Redeemer Lutheran Church in Lubbock occupies a distinctive place in the Heart of Lubbock Neighborhood: it is Lubbock's first Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, or LCMS, congregation, a City of Lubbock Historic Landmark, and a church known for scriptural, traditional, liturgical worship. At 2221 Avenue W, its historic sanctuary hosts 9:30 a.m. Sunday worship, most often in the Lutheran Service Book's Divine Service III, followed at 10:45 a.m. by Bible Class and Sunday School. The congregation's life reaches beyond that pattern through catechesis, family ministry, student outreach, and long-standing neighborhood connections.
A Lubbock Congregation Rooted in 1932
Redeemer's mission statement is: "Redeemer is a family of Christ's forgiven people carrying out the great commission, encouraging and involving each other and those unchurched in God's grace." The wording joins forgiveness with active service. Redeemer calls itself neither urban nor rural and says its people come from dedicated Christian lives and varied walks of life.
Organized in 1932 when Lubbock was a town of 22,000 people, Redeemer became the city's first LCMS church. Its original building stood on 19th Street and Avenue R. In 1937, Redeemer Lubbock and Redeemer Abernathy consolidated, expanding the LCMS presence in Lubbock.
The current church at Avenue W and 22nd Street was designed by architect James Atcheson in 1942. Construction began June 12, 1949, when a cornerstone carved by Claude Elliott was laid, and the congregation moved to the location in the late 1940s. The parish hall was built in 1962 by Ludwig Teinert. Atcheson, Elliott, and Teinert were members of Redeemer. In 2010, under Pastor Brian Dupre and church leaders, the City of Lubbock designated Redeemer a historic landmark.
The church's outreach began early. In 1939, Redeemer established a young people's society based at the Lutheran Student Center, which became a ministry to Texas Tech students. Redeemer later helped establish Christ Lutheran Church in 1954 and Hope Lutheran Church and School in 1989. The Lutheran Student Center continues to provide a dedicated connection to students.
The pastoral succession includes Rev. Henry Hoffmeyer, 1930-1931; Rev. Waldemar G. Loesel, 1932-1944; Rev. Karl W. Keller, 1944-1950; Rev. Louis L. Pabor, 1950-1955; Rev. Orville A. Buntrock, 1955-1958; Rev. Elmer G. Neunaber, 1959-1972; Rev. Donald W. Lunick, 1973-1976; Rev. James R. Haner, 1977-1979; Rev. Francis W. Mennenga, 1979-1993; Rev. Jay Beyer, 1993-2008; Rev. Brian Dupre, 2009-2016; and Rev. Jeff Jenkins, 2018-2021. Pastor Charles Nemec was ordained and installed in 2022.
Divine Service III at 9:30 on Sunday
Redeemer joyfully uses liturgical worship, defining liturgy as "public service." The service proclaims God's Word and administers the sacraments as God's service to his people; the congregation responds through prayer, praise, and thanksgiving. Its liturgy is founded on Scripture and hymnody inherited from the church, and Redeemer most often uses Divine Service III.
- Invocation, confession, and absolution. The pastor invokes God's Triune name, and the sign of the cross may be made in remembrance of Baptism. The congregation confesses, and the pastor proclaims absolution, declaring God's forgiveness won through Jesus Christ.
- Introit and praise. The Introit is usually a Psalm, with the pastor singing one verse and the congregation the next. The Kyrie asks the Lord for mercy, and the Gloria in Excelsis proclaims glory to God in the highest.
- Three readings and a sung Psalm. Each Sunday draws three texts that usually share a theme. The first is normally Old Testament, the second is generally from a New Testament Epistle, and the Gospel comes from Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. A portion of a Psalm is sung between readings, again alternating pastor and congregation.
- Alleluia, Gospel, hymn, and sermon. The congregation stands for the Alleluia and the Holy Gospel. A Hymn of the Day follows, often connecting the Gospel and sermon. The pastor's main sermon text is usually the Holy Gospel, with other Scripture incorporated into the message.
- Creed, offering, and prayer. The congregation speaks a creed together. The Offertory prepares for the offering, which supports the work and needs of the congregation, and the pastor leads the Prayer of the Church while the people answer, "Hear our prayer."
- The service of the Sacrament. On Communion Sundays, the Preface and Sanctus lead into the Lord's Prayer, the Words of Our Lord, Pax Domini, and Agnus Dei. The service continues into distribution, the Nunc Dimittis, a Post-Communion Collect, the Benediction, and a closing hymn.
Music is integral rather than incidental. A hymn of invocation may connect with the Sunday's readings or the church season; the opening Psalm, gradual Psalm, Hymn of the Day, distribution hymns, and final hymn each have a place in the movement. When the service does not include Communion, it concludes with the Lord's Prayer, a concluding collect, and the Benediction.
Communion on the First and Third Sundays
Redeemer celebrates the Lord's Supper at 9:30 a.m. on the first and third Sundays of every month and on feast days of the church. It continues the historic practice of Closed Communion as an act of spiritual care. Christians who share Redeemer's confession, have been instructed in the chief articles of the Christian faith, publicly confess that faith, and are confirmed members in good standing with the LCMS may receive the body and blood of Christ. Redeemer provides this instruction as catechesis, confirmation class, or catechism instruction.
Visitors who intend to commune speak with Pastor Nemec before the service. Visitors who do not share the confession may still come forward for a verbal blessing, signaling that choice by crossing their arms over their chest. Members who cannot climb the altar steps may gather at the first row of pews, where the Supper is brought to them. Redeemer uses both individual cups and a common cup, presenting the individual cups after the body and the common cup afterward. Elders usher communicants to the rail, and the pastor dismisses each group with a blessing.
The congregation emphasizes biblical self-examination as preparation for Communion, asking participants to discern Christ's body and blood and receive the Supper in remembrance of him. The Supper is received as a corporate act of the congregation, not a private individual meal, and the service uses the Words of Institution from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and 1 Corinthians.
Redeemer also offers private confession and absolution. Pastor Nemec hears sins that trouble a person and declares forgiveness according to Jesus' promise, whether preparation for Communion or another time of need.
A Quiet Room and Classes for Every Generation
At 10:45 a.m., Bible Class and Sunday School begin. Classes are offered for adults, college and high school students, junior high students, and small children. Families who need a quiet place during the service can use the nursery or "quiet room" at the back of the sanctuary. It has a window for viewing the service, privacy blinds, a changing table, a rocking chair, books, and an attached bathroom. The viewing window and privacy blinds allow families to step away while remaining close to the worship service.
Family Ministry and Heart of Lubbock Outreach
Redeemer's local community outreach includes Mosaic, Neighborhood House, LWML, and Lutheran Social Services. The church also presents The Lutheran Hour on Sundays at 8:00 a.m. on KFYO radio, bringing an LCMS Lutheran broadcast into the morning before the 9:30 service.
Family outreach includes a recurring free Mini-VBS and school-supply gathering. Children and families take part in a Bible lesson, music, crafts, and snacks while participating alongside a parent or guardian. Participating children receive school-supply packs and an ESV Bible. The whole community is welcome, with particular encouragement for families in the Heart of Lubbock neighborhood. For the gathering in the parish hall, families enter from the east side of the church near the parking lot.
Redeemer has also repeatedly offered a family Trunk or Treat in the neighborhood. Decorated vehicle trunks provide candy, while a bouncy house, games, prizes, refreshments, and Bible-verse handouts add to the gathering. In poor weather the activities move into the parish hall, reached from the east-side parking lot. The event gives families a safe, organized alternative to door-to-door trick-or-treating.
Support for the church's work and needs can be offered through online giving.
The Confession Redeemer Teaches
Redeemer accepts all the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments as the verbally inspired, revealed Word of God. It also accepts the confessional writings of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the 1580 Book of Concord: the Apostles', Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds; the Unaltered Augsburg Confession; the Apology of the Augsburg Confession; the Smalcald Articles; Luther's Large and Small Catechisms; and the Formula of Concord. These writings are understood as a genuine exposition of biblical doctrine.
The teaching begins with one eternal God in three Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God created everything good, created male and female in his image, and sin entered through humanity's rebellion, bringing corruption and death. Human beings cannot save themselves from sin and death; all inherit a sinful nature and are accountable to God. Redemption therefore comes only through Jesus Christ, whom God sent to die and rise for humanity so that people can have eternal life and forgiveness of sins in him.
Redeemer teaches that Jesus is true God and true man, the Son of God begotten of the Father and conceived by the Holy Spirit through the virgin Mary. He died to pay for all sins, rose from the dead for justification, conquered death and the grave, and will never die again. He ascended to rule at the Father's right hand, sustains his Church through Word and Sacraments, and will return on the Last Day to raise the dead, gather his Church, judge the world, and inaugurate new heavens and new earth. Salvation is found in no one else but Jesus Christ, and his Church is sent into the world to share the good news of his saving death and resurrection.
The Bible, both Old and New Testaments, is the inspired Word of God, and all Scripture points to Jesus Christ and what he has done through his death and resurrection. Baptism is a gift of God in which people are washed with water and the word, united with Christ, born again, and assured of forgiveness and salvation; it is for people of every age. In the Lord's Supper, the bread and wine truly are Christ's body and blood given and shed for forgiveness of sins. Good works are the response of love and gratitude to God's grace, not a basis for earning salvation. Those called to faith are also called to love God and neighbor, bear fruit in repentance, and receive forgiveness when they sin.
Redeemer also teaches that the gospel of free forgiveness is not an excuse to continue in sin. God's people are called to believe, repent, live according to his will, and bear fruit in keeping with repentance. Perfect sinlessness is not promised before the resurrection, but believers are called to strive against sin and return to God in repentance whenever they sin.
Stained Glass, Carved Apostles, and a Landmark Sanctuary
The sanctuary has a visual identity rooted in biblical images and historic Lutheran worship. Stained-glass windows depict the Annunciation, the Birth of Jesus, the Flight into Egypt, young Jesus in the Temple, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension, and Christ the Redeemer. Symbols appear on the first and second floors, including the Harvest of the Lord, All Saints, Heaven, the Luther Rose, and the Castle church door. Marion Platten carved the Shields of the Apostles; the shield names include Matthias, both Jameses, Philip, Thomas, Peter, Jude, Andrew, John, Simon, Bartholomew, and Matthew. A crucifix and altar are prominent in the sanctuary, while the exterior and nave belong to the building recognized as a City of Lubbock Historic Landmark. The parish hall, built in 1962, provides space for family events and gatherings.
Pastor Charles Nemec
Pastor Charles Nemec was born in Panama, where his mother is from, and grew up in Hillsboro, Texas. He graduated from Hill College in 2014 and Concordia University in Austin in 2018, then began seminary training at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne. During his second year he met Christianna, who was studying to be a deaconess; they married October 31, 2020, three months into his vicarage at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Highland, Indiana. He was ordained and installed as pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Lubbock on June 26, 2022, and has found joy in serving the congregation.
A Sunday at 2221 Avenue W
Sunday worship begins at 9:30 a.m. at 2221 Avenue W, Lubbock, Texas 79411. The service is livestreamed at 9:30 on Redeemer's Facebook, with a replay available afterward; Bible Class and Sunday School follow at 10:45. The east-side parking lot is the entrance for parish-hall events. The church office keeps weekday hours from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and can be reached at (806) 744-6178. Holy Communion, class groupings for children through adults, and the quiet room are all part of the congregation's regular Sunday pattern.
At Redeemer Lutheran Church in the Heart of Lubbock, a 1932 founding, a 1949 cornerstone, historic stained glass, and a weekly rhythm of liturgical Word, sacrament, and shared learning meet in one neighborhood congregation. That is the continuing identity of Redeemer: a family of forgiven people carrying out the Great Commission in Word and sacrament at 2221 Avenue W.