One morning in mid-February, a fire decimated the sanctuary of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Duluth — its curved pews, the painting above the altar. Firefighters had to smash the stained glass windows.

"It is a loss," said Pastor David Carlson, who has led the church for a decade. "There's a long history of ministry in that space. It's a space full of memories and beauty."

But the church is not its building, he added, and the congregation is carrying on with its worship and work.

Congregants have continued to hold free, monthly breakfasts at a nearby Catholic church in the central hillside neighborhood. They have worshiped at another Lutheran church on Duluth's east side. They have accepted contributions from businesses, churches, neighbors.

"It's just really humbling to experience the generosity of people in a culture where no one wants to be needy," Carlson said. "And all of a sudden, you find yourself relying on the generosity of neighbors and friends."

The church plans to rebuild in the same location, at Sixth Avenue E. and Third Street, and hopes to make use of what remains of the grand, Gothic-style structure built in 1906.

Pastor David Carlson, left, and church staff member Karen Kjolhaug, center, watched in despair with others as the blaze raged on.

"While different people may have left the center of the city," Carlson said, "Gloria Dei would continually reaffirm that God has a mission for us here."

Gloria Dei was the founding church behind CHUM, a human services agency now sponsored by 39 churches. "Gloria Dei is where it started," said Lee Stuart, the nonprofit's executive director.

The church's worship services have always been welcoming, Stuart said, but its service work extends beyond the sanctuary. Congregants contributed to the food shelf, backpack drives, and a new supportive housing complex for families experiencing long-term homelessness. When CHUM's shelter overflowed with homeless people needing help, Gloria Dei took them in, converting its Sunday school rooms into makeshift bedrooms.

"The church is not the building," Stuart said, "but it's very, very, very, very important. It's a traumatic event."

Officials estimated the damage at $900,000. This month, the Duluth Fire Marshal's office determined that the fire was accidental — caused by electrical wiring.

After starting in the space above the lower level's plaster ceiling, the fire "burned undetected for hours before smoke reached a smoke detector on the drop ceiling," the office said in a news release. Firefighters responded about 5:30 a.m. Neighbors and parishioners gathered on the street, crying and hugging as the building burned.

"You want to be there, but you don't want to be there," said Carol Kelley, 79, a longtime member of Gloria Dei who was confirmed and married in its sanctuary. "It's like a home, in a way. You begin to feel a part of it, and it's a part of you."

Founded by Swedish immigrants in 1870, the church counts about 330 members and attracts about 115 to its Sunday worship.

After the fire, members held a vigil, singing hymns such as "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" and "Built on a Rock the Church will Stand." Kelley, a retired elementary teacher, has taken comfort in gathering for Wednesday night Lenten services. On March 19, a month after the fire, a prayer service will be held in the parking lot outside the charred church.

"We will hang together as a community … with the sure and certain faith that something will come from this," Stuart said. While it would be naive to believe the church is better for the fire, she added, "we are becoming stronger because of this.

"When you have a whole faith that's premised on resurrection, it leads to that."

Jenna Ross • 612-673-7168