English Lake Church (North Judson, Indiana, USA)

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In 1948, members of the Hopewell Mennonite Church surveyed the English Lake community in Railroad Township, Starke County, Indiana for the presence of evangelical churches. Hopewell began a Summer Bible School in 1949 in an old four-room brick schoolhouse. That fall, the Hopewell congregation also began a Sunday school in English Lake. Emanuel S. Birky served as the superintendent until he was licensed as a minister in 1954.

In 1956, Hopewell bought the schoolhouse and lot, tore down the old school, and erected a new meetinghouse. The meetinghouse was dedicated on 20 April 1958. The congregation built a parsonage in 1974 and an addition to the meetinghouse the following year. The new congregation became the English Lake Mennonite Church.

In the 1970s, the charismatic movement profoundly impacted the English Lake congregation. Harold Gingerich of Topeka, Indiana, was instrumental in the early days of this. Paul Siddall, later a pastor in the congregation, led vanloads of hippies from Valparaiso to English Lake in those years.

During the following years, the English Lake congregation joined Salt & Light Ministries, an international network of congregations with a charismatic inclination. It planted two churches in the 1980s--Cornerstone Community Church in Kouts, Indiana, and Living Word Church in Know, Indiana. It also changed its name to English Lake Church.

In 1993, English Lake withdrew from the Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference of the Mennonite Church (MC). It then identified itself as a nondenominational church.

Bibliography

Preheim, Rich. In Pursuit of Faithfulness: Conviction, Conflict, and Compromise in Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference. Harrisonburg, Va.: Herald Press, 2016: 308.

Rooted: The Tour: The Story of English Lake Church. North Judson, Ind.: The Church, 2013?. Web. 11 May 2024. https://www.englishlakechurch.com/about-us/the-history-of-elc/.

Wenger, John Christian. The Mennonites in Indiana and Michigan. Scottdale, Pa.: Herald Press, 1961: 234.

Additional Information

Address: 500 Lane Street, North Judson, Indiana 46366

Phone: 574-896-5009

Website: https://www.englishlakechurch.com/

Denominational Affiliations: Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference (Until 1993)

Mennonite Church (MC) (Until 1993)

Pastoral Leaders at English Lake Church

Name Years
of Service
Emanuel S. Birky (1900-1993) 1949-1971
Arthur R. Good 1972-1990s?
Paul Siddall 1979?-1984?
Steven Lucas 1982-?
Scott Bradley 1989-?

English Lake Church Membership

Year Members
1960 26
1970 42
1980 92
1990 147


Author(s) Samuel J Steiner
Date Published May 2024

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "English Lake Church (North Judson, Indiana, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. May 2024. Web. 7 Oct 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=English_Lake_Church_(North_Judson,_Indiana,_USA)&oldid=178834.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (May 2024). English Lake Church (North Judson, Indiana, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 7 October 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=English_Lake_Church_(North_Judson,_Indiana,_USA)&oldid=178834.




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