The Hurst family has a rich heritage of missionary service. One of
the memorable missionaries is the stepson of my Great Grandfather Samuel Harris
Hurst.
When Samuel married his second wife, Minnie Klossner Risenmay, the
missionary zeal of the Hurst family was combined with the missionary spirit of
the Risenmay family. Minnie's first husband, Christian Risenmay had served in
the Swiss German Mission, while she maintained the home front, caring for their
four children during his absence. Here is Christian's Missionary Certificate
signed by Wilford Woodruff in 1895.
Christian and Minnie's son, George Henry, followed directly in his
father's footsteps. Can you imagine the family's joy and trepidation as he
received his call to the Swiss German mission as well, particularly in view of the threat of war. One of my all-time
favorite photos is of George as a young missionary in 1913.
His "Minister's Certificate" (shown below) was signed by
Joseph F. Smith in 1912.
The missionary adventures of George in Germany would make an
interesting movie plot.
To understand and appreciate his experiences, we must
remember what was happening in the world in 1913 when he entered the mission
field. Tension was high in Germany as political, territorial and economic conflicts
escalated through an extended series of diplomatic clashes. Suspicions brewed
about spies infiltrating the governmental circles in Germany. Such was the
political climate when George was sent to labor in Germany.
We must not imagine a modern day scenario of a young missionary departing home to step into the arms of a waiting mission president. On the first day that he and his companion arrived in Frankfort, no
one came to meet them. They had been instructed to go to a certain location to
meet with church leaders, but no one was there at the address given them.
Unsure of how to proceed they sought lodging in a hotel and luckily as they
headed out the next morning a young Latter-day saint girl recognized them and
led them to where the Elders had moved. They had probably relocated to escape police detection.
Unlike missionaries
in recent years, the missionaries of the early 1900's were left to their own
methods to learn a foreign language. George would write in his notebook what we
wanted to say in English. Then he would ask a German-speaking missionary to
translate it and he would memorize the translation. This method proved quite
effective. He wrote in his journal that his first Sunday in Germany he spoke in
English, but by the second Sunday he spoke in German. His diligent study and
work paid off for he became proficient enough in German to function as the
branch president in Bielefeld before the end of his first year.
The American missionaries
were licensed through the German government to preach, yet due to the political
unrest and distrust of foreigners, they were constantly harassed by the
police. In was necessary to conduct baptisms of new converts under the
cover of darkness to escape detection by the authorities. If caught gathering, they would be banished from the city.
The first week that
George was in Braunschewig, the police detained him at the meeting house and
gave him 1 1/2 hours to pack his clothing, settle up his rent and be on his way
out of the city, or go to jail. The police accompanied George to his boarding
house and informed the landlady that he was a Mormon, and was being banished.
She tried unsuccessfully to sway the cop, telling him that the missionaries
were fine gentlemen, but the officer did not relent, saying he was just
following orders to get the missionaries out of town or lock them up.
In large measure George's mission was spent seeking refuge, fleeing from
area to area to escape prosecution. When banishing missionaries from a city,
the cops would take note of the direction of their departure and then
notify the authorities in the next town that Mormons were on the way. This made
proselyting next to impossible as they would be picked up immediately upon
arrival in the district. To thwart this tactic of the police, George would
purchase a ticket going in the opposite direction from his intended destination
and double back, skirting the city. In many areas of the mission only German-born
elders were assigned to preach as they were safe from banishment.
This focus on the Mormons by the police had little to do with
religion and everything to do with political suspicions and distrust of foreign
businessmen. The elders had the appearance of English businessmen.
Several times George recorded going early to church meetings and
locking himself in a closet close to the pulpit, where he could hear the
service. He longed to participate but knew he would not be safe preaching, for
the police would attend the meeting, sitting in the back to watch for
American-born missionaries.
As the beginning of World War I approached, while tracting in
Hannover on June 12, 1914, George was arrested. He was meeting with a potential
convert, explaining the gospel to her in her fourth floor apartment. She had
warned him that there were many listening ears in her building that would
report him, but his desire to share the gospel message exceeded his fear. He
had just been there a little while when a heavy knock came on the door. A
big cop in uniform stood there and just said, "he is a Mormon" and
told George to follow him. He was taken to police headquarters where he was
given twenty-four hours to leave town. The policeman bade him good-bye and said
he was sorry, but had to do what he had done.
The American Consul in Berlin eventually recommended that the
missionaries cease tracting for their own safety as suspicions increased and
news of war spread . The recommendation was well founded as George and his
companion had been arrested as English spies twice and had been released after
showing their American passports.
July 28, 1914, World
War I officially was declared. The young elders watched the conflict escalate
as the Germans mobilized and trainloads of soldiers left for the battle lines.
Later, they watched the trains return filled with wounded soldiers coming back
from the front.
When all Americans
were ordered to leave Germany there were so many trying to get out of the
country that it became very difficult to get passage.
The Mission
President gave instructions to the elders of what must be done before leaving.
They were to set apart German members to take over the leadership of the
branches, baptize any applicants, and organize the new leaders to carry on
without missionaries. George expressed great sadness with this
assignment. Leaving the good German saints he had grown to love without
missionary leaders to build and strengthen their young faith in this time of
trouble was a bitter task, but it had to be done.
Before he could
leave, it was necessary for George to return to Berlin to complete departure
paperwork. On his way there he was arrested once more and taken to police
headquarters. Fearful of being detained, George was relieved when the
authorities apologized after checking his papers. They told him to go home and
have the U.S. join them in whipping France, England and Russia as those nations
were trying to conquer all of Europe. The United States was not yet aligned with
the Allies at this time.
Finally, on Sept. 13, 1914, George left Berlin and traveled to
London where he met the Conference President. Some of the fleeing
missionaries were reassigned to other fields of labor and others were released
to go home. George was in the latter category, returning to America after
twenty-two months of service.
He sailed for home on the big ship Lusitania on October 3, 1914, in
the third class section.
The Lusitania was
attacked by a German U-boat the following year, sinking in only 18 minutes, an
event that contributed to the United States' entry into the war.
George's perilous missionary experiences led him to rely on the
Spirit for his safety and protection. This practice of prayer and faith stayed
with him the remainder of his life as he continued to serve the Lord in many
capacities, including being the Bishop of the Woodville, Idaho, Ward for
twenty-four years.
