Mennonite Church Alberta

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Major changes took place in Mennonite Church Alberta during the last half of the 20th century. In 1950 there were seven member congregations, all but one located in the rural areas of the province, and all served by unpaid lay ministers. By 1998 the conference numbered 21 affiliated congregations, with a total membership of 1,918. Each congregation was served by a professionally trained, salaried minister. In 2000 several congregations, including the large Coaldale Mennonite Church, withdrew from the conference over issues of congregational discipline, especially on the matter of congregational acceptance of homosexual members. In 2009 the conference numbered 17 congregations.

The six rural congregations affiliated with the conference in 1950 were, for the most part, little changed in membership and character in 1986. The exception was the Coaldale Mennonite Church, which is so close to a large urban center that many of its members work in the city. The newer congregations are located in urban centers. The lifestyle and form of worship in these congregations differs little from that found in other urban Protestant churches.

Menno Bible Institute, formally established in 1935, closed in 1966 for lack of enrollment. It had a profound influence on the conference during its 30-year history. The Alberta Conference then joined the Saskatchewan Conference of Mennonites in support of the Bible School at Swift Current, which has now closed as well. Interest in camping grew rapidly in the 1950s. In 1958 and 1959, 166 acres (67 hectares) on the Little Red River were purchased to establish a camp. Camp Valaqua has been developed so that it is suitable for both summer and winter programs. A retirement home was constructed in Coaldale in 1955 at a cost of $19,500. Most of the work was done by volunteer labor. The facility has been renovated several times since then and houses 14 residents (1987).

The conference has shared responsibilities in a number of other projects. It has given annual financial support to Rosthern Junior College and has appointed members to its board of directors. It actively participates in Mennonite Central Committee Alberta (MCCA and, in 1990, was directly involved in the Youth Orientation Unity, an MCC project at Warburg, which endeavored to rehabilitate youth offenders placed there by the attorney general's office.

Mennonite Church Alberta adopted its name in February 2002 when a new constitution was approved. Prior to that it was known as the Conference of Mennonites in Alberta.

2010 Update

In 2010 the following congregations were members of Mennonite Church Alberta:

Congregation Location
Bergthal Mennonite Church Didsbury
Calgary Chinese Mennonite Church Calgary
Calgary First Mennonite Church Calgary
Calgary Vietnamese Mennonite Church Calgary
Camrose Mennonite Fellowship Camrose
Edmonton Chinese Mennonite Church Edmonton
Edmonton First Mennonite Church Edmonton
Edmonton Vietnamese Mennonite Church Edmonton
Foothills Mennonite Church Calgary
Holyrood Mennonite Church Edmonton
Lao Community Mennonite Church Calgary
Lethbridge Mennonite Church Lethbridge
Rosemary Mennonite Church Rosemary
Springridge Mennonite Church Pincher Creek
Tofield Mennonite Church Tofield
Trinity Mennonite Church Calgary
Word of Life Mennonite Church Calgary

Bibliography

CMC Directory 1998. Winnipeg: Conference of Mennonites in Canada, 1998: 87.

Mennonite Directory 2001. Scottdale, PA: Faith and Life Resources, 2001: 19-21.

Reimer, Margaret Loewen, ed., One Quilt, Many Pieces. Waterloo, ON: Mennonite Publishing Service, 1983: 51.

Schmidt, Doris Mendel, ed. Handbook of Information 1998.  Newton, KS: General Conference Mennonite Church, 1998: 103-104.

Additional Information

Website: Mennonite Church Alberta

Mennonite Church Alberta Conference Sessions: 1930-1980

Date Place Chairman Vice-Chairman Secretary
November 1930 Rosemary Cornelius D. Harder P. P. Dyck
November 1931 Didsbury Wilhelm Martens John J. Sawatzky
November 1932 Coaldale Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John J. Sawatzky
November 1933 Gem Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John J. Sawatzky
October 1934 Didsbury Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John J. Sawatzky
November 1935 Coaldale Wilhelm Martens Cornelius D. Harder John J. Sawatzky
July 1936 Rosemary Wilhelm Martens P. P. Dyck John J. Sawatzky
March 1937 Springridge Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John J. Sawatzky
March 1938 Didsbury Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John J. Sawatzky
March 1939 Coaldale D. Janzen Wilhelm Martens John Vogt
March 1940 Tofield D. Janzen Wilhelm Martens John Vogt
March 1941 Rosemary Wilhelm Martens John J. Sawatzky John Vogt
March 1942 Coaldale John J. Sawatzky Wilhelm Martens John Vogt
March 1943 Didsbury Wilhelm Martens John J. Sawatzky John Vogt
March 1944 Rosemary Wilhelm Martens D. Janzen John Vogt
March 1945 Tofield D. Janzen John Vogt
March 1946 Grantham D. Janzen J. D. Nickel John Vogt
March 1947 Coaldale D. Janzen J. D. Nickel John J. Sawatzky
March 1948 Rosemary J. D. Nickel Cornelius G. Neufeld John J. Sawatzky
March 1949 Didsbury J. D. Nickel Wilhelm Pauls John J. Sawatzky
March 1950 Springridge J. D. Nickel Wilhelm Pauls John J. Sawatzky
March 1951 Coaldale J. D. Nickel Wilhelm Pauls John J. Sawatzky
March 1952 Tofield J. D. Nickel Wilhelm Pauls D. P. Neufeld
March 1953 Coaldale J. D. Nickel Wilhelm Pauls D. P. Neufeld
March 1954 Rosemary Wilhelm Pauls D. Boese Peter A. Unger
March 1955 Gem Wilhelm Pauls P. Schellenberg Peter A. Unger
March 1956 Calgary Wilhelm Pauls P. Schellenberg Peter A. Unger
March 1957 Didsbury Wilhelm Pauls P. Schellenberg Peter A. Unger
March 1958 Tofield Wilhelm Pauls F. W. Dyck Peter A. Unger
April 1959 Coaldale Wilhelm Pauls F. W. Dyck Peter A. Unger
April 1960 Calgary Wilhelm Pauls F. W. Dyck Peter A. Unger
April 1961 Rosemary Wilhelm Pauls F. W. Dyck Peter A. Unger
April 1962 Didsbury Wilhelm Pauls F. W. Dyck Peter A. Unger
April 1963 Tofield F. W. Dyck D. Boese J. D. Nickel
April 1964 Coaldale F. W. Dyck C. L. Dick A. Baergen
April 1965 Calgary 1st F. W. Dyck C. L. Dick H. D. Goerzen
April 1966 Rosemary H. Walde C. L. Dick H. D. Goerzen
April 1967 Calgary F.H. H. Walde C. L. Dick H. D. Goerzen
April 1968 Edmonton H. Walde J. Wiebe H. D. Goerzen
April 1969 Vauxhall E. J. Harder J. Wiebe H. D. Goerzen
April 1970 Didsbury E. J. Harder J. Wiebe H. D. Goerzen
April 1971 Taber E. J. Harder H. M. Dick H. D. Goerzen
April 1972 Tofield Werner Froese H. M. Dick H. D. Goerzen
April 1973 Coaldale Werner Froese H. M. Dick E. Klassen
April 1974 Calgary 1st Werner Froese E. L. Dyck E. Klassen
March 1975 Rosemary Jacob D. Harder E. L. Dyck E. Klassen
April 1976 Calgary F.H. Jacob D. Harder F. David Dyck E. Klassen
April 1977 Edmonton Jacob D. Harder F. David Dyck E. Klassen
April 1978 Didsbury Jacob D. Harder F. David Dyck E. Klassen
April 1979 Rosemary Jacob D. Harder F. David Dyck D. Reimer
April 1980 Tofield Jacob D. Harder W. Wiebe D. Reimer


Author(s) C. Lorne Dick
Samuel J. Steiner
Date Published July 2010

Cite This Article

MLA style

Dick, C. Lorne and Samuel J. Steiner. "Mennonite Church Alberta." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. July 2010. Web. 22 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Mennonite_Church_Alberta&oldid=165868.

APA style

Dick, C. Lorne and Samuel J. Steiner. (July 2010). Mennonite Church Alberta. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 22 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Mennonite_Church_Alberta&oldid=165868.



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Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 5, p. 181. All rights reserved.


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