A Bible-Believing Community on Providence Road
Aldan Union Church has stood on East Providence Road in Aldan, Pennsylvania since 1923, when a small chapel was dedicated there on Easter Sunday. A century later, the congregation has grown into a multi-building campus with a sanctuary, fellowship hall, Bible school building, gymnasium, children's classrooms, music rooms, and nurseries, alongside a mission program that supports roughly fifty missionaries in more than fifteen countries. The church's own slogan sums up its purpose: "Growing in Christ and Reaching Out to the World."
From its earliest days Aldan Union Church has described itself as a nondenominational church with an interdenominational ministry. It takes a strong stand on the authority and inerrancy of the Bible and teaches that salvation is by God's grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Savior. Worship services combine contemporary music, traditional hymns, choir, and handbells; the church wants to "sit at the intersection of the ancient and modern church" and use the best tools from any era that will point people to Christ.
A Sunday School Becomes a Church
The story began in 1914, when a small group of women in Aldan started a Sunday School for neighborhood children. They met in the basement of Neighbor's Hall at the corner of Clifton and Woodlawn Avenues, and a few months later evening services were added. On July 14, 1915, a charter was granted and the church was officially recognized.
In 1919, a student at the Philadelphia School of the Bible named William Allan Dean came to supply the pulpit. He became the full-time pastor in 1922 and served until his retirement in 1967, forty-five years of ministry that shaped everything the church became. Under Dr. Dean, the Providence Road chapel was built and dedicated on Easter Sunday 1923. As the congregation grew, a Bible School building was added in 1938, doubled in size in 1950, and joined by a Sanctuary and Fellowship Hall in 1963. Dr. Dean also planted the missions vision that today reaches across the world.
Only four pastors have occupied the pulpit. Rev. Robert L. Briggs served from 1969 through 1980. Rev. Paul W. Thompson served from 1983 until his retirement in August 2017. The present pastor, Rev. Joe Jacobson, was installed in 2017 after a decade and a half of ministry in California. In 2007 a new building was constructed between the Bible School building and the Sanctuary, housing a gymnasium, multiple children's classrooms, a music room, and conveniently located nurseries. The Bible School building was renovated at the same time to create additional rooms and a new office complex. Across the street, a parking lot built in 2001 became part of what is now known as Providence Park, an outdoor space for seasonal activities, an annual community picnic, and summer evening worship services.
Sunday Morning: Two Styles, One Family
Aldan Union Church runs two Sunday morning services designed to bring generations and cultures together as a family in Christ. A Contemporary Service at 9:00 a.m. draws those who prefer a less formal style of music and a less structured hour, while the Traditional service at 11:30 a.m. leans on hymns, choir, and handbells. Both services aim for creative, innovative worship that points people to Christ. Sunday worship is followed by an evening service at 6:30 p.m. for those who want to spend the day with their church family. Services are livestreamed on Vimeo for those who cannot attend in person, and a sermon archive goes back many years in audio form.
Between the two morning services is a fellowship hour called "Connect Time," a chance to grab a coffee or tea and meet someone new before Bible School begins. Bible School runs at 9:30 a.m. for those from age two to senior citizens and includes a nursery for the youngest attendees as well as a class called "God's Special People" for those who are physically or mentally challenged. Classes include Beginners (ages 3-4), Kindergarten, Primary and Junior (1st-5th grade), teen classes, and adult electives.
Children: Partnering with Families
The Children's Ministry teams up with parents in three commitments: teaching children to know God's Word and to worship Him, and demonstrating Jesus' love in an active way. Children's Ministry Director Christy Bickford oversees the program, which includes Kid's Worship for three-year-olds through third grade at 9:30 a.m. in Rooms 108 and LL19. After the family worships together in the sanctuary, children are dismissed before the sermon for age-appropriate lessons and then brought to their Bible School classes.
The nursery serves children from birth through age three at 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. During Bible School, attentive workers provide interactive play, snack, and an introduction to age-appropriate Bible stories and activities. Each Bible School class encourages Biblical lessons along with fellowship, music, prayer, Bible memorization, and hands-on activities. Two Christ-centered club programs round out the week. Explorer Girls for girls ages 4-18 meets Monday nights at 7:00 p.m., and Xtreme Xplorers for boys in 1st through 6th grade meets the same time. A monthly Homeschool Family Meet-Up gathers parents and kids in the gym on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays.
Students: Middle School and High School
Student Pastor Noah Kimber leads the AUC Student Ministries for middle and high school students. The mission is to partner with families in helping students become the men and women God has called them to be as they grow in Christ and reach out to the world. Sunday Student Bible Study meets at 9:30 a.m. with announcements at 9:10 and small groups at 9:20, spending about forty minutes together in small groups studying God's word in depth and applying it to life.
Wednesday Night Bible Study at 7:00 p.m. includes games, snacks, worship, and a time in God's Word. During the school year the group teaches expositionally through different Bible stories or books; in the summer the format shifts. About once a month students gather for special events designed to build community and lifelong friendships. The student ministry also runs short-term missions trips for high schoolers both here and abroad. A regular parent email keeps families informed, and parents can join a text reminder service by texting @aucparents to 81010.
Adults: Men's, Women's, and Small Groups
The Men's Ministry exists to impact men in their walk with Christ and to reach other men for Christ, with opportunities to connect, grow, and serve. Men's Fire Night meets the third Friday of the month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., providing food, fellowship, testimony, and spiritual encouragement. Multiple Men's Small Groups meet at various times and places. Two Bible studies anchor the week. "Wake Up" is a Tuesday morning Bible Study at 6:30 a.m. in the Chapel. "Man Up" is a Saturday morning men's accountability and encouragement group at 9:00 a.m. in the Chapel.
The Women's Ministry exists to encourage women to embrace Christ as Savior, know and grow in the Word of God, and commit to the Body of Christ. For close to sixty years, Life Groups have gathered women for Bible study, fellowship, and service, meeting the second Tuesday and Wednesday of each month with morning, afternoon, and evening options. A monthly Crochet and Knitting Group meets on the third Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. Small Groups of various sizes meet at the neighborhood for fellowship, prayer, and study. Naomi's Ministry is a widows' support group that meets Tuesday evenings at 6:30 p.m.
A Generous Vision for the World
Missions have been part of Aldan Union Church since Dr. Dean first encouraged the congregation to give away. Today, close to $400,000 a year, around forty percent of annual giving, goes to missionaries serving around the world. Roughly fifty missionaries and families serve in the United States and abroad, including about a third who are nationals serving in their own countries. Since the early 1920s, more than 150 of the church's own members have engaged in full-time Christian service, with many more active at rescue missions, crisis pregnancy centers, prisons, children's work, and retirement homes.
The annual Missions Conference has been a fixture since 1936, a week of worship, teaching, and updates from missionaries near and far held every March. Each Bible School class, youth group, and Women's Life Group takes special interest in a particular missionary, and the church provides two fully furnished apartments for missionaries on home assignment. Aldan Union partners with a long list of mission organizations, including Africa Inland Mission, BCM International, Commission Ministers Network, Commission to the Nation, Crossworld, Converge, DiscipleMakers, EG Ministries, Handi*Vangelism Ministries International, International Messengers, ILMAV, Mesa Global, Missionary Ventures, Place of Promise, Pioneers, PIR Ministries, SEARCH, Spanish World Missions, TEAM, Transport for Christ, Volunteers for Christ, Village Missions, Word of Life, Wycliffe Bible Translators, and Youth Action Ministries.
Teaching the Bible: Bible Training Center Institute
The Bible Training Center of Delaware County began in 2003 as a ministry offered to Aldan Union attendees and the wider community. Five core courses are taught in evening classes once a week; the full program takes two and a half years to complete, and more than 160 students have graduated since the first class in 2005. Now known as the Bible Training Center Institute (BTCI), the program brings conservative evangelical seminary training to pastors and leaders who do not have access to a biblical seminary, enabling them to study God's Word, apply it well, and prepare to preach and teach it to others.
Classes meet Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. The five courses are Hermeneutics, Old Testament Survey, New Testament Survey, Bible Doctrine Survey, and Personal Spiritual Life. Enrollment is $150 and includes manuals for all five courses and an ESV study Bible.
Music and Arts: A Choir for Every Age
Music is a central part of the church's life, with many ways to serve. The Worship Band is a rotating group of singers and instrumentalists who lead congregational music; rehearsals are Wednesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. The Worship Choir, open to singers middle school and above, rehearses Thursday evenings at 7:30 p.m. A Holiday Choir prepares seasonal Christmas and Easter programs. Joyful Noise, a children's choir for 1st through 5th grade, sings about once a month and rehearses Sunday afternoons at noon.
For handbell players, Exultate Ringers is an adult handbell choir using eight octaves of Schulmerich handbells along with a three-octave set of Malmark ChoirChimes. Hosanna Chimes and Half Notes is a bell choir for children in 1st through 5th grade using three octaves of Malmark ChoirChimes and three octaves of Schulmerich handbells; the combined group plays twice in the fall and twice in the spring. Other handbell opportunities are open for middle and high school students. Salt, Light and Fragrance (SLF) is the church's drama team, often producing a Christmas drama each year. An Audio/Visual team supports all worship services.
Care for the Hurting: GriefShare and ESL
GriefShare meets the first and third Saturdays of each month from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the Chapel. The program is led by caring facilitators who have experienced grief themselves and rebuilt their lives. The thirteen-week video seminar combines expert teaching with small group discussion and a workbook; a Surviving the Holidays session is offered in November. The cost is $20 for the workbook. The facilitators together bring more than twenty years of experience walking with people through loss, and the ministry has developed alongside the national GriefShare network of more than 15,000 churches.
The English as a Second Language program runs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. from September through May. New students can register and be tested before joining. Classes cover a range of levels with the goal of helping non-English speakers improve their English and connect with the local community. Volunteer opportunities include hospitality, teaching, childcare, registration, and special events.
The Building and Providence Park
Aldan Union Church sits at 7 East Providence Road in Aldan, Pennsylvania, on a campus that has grown with each generation. The original 1923 chapel is still part of the property, joined by the 1938/1950 Bible School building, the 1963 Sanctuary and Fellowship Hall, and the 2007 building that houses a gymnasium, multiple children's classrooms, a music room, and nurseries. Across the street, Providence Park provides space for outdoor activities, including the annual community picnic and summer evening worship services. A new parking lot there, built in 2001, more than makes up for the parking footprint lost when the new building went in. Worship services are livestreamed on Vimeo, an audio sermon archive goes back many years, and online giving is available through Church Center.
Leadership
Rev. Joe Jacobson has served as Senior Pastor since 2017. A graduate of Chapman University (BM in Music Education and Performance) and Talbot School of Theology at Biola University (MA in Theology and Biblical Studies), he has served in youth, worship, family, and associate pastor roles for three decades, including ten years as Associate Pastor at Bethel Grace Baptist Church in Bellflower, California. He, his wife Pam, and their son Elijah moved from California to Aldan in August 2017.
Rev. Ed Lochmoeller has served as Pastor of Visitation since July 2009. He holds a B.A. in Christian Education and Pastoral Ministries from Point Loma University and an MBA from Azusa Pacific University, and has served with InFaith since 1982 in pastoring, church planting, camping, and youth ministry. Matt Jones serves as Pastor of Worship. Noah Kimber serves as Pastor of Student Ministries. Christy Bickford has served as Children's Ministry Director since August 2021, having previously served as a summer intern for Student Ministry at the church. Howard Phipps, Sr. leads the Audio/Visual team.
The church is governed by a council of elders chaired by Chuck Young, with committees on Christian Education, Body Life, Missionary, Outreach, and Worship. A board of deacons chaired by Bill Pennington III manages operations including vehicles, properties, technology, insurance, and security.