Russian Orthodox
missionaries from the west first brought Christianity to Alaska,
following the seal fur trade along the Aleutians. Sheldon Jackson
came from the east, up the coast from Washington, bringing a
Presbyterian form of Christianity to Alaska, seeding new congregations
in villages the Orthodox had missed.
Here two branches of Christianity met peoples who had never
before known Jesus. The intermixing of Russian, Scottish, Yupik,
and Inupiat cultures is still the mission field that is the
Presbytery of Yukon.
So far out in the Bering Sea that Siberia can be seen on the
horizon, the two villages of St. Lawrence Island have been served
by Presbyterian congregations since 1894. Savoonga Presbyterian
Church continues its search for a pastor who feels the call
to mission.
The village and church at Gambell are named in honor of missionaries,
the Rev. and Mrs. Vene C. Gambell, who first taught the love
of Jesus there. They were recruited to begin the congregation
by Sheldon Jackson. In 2006, the Gambell Presbyterian Church
was seeking a new pastor to serve the church and the subsistence
village of 700. Its building is too small for the congregation,
whose members are raising $2 million for a new one.
In the hills between Fairbanks and Delta, Bingle Camp serves
young people and adults with fun and spiritually renewing adventures.
The Rev. Bert Bingle staked out the site on the shores of Harding
Lake in 1953. Today, under the direction of Lisa Eldridge, campers
enjoy cabins, canoing, chapel—and its iceberg on the lake.
Bingle Camp has a special ministry to young people who live
in villages far from any roads, flying them in for a week of
camp and interaction with youth from urban cultures.
The presbytery, with its 3,036 members in 22 congregations
and 1 new church development, is searching for a new presbytery
executive to help support its witness to Christ and its far-flung
mission outreach. |
