Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
The congregation began services in 1924, and formally organized on 25 May 1925 with Jacob P. Friesen as leader. The first building was occupied in 1935 with a subsequent building program in 1952. J. P. Friesen, J. W. Reimer, and J. P. Wiens are considered the founding leaders of the group. The congregation originated through immigration from the Soviet Union in the 1920s. Kitchener Mennonite Brethren was known as the Molotschna Mennoniten-Brüder-Gemeinde until 1932. Worship services were first held in St. Jacobs. The languages of worship are English and German; the transition from German occurred in the 1960s.
The church housed the Ontario Mennonite Brethren Bible School from 1955-64. Congregational leaders prior to 1955 included Jacob P. Friesen, J. W. Reimer, J. P. Wiens, P. Klassen, H. Konrad, Henry H. Janzen, D. Klassen, Isaac Ewert, J. Sudermann, Henry Thielman, Frank C. Peters and Jacob J. Toews.
Bibliography
Canadian Mennonite (28 June 1966): 17.
Er fuehret: Geschichte der Ontario MB Gemeinden 1924-1957.
"History of Kitchener MB Church." May 2008 Accessed 3 May 2008. <http://www.kitchenermb.com/history.html>
Mennonite Reporter (6 June 1975): 5.
Mennonite Brethren Herald (27 May 1988): 49; (17 December 1993): 16.
When Your Children Shall Ask: A History of the Ontario Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches, 1957-1982. The Conference, 1982: 38-40.
Church records at Ontario Mennonite Brethren archives in St. Catharines.
Additional Information
Address: 19 Ottawa St. N., Kitchener, ON N2H 3K2
Phone: 519-745-5144
Website: Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church
Denominational Affiliations:
Ontario Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches
Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches
Lead Pastors at Kitchener Mennonite Brethren
| Minister | Years |
| Jacob P. Friesen |
1925-1932 |
| Henry H. Janzen |
1932-1944 |
| Henry G. Thielman |
1945-1949 |
| Frank C. Peters |
1949-1954 |
| Isaac T. Ewert (interim) | 1954 |
| Jacob J. Toews | 1954-1959 |
| William J. Schmidt |
1959-1964 |
| Isaac H. Tiessen (interim) |
1964-1965 |
| Frank C. Peters | 1965-1973 |
| John F. Froese |
1974-1985 |
| John Wall |
1985-1989 |
| Ron Toews | 1989-1994 |
| Allan Labun |
1994-2000 |
| Grant Gordon (interim) |
2000-2003 |
| Vidya Narimalla | 2002- |
Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church membership
| Year | Membership |
| 1925 | 52 |
| 1950 | 278 |
| 1965 | 396 |
| 1975 | 423 |
| 1985 | 578 |
| 1995 | 431 |
| 2000 | 427 |
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 187. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.
©1996-2009 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.
MLA style: Janzen, H. H. "Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2009 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/K52583.html>
APA style: Janzen, H. H. (1957). "Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church (Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 21 November 2009 <http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/K52583.html>
