Clearbrook Mennonite Church (Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada)
Clearbrook Mennonite Church was formally organized on 8 December 1952 with 60 members when West Abbotsford Mennonite Church recognized the need for another church in Clearbrook. They started the process of purchasing the land where the church presently stands. It was bought for $1 from the Clearbrook Realty and Insurance Agency. They finished the building that year. The group approached West Abbotsford and asked for their blessing to create an independent church, which they received. Abram I. Loewen was the first minister of the church. The membership decreased below 200 when in 1960, 52 people left to form English speaking Olivet Mennonite Church. The church, however, soon recovered and by 1963 had 213 members, though even at this time only 102 were less than sixty years of age. By 1972 almost 70% of the congregation was over 60 and by 1978 almost 95% of the members were retired. The church continued to attract older members moving into the Clearbrook area until the 1990s, when attendance began to decline. There remains a strong emphasis on the German language.
Bibliography
Canadian Mennonite (24 November 1961): 20.
Churches in Profile. Conference of Mennonites in British Columbia, 1978: 37-40.
CMC Nexus (October 1995): 10.
A History of Clearbrook Mennonite Church, 1952-1983. 1983: 111 pp.
Lehn, Cornelia. Frontier Challenge: A Story of the Conference of Mennonites in British Columbia. Clearbrook, BC: Conference of Mennonites in British Columbia, 1990: 120.
Loewen, David F. Living Stones: A History of the West Abbotsford Mennonite Church, 1936-1986. Abbotsford, BC: West Abbotsford Mennonite Church, 1987.
Mennonite Reporter (20 September 1993): B1.
Additional Information
Address: 32027 Peardonville Rd., Abbotsford BC V2T 1M2
Phone: 604-859-4132
Denominational Affiliations:
Conference of Mennonites in British Columbia / Mennonite Church British Columbia (1952-present)
Conference of Mennonites in Canada / Mennonite Church Canada (1953-present)
General Conference Mennonite Church (1954-1999)
Clearbrook Mennonite Ministers
| Minister |
Years of Ministry |
|---|---|
| Abram I. Loewen | 1952-1957 |
| Peter Bergen | 1952-1954 |
| Isaac Epp | 1952-1957 |
| Peter Epp | 1954-1965 |
| Hugo Scheffler | 1958-1963 |
| John Zacharias |
1963-1987 |
| John Sawatzky | 1965-1986 |
| Jacob Schmidt | 1972-1977 |
| Jacob Enns | 1973-1998 |
| Peter Harms | 1987-2001 |
| Walter Thielmann | 1989-1994 |
| Hans Federau | 1996-2000 |
| Dietrich “Dick” Rempel | 2001-2005 |
| Siegbert Zukowski | 2005-present |
Clearbrook Mennonite Membership
| Year |
Members |
|---|---|
| 1952 | 60 |
| 1955 | 153 |
| 1965 |
212 |
| 1975 |
233 |
| 1985 |
185 |
| 1995 |
151 |
| 2000 |
101 |
| 2005 |
62 |
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MLA style: Klager, Andrew and Richard D Thiessen. "Clearbrook Mennonite Church (Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. May 2008. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 20 July 2008 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/C565.html>
APA style: Klager, Andrew and Richard D Thiessen. (May 2008). "Clearbrook Mennonite Church (Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 20 July 2008 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/C565.html>
