228 / Development of Church Life in the Older Congregations

In 1890 twenty-four persons were baptized on a Sunday in August. About 500 people attended, "yet everything was carried out in an orderly manner." In 1892 twenty-nine young people were baptized by Fred Mast and David Beachy ás they knelt in a stream. "Many gathered to witness the joyous occasion." Again in 1894 eighteen young persons were received into full membership at a baptismal service with Fred Mast officiating. In reporting the occasion in the Herald of Truth of August 15, 1894, the correspondent added that "a large crowd assembled upon the banks to witness the sealing of the solemn vow by these young soldiers of the cross." However, the largest class of applicants for baptism was recorded by Abraham Mast in May of 1896 when fifty persons were admitted by this rite to the fellowship of the church.

In 1915 Lester Hostetler was ordained to serve Walnut Creek as pastor. During his pastorate he organized singing classes, mission study groups, and a Fourth of July Mission Day program, the latter continuing in modified form for many years. As noted in the chapter, "The Crises Years of 1915-1930," differences in tradition, faith, and practice within the Ohio Mennonite and Amish conferences led to separations in congregations and transfers of memberships. In 1922 a group of the Walnut Creek Church withdrew, and in 1926 they were organized as a separate congregation at Sugarcreek. Lester Hostetler, after resigning his position at Walnut Creek in 1924, became pastor of the Sugarcreek group which in 1929 affiliated with the General Conference Mennonites.

In 1962 the Walnut Creek Church in Holmes County commemorated a century of existence. Its important contributions have been pioneering in Sunday school, evangelism, and church music. Its importance as a congregation lies, too, in the many leaders it has produced, in its strong support of church programs, and the steadfast way it has faced the problems of change as the Holmes County churches have experienced them. The present bishop, Paul R. Miller, is a direct descendant of Moses P. Miller who was bishop from 1862 to 1870.

The history of the Martin's Creek Church in Holmes County dates from 1828, though it did not become a separate congregation till 1865. It has the typical story of Sunday school origins, Bible conferences, and revival meetings. Its important contribution includes the founding of the Berlin Mennonite Church in Berlin, Ohio. It also opened the Flat Ridge Mission in 1949 in the vicinity of Newcomers-