Emmanuel Lutheran Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. This is the story of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Knippa, Uvalde County, Texas. Nine charter members.

That's where it all begins, back in 1904. Nine people, led by the Reverend Gottlieb Langner, gathered together and organized a congregation. No building, no pews, no bell tower reaching for the sky.

Just homes. They held services in each other's homes, served by area pastors and traveling missionaries making their rounds across the Texas landscape. Now, one of those nine charter members was a man named George Knippa.

The same George Knippa for whom that town was named. He died in 1905, just a year after helping found the congregation. But here's the thing about George Knippa.

He left something behind. In his will, he donated land to be used for a Lutheran Church. That land was eventually exchanged for the church site that still stands today.

A man plants a seed on his way out the door, and it grows into something lasting. By 1910, a wooden church was standing, complete with a sixty-seven-foot bell tower. Let that number sit with you a moment.

Sixty-seven feet of bell tower rising up out of Knippa. Then in 1912, Reverend Langner became the congregation's first full-time pastor, organizing a Sunday School and a choir, building the kind of community that holds a town together. Now, the congregation conducted its services in German.

That was their language, their tradition, the sound of their faith. And then came World War I. Uvalde County passed a resolution prohibiting the use of the German language.

The congregation challenged it. They appealed it all the way to the United States Supreme Court, and in 1918, the court ruled that it was a matter for the church to decide. The church won.

And German continued to be spoken in those services all the way until 1942. That is a congregation that knew what it believed and was willing to fight for it in the highest court in the land. The congregation kept growing, and in 1954, on the fiftieth anniversary of the church's founding, a new sanctuary was dedicated.

A new parsonage followed, along with an annex and a fellowship hall. Nine people in someone's parlor in 1904, and look what they built. Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Knippa.

Still serving its membership and the community, still standing, still ringing that story across Uvalde County.

What the marker says

This church traces its origins to 1904 when nine charter members led by the Rev. Gottlieb Langner organized a congregation in Knippa. Services were held in the homes of its members, who were served by area pastors and traveling missionaries. George Knippa, for whom the town was named and a charter member of the church, died in 1905. The land he donated in his will to be used for a Lutheran Church was exchanged for this church site. A wooden church with a 67-foot bell tower was built in 1910. Pastor Langner became the first full-time pastor in 1912, organizing a Sunday School and choir. The German-speaking congregation conducted its services in German. During World War I, a Uvalde County resolution prohibited the use of the German language. Challenged and appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1918, the court ruled it was a matter for the church to decide. German was spoken in church until 1942. A new sanctuary was constructed for the growing congregation, and was dedicated on the 50th anniversary of the church's founding in 1954. A new parsonage, annex and fellowship hall were later added. This church continues to serve its membership and the community as it has for more than 90 years. (1996)