The Mennonites....

[waxwing]

Hello

Years back I lived in area that had a very heavy concentration of Mennonites. But back then I had a little interest in the various forms of Christianity. Growing up I knew two types of Christianity, Catholics and Evangelicals, I knew of the Mainlines but they were so far off the radar I’d might as well never heard of them. Anyways I moved to this Majority Mennonite area and my take then was; I never heard of ya, don’t care, so lets move on and be friends.(Not in a hostile way, just no interest in them and didn’t find them proselytizing type so we’re all cool) Well now I do have interest in this stuff (and no longer live in that area) and would like to know more about their history, beliefs, levels of ecumenicalism, where they fall within the spectrum of Protestantism…etc. I know they’re part of the Anabaptist group, almost everyone I knew had a German or Eastern European background, they were hard workers and teetotalers, but besides that don’t know much. I did notice one person here is a Brethren in Christ member(I hope he/she reads this) and was also wondering what similarities/differences are their between BIC and the Mennonites.

Thanks

 

[CompSciGuy]

Hello

Years back I lived in area that had a very heavy concentration of Mennonites. But back then I had a little interest in the various forms of Christianity. Growing up I knew two types of Christianity, Catholics and Evangelicals, I knew of the Mainlines but they were so far off the radar I’d might as well never heard of them. Anyways I moved to this Majority Mennonite area and my take then was; I never heard of ya, don’t care, so lets move on and be friends.(Not in a hostile way, just no interest in them and didn’t find them proselytizing type so we’re all cool) Well now I do have interest in this stuff (and no longer live in that area) and would like to know more about their history, beliefs, levels of ecumenicalism, where they fall within the spectrum of Protestantism…etc. I know they’re part of the Anabaptist group, almost everyone I knew had a German or Eastern European background, they were hard workers and teetotalers, but besides that don’t know much. I did notice one person here is a Brethren in Christ member(I hope he/she reads this) and was also wondering what similarities/differences are their between BIC and the Mennonites.

Thanks

Don’t know how much help this will be, but my mom’s side of the family is Mennonite; from what I can tell they’re pretty much a lot like the Amish (the Amish and Mennonites often live together in communities) like the Amish they’re very community-oriented, they are pacifists, very strict about the sabbath, and concern themselves a lot with being separate from the world. Unlike the Amish, their understanding of “worldliness” has less to do with technology and more to do with lifestyle, etc. such as dressing modestly (though not necessarily blandly), avoiding media entertainment, and living a simple life. Like the Amish they are mostly farmers and are very self-sufficient in many ways (my grandfather is a carpenter and actually built his own house and my aunt’s as well). Nearly all of them speak a sort of German-dutch hybrid, which is also common among the Amish. I think it has to do with keeping their culture. They are also very active in charity.

 

[StrawberryJam]

I worked in a municipality and my direct supervisor was a Mennonite. He was also related to a famous protestant. We got along very well. He was the hardest worker I ever had the pleasure to work with.

 

[Publisher]

Hello

Years back I lived in area that had a very heavy concentration of Mennonites. But back then I had a little interest in the various forms of Christianity. Growing up I knew two types of Christianity, Catholics and Evangelicals, I knew of the Mainlines but they were so far off the radar I’d might as well never heard of them. Anyways I moved to this Majority Mennonite area and my take then was; I never heard of ya, don’t care, so lets move on and be friends.(Not in a hostile way, just no interest in them and didn’t find them proselytizing type so we’re all cool) Well now I do have interest in this stuff (and no longer live in that area) and would like to know more about their history, beliefs, levels of ecumenicalism, where they fall within the spectrum of Protestantism…etc. I know they’re part of the Anabaptist group, almost everyone I knew had a German or Eastern European background, they were hard workers and teetotalers, but besides that don’t know much. I did notice one person here is a Brethren in Christ member(I hope he/she reads this) and was also wondering what similarities/differences are their between BIC and the Mennonites.

Thanks

Mennonites, Brethren and Friends make up the “Historic Peace Churches”. These three groups were part of the “Radical Reformation” which felt Luthur and Zwingli didn’t do enough to bring back “primitive Christianity” in it’s simplicity and power to change lives and influence society through holy living…the mark of a “true Christian”.

Mennonites and Brethren believe in “believers baptism”…I believe Brethren use trine-immersion and Mennonites will pour or immerse…I attended a Mennonite Brethren congregation for a time when there was no Friend’s Meeting available…I even filled in as interim pastor for a very short time while a new pastor was sought…among Mennonites and Brethren water baptism is entrance into the Church and a sign that one is placing themselves under the disipline of the local congregation.

Both Mennonites and Brethren include foot washing as part of the “love meal”…at least in the groups I have attended. I did my internship at a BIC when in college many moons ago.

Some Mennonites and Brethren do not hold public office…some do not vote…most of those I have known do not exhibit a very heavy “patriotism” as they are citizens of “Another Country”.

MCC (Mennonite Central Committee" along with it’s counterparts among Brethren and Friends serve areas in humanitarian capacities…service to others IS a hallmark of following Christ.

All three groups have different histories…some of the Mennonite Church of America have a “inclusive” policy in regard to same sex relationships…other Mennonite and Brethren groups are not as “inclusive” in regard to gay people. There is a Brethren group in Portland who’s pastor is an out gay man.

Typically “orthodox” in beliefs concerning Trinity, Scripture, Ethics…but very much involved as non-resistors and embrace “non-violence”.

 

[waxwing]

I worked in a municipality and my direct supervisor was a Mennonite. He was also related to a famous protestant. We got along very well. He was the hardest worker I ever had the pleasure to work with.

I think the hard working part is a theme with the Mennonites, I noticed that most Mennonites I worked with all were hardworking dependable people. Also learned the importance of a meal of borscht and farmer sausage after a hard day at work.

 

[waxwing]

Don’t know how much help this will be, but my mom’s side of the family is Mennonite; from what I can tell they’re pretty much a lot like the Amish (the Amish and Mennonites often live together in communities) like the Amish they’re very community-oriented, they are pacifists, very strict about the sabbath, and concern themselves a lot with being separate from the world. Unlike the Amish, their understanding of “worldliness” has less to do with technology and more to do with lifestyle, etc. such as dressing modestly (though not necessarily blandly), avoiding media entertainment, and living a simple life. Like the Amish they are mostly farmers and are very self-sufficient in many ways (my grandfather is a carpenter and actually built his own house and my aunt’s as well). Nearly all of them speak a sort of German-dutch hybrid, which is also common among the Amish. I think it has to do with keeping their culture. They are also very active in charity.

Thanks for your reply, yes during my time in Mennonite country I noticed quite a large spectrum of Mennonites, some that dressed plainly and kinda kept to themselves, usually had a large farm, successful one’s too was my understanding, And then you had Mennonites who dressed like everyone, embraced technology, watched sports, tv shows etc and overall didn’t see anything inherently wrong with “worldliness”- alcohol seemed to be the exception that stuck out to me that people avoided, and a lot of stores closed on Sunday, but that may have changed since I was there. I think most were in the ladder category. With the economy tanking and people wondering how bad it will get, think the whole thrifty self-sufficient model that quite a few Mennonites embrace to various degrees is a very good idea.

 

[waxwing]

Mennonites, Brethren and Friends make up the “Historic Peace Churches”. These three groups were part of the “Radical Reformation” which felt Luthur and Zwingli didn’t do enough to bring back “primitive Christianity” in it’s simplicity and power to change lives and influence society through holy living…the mark of a “true Christian”.

Mennonites and Brethren believe in “believers baptism”…I believe Brethren use trine-immersion and Mennonites will pour or immerse…I attended a Mennonite Brethren congregation for a time when there was no Friend’s Meeting available…I even filled in as interim pastor for a very short time while a new pastor was sought…among Mennonites and Brethren water baptism is entrance into the Church and a sign that one is placing themselves under the disipline of the local congregation.

Both Mennonites and Brethren include foot washing as part of the “love meal”…at least in the groups I have attended. I did my internship at a BIC when in college many moons ago.

Some Mennonites and Brethren do not hold public office…some do not vote…most of those I have known do not exhibit a very heavy “patriotism” as they are citizens of “Another Country”.

MCC (Mennonite Central Committee" along with it’s counterparts among Brethren and Friends serve areas in humanitarian capacities…service to others IS a hallmark of following Christ.

All three groups have different histories…some of the Mennonite Church of America have a “inclusive” policy in regard to same sex relationships…other Mennonite and Brethren groups are not as “inclusive” in regard to gay people. There is a Brethren group in Portland who’s pastor is an out gay man.

Typically “orthodox” in beliefs concerning Trinity, Scripture, Ethics…but very much involved as non-resistors and embrace “non-violence”.

Being that the Friends and other Anabaptist Churches have this bond of Pacifism, and from what I have read holding simplicity to be of high value, how do they view Quakers on the baptism part? Is just a friendly difference of opinion and you’ll all get along and embrace your commonality or is their friction on this? During my time in Mennonite country the MCC had a very strong presence, just that term brings back the memories.

I am interested in the reasons why they don’t hold public office/distance themselves from engaging in public policy? So it would be safe to say that they wouldn’t be part of the political activist groups such as the Christian Coalition? I can both see the pluses to this take on society as a whole but also negatives - somethings that needs to percolate a while to formulate coherent and informed opinion. But I do find the concept to be interesting.

 

[Radical]

Hello

Years back I lived in area that had a very heavy concentration of Mennonites. But back then I had a little interest in the various forms of Christianity. Growing up I knew two types of Christianity, Catholics and Evangelicals, I knew of the Mainlines but they were so far off the radar I’d might as well never heard of them. Anyways I moved to this Majority Mennonite area and my take then was; I never heard of ya, don’t care, so lets move on and be friends.(Not in a hostile way, just no interest in them and didn’t find them proselytizing type so we’re all cool) Well now I do have interest in this stuff (and no longer live in that area) and would like to know more about their history, beliefs, levels of ecumenicalism, where they fall within the spectrum of Protestantism…etc. I know they’re part of the Anabaptist group, almost everyone I knew had a German or Eastern European background, they were hard workers and teetotalers, but besides that don’t know much. I did notice one person here is a Brethren in Christ member(I hope he/she reads this) and was also wondering what similarities/differences are their between BIC and the Mennonites.

Thanks

In considering what Mennonites believe and do you should note that Mennonites have a very low level of clerical authority (as compared to Catholics). As such, a significant group within a congregation might disagree with the pastor(s) as to how the church should be run etc. and separate into a new group of Mennonites (the beliefs of the two groups then being the same on all matters except for the issue that became the dividing issue)…splitting in that manner has been called “the Mennonite decease”. As a result there are quite a number of Mennonite groups with quite a spectrum of beliefs and practices…though they tend to stay united under the co-operative umbrella of the MCC. With assimilation it is becoming harder and harder to distinguish between your garden variety Menno and your garden variety evangelical. A generation ago Mennonites were not that engaged in Canadian society, but that has changed dramatically. (for example there are high level governement officials who are practicising Mennonites and, of course, J Toews, the captain of the Chicago Black Hawks is of Mennonite background) The trend here is for the Mennonites to drop the “Mennonite” from the church name b/c the “english” thought that they had to know how to conduct a barn raising if they were to attend…and after all, now that we Mennonites aren’t having the typical 12 kid family, we need the english to fill up our pews. .

 

[Radical]

ooops…no Freudian slip intended…that should be “Mennonite disease” not “decease”

 

[waxwing]

In considering what Mennonites believe and do you should note that Mennonites have a very low level of clerical authority (as compared to Catholics). As such, a significant group within a congregation might disagree with the pastor(s) as to how the church should be run etc. and separate into a new group of Mennonites (the beliefs of the two groups then being the same on all matters except for the issue that became the dividing issue)…splitting in that manner has been called “the Mennonite decease”. As a result there are quite a number of Mennonite groups with quite a spectrum of beliefs and practices…though they tend to stay united under the co-operative umbrella of the MCC. With assimilation it is becoming harder and harder to distinguish between your garden variety Menno and your garden variety evangelical. A generation ago Mennonites were not that engaged in Canadian society, but that has changed dramatically. (for example there are high level governement officials who are practicising Mennonites and, of course, J Toews, the captain of the Chicago Black Hawks is of Mennonite background) The trend here is for the Mennonites to drop the “Mennonite” from the church name b/c the “english” thought that they had to know how to conduct a barn raising if they were to attend…and after all, now that we Mennonites aren’t having the typical 12 kid family, we need the english to fill up our pews. .

Not a big fan of Denominational Churches dropping the name of their denomination in favor or some generic name favored by nondenominational churches . Think if your Mennonite or Methodist or Nazarene etc you should embrace/own your history and beliefs and let people know where your coming from. So hopefully not to many Mennonites Churches adopt this practice. I know its nit picky type thing but it does “bother” me when the Denominational Churches head in the direction of ND’s… Oh well me and my sensibilities I guess

 

[Radical]

Not a big fan of Denominational Churches dropping the name of their denomination in favor or some generic name favored by nondenominational churches . Think if your Mennonite or Methodist or Nazarene etc you should embrace/own your history and beliefs and let people know where your coming from.

there most certainly is something to be said for that…especially when the history in question is not bathed in the blood of others (to anywhere near the extent that we find in some of the more numerous denominations …especially when that bloody history is why so many Europeans have rejected Christianity )

So hopefully not to many Mennonites Churches adopt this practice. I know its nit picky type thing but it does “bother” me when the Denominational Churches head in the direction of ND’s… Oh well me and my sensibilities I guess

…the other side of the coin is the recognition that there is little (if anything at all) that separates the Mennonite congregation in question from the other evangelical churches in the area…so why emphasize the history that separates rather than the present brotherhood that unites? The unity is quite nice.

 

[Publisher]

Being that the Friends and other Anabaptist Churches have this bond of Pacifism, and from what I have read holding simplicity to be of high value, how do they view Quakers on the baptism part? Is just a friendly difference of opinion and you’ll all get along and embrace your commonality or is their friction on this? During my time in Mennonite country the MCC had a very strong presence, just that term brings back the memories.

I am interested in the reasons why they don’t hold public office/distance themselves from engaging in public policy? So it would be safe to say that they wouldn’t be part of the political activist groups such as the Christian Coalition? I can both see the pluses to this take on society as a whole but also negatives - somethings that needs to percolate a while to formulate coherent and informed opinion. But I do find the concept to be interesting.

Friends, Mennonites and Brethren work quite well together…it was Friend William Penn who invited the Mennonites and Brethren, a persecuted minority in Europe to settle in Pennsylvania to those who fled persecution…Moravians also came to Pennsylvania for similar reasons.

Both groups, Friends and Mennonites, do not believe water baptism “cleanses” from sin…while Mennonites would welcome a Friend to be baptized IF the Friend wanted to become a member of a local congregation they would not exclude a Friend BECAUSE they had not been baptized in water from worshipping, praying, serving together.

There has been a loose bond of fellowship from very early. Friends from England visited the Mennonites in the 17th century to preach to them about “primitive Christianity revived”…each group has it’s own history…BOTH believe 'the proof is in the pudding" concerning “salvation”…a Christian is one who lives as a Christian…loves as a Christian and serves as a Christian.

Some Friend’s Church pastors have served as interim ministers among Mennonites and visa versa…neither seeks to impose their theological views on baptism or the Lord’s Supper on one another…in fact those conservative Friends I know who have close contact with Mennonites believe IF the ordinances are to be practiced…then foot washing MUST be incorporated into the Agape meal…which Mennonites do. Baptism is "entrance into the church…both local fellowship and Mystical Body of Christ…it does not confer “grace”…but is the mark of obedience…at least for Mennonites…but if a person’s life does not conform to Christ…water baptism means nothing…

Between Friends and Mennonites…how one lives is more important than what ritual ordinances one practices…or does not practice.

I have served in both Mennonite Brethren and Brethren in Christ churches…interim preacher in the MB and as ministerial intern among the BIC…I was not pressured to be baptized in water as I was not seeking covenant membership among them.

 

[Publisher]

I am interested in the reasons why they don’t hold public office/distance themselves from engaging in public policy? So it would be safe to say that they wouldn’t be part of the political activist groups such as the Christian Coalition? I can both see the pluses to this take on society as a whole but also negatives - somethings that needs to percolate a while to formulate coherent and informed opinion. But I do find the concept to be interesting.

The reasons are varied…bit primarily they do not believe they should participate in “war” and since oaths of office are usually required…oaths are not used among any of us…it is believed our word “is our bond”…an oath suggests that one can only be trusted in telling the truth when one is under oath…“Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no”…”

Governments are by definition…militaristic…and “be in the world but not of it”…so public office is often not engaged in among Mennonites…I assume the same among Brethren…don’t know for sure…among Friends public office is not discouraged…to be “leaven in the world”…through Friends efforts oaths are no longer required…“affrimations” are allowed instead of oaths…both in public office and courtrooms now.

Their resistance to public office has more to do with being citizens of another “Country”…Mennonites believe their witness can be better served elsewhere. Mennonites avoid legal litigation as well…seeking to avoid court room disputes as they witness to a Better Way to resolve conflice.

 

[Publisher]

In considering what Mennonites believe and do you should note that Mennonites have a very low level of clerical authority (as compared to Catholics). As such, a significant group within a congregation might disagree with the pastor(s) as to how the church should be run etc. and separate into a new group of Mennonites (the beliefs of the two groups then being the same on all matters except for the issue that became the dividing issue)…splitting in that manner has been called “the Mennonite decease”. As a result there are quite a number of Mennonite groups with quite a spectrum of beliefs and practices…though they tend to stay united under the co-operative umbrella of the MCC. With assimilation it is becoming harder and harder to distinguish between your garden variety Menno and your garden variety evangelical. A generation ago Mennonites were not that engaged in Canadian society, but that has changed dramatically. (for example there are high level governement officials who are practicising Mennonites and, of course, J Toews, the captain of the Chicago Black Hawks is of Mennonite background) The trend here is for the Mennonites to drop the “Mennonite” from the church name b/c the “english” thought that they had to know how to conduct a barn raising if they were to attend…and after all, now that we Mennonites aren’t having the typical 12 kid family, we need the english to fill up our pews. .

I know that among the more evangelical Mennonite Brethren…they tend to name their congregations in such a way that does not identify as MB’s…El Camino Bible Church…Peace Fellowship…Peach Bible Church…Mennonite Church tends to use “Mennonite” in their names…Peace Mennonite Church…Grace Mennonite…etc.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The reasons are varied…bit primarily they do not believe they should participate in “war” and since oaths of office are usually required…oaths are not used among any of us…it is believed our word “is our bond”…an oath suggests that one can only be trusted in telling the truth when one is under oath…“Let your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no”…”

Governments are by definition…militaristic…and “be in the world but not of it”…so public office is often not engaged in among Mennonites…I assume the same among Brethren…don’t know for sure…among Friends public office is not discouraged…to be “leaven in the world”…through Friends efforts oaths are no longer required…“affrimations” are allowed instead of oaths…both in public office and courtrooms now.

Their resistance to public office has more to do with being citizens of another “Country”…Mennonites believe their witness can be better served elsewhere. Mennonites avoid legal litigation as well…seeking to avoid court room disputes as they witness to a Better Way to resolve conflice.

I understand there is a difference between Amish and Mennonites. Those around here are Amish. They do not purport allegiance to secular governments and consider themselves “apart” from them. They do not pay into social security or Medicare, nor are they entitled to receive it. They won’t litigate, and won’t take oaths. They believe in living “plain”, without ornamentation or ostentation, which they refer to as “Hochmut” (sp?). Amish do, however, drive cars and have tractors, sawmills with engines, and so forth. But there are variations in that. Some reject more modernity than do others. They don’t believe in insurance and don’t have any. They go to doctors just like anybody else, but pay in cash and negotiate the fees for service.

Some of them might be poor starting out, but I have never, ever met one who didn’t have plenty of cash. They’ll buy a car or a tractor with greenbacks; just plunk them down.

Lots of them are excellent workers and have a lot of skills. Carpentry, butchering are services they sell to us “English”. They don’t come cheap, but they can be trusted. An Amish girl won’t go out with an “English” boy, no matter what.

When their young men come of age, they go out on an extended toot they refer to as “Rumspringa” or something like that. They will smoke if they want, get drunk, go to town, chase “English” girls. It’s their moment of choice…tasting the “English” world and its pleasures prior to making a decision whether to follow the Amish way. Ran into a bunch of those boys drunk as lords once, and it was amusing, and a lot less concerning than running into a bunch of drunk “English” teenage boys. I couldn’t help laughing at them, and they joined right into laughing at themselves as well.

They are very pleasant people, or so I have found.

 

[Publisher]

I understand there is a difference between Amish and Mennonites. Those around here are Amish. They do not purport allegiance to secular governments and consider themselves “apart” from them. They do not pay into social security or Medicare, nor are they entitled to receive it. They won’t litigate, and won’t take oaths. They believe in living “plain”, without ornamentation or ostentation, which they refer to as “Hochmut” (sp?). Amish do, however, drive cars and have tractors, sawmills with engines, and so forth. But there are variations in that. Some reject more modernity than do others. They don’t believe in insurance and don’t have any. They go to doctors just like anybody else, but pay in cash and negotiate the fees for service.

Some of them might be poor starting out, but I have never, ever met one who didn’t have plenty of cash. They’ll buy a car or a tractor with greenbacks; just plunk them down.

Lots of them are excellent workers and have a lot of skills. Carpentry, butchering are services they sell to us “English”. They don’t come cheap, but they can be trusted. An Amish girl won’t go out with an “English” boy, no matter what.

When their young men come of age, they go out on an extended toot they refer to as “Rumspringa” or something like that. They will smoke if they want, get drunk, go to town, chase “English” girls. It’s their moment of choice…tasting the “English” world and its pleasures prior to making a decision whether to follow the Amish way. Ran into a bunch of those boys drunk as lords once, and it was amusing, and a lot less concerning than running into a bunch of drunk “English” teenage boys. I couldn’t help laughing at them, and they joined right into laughing at themselves as well.

They are very pleasant people, or so I have found.

“Rumspringa” is a “rite of passage” for Amish youth…it occurs before their baptism into the church…Amish baptize adults not children…must be a conscious decision to covenant with the fellowship through baptism…I believe Amish have a 98% retention of their youth…once a young adult chooses to be baptized, they take their place in Amish society…if the covenant is broken they are shunned…but if they decide to leave the group before baptism, shunning isn’t implemented…many who leave join the more “liberal” Mennonites.

 

[Radical]

The reasons are varied…

here, the main reason (for those who don’t participate) is b/c it is seen as being “too worldly”, that is being too concerned and involved with the affairs of this world (as opposed to being involved and concerned with the matters of Christ’s kingdom). most do not see holding public office as being too worldly…with the sects that do, being a small minority.

…bit primarily they do not believe they should participate in “war”…

the pacifist thing doesn’t get much airtime in evangelical services any more…I expect that most evangelical Mennonite youth wouldn’t be pacifists as they haven’t really considered the matter and how pacifism would play out in day-to-day affairs (I don’t recall one sermon on pacifism whilst I grew up)…

…and since oaths of office are usually required…oaths are not used among any of us…

most Mennonites here have no reservation about giving oaths and for those that do, the “affirmation option” is available…so that is a non-issue here

Mennonites believe their witness can be better served elsewhere. Mennonites avoid legal litigation as well…seeking to avoid court room disputes as they witness to a Better Way to resolve conflice.

this has also changed here and is no longer much of a consideration

 

[x1980x]

Thanks for your reply, yes during my time in Mennonite country I noticed quite a large spectrum of Mennonites, some that dressed plainly and kinda kept to themselves, usually had a large farm, successful one’s too was my understanding, And then you had Mennonites who dressed like everyone, embraced technology, watched sports, tv shows etc and overall didn’t see anything inherently wrong with “worldliness”- alcohol seemed to be the exception that stuck out to me that people avoided, and a lot of stores closed on Sunday, but that may have changed since I was there. I think most were in the ladder category. With the economy tanking and people wondering how bad it will get, think the whole thrifty self-sufficient model that quite a few Mennonites embrace to various degrees is a very good idea.

I am one of the “looks like everyone else” Mennonite. I don’t live in a big Mennonite area, but I live fairly close (weekend trip) to two of them. We respect and honor those who live apart in communities and dress distinctively, but we don’t practice those things.

We emphasize simple living, but do not have any specific dogma on what is or is not permitted in terms of technology or worldly entertainment. So, for example, some of us play video games, but we understand that getting addicted to video games would be bad.

 

[Radical]

Friends, Mennonites and Brethren work quite well together…it was Friend William Penn who invited the Mennonites and Brethren, a persecuted minority in Europe to settle in Pennsylvania to those who fled persecution…Moravians also came to Pennsylvania for similar reasons.

Both groups, Friends and Mennonites, do not believe water baptism “cleanses” from sin…while Mennonites would welcome a Friend to be baptized IF the Friend wanted to become a member of a local congregation they would not exclude a Friend BECAUSE they had not been baptized in water from worshipping, praying, serving together.

There has been a loose bond of fellowship from very early. Friends from England visited the Mennonites in the 17th century to preach to them about “primitive Christianity revived”…each group has it’s own history…**BOTH believe 'the proof is in the pudding" concerning “salvation”…a Christian is one who lives as a Christian…loves as a Christian and serves as a Christian. **

Some Friend’s Church pastors have served as interim ministers among Mennonites and visa versa…neither seeks to impose their theological views on baptism or the Lord’s Supper on one another…in fact those conservative Friends I know who have close contact with Mennonites believe IF the ordinances are to be practiced…then foot washing MUST be incorporated into the Agape meal…which Mennonites do. Baptism is "entrance into the church…both local fellowship and Mystical Body of Christ…it does not confer “grace”…but is the mark of obedience…at least for Mennonites…but if a person’s life does not conform to Christ…water baptism means nothing…

Between Friends and Mennonites…how one lives is more important than what ritual ordinances one practices…or does not practice.

I have served in both Mennonite Brethren and Brethren in Christ churches…interim preacher in the MB and as ministerial intern among the BIC…I was not pressured to be baptized in water as I was not seeking covenant membership among them.

WRT the bold bits you are absolutely spot on…regarding the blue bit and that variety of beliefs that I mentioned…the Mennonites (for the most part) here do not footwash.

 

[Publisher]

WRT the bold bits you are absolutely spot on…regarding the blue bit and that variety of beliefs that I mentioned…the Mennonites (for the most part) here do not footwash.

Here on the west coast…NW…those of Mennoite Church USA do practice foot washing in conjunction with Lord’s Supper…Mennonite practice must be as varied as Quaker practice depending on region or group one associates with…interesting.