1922–1942.
1 cm of textual records.
Administrative history
The Ebenezar Mennonite Brethren Church was started near Rush Lake, Saskatchewan around 1910. The congregation had a reported membership of 43 in 1912. (See General Conference Yearbook for the year 1913, p.70). Delegates to the First annual session of the Northern district Conference (later known as the Canadian MB conference) in 1910 from Rush Lake were David Froese and Franz Janzen. (See Northern District Conference Yearbook for the year 1911, p.5). Franz Janzen was the leader of this congregation from 1914–1923, followed by Daniel Schindel (1934–1926), Johan J Kroeker (1927–1929), Gerhard D. Rempel (1930–1931) and G.P. Dyck (1934–1938). The membership of this congregation peaked in 1920 with a reported membership of 61. During most of the 1930's the reported membership in the Northern District (Canadian Conference) annual yearbooks was constant at 10. For some years no leaders were listed and no representation was present at the annual conferences. According to the published proceedings of the 1943 annual session, G.P. Dyck, Rush Lake was listed as a delegate. When this congregation officially closed is not clear. The last entry in the financial ledger (only extant item from this church) is dated 1943. According to a report by John Gunther in the Zionbote (9. Feb. 1944, p.7) written on January 20, 1944 the group was still meeting for prayer and Bible Study on every other Sunday and they were glad that minister J.J. Kroeker (presumably from the Bethania MB Church) “had not left them as orphans”.
When the church closed in ca. 1947, members went to the congregations in Main Centre, Herbert, Greenfarm, and Bathania.
Scope and content
This fonds consists of one financial ledger which records the contributions of individual members toward various causes, and also records the disbursement of these funds to the appropriate cause. The various causes include the following: Home missions, Foreign missions, City missions, Senior’s Home, Russian mission, Conference and local Communion expenses.
Custodial history
These records were found among the Herbert MB Church archival records acquired through negotiation by Abe Dueck and brought to the CMBS in May of 1999 in conjunction with his trip through Saskatchewan. They became part of Accession #1999-058.
Notes
- Volume 643.
- Microfilm reel 47.
- Finding aid: The records are classified under the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches inventory BF541.
- Microfilm file list adapted from a previous finding aid by Leslie Wiebe June 2003.
Item description
Volume 643
- Ebenezar (Rush Lake) Mennonite Brethren Church financial ledger. – 1922–1929, 1933–1934, 1941–1942. – 1 bound volume: 1 cm. This ledger contains a record of the income and disbursements of the congregation for such causes as foreign and home missions, local communion expenses, the City Mission, Senior’s Home, Russian mission and the conference.
Microfilm file list
Reel 47
- Membership and Family Register (Book I). – [190-]–1933. – p.578–668 (-18). – Note: It is unclear what this number represents, but is included because it was in a previous finding aid.
