Vang and Its Mission:
By: Pastor Louis Morin

Now, in the year 2008 the demographics of our rural district have changed dramatically from the time our Church was founded over 100 years ago. In the beginning, people gathered to hear the Word prached in Norwegian by a Lutheran Pastor. Today, fewer people gather for that Sunday moment where Jesus Christ is preached.

We must hope that Jesus will be present in our community through people more than through the written and spoken word. The Church and Pastor will stand as a beacon in the district even to people who have never set foot in the church.

In the beginning the Church was also the social gathering place of the district and the source of important artistic experience and expression.

Today, easy access to other venues through technology, the media and jobs away from the community make Vang district a dormitory for many rather than a place where one lives 24 hours a day.

The Vang Church is not physically large enough to draw huge crowds but perhaps our initiatives of a different nature can reflect our openness to the world. Many of our members are involved in enlightened activities at the local, national and international levels.

This reality is not new - for the tone was set by our forebearers when they organized choirs and bands that rejoiced people far and wide. One of our departed members was active in the cooperative movement at the international level. This is one example that is being repeated today by some in our Church.

Recently the Vang congregation has contributed very substantially to the construction of a Teachers' College for the Mayan people in Cunen, Guatemala.

Those who gather on Sunday morning act as social and Christian leaven as soon as they they leave the church. In fact, it would be too long to list the many associations, organizations and foundations initiated and sustained by our members to the present day.

Some of these initiatives, though of a very humble nature, do respond on a daily basis to the needs of others in the community. Living the Gospel is what draws us together, and makes us happy to see one another on a Sunday before we go out on our way.