Landis Valley Christian Fellowship (Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA)
The first Mennonites in Landis Valley, who came about 1718, worshiped at first with their brethren at Lampeter, but by 1728 in the homes of John Jacob Snavely and John Long. The Benjamin Landis house, formerly the Snavely dwelling on the Reading Road, and Isaac Long's spacious buildings, were frequent meeting points. The latter was also the scene of the meeting in 1767 when the United Brethren Church originated. By 1814 there were four combined church-school houses at Lehn, Landis, Rudy, and Frick. Since these schools were functioning well, they opposed the 1834 Pennsylvania School Law. In fact the central meetinghouse was not built until 1847, leaving the former for school purposes. This church, called "Reading Road" for 60 years, was built of logs in the present cemetery near the Eden Road. In 1884 a brick meeting house, 40 x 60 ft., was built on the present site through the courtesy of Isaac S. Landis. This served the congregation until 1928, when the present 54 x 96 ft. church was built. Valentine Metzler was an early bishop. In 1832 it became a part of the Hammer Creek Bishop District, with Noah L. Landis (1857-1940), the only bishop ever chosen from the congregation. The first Sunday school, held in 1888, led to a Christian and Missionary Alliance schism in 1892. Amos S. Horst and Mahlon Zimmerman were bishops in 1956, Ira D. Landis and Levi M. Weaver ministers, and Norman L. Hess deacon. The 1953 membership was 256. Until the 1870s, services were held every four weeks in the morning, then until the 1920s every two weeks, at first in the evenings, but since the 1940s in the morning. The Sunday school started in the afternoon fortnightly (warmer months only), then in the morning before church, then weekly in the morning, whether "church Sunday" or not. Since the gas rationing of the early 1940s, both Sunday school and church services have been held weekly in the morning.
Additional Information
Address:
2420 Kissel Hill Road
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Phone:
717-569-6051
Denominational Affiliations:
Lancaster Mennonite Conference
| Author(s) | Ira D Landis |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1957 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Landis, Ira D. "Landis Valley Christian Fellowship (Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 18 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Landis_Valley_Christian_Fellowship_(Lancaster,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=116777.
APA style
Landis, Ira D. (1957). Landis Valley Christian Fellowship (Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 18 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Landis_Valley_Christian_Fellowship_(Lancaster,_Pennsylvania,_USA)&oldid=116777.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 282. All rights reserved.
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