Thursday, September 11, 2025

The Historical Suffering Church: Its Image, Its Faith Extending Over Our Tomorrows:

I am beginning a small series looking at the various forms of the historical Church and their experiences of persecution as it is fomented by its relation to the secular culture and governments of their time. This may include a rising unfaithfulness in the midst of persecution. I will not put these events necessarily in a historical sequence because I am more interested in the interplay of Christianity, state, and culture rather than the rise and fall of nations. And I am also interested in how the faithfulness of the Church produces in the end, sadly, the antagonism of state and culture. I am starting with the Anabaptists simply because I was thinking about some of their music when I felt this would be an exploration that would be helpful in these days. 

The Anabaptist were mostly in Switzerland and Germany and were undoubtedly the most persecuted members of the Reformation. As, William R. Estep, author of The Anabaptist Story, writes “Martyrdom became an Anabaptist hallmark.” It was such a hallmark that they have a hymnbook covering most of their sufferings. This was printed in 1564 but also there is the Martyrs Mirror published in 1660 which is still used by the Amish and Mennonites. I will place one of their hymns at the end of this post. 

The persecution of the Anabaptist came about for several reasons. It was of course a time when religious freedom was not generally considered. And the Anabaptist had no king, ruler or pope to protect them. All of the state churches as well as governments persecuted them. One of the reasons is something that has happened too often in church history; true Christians being accused of the crimes of other religious groups. One of the more radical groups, a militant group, took over a town, took power and instituted polygyny. They were eventually overcome by military forces and destroyed but too often the Anabaptist were thought to adhere to the teachings of the militant group. 

The Anabaptist had several distinctive beliefs that rankled other Christians of their day. They did not believe in infant baptism or that communion consisted of the true body and blood of Jesus. (Reformed theology did accept infant baptism.) Beyond this and probably more importantly the Anabaptist were pacifist and believed in living in community. This did not necessarily mean that they lived as a commune all owning the same property. But they did share a great deal and attempted to live separately from others. While they attempted to live as law abiders their preaching was too often considered against the law. And much like in Islamic countries and autocratic countries like China, Russia and North Korea today, even in secret meetings they were sought out and arrested.

 Estep gives an account of the fate of one of the preachers Michael Sattler: 

Michael Sattler shall be committed to the executioner. The later shall take him to the square and first cut off his tongue, and there forge him fast to a wagon and there with glowing iron tongs twice tear pieces from his body, then on the way to the site of execution five times more as above and then burn his body to powder as an arch-heretic. 

 Different Anabaptist groups would form mainly the Amish, the Mennonites and the Hutterites. They would spread to many countries including Russia and North and South America. It was in Germany during the Nazi years that some of their past Christian endurance would be tested. In Germany where their concerns about social evil and pacifism, their sense of Christian community, came in deep conflict with the Nazi officials. 

 It was the Hutterites in particular who came into conflict with the Nazis. Some of the other groups of Anabaptist like other German citizens felt that Hitler was bringing morality to Germany and did not oppose him. Pastor Martin Niemöller at first also thought Hitler was bringing morality to Germany since he had promised to protect Christianity—of course a lie. But Niemöller became Hitler’s adversary and was his personal prisoner for eight years. 

The Hutterites, under the leadership of Aberhard Arnold used all of there distinctive beliefs to continue as citizens of Germany but would eventually fail. They schooled their children in their own community, they tried to avoid military service for the young men, they took in strangers, farmed and sold much of their produce to their surrounding community. At first, they attempted to continue this by appealing to German officials, trying to convert them to what they called the way of love. When at one point they were raided they baked their oppressors a cake. Another time, differently, behind a closed door, they threw documents into a stove so there would be no proof that they had ever spoken against the Nazis.

 The important point here is that they never gave away their own principles nor their Lord who they served rather than worldly leaders. But one by one, as it too often happens in totalitarian regimes, the Hutterites’ lives and principles were attacked and their property destroyed. They needed Hutterite teachers and had to tell outsiders to no longer send strangers to their door. As they began to lose their property and looked, quietly, for property in Switzerland and then eventually, carefully, stealthily, began to move across the border. They did not go all at once and two men spent some time in prison but not for long. Their community in Germany was gone but they would eventually emigrate to the UK and then to South America. 

Much of what I have been writing comes from a history on the Aberhard Arnold, Burderdhof site. There is a series of articles there dealing with their history in that time. It begins: 

“It is inherent in imitatio, in being Christlike, that we are ready for imprisonment and death,” Eberhard Arnold told members of the Rhön Bruderhof in March 1933. It was two days after Adolf Hitler’s address to the Reichstag and granting himself complete power, the moment Germany passed the point of no return to become a Nazi dictatorship. Eberhard spoke to his community about the challenges National Socialism would create for them as a result of their commitment to Jesus’ way of peace. Indeed, the fate of the entire Bruderhof in the years 1933–1937 serves as an example of Christian resistance and witness in this era of state violence. 

The pacifism of the early Anabaptist movement was a core principle of the Bruderhof's identity. This meant that from the very beginning they distanced themselves from the regime, which quickly revealed its brutal, violent nature. The community members were also firmly opposed to the National Socialist racial principles. The Bruderhof thus stood in decisive opposition to National Socialist ideologies and expressed this antagonism in clear terms.” 

 Some of the experiences of the Hutterites can be acknowledged as helpful for Christians in any totalitarian setting. While the Hutterites did not suffer all that the Confessing Church, the White Rose, Corrie Ten Boon and others suffered they did lose much yet faithfully stood their ground in the faith. As scenarios changed, they keep on finding ways to stay together and hold to their faith. As so many experienced in that time they experienced communities and individuals who took no real notice of the evil happening around them leading to a sense of isolation but still they clung to each other and to the Lord—the best that history can write about anyone they were faithful to each other and to Christ.  

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hymnal I don’t usually use Wikipedia for endnotes but this one is so interesting that others may want to read it.

[1] Estep gives three references for this quote far to long to add to a blog post, but the quote is well referenced—it is historical.

[1] Eberhard Arnold and National Socialism, Part One


3 comments:

Anonymous said...

And yet the American Anabaptists appear to have voted for the New Fascist Dictator, both the Amish, and their close cousins the Mennonites. What does this mean? Either they have been corrupted by evil, or maybe Trump is not the new Hitler that Democrats have been threatening he is for years now.

It is incredibly divisive and ahistorical to pretend that Trump is a politician in the mold of Hitler or Stalin. If it were true, it means that the family and friends who support him are equivalent to nazi-supporters, and will be consigned to the pages of history as apathetic villains at best. For those mentally ill and unstable on the left, this gives justification for violence against ordinary conservatives, something you have promoted by comparing ICE to the gestapo or the SS in your FB posts. Since I support ICE, and have friends in ICE, that makes me equivalent to a gestapo or SS supporter. While there are few on the right who are unstable enough to commit violence against the left, the left is openly courting the mentally unstable (particularly the gender confused, who have been told for years and months now by both politicians and the mainstream media that we want to exterminate them) to act out physically against us.

I am proud to have stood with the Anabaptists who voted, and like them, I voted for Trump. If I could go back in time and choose again, having seen what I have seen since he was sworn in, I would do it again, and with better cheer. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/amish-vote-key-in-pennsylvania-and-trumps-victory/ar-AA1tJESi

Viola Larson said...

Interesting! I can understand the bad issue of selling raw milk. I at times was raised on raw milk and have a son-in-law who sold it via a share option. I don't think there is anything wrong with it. However notice I did write this about the anabaptist in Germany:
"It was the Hutterites in particular who came into conflict with the Nazis. Some of the other groups of Anabaptist like other German citizens felt that Hitler was bringing morality to Germany and did not oppose him. Pastor Martin Niemöller at first also thought Hitler was bringing morality to Germany since he had promised to protect Christianity—of course a lie. But Niemöller became Hitler’s adversary and was his personal prisoner for eight years. "
And again if you reread my posting you will find that I did not equate Trump with Hitler although I do believe he has totalitarian leanings. I am sure their are some ICE workers who are kind and caring of Immigrants, but too many are not. They beat on them, take them away without letting family or lawyers know where they are and in too many cases have arrested US citizens or Immigrants who are here legally. Historically some of the actions of the beginnings of Hitler's rule can be sign posts for others eras; not exactly but some likenesses.
I do have a rule on my blog that you must state your name city and state to post here. Since you seem to know what I post on Facebook, you just might be my granddaughter which is great! I love having you comment on my blog.

Anonymous said...

Whether Trump is in the mold of Hitler or Stalin will be clear only in retrospect. After all, not even Hitler nor Stalin were in the molds of Hitler or Stalin when they got started.

What is increasingly clear is that the MAGA movement is a uniquely American thing, but the closest Right Wing historical analogies to it are Mussolini and Hitler. It takes an extraordinary amount of mental gymnastics to deny it. To a lesser degree I would put Franco in there too. Stalin also was a ruthless evil tyrant, but he was on the Left. He and Hitler were polar opposite mortal enemies.

It's good that you recognize them as evil. While the majority of the people in their countries initially received them with open arms and even with the adulation of Rock stars, in the end it turned very sour, and most of those fans who survived agreed that they had been horribly mistaken. Or else they simply denied having had any active participation or knowledge of what happened. In their defense, they had the excuse of not having had any historical analogies from which to draw. We are not so fortunate.

Maybe it would be good and instructive to try to understand why so many millions of us see the parallel. It's not rhetorical, nor is it for the purpose of being divisive; even if it does have that effect. Even Jesus was divisive. It is however, alarming. And from where I stand, a person who still supports Trump is either well informed and proud of what MAGA stands for, or, at this point, impossibly and tragically asleep.

Either way, should we all be silent for fear of hurting their feelings? Or as things are turning, for fear of losing our jobs, or going to prison, or worse?

Jodie Gallo
Los Angeles, CA