The village of Ballum on Ameland has two churches, a Reformed and a Mennonite, which is also called Vermaning. In 2013, the Mennonite church was sold, because the Mennonite congregation could no longer afford the maintenance costs. Hotel Nobel van Ballum has built beautiful hotel rooms in it, thereby preserving the building and giving it a new purpose. The Mennonites have two more churches on the island, one in Hollum and one in Nes.
Mennonite church in Ballum
- Last service in the Vermaning in Ballum
- Easter candle of the Mennonite church
- Road of the Mieden
- Seven Admonitions on Ameland
- Mennonite-Reformed Federation
- Hotel Nobel
Last service in the Vermaning in Ballum
On February 3, 2013, the Mennonites and Reformed, who together form churches as the Mennonite-Reformed Federation, will celebrate the last service in the Vermaning on the Camminghastraat in Ballum. The church is full that day, 120 churchgoers sit in the pews. Reverend Rob Workel will lead this last service. The church needs “living stones,” the pastor emphasizes. The closure is difficult, but it is also considered soberly.
Four churches
The Mennonite-Reformed Federation has four churches to fill and maintain and the church congregation cannot afford that. The former Reformed church is located in Hollum, which has been called Westerlaankerk since the federation. There is also a Mennonite church in that village, which is now called Herenwegkerk. Then there is another Vermaning in Nes and the fourth is the church in Ballum. It is forced to be rejected. From February 3, Ballum churchgoers will go to church in the reformed church in the same street.
Source: Mennonite Reformed Federation Ameland
Easter candle of the Mennonite church
After the farewell service, the doors are finally closed by sexton Hilda Molenaar. The Easter candle is taken to the reformed church, a few meters further down the street, while it is burning. The pulpit Bible follows the same path.
Singing
The church closed with the words of hymn 320:3: ,But the great work is not done with stone and wood alone. It will be about ourselves.,
Road of the Mieden
The Mennonite church in Ballum dates from 1883. The first service was celebrated on October 31 of that year. In 1804 there were two Mennonite churches in Ballum: the Foppe Onnes community merged with the Jan Jacobs community. The church of the Jan Jacobs congregation stood on the road to Nes and was built in 1773. The Foppe Onnes municipality had a building on a path where the Gerrit Kosterweg is now located. That was then called the Way of the Mieden. That church was demolished in 1818.
Camminghastraat
The church on Camminghstraat was built to replace the church on Nesserweg. At the end of the 19th century, the newly formed congregation had 63 members.
Source: Picture postcard
Seven Admonitions on Ameland
The very first Mennonite church in Ballum was built in the seventeenth century. Around 1800, Ameland had seven Admonitions. Three were in Hollum, two in Ballum and two in Nes. One of those churches is the Jan Jacobskerk from 1650 and renovated in 1819. The building fell out of use in 1843. After the union of the Mennonites it was demolished in 1854.
Mennonite blue
Of the churches in the Mennonite color, the church on the Vermaningspad in Nes and the church on the Herenweg in Hollum from 1867 remain. The one in Nes is the oldest.
Mennonite-Reformed Federation
For years, the Mennonite-Reformed Federation in Ballum has been worshiping alternately with the Reformed in one of the two churches. In this way, the municipalities shared in the heating costs. From February 3, 2013 there will be joint services in the reformed church.
Hotel Nobel
The church in Ballum has been sold to the Nobels of Hotel Nobel on Gerrit Kosterweg. The café of Hotel Nobel is known for the Nobeltje, a herbal bitter that is brewed according to a family recipe and to which the Nobels have the exclusive right. The hotel, café and liquor store owners and brewers of the Nobeltje have built hotel rooms in it. Nothing has changed in the appearance of the building: it is still the Mennonite church.
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