When the Rev. John Lolla began writing the history of his congregation at Plum Creek Presbyterian Church in 2003, he knew it would be a big project.

But five years, five volumes and 2,200 pages later, "The Creek Runs Deep: Two Centuries of Salvation History," has turned out to be more than the history of one church in Plum.

The Rev. Lolla, who grew up near Sandusky, Ohio, and holds a doctor of ministry degree from Princeton Theological Seminary, said the work was requested by his church's Session leaders to commemorate Plum Creek's 200th anniversary.

The minister to the Plum Creek congregation since 1983, the Rev. Lolla said the key to writing the work was his decision to focus on the stories of the church's members rather than on the church as an institution.

"That freed me to include genealogical information, family stories, personal experiences," said the Rev. Lolla, 56.

He also consulted historical documents and scholarly accounts of the past 200 years. He said he collected all of the information with two larger goals in mind.

First, he asked, "How do people live out the doctrines they were taught? How do their religious convictions affect their decisions?"

The second focus was on how Plum Creek "interfaced with the larger world. It's not an isolated institution," he said.

Members of the Plum Creek congregation were present during many of the local and national historical events that shaped the world, he added.

Andrew Mellon, father of Mellon Bank founder Thomas Mellon, was a member of Plum Creek, along with William D. Boyce, founder of the Boy Scouts of America.

Plum Creek member Samuel Alfred McClung was one of the two judges who presided over the trial resulting from the Homestead Steel Strike of 1892.

Congregants George and Twyla Barnhart were at Los Alamos, N.M., during the atomic testing there, while another church member, Russ Nesbit, was a medic during the aftermath of the bombing of Hiroshima.

Because church members were involved, the Rev. Lolla covers the religious controversies that arose around issues such as the beginning of the Civil War, the creation of secular public schools in the 1830s, the rise of labor unions and the United States' use of the atomic bomb.

He also covers Plum Creek's history from the first Presbyterian worship in the area, in 1788, to 2005.

One thing he found significant, the Rev. Lolla said, was the leading role churches such as Plum Creek took in shaping moral, educational and legal standards during the early years on the frontier.

Often the most educated people for many miles, Presbyterian ministers served as teachers for local youth, instructing them in Greek, Latin, calculus and the humanities.

Presiding over disputes as to the legal definition of marriage and the legitimacy of couples' offspring, a church's Session "often functioned as a de facto court," he said.

Another surprising trend he encountered was early Presbyterians' loyalty to their denomination.

During the 1700s, one recently married Plum Creek couple -- whose baby arrived earlier than was deemed appropriate by the Session -- appealed the judgment against them all the way to the Presbyterian Synod, then in Virginia.

"Imagine traveling all that way through virgin forest, with Indians around, with a tiny baby," he said. "Today, someone would just join another denomination."

The Rev. Lolla said he now has a new project -- saying goodbye and settling into a new church community.

Starting Sunday, he will be minister at Northmont United Presbyterian Church on Perry Highway in McCandless.

Funds to support the writing and printing of 500 copies of "The Creek Runs Deep" came from donations and grants by Mary Kuhn Robb, Samuel Alfred McClung III, the Twila Sampson Charitable Foundation and the Myles D. and J. Faye Sampson Family Foundation.

The five-volume set, covered in buckram and decorated in gold leaf, is $25 for the set.

"They're easily worth five times that," said the Rev. Lolla, noting that anyone interested in the history of the East Hills will find plenty of information in the work.

Although he said he owed thanks to many from within and without his congregation, he noted that his wife, Julie, merits a special mention.

A former English major, Mrs. Lolla "continually reminded me to be concerned about my audience," he said. "And she endured an awful lot of days when my back was turned to anyone except my computer screen."

The Rev. Lolla said what he found most interesting about his project was that it uncovered an alternate view of history that he believes is often lost in secular education.

"People have deeply held beliefs that motivate them to be willing to risk their lives. Look at World War II. Our boys didn't think of it as a religious conflict, but they took their religious faith with them into that fight.

"If we fail to value people's religious convictions, we fail to honor the sacrifices people make because of them."

To buy "The Creek Runs Deep," call 412-793-4525 or visit the church at 550 Center-New Texas Road, Plum. For more information, go to www.plumcreekchurch.com.

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