Covenant News

Lansing (MI) Church Celebrates 50 Years of Ministry

LANSING, MI (November 20, 2002) - Bretton Woods Covenant Church celebrated 50 years of ministry last weekend as Richard Lucco, superintendent of the Great Lakes Conference, preached during the morning worship service on Sunday.

The celebration weekend, using the theme "Honoring Our Legacy, Pursuing God's Vision", began Saturday with a reception, dinner and service of thanksgiving that was attended by 115 individuals. A luncheon was held at the church following the worship service on Sunday. About 120 participated in worship, according to pastor Michael Mirakian.

Norris Peterson, the church's founding pastor, Rick Lindholtz and Don Lindman were among the weekend guests, as were interim pastors Chuck Anderson and Ed Noren. Three longtime pastors spoke Saturday about their memories of ministry in Lansing. They also participated in the Sunday worship service, sharing in the celebration of communion with Mirakian.

Other events earlier in the month helped the members to remember their heritage. During the November 3 worship service, as a tribute for All Saints Day, Mirakian asked members to place stones in front of the pulpit to honor the memory of those who had passed on before them. It symbolized the Old Testament story in Joshua 4 of the Israelites creating altars to mark their past before crossing the Jordan River into the promised land of Canaan.

Bretton Woods Covenant began meeting in a local school and local homes until it built its original chapel in 1951. Robert and Ruth Ann Peterson, who were Covenant missionaries in Africa, helped assist with the early ministry during their home assignment. The congregation later received pastoral assistance from North Park Theological Seminary intern Elder Lindahl before Norris Peterson was called as the church's first permanent pastor in 1952.

Norris Peterson spoke about the church's early meetings - he had the distinction of serving as interim pastor some 45 years following his initial ministry at the church, serving for six months before Mirakian arrived in January 2001.

The church was officially organized December 3, 1952, with 22 charter members. On June 6, 1953, the church held a groundbreaking service to begin construction of its current facility. A fellowship hall was completed in 1955 and a new sanctuary was dedicated on December 1, 1957. The construction effort received help from Frontier Friends (now Kingdom Builders) contributions. The church currently has an average worship attendance of around 80 individuals.

To learn more about the church and its ministries, call 517-323-3316 or email the pastor at BrettonWoodsCov@aol.com. The church's web page is www.fellowship.net/brettonwoods.

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