March 28, 2001
To Russia, with love
T.C. pastor teaches Bible in former communist country
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Spreading the Gospel in a former communist country can be an uphill battle.
For a small but growing number of Evangelical churches in Russia, adapting to change and a more open society is one of the biggest challenges. During a recent trip, Rev. Glen Schaumloeffel of Traverse City noted this enigma as well as the deep faith among Christians that he met there.
Living for decades under communism kept the small, Evangelical Christian community cohesive and devout, but now the transition to reaching out and creating an outward-looking ministry is proving difficult. The churches are turning to ministers from other countries for help and Schaumloeffel's recent trip was a part of that appeal.
"The church there was strong in that you did not proclaim to be a Christian unless you were really serious because of the persecution," he said. "One of the needs of the church now after so many years under communism, where they were in the mode of protecting and preserving the faith and enduring hardship, is to reach out, propagate the gospel and spread the word."
Distrust of this religious openness is a huge issue for Christians, Schaumloeffel noted, fueled by political instabilities and widespread corruption.
"There is no more persecution of that nature but the government still keeps track of what is going on," he said. "The feeling over there is that Russia will not be open forever."
The educational pastor at the East Bay Calvary Church, Schaumloeffel traveled to Moscow and Orel for 17 days this winter to teach future ministers at the Strategic Bible Institute. His one-week seminar on the Doctrine of Salvation was just one piece of a year of study for the Institute's 21 students, many of whom establish churches of their own after graduation.
Schaumloeffel's church sponsored his visit as part of their ministry outreach program. They participated in a program sponsored by the Slavic Gospel Association based in Illinois, whose mission is to establish, fund and staff Bible Institutes across Russia. Starting from four Institutes, their number doubled to eight this academic year and the association has ambitious plans for the future, Schaumloeffel noted.
For a population newly released from the shadow of communist rule, the association sees a huge need for the Institutes. Orel, located 250 miles from Moscow, provides a perfect example of this need: the city of 350,000 has only two Evangelical churches. The host church of the Institute, The Church of the Transfiguration, is considered large by Russian standards with its 175 members, though that would be considered small here.
To Schaumloeffel and the Slavic Gospel Association, Russia is a country crying out for help from Christians.
"The need for training there is so prevalent," he said.
During his stay at the Institute, Schaumloeffel discovered that the concerns of his students are just beginning to catch up to what is standard church outreach and educational practices in the United States.
"Youth ministry is a new concept in Russia whereas here in the United States we've been doing it for 50-60 years," he said. "Contemporary music is a big issue, they tend to be quite traditional in their music. There were several students in the class who had a real heart to reach out to alcoholic youth and drug addicts, a big problem in Russia. Again, this is a new thing, there."
Schaumloeffel co-taught during his stay with his brother-in-law, a minister from Colorado. Working through a translator both in class and after hours proved cumbersome but Schaumloeffel noted the hospitality of his hosts, who fed him better than the students usually ate. Dining and visiting with his students and their families helped break the ice and he was also able to give a sermon one Sunday of his stay.
"They were very interested in America and how we do things here," Schaumloeffel said. "I brought postcards of Traverse City and pictures of my house and they just poured over them. They asked me, 'How many families live in your house,' and were amazed there was just one."