There are so many misconceptions about the Mennonites. First and foremost, they are not Amish. There are "old order", more conservative Mennonites, but they are actually the minority. One issue that I have with Mennonites is that they tend to "stick together", in their own groups (often separate, which can breed a fear of the 'outside'), which causes all of them to know each other, if they're not already related (obviously an exaggeration, but not too much really).
Some history... It's interesting that as much as I loooove the reformation, I have never really heard the history of Mennonites, or Anabaptists; which I find interesting that not much is told about them. They came about during the reformation, people desiring to be smaller communities of believers. They wanted to be able to baptize each other, but at a time of confession of faith. This group became known as the Rebaptizers, or Anabaptists. Anabaptistism is a Christian tradition, which really can be applied to any "denomination". Menno Simmons was a Dutch Anabaptist preacher who started a following and ended up being in exile through Europe. His followers would come to be known as Mennonites (like Lutherans... right?). So, from what I gather, Mennonites are basically a church in the Anabaptist tradition.
Some things I like about Anabaptists:
- They look to the LIFE of Jesus more than I have seen before. This is not to say that I've never seen that emphasis, but I feel like His life is more central to their philosophy. It is not so much as a side to doctrine and theology, but the basis for their doctrine and theology. I'm not saying that this is always the best thing, but it has been interesting to see just how much I have not focused on His LIFE, words and actions.
- Service is a big part of the Anabaptist tradition. They believe so much that faith is played out, not just in WHAT you believe but HOW you believe. If you really believe that God calls us to live and love like Jesus, what are you doing about it? I've never seen service so emphasized and encouraged.
- Living simply is a part of their life. Community is a big part of that. The more we share, the less we use. I highly recommend the cookbooks "More with Less" and "Simply in Season". I want to read "Living More with Less". Everything matters.
- Justice issues are high on their list of priorities. As this was a big part of Jesus' life, speaking out for those who have no voice is something we called to do. This is often in an upside down way than the rest of the world might see it, but so was Jesus. They are pacifists, refusing to fight, but strive for active peacemaking. This is something I can align with, although I'm not totally anti- any war. I'd rather be anti-war, than pro-war.
- They like hymns. I love hymns. I'm not a fan of praise chorusses. Generally, we'll sing together with just voices (if we were truly Mennonite, we would be singing in 4 part harmonies, but here we are) and sometimes with a piano. It's nice to not have some "great musicians" playing "for the church", and to just hear us singing together.
- They don't love government, or rather don't put it first. From the reformation, there came a separation of church and state. Of course this means that the state wouldn't be involved in the church, there wouldn't be a state sponsored church. This doesn't mean they don't love their country, but they are Christians first. That's why you'll never see a government flag at a Mennonite church!
Ultimately, they are not much different from other Christian groups. They are not a cult, by any means, as they are big into everyone making the choice of belief for themselves. There are more liberal and more conservative Mennonites, just like within most groups.
And, here's a video of "Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow" from the Mennonite Conference:
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