WHO ARE THESE BRETHREN?
Never heard of the Church of the Brethren? We are not a large denomination but have a lot of churches in the Shenandoah Valley. Brethren started in Germany over 300 years ago and came to America by way of Philadelphia. They then migrated to other parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and the Midwest, with some going all the way to the Pacific coast.
The first Brethren formed in 1708 as part of the Pietist movement that placed emphasis on the gathered community seeking God’s guidance through Bible study and prayer. This reform movement focused on Jesus’ life and teachings and the early church as described in the New Testament. These new Brethren were also influenced by and borrowed from their Anabaptist neighbors, mostly Mennonites.
While affiliated with the Church of the Brethren, Mountain View Fellowship has members from a wide variety of church backgrounds, and some with very little church background. Probably no more than a quarter of our members are life-long Brethren. While our folks have a diversity of views, we could perhaps be described as theologically moderate and having an Anabaptist leaning.
For more information go to “Some Things We Believe” in this website. For more about the Church of the Brethren go to the denominational website: www.brethren.org and/or the Shenandoah District website www.shencob.org.
Never heard of the Church of the Brethren? We are not a large denomination but have a lot of churches in the Shenandoah Valley. Brethren started in Germany over 300 years ago and came to America by way of Philadelphia. They then migrated to other parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and the Midwest, with some going all the way to the Pacific coast.
The first Brethren formed in 1708 as part of the Pietist movement that placed emphasis on the gathered community seeking God’s guidance through Bible study and prayer. This reform movement focused on Jesus’ life and teachings and the early church as described in the New Testament. These new Brethren were also influenced by and borrowed from their Anabaptist neighbors, mostly Mennonites.
While affiliated with the Church of the Brethren, Mountain View Fellowship has members from a wide variety of church backgrounds, and some with very little church background. Probably no more than a quarter of our members are life-long Brethren. While our folks have a diversity of views, we could perhaps be described as theologically moderate and having an Anabaptist leaning.
For more information go to “Some Things We Believe” in this website. For more about the Church of the Brethren go to the denominational website: www.brethren.org and/or the Shenandoah District website www.shencob.org.