A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

ing kitchens in the Mennonite villages. By May these kitchens were feeding twenty-five thousand persons every day. The peak was reached in August when forty thousand rations were issued daily. (It should be injected here, that all the hungry of a given area had access to these kitchens, regardless of nationality, race or creed.) This work was continued for three years, although the need gradually declined after 1922. In addition to these feeding kitchens, centers for distribution of clothing were set up. Among the present-day Mennonite Brethren in Canada there are hundreds of families who owe their survival to the sacrifical giving and selfless service of their "American Brethren" in those dark days of the post-revolutionary period. It was in the crucible of suffering that the Mennonites of Russia once again learned the deeper meaning of Christ's words: "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God." " They had learned through bitter experience that "a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." 19 Many leaders as well as members in Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren churches were inclined to interpret the calamities that had befallen them as a judgment of God upon a complacent church. A deep hunger for the things of the Spirit resulted in genuine spiritual renewal and a new sense of mission throughout the Mennonite brotherhood. Spiritual Revival and Missionary Outreach The "October Revolution" of 1917 resulted in several changes of government policy which were welcomed by the Mennonites. The restrictions placed on the use of the German language in churches and schools were lifted because the new regime prided itself of being "international" in character. Moreover, the old law which forbade proselytizing among members of the Russian Orthodox Church was no longer enforced. It almost appeared as if the Communists favored "sectarian" activity to weaken the Orthodox Church, the great bulwark of Russian autocracy. Although a few members of the M.B. Church responded almost immediately to these new opportunities, the harshness of "War Communism" during the Civil War period (1918-21) made any organized evangelistic effort virtually impossible. With the introduction of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1921, however, a new day seemed to dawn for the Russian people in general, and for Mennonites in particular. 2 " Confiscation and collectivization of land was halted. To stimulate an economy that had come to a complete standstill, private trading and commerce were again encouraged. It seemed for a while that Mennonites might even recover a measure of their former religious freedom. It was in this post-war period that the IN THE SHADOW OF DEATH 113 20. J. G. Wicns 21. Adolph Reimer Mennonites of Russia experienced a widespread revival which might justly be termed their "second awakening." Mennonite Brethren played a leading role in t