Books By Richard J. Gehman

Faith of our Fathers: From Barbarian to Mennonite and Beyond is a wonderful gift to every member of the Bible Fellowship Church and everyone with Germanic roots. The book is more than a family genealogy: it is the story of every Pennsylvania Dutch person, tracing their lifestyle and religious beliefs back to the Germanic barbarians. Their Christianization within the Roman Empire is followed by their lifestyle, worship and beliefs in medieval times.

Dr. Gehman’s maternal ancestors were German Lutheran and Reformed, and French Huguenots, while all his paternal ancestors were Swiss Brethren from the Canton of Berne. So the book explores the history and teachings of the Magisterial Reformation and the Radical Reformation under Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, Menno Simons and John Calvin. Nearly 200 pages are devoted to this narration of the religious faith and lifestyle covering 1,500 years.

The last 100 pages narrate the pilgrimage of named ancestors from the 1500s of numerous Bible Fellowship Church pastors, with their Germanic ancestry, as they left their native land and immigrated to the woods of Penn: Father William Gehman, “founder” of the Bible Fellowship Church; Pastor W.G. Gehman, Presiding Elder; Pastor Rudy H. Gehman, the author’s dad; Pastor Richard L. Woodring and Pastor Allen G. Woodring, the grandfather and uncle of the author.

As Doctor Harold Shelly comments, “Dr. Gehman’s Faith of our Fathers is a wonderful gift to his immediate extended family. It should enlighten many others with similar heritage. It is a great piece of work; very enlightening and fascinating which I enjoyed immensely.”

Passing It On: Lessons Learned in Life is Richard Gehman’s personal story. Dana Weller writes that this book is “not an autobiography but rather an intimate reflection of how God leads His children… We need to pay close attention to the lessons Dr. Gehman learned during his life because they are the same lessons each of us must learn as we walk our pilgrim journey.”

You can order these books from the Historical Committee of the BFC, 723 South Providence Road, Wallingford PA 19086. The cost of each is $15.00. Make your check payable to Richard Gehman.