Bethany Mennonite Church — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Jonathan Burkholder

Founded Verify

Denomination SMC Mennonite

Service Times Sunday School 9:30 AM; Preaching 10:30 AM; 3rd Sunday evening 7:00 PM

Men's Ministry No

Kids Ministry Yes

Website www.southeasternmc.org/bethany/

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)

Orthodox Anabaptist Christology

Strong

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

Plenary inspiration; literal hermeneutic

Strong

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Plurality of ordained men provides strong patriarchal-headship structure

Strong

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

Believer's baptism, regenerate church membership

Strong

Gender / Biblical Design

Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?

Male-only ordination; head covering practiced

Conservative Anabaptist complementarian — male-only ordination per Schleitheim and Dordrecht Confessions; head covering practiced.

Strong

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Plurality — Jonathan Burkholder, Daryl Gingerich, Davey Showalter, Robert Showalter (Allen Good retired)

Strong

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

Expository; weekly podcast archive maintained

Strong

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

SMC church-planting and missions network

Strong

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Plain dress, cultural separation — yellow per Adam's discernment axis

Caution

Accountability Structure

Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?

SMC confessionally orthodox conservative Anabaptist body

Strong

Assessment

Bethany Mennonite is an SMC congregation in the Briery Branch area west of Dayton with a five-man ministry team (one retired). Conservative Anabaptist on doctrine, polity, and praxis; pacifist nonresistance per SMC heritage.

#anabaptist#smc-mennonite#virginia#dayton#rockingham-county#shenandoah-valley#plain

MOOP Engagement Tracker

How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

Verified via SMC official directory. Email bethany@southeasternmc.org.

These are the URLs consulted to arrive at this church's scoring. Score-note claims are synthesized from homepage content, denominational directories, and public statements of faith at the time of review. Church websites change frequently; we're progressively adding Internet Archive snapshots to prevent link rot.

[1] Live source southeasternmc.org/where/
[2] Live source southeasternmc.org/bethany/

Transparency note: MOOP ratings are researcher judgments about publicly available theological and ecclesial evidence. They are not infallible. If a church's public posture has changed since our review, or if we've mis-read evidence, tell us — we publish corrections.