Feeding the Hungry, P. C. Hiebert, 1929

t repre- sents, namely, the love and thankfulness of some of those 406 FEEDING THE HUNGRY which have been fed and clothed by the money that you, my dear readers, contributed to the cause. A Frnat WorpD FROM THE LEADER OF THE MENNONITES IN Russia, AT PRESENT IN AMERICA We close with a letter directed to the Mennonite Central Committee by Rev. B. B. Janz, the man who, more than any one else, has borne the burdens and fought the battles of our brethren in the Ukraine against immense odds. He who accomplished single handed what was impos- sible for larger groups. Through his extreme simplicity and modesty and his untarnished reliability by the help of God he won the good-will of many of the officials even against their own intentions. He is now in America and has had an opportunity to see relief work from this angle as well as from that of the suffering brethren. From his large experience and a heart devoted to the interests of his brethren, and through his keen analytic insight he gives us words of appreciation and suggestion. Winnipeg, Manitoba, May 10, 1927. To the Mennonite Central Committee, Scottdale, Pa. Dear Brethren of the Committee: The great work of famine relief for Russia is now about to be finally concluded at the forthcoming meeting of the Central Committee. As representative of the brethren from Russia, I cannot refrain from sending you most cordial greetings and in a few words express my good wishes to you all and extend a sincere welcome to the last American worker now returned from Russia, in the person of Director A. J. Miller. Through your personal efforts as members of the Cen- tral Committee, you have had a larger share in this great service of love than all others. We are in these days pass- ing a great crisis in the history of the world and also in the history of our Mennonite Churches. In Europe the judgments of God have fallen on Czar and Empire, on the nations and on Christianity. To us Mennonites in Russia RESPONSES FROM RUSSIA 407 these trying experiences have been both a judgment and work of grace. In the name of the American brethren and in obedience to the command of the Lord, you my brethren have been the choice vessels of God’s grace and mercy through whom He has delivered unto us great salvation. You will never need to regret your labors in our behalf, nor your time, nor your strength, nor your money that you have devoted to this cause. We thank God, and you and all the brethren for the deliverance from physical death. May God’s beneficent grace keep our Mennonite con- gregations in Russia and in other parts of the world to the extent that they may ever be spared such solemn judgments of the Lord. If this highly desirable end is attained, then your Central Committee will stand as the only one in the history of Mennonites, through which all the Mennonites of America extended help and deliverance to all the Menno- nites of Russia and beyond.