Zion & St. John's (Reeds) Lutheran Church

Zion's and Saint John's (Reeds) Lutheran Church is the continuance and merging of the Zion's (Reeds) Church of Stouchsburg and of Saint John's Lutheran Church of Host. It is believed to be the oldest continuing Lutheran Church in Berks County. It had its origin in 1723. This is when 33 German Lutherans arrived and settled in and around Stouchsburg and along the Tulpehocken Creek. They had first settled in the New Netherland Colony (which later became the New York Colony). They had been dissatisfied with the role of the autocratic Dutch governors. Only the Dutch Reformed Church and its members were allowed freedom of worship. Being religious, democratic, and Lutheran they emigrated from that colony, traveled westward in the Mohawk Valley, thence south along the Susquehanna River to the Harrisburg area, then east and settled in this area. Being a church of believers their desire for freedom to worship was evidently their primary motive for their resettling. That they were a church of believers cannot be denied, though they may have been a rather loose organization. On arrival they continued to worship together in homes, at times conducted by laymen in the absence of ordained pastors and without accuracy of records. A number of the leaders were Reiths (later spelled "Reeds"), and hence the name of Reeds Church. There are many descendants of these Reeds spread throughout the country, while some of them continued active in this area and church to the present day.

These original settlers were soon followed by others from the same area and with the same purposes in 1727 these Lutherans built their church building, built mainly by their own labors, made of logs, with simple homemade furnishings. There were some Reformed's who assisted the Lutherans in building their church and worshipped with them. This, was then the first of four buildings of the Zion's (Reeds) Church. It was located about 1/2 mile east of Stouchsburg, where its continuing cemetery is located. The second and third buildings were also at this location, the third one built of stone, but since it became too small for a membership of 197, the fourth and present building was begun in 1895 and completed in 1911, built of huge sandstone and located on East Main Street of Stouchsburg.

In 1736 the Reformed's erected their own building known as the Saint John's Host Church. On June 12, 1858, the Host Reformed Church gave permission to the Lutherans to use their building for worship, a happy relationship of a Union Church which lasted over a hundred years. Because of distance some of the Zion's (Reeds) Lutherans accepted the offer. They helped financially, including the erection of the present Host Educational Building. However, continuing enlarging church programs and a large Reformed membership would have hindered their progress and made the Union arrangement no longer feasible. The Lutherans were given permission to join the Reformed's, but they preferred to stay as Lutherans. They looked around to learn with what church they might join.

This is when they received an invitation from the Zion's Reeds congregation from which the original Host Lutherans had come. At first they worshipped together on a trial basis and to discuss merger. Within about 1/2 year they resolved to merge, so each congregation voted in favor of merging with a 100 percent or unanimous vote. This so meant continuance of the original Zion's (Reeds) church but under the name of Zion's and Saint John's (Reeds) Lutheran Church. Date of merger is November 30, 1961, which ended a century of happiness in union with the Host Reformed's, and began a new life for Zion's and Saint John's.

Copyright © 2004 Zion & St. John's (Reeds) Lutheran Church        Last updated:  03/02/2006