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About Bethel Church Hickory
The Formation of a Church
1847
Around 1847 Bethel was organized by Reverend John H. Crawford so that the religious needs of the Reformed families locating in the rural western section of Catawba County could be met.
1848
In 1848 a small frame building was built for worship.
1860
There was a cemetery established sometime before 1860.
1886
The brick sanctuary that is currently on the site replaced the small frame building in 1886.
1906
The parsonage that was built in 1906 was a frame parsonage that was shared by four churches. It was replaced with a house that was more adequate in 1948.
1935
In 1935 a log hut was built and in 1950 it was remodeled for things like
Sunday School.
1968
In 1968 there was an educational wing added to the back of the sanctuary.
1987
Around 1987 a "family life center" was built.
Church Beginnings
• Bethel began as a church that provided spiritual growth between Henry's Fork and Jacob's Fork of the South Fork River in the western section of Catawba County, NC.
• Bethel expanded its influence to reach educational institutions like
Catawba College and to help some of the neighboring churches, such as Corinth in Hickory, to get organized. Corinth was organized with fourteen members of Bethel as charter members.
• Bethel is still a relatively small church that is still located in a somewhat rural area.
The Need for a Church
• The congregation and its members was organized around 1847 by Reverend John H. Crawford. At this time he was a pastor at Grace Reformed Church in Newton.
• Organizing Bethel was a response to families who were members of St. Paul's Church and Grace Church who wanted a church that was located closer to where they lived. Services began to be held in the Minerva School Building on Sunday afternoons.
• There was a deed for the land where the church is located dated September 2, 1848 which led to the first Bethel Reformed Church building being constructed.
Building
• This first building was to be the place of worship for the congregation until it was sold and removed from the land around 1886 or 1887 to make room for a new brick building completed under the pastoral leadership of Reverend Lewis H. Reiter, 1885-1890.
• The current building has been refurbished a number of times throughout the years but continues to serve the congregation as its sanctuary where worship services are held Sunday morning.
A Piece of History
• Bethel Church holds a fascinating bit of history related to the heirloom communion set it has which was purchased originally by John Wilfong in 1798. There are descendants of his who are still members of the church congregation.
• The communion set is made of silver and pewter and crafted in Boston by a tinsmith. This set has been used in three historic Catawba County German Reformed Churches, beginning in Grace Church, Newton in 1845, then in Corinth Church, Hickory around 1869, and then donated to Bethel in 1887 upon completion of their new sanctuary.
• Five generations of the Wilfong family have attended Bethel Church.
The Little Church with a Big Heart
• Bethel Church is located in Hickory on a beautiful piece of property in the midst of what has become a growing housing area. It is a small rural church that has facilities that are capable of carrying on a ministry to a growing congregation.
• The congregation has sent four very capable people into the ministry, including Reverend Sterling W. Whitener, who served as a missionary to China for more that 30 years.
• One of the greatest contributions the congregation has made to the wider ministry is the number of people they have provided over the years as leaders in the Reformed Church Classis of North Carolina, the Southern Synod of the Evangelical and Reformed Church, and the Southern Conference of the United Church of Christ.
• In the early days of the congregation its ministers served as president of the Classis five times and another person served ten times.
Pastoral Leadership Since 1965
1954-1976 Rev. Roy E. Leinbach, Jr.
1980-1983 Rev. T. Ronald Vaugh
1983-2000 Rev. Jamie T. Fonville
2001-2003 Rev. Maria Yocum
2004-present Rev. Dr. Anne Wepner
From The Pastor's Desk
The Christian church is an institution that provides two very important qualities to an individual's life. The first of these is that a church provides meaning for an individual's life. The second is that it provides a context for belonging to a group that together can effect societal change. The two -- meaning and belonging -- are the reasons we live our lives faithfully throughout the week and then join together on Sunday mornings. In the first church I served many years ago, one older gentleman told me that he had heard sixty years of sermons and that he did not expect to learn anything new. He said that he came for the coffee and time with friends. His primary focus was on the belonging aspect of the church, but I think he benefited nonetheless from hearing the Bible lessons again and again. Another man in that same town told me he worshipped in "God's great outdoors and that was good enough." He obviously discounted the value of being with others in matter of faith.
The faithful witness to Jesus as a church member is to hold meaning and belonging in balance. Sure we can be faithful alone, (but it is lonely). Sure we can be a committee of one and accomplish our goals without interference, (but we can't accomplish much). Bethel United Church of Christ works best when we worship and learn TOGETHER and when we put our talents and treasures TOGETHER to help those in need.
Come and worship with us and add meaning and belonging to your life as you dedicate yourself to Christ.
- Rev. Dr. Anne Abernethy Wepner