Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church (Millbank, Ontario, Canada)
The Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church was organized in 1957 as a schism from the Riverdale Amish Mennonite Church, in which the bishop, Valentine Nafziger, took a more conservative position on nonconformity in attire and withdrew with a like-minded group. The membership in 1958 was 69, with Nafziger as bishop and Kenneth Brenneman as minister. The Bethel group built its own meetinghouse in 1958.
In 2014 the ministerial team included Bishop Peter Shantz and Deacon Howard Lichty.
Continuing loss of members finally led the congregation to close its doors in 2014. The building was taken over by the Milverton Conservative Mennonite Fellowship, a congregation that emerged from an earlier internal division.
Milverton congregation took the name Bethel Conservative Mennonite Fellowship.
Bibliography
Cressman, Kenneth. "The Development of the Conservative Mennonite Church of Ontario." 1976. Mennonite Archives of Ontario.
Mennonite Church Directory 2014. Harrisonburg, VA: Christian Light Publications, Inc., 2014: 96.
Additional Information
Address: 3968 William Hastings Road, Millbank, Ontario
Phone:
Denominational Affiliation:
Conservative Mennonite Fellowship (1956-1970)
Midwest Mennonite Fellowship (1980-2014)
Nationwide Fellowship Churches
Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church Membership
| Year | Members |
|---|---|
| 1965 | 86 |
| 1975 | 50 |
| 1985 | 52 |
| 1995 | 69 |
| 1999 | 43 |
| 2007 | 50 |
| 2014 | 40 |
Maps
Map:Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church (Millbank, Ontario)
| Author(s) | Orland Gingerich |
|---|---|
| Marlene Epp | |
| Samuel J. Steiner | |
| Date Published | October 2014 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Gingerich, Orland, Marlene Epp and Samuel J. Steiner. "Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church (Millbank, Ontario, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. October 2014. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bethel_Conservative_Mennonite_Church_(Millbank,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=165886.
APA style
Gingerich, Orland, Marlene Epp and Samuel J. Steiner. (October 2014). Bethel Conservative Mennonite Church (Millbank, Ontario, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Bethel_Conservative_Mennonite_Church_(Millbank,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=165886.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 1065. All rights reserved.
©1996-2024 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.