This was the first brick building built in South Amana. It was erected in 1857. This building served a dual purpose. The first of these was as a church. The other use was as a residence. The "children's church" was in the northeast section of the house. The rest was living quarters for various families.
The name "children's church" was derived from its use, as were most of the names of the buildings in the village. This is the church a family would go to with their children. Married couples with a family young enough to still be dependent on their parents would come here for services. I have mentioned several different churches. These were used more heavily prior to the completion on the main church in 1871.
An interesting thing about the Amana Church of True Inspiration is how it is set up. I could go on in endless detail about the things that set this church apart from others. But since we are talking about the children's church, I will focus on children.
Religious beliefs were involved in every aspect of a child's life. Before 1932, the schools taught religion as part of their everyday curriculum. Parents, required to go to their daily services, had a heavy impact on the beliefs of their children. Not to mention that the children went to church with their parents. Religion was not a once-a-week duty as it seems to be to many now. It was the air you breathed, the water you drank, and it's ever-present morality was constant. That's not to say that it still isn't with some community members. But I would doubt that even the most pious person today could relate to the rigors of the religion of Amana's past. Children would begin going with parents to church around the age of two. Generally speaking, people were arranged by age and sex in church. Men and women sat separately on opposite sides of the church. You also would have been arranged by age, youngest in the front, eldest in the rear. The elders would sit facing the congregation, nearest the young children.
My oma knew the old way well. She also saw the change in 1932 alter every aspect about the society. In 1933, I'm told, the church adopted the current Sunday School system. Children under the age of confirmation would attend Sunday School. This also meant the the schools would separate from the religious curriculum. The duties were transferred from the school to the Sunday School. My oma taught Sunday School for over 50 years. She is one person that models the morality of the "traditional" Amana religion.
Children were not allowed to drink wine at the yearly communion until after confirmation. When I was young, we got grape juice. Years ago, the communion was given to the children at a communal kitchen. Children were not required to go to nachtgebet (night services). This was up to the parents to decide. However, most parents expected their children to go.
This building is still standing and is a private residence.