A congregation that has kept gathering for more than two and a half centuries
On Zion Church Road, just outside the small borough of Hamburg in Berks County, stands a brick church whose roots reach back to a barn meeting in 1760. Today the same congregation meets for three Sunday morning services in that 1908 building and a fourth across town at The Journey Café, a community outreach center on Pine Street. Zion's Church describes itself as a non-denominational evangelical Christian church with traditional-oriented values and a member of the Evangelical Association of Reformed and Congregational Christian Churches.
Visitors walking through the doors on a Sunday morning find a congregation that makes room for both pipe organ and praise band, both hymnbook and handbell choir. The church has long been known in the region for combining a settled denominational heritage with a steady stream of new programs, family ministries, and a downtown presence that brings middle and high school students through the door for reasons that have very little to do with Sunday morning.
A history that traces back to 1760
The first building of Zion's Church was raised in 1760 by a home church meeting in a local farmer's barn, on a deed of forty acres granted by William Penn's son for a church and school. A second building was constructed on the same site in 1774, a third in 1805, and the current sanctuary in 1908.
The congregation began as German Reformed and accepted Lutherans in 1762, forming a Union Church. In 1925 it became Zion's Evangelical and Reformed Church. After the Evangelical and Reformed merged with the Congregational Christian Churches in 1957 to form the United Church of Christ, the congregation took the name Zion's United Church of Christ. In 1969 the church split into Zion's UCC and Zion's Evangelical Lutheran Church, with the Lutherans moving down the road. The congregation voted in 2007 to leave the UCC and become an independent evangelical church, citing concerns about the denomination's drift from scripture. Sixteen years later, in 2023, Zion's joined the Evangelical Association of Reformed and Congregational Christian Churches, a voluntary association of like-minded congregations that allows it to retain its autonomy.
Several recent milestones stand out. The contemporary worship service was added in 2001. Two hundred church members served on Hurricane Katrina relief trips with Samaritan's Purse between 2005 and 2007, and the church continues to send mission teams. The Journey Café was renovated and the after-school program began in 2007. Z-World, an oversized Vacation Bible School experience, launched in 2009. Live streaming of services began in 2020, and a third worship service geared toward young adults, called Journey Church, launched in 2024.
Two locations, one church family
The main church building sits at 770 Zion Church Road, Hamburg. Across the street is Zions Cemetery of Perry Township, managed independently by a board of trustees on behalf of both Zion's Church and Zion's Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Downtown, The Journey Café occupies a renovated building at 320 Pine Street, Hamburg. The café features public wifi, a large video screen, a sound system, game tables, and a snack bar. It serves as the hub for the church's middle and high school after-school program, the Wednesday night youth group, teen small groups, Bible studies, recovery meetings, concerts, and a long list of community events. The café can be reached at 610-562-8560 and at thejourneycafe.org.
Three Sunday morning services at the church, plus one at the café
Worship at the main church building runs three times on Sunday morning. At 8:15 a traditional service gathers around the organ and piano, with occasional vocalists, choir, and handbell choir performances. At 9:40 a contemporary service features a live praise band and a more casual atmosphere. A third contemporary service is held at 11:05.
Across town at The Journey Café at 11:00, Journey Church offers a worship experience geared toward young adults but open to anyone. The service is led by Youth Minister Dan Bailey and includes music from the Journey Church praise band, a video of a shortened message from the senior pastor, and time for small group discussion along with coffee and snacks. There is no childcare at this location.
Both 8:15 and 9:40 services are livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel, and recordings remain available in two playlists labeled Traditional and Contemporary. American Sign Language interpretation is offered for select services. An assistive listening system is available at every service; visitors can pick up a receiver at the sound booth.
The dress code is simply: come as you are. Jeans, shorts, t-shirts, casual dress, or a full suit are all welcome.
Children's ministry and Zion's Family Night
Zion's offers a graded Sunday School program at 9:40 for everyone from infants through high schoolers. The infant nursery serves ages zero to two. Preschool classes run for ages three through Pre-K, with separate classes for kindergarten and first grade, second and third grade, and fourth and fifth grade. Middle schoolers and high schoolers have their own classes.
During the 11:00 service the infant nursery room remains open but is not staffed. A nursing and crying room, Room 202, is available during all services and includes a TV that streams the service so parents do not miss what is happening.
Wednesday evenings during the school year are organized around Zion's Family Night. Children in kindergarten through fifth grade gather for Planet Shakers in the Fellowship Hall from 6:30 to 8:00, with games, activities, upbeat music, skits, and snacks. Middle and high schoolers head to The Journey Café for Rock-Us from 5:45 to 8:30, where they share pizza, play games, hear a Biblical message, and break into small groups. Adults gather in the church library for an Adult Bible Study from 6:30 to 8:00, with childcare available for ages zero to four and kindergarten through fifth grade. Family Night follows the Hamburg Area School District calendar: if the district closes or dismisses early, Wednesday activities are canceled.
Z-World is the church's signature summer family event, held the last weekend in July. The free two-day program runs activities such as a zip line, a 200-foot Alpine slide, a giant slip-and-slide, a splash dash obstacle course, a giant bubble pit, and an oversized version of a car wash, along with live music and skits. Families can camp overnight on the church property. Z-World is open to children age three through entering sixth grade and their families, including older siblings.
Teens, young adults, and The Walk
Middle and high school students have a steady stream of touchpoints with the church. The Journey Café opens its doors Monday through Thursday for CASP (Café After School Program), giving sixth through twelfth graders a safe place to play pool, foosball, bubble hockey, basketball, do homework, or simply hang out with friends. Forge, the youth group for eighth through twelfth graders, meets Tuesday afternoons from 4:30 to 6:00 at the café. Rock-Us carries the Wednesday night slot.
Summer brings Impact, a week-long mission project in the first full week after July 4, when youth and adult volunteers stay at Blue Mountain Olivet Camp and fan out across the Hamburg area for service projects, including work at the homes of handicapped people and senior citizens. Throughout the year the café hosts a series of youth ministry teams (a Skit Team, a Video Production Team, and a Youth Worship Team) and special events such as movie nights, hikes, the Renew Retreat at Camp Andrews, Winter Jam in Reading, and Creation Fest.
The Walk is the young adult ministry for ages 18 to 35, with monthly events that mix fellowship, learning, and time to relax. The Walk also gathers for a young adult Sunday School class at 9:40. Updates are posted on Instagram at @thewalk320.
Adult Sunday School and mid-week Bible studies
Three adult Sunday School classes meet at 9:40. The Foundry is a men's Bible study in Room 108. The Ladies Adult Bible Study meets in Room 111. Chosen Generation is a Bible study for ages 18 to 25 in Room 109.
On Wednesday evenings the Adult Bible Study meets in the church library from 6:30 to 8:00. The Action Group, a Bible study for ages 55 and older, gathers Tuesdays at 10:00 in Room 201. GriefShare, a friendly group that walks alongside people who have lost a loved one, is available by calling the church office at 610-562-2300. Christian counseling is available on Friday afternoons and evenings through Jim Miller, a church member and professional Christian counselor; appointments are scheduled by calling 484-336-5958, with financial arrangements handled between the counselor and the individual.
Women's and men's ministries
Inspired Sisters is the women's ministry umbrella, offering retreats, workshops, social events, Bible studies, and outdoor adventures. Ladies Night Out, the Ladies Trail Walk, the LC Medical Banquet, and a Tuesday Ladies Bible Study at The Journey Café are among its offerings. The Women's Daytime Bible Study meets Wednesdays from 10:00 to 11:30 in Room 201 at the church, led by Faye Weidenhammer, with a current study of The Great Truths of the Bible.
Driven is the men's ministry, a Christian fellowship offering physical and spiritual support, with weekly Tuesday gatherings in the Fellowship Hall from 6:30 to 8:30, led by Matt Ott. The group maintains a Facebook page and can be reached at drivenmensministry@gmail.com.
Senior adults: New Adventures, Action Group, and Game Day
Older adults at Zion's find several rhythms. New Adventures is a group for empty nesters and beyond that meets the second and fourth Monday of each month at 6:00 in the Fellowship Hall. The Action Group, also called the Prime Timers, meets Tuesdays at 10:00 in Room 201 for Bible study and fellowship. Game Day, hosted by the Prime Timers, takes place monthly on Fridays from 10:00 to 1:00 at The Journey Café, with snacks and drinks provided.
Moms of the Vine and family events
Moms of the Vine is a community for mothers and their children, with twice-monthly meet-ups designed to fit the schedules of both working and stay-at-home moms. Family events at the church run throughout the year and have included a Life-Sized Candy Land adventure, a Family Fall Festival, and blacklight parties.
Recovery, food pantry, and other outreach
Celebrate Recovery meets Thursdays at 7:00 at The Journey Café, offering a Christ-centered path to freedom from hurts, hang-ups, and habits. Zion's also partners with the Northern Berks Food Pantry, with monthly distribution at Hamburg Middle School on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Helping Harvest and other community partners benefit from car shows and other fundraisers held at the church. The FaithCare Annual Banquet brings the congregation together with other area churches for an evening of music, food, and a silent auction.
What the church believes
Zion's Church holds to a set of essential beliefs that it considers central to faith and salvation. God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe, eternally existing in three co-equal persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who lived a sinless life, died on the cross as the sacrifice for sin, rose again, ascended to heaven, and will return again as King of Kings. The Holy Spirit is present in the world, lives in every Christian from salvation, and gives spiritual gifts for living and serving. The Bible is the inspired Word of God and the supreme source of truth. People are made in God's image but are marred by sin, which separates them from God. Salvation is a free gift received by faith in Jesus Christ. The true believer is eternally secure in that salvation. People were created to exist forever, either eternally with God or eternally separated from Him.
The church also holds positions on marriage, the sanctity of life, gender, and creation that it considers rooted in scripture.
Becoming part of the church
First-time guests are invited to fill out a Visitor Contact Card, available online or at the church. For those ready to take a step further, the church holds adult membership classes on Sunday afternoons throughout the year at The Journey Café. A Confirmation Class for eighth graders and older begins each September and meets weekly through Pentecost Sunday. The church also runs a Connect mobile app through Realm, a private online community for managing giving, group communication, event registration, and contact information.
Giving can be done online, by text (text Zions and an amount to 73256), in person at the offering box in the back of the sanctuary, or by mail to 770 Zion Church Road, Hamburg, PA 19526. The church office is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 to 2:00 and can be reached at 610-562-2300.