Youngdahl, Pastor Of Largest ELCA Church In Nation, Dies
June 20, 2011 7:14 PM
(credit: Mount Olivet Lutheran Church)
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Paul M. Youngdahl, the senior pastor of Mount Olivet Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, passed away on Monday, according to the church.
A message was posted on the church’s website saying the Youngdahl has ”entered the joy of eternal life.”
“He will be remembered as one of Mount Olivet’s greatest treasures for his leadership, his commitment and service to God’s family, and for his never-ending love of the Lord. We will miss him dearly and extend our condolences to you, his beloved church family,” the statement said on the church’s homepage.
Youngdahl has been senior pastor at Mount Olivet since 1974 where his father, Reverend Reuben Youngdahl, was previously a senior pastor from 1938 to 1968.
The church has 13,000-plus members which makes it one of the largest ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Churches of America) churches in the nation.
Youngdahl is survived by his wife Nancy and three children Aaron, Peter and Kristi.
A message was posted on the church’s website saying the Youngdahl has ”entered the joy of eternal life.”
“He will be remembered as one of Mount Olivet’s greatest treasures for his leadership, his commitment and service to God’s family, and for his never-ending love of the Lord. We will miss him dearly and extend our condolences to you, his beloved church family,” the statement said on the church’s homepage.
Youngdahl has been senior pastor at Mount Olivet since 1974 where his father, Reverend Reuben Youngdahl, was previously a senior pastor from 1938 to 1968.
The church has 13,000-plus members which makes it one of the largest ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Churches of America) churches in the nation.
Youngdahl is survived by his wife Nancy and three children Aaron, Peter and Kristi.
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GJ - His father was a legend in the Augustana Synod. The story I heard was that Reuben was given this relatively small church, with 250 members, to get rid of him. When he died relatively young, Mt. Olivet had 10,000 members.
Most whale congregations fade away in time. Or, as LI observed, plum calls turn into prunes.
Time Magazine recognized Reuben here:
"The most outstanding young man in Minneapolis for 1944" turned out to be blond, strapping (6 ft. 2 in.; 205 Ibs.) Rev. Reuben Youngdahl, 33. His outstanding job: in only seven years he converted Mount Olivet Lutheran Church from a debt-ridden institution of 200 members into a booming 2,500-member parish.
Last week Mount Olivet, now the second biggest church in the Augustana Lutheran Synod, celebrated its 25th anniversary. The congregation had already outgrown its new $50,000 church. Pastor Youngdahl was holding three identical services every Sunday, each overflowing the 465 seats and jamming the church to the doors. To meet the rush, he planned to split $400,000 between a new postwar church building and a Sunday school, youth center and gymnasium.
Reuben Youngdahl, son of a Swedish grocer, took unorthodox risks to perform this transformation. He first plunged the church deeper into debt in order to build in a better part of town. Then he set out after new members. He told his parishioners that he believes that church member ship is a "seven-day-a-week proposition"; if they wanted to belong, they would have to keep busy. They do—in thirteen women's and social clubs, four youth groups, two missionary societies, a day nursery.
Pastor Youngdahl is no sawdust-trail evangelist. Quiet, forceful, hardworking, he preaches ten-to-twelve-minute sermons, studded with human-interest stories which relate Christian truths to modern living. He believes no minister need be a ranter: "I've got something to sell. The greatest thing in the world. Christianity works."
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,792131,00.html#ixzz1Ps5KAnjz
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Reuben Youngdahl ’31 Inducted 1978
Basketball and Football
Reuben Youngdahl
Reuben Youngdahl '31 earned six letters in basketball and football at Gustavus and was placed unanimously on every All-State team in basketball as a junior and senior, He was the league's high scorer as a senior with 117 points in ten games. Reub led the All-State team to victory in 1931 when they played the Carleton Victory Five in a post season game in the Minneapolis auditorium.
He received his B.D. from Augustana Theological Seminary in 1934 and at his first call in Marshalltown, Ia, he helped support himself by playing professional basketball. He became pastor of Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church in Minneapolis in 1938 and during his tenure the congregation grew from 300 to more than 10,000 members. He traveled internationally, spoke to a wide audience through his radio and television programs and wrote 13 books.
Reuben Youngdahl died on March 2, 1968.
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Luther Youngdahl was the governor of Minnesota:
Luther W. YoungdahlAKA Luther Wallace Youngdahl
Born: 29-May-1896
Birthplace: Minneapolis, MN
Died: 21-Jun-1978
Location of death: Washington, DC
Cause of death: Cancer - unspecified
Remains: Buried, Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA
Gender: Male
Religion: Lutheran
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Politician, Judge
Party Affiliation: Republican
Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Governor of Minnesota, 1947-51
Military service: US Army (field artillery, WWI, 2nd Lt.)
Brother: Reuben Youngdahl (pastor)
Brother: Oscar Youngdahl (US Congressman)
Brother: Carl Youngdahl (music professor)
Brother: Benjamin Youngdahl (educator)
Brother: Peter Youngdahl (attorney)
Sister: Ruth Youngdahl Nelson
Wife: Irene Annet Engdahl (m. 1923, d. 26-Nov-1992, one daughter, two sons)
Daughter: Margaret Peterson
Son: William L. Youngdahl
Son: P. David Youngdahl
