We are a part of the United Church of Christ, a denomination that
strives to be a united and uniting church.  This means that we strive
to be open to change, welcoming to All people and ecumenical in our
worship.

Here at Zoar, it may look like your grandmother’s church from the
outside, but we hope your experience of us on the inside will be a mix
of contemporary and traditional.  You will find remnants of the past
and voices of the present.

To find out more about who the United Church of Christ is and what they believe click on the following links:

http://www.ucc.org/about-us_who-we-are

http://www.ucc.org/about-us_what-we-believe

Our History

Briefly, our history goes back to 1856 when the courage of three brothers: Diedrich, Heinrich and Tillman Lenzen, a sister, parents and four small children eventually all migrated from Germany. By 1871 they were having services led by the Reverend Kuhlen, in a small log church on the current property. The current church was built in 1941 and through many updates over the years has continued to remain our sure and steady building.  Zoar has been faithfully led by a few different pastors over the years. Some of those include Reverend Opperman, Reverend Franzmeier and Reverend Zenke.  Over the last few decades we have also been blessed to have Reverend Mark, Reverend Slessor and Reverend Kathy Gibson-Christenson.  Our current pastor is Reverend Penny Entringer.

Here are just a few of our highlights:

-In 1950 a vote was taken and the result was to have three services a month in English and the other one service in German.

-In 1958, under Reverend Franzmeier, the congregation agreed to use the new denominational name  Zoar Evangelical and Reformed United Church of Christ.

-Zoar celebrated its 100th Anniversary in 1971 under the leadership of Reverend Zenke.

-In 2021, we will celebrate our 150th Anniversary.

In general our church prides itself on its German heritage, roots and tradition.  We are a small church surrounded by God’s country.  People know us as being “the little white church on the highway.” Many people know that we are a family church, comprised of many generations of faithful followers of God. We hope your experience of us will feel like coming home.