The Calvary Hour

The Calvary Hour was a religious radio program based out of Ohio that was broadcast internationally. It was probably the earliest use of mass media by the Mennonite Church.[1]

The Calvary Hour began in November, 1936, founded by the pastor of Sterling, Ohio’s Pleasant Hill Mennonite Church, William G. Detweiler[1] shortly after his ordination.[2] The program was based in Orrville, Ohio.[3] It was not centered around Mennonite teachings, but was generally Evangelical in nature, focusing on general preaching and Bible readings.[1] For more than twenty-five years the featured musical artists were the Amstutz Sisters Trio,[4] who also accompanied Detweiler on tour[5] and produced a series of 78 rpm records on their own record label, Faith.[6]

Although produced by Mennonites, the program never had any official standing within any Mennonite denomination,[1] in fact many refused association with the broadcast.[7] In 1951 a schism developed between followers of Detweiler's program and the denomination's Franconia Conference.[8] In 1952 the program was carried by 21 radio stations in the United States, but was available worldwide over HCJB.[3] William died in 1956, and the program continued from Orrville, Ohio, under his twin sons Bill Detweiler and Bob Detweiler.[1] In 1988 the program was heard over 30 radio stations across North and South America.[9] For the final fourteen years, the program was recorded at Colors Audio in Akron, Ohio.[10] Production of the program ended in 2007 upon Bill Detweiler's retirement; the last show was broadcast on December 30 of that year.[1][10] The governing board felt that the audience would not transition to another speaker after the program had been in a single family for such a lengthy time period.[10]

The program was broadcast on WDAC for the entire length of production.[11]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Kraybill, Donald B. (2014). Mennonites and Media: Mentioned in It, Maligned by It, and Makers of It: How Mennonites Have Been Portrayed in Media and How They Have Shaped Media for Identity and Outreach. Wipf and Stock Publishers. pp. 102–103. ISBN 9781630877736.
  2. ^ Hostetler, Beulah S. (2002). American Mennonites and Protestant Movements: A Community Paradigm. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 244. ISBN 9781579109066.
  3. ^ a b Shelly, Andrew R. (April 1952). "Mennonites on the Air" (PDF). Mennonite Life. VII (2). North Newton, Kansas: Bethel College: 65.
  4. ^ "Obituaries". Mennonite Weekly Review. April 2, 2012. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  5. ^ Burdge, Edsel; Horst, Samuel L. (2004). Building on the Gospel Foundation: The Mennonites of Franklin County, Pennsylvania, and Washington County, Maryland, 1730–1970. Herald Press. p. 551. ISBN 9780836192650.
  6. ^ Amstutz Sisters Trio. If I Gained the World / I Do Don’t You (78rpm phonograph record). Faith Records. 5004/5.
  7. ^ Scott, Stephen (1996). An Introduction to Old Order and Conservative Mennonite Groups: People's Place Book, Issue 12. Good Books. p. 154. ISBN 9781561481019.
  8. ^ Hostetler, Beulah S. (2002). American Mennonites and Protestant Movements: A Community Paradigm. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 267. ISBN 9781579109066.
  9. ^ Dyck, Cornelius J.; Martin, Dennis D., eds. (1990). The Mennonite Encyclopedia: A Comprehensive Reference Work on the Anabaptist-Mennonite Movement. Vol. 5. Mennonite Brethren Publishing House. p. 101. ISBN 9780836131055.
  10. ^ a b c Jackson, Rachel (January 13, 2008). "Kidron's Calvary Hour ends era as pioneer of Christian broadcasting". The Daily Record. Wooster, Ohio. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  11. ^ Burkholder, Jared S.; Cramer, David C. (2012). The Activist Impulse: Essays on the Intersection of Evangelicalism and Anabaptism. Wipf and Stock Publishers. ISBN 9781630876210.