Crossings Community Church (Manheim, Pennsylvania, USA)
The Erisman Mennonite Church near Manheim, Pennsylvania, first met in the 18th century, but the beginning date is unknown. The congregation's first meetinghouse was built in 1798 on land belonging to Abraham Erisman, which he sold to the Mennonite Society the following year. The congregation used this meetinghouse until 1891, when it built a 50' x 75' brick meetinghouse that opened on 31 August 1891. This building was remodeled in 1956. Services were held every two weeks; in the early 1900s, it was held on Saturday evenings alternating with Sunday mornings.
For many years in the second half of the 19th century and early 20th century, Erisman was in Bishop Jacob N. Brubacher's district of the Lancaster Mennonite Conference, known as the Landisville-Mount Joy-Manheim District. Later, the district became simply the Manheim District.
In 1878, Brubacher tried to introduce English preaching at Erisman, but the members voted by a vote of 30 to 28 to retain German preaching. Sunday school began at Erisman in 1908.
In 2018, the church experienced significant flooding, making its basement unusable for a year.
In October 2021, the congregation changed its name to Crossings Community Church as part of a re-visioning for the church.
Bibliography
Bauman, Norman W. "A history of the Manheim Bishop District, the Rapho Mennonite Meetinghouse, also known as the Lehman but now Hernley Meetinghouse." Mennonite Historical Bulletin 19, no. 4 (October 1958): 1-2, 4-6.
Landis, Ira D. "The life and work of Jacob N. Brubacher 1838-1913." Mennonite Historical Bulletin 2, no. 1 (April 1941): 1-2, 4.
Ruth, John L. The Earth is the Lord's: a narrative history of the Lancaster Mennonite Conference. Scottdale, Pa.: Herald Press, 2001: 1138-1169.
Weaver, Martin G. Mennonites of Lancaster Conference: containing biographical sketches of Mennonite leaders, histories of congregations, missions, and Sunday schools, record of ordinations, and other interesting historical data. Scottdale, PA: Mennonite Publishing House, 1931. Reprinted Ephrata, PA: Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church Publication Board, 1982: 203-204, 287. Available in full electronic text at https://archive.org/details/mennonitesoflanc00weav_0/page/n3/mode/2up.
Additional Information
Address: 8 South Erisman Road Manheim, Pennsylvania 17545
Phone: 717-653-4791
Website: https://crossingscc.org/
Denominational Affiliations:
LMC: a Fellowship of Anabaptist Churches
Mennonite Church USA (Until 2017)
Pastoral Leaders at Crossings Community Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| District Ministers | 1790s?-1907 |
| Isaac H. Brubaker (1858-1933) (Bishop) |
1907-1921 1921-1933 |
| Peter R. Nissley (1863-1921)(Bishop) | 1911-1921 |
| Martin G. Metzler (1892-1971) | 1923-1968 |
| John S. Eby (1902-1958) | 1945-1958 |
| Hiram "H. Howard" Witmer (1925-2019) (Bishop) |
1959-1966 1966-1990s |
| Norman G. Shenk | 1963-1999 |
| Andrew G. Miller, Jr. | 1968-2000s? |
| Chester I. Kurtz (1934-2003)(Interim) | 1989-1991? |
| Eric B. Henderson | 1991-2001? |
| John O. Yoder | 2003?-2009 |
| William Blank (Interim) | 2010-2013? |
| Neal Benedict (Associate) | 2013-2016 |
| Karl McKinney | 2014-2020 |
| Jonathan Sauder (Associate) | 2017-2019 |
| Richard Nolt | 2021- |
| Calvin Bucher (Assistant) | 2024- |
Crossings Community Church Membership
| Year | Members |
|---|---|
| 1913 | 200 |
| 1920 | 175 |
| 1930 | 145 |
| 1940 | 162 |
| 1950 | 195 |
| 1960 | 191 |
| 1970 | 243 |
| 1980 | 247 |
| 1990 | 258 |
| 2000 | 243 |
| 2009 | 224 |
Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article
By Ira D. Landis. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 2, p. 244. All rights reserved.
Erisman Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church) formerly met in a meetinghouse built in 1798 on lands of Abraham Erisman in Rapho Township on the Mt. Joy-Manheim Road, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania In 1891 the present brick church was built. The congregation of 214 (1953), belonging to the Lancaster Mennonite Conference, was a conservative growing fellowship which still bore the impress of the work of Bishop Jacob N. Brubacher (died 1913).
In 1953 Henry E. Lutz and Homer D. Bomberger were the bishops, Martin G. Metzler and John S. Eby the ministers, and Harvey E. Metzler the deacon. Missionaries Elam and Grace Metzler Stauffer in Africa and the Elam Hollingers in Alabama are from this congregation.
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | December 2024 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Crossings Community Church (Manheim, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. December 2024. Web. 30 Apr 2025. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Crossings_Community_Church_(Manheim,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=180094.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (December 2024). Crossings Community Church (Manheim, Pennsylvania, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 30 April 2025, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Crossings_Community_Church_(Manheim,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=180094.
©1996-2025 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.