#2 Martin Luther’s House in Verona: A History of Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in the Town of Verona, NY

PART TWO (back to Part One)

By Jeff Blanchard, Town Historian of Verona, NY Copyright ©2026. All rights reserved by the author.

Lutheran Rose and Cross

By 2015, meetings of the church Council ensured that all viewpoints of the congregation were given the opportunity to be expressed and acknowledged, even if only one course of action could be taken in a situation.^[1] Pastor Yahns also recommended that conflicts among church members be resolved directly through engaged conversations.^[2] The church Council further expanded communication by releasing its first annual report to the congregation in 2018, which explained what occurred at meetings, the purpose of the council, identified the members of the council, and outlined the terms of council members.^[3] The most prominent intra-congregation communication method included the routine release of letters and annual reports authored by Pastor Yahns, the church Council, and various committees. These documents served to disseminate information, the vision of church leadership, and to record historical events.^[4] An example of how intra-congregation letters aided communication was the Church Chatter newsletter of September 2019. In this letter, Pastor Yahns informed the congregation of a decision to designate the Evangelical Lutheran Church as a “sanctuary church body.”^[5] Through this letter, Pastor Yahns was able to inform the congregation that the “sanctuary church body” was a concept in which walking alongside immigrants and refugees was a matter of faith and not politics, with the biblical precedent to welcome foreigners and the history of immigrants and refugees being present in the Lutheran Church serving to anchor the concept.^[6] Pastor Yahns invited Saint Peter’s congregants to further discuss the concept and examine resources to further inform their understanding of what a “sanctuary church body” was.^[7]  Such communication and conflict-resolution methods were aimed at fostering cohesiveness within the congregation and opening dialogue on prominent church topics. The emphasis on open communication between Saint Peter’s different hierarchies enhanced community outreach.

Saint Peter’s outreach to the Verona-area community took on various forms in the 2010s. The church’s previously established Facebook presence was further expanded in 2012.^[8] Saint Peter’s took further advantage of its Facebook presence by live-streaming various portions of church services beginning in September 2017, eventually deciding to live-stream only sermons.^[9] Creative and unconventional community outreach initiatives occurred, such as outdoor, ‘drive-thru’ style Ash Wednesday services in the church parking lot offered to motorists.^{[10] In a remark regarding the reason for conducting the unconventional Ash Wednesday service, Pastor Yahns stated: “That reminder of need, humility, and healing shouldn’t be confined to a church building or worship service.” [11]} Groups within the church, such as the Church Mice and Special Projects Teams, raised funds to support charitable donations for missionary work, disaster relief, and seminary student expenses.^[12] These groups provided school supplies for local children, Christmas gifts to nursing home residents, and provided meals to the homeless in shelters.^[13] The community relations team, established in 2015, promoted Saint Peter’s annually by engaging members of the community at local events, such as the VVS Community Day and Trunk-or-Treat.^[14]  Such outreach efforts reveal that the church was willing to engage the community openly in a manner that supported Saint Peter’s evangelistic goals. The congregation’s community-oriented outreach expanded to include engagement with and cooperation among other church bodies.

In the summer of 2013, the congregants of Saint Peter’s began attending worship services at the Verona United Methodist Church.^[15] This participation expanded in 2014, as the Verona United Methodists and Saint Peter’s hosted one another’s congregants that summer.^[16] Saint Peter’s also celebrated the 500^th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation in 2017 in cooperation with other churches, with congregants attending reformation-themed lectures and a symphoria event co-sponsored by other congregations.^[17] In particular, though, the exchange between Saint Peter’s and the Verona United Methodists not only fostered a relationship between the two churches, but it also had the effect of forcing Saint Peter’s “Council to sit down and honestly examine [Saint Peter’s]own concerns and conflicts when making an important decision.”^[18] The Council’s self-examination after its encounter with the Verona United Methodists would prepare it for coming challenges and conflicts.

Saint Peter’s congregation and leaders experienced challenges and conflicts in the 2010s, just as they had in previous decades. Minor conflicts and polarities among congregants had become more frequent and visible throughout 2012, with Pastor Yahns, who had taken notice, having to remind the congregation that such conflict was normal but had to be dealt with in a healthy manner.^[19] Compounding these interpersonal conflicts in 2012 was a series of cash thefts that required the church Council to examine options and overcome differences of opinion before taking the first step to address the issue.^[20] Different contentious viewpoints within the congregation coexisted. In 2015, members of Saint Peter’s celebrated the graduation and ordination of a seminarian, Pastor Fritz Fowler, who had earlier that year shared his faith story that included his self-identification as being homosexual.^[21] Not all members of Saint Peter’s agreed that homosexuals should be allowed to be ordained, but members who held that view did not impede other members from supporting and congratulating Pastor Fritz. While conflict was highlighted in the first half of the decade, declining weekly attendance presented itself as a more chronic issue in the second half of the 2010s.

At the beginning of the 2010s, average weekly attendance had risen from 96 in 2012[22] to 68 by the end of 2019.^[23] Various theories were presented over the years to account for the decline in attendance. The first theories for declining attendance were revealed in 2016, a year in which the weekly average attendance was 77,[24] representing a decrease of 19 congregants compared to 2012. The theories in 2016 included decreased participation among older congregants with health challenges, increased prevalence of weekend work schedules, and the fact that the Christmas holiday in 2016 fell on a Sunday.^[25] By 2017, Pastor Yahns acknowledged that the nature of the church’s role in people's lives had been changing, as families experienced increasingly busy schedules, shifting the standard of committed, regular church attendance from every week to once or twice a month.^[26]

Additionally, Pastor Yahns noted that the way individuals and families developed communal relationships began to include ways that did not involve physically meeting with one another,[27] as society found increased connection on social media.^[28] Further acknowledgment was given that both traditional in-person and online interactions had begun to coexist at Saint Peter’s.^[29] This development revealed that the church had begun to contend with declining church attendance and the ever-changing twenty-first-century methods of socialization by both accepting and incorporating new societal trends into the conduct of church life, despite a preference for traditional in-person relationship-building.^[30] Such developments were evidenced as numerous congregants had attended services at Saint Peter’s either in person or via Facebook Live by 2019.^[31] As the church grappled with declining attendance, a financial crisis also developed.

By the end of 2015, four years of monetary comfort for Saint Peter’s congregation came to an end, precipitating a period of financial stress. In the early part of 2015, the church's cash flow decreased, with various theories proposed to explain the decline.^[32] One theory was that a budget surplus developed because Pastor Yahns’ annual salary started low in 2011, had disappeared due to increased operational costs, and decreased cash intake.^[33] A more isolated factor in the decrease in cash flow was the prevalence of adverse weather, which prevented church members from attending services and making their usual monetary donations during the church offering.^[34] Financial woes continued into 2016, forcing Saint Peter’s to implement cost-cutting measures to contend with a decline in church income.^[35] As the financial crisis continued into 2017, further analysis of what had caused a decline in church income was pursued. Pastor Yahns, in her 2017 annual report at the Annual Meeting, believed that differences in how congregants from older generations donated money compared to younger generations played a role in church income issues.^[36] More specifically, it had been felt that older congregants viewed the committed giving of planned amounts of money at every Sunday church service as their duty, while younger congregants gave money as they were motivated to or when they were able to do so, reflecting that younger people were as generous as older ones but possessed varied levels of disposable income.^[37] Furthermore, it was felt that the younger generation of congregants preferred to give directly to needs rather than to institutions such as the church, forcing Saint Peter’s to come to grips with the fact that its revenue would become less predictable.^[38] As the church leadership faced the reality of a revenue stream that could not be predicted, the financial crisis persisted throughout 2018^[39] and carried on into 2019. The financial challenges in 2019 were characterized by budget shortfalls in certain months, though the church was able to recover.^[40] Once again, in 2019, Saint Peter’s leaders acknowledged that the costs of maintaining the church and carrying out its mission were increasing while monetary contributions from congregants were steadily declining, forcing the Council to review the budget to determine where costs needed to be cut.^[41] It is plausible that decreased church attendance contributed to Saint Peter’s revenue decline, with fewer congregants available to give, most likely placing a burden on those attending and making financial contributions. This concept had not been lost on Pastor Yahns after the drop in attendance in early 2015 related to adverse weather, prompting the pursuit of methods to give monetary donations that did not rely solely on weekly church attendance.^[42] As the 2010s drew to a close, with finances and attendance still unstable, Saint Peter’s faced even greater challenges in the opening years of the 2020s.

When the World Stood Still. . .The COVID-19 Pandemic and Transition to a New Normal, 2020 to 2022

^{In December 2019, a new virus, the novel human coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), was first reported in Wuhan, China, before spreading rapidly around the world. [43]} The number of reported COVID-19 cases globally had reached 100,000, prompting the World Health Organization to declare the outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020.^[44] After the first COVID-19-related death in the United States in February 2020, and in response to the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic, American authorities declared a state of emergency in the United States.^[45] This declared state of emergency in the country brought about a series of restrictions and changes to how Americans conducted their daily lives to limit the spread of COVID-19. Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church did not go unaffected by these restrictions and changes, which forced the congregation to adapt its worship and fellowship in order to meet the challenges posed by the peculiar and unprecedented crisis that was COVID-19.

2020

The first two months of 2020 went by as usual at Saint Peter’s, with in-person worship services held until March 8.^[46] After the week of March 8, the church, following discussions between the leadership of Saint Peter’s and Bishop John Malcolz, and in consideration of local school closures due to the spread of COVID-19, suspended all in-person worship services, initiated online only services, and closed the church building.^[47] This period of utilizing online worship only lasted until the summer of 2020, when, on July 12, in-person services were slowly reintroduced, beginning with a single modified worship service.^[48] Restrictions, following guidance from Lutheran denominational leadership, were implemented during in-person services to limit the spread and risk of COVID-19 exposure and included the following: congregants were asked to RSVP for worship, assigned seats spread six feet apart was utilized, wearing of masks was mandated, services were kept short and simplified, singing was not allowed, sharing of peace could not involve physical contact between congregants, and communion utilized sealed, pre-filled cups.^[49]Socialization after services was permitted only in the church parking lot in the summer and fall of 2020, with the serving of food and drinks being disallowed.^[50] Confirmation classes, baptisms, First Communion events, and inductions of new church members were halted throughout 2020.^[51] Congregants were asked by the Prayer Ministry to communicate their prayer requests verbally during in-person services to avoid touching the shared pens typically used to write prayer requests on a sheet of paper attached to a clipboard.^[52] More in-person gatherings, such as Bible studies and council meetings, were slowly introduced in the fall of 2020, with such meetings adhering to mask-wearing and social distancing guidelines.^[53] By Thanksgiving Day of 2020, though, all in-person gatherings were once again halted due to the predicted rise of COVID-19 cases. ^[54] Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the congregants of Saint Peter’s adapted creatively, greatly aided by technology.

The use of various forms of technology in 2020 enabled the leadership and congregants of Saint Peter’s not only to stay connected but also to stay engaged in ministry work throughout the pandemic. Electronic and digital forms of technology, such as communication by phone calls, text messages, emails, and social media, made it possible for Pastor Yahns to provide pastoral care and to maintain connection and communication with her congregants when in-person visits, especially to hospitals, care facilities, and private residences, were difficult or impossible.^[55] The online video communications software Zoom, in conjunction with Facebook Live streaming, enabled regular visual contact between Pastor Yahns and congregants during Wednesday evening prayer, casual conversations, and live Facebook posts on Fridays.^[56] Among the most visible and publicly accessible uses of technology at Saint Peter’s were online worship services that used video.^[57] These online worship services made it possible for people who had never previously attended worship at Saint Peter’s to not only participate in the experience of worship but also have their spiritual needs met.^[58] This reflected a unique opportunity for Saint Peter’s to engage and evangelize the public. Musicians within the congregation also used online streaming technology to provide music during online services, in addition to in-person services, which presented challenges.^[59]Another unique use of technology during the pandemic included the use of FM radio transmitters to broadcast services to congregants’ vehicle radios as they gathered in the parking lot of Saint Peter’s during three major parking lot services.^[60]One of the most innovative and enduring uses of technology was the Sunday School to Go program. With traditional programs such as Food, Faith, and Fun Friday and Vacation Bible School suspended due to COVID-19 exposure restrictions, the children of Saint Peter’s did not have a means of connecting as usual.^[61] Pastor Yahns, in conjunction with a volunteer congregant of Saint Peter’s, devised a Virtual Vacation Bible School in which she created at-home activities placed in bags that were distributed to all children participating in Vacation Bible School, with Pastor Yahns recording Bible story videos played on YouTube or Facebook that went along with the bagged activities for the children.^[62] After positive feedback from the Virtual Vacation Bible School, Pastor Yahns and the volunteer congregant devised the Sunday School to Go program in which participating children, thirty-six in all, received bagged activities and viewed two Bible story videos that coincided with the bagged activities each month.^[63] Lastly, congregants and non-congregants participating in online worship services were able to provide significant financial support to Saint Peter’s by donating via the PayPal website.^[64] Through various electronic and digital technologies, the congregation adapted, stayed connected, and engaged the community alongside more traditional methods.

While technology enhanced the ability of Saint Peter’s congregants to stay connected and engage the community, more tangible, traditional means were also impactful in 2020. Some members of the congregation did not have computers or internet access, prompting the church to mail out readings, prayers, and sermons from the previous Sunday each week, in addition to conducting regular check-ups via phone calls and mailed-out cards.^[65] Perhaps the most visible traditional efforts by Saint Peter’s congregants involved caring for the needs of the local community, which had been equally impacted by the pandemic.^[66] The church parking lot and grounds were effectively used for community outreach efforts, including food drives for the Verona Food Pantry, a curbside trick-or-treat in October, and a curbside spaghetti dinner in November.^[67] Missions of the Month, previously oriented towards national or international efforts, have become focused on supporting local feeding ministries such as the Verona Food Pantry, Rome Rescue Mission, and Oneida Karing Kitchen.^[68] These traditional efforts, as well as those using technological means, reflected how the COVID-19 pandemic fostered creativity and resilience among congregants, which allowed the church to adapt to pandemic-related challenges in 2021 as well.

2021

2021 at Saint Peter’s was a year in which patterns established in 2020 were continued, while also being punctuated by increased change as the COVID pandemic waxed and waned. Some of the patterns that continued were mask wearing, social distancing, periods of online-only worship as COVID cases soared, parking-lot services, and on-again, off-again in-person services. The changes that did occur, little by little, served to bring about a boost in the morale of congregants and a sense of a return to ‘normalcy.’ Small-group in-person gatherings, such as the Tuesday morning Bible study, occurred once again, but without food or coffee served.^[69]Following the resumption of in-person gatherings during the Easter season of 2021 after a surge of COVID cases, small groups were able to share food and coffee as long as all in attendance had received the recently introduced COVID-19 vaccination.^[70] Congregants who were senior citizens began meeting again, and coffee hour took place every week outdoors in a tent with tables.^[71] The most significant changes occurred in August of 2021, as social distancing was relaxed, assigned seating during worship was eliminated, fully vaccinated congregants were allowed to remove their masks in the church building, temperature checks were ceased, and reservations for services were no longer required.^[72] Worship services witnessed significant changes as limited singing was reintroduced in July of 2021, with more singing gradually being incorporated by the winter of 2021.^[73] The online portion of worship services experienced significant change as pre-recorded services were phased out and replaced by live-streamed services by August of 2021, with plans to offer live-streamed services in the future and technology updates to enhance the online worship experience.^[74] Pastoral care in 2021 reintroduced in-person visits to congregants, which required consulting visitation guidelines for those congregants in hospitals and nursing home facilities; in-person pastoral care visits occurred with time between visits to limit the transmission of COVID.^[75] In-person Confirmation classes were introduced in the summer of 2021 to complete unfinished classes from spring 2020 and were held again in the fall with mandatory mask-wearing.^[76] While most of the changes introduced in 2021 were positive, one change was particularly somber: numerous memorial services had been held for congregants who had passed away in 2020, with July 2021 seeing memorial services almost every weekend.^[77] The changes in 2021 prepared Saint Peter’s to introduce further, more permanent changes as normalcy began to return in 2022.

2022

The year 2022 was a jubilee year of sorts for Saint Peter’s regarding the restoration of ‘normalcy.’ Starting in March 2022, mandatory mask-wearing in the church building was discontinued after Saint Peter’s leadership considered the guidelines used by local schools regarding mask use.^[78] The presence of COVID-19 remained in the background as information on the level of COVID cases in Oneida County, as determined by the Centers for Disease Control, was posted on doors at the church to aid families and individuals in making choices about actions to limit exposure risk to COVID.^[79] Additionally, congregants were encouraged to sign attendance pads in church pews so as to notify those attending services of COVID exposures.^[80] As the existence of the COVID virus became permanently rooted in everyday life, the congregation experienced many moments of joy, including the addition of twelve new church members (who had started attending Saint Peter’s either just before or after the start of the pandemic), and, after a few years of non-occurrence, baptisms took place for the first time in 2022, with five children undergoing baptism.^[81] Furthermore, the youth group at Saint Peter’s began meeting again, with youth congregants attending the Lake Chautauqua Lutheran Center in the summer of 2022 for the first time since the start of the pandemic.^[82] While joy had been felt because of these developments, congregants mourned the loss of those who had died between 2020 and 2021 (and had not received a funeral service or dinner) during a memorial prayer service.^[83] Worship services experienced a significant change: the 10:00 AM service, which had continued to be live-streamed (a feature that had brought in new members to Saint Peter’s congregation), was officially designated the only worship service offered on Sundays at the church.^[84] Turbulent events within the United States and in Europe changed the focus of Saint Peter’s community outreach efforts. As the United States economy struggled and inflation rose in 2022, congregants held a garage sale and donated all proceeds to the Verona Food Pantry to aid those affected by economic hardship.^[85] In response to the overt large-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Saint Peter’s congregants held a pancake dinner to raise funds for Lutheran World Relief Work to assist the people of Ukraine and those Ukrainians who had become refugees.^[86] As Saint Peter’s began to put the COVID-19 pandemic behind it and adapt to the ‘new normal,’ it could do nothing but reflect on what it had gone through.  

The COVID-19 pandemic had a tremendous impact on the congregants of Saint Peter’s, halting or restricting many cherished activities and moments of fellowship that members had cherished prior to the pandemic’s start. Unlike in the past, when members of Saint Peter’s had to contend with the course of changes within society and culture at large, congregants had to adapt to the conditions of a global crisis. In the course of contending with the crisis, Saint Peter’s underwent a transformation, with many aspects of life within the church permanently altered once Saint Peter’s and the world around it emerged on the other side of the pandemic. A succinct expression of the transformation Saint Peter’s had undergone during this time is perhaps found in the 2021 Annual Report as Pastor Katie Yahns remarked that “Making decisions based on expectations or desires that are contrary to who we are as a church, or who God has called us to be is not a healthy pattern, which means sometimes we have to make decisions that don’t make everyone happy. That’s not pleasant, but that’s exactly why it’s important to be clear who we are and what our values are.”^[87] As the historical episode of the COVID-19 pandemic ended, the congregation of Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church could add another book of lessons and reflections to its archives.

A Great Cloud of Witnesses. . .Overview of the Pastorates of Saint Peter’s

Although individual pastors have been covered in some detail, an overview of the breadth of pastors who have served Saint Peter’s reveals the changing tides of the world that each one lived in. In total, forty-seven pastors served at Saint Peter’s from 1830 to the 2010s, with six serving in an interim capacity before permanent pastors were called.^[88] Three pastors ended their service to Saint Peter’s in death, with two back-to-back pastorates ending in this manner (Reverend Waldo Murray and Reverend Henry Stelljes both died in 1922).^[89] Five female pastors have served at Saint Peter’s, with Ruth Snyder becoming the first in 1982.^[90] Pastor Katie Yahns, serving throughout most of the 2010s, became the first, and so far only, pastor to have gotten married during a pastorate.^[91] Interestingly, one pastor, Reverend John C. Schaertel, originally a Chaplain in the 389^th Training Regiment of the U.S. Army Reserve’s 98^th Division, ended his pastorate in June 1965 after being called to serve in the 86^th Engineer Battalion of the Active Duty U.S. Army.^[92] It is not known if Reverend Schaertel served as a Chaplain or a different occupational specialty with the 86^th Engineer Battalion. These pastorates reflected changing trends in society and in the traditions of the church itself. Large numbers of pastors in the Nineteenth Century consistently had German or Scandinavian surnames, with other ethnic surnames beginning to appear intermittently in the mid-Twentieth Century. This suggests the changing nature of Saint Peter’s identity from a church with a homogenous German and Scandinavian ethnic makeup to one reflecting a multi-ethnic makeup. Reverend Schaertel’s call to active-duty military service reflected that even clergy could be subject to the needs of the authorities and were not totally bound to their individual congregations. Finally, the introduction of female pastors in the 1980s revealed that Saint Peter’s views on women in the ministry had changed to the point where there was acceptance of women serving in pastoral roles. The history of Saint Peter’s pastorates, along with its significant episodes, reflected the societal and institutional changes it had to contend with and the ways it handled them.

Historical Themes of Saint Peter’s Past: Contending with Changing Times

Historical themes have existed throughout Saint Peter’s past regarding how the church body contended with changing times in society and the culture at large. At times, the congregation had to contend with the conflict between change and continuity: whether to continue or discontinue certain preexisting church practices that clashed with societal norms. At other times, Saint Peter’s members had to come to grips with whether to introduce entirely new practices that were foreign to the church but were becoming the mainstays of society and culture. The past reveals that Saint Peter’s contended with changing times in society, either by making decisions corporately through the exercise of Council authority, receiving direction from the pastor, following the lead of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, or a combination of these approaches. Two unique examples from Saint Peter’s history highlight these themes...

Change Versus Continuity and Corporate Consensus. . .The German Language Debate

Prior to 1881, all services conducted at Saint Peter’s were conducted using the German language.^[93] Beginning in 1881, English was introduced as the language used during evening services, with Sunday School instruction delivered in English that same year, as only 16 of 125 Sunday School pupils were German speakers at the time, reflecting the predominance of English-speaking congregants.^[94] In October 1886, a decision had been made to deliver confirmation class instruction in English as well.^[95] The decision to introduce the English language was driven by the congregation's belief that German immigration to the United States had diminished. This had meant that the number of English-speaking congregants had increased to the point that English speakers were to eventually make up the majority of Saint Peter’s membership.^[96]

This historical development represented a conflict between change and continuity: whether to continue a traditional practice or reject it and implement change. The church had to come to grips with the fact that English had been firmly established as the dominant language in the United States and that its use was outpacing German within the congregation. Additionally, a decision had to be made about whether the use of German, as well as accommodations for German speakers, would continue in light of declining German immigration to America. Saint Peter’s congregation contended with these societal trends, presumably in a corporate manner, as the general consensus had been to reject tradition and embrace change to keep pace with a changing world.

A Difficult Conversation and the Guiding Authority of the Council . . .Same-Sex Wedding Discussion of 2018

In certain instances, the members of Saint Peter’s contended with changing times not by taking immediate action to implement change, but by engaging a new trend through methodical church-wide conversation. One trend that required church-wide conversation was that of same-sex marriage. The traditional notion that marriage was between a man and a woman was challenged in the 2010s, particularly in New York. On July 24, 2011, the New York State Senate passed the Marriage Equality Act, which permitted homosexual couples to apply for marriage licenses, thereby legalizing same-sex marriage.^[97] Although the implications of the New York Senate’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage had not been immediately felt by Saint Peter’s, the church eventually had to contend with this new trend being introduced into society. When the question of adopting or rejecting this new practice came about, which had no historical precedent within Saint Peter’s, the authority and guidance of the Council came into sharp focus as the matter was engaged.

In the spring of 201,8 the Mutual Ministry Team of Saint Peter’s brought a unique matter to the attention of the church Council.^[98] Mutual Ministry Team members reported to the Council that two women, in a homosexual relationship, had inquired of Pastor Yahns if she would officiate their wedding and provide pastoral care.^[99] Pastor Yahns agreed to officiate at their wedding and granted permission for the ceremony to take place in the sanctuary of Saint Peter’s.^[100] The Mutual Ministry Team had advised Pastor Yahns that her decision to officiate the wedding did not violate the policies of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and that, additionally, the pastor’s decision to have the ceremony take place at Saint Peter’s was supported.^[101]

After discussing the topic, the Council and Mutual Ministry Team agreed to allow the wedding to take place at the church, with the understanding that the matter would be further examined to consider adopting guidelines to inform future decisions regarding same-sex weddings.^[102] The Council did not inform the congregation right away that the wedding ceremony of the two women would be taking place, with congregants being made aware of the wedding several months after it had occurred.^[103] This decision was made because the topic of same-sex marriage was considered sensitive, which, according to the Council, required further study before the rest of the congregation could engage in a corporate discussion.^[104]

Prior to engaging the congregation in open discussion about the matter, the Council President wrote a letter to members of Saint Peter’s in October 2018 to make them aware of all that had transpired among church leaders over the previous six months.^[105] In the letter, the Council President reported that, after consultation with the Dean of the conference, the Council had engaged in “deep conversation, prayer, and Bible study of relevant passages”^[106]regarding the topic of same-sex weddings.^[107] The Council President further stated that the Council had concluded“that God is calling us to adopt guidelines that allow for same-sex weddings to take place at St. Peter’s.”^[108] The Council expressed belief that welcoming others regardless of gender or sexuality was a part of Saint Peters’ mission in addition to the belief that the pastor retained “the right to officiate any weddings that are between two loving, committed, monogamous, consenting adults.”^[109] It was also the belief of the Council that homosexual couples should be afforded the opportunity to receive premarital counseling.^[110] Not all members of the Council held the same views regarding same-sex weddings, but a mutual agreement had been reached that such weddings would not be prevented because of different viewpoints.^[111] Furthermore, the Council expressed that it was their “hope that this does not need to cause a division in the congregation.”^[112] Once the council's views had been established, the Council President invited church members to participate in a moderated open forum in October of 2018 to share their thoughts on the matter before any votes were held to establish guidelines for same-sex weddings at Saint Peter’s.^[113] This historical episode reveals that, under the guidance and authority of the Council, different levels of Saint Peter’s ministry and governing bodies had to come together in deep conversation before change could be implemented, either to accept or reject what society had come to embrace.

Conclusion

Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in Verona, NY, has existed through many eras and forms. The church began with humble services in private homes, then established a dedicated church structure, and finally had to build an entirely new home for its congregants, all the while attempting to engage the community at large with the Gospel. Saint Peter’s experienced many challenges and conflicts. Some of these challenges and conflicts were internal, but many were external, as the society at large changed around the church. The church had to grapple with external challenges posed by ever-changing societal trends, as these trends affected how the congregation lived out its church life. Saint Peter’s dealt with these external challenges by adopting a general consensus among congregants, conforming to the authority of its governing bodies, following the Evangelical Lutheran Church's authority, following its pastors' lead, or a combination of all. The way in which Saint Peter’s contended with changing societal trends was not always perfect, but each episode would add yet another layer to its rich history. Each layer of Saint Peter’s history provides current and future congregants, as well as outside observers, with opportunities to be inspired or draw valuable lessons, as society and the world do not cease to change.

About the author: Jeff Blanchard has been the Historian for the Town of Verona, NY, since June 2025, and has been vigorously pursuing projects related to Verona’s rich history. Jeff earned a Bachelor of Science in History from Liberty University and is interested in local history, post-World War II military history, and American military history.

Sources 

^[1] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting: Reflecting on 2015 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona, NY,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2015 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2015), 7.

^[2] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 7.

^[3] The Church Council, “Introduction from the Council,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2018 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2018), 3.

^[4] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2012,” 6.

^[5] Pastor Katie Yahns, “From the Pastor: Lord, Prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary,” The Church Chatter (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2019), 3.

^[6] Yahns, “From the Pastor,” 3.

^[7] Yahns, “From the Pastor,” 4.

^[8] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2012,” 7.

^[9] Julie Steele, “2017 Music and Worship Team Report,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2017 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2017), 22.

^[10] Author Unknown, “Drive-Thru Ashes,” Rome Daily Sentinel, March 1, 2017, Page Unknown.

^[11] Author Unknown, “Drive-Thru Ashes,” Page Unknown.

^[12] Cheri Schmalz, “Church Mice Annual Report,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2012 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2012), 11.

^[13] Special Project Team, “Special Project Team Annual Report for 2012,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2012 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2012), 16.

^[14] Marie Sayles, “Community Relations Team,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2015 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2015), 11.

^[15] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2013 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona, NY,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2013 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2013), 5.

^[16] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2014 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona, NY,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2014 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2014), 7.

^[17] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2017 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2017 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2017), 7.

^[18] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 7.

^[19] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2012,” 6.

^[20] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2012,” 7.

^[21] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 7.

^[22] St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, “Weekly Worship Attendance for 2012,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2012 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2012), 9.

^[23] St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, “Weekly Worship Attendance for 2019,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2019 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2019), 13.

^[24] St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, “Weekly Worship Attendance for 2016,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2016 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2016), 8.

^[25] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2016 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2016 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2016), 6.

^[26] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 5.

^[27] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 5.

^[28] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2018 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2018 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2018), 10.

^[29] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2018,” 10.

^[30] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2018,” 10.

^[31] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2019 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2019 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2019), 10.

^[32] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 7.

^[33] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 7.

^[34] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 8.

^[35] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2016,” 6.

^[36] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 5.

^[37] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 6.

^[38] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2017,” 6.

^[39]Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2018,” 11.

^[40] The Church Council, “Introduction from the Council,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2019 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2019), 3.

^[41] The Church Council, “Introduction from the Council,” 3.

^[42] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2015,” 8.

^[43] Sarah Moore, “History of COVID-19,” News Medical Life Sciences, Last Updated September 28, 2021, https://www.news-medical.net/health/History-of-COVID-19.aspx.

^[44] Moore, “COVID-19.”

^[45] Moore, “COVID-19.”

^[46] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2020 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2020 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2020), 10.

^[47] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[48] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[49] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[50] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[51] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10-11.

^[52] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Prayer Ministry Annual Report,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2020 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2020), 20.

^[53] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[54] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10.

^[55] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 10-11.

^[56] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11.

^[57] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11.

^[58] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11.

^[59] Julie Steele, “2020 Worship & Music Report to the Congregation,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2020 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2020), 22.

^[60] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11.

^[61] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Children’s Ministry Annual Report 2020,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2020 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2020), 15.

^[62] Yahns, “Children’s Ministry 2020,” 15.

^[63] Yahns, “Children’s Ministry 2020,” 15.

^[64] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11-12.

^[65] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11-12.

^[66] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 12.

^[67] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2020,” 11.

^[68] St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, “2020 Missions of the Month,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2020 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2020), 16.

^[69] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2021 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2021 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2021), 7.

^[70] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 7.

^[71] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 7.

^[72] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 7.

^[73] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 7.

^[74] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 7.

^[75] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 8.

^[76] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 8.

^[77] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 8.

^[78] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Pastor’s Report to the Annual Meeting Reflecting on 2022 at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, Verona,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2022 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2022), 8.

^[79] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2022,” 8.

^[80] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2022,” 8.

^[81] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2022,” 8-9.

^[82] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2022,” 9.

^[83] Yahns, “Pastor’s 2022,” 9.

^[84] Yahns, “Pastor’s 2022,” 8.

^[85] Yahns, “Pastor’s 2022,” 8.

^[86] Pastor Katie Yahns, “Global Mission Team Report,” St. Peter’s Lutheran Church 2022 Annual Report (Verona, NY: St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2022), 16.

^[87] Yahns, “Pastor’s Report 2021,” 9.

^[88] Hoffman, St. Peter’s, 9.

^[89] Hoffman, St. Peter’s, 9.

^[90] Hoffman, St. Peter’s, 9.

^[91] Hoffman, St. Peter’s, 9.

^[92] Author Unknown, “Army Calls Area Pastor,” Rome Daily Sentinel, June 18, 1965, 9.

^[93] Dressler, “By Way of Retrospection,” 2.

^[94] Dressler, “By Way of Retrospection,” 2.

^[95] Dressler, “By Way of Retrospection,” 2.

^[96] Dressler, “By Way of Retrospection,” 2.

^[97] “New York Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage,” SIECUS, No Date, https://siecus.org/new-york-legalizes-same-sex-marriage-2/.

^[98] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, October 4, 2018 (Verona, NY: Council President, 2018), 1.

^[99] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[100] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[101] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[102] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[103] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[104] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[105] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[106] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[107] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[108] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[109] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[110] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[111] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[112] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 1.

^[113] Council President to St. Peter’s Congregation, 2.