Alaska Village Missions: The First 50 Years is a story of a man and his family seeking the will of God. Pastor Ray Arno left the small church he pastored in Wisconsin and made his way to the Alaskan frontier. Arno’s original intent was to serve in villages of Alaska, to see the Gospel message spread by whatever means possible. However, God had another plan in mind and would soon being to bring about the construction and birth of a Bible school in Homer, Alaska. Initially, God’s plan seemed to be a great struggle; however, as they patiently continued the work God had called them to, he provided resources, help, and the determination to stay the course. The stories and events that followed would not only stretch his faith and shock him, but they would also indelibly show off the power of the living God. God’s power remains in effect with Alaska Bible Institute, founded in 1965, and its parent organization, Alaska Village Mission, founded in ’64. Our hope in sharing this story is that it may bless, encourage, challenge, and inspire you to respond to the call God has for your life.

A vivid, “thoughtful” account of the territorial government’s campaign to convert Alaska Natives and suppress their culture (Alaska History). Near the turn of the twentieth century, the territorial government of Alaska put its support behind a project led by Christian missionaries to convert Alaska Native peoples—and, along the way, bring them into “civilized” American citizenship. Establishing missions in a number of areas inhabited by Alaska Natives, the program was an explicit attempt to erase ten thousand years of Native culture and replace it with Christianity and an American frontier ethic. Anthony Urvina, whose mother was an orphan raised at one of the missions established as part of this program, draws on details from her life in order to present the first full history of this missionary effort. Smoothly combining personal and regional history, he tells the story of his mother’s experience amid a fascinating account of Alaska Native life and of the men and women who came to Alaska to spread the word of Christ, confident in their belief and unable to see the power of the ancient traditions they aimed to supplant

A collection of documents from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries documenting how Orthodox priests and lay Russians converted the Aleutian people of Kodiak Island and in the Yukon Delta in Alaska. Demonstrates how the Christians correlated traditional Orthodox Christian doctrine with the beliefs of the Alaska Natives.

Summarizes the research conducted in Alaska from 1982 to 1984 on Christian missions based on the "Christian understanding of the nature of revelation and the meaning of salvation."

This comprehensive and illustrated volume is both a rich history of the Catholic Church in Alaska, and the autobiography of Fr. Louis Renner, S.J., who was a dedicated missionary in Alaska for 40 years. He tells here a compelling story of a full and fascinating life in service of the people and the Church of Alaska amid the incredible natural beauties, challenging elements and vast regions of the Great Land. Beautifully interweaving the history of the people and Church in Alaska, Fr. Renner tells his story of a dedicated missionary priest who loved the people he served. A scholar, a teacher, and always a Jesuit priest, he taught German and Latin at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, edited the Catholic newsletter The Alaskan Shepherd, and ran missions at two different Indian villages on the Yukon River. This pastoral priest became a friend to people in all sectors of Alaskan society. Tony Knows, the governor of Alaska, even presented him with the "Governor's Award for Friend of the Humanities". The outline of Fr. Renner's life is fleshed-out richly in A Kindly Providence. One reviewer writes that "all is there, a clear picture of his life. Renner is a very good writer- technically competent and very interesting. He kept this reader's interest throughout the 500-plus page book. I really wanted to see how it ended." Another writes: "Once I started to read it, I couldn't put it down. I had to finish it." Rich in detail, this book is a wonderful testimony to a model life of a happy priest in the twentieth century. The book is based, not only on Fr. Renner's remarkable memory, but also on his personal diaries and correspondence, on official documents, and on accounts written by him of his unusual adventures during over forty years in Alaska. Substantial quotes from diaries, letters, and official documents give readers a feeling of being actually present at those events in far-off places. The many photographs illustrating the narrative lend an air of immediacy and give us a vicarious experience of the author's personal life.