A shared story of faith across generations

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea has been richly blessed through the faith and commitment of Australian Lutherans who responded to God’s call to serve in Papua New Guinea. Guided by the Holy Spirit, they travelled across geographical, cultural and language barriers to share the good news of Jesus. They served in remote and often challenging places, learnt local languages, built strong relationships, and walked alongside communities with patience and dedication.

Through the sharing of God’s word and lives of Christian service, the Holy Spirit brought many people to faith in Jesus and gathered them into his church. Through the gospel, people came to know the forgiveness, hope, life and salvation that Christ won for all through his death and resurrection.

This shared story began with God’s work in the life of Pastor Johann Flierl. As a young boy in Germany, Flierl was not considered especially strong or likely to succeed. Yet as he grew, so did his curiosity and desire to learn. Through reading a children’s missionary magazine about those who went to serve in other countries in the 1840s, 50s and 60s, he became convinced that all people, no matter how far away, could be reached with the gospel.

Believing that God was calling him into overseas mission, Flierl began his training at the Neuendettelsau Mission House in Germany. His early ministry took him to Australia, where he served among Aboriginal communities at Bethesda Mission in northern South Australia. Later, during an unexpected delay on his journey to New Guinea, he established the Elim Mission near Cooktown in Queensland. Through these experiences, he learned how to build relationships across cultures and share the gospel in unfamiliar settings.

After marrying Australian Louise Auricht, Flierl responded to the opportunity to begin serving in New Guinea. Administrative obstacles, travel delays, and even a shipwreck complicated the journey. Yet in July 1886 he finally arrived, stepping into what he would later describe as ‘the land of my destiny’.

What Flierl encountered in New Guinea was unlike anything he had experienced before. Although he had already lived in the harsh inland regions of Australia and the tropical north of Queensland, Flierl observed that ‘the atmosphere in New Guinea is sultrier and more oppressive than at any other place where I have lived’.

Flierl also recognised significant differences between the communities he encountered in New Guinea and those he had known in Australia. He observed that while he might meet only ‘ten to a hundred’ people at a time in Australia, communities in New Guinea often numbered ‘a hundred to a thousand’. He noted that they were ‘an agricultural people with permanent homes’, unlike the communities he had worked among in Australia, where people often moved across the land and built more temporary shelters.

Not long after his arrival, Flierl was joined by Karl Tremel. Together they travelled throughout the surrounding area, learning from local communities and carefully considering where a permanent mission station could be established. Eventually they selected a site near the village of Simbang, situated at the mouth of the Bubui (Mape) River in Langemak Bay. There, on 8 October 1886, the first Lutheran mission station in Papua New Guinea was formally established.

Their arrival at Simbang, however, was not as encouraging as they had anticipated. Expecting a warm reception similar to that experienced during earlier visits, they instead encountered suspicion and uncertainty. Flierl later recalled: ‘Now they stood about with sour faces and not one of the young men moved a finger to help us with the unloading of our goods. The rowers of the boat helped us and then rowed back to Finschhafen, leaving us two alone with the unfriendly people of Simbang. We had just enough time to put our things in order and make them fairly safe when night came, a dark and gloomy night, and we commended ourselves to the protection of our God.’

Progress was often slow, and there were many moments of disappointment and uncertainty, yet after thirteen years of patient witness, prayer, and service, the first visible fruits of this ministry appeared at Simbang in 1899. There, two local mission workers, Kaboing and Kamunsanga, were baptised by Pastor Georg Pfalzer, receiving the Christian names Tobias and Silas.

As the gospel spread beyond Simbang, additional mission stations were established at Tami Island in 1889, Sattelberg in 1892, and later throughout the Huon Gulf region and beyond. Among these, Sattelberg became a particularly important centre for evangelism, education, and the training of future leaders. Through the ministry of Christian Keysser and many local evangelists, the Gospel moved beyond the mission stations and into villages across the region.

The proclamation of the gospel remained central to the mission’s work. Alongside preaching and teaching God’s word, schools were established, health care was provided, and local teachers, evangelists and church workers were trained. As the church grew, increasing numbers of Papua New Guinean Christians were equipped to take on leadership rolesand share the gospel among their own people.

One of the most significant developments in the growth of the church came through the ministry of these local evangelists. They travelled long distances on foot through mountains, valleys and dense rainforest to reach communities that had never before heard the good news of Jesus. Their courage and understanding of local languages and cultures enabled the gospel to spread into the interior and eventually into the Highlands.

The growth of the church continued through a period of significant political change. Following the First World War, Australia assumed administration of the former German territory of New Guinea. Despite these changing circumstances, the mission continued as Australian Lutherans worked alongside colleagues from Germany, North America, and Papua New Guinea to proclaim the gospel and strengthen the expanding church.

The years of the Second World War brought immense hardship to Papua New Guinea. Communities were disrupted, lives were lost, and many from overseas were interned and evacuated. Despite these difficult times, God sustained his church. In many communities, Papua New Guinean Christians took responsibility for leading worship, teaching the faith and caring for local congregations, ensuring the church not only endured the challenges of war, but continued to grow.

As the church matured, it became increasingly clear that its future would depend on local leadership. In 1956, 70 years after Flierl’s arrival, three Lutheran mission organisations came together at the first Synod held at Simbang. From this gathering emerged the self-governing indigenous church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of New Guinea (ELCONG).

Another important milestone was reached at the Ninth General Synod of ELCONG in 1973 when Zurewe Zurenuoc was elected as the church’s first indigenous bishop. Following Papua New Guinea’s political independence in 1975, the church declared its autonomy on 2 July 1976 and became the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea (ELCPNG).

As we celebrate what God has accomplished through the ELCPNG over the past 140 years, we recognise that our relationship with the church isn’t merely a story of the past. As partner churches, we continue to walk together in prayer, fellowship and the mission of God. We give thanks for the faithfulness of those who have gone before us, rejoice in the ministries God continues to bless in Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand, and support one another as brothers and sisters in Christ, united in the gospel and sustained by God’s grace.

While the Holy Spirit once called Australian Lutherans to serve in Papua New Guinea, Christ continues to send his Church into the world today. In our homes, workplaces, schools, neighbourhoods and communities, God places people around us who need to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. Through his word and Holy Spirit, he equips and strengthens us for this calling, enabling us to serve our neighbours with love, and speak of the hope we have in Jesus, as he builds his church across nations, cultures and generations.

Erin Kerber is the program officer for LCA International Mission.