Liberia Mission Campaign
St. Luke’s Downtown, along with several others local Lutheran congregations, is participating in school and church mission projects in Liberia, West Africa.
Pastor’s Letter- Liberia
It was already hot by the time Pastor Sam and I reached the mud-brick hut that had served as the building for St. Thomas Lutheran Church, New Town, Barquellah, Lofa County, Liberia. Rev. Dr. Victor Padmore, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia was already robed and ready for the service. Surrounding him and the church building were dozens of people, many of whom were singing along with the chorus that had gathered inside. At the designated time, the bell was rung, and the Order for Service for the Closing of a Church Building began. With prayers, Scriptures, singing, dancing, and blessings, Bishop Padmore brought to a close the use of that building. It was both solemn, as that building has served the congregation for many years, and celebratory, as we prepared to dedicate the new structure.
With much singing and music, following the cross, a lit candle, and various furnishings from the old church, we began the procession to the new edifice several hundred yards down the road. By this time, the crowded had grown and included children who ran and laughed and marched within and around the “official” procession. Despite the blazing morning sun overhead, the joyousness and glory of the moment was not lost on anyone.
Arriving at the newly constructed masonry building, the procession first circled the new structure before gathering around the front steps. There Bishop Padmore led the congregation in singing, dancing, prayers, and promise before inviting Pastor Sam and me to join him for the ribbon cutting. As the keys were passed on to the leader of the congregation and the scissors snapped the yellow ribbon, a glorious cheer and abundant applause echoed across the village. Music and singing filled the hearts, minds, and souls of all those gathered on that sun-drenched Sunday morning, February 16, 2025 as we entered the sanctuary. St. Thomas Lutheran Church of New Town, Liberia, now had a wonderful, bright, and beautiful new home.
It’s hard to put into words the excitement, energy, and enthusiasm of the people that day. Pictures, videos, and storytelling don’t do it justice. For us and for them, it was a new day – the first day of the week, at early dawn. Through the work of Pastor Sam and the people of New Town and Gorlu, and thanks to your generous donations over the years, a new pair of wooden door were opened on a brand new church building in a small village in Lofa County, Liberia where the mystery of Jesus Christ and the life he brings will be shared for decades to come. Thanks be to God.
God is good; all the time. All the time; God is good!
Pastor Dave
Background
Reverend Samuel Sumo Payne is the pastor at St. Matthews Lutheran Church in Lima, Ohio and a Chaplain at Mercy Health – St. Rita’s. He was born in Liberia, West Africa in a village named New Town and attended the Gorlu Public School. In 1987, a family in Nebraska brought him to the United States and provided him a home while he attended college. He achieved a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree and was ordained as a pastor in 1996 in the ELCA. He has been the pastor at churches in the Midwest and received is Doctor of Divinity in 2014
Pastor Sam still has many family connections to Liberia. His father, the late Rev. Roland J. Payne, was the first Bishop of the Lutheran Church in Liberia. In 2008, Pastor Sam traveled to Liberia for the funeral of his grandmother in the village of Gorlu where he attended the Gorlu Elementary School years back.
He was shocked by the condition he saw the churches and the school in. “Everything was broken down and things looked very hopeless,” Pastor Sam says. God spoke to his heart to come back and share the story with his American Lutheran friends to help bring life and hope to the people in the villages of Gorlu and New Town by helping renovate the schools and churches.
In the past four years, the saints of God at St. Matthews Lutheran Church, Lima, Trinity Lutheran Church. Galion, Zion Lutheran Church, Lima, and St. Luke’s Downtown, along with several friends of Pastor Sam have provided resources to renovate the schools and provide school supplies for students and teachers.
Earlier this year, with the support of those listed above and others, construction neared completion for a second Lutheran church. St. Thomas, Newtown, Liberia joined Esther Bacon Memorial Church in Gorlu as newly renovated church buildings where the Word is preached and Holy Communion is served. A Guest House for hosting volunteers and visitors in planned next.
We are thankful to Pastor Sam, our partners here in the States, and our partners in ministry in Liberia for the opportunity to extend the Gospel to the people of Gorlu and Newtown. Should you wish to help us continue to support this outreach effort, please go to our donation page, or send a check to St. Luke’s, indicating it is for the Liberian Mission. All funds go directly to support the school and church.
Following are some photos sent by Pastor Sam’s nephew who lives in Monrovia, Liberia.
