OUR HISTORY

In the 1850s a new Dutch community of immigrants formed on the near west side of Chicago. Some of these immigrants formed the First Reformed Church in 1853. In 1867, fifteen families left that congregation to form the Ware Gereformerde Kerk (True Reformed Church). They worshiped at 525 West Fourteenth Street in Chicago. In 1872 the church incorporated as the Dutch Reformed Church of Chicago. On or about January 3, 1883, the name of the church was changed to the Holland Christian Reformed Church of Chicago. Then, one or about November 26, 1903, the name of the church was changed to the First Christian Reformed Church of Chicago.

In 1923 the congregation purchased a spacious, old-world style church at the corner of Ashland Ave. and Hastings St (pictured below). The move included a shift in the language used, changing from Dutch to English. As their economic conditions improved, the members moved further west to Cicero, Berwyn, and Oak Park, prompting the construction of the present sanctuary started in 1947. It was then that the church adopted the name Ebenezer, thereby making a statement of faith in the Lord, the Rock. 1 Samuel 7:12 reads, “Samuel took a stone and named it ‘Ebenezer’ saying ‘Thus far has the Lord helped us’.”

The westward migration of Dutch Christian Reformed people continued, led in part by the move of Timothy Christian School from Cicero to Elmhurst. In 1987 Ebenezer was at a crossroad as many of its members had moved west of Berwyn. Would the church relocate again? After a season of prayerful discernment, the church not only decided to stay put but also decided to reach out to the community. In recent years, the congregation has doubled-down in that decision and began offering Sunday services in both Spanish and English.