Westview Christian Fellowship (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada)

The Westview Christian Fellowship in St. Catharines, Ontario began services at Memorial School on Welland Avenue in October 1988 as an outreach of the Grantham Mennonite Brethren Church. It formally organized on 15 January 1989 with 81 charter members. Half of the members were from Grantham Mennonite Brethren, the remainder came from the Scott Street Mennonite Brethren Church, the community, or were newly baptized. Grantham's associate pastor, Thom Braun became pastor of the new group, which worked at a seeker-friendly approach that would be attractive to persons with little church background.

A former school board office building on Oakdale Avenue was leased and renovated in 1994, and occupied in early 1995. The 1990s were a diffcult time for the Westview congregation, including tensions within leadership and crises that included criminal charges against a lay leader in the congregation.

On 18 September 2005 the congregation moved to an old church building it had purchased on Queenston Street. After the move, the congregation became engaged in social programs, wanting to make a difference in the Queenston neighborhood, and especially reaching out to women in difficult circumstances. Westview's website in 2017 said: "Together we aim to develop a sensitivity to the call of love, peace, justice, reconciliation, hope, beauty, and in these, God.... During the week Westview is a community hub for women in the Queenston Neighbourhood. At Westview Centre4Women (previously called ‘Women4Women’ and ‘Survival4Women’) you’ll find the same guiding principles in practice as women from all walks of life are offered a safe place that encourages respect and dignity for self and others."

In April 2017 the congregation changed its denominational affiliation from the Ontario Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches to Mennonite Church Eastern Canada.

Bibliography

Coggins, Jim. "An expansionist mood." Mennonite Brethren Herald 28, no. 7 (31 March 1989): 17.

Coggins, Jim. "Youth leader admits abuse." Mennonite Brethren Herald 35, no. 12 (14 June 1996): 16.

Janzen, Jill Morningstar. "What God taught me." Mennonite Brethren Herald 36, no. 12 (13 June 1997): 9-11.

Klassen, Willy. "Church's quest for building becomes lesson in trusting God." Mennonite Brethren Herald (1 September 1995): 16-17.

Martens, Dave. "Family reunion." Mennonite Brethren Herald 36, no. 18 (26 September 1997): 16.

"Transitions." Mennonite Brethren Herald 44, no. 14 (14 October 2005): 23.

Wiebe, John. "A bold venture." Mennonite Brethren Herald 28, no. 3 (3 February 1989): 19.

Additional Information

Address: 124 Queenston Street, St. Catharines, Ontario L2R 2Z7

Phone: 905-687-4848

Website: http://www.westviewcf.com/

Denominational Affiliations: Mennonite Church Eastern Canada

Mennonite Church Canada

Pastoral Leaders at Westview Christian Fellowship

Name	Years of Service
Thom Braun	1988-2000?
Jill Morningstar Janzen (Associate)	1989-1996
Willy Klassen (Assistant)	1994-1998
Barry Adams (Associate)	1997-2000
Vic Ratzlaff	1998-present
Erika Klassen (Associate)	2008-present

Membership at Westview Christian Fellowship

Year	Membership
1990	115
1995	151
2000	122
2005	74
2010	82
2015	62
2020	30

Map

Author(s)	Samuel J Steiner
Date Published	May 2017

Cite This Article

MLA style

Steiner, Samuel J. "Westview Christian Fellowship (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. May 2017. Web. 21 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Westview_Christian_Fellowship_(St._Catharines,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=171715.

APA style

Steiner, Samuel J. (May 2017). Westview Christian Fellowship (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Westview_Christian_Fellowship_(St._Catharines,_Ontario,_Canada)&oldid=171715.

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