Eastern European Baptist History: New Perspectives, 2007

vice-president in the organisation that would yield a Russian Baptist Union. Soon after this 1884 meeting, Kargel returned to St Petersburg. Pashkov 6 Pashkov’s influence is already evident in a meeting two years earlier in Riickenau [Riuke- nau], southern Russia. Johann Wieler had been an active leader in the Mennonite Brethren, with a vision of reaching Russians outside the German colonies. This disturbed many Men- nonites, fearful of jeopardising their privileged standing in the Russian Empire by pros- elytising among Orthodox Russians. Chairman of the committee of Mennonite Brethren, Wieler independently invited some Baptist leaders to the Mennonite annual conference in Riickenau, seeking to unite the movements. (See Abe J. Dueck, Moving beyond Secession: Defining Russian Mennonite Brethren Mission and Identity, 1872-1922 [Winnipeg: Kindred Productions, 1997], p. 51-52.) At that meeting, he brought forth two important issues, which reflect the Pietistic influences of Radstock and Pashkov. First, he suggested that churches should practice healing prayer with the anointing of oil, a view held strongly by Radstock. (See Trotter, Lord Radstock, p. 23.) After some discussion, it was determined to leave this to each local congregation and the sick person involved. His second proposal was that of the open Lord’s Supper, mentioning that Pashkov had invited them to participate in a Holy Communion in St Petersburg, although some had been baptised as infants. Much heated discussions ensued as they worked through the issue of open communion. The question was raised as to why Pashkov would have separated from the Orthodox Church if he believed Orthodox baptism to be true. To the Mennonite Brethren, true Christianity could not exist apart from adult baptism by faith. They eventually decided to postpone the decision. Wieler continued in his attempts to bring the two streams closer together. When he tried to invite Baptists again to the Mennonite Brethren annual conference in 1883, he faced strong opposition, despite his status as president. The following year, Wieler held the joint evangelical conference mentioned above, at which only six attendees were Mennonite Brethren. There is no record that the Mennonite Brethren held an annual meeting in 1884. The 1884 evangelical congress in the south took place on the heels of the St Petersburg attempt to form an Evangelical Alliance. Both Wieler and Kargel had close contact with Pashkov and Baedeker, who were eager to cooperate with the Baptists. 7 John B. Toews, “Baptists and Mennonite Brethren in Russia (1790-1930)”, p. 88. 82 and Korff were exiled from Russia in June of 1884. Financially supported by Pashkov, Kargel left Bulgaria to assist Princess Lieven and the St Peters- burg group in Pashkov’s absence. At this point, he broke with the German Baptist style of church structure, leadership and theology, and began to grow deeper in the Pietistic view of the church and