About Us

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=40 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" background="387785a3.jpg"> <div> <B><U>Center Bethel Church of God, Alverton, PA</U></B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=180 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="51c64643.jpg"> <div> <A HREF="id21_m.htm#building_history" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="About Us"><U><IMG SRC="1b896500.jpg" border=0 width="150" height="80" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Center Bethel Church of God, Alverton, P"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id47.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Visitors Page"><U><B>Visitors Page</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id32.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events News "><U><B>Events & News</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>About Us</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Church Library"><U><B>Church Library</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id35.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U><B>Relevant Links</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id36.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Youth Page"><U><B>Youth Page</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Camp Sonrise Mt. and Grove Manor Homes"><U><B>Camp Sonrise Mountain</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id23_grove_manor_homes.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Camp Sonrise Mt. and Grove Manor Homes"><U><B>Grove Manor Homes</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Resources"><U><B>When Life is Difficult</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id31.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Steps to Peace with God"><U><B>Steps to Peace with God</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Daily Devotional"><U><B>Daily Devotional</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id21_m.htm#contact" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>Contact Us</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://guestbooks.christiansunite.com/sign.cgi?gheicher" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://guestbooks.christiansunite.com/si"><U><I><B>Sign our Guestbook </B></I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://guestbooks.christiansunite.com/view.cgi?u=gheicher" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://guestbooks.christiansunite.com/vi"><U><I><B>View our Guestbook</B></I></U></A></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="132" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#FFFFCC > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id44_worship_services.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Pastor Dons Message"><U><B>Sunday Services</B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=440 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="51c64643.jpg"> <div> <A HREF="#contact" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>Contact Us </B></U></A><B>                                             </B><A HREF="#building_history" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>Building History</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>Our Mission:                                                              </B></div> <div> <B>Center Bethel Church of God exists to show our love for God through </B><B>worship</B><B>ping, ministering to one another, sharing our faith, fellowshipping, and developing mature disciples of Christ.</B></div> <div> <B> <A NAME="a_brief_narrative_about_center_bethel_1"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Verdana" ><B>A brief narrative about Center Bethel Church of God:</B></FONT></div> <div> <B>A minister, John Winebrenner, of the German Reformed Church, organized the Church of God in 1825 at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  Winebrenner was troubled by the rigid formality of the German Reformed Church and his subsequent informal Services finally resulted in separation.  The heart of Winebrenner's beliefs centered on the Bible rather than a formal catechism.  Emphasis was on man being justified by individual faith in Jesus, rather than by works of church law or by works of man's own righteousness.  He believed in the free moral agency of man; that man has the free choice to believe in God and in Jesus as Christ and Lord.</B><B>One hundred and sixty five years ago, the first congregation formed at Alverton (then Stonerville in the year  1839).  </B></div> <div> <B>As travelling evangelists from the Churches of God toured the area, they held services at the local Mennonite Church.  </B><B>Many of the people at the services were young German folks desiring a more modern worship service in English rather than the traditional German language and so found</B><B> the style and message of the </B><B>evangelists</B><B> appealing.  </B><B> The Alverton church was one of three new congregations established between Scottdale and Ruffsdale.  Later  the three churches merged into a single </B><B>central location</B><B> at Alverton (</B><B>Center Bethel).  Since that time</B><B> there are approximately 50 separate congregations in the Western Pennsylvania area.</B></div> <div> <B>In 1863 when the new congregations merged, they constructed a building in Alverton that is now </B><A HREF="#building_history" TITLE="About Us"><U><B>the first  portion of the present church building</B></U></A><B>.  Several additions to this structure have been made over the years, with the most recent being the addition of a large fellowship hall in 1984.</B></div> <div> <B>The Church of God does not follow any particular creed or formalized doctrine, however, the church celebrates three ordinances, viz. Baptism, Feet Washing, and the Lord's Supper.   Theology generally follows the teachings of Jacob Arminius rather than that of John Calvin.  We have adoped a set of beliefs common to the member churches </B><B>(see </B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000099" FACE="Comic Sans MS" ><A HREF="http://www.cggc.org/WhatWeBelieve.htm" TARGET="_blank" TITLE="http://www.cggc.org/WhatWeBelieve.htm"><U><B>What We Believe</B></U></A><B>).</B></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>Center Bethel is a member of the </B><A HREF="http://www.allegheny-cggc.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.allegheny-cggc.org"><U><B>Allegheny Conference of the Churches of God</B></U></A><B>, main office in Greensburg, Pa. and the </B><A HREF="http://www.cggc.org/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.cggc.org/"><U><B>Churches of God General Conference</B></U></A><B>,</B><B> main office and seminary located at Findlay, Ohio.   Missions have been established in </B><B>Bangladesh, India, Europe, Brazil, Haiti, and New Mexico </B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000099" FACE="Verdana" ><B>(Native American)</B></FONT><B>.</B></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>******************</B></div> <bR> <div> <B> <A NAME="contact"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Verdana" ><B>Center Bethel Church of God</B></FONT></div> <div> <B>428 Ruffsdale-Alverton Rd</B></div> <div> <B>PO Box 114</B></div> <div> <B>Alverton, PA 15612</B></div> <div> <B> </B></div> <div> <B>Church Office Phone: 724 887-8259   </B></div> <bR> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="765" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B> </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#006600" FACE="Verdana" ><B><U>Email us your message:</U></B></FONT></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="541"><div> <A HREF="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com"><U><B>Pastor Engelhardt </B></U></A><A HREF="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com"><U>- c</U></A><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:pastorengelhardt@gmail.com"><U>lick here</U></A></FONT></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="213"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="20" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="213" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="mailto:office@cbcog.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:office@cbcog.org"><U><B>Church Office</B></U></A><A HREF="mailto:office@cbcog.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:office@cbcog.org"><U> </U></A><A HREF="mailto:office@cbcog.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:office@cbcog.org"><U> </U></A><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="mailto:office@cbcog.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:office@cbcog.org"><U>click here</U></A><A HREF="mailto:office@cbcog.org" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:office@cbcog.org"><U> </U></A><B> </B></FONT><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Arial" ><B>(Donna Ottenberg, Secretary)</B></FONT></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 34 WIDTH="213"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="34" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="213" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="541"><div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Arial" ><A HREF="mailto:gheicher1@netzero.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:gheicher1@netzero.com"><U><B>Web Servant </B></U></A> </FONT><A HREF="mailto:gheicher1@netzero.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:gheicher1@netzero.com"><U>click here</U></A> <B> </B><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#660000" FACE="Arial" ><B> (Jerry Eicher)</B></FONT></div> <div> <I><B>(Reporting dead links is appreciated)</B></I></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Officers and Administrative Council Members:</U></B></div> <bR> <div> <B>       </B><B>Pastor: </B> <B>Donald Engelhardt</B></div> <div> <B>Elders - John Horak, Dave Krieger, Jeff Huff, Ron Frey, John Shaw</B></div> <div> <B>       Ad Council President & Treasurer -  Marvin Staggers</B></div> <div> <B>Treasurer - Marvin Staggers</B></div> <div> <B>Financial Statistical Clerk - Kim Semon</B></div> <div> <B>Trustees - Becky Dugger, Jerry Eicher, </B><B>Larry Gross, </B><B>Nick Ritz</B></div> <div> <B>Deacons - </B><B>Don Bowman, </B><B>Craig Sanner, Bob Baker, Chris Kline</B></div> <div> <B>Deaconesses - Valerie Chearney, Jane Frey, Beverly Weston, Karen Hough</B></div> <div> <B>Director of Christian Education - Becky Rodriguez</B></div> <div> <B>Youth Advisor - Denise Schwartz</B></div> <div> <B>Church Secretary - Donna Ottenberg</B></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <B> <A NAME="building_history"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B><B>Building History</B></div> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="776" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 303 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="4d095270.jpg" border=0 width="405" height="295" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="4d42ff90.gif" border=0 width="303" height="249" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Circa 1927</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 367 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="36a7e6f0.jpg" border=0 width="382" height="367" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="4132f250.jpg" border=0 width="303" height="293" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div>  </div> <div>  <A NAME="elevator"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A>A new elevator/chair-lift was completed in April of 2008. Below are a couple of pics of Virginia with her mom, and Bill who were the first to try it out.  The lift is much appreciated and we are thankful to all those that have contributed both time and finances to make this a reality.</div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <IMG SRC="4d7d8200.jpg" border=0 width="216" height="288" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">      <IMG SRC="4da7e1f0.jpg" border=0 width="382" height="287" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Center Bethel Church of God, Alverton, P"><U>Home</U></A>    <A HREF="id47.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Visitors Page"><U>Visitors Page</U></A>    <A HREF="id32.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Events News "><U>Events & News</U></A>    <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Us"><U>About Us</U></A>    <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Church Library"><U>Church Library</U></A>    <A HREF="id35.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Links"><U>Relevant Links</U></A>    <A HREF="id36.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Youth Page"><U>Youth Page</U></A>    <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Camp Sonrise Mt. and Grove Manor Homes"><U>Camp Sonrise Mountain</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id23_grove_manor_homes.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Camp Sonrise Mt. and Grove Manor Homes"><U>Grove Manor Homes</U></A>    <A HREF="id37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Resources"><U>When Life is Difficult</U></A>    <A HREF="id31.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Steps to Peace with God"><U>Steps to Peace with God</U></A>    <A HREF="id30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Daily Devotional"><U>Daily Devotional</U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>