History

Christian Apostolic Church has been in existence for 95 years and will celebrate its centennial in 2012. 

Christian Apostolic Church originated from the Assemblies of God on Walnut Street in Newark, Ohio. In January 1911, the “Oneness Pentecostal” message was preached in a Gospel Mission at 113 E. Main St. by L. V. Roberts, the brother-in-law of Brother James A. Frush. Mrs. James A. Frush was among the first to receive the Holy Ghost, her husband receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost later, then he became a minister, and started preaching the “oneness message.” The year of 1913 found the mission without a pastor since brother Roberts moved to Indianapolis. The saints carried the burden for the mission under the leadership of Brother Bert Kissel. In April of 1915 Brother J. A. Frush felt a burden for the group and became their pastor.

Original Church

In the spring of 1916 the property on E. Main St was sold and a commercial building was to be constructed on its site. This small band of saints began to donate money for a church building of their own. Brother J. W. Frush, father of the pastor donated the church a lot on N. 23rd St. free of charge. This lot is the present location of our parking lot across the street from the current sanctuary.
After the sale of the E. Main St property, services were held twice a week, Sunday morning in the home of Sister Susan Carrico and Sunday evening in the home of the pastor, Rev. James A. Frush. Many times during the week Sister Frush would have the ladies in her home for Bible study. Later Sister Frush was an ordained minister and was a great help in the work of the Lord in Newark.

On July 4, 1916, ground was broken for the construction of the new church building. The land was a strawberry patch, so in the morning the strawberries were picked and in the afternoon they gladly broke ground for the church. The men worked faithfully and diligently on the construction of the church, with Brother S. P. Roberts as the head carpenter. Assisting Brother Roberts were Brother G. S. Davenport of the local church, and Brother Eli Sutton of Pickway, Ohio. With everyone working together the church was completed and ready for its first service.

The dedication of the church was September 3, 1916 with approximately 100 people in attendance. The opening song for that service was "The Fight is on O' Christian soldiers." At that time "Christian Apostolic" was chosen to be the name of the church. On that day, a young boy, Stanley Hamby was baptized and received the Holy Ghost. From that time, he was widely used of God. He became an assistant to Brother Frush, when he was still a teenager. He left Newark in 1928 and started many churches that are still in existence today. The "Pentecostal Outlook" was a monthly publication with Brother James A. Frush as the editor in chief.

Brother Frush worked hard for the church and withheld much opposition. He was accused of preaching heresy, however his vision outweighed the obstacles, and God continue to bless his efforts. Brother Frush also felt a burden for Utica and on July 12 through August 16, 1936 a tent was pitched in that village. Many heard the gospel preached but there was no great breakthrough. In the year of 1939, Brother C. L. Yoder's, of the local assembly, felt his call to open a oneness work in Utica. Many souls receive the baptism and a church was established in that village. Brother and Sister of Frush were the parents of two daughters. Sister Pearl McCreary and Sister Thelma Bratton. Brother James McCreary of our assembly is a grandson of Brother and Sister Frush. Brother Frush remained faithful until his death in 1944.

Following the death of Brother Frush, Brother John O'Reilly became pastor of the church. He had been an elder in the church and assisted Brother Frush. In 1947, Brother O'Reilly resigned as pastor and Brother S. R. Hanby came to the church as a temporary pastor. In the summer of 1947 Brother Hanby approached Brother H. E. Dyer about accepting the pastorate in Newark. Brother Dyer had been pastoring a church in Hartford City, Indiana for 10 years. With much prayer, he felt it was the Lord's will for him to come to Newark. He resigned his pastorate in Hartford City and moved his family to Newark, Ohio on October 3, 1947.

Tent revivals have held a vital an integral part in the history of this church. One of the first meetings was held at 5th and Wilson streets, where a temporary tabernacle was constructed. In the late 1940s, J. C. Cole conducted revival meetings in a tent at Marne. Several people were saved there and are still in the church today. Also in the mid-19 50s, Brother T. J. Miller preached a tent meeting on West Main and 27thSt.

Under the pastorate of Brother Dyer revival continued and the church grew. The church building became too small for the amount of members, therefore in 1957, with $15,000 in the building fund, construction of a new church was started. Brother James McCreary, architect and grandson of the first pastor, drew the plans for the building. The men of the Church labored on the building, giving of their time and their skills, looking forward to a new and larger place to worship. When completed, the building was appraised at $125,000. The dedication service for the new building was on September 3, 1958.

On September 5, 1966 the mortgage for the church was burned and the church celebrated 50 years of having their own building. Several ministers took part in the service including Reverend Fred Kinsey from Toledo, Reverend H. I Goodin from Morgantown West Virginia, Reverend J. C. Cole from Parkersburg West Virginia, Reverend R. G. Cook from Lancaster Ohio, and Reverend Stanley Hanby from New York. By this time the congregation had almost tripled. Brother Dyer, having a burden and vision for souls, began planning ahead to fulfill his vision of a larger building filled with new born-again Christians, so he immediately began a building fun program.

In October of 1970 Brother Dyer passed away in the living room of the parsonage. Following the death of Brother Dyer, Brother R. A. Newstrand became the new pastor of Christian Apostolic Church. Brother Newstrand first became involved with the church in May of 1958, when he married brother Dyer's eldest daughter, Lois Ann. In the fall of 1958 R. A Newstrand became assistant pastor. In 1959 the Newstrands moved to St. Paul, Minnesota and later pastored churches in Indiana and Tennessee before returning to Newark in 1968. At that time R. A. Newstrand became full-time associate pastor with Brother Dyer.

In early 1975 the church began construction of the new building. With the expertise to help of Brother Bowe of St. Paul, Minnesota, Brother Newstrand and the men of the church worked diligently on the new building. When completed there were 22,000 square feet of floor space and a seating capacity of nearly 1000. On November 17, 1976, the new building was dedicated.