Anabaptism

“Like an infectious laugh that spreads throughout a room full of people, one after another, theological networks have been formed by Anabaptist women in Africa, South America, Asia and Europe,”…

Winds of the Spirit: A Profile of Anabaptist Churches in the Global South
Authors: Conrad L. Kanagy, Tilahun Beyene, and Richard Showalter
“This is an exceptionally important book.” So says Philip Jenkins, author and authority on global trends in Christianity. As a student of the Mennonite Brethren church movement, I tend to agree.

Far from nostalgic throw-backs to earlier patterns of church, discussion papers and decisions at this year’s MWC gathering were about new ways global Anabaptists can be the church together in a rapidly changing world.

Kevin Carrigan is an Anabaptist in the literal sense of the word. In its Jan. 1, 2012, morning service, Culloden MB Church, Vancouver, baptized and commissioned Carrigan to minister to the congregation as associate pastor of young adults and worship.

There’s a growing surge of interest in defining who we are as a denomination – in what we believe and what the implications of those core beliefs are. This is a healthy exercise, even though it makes us uncomfortable at times. We often prefer ignorance to clarity, as ignorance can create an aura of unity, while clarity may open the door for disagreement.

Not many people have a theological epiphany in the context of doctoral research. But I did.

A 15-metre galley ship tucked into the ruins of a castle vault restores to public memory a dramatic episode in Anabaptist history. It tells the story of 90 Hutterite men condemned to galley service – rowing the narrow warships – for refusing to recant their faith. A Taeufermuseum (Anabaptist museum) in Austria’s Falkenstein castle displays the historical context and faith emphases of the country’s Anabaptist movement.

The Mennonite Brethren movement began 150 years ago in southern Russia with 18 families. Today, we are a diverse group of 18 conferences in 15 countries representing some 300,000 people, with church planting work being done by MBMS International workers in at least another dozen countries.

A new Mennonite World Conference map shows that Mennonite, Brethren in Christ, and related churches (national conferences) can now be found in 80 countries around the world.

The Council of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has taken another critical step toward reconciliation with Anabaptists. At its October meeting near Geneva, the council unanimously recommended that the LWF Eleventh Assembly adopt the statement, “Action on the Legacy of Lutheran Persecution of ‘Anabaptists’,” when it meets in Stuttgart, Germany, in July 2010.

Anabaptism 101 Radical Anabaptism for today “Behold, most beloved reader, thus true faith or true knowledge begets love, and love begets obedience to the commandments of God…” —Menno Simons For…