60th Anniversary Service Planned

Pilgrim Lutheran Church is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a special Vespers service on September 30th at 4:00 p.m. in its sanctuary at the corner of Broadway Boulevard and Florey Street in Kilgore. The service will feature a noted guest preacher, guest readers, and a rededication of the congregation’s newly remodeled sanctuary. Everyone is invited and welcome to attend the service and stay for the finger food to be served afterwards.

“We are ‘praising God for 60 years of salvation in this house’,” Pilgrim’s current pastor, The Rev. Dr. Jayson S. Galler said, quoting the theme for the anniversary celebration. That theme is based on the appointed readings for the service: Psalm 84, 1 Kings 8:22-30, Revelation 21:1-5, and Luke 19:1-10. Pastor Galler added, “We would love for everyone to join us in this special service and at any other time!”

The guest preacher for the anniversary service will be The Rev. Dr. Scott R. Murray, pastor of Memorial Lutheran Church, Houston, Texas, and fifth vice president of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), the national church body of which Pilgrim Lutheran is a member congregation. The Rev. Murray hosts a weekly radio program in Houston and is also a noted author. He earned his Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Theological Seminary, Ft. Wayne, Indiana, and his Doctor of Philosophy degree from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

The Rev. Harold Wageman, Pilgrim’s former pastor of some 20 years, will be one of the guest readers for the Vespers service. The other guest readers are The Rev. Frank Starr of Lufkin, who served the congregation during its most recent vacancy, and The Rev. David R. Bergman, current Counselor for Circuit #14, the part of the Texas District of the LCMS that includes Pilgrim, Kilgore.

For the first time in nearly 40 years, the congregation this summer has renovated the outside and inside of its church building, originally dedicated in December of 1954. A refurbished steeple, new windows, and freshly painted entryways are already evident outside. A reconfigured chancel, new flooring and ceiling tiles, and freshly painted walls will all eventually be evident inside. The congregation expects to dedicate all the work during the 60th anniversary Vespers service.

“Our anniversary Vespers service is a great opportunity for people who have not recently or ever set foot inside our church building to check us out,” Pastor Galler said. Alluding to Romans 1:15-16, he added, “We welcome visitors at any time, as we are not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation, also in the forms of the historic liturgy and hymns.”

The Order of Vespers is one of the historic daily offices of the Christian Church. The structure provides for the praise of God in psalms, hymns, and canticles; for the reading and proclamation of God’s Word; and for the prayers of the faithful. In Pilgrim’s 60th anniversary Vespers, extra hymns and special music are planned as additions to Vespers’ usual structure.

The historic liturgy and hymns have essentially remained constant throughout Pilgrim’s 60 years, from its earliest days being planted by Trinity Lutheran Church, Tyler, through Pilgrim’s own planting of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, Longview, and Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Henderson, down to the present.

During that time, the Pilgrim congregation itself has had its ups and downs. Though not all growth is numerical and can be seen with the human eye, membership reached an apparent high (103 baptized, 67 communicants) in 1962, before the Longview congregation was started. However, today, with fewer members (70 baptized, 59 communicants), a greater percentage of the baptized membership is in church on an average Sunday (35 people or 50 percent today, versus 42 people or 40 percent then).

There were only seven charter members who signed the congregation’s original constitution on September 17, 1952, bringing Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Kilgore, into existence. The State of Texas granted its approval later that year, and in 1954 the congregation was officially received as a congregation by the LCMS.

A total of seven called, full-time LCMS pastors have faithfully served the congregation during its 60 year history, and others have assisted as vacancy or interim pastors. Prior to Pastor Galler’s 2011 installation, the most-recent full-time pastor had ceased serving in 1992. After that time, a dedicated group of lay men from the congregation led regular Services of the Word, reading sermons they were provided, and the Service of the Sacrament was offered as outside pastors were available to visit.

With such years of pastoral service in mind, the congregation is giving the offering collected during its 60th anniversary Vespers service to Veterans of the Cross, an LCMS program that provides small stipends to impoverished, aged pastors, teachers, and their families to help pay for things such as utilities and food.

Presently, every Sunday morning Pilgrim offers refreshments at 9:15, Sunday School and Adult Bible Class at 9:30, and Divine Service at 10:45. The congregation also usually offers Midweek Bible Study on Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. People who cannot be present onsite at those times are encouraged to listen to Bible Classes and sermons at their convenience online at www.pilgrimlc.org, where a variety of other information about the congregation can also be found and Pastor Galler can be contacted.

Read Our History or view Our Milestones.