e c tio n s . He i s
ev ery way q u a lif ie d to be a s u it a b le , a com passionate and an
a l l - s u f f i c i e n t S a v io r.
V I. OF REGENERATION
W e b e lie v e th e S c r ip tu r e s te a c h t h a t re g e n e ra tio n , o r
th e new b i r t h , i s t h a t change w rought i n th e so u l by th e Holy
S p i r i t , by w hich a new n a tu re and a s p i r i t u a l l i f e , n o t b e fo re
p o sse sse d , a re im p a rte d , and th e p erso n becomes a new c r e a tio n
in C h r is t J e s u s ; a h o ly d is p o s itio n i s g iv e n to th e m ind, th e
w i l l subdued, th e dom inion o f s in b ro k en , and th e a f f e c tio n s
changed from a lo v e o f s in and s e l f , to a lo v e o f h o lin e s s
and God; th e change i s in s ta n ta n e o u s , e f f e c te d s o le ly by th e
power, o f God, in a m anner inco m p reh en sib le to re a s o n ; th e e v i
dence o f i t i s found in a changed d is p o s itio n o f m ind, th e
f r u i t s o f rig h te o u s n e s s , and a newness o f l i f e . And w ith o u t
i t s a lv a tio n i s im p o s sib le .
139
V II. OP RSPENTMGS
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t rependance i s a
p e rs o n a l a c t, prom pted by th e S p i r i t ; and c o n s is ts in a god
ly sorrow f o r s i n , as o ffe n s iv e to God and ru in o u s to th e
s o u l; t h a t i s i s accom panied w ith g r e a t h u m ilia tio n in view
o f o n e 's s in and ^ i l t , to g e th e r w ith p ra y e r fo r pard o n ;
a ls o by s in c e re h a tre d o f s i n , and a p e r s i s t e n t tu rn in g away
from , and abandonment o f , a l l th a t i s e v i l and u n h o ly . S ince
none i s s in le s s in t h i s l i f e , re p e n ta n c e needs to be o fte n
re p e a te d .
V I I I . OF FAITH
W e b e lie v e th e S c r ip tu r e s te a c h t h a t f a i t h , as an ev
a n g e lic a l g ra c e w rought by th e S p i r i t , i s th e medium th ro u g h
which C h ris t i s re c e iv e d by th e so u l as i t s s a c r i f i c e and
S a v io r. I t i s an a s s e n t o f th e mind and a co n sen t o f th e
h e a r t , c o n s is tin g m ainly o f b e l i e f and t r u s t ; th e testim o n y
o f God i s im p l i c i t l y ac ce p ted and b e lie v e d as t r u e , vdiile
C h r is t i s u n re s e rv e d ly tr u s te d f o r s a lv a tio n ; by i t th e be
l i e v e r i s b ro u g h t in to v i t a l r e la tio n s w ith God, f r e e ly j u s
t i f i e d , and li v e s as se e in g Him who i s i n v i s i b l e . F a ith
cannot sa v e , b u t i t re v e a ls C h ris t to th e so u l as a w illin g
and s u f f i c i e n t SaV âor, and commits th e h e a r t and l i f e to
Him.
140
IX . OF JUSTIFICATION
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e g r e a t G ospel
b le s s in g which C h r is t se c u re s to such as b e lie v e in Him i s
j u s t i f i c a t i o n ; t h a t j u s t i f i c a t i o n in c lu d e s th e pardon o f s in ,
and th e prom ise o f e te r n a l l i f e on p r in c ip le s o f rig h te o u s
n e s s ; t h a t i t i s bestow ed, n o t in c o n s id e ra tio n o f any works
o f rig h te o u s n e s s which we have done, b u t s o le ly th ro u g h f ^ t h
in th e Redeem ert b lo o d ; by v ir t u e o f which f a i t h H is p e r f e c t
rig h te o u s n e s s i s f r e e ly im puted to u s o f God; t h a t i t b rin g s
us in to a s t a t e o f m ost b le s s e d peace and fa v o r w ith God,
and se c u re s every o th e r b le s s in g n e e d fu l f o r tim e and e t e r
n i t y .
X. OF ADOPTION
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t ad o p tio n i s a
g ra c io u s a c t , by which th e F a th e r, f o r th e sake o f C h r is t,
a c c e p ts b e lie v e r s to th e e s ta te and c o n d itio n o f c h ild re n ,
by a new and s p i r i t u a l b i r t h ; sen d in g th e S p i r i t o f ad o p tio n
in to t h e i r h e a r t s , whereby th ey become members o f th e fam ily
o f God, and e n t i t l e d to a l l th e r i g h t s , p r iv ile g e s and p ro
m ises o f c h ild re n ; and i f c h ild r e n , th e n h e i r s , h e ir s o f God,
and j o i n t - h e i r s w ith J e su s C h r is t, to th e h e r ita g e , o f th e
s a in ts on e a r th , and an in h e rita n c e re s e rv e d in heaven f o r
them .
141
X I. OF SANCTIFICATION
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t s a n c t if i c a t i o n
i s th e p ro c e ss by w hich, ac c o rd in g to th e w ill o f God, we a re
made p a rta k e rs o f H is h o lin e s s ; t h a t i t i s a p ro g re s s iv e
work; t h a t i t i s begun in re g e n e ra tio n ; t h a t i t i s c a r r ie d on
i n th e h e a rts o f b e lie v e r s by th e p rese n ce and power o f th e
Holy S p i r i t , th e S e a le r and C om forter, in th e c o n tin u a l u se
o f th e ap p o in ted means—e s p e c ia lly th e Word o f God, s e l f -
ex am in atio n , w a tc h fu ln e s s , and p ra y e r; and in th e p r a c tic e o f
a l l godly e x e rc is e s and d u tie s *
X II. THE PERSEVERANCE OF SAINTS
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t such a s a re t r u l y
r e g e n e ra te , b e in g b o rn o f th e S p i r i t , w i l l n o t u t t e r l y f a l l
away and f i n a l l y p e r is h , b u t w il l endure t o t o th e end; t h a t
t h e i r p e rs e v e rin g a ttac h m en t to C h ris t i s th e grand mark
which d is tin g u is h e s them from s u p e r f ic i a l p r o fe s s o r s ; t h a t a
s p e c ia l P rovidence w atches o v er t h e i r w e lfa re ; and th e y are
k e p t by th e power o f God thro u g h f a i t h u n to s a lv a tio n .
X I I I . THE L A W A N D THE GOSPEL
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e Law o f God
i s th e e te r n a l and unchangeable r u le o f H is m oral governm ent;
t h a t i t i s h o ly , j u s t , and good; and t h a t th e i n a b i l i t y
w hich th e S c rip tu re s a s c r ib e to f a l l e n men to f u l f i l l i t s
p re c e p ts a r is e s e n t i r e ly from t h e i r sinfV il n a tu re ; to d e liv e r
142
them from w hich, and to r e s to r e them thro u g h a M ediator to
u n feig n e d obedience to th e h o ly Law, i s One g r e a t end o f th e
G ospel, and o f th e Means o f G race connected w ith th e e s ta b
lish m e n t o f th e v i s i b l e C hurch.
XIV. A GOSPEL C H U R C H
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t a v i s i b l e Church
o f C h ris t i s a co n g re g a tio n o f b a p tiz e d b e lie v e r s , a s s o c ia te d
by covenant in th e f a i t h and fe llo w sh ip o f th e G ospel; ob
s e rv in g th e o rd in an c e s o f C h r is t; governed by H is law s; and
e x e rc is in g th e g i f t s , r i g h t s , and p r iv ile g e s in v e s te d in
them by H is Word; t h a t i t s only s c r i p t u r a l o f f ic e r s a re b is h
ops o r p a s to r s , and d eaco n s, whose q u a l i f i c a t i o n s , c la im s,
and d u tie s a re d e fin e d in th e E p is tle s o f Timothy and T i t u s .
XV, CHRISTIAN BAPTISM
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t C h r is tia n Bap
tism i s th e im m ersion in w a te r o f a b e lie v e r in C h r is t, in to
th e name o f th e F a th e r, and Son, and Holy G host; to show
f o r th , in a solemn and b e a u tif u l emblem, o u r f a i t h in th e
c r u c if ie d , b u r ie d , and r is e n S a v io r, w ith i t s e f f e c t , in
our d e a th to s in and r e s u r r e c tio n to a new l i f e ; t h a t i t i s
p r e r e q u is ite to th e p r iv ile g e s o f a Church r e l a t i o n , and to
th e L o rd 's S upper.
143
XVI. THE LORD'S SUPPER
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e L o rd 's Sup
p e r i s a p ro v is io n o f b re ad and w ine, as symbols o f C h r i s t 's
body and b lo o d , p a rta k e n o f by members o f th e Church, in
commemoration o f th e s u f fe rin g and d e a th o f t h é i r L ord;
showing t h e i r f a i t h and p a r tic ip a t io n in th e m e rits o f His
s a c r i f i c e , and t h e i r hope o f e te r n a l l i f e th ro u g h His r e s
u r r e c tio n from th e d ead ; i t s observance to be p reced ed by
f a i t h f u l s e lf-e x a m in a tio n .
XVII. THE CHRISTIAN SABBATH
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e f i r s t day o f
th e week i s th e L o rd 's Day; and i s to be k e p t sa c re d to r e
lig io u s p u rp o se s, by a b s ta in in g from a l l s e c u la r la b o r,
ex cep t works o f m ercy and n e c e s s ity , by th e devout observance
o f a l l th e means o f g ra c e , b o th p r iv a te and p u b lic ; and by
p re p a ra tio n f o r t h a t r e s t t h a t rem ain eth f o r th e p eo p le o f
God.
X V III. CIVIL G O V ER N M EN T
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t c i v i l govern
ment i s o f d iv in e ap p o in tm en t, fo r th e i n t e r e s t and good o r
d e r o f human s o c ie ty ; and t h a t m a g is tra te s a re to be prayed
f o r , c o n s c ie n tio u s ly honored and obeyed, ex cep t o n ly in
th in g s opposed to th e w i l l o f o u r Lord Je s u s C h r is t, who i s
th e o n ly Lord o f th e c o n sc ie n c e , and th e P rin c e o f th e k in g s
o f th e e a r th . But t h a t c i v i l r u l e r s have no r i g h t s o f con
t r o l o v e r, o r o f in te r f e r e n c e w ith r e lig i o u s m a tte rs .
XIX. RIGHTEOUS A N D W ICKED
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e re i s a r a d ic a l
and e s s e n ti a l d if fe re n c e betw een th e rig h te o u s and th e w ick
ed; t h a t such o n ly as th ro u g h f a i t h a re j u s t i f i e d in th e name
o f th e Lord J e s u s , and s a n c tif ie d by th e S p i r i t o f our God,
a re t r u l y rig h te o u s in H is esteem ; w h ile a l l such a s co n tin u e
i n im penitence and u n b e lie f a r e , in His s i g h t , wicked and un
d e r th e c u rs e ; and t h i s d i s t i n c t i o n h o ld s among men b o th in
t h i s l i f e and a f t e r d e a th .
XX. THE W O R L D T O C O M E
W e b e lie v e th e S c rip tu re s te a c h t h a t th e end o f th e
w orld i s ap p ro ach in g ; t h a t a t th e L a s t Day, C h ris t w i l l d e
scend from heaven, and r a i s e th e dead from th e g rav e f o r
f i n a l r e t r i b u t i o n ; t h a t a solemn s e p a ra tio n w i l l th e n ta k e
p la c e ; t h a t th e w icked w ill be adjudged to en d le ss sorrow ,
and th e rig h te o u s to e n d le ss jo y ; and t h i s judgm ent w i l l f i x
fo re v e r th e f i n a l s t a t e o f men in heaven o r h e l l , on p r i n c i
p le s o f rig h te o u s n e s s .
APPENDIX G
SWEDISH BAPTIST PACIFIC H C M E ^
The Swedish B a p tis t denom ination sp o n so rs fo u r homes
i n th e U n ite d S ta te s fo r th e c a re and com fort o f e ld e r ly
church members : Elim P ark i n S h e lto n , C o n n e c tic u t; S unset
Home in C oncordia, K ansas; Pridhem in C hicago, I l l i n o i s ;
and The Swedish B a p tis t P a c if ic Home in Los A ngeles, C a lif .
The la s t-m e n tio n e d home se rv e s th e e n t i r e P a c ific
S lo p e, and b elo n g s to th e churches o f W ashington, Oregon
and C a lif o r n ia . I t s lo c a tio n in Los A ngeles h as b ro u g h t i t
in to c lo s e r touch w ith th e C a lif o r n ia Swedish B a p tis ts th a n
th o se from th e o th e r s t a t e s m entioned, and j u s t i f i e s th e
in c lu s io n o f i t s h is to r y in t h i s t r e a t i s e .
I t was th e Reverend Ç. J . A lraquist who f i r s t had th e
v is io n and f a i t h to b e lie v e t h a t a home f o r th e aged co u ld be
su p p o rted by Swedish B a p tis ts o f th e P a c if ic C o a st. He
sh ared h is v is io n w ith some o th e r men r e s id in g i n Los A ngeles,
and g ra d u a lly th e id e a g ain ed momentum.
In 1910 th e C a lif o r n ia Swedish B a p tis t C onference,
m eetin g in O akland, endorsed th e id e a d n d rr equ es te d th e Los
A ngeles church to a p p o in t a com m ittee w hich should d e v ise
p la n s f o r such a home.
^ See so u rc e s in B ib lio g ra p h y un d er : Swedish B a p tis t
P a c if ic Home.
1 4 6
A re s id e n c e a t 220 West 4 1 s t S tr e e t, Los A ngeles, do n ated
by M rs. C > Vo H an d in 1 9 1 8 , w as th e f i r s t b u ild in g used by
th e Home. I t s doors w ere opened f o r g u e s ts in th e f a l l o f
1 9 1 9 . The Reverend C. J . A lm quist was chosen by th e C a lif o r
n ia Swedish B a p tis t C onference to s o l i c i t fu n d s, a ta s k f o r
which he was w e ll q u a l if i e d .
P e rc e iv in g t h a t a la r g e r and more perm anent lo c a tio n
was needed, th e Board o f T ru s te e s p u rch ased a tw o -acre s i t e
on Verdugo Road in 1920 a t a c o s t o f $7,0 0 0 . A b r ic k s t r u c
tu r e was e re c te d in 1922, c o n ta in in g tw e n ty -fiv e room s.
V arious im provem ents were made d u rin g th e y e a r s .
In 1925 th e Reverend and M rs. A. P . Ekman were p e r
m itte d to b u ild a bungalow on th e Home grounds n e a r th e m ain
b u ild in g , w ith th e u n d e rsta n d in g t h a t i t would r e v e r t to th e
Home a t th e tim e o f t h e i r d e a th s . M rs. Ekman has occupied
i t alo n e s in c e h e r h u sb a n d 's d e a th in 1929. J u s t r e c e n tly
she moved in to th e m ain b u ild in g , and o th e r g u e s ts , Mr. and
M rs. A lm quist, now occupy th e bungalow .
A new wing o f m odem f i r e p r o f f c o n s tru c tio n , was added
to th e m ain b u ild in g in 1928. T his annex c o n ta in s e ig h te e n
bedroom s, a re a d in g room, two basem ent storeroom s and a
la rg e c h a p e l.
The Home was l a s t lic e n s e d f o r fo rty -tw o p e rs o n s . I t
i s f i l l e d to c a p a c ity and many a re on th e w a itin g l i s t . Un
d e r th e e n e rg e tic le a d e rs h ip o f th e s u p e rin te n d e n t and m atron,
th e Reverend and M rs. C h arles Sundstrom , a c tiv e prom otion
o f an expansion program i s g e ttin g u n d er way. P re se n t p la n s
c a l l f o r a o n e -s to ry C lass D b u ild in g w hich w ill p a r t i a l l y
r e lie v e th e a c u te need o f la r g e r q u a r te rs - A fte r w ar-tim e
r e s t r i c t i o n s a re l i f t e d , an o th e r C lass A wing w ill be added
to th e m ain b u ild in g . When com plete, t h i s w ill mark th e
r e a l i z a t i o n o f th e o r ig in a l p la n —a« c e n tr a l b u ild in g w ith
two w ings.
_T _____ -•------- ... - .. -
Oakland
Los Angeles
Chino
Linne
San Francisco--First
Oak Valley
San Jose
San Jose (reorganized)
San Diego
Kingsburg
Tuolunme
Hughson
Turlock
San Francisco-·-Salem
Redlands--Yucaipa
Pasadena
APPENDIX H
MEMBERSHIP STATISTICS
SWEDISH BAPTIST CHUiwBEs- OFLCALII:FORNIA
I
as of December, 31 each year
(Compiled from annual reports in Year Book of
Swedish Baptist General Conference of America)
188_5 _188_~--~8_~7-~~~8--~~~9- ~13-~g _!-891 189.2 1893 1894 189~ 1~96 _ _:1._El_~~ 18_9~.-1:~~~ 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907. 1908 1909 1919 ,!,~11 -~91? _ _1913 _ 1~14 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 19,24 1925 1926 }927 192?. _1~?9~ l~~o _:),93_1 1~32 l,.\133 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 _1939 1940_ 1941 1942
26 35 41 91 9~ 97 102 120
26 65 51 56 48 62
19 19 16
12 20 32 31 33
23 62 82 75
11
7
16
108 122 109 110 124 129 135 141 140 154 147 173 192 220 204 ~34 234' 230 221 219 222 235 226 221 219 211 227 240
112 121 117 100 100 90 103 101 106 100 112 123 163: 11"18 187 204 228 ' 246 211'!£7 293 315 321 333 332 330 324 373 383
34 33
84 84
24 24
15 12
27 36
35 39 35 35 21 21 23 24 19 18 2!) 20 22 22
90 121 135 147 153 165 154 163 170 167 150 114 103 82 100, 119 126 126 136 141 131 121 149 144 163 180
22 18 18 9 9 9 9
14 24 31 38 35
41 30 33 33 ~5 17 17
9 9
38 45
17 17
9 9 9 9 9
52 48 54 53 59 53 58 70 59 58 62 62 61 60 66 69 68
17 17 17 18 25 28 36 43 47 53 57 58 64 59 60 58 58
20 13 20 55 85 106 128 150 171 196 204 235 266 287 307 309 318 313 350 413 447
8 12 12 12 12 12
8 8 8
12
8
17 17 17,, 30 40 46 48 68 86 96 118 139 148 163
31 37 47 56 63 67 64 63 70 65 72
14 9 10 12 12 16 15
18 28
254 257 260 273 288 322 359 37E; 368
436 452 460 450 473 486 491 515 509
170 lV6 1?6 182 177 207 211 214 198
63 64 74 80
58 61 64 70
82 74 70 78 76
71 68 70 70 70
399 381 358 348 335 321 320 309 310
152 157 154 149 ' 140 152 147 150 138'
45 57 70 77
80 80 98 98 98
376 370 379 390 388 393 387 400 395 411
522 495 470 474 455 452 459 441 454 455
207 180 193 206 239 238 246 245 245 233
79 81 75 80 78 77 79 67
65 63
57 61 73 83 85 83 79 118 146 204
305 301 298 3!)7 301 298 300 309 320 313
150 143 139 144 151 155 157 162 166 167'
91 89 86 86
90 94 103 103 94 89

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Creator Omark, E. J. (author)

Core Title A history of the Swedish Baptist churches of California

Degree Master of Arts

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

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