10:30 am
139 N. 4th St., Emmaus, Pa. 18049
EMMAUS CONGREGATION CELEBRATES 150 YEARS
St. John’s United Church of Christ in Emmaus will celebrate 150 years of faith, service, and community in a special Anniversary Sunday worship service at 10:30 a.m. May 3.
“Whether you’ve been part of St. John’s for years, or you have not been here for years, or you’re visiting for the first time—we would love to welcome you,” said Dr. Paul Knappenberger, the church’s pastor.
There will be only one service that Sunday. It will include “special guests, special music, and a spirit of gratitude as we honor our past and recommit to the future,” said Pastor Knappenberger.
St. John’s is observing the 150th anniversary of the founding of the church, initially a German Reformed congregation, throughout 2026.
Holy Communion will be served during the Anniversary Sunday worship service and all Christians are welcome to receive it. An hour of fellowship, with refreshments, immediately will follow the service in St. John’s Fellowship Hall.
The church is at 139 N. Fourth St. in Emmaus and has a parking lot. 
 Organized in 1876, St. John’s was the second non-Moravian congregation in Emmaus.
It started on Jan. 1, 1876, with about 60 people of the German Reformed faith and tradition. That first service was held in the Moravian Church of Emmaus. The new congregation was allowed to keep meeting in the Moravian Church for six years.
In 1882, the Reformed and Lutheran congregations that had been worshipping in the Moravian Church dedicated their own union church on the corner of North Third and Green streets. That building still stands and now is the home of Unity of Lehigh Valley.
In May 1924, the Reformed congregation dedicated its own new church building, at Third, Fourth and North streets — now St. John’s United Church of Christ. The congregation celebrated the 100th anniversary of its current church building two years go.
In 1934, the church’s name was changed from St. John’s Reformed Church to St. John’s Evangelical and Reformed Church. In 1957, it became St. John’s United Church of Christ.
