52 ancestors in 52 Weeks Week 17 Prompt - At Worship

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

Week 17

Prompt – At Worship

Church and worship was life's anchor for most of my ancestors. As noted before in my family, religion comes in several different denominations. My father was Mennonite and came from a long line of Mennonites. When dad married mom, Lydia Vivian Sullivan, he became Lutheran. My mother came from many generations of Lutherans. And on my husband's paternal side they are Catholic. His mother's side is Lutheran.

In order to be a family in good standing in their church, attending church to worship was a mandatory obligation for most of my ancestors. I want to say you would have to be dead not to attend church service, but aside from this being a bad joke, even the dead attended church for their funeral!

In genealogy many of the documents that we use were generated in the church. Mennonites kept exceptional records that have been kept and passed down to each new generation. However I think that most churches kept records of their parishioners regardless of their denomination. Many of these written records have been digitized and available on line. Some denominations keep their documents in a less central location and one must be lucky to try and track them down. I am very fortunate to have my mother's actual church certificates from her baptism, confirmation, wedding and her funeral.

Lydia Vivian Sullivan was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on April 19, 1922. 

My mother's baptismal certificate from May 22, 1922 is written in German. It is a large ornately printed certificate with the church's seal and suitable for framing. I have photocopied it for easy use in my genealogy scans. Generally speaking these documents are thought to be primary evidence as it is written very close to the actual event by the person who performed it and in this case the by the minister who performed the baptism.

My mother was confirmed in Lutheran faith on March 21, 1937 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. 

It is more of a booklet than a certificate. It is written in English. The booklet is titled - “In Remembrance of My Confirmation.” . The central page is the actual Certificate of Confirmation. It includes all the pertinent information of the confirmation. Interestingly my mother is listed as McLaughlin. She was never adopted by her step father (Benjamin F. McLaughlin) like her brother was. It could have been grandmother's choice to list her as a McLaughlin instead of a Sullivan due the nature of the dissolution of the first marriage. This could be the beginning of confusion over what mom's real maiden name was. After all as a document it is considered primary evidence of the event.

My mother and father were married November 20, 1938 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. 

Again the church document is a beautiful booklet named; “Our Wedding Day”. It is tied together with a ribbon. The pages throughout are filled with bible passages. The central page states “This Certifies that ...” and has the seal of the church and is signed by Pastor A. Eissfeldt. The last page of the booklet is signed by their wedding guests. Such a special document.

My mother died January 24, 1987 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. 

The official death records are actually government issued documents registering her death to the Saskatchewan Department of Health, Vital Statistic Division. There is also a Funeral Director's Statement of Death. For the funeral there is a church bulletin that was printed for all those in attendance. It may not be the official government documents, but it does give us much more information. It states when and where the funeral service was held. The name of the pastor is listed along with the funeral Order of Service including hymns and bible readings. There is a list of pallbearers. The site of interment is listed. So much more information is given with the included obituary. There is no seal or signature of the pastor on this church document. The government has taken over the official documents of death from the church, however the church bulletin for the worship of my mother's funeral has more details that is of greater interest to me.

Mom and dad were not regular church goers. They were more the “C and E” kind of church attenders. That is Christmas and Easter and for those special life events such as baptism, confirmation, marriages, and funerals.

Wendy