CHURCH OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD - Galax, Virginia - Lutheran Churches on Waymarking.com

What do you get when you combine a small group of Episcopalians with a handful of Lutherans? Chaos, endless bickering, selfish intolerance? NOT if you are talking about THE CHURCH OF THE GOOD SHEPHERD in Galax, Virginia.

1. The first and most important thing you get from this odd couple is a congregation of seamless, loving union. On Sunday it seems a harmonious Lutheran Church family; the next week it seems a happy Episcopalian group. But every Sunday the choir, pastor/rector, building, meeting time and friends next to you are all the same. Only the prayer books change. The first and third rectors were Episcopalians; the second was a Lutheran. Even after a year's membership you don't know (or care) who is a member of which denomination.

2. The second thing you get with this odd couple is a beautiful, new (in 2005) 4000 square foot house of worship completely paid for. For such a small group, which began meeting in the offices of realtors and the Alcohol Control Office less than 30 years ago, this is quite an accomplishment. But, as comedians say, "You ain't heard nothing yet."

3. The road from office building, to small house, to wonderful edifice was not a straight road of self-absorbed ambition. There were many unselfish detours.

A. The first detour was in 1978, one year after the first mission was organized. With fewer than a dozen members who were paying visiting clergy with the proceeds of baked goods sales, this group gathered $40,000 to organize the first Hospice program in the twin counties (Grayson and Carroll). When the group bought a small house/church on Center Street in 1982, the dining room became the area's only Hospice office.

B. A second detour began in 1984 when the upstairs of this Church/Hospice office became a Hostel, the only temporary home for the homeless within 40 miles. Two years later, having seen the desperate need for shelter for battered spouses, parentless infants and children, and even the more elderly homeless, the small congregation chose to purchase a separate, a larger "Hostel of the Good Shepherd" rather than start a larger church for themselves.

C. A final detour began in September 2001, when the extended Dunor family/village, which included both Muslims and Episcopalians, were made fleeing refugees by the civil strife in Liberia. This 40 plus family group was adopted by the congregation which then also had 40 plus members. Their donations of food, clothing and other basic necessities didn't just help this family, it literally kept them alive. The donation of $10,000 dollars over a five year period also enabled the Dunors to reconstruct their homes when they were able to return to their village.

D. A detour that was avoided was the detour of control. After the Hospice program was fully functioning, its operational control was turned over to the local hospital. Once the Hostel obtained sufficient government funds, control was released. When the refugee family was on its feet, the financial support ended. As the first rector said of the Hostel, "we give a hand up, not a hand out." The congregation loves nothing more than raising a self-sufficient child.

4, At last, in September 2004, while busily supporting Food For The Poor and the Boys' Home in Covington, VA, the new church building was begun. The ground breaking was attended by four past and present clergymen and bishops from both the Episcopal Diocese and the Lutheran Synod. The days of worshipers being crammed into every room of the small house on Center St. were almost over.

But this unique congregation of fewer than 60 members, this odd couple of denominations, isn't finished doing the unexpected. It is now busy with Gleaning for the World and a second building phase, but it is still looking for more ways to do selflessly God's work.

Copied from Church's Website

Active Church: Yes School on property: No Date Built: 01/01/2005 Service Times: Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Website: [Web Link]

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