156 - 158 High Street
PO Box 601
Cottenham
Cambridge
CB24 8WZ
Tel 01954 252378
Sunday services
| Morning | 10.30am |
| Communion: | 3rd Sunday |
Cottenham Baptist Church
|
156 - 158 High Street
PO Box 601
|
|
Sunday services
|
| News | Sunday Services | Week Day Meetings | Find us | About Cottenham Baptist | History of Cottenham Baptist | The Team | Alpha Course |
History
Cottenham Baptist Church, previously known as 'The Old Meeting', can trace its formation back to the 1660s when Baptists from Cottenham and Willingham met with Presbyterians and Independents in a barn close to the present building.
Early in the 18th Century, a formal Baptist church was established and occupied a building on the present site.
In 1854/56, the present building was erected. It seats around 500 and is built in a traditional Victorian style. During the 19th Century, the village was largely Baptist - out of a population of about 2000, the congregation on a Sunday was around 1000 people. This included 'The Old Meeting' and the strict Baptists (who met in the Ebenezer chapel, which used to be over the road on the corner of Rooks Street). In 1904, the back rooms were added for work with a growing Sunday school.
In the last decades of the 20th century, the membership steadily declined, but...
Since about 1993, a group of Christians had been meeting first in homes and then, as numbers increased, in the Youth Centre of the Village College. It became known as the 'Community Baptist Church' and was made up of people who had a vision for growth in the church.
In 1996, the 'Community Baptist' and the 'Old Meeting' combined, and the Church was renamed 'Cottenham Baptist Church'.
The combining of the two churches led to radical changes in worship and spiritual ethos. It is now a steadily growing family church with an actual membership of over 40 people and a congregation of 70 - 80 people on Sunday mornings. We are mission-minded, considering evangelism, social action and general outreach to be important, and we also welcome the community using the premises during the week.