A Pilgrimage Of Faith, J.B. Toews, 1993

for the cre- ation of this office. Peter M. Friesen documented the first or- dination of elders in the Mennonite colonies but gave no background to explain the phenomenon. Second generation Mennonite Brethren leaders-Abraham H, Unruh, Bemjamin B. Janz, Johann A, Toews, H.H. Flaming and G.P. Regier (the latter two of whom were themselves or- dained eldersMnterpreted the creation of elders as a need arising from the storm and stress of the early years. As much as possible the new movement needed to replicate the church government model of the mother church if it was to receive the Russian government's stamp of approval. The office of an elder in the social and ecclesiastical Mennonite community was a symbol of authority and responsible leadership that ap- peared to be lacking in the first years of the Mennonite Brethren movement,*2 The 1902 Confession of Faith defined the elder as a leader in a fellowship with other co-workers as equals.55 As such, the function of the elder still conformed to the model of mul- tiple leadership. But some were uneasy about this special of- fice which could lodge much power in the hands of a few. 65 A PILGRIMAGE OF FAITH There was the example of David Schellenberg, ordained elder in the Rueckenau Church, who exercised very strong authori- ty in the local church as well as in the larger conference. Others, influenced by western Pietism, insisted that according to the New Testament all ministers were elders with no provi- sion for the office of one elder. Jacob W. Reimer asserted that "the leader of the church is a man who has the gift of leader- ship-administration. He is the leader in the fellowship of equals,"34 Elsewhere in Russia and later in North America there con- tinued to be considerable diversity of opinion about the posi- tion and function of elders. In the United States, the question of elders as distinct from other ministers became an issue in the late 1920s and 1930s. Some believed strongly that the specific designation of elders was scriptural and needed to be continued.55 In 1921 H.W, Lohrenz declined to officiate at an ordination, stating that "the practice in the Mennonite Brethren Church is that an elder officiates in such a confirma- tion."56 During 1924 there was extensive discussion over fi- nancial support of elders in the local church and the confer- ence.57 In 1933, H.H. Flaming, an ordained minister in Com, Oklahoma, emphasized the biblical basis for the office as sep- arate from teachers, preachers, and evangelists and thought it necessary to provide stable leadership. He warne