History

Rev. M.O. Wee
Luther Seminary
St. Paul
Minnesota

1910, the Protestant International Conference for Foreign Missions met in Edinburgh, Scotland. A principal goal of the conference was to assign neglected fields of service to delegates of the Christian denominations in attendance.
‍Lutheran representatives arrived from the United States and Germany already championing the cause of the Kurds; they were rewarded with a commission to develop a mission among them.‍
In response, the Lutherans, under the leadership of L.O. Fossum and M.O. Wee, formed an independent organization that could serve both American and European Lutheran Churches,working across state and synodical lines. Within months, the organization commissioned two field workers to send to Kurdistan and resolved to publish a journal, "The Kurdistan Missionary."
‍With its first issue in October 1910, the Inter-Synodical Evangelical Lutheran Orient Mission Society was born.

After the Armistice, Fossum returned to Persia with his sister, Alma Fossum, a trained nurse and Hannah Schonhood, a public school teacher.
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‍They were joined by French linguist and theologian, George H. Bachimont. In transit the party learned that fighting had again erupted. They would not be able to proceed to Soujboulak (Mahabad.) Instead, they agreed to travel to Yerevan to assist in relief efforts there. Fossum was named commander of the district near Mt. Ararat. Along with administrative oversight, Fossum devoted himself directly to the care of orphans and refugees.
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This was just after horrific bloodletting in Armenian eastern Anatolia, a historical disaster the bitterness of which remains unabated to this day. Responsible for a region that was still home to ethnic Turks, Armenians and Kurds, Fossum found his work of saving lives obstructed by political fear and prejudice. It would be necessary to step into the breach.
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‍Fossum and Bachimont leftYerevan on Sept. 5 on a peacemaking expedition to Mt. Ararat. Journalist Fullerton L. Waldo, who accompanied the men, wrote in his “Twilight in Armenia” that they “went together into the no-man's land" where Fossum was to “try every resource of his skills, his knowledge, and his fearless disposition” to negotiate a peace.
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‍Waldo reported that Fossum tooill on the journey. “I cannot forget the iron resolution he showed. Lying threedays ill of a fever on a mud roof at Sirbahan, he raised his head from thepillow to laugh and chat with the tribal deputations who could in a trice haveslain him."
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Although able to return home - a journey described by his travel companions as a one day forced march - Fossum never recovered. Apparently running a high fever, Hannah Schonhood reported that he was at times delirious. He finally succumbed on October 10, 1920 and was buried in Yerevan. Although the cause of death has been ascribed alternately to poisoning and nervous exhaustion, he may have been assassinated: death came when an explosion went off in his room, attributed to a faulty can of lye.

‍Fossum's example is the guiding light to our work in the Middle East. His achievements are legendary: He brought spiritual and humanitarian care to those who had suffered the worst that the world has to offer. His care for children and widows, the establishment of medical and social care where none had existed before, and his willingness to stand in the gap for the disenfranchised and forgotten are concrete testimonies to his humanity and godliness.

Upon Fossum's death, the society sent Miss Augusta Gudhart, who had been in Kurdistan with pastor Fossum, to join the grief-stricken recruits.

‍Her knowledge of the language,the people and the country would be an invaluable service. The new team arrivedat Soujbulak on May 27, 1921.
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‍Not four months into their work, tragedy again struck the mission:
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‍The Minneapolis Journal, Wednesday, February 8, 1921:
‘“They have a saying in Persia that 'Mission folk do not know what death means.’” And Alma Fossum has proved it...in the last two weeks, word has been received of another tragedy.

On October 6 at midnight, firing began at Soujbulak she says, in the letter just received, by her brother's wife, Mrs. L. O. Fossum...

'Simko was coming in' Simko is an insurgent Kurd, who led 2,000 men against 800 Persians guarding Soujbulak. 'On October 7,' Miss Fossum writes, 'he took the town, robbed, looted, and killed right and left. Our houses were ransacked, we lost our all, clothing was torn from our backs. Rev. Bachimont was shot and died in his office -.''

After that we escaped from the house and made our way to speak to Simko on the mountainside. Mrs. Bachimont was lost, having fled from the house after her husband was shot.'

'Now we are here and getting some rest. The Lord willing, we shall again work in Kurdistan. For missionaries never learn what death means.'

Hannah Shonhood reported the events in a letter home: "On the afternoon of the sixth was the first that it became evident. Soldiers were stationed in the mountains, and it was reported that Simko's men (the Shakack Kurds) were appearing in the city. The firing began during the night, machine guns and cannon, and continued until the early part of the afternoon, when the horsemen of Simko's men were coming over the mountain into the city.”

Looting began immediately. They took practically everything in the house, even to the clothing we had on, leaving us enough to partly cover our bodies; and the cruel treatment was too horrible to describe, hitting with their guns, kicking, pulling hair, etc. Mr. Bachimont, having given up the box containing money and Mrs. Bachimont's watch, came down stairs, telling his wife that all was gone, but comforted her by saying, 'That is nothing, we have our lives.'

Shortly after, other groups came and much confusion ensued. As Mrs. Bachimont came toward the office she saw her husband coming slowly down the stairs with three men following.  By the pallor on his face she knew something serious had happened.

When she spoke to him he was unable to answer, but turning to her he carefully seated himself then lay down on the floor. The blood began to flow from a wound in the region of the heart. Closing his eyes he continued breathing for about five minutes and he passed away.

He often expressed the wish that if he should be killed that he might not be tortured, but go quick, and his wish was certainly granted.

A short time before the mob entered the house, Mr. Bachimont came in from the office saying, 'I just came across this pamphlet of Fossum's'. It contained two stanzas of 'Jesus lover of my soul', which he wished us to sing together.  He brought in the big Bible, opened it with the hope of finding an appropriate scripture passage. When he came to Isa. 43:1, 'Fear not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by they name, thou art mine,' he closed the book with a look of relief and satisfaction. This large Bible was the first thing to be flung on the floor.

In order to secure some protection from the authorities, Miss Gudhart, Javahir, Miss Fossum and myself fled out the gate where we found the gatekeeper groaning in agony. He had been shot.  Mrs. Bachimont was nowhere in sight. She had sought refuge first in the gatekeeper's room, and from there to some ruins back of our house, where she lay crouched in the corner of those mud walls until the next day in the afternoon, when the gatekeeper's wife found her and carried her back over to the house.

In the meantime we, having wedged our way between the horsemen in the narrow streets, made our way, barefooted, across the river and up the thorny slope of the mountain where Simko greeted us, expressing his regret for what happened and sending an officer to bring us to a place of safety. Miss Gudhart and Miss Fossum with the help of some natives, made a coffin, nailing together two boxes from the storeroom.

The Moslem idea of becoming unclean from touching the dead body of a Christian, made it necessary for us three women to lift the body from the floor onto a ladder on which it was carried to the cemetery...

Miss Gudhart and Miss Fossum accompanied them to the grave, where one old man who had shown a great deal of sympathy, finally said, 'If he is unclean, then I am unclean,' and so assisted in lifting the body into the roughly made casket.

Miss Gudhart performed a short service in Kurdish at the grave where a few of the natives had gathered. The Sunday before his death, Mr.Bachimont preached his first Kurdish sermon, the liturgy in Kurdish being used also.

Mirza Kerrin, who had worked with him in correcting translations, was present during the sermon. T
he day before his death he was engaged in translating the hymn 'Werde munter mein Gemute.' (B Cheerful Oh mySoul).

The attack on the mission and the murder of Pastor Bachimont was not motivated by ill will to the mission or any of the missionaries. It was a case of invading warriors making a mistake. The tribal faction entering the city thought the opposing chief might be hiding in the mission. Seeing Pastor Bachimont, who in many ways resembled a Kurdish chief, they made their attack.  The killing was a case of mistaken identity.

Ms. Gudhart remained a faithful friend to Kurds after Bachimont’s murder.

Letter from Hannah Schonhood, July 20, 1921‍My dear Mrs. Sletten
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Thank you so much for the letter you wrote me. It ‍was ‍written ‍January ‍27th, ‍so ‍you ‍see ‍it ‍has ‍taken‍a ‍long ‍time ‍in ‍reaching ‍me. ‍I have the picture of your church on the wall of my bedroom. Although it makes me homesick I like to keep it there.
Then you sent me another picture of your church, which reached Tabriz before I did. That you probably sent the Christmas before.‍
Oh, for a good talk with you this morning, instead of writing, although I was just thinking yesterday, what a blessing the invention of writing is when one has to be so far away from one's folks and for so long a time. How terrible it would be to be separated from them if I couldn't get word from them. The Lord knows how hard it is anyway.
Sometimes, when I think if the time ever comes to be with you all again, it seems like a little taste of heaven.‍
The heat is getting quite intense, now, and with it plenty of flies, fleas and sand flies.
‍ ‍Although we have some of our windows covered with cheesecloth or netting, not having screen doors, the flies come in by the hundreds.
‍‍Our ‍floors ‍are ‍of ‍mud ‍except the kitchen, office and one room upstairs, which are of brick. The straw mats make a pretty good covering for the floor when water is sprinkled on to keep the dust from getting too thick in them. As ‍soon ‍as ‍I ‍got ‍to ‍Tabriz ‍I ‍found ‍some ‍one‍to ‍give ‍me ‍Kurdish ‍lessons. ‍ He is a Syrian but has lived in Soujbulak from a child. But since coming here where one would expect to get a teacher, I have been disappointed. There is one who had worked with Fossum who reads the Gospel well, and said he would be so glad if I would take him for a teacher.
He came twice, but complained that the gatekeeper does not like it that he comes and will hardly let him in. Then we heard that the Mullahs had made him sign some papers against coming to us, what truth there is in it is hard to tell. He did seem interested in the gospels.‍
The rumor came to us a while ago that some of the Mullahs had asked the government to have us expelled or they would have us killed. The military general had replied that if they killed us he would burn the city. That is the way rumors float around! Never can vouch for the truth of them.
Yesterday an army came marching to town from Tabriz, which they say is preparing to go out to fight Simko, the great Kurdish general. They had a machine gun carried by mules, and they even had a band. It wouldn't surprise me to find that we are facing some political upheaval again. Alma and I were awakened last night by the screams of a man in the direction of the governor's home near here. We could hear the continual lashing as he was being beaten. I heard the same kind of terrible sounds from there once when sitting on the roof, so I suppose it is one of their ways of cruel punishments.
It just made me sick, it sounds so awful.
Day before yesterday, right before breakfast, it was told me that two ‍orphan ‍girls ‍were ‍at ‍the ‍gate, ‍one about 13 and the other maybe 8 or 9, (even the grown-ups seldom know their age). ‍
Well, ‍I ‍said ‍I ‍would ‍take ‍them. ‍I ‍had ‍a ‍bolt ‍of ‍muslin ‍on ‍hand ‍so ‍I‍went ‍to ‍work ‍making ‍underwear ‍for ‍them. ‍Mrs. ‍Bachimont ‍helped ‍me ‍and‍donated ‍a ‍dress ‍for ‍the ‍bigger ‍one. ‍Their ‍heads ‍were ‍alive ‍with ‍bugs, and as I had a sore thumb, I had the gatekeeper cut their hair.‍
They took off their rags, had a bath and put on the clothes we had fixed for them. The smallest one wore a gingham dress of mine, which was too long, so I went to the bazaar for material and started a dress for her. But yesterday, lo and behold, a woman appeared and claimed the younger one as her child. So we had her put on her own clothes again and let her go. She seemed pretty disappointed, which was not to be wondered at as the servant declares that the child isa real orphan, but that this woman has had her as a servant. We were told while in Tabriz how difficult it would be to get orphans among the Kurds, as they are liable to have some one who takes them for the work they do.
There seems to be so many street children who say they have no parents, some Ajama and some Kurds, but it is so hard to know how much right we have to take them. The Kargozar (head of foreign affairs) says we must get a permit from headquarters in Teheran before beginning our work here. So we have been waiting for a reply from there.
When I think of the responsibility connected with taking charge of children it worries me. But I must leave all in God's hands to use me as He sees fit.
‍It looks discouraging when a bunch of women come to call, to find that all you can do is to join their shallow conversation. Not to be able to lift them to a higher level, that they may know of the one thing needful in life. With the men it is a little different. Many of them know how to read and often ask questions that will lead to religious conversation. Rev. Bachimont has already had some interesting talks with some of them.
‍The women are interested in knowing if you are married - if you are, how many children you have - if you are not, why are you not, etc. They are fond of pretty clothes and load themselves down with jewelry, bracelets - as many as eight or nine on one wrist.

Love to all and remember me in your prayers,
Hannah

Following the murder of Bachimont, the female staff of LOMS retreated to Tabriz, a major city to the north. It was not until 1924 that work resumed in Mahabad, under the direction of Dr. Herman Schalk of Danzig, Germany. The hospital flourished.

In 1925, Miss Martha Dahl joined Mr and Mrs Schalk, Miss Gudhart, Miss Fossum and Miss Schonhood.

A new epoch began for LOMS with the arrival of Rev. and Mrs. Henry Mueller on April 17, 1929. Mueller, like his predecessors, was a gifted linguist who loved the Kurdish people. His letters reveal his pleasure in discussing matters of faith with his neighbors:

"Last winter and spring we were very largely confined to activities in the city, consisting of personal visiting among the merchants in the bazaar and with their friends in their houses at night. In turn I had more callers and visitors last winter than ever before.

It is so much more interesting now and fascinating to know the great satisfaction in being able to sit with these mountain people, to converse quietly and confidentially, to know them heart to heart, and not as the outside world loves to brand them as a cruel and fierce people. Some perhaps are such, but is vastly more general to find in all that universal craving, the hunger that centuries of religion have failed to still, for that comforting message of restless souls which only the good news can give...

They are drawn by the wonderful parables so numerous in our Bible. It's the message, the good news, that ever elicits attention.

Those itinerant villagers fully grasped what many of the most learned teachers of religion cannot understand.
'Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.' St. Paul says: 'The natural man receiveeth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him.' St. James asks: 'Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, etc.?' Jesus quotes from Isaiah: 'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor.

'In 1935 the Persian government established a military zone that included Soujboulak. They asked all foreigners to leave the area. Looking the situation over carefully, the mission’s leaders decided to cross the line into Iraq, settling at Arbil, 125 miles west of Mosulin Iraqi Kurdistan.The mission maintained its base in Arbil until 1959, when the Iraq government ordered all foreigners out of Kurdistan.
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In the same year, Dr. and Mrs.Richard Gardiner began exploring Iran to identify a suitable location for a hospital. This was fulfilled in 1962 with the purchase of property in Gorveh. The Gardiners maintained the work at Gorveh until 1979, when the Iranian Revolution forced its closure.
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From 1980 until 1989, LOMS assisted work in Bangledesh pending reopening of the Kurdish field in 1991 during the First Persian Gulf War.