The Christian Chronicle (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 42, No. 6, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 1, 1985 Page: 10 of 24
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CHRISTIAN CHRONIC^
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10 CHRONICLE FEATURES
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of World War II.
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GEMETNDE C
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After speaking several places on the need for!
Gatewood, decided to go himself
Meanwhile, in February 1943. the Broadwjl
Christ in lubbock. Texas, at the urmniiofoM
agreed to take the lead in asking churches in!
States to begin preparing for a po-t-wur effort!
During June and July 1946. the Broadway d|
Gatewood and Paul Sherrod, a Broadway eldd
where they toured nine countries, hn'kingfo*!
to begin a foreign missions effort Eventually!
Frankfurt. Germany, as the city in which they!
establish the first congregation when missiofl!
Frankfurt was one of the largest cities in a!
sector of Germany; it was the center of bu-’i
and it was predominantly Protestant .As they!
500 people who attended a special lectureship!
Broadway Aug 25-28. 1946. they believed thettl
a more advantageous site
On Feb 26. 1947, after much correspond*1*!
Sherrod and General Lucius Gay of the I $ J
was received from Clay granting permission!
1947. for the church of Christ to send two pet!
sionaries into the U.S. zone of Germany. 1
Subsequently, Gatewood, his wife Alow
Clyde Palmer sailed from New York May lij
they arrived in Germany in early June, they!
the first post-war American missionaries in GJ
‘ The destruction from bombing which •»!
peeked out the porthole was horrifying uT J
Because no permits could be obtained fo*R
enter Germany. Mrs. Gatewood and Mrs
Switzerland. J
Twenty-two people were present for the fi J
vice held in a rented facility in Frankfurt
Among them were Mr. and Mrs. Maurice
went to Paris to establish a church there <»
preached the first sermon, in English, enw*
Bible " Palmer preached the first sermon in*
months later J
Since most of the major cities in
reduced to rubble, housing was almost imp**
Hundreds of homeless, orphaned childrenraj
man streets. Gatewood and Pfclmer visited
SBall
I
GERMANY
Forty years after Victory in Europe, the church i|
Germany reflects growth since its beginnings in th
global awareness
rior to World War II. there was little interest in
foreign evangelism among churches of Christ.
Ab .Some work had been done in China. Africa and a
few other countries. It was a feeble start
But in the electrified atmosphere of a world war. Chris-
tians. like other Americans, were hungry for information
about distant European countries and the people who lived
there. .After all. nearly everyone had someone in the war
Even before the war was over. .American military person-
nel such as Max Watson. Harold Timmerman. Walter
Daughterly and Harold Yandell were writing home to share
their efforts at teaching Europeans. Chris- _____
tians in the armed services, through no
small sacrifices of their own. began plan-
ting seed throughout Europe
Throughout the pages of the Christian
Chronicle and other brotherhood publica-
tions. GIs told of their evangelistic efforts
They spoke, also, of Germans who felt
defeat and humilation and who were disillu-
sioned with their national leaders and
ideals. Their first-hand reports of the op-
portunities and needs on the Continent
were powerfully persuasive.
Sen icemen urged American churches to grasp the
critical opportunities provided by a war and send workers
to preach and teach once the war was over Some ser-
vicemen's congregations pledged their contribution, both
during and after the war. to evangelism in Europe
.Among the most eloquent of those voices calling for the
gospel to be preached was that of Chaplain John P. i Jack •
Fogarty. Fogarty had spent a year in Germany's occupied
zones, where he devoted as much time as possible to study-
ing possibilities for future evangelism He began a series of
articles in the Chronicle. It was November 1945.
The allied nations, having defeated the armies of Hitler,
still need to conquer the hearts of the Germans." he wrote.
"This can be done by instilling the principles of Christian
religion ... This is the first time churches in America have
such an opportunity "
Some began to respond. For instance, in 1942, the
Lawrence Avenue Church of Christ in Nashville. Tenn
began a modest program for members of their own con-
gregations who were in the military Members sent books,
wrapped gifts, and tried to grant any requests GIs made
Concerned about the lack of chaplains who were
members of the church of Christ and about the difficulty of
worshipping, they wanted to do more. They began to offer a
year-long Bible correspondence course, complete with ex-
aminations and a graduation certificate.
By 1945 . 8.000 GIs ail over Europe were enrolled in those
Bible courses What began as a small scale effort evolved
into a global correspondence school
As news about the war saturated the media, there was a
, _______ growing sense of world community . Olan
Hicks, editor of the Christian Chronicle,
wrote on Oct 17. 1945. From the blood,
sweat and tears of war. man is learning to
think in terms of the whole world And in
doing so. he is beginning to think as Christ
has taught all along
The war has taught us what Christ
already knew," he continued, that we are
part of the world and the answers to world
peace are not to be found in political
schemes and deliberation, but in getting nd
of hatred and greed and prejudice. Christ is
JACK FOGARTY
the only one who can give the world the love* generosity
and truth that will answer peace and happiness Chris! is
the cornerstone of world peace."
Hicks, as well as other church leaders, began to sense a
rising enthusiasm and interest in foreign missions One ot
those who sensed the tempo of the times was Otis
Gatewood, who had been living in Salt lake City since 1939
He saw Mormons bringing 500 missionaries home from
Europe because of the war.
• Not a single missionary of the church of Christ returned
^Europe when the war started." wrote Gatewood in his
1960 book. Preaching m the Footsteps of Hitler" There
—re none!" he wrote.
•I war terribly ashamed „( the (act that lhe Mormonj
were doing more to spread error than members of the
„ h wT? d0lng to 5pread what w believed to be truth "
* «•» «*U“tion. Gatewood resolved lo do
'» s* nwmben, of the church mterwted in
preaching the gospel in Europe when Ule war waa over
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F.IHik Li
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Norton, Howard W. & McMillion, Joy L. The Christian Chronicle (Oklahoma City, Okla.), Vol. 42, No. 6, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 1, 1985, newspaper, June 1, 1985; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1308136/m1/10/?q=music: accessed June 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.