HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR HERITAGE

St. Luke’s United Church of Christ

Lancaster, Pennsylvania

St. Luke's was originally founded as a Sunday School in 1874 before becoming a full-fledged church in 1879. One of the very first Sunday School teachers at St. Luke's was Alice Nevin,[1] daughter of Rev. Dr. John Nevin. John Nevin had served as Professor of Theology at what is now called Lancaster Theological Seminary. In the mid-nineteenth century, however, the Seminary was located in Mercersburg, PA. During that era, Dr. Nevin was the intellectual architect of what became known as the "Mercersburg movement" to promote liturgical renewal within Protestant (and especially Reformed) churches. Dr. Nevin's influence is particularly evident at St. Luke's, which he indirectly helped to found.

In 1871, the Seminary relocated to Lancaster, PA. By that time Dr. Nevin had already begun serving as President of Franklin and Marshall College, located just across College Avenue from the Seminary. Dr. Nevin also served as pastor of St. Stephen's Reformed Church (which met on the College campus).

In 1874, a group of seminary students led by William Lichliter, John Bowman and others were promoting the idea of a Sunday School mission in Lancaster.[2] After having been turned down by another church, Lichliter, Bowman and company brought their idea to St. Stephen’s Church and its pastor John Nevin. 

In this way, the vision that was to grow in to St. Luke’s Church became reality. On November 15, 1874, under the “authority and care” of St. Stephen’s Church and its influential pastor John Nevin, the Sunday School that ultimately became St. Luke’s was born. 

Five years later, St. Luke’s Reformed Church was formally organized with the adoption of its constitution on February 6, 1879. The cornerstone for the church building was laid in place in October of that year. The building (subsequently expanded but still in use) was erected on land donated by John Hager located at the intersection of Orange and Marietta Avenue.