A checked version of this page, approved on 12 July 2023, was based on this revision.

The vision for Bethel Church, Wayland, Iowa, began in 1948 when the Sugar Creek Mennonite Church reached the physical limits of its building. At its annual meeting on 3 January 1949, the congregation appointed three persons to survey the congregation and community to identify a place to build another church. Glen Wenger donated land three miles north of Wayland, where the new building was constructed. The congregation dedicated the new building on 29 January 1950, and 135 members transferred from Sugar Creek to Bethel. Most of these members lived north of the Wayland railroad tracks. Bethel became part of the Iowa-Nebraska Conference of the Mennonite Church (MC).

Sugar Creek and Bethel shared four ministers on a "round robin" basis until 1953. When Vernon Gerig was ordained as bishop to assist Simon Gingerich, Willard Leichty became the minister for Sugar Creek, and Vernon Roth the minister for Bethel. When Roth left for the new Eureka congregation, Leichty became Bethel's pastor. He was ordained as bishop on 8 November 1959.

In the 1970s, Bethel's pastor, Richard Wenger, was close to the charismatic renewal movement that greatly influenced the Mennonite church in North America. He had personally experienced charismatic renewal while a student at Eastern Mennonite Seminary. A portion of the congregation supported this movement.

On 29 August 2015, the Bethel Mennonite Church voted to leave the Central Plains Conference of Mennonite Church USA. In the following years, it changed its name to Bethel Church.

Bibliography

Author(s)	Samuel J Steiner
Date Published	March 2023

Sugar Creek Mennonite Church 1871-1971: Centennial year of original building. Wayland, Iowa: The Church, 1971.

Yoder, Holly Blosser. The same spirit: History of Iowa-Nebraska Mennonites. Freeman, S.D.: Central Plains Mennonite Conference, 2003: 156, 221-222, 269.

Additional Information

Address: 3185 Wayland Road, Wayland, Iowa

Phone: 319-256-8531

Website: Bethel Mennonite Church

Denominational Affiliations:

Pastoral Leaders at Bethel Church

Name	Years of Service
Simon Gingerich (1882-1971)(Bishop)(with Sugar Creek)	1950-1959
Vernon E. Roth (1909-1992)(with Sugar Creek)	1950-1958
Vernon S. Gerig (1907-1988)(with Sugar Creek) (Bishop)	1950-1953 1953-1959
Willard R. Leichty (1906-1988)(with Sugar Creek) (Bishop)	1950-1953 1958-1971?
Richard Wenger	1970-1976
Oliver O. Yutzy (1934-2021)	1976-1985
Kenneth F. Steckly (1939-2021)	1986?-1993
Herbert L. Yoder (1929-2021)(Interim)	1993-1994
Duane Roth	1994-1996?
Phil L. Slabaugh	1996-2010
Brad Gillis	2011-2014
Scott Johnson (Interim)	2014-2015
Curt Kuhns	2015-
Nathan Grieser (Youth)	2022?-

Membership at Bethel Church

Year	Membership
1950	135
1960	175
1970	205
1980	203
1990	194
2000	170
2009	215

Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article

The Bethel Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church USA) is located 3 ½ miles (5 km) north of Wayland in Washington County, Iowa. The church was dedicated 29 January 1950. The meetinghouse was built to accommodate the expanding Sugar Creek Church, near Wayland. Four ministers served it and the Sugar Creek Church jointly for several years. In 1951 the membership attending the Bethel Church totaled 130.

1959 Willard Leichty was released from Sugar Creek Mennonite Church to serve as pastor at the Bethel Church and on 8 November of that year he was ordained as bishop of the church.

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "Bethel Church (Wayland, Iowa, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. March 2023. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bethel_Church_(Wayland,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=176267.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (March 2023). Bethel Church (Wayland, Iowa, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bethel_Church_(Wayland,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=176267.

Bethel Church (Wayland, Iowa, USA)

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