Brief History

Saint Paulus Lutheran Church was founded on May 15, 1867 by 23 year old Pastor Jacob M Buehler, whose diligence and hard work has earned him the title of ‘Father of Lutheranism on the Pacific Coast.’ Upon his arrival in San Francisco, this Missouri Synod Lutheran had assisted in the establishment of a Lutheran church community which was to become known as Saint Mark’s, but conflict over Pastor Buehler’s strong theological preaching and practice soon forced his resignation. Thereupon, Buehler and a small following immediately founded Saint Paulus Lutheran Church, mother to all Missouri Lutheran Synod churches on the West Coast.

The church grew rapidly, and within two years moved twice to larger accommodations, finding itself for the next 25 years on Mission St. between 5th and 6th St (the Mission district). By its 25th anniversary, the congregation had grown to a baptized membership of 1400 souls. In 1872 the Saint Paulus Lutheran Day School was founded and for 118 years, until 1990, provided education and Christian training to thousands of young people. It was the first day school west of the Rocky Mountains. In addition to schooling the young of San Francisco, Saint Paulus Lutheran Church embarked on a steadfast missionary outreach. Its first missionary pastor was called to service in 1879. The fruit of Saint Paulus’ missionary zeal was to include four congregations in San Francisco and congregations in Modesto, Napa, Livermore, Stockton, Watsonville, Redwood City and Oakland.

By the beginning of the 1890’s the congregation’s membership had outstripped the facilities at the Mission district, yet the purchase of a parcel of land at Eddy St. and Gough St. provided a future course for the congregation. In 1892 the cornerstone of its landmark church building was laid and at the beginning of 1894, Saint Paulus took possession of a towering new house of worship, patterned on European cathedrals, with three slender spire reaching up 175, 125, and 100 ft. The structure, costing $65,000, was to remain the iconic presence of Saint Paulus for more than a century, gracing the skyline of San Francisco and wedding itself to the life and growth of the city.

The first major threat to the building happened on the occasion of the Great Earthquake and Fire of 1906. Pastor Bernthal, the second pastor of the congregation (following the death of Pastor Buehler in 1901), was credited with having saved the building. This miracle came about as he convinced the firefighters, who were preparing to dynamite the building in an effort to create a firebreak to stop the advancing flames of the fire, to once again try the fire hydrant directly in front of the building. It worked! In gratitude, the congregation provided its “saved” building as a hospital and shelter for thousands of victims of the earthquake and fire.

This German immigrant church felt the pressures of WW1 to open their community to the English language, and in 1920 began providing services in both German and English. Not until 1936 was English established as the dominate language of the church administrations. It was in 1940 that the second threat to the building was engaged due to a fire that broke out in the main spire and spread quickly. Although there was question about its salvageability, after nearly $50,000 reinvestment, the building was restored and ministry continued. The years during and immediately after WW2 saw the advancement of the educational mission of Saint Paulus. Two new educational buildings provided an expansion of the school into a K through 9th school program.

The turmoil of the ’60s and ’70s affected Saint Paulus in significant ways. In 1976, this “mother of the Missouri Synod Lutheran Churches” in the west, citing the need to remain free from institutional controls, left the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod in protest, and helped establish a predecessor Lutheran body (AELC) which would eventually (in 1987) form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. These tumultuous years also affected the geography around Saint Paulus, subjecting it to redevelopment, housing developments and population turnovers. The school adapted to these dynamics by reaching out into the changing Fillmore, a predominately African American neighborhood adjacent to the church. But even so, the declining membership and difficulty in sustain operating budgets finally forced the 118 year old parochial school to close its doors in 1990. In 1900 Saint Paulus hosted the extraordinary ordinations of three gay pastors who in turn served congregations in San Francisco churches. The people that the congregation served came to reflect its challenging environment, that is, homeless, HIV/AIDS and the poor. Most notable in its ministries was a weekly supper called the Friendship Banquet, in which host congregations and service organizations were given the opportunity to provide a restaurant quality dinner for HIV/AIDS guests. The program was suspended in 2006. It reconvened shortly thereafter and has run ever since, aside a mandatory hold due to shelter-in-place from Covid-19.

Then in 1995, disaster struck the congregation, when its 103 year old cathedral building was destroyed by fire, erasing its spires from the San Francisco skyline, and casting the congregation into the shadows. The congregation moved into its refurbished former elementary school building adjacent to the burnout church site as its church center. Though blessed with an insurance settlement, the ability of the congregation to plot a future course from the ashes was limited. After a call was extended to Pastor Daniel Solberg in 1999, there was movement toward an affirmative future. During the years under Pastor Solberg’s leadership, ministries to the homeless and impoverished continued to intensify. There was a significant effort to develop the Saint Paulus property into a multi-million dollar Alzheimer-Church complex but HUD funding fell through at the last moment. Efforts were made to develop the church’s property into workforce housing, making itself a resident in the complex with a built out 10,000 sq ft sanctuary-office condominium on the site of its historic cathedral. However, the economic crisis of 2007-2008 saw the project grind to a stop with the bankruptcy of the designated developer. Development on the vacant lot was not to happen.

In a remarkable and risky move in May 2007, Saint Paulus picked up its communion ware, its banners, its history and left the safety of its church facility. It left behind the old elementary building of its closed day school, recently sold as part of its failed development strategy and ventured into the neighboring Fillmore district. It secured a rental storefront property for both its business office and for its worship life. Saint Paulus has become a “church without walls,” heading its ministry in cafes, restaurants, local parks, community meeting rooms, the street and wherever God was operating in our community.

The sojourn in the Fillmore provided for the members of the congregation deep appreciation for the freedom and vitality which comes from being untethered from a church building, both financially and “mission-focused-wise.” Partnering with a local nonprofit called Welcome Ministry (a communal response to poverty), the property on which the old church once stood was transformed into an urban Free Farm, giving life and opportunity to the notion of urban gardening in the city. In addition to Welcome Ministry, the congregation developed collaborative relationships with San Francisco Night Ministry and Faithful Fools (called SF CARES), all designed to provide more effective engagement of undeserved people in San Francisco. The Friendship Banquet, suspended in 2006, was resurrected using the facilities of a neighboring Lutheran congregation at Saint Marks church. Over the courses of the past few years, three congregations partnered with SF CARES in ministry to relentlessly help the homeless and restore their faith in God. Additionally, the congregation committed itself to a ministry of music by recognizing the vital part that music (both traditional and contemporary) plays in witness, on Sunday morning and in its outreach to city residents.

During this period of church “homelessness,” the congregation grew numerically and spiritually. Its inclusive and welcoming spirit became a haven for many from the troubles streets and harsh realities of homelessness. However, the storefront quickly became too cramped and too restrictive. So once again the congregation took a leap of faith and searched out another arrangement. As a result, the congregation moved its operation from the Fillmore/Western Addition to Russian Hill’s Polk St (Polk Gulch), a highly concentrated business district about a mile away. The move served to challenge Saint Paulus’ ministry functions, and provoked a new edge for ministry growth. Its collaborative spirit continued to engage additional partners in service to the marginal and homeless, providing more than 1000 pairs of free prescription glasses to those who lack resources and are in need via SF CARES Vision Event; expanding food programs for HIV, seniors and homeless with SF CARES weekly Friendship Banquet; making food once a month for the San Francisco Night Ministry’s Open Cathedral event; sponsoring SOS (Singers of the Streets) a band of current or former homeless folk (and homeless advocates) coming together to rehearse every Monday at Saint Paulus and sing both for themselves & various diverse audiences; and providing volunteer opportunities for hundreds including No Butts/No Needles street clean up programs.

At the same time that the Polk St. ministry turf was being re-cultivated, a decade-long hope was being renewed. An agreement with a local developer, inked in 2012, finally made its way to fruition – a new home for Saint Paulus on the historic site of its memory-ladened iconic church building destroyed by the 1995 fire, back on our original launch spot of 999 Eddy Street. After many bureaucratic delays, entitlement process neared completion years later and construction started to follow. Saint Paulus’s plan was to sell the remaining land owned by our church so that the developer would build a housing complex of condos. Ultimately, the entire plot of land hailing back to 1867 would include a church facility on the same site as the old church, to be received by the congregation free and clear, thus providing a secure home and an endowment for the ministry decades to come. The construction finally began and is expected to be completed for church move in during 2021. There is much to be thankful for, including Saint Paulus celebrating the 150th Anniversary of its founding in 2015 and the 2020 milestone of Pastor Dan Solberg heading Saint Paulus church for the past 20 years. We are also eternally grateful to the Lord Almighty that has opened the door for us to return back to our beloved 999 Eddy Street church, so we may continue another 150+ years of ministry work.

Saint Paulus may be one and a half centuries in, but we really have just begun!

Preparations for the celebration of its 150^th year of ministry in San Francisco proved to be both challenging and satisfying.  Having become an itinerant church, the result of the devastating fire of 1995, much of its historical records and remembrances were either lost in the fire or misplaced moving from the “church centers” it created along its homeless ministry journey.  Undaunted, the planning for the 3-day event held May 2017 was successful and gathered many Saint Paulus people, past and present, to celebrate the 150  years of marvelous, grace-filled years of ministry in San Francisco.  The theme “Amazing Grace – 150 years of Saint Paulus” was memorialized in photos, musical offerings, worship, and joyful reunions.  In recognition of the great grace received by Saint Paulus, five ministry partners, serving the same set of people, were presented with $30,000 grants by the congregation, to “pay it forward”: San Francisco Night Ministry, Santa Marta y Santa Maria Lutheran Church, Lutheran Social Services, Sojourners’ Chaplaincy, and San Francisco Interfaith Council.  In addition, a grant of $150,000 was made to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.  Surely this congregation has been blessed.

The years in the Polk Gulch were a patchwork of notable events, some energizing , others difficult and hard.  The music program led by Dustin Hart stirred much interest for its vitality and quality, both in worship and in community offerings.  But success also brought with it ego issues, the end point being that the music director left in a huff, and the bulk of the choir and supporting musician followed.  However, this opened to us an opportunity to refigure our music and worship program more reflective of our Lutheran heritage, this under the direction of Mark Krey.   Noteworthy was the elevation of the Psalms as a liturgical necessity.  In March of 2020 the Covid pandemic descended on us, denying us the opportunity for corporate worship and in person ministries.  The congregation took on a “virtual” life, learning very quickly the mechanics of social media communication.   “Church” was held and broadcasted for a year and a half from the pastor’s living room, communion was celebrated virtually using daily bread and wine from home sources, hymns lyrics were projected on screen, preluded and postludes were recorded and played over Facebook and YouTube platforms.  Congregational ministry – bible studies, Council meetings, Committee meetings – were relegated to virtual platforms as well. Not until September of 2022 did the restrictions on public gatherings allow for worship to resume in person.  However, the negative impact on attendance was significant, not to be recovered.  Regardless, in the closing days of covid, it was by grace that Saint Paulus secured a director of music, Grace Renaud, who not only brought her gifts and talents to the worship life of the congregation, but also attracted a core of choir members and instrumentalist that renewed and revived the worship life of Saint Paulus.

Although there was great eagerness for the development of a new church facility, and much promise generated by the first stages, it became very clear that the progress hoped for would be hampered by seemingly constant conflict with the developer over design issues.  In addition, developer-delays related to funding, hiring a general contractor and an architectural firm, characterized the first several years of the project.  Saint Paulus’ building project team patiently endured the passage of time and the conflicts which were managed by our own legal counsel, but as it turned out, we were a bit naïve, relying too heavily on our “advocate”.  The Church Council dismissed that legal counsel for providing inadequate and substandard representation after 8 torturous years.   Adding to the debacle in the ensuing time, the architect of record for Saint Paulus refused to honor his contract and denied Saint Paulus access to the plans and drawings for the development, thus bringing the whole project to a complete standstill.  A lawsuit was brought both to compel compliance with the contract and to recoup the moneys paid to him.  The outcome of the suit is as of May 2024 unknown.  It appears that in 2019 Saint Paulus building upon its ministry commitment among those marginalized and underserved in San Francisco approached the Synod to consider a partnership leading to the creation of a new, progressive, diverse worshipping community centered around the new building site of Saint Paulus.  With funding from both Synod and ELCA a 9-month study was undertaken resulting in an extensive report published in October of 2021 authored by Janet Katari.  The report strongly suggested that such a project could be successfully established and urged that it be pursued.   Such pursuit however was interrupted by the election of Megan Rohrer as Bishop of the Synod who promptly disposed of the report and the partnership concept.   This action was personal.  Bishop Rohrer in her brief but despotic two-year tenure as bishop sought payback against Pastor Solberg for exposing then Pastor Rohrer’s single-handed destruction of her only parish call at Grace Lutheran Church, San Francisco, just prior to her election.  Because of this vengeful spirit, Pastor Solberg delayed his intended retirement scheduled for February 2022, so as to protect Saint Paulus from the Bishop’s intrusion.   It was only after Bishop Rohrer was removed as bishop in the summer of 2022 by the Presiding Bishop of the ELCA that there was a reconsideration of the partnership. During the year following Rohrer’s dismissal, any serious consideration for the project was eclipsed by the efforts of an interim bishop to mitigate the damages done by Rohrer. Inability to find suitable leadership for this mission development also contributed to the delaying the project, that is, until it was suggested that it would benefit as an ecumenical venture, particularly with the Episcopalians.  To date, the partnership is now becoming a matter of intense interest as a possible model for urban ministry.  The future of Saint Paulus surely rides on the success of this project.  There has also been a suggestion that such an extended partnership could challenge the 157-year estrangement of St. Marks Lutheran and Saint Paulus.

Amid the conflicts which surfaced during the leadership of Bishop Rohrer, particularly over racial bias against an Hispanic pastor and his congregation, Saint Paulus publicly broke its longstanding commitment to the synod by diverting its benevolent support to the assistance of this courageous faith community.  Such is the spirit of justice embodied by this congregation.  With the dismissal of Rohrer and the reestablishment of Pastor Nelson Rabell and his congregation to good standing, Saint Paulus returned to its historic partnership with the broader church.

Soon after the return to in person worship, Saint Paulus was forced to relocate once again, this time because the building being leased for its ministry was to be repurposed by the owner.  Through the good work of its Council President, Jordan Ward, the congregation located a facility a mere 8 blocks to the north on Polk St.   Eight blocks however, placed Saint Paulus in an entirely new, neighborhood-oriented community.  The new location has proved to be a blessing both for the opportunities available and the spirit of the congregation.  Though growth is difficult, and the numbers low, the spirit of the congregation and its anticipated future mission development has galvanized its hope and confidence that the Spirit continues to lead and give life.  Music continues to energize worship with a new director of music, Nick Boland taking up the leadership for our worship.   At the same time, Community Night, weekly on Wednesdays, has opened the door for new people to enter the life of the congregation without prerequisite.

What Saint Paulus will be in the days and years to come is as it has always been in the hands of the Lord of the Church.  We “look through the glass darkly”, but with confidence, realizing that our life, all 157 years of it, has been a journey of grace.  We stand thankful that we have shared in the life given to this congregation, and are sure that what will come, is indeed, the loving will of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Written by Pastor Daniel Solberg

San Francisco, CA

2016/2024