Lifepoint Church (Manson, Iowa, USA)
Source: Mennonite Community Photograph Collection, The Congregation (HM4-134 Box 1 photo 010.6-15a).
Mennonite Church USA Archives, Goshen, Indiana.
The Cedar Creek Amish Mennonite Church, Manson, Iowa, USA, organized on 9 October 1897. At that time, the small group still met in homes and was served by visiting preachers.
In April 1899, Joseph Eigsti was elected and ordained as the first local preacher.
The congregation erected its first church building in 1903--a frame structure two and one-half miles southwest of Manson on land donated by Joseph A. Zehr. The church was dedicated on 20 December 1903. In 1913, the congregation decided to build a new church in the town. Although the formal name of the church did not change, it was frequently called the Manson Mennonite Church.
The Cedar Creek congregation was progressive, worshipping in English within its few first years. It also attracted quite a number of members who were not of Amish or Mennonite background.
It became a member of the Iowa-Nebraska Mennonite Conference in 1921.
In June 1979, a tornado ripped through Manson, demolishing much of the town, including the sanctuary. For the next two years, the congregation held services in the Manson Catholic Church.
In June 1981, the present building was completed. In August 1997, the church celebrated its 100th Year Anniversary.
As part of the realignment of the Mennonite Church (MC) and General Conference Mennonite Church into Mennonite Church USA, Manson Mennonite was among the congregations that joined the new Central Plains Mennonite Conference in 2000.
In June 2021 Manson Mennonite Church withdrew from the Central Plains Conference of Mennonite Church USA. Before the end of 2021, Manson Mennonite changed its name to Lifepoint Church.
Bibliography
Gingerich, Melvin. The Mennonites in Iowa: marking the one-hundredth anniversary of the coming of the Mennonites to Iowa. Iowa City, Iowa: The State Historical Society of Iowa, 1939: 329-333.
Hege, Christian and Christian Neff. Mennonitisches Lexikon, 4 vols.Frankfurt & Weierhof: Hege; Karlsruhe: Schneider, 1913-1967: v. I, 336.
Lifepoint Church. "Our History." 20123. Web. 30 May 2023. https://lifepointmanson.com/our-history
Yoder, Holly Blosser. The same spirit: History of Iowa-Nebraska Mennonites. Freeman, S.D.: Central Plains Mennonite Conference, 2003.
Additional Information
Address: PO Box 627, Manson, Iowa 50563-0627
Location: 1310 8th Street, Manson Iowa
Phone: 712-469-3387
Website: https://lifepointmanson.com/
Denominational Affiliations: Central Plains Mennonite Conference (until 2021)
Mennonite Church USA (until 2021)
Pastoral Leaders at Lifepoint Church
| Name | Years of Service |
|---|---|
| Visiting ministers | 1897-1899 |
| Joseph Eigsti (1870-1931) | 1899-1931 |
| Andrew Zehr (1839-1915) | 1902-1915 |
| David D. Zehr (1864-1924) (Bishop) |
1902-1909 1909-1924 |
| Joseph Egli (1852-1915) | 1910-1915 |
| John W. Hess (1884-1958) | 1919-1925 |
| Nicholas M. Stoltzfus (1895-1981) | 1924-1974 |
| Amon R. Egli (1896-1933) | 1926-1933 |
| John D. Zehr (1922-1966) | 1946-1949 |
| Edward Birkey (1908-1979)(Bishop) | 1948-1961 |
| Jason "James" Detweiler (1926-1994) (Bishop) |
1964-1967 1967-1971 |
| Walter E. Smeltzer (Bishop) | 1971-1977 |
| Irvin A. Nussbaum (1925-2014)(Bishop) | 1977-1982 |
| Herbert L. Yoder | 1982-1985? |
| Scott Swartzendruber | 1985?-1987? |
| John R. Smucker (1932-2006) | 1987-1989 |
| Curtis E. Kuhns | 1989-2010 |
| Orlan Koehn (Interim) | 2010-2011 |
| Aaron Carlson | 2011-2017 |
| Steve Bachman | 2019- |
| Brenda Bachman | 2019- |
Membership at Lifepoint Church
| Year | Membership |
|---|---|
| 1921 | 210 |
| 1930 | 245 |
| 1940 | 260 |
| 1950 | 333 |
| 1960 | 244 |
| 1970 | 299 |
| 1980 | 270 |
| 1990 | 197 |
| 2000 | 124 |
| 2009 | 127 |
Original Mennonite Encyclopedia Article
By Nicholas Stoltzfus. Copied by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 537. All rights reserved.
Cedar Creek Mennonite Church, located in Manson, Calhoun County, Iowa. A member of Mennonite Church USA and the Central Plains Mennonite Conference (formerly Iowa-Nebraska Mennonite Conference), Manson was organized in 1898 by settlers from Woodford and Bureau counties, Illinois.
In 1903 the first meetinghouse was built, called the Cedar Creek Mennonite Church. In 1913 a larger church was erected in northwest Manson. The name Cedar Creek was never officially changed, but this congregation became known as the Manson Mennonite Church. Missionary emphasis has generally prevailed as is evidenced by the fact that up to 1950 approximately 52 members were received from non-Mennonite homes. Minnie Swartzendruber Graber, Don McCammon, Wilbur and Grace Nachtigall, and Marie Kauffman were missionaries sent out from this church. Others have been volunteers.
The 1953 membership was 264. Edward Birkey and Nicholas Stoltzfus were serving in the ministry of the congregation at that time.
By 1956, more space was needed and a brick building was built south of the wooden 1913 structure and was dedicated in 1957.
| Author(s) | Samuel J Steiner |
|---|---|
| Date Published | May 2023 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Steiner, Samuel J. "Lifepoint Church (Manson, Iowa, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. May 2023. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Lifepoint_Church_(Manson,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=175832.
APA style
Steiner, Samuel J. (May 2023). Lifepoint Church (Manson, Iowa, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Lifepoint_Church_(Manson,_Iowa,_USA)&oldid=175832.
©1996-2024 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.
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