A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

ennonitische Rundschau. 1 ' Long before the Christian Press became the publishing house of the Canadian Mennonite Brethren, the conference regarded the Mennonit- ische Rundschau and the Christlicher Jungendfreund as semi-official organs of the brotherhood. In response to the report of the Christian Press manager, H. F. Klassen, the delegation in 1949 passed the following resolution: "The Conference appreciates the opportunity, that through certain papers published by the Christian Press it is able to extend its spiritual influence into many homes."" The Zionsbote was still regarded, however, as the official periodical of the M.B. Church. At the convention held in Herbert (Sask.) in 1951, the conference delegates expressed their sentiments as follows: "We desire that the Zionsbote remain the organ of the entire M.B. Church; but we recommend substantial improvements." 26 This "ambivalence" in the publications policy of the Canadian Conference characterizes the attitude of the brotherhood in the post-war period until 1960. In this earlier period (1945-1960) the growth and expansion of publication efforts in Canada must be attributed to the vision, courage and commitment of a relatively small number of brethren. H. F. Klassen, editor of the Mennonitische Rundschau for twenty-two years (1945-1967) and general manager of the Christian Press for the major 292 HISTORY OF THE MENNONITE BRETHREN CHURCH part of that period, deserves special recognition for his untiring efforts to promote the work of publications in the Canadian Conference. In order not to impose a financial burden upon the fledgling publishing enterprise, Klassen retained his position in a Winnipeg business firm during the first five years, devoting his evenings to the editorial work at the Christian Press. Another man who rendered valuable services in the development of the publishing house, and especially its physical plant, was C. A. DeFehr, who through the years became actively involved in practically every major enterprise of the Canadian Conference. Other brethren who served for shorter or longer terms on the board of directors of the Christian Press during this early period were J. P. Neufeld, F. H. Friesen, C. C. Warkentin and B. B. Janz. Beginning its operation in 1945 with a substantial deficit, the Christian Press, under the supervision of its competent production manager, J. K. Neufeld, was gradually transformed into a profitable enterprise. In 1950 H. F. Klassen was able to report that in addition to the publication of the two German Mennonite weeklies the Christian Press was printing nine other periodicals in seven different languages as well as four Sunday school manuals. Whereas the financial transactions of the Christian Press in 1944 had amounted to $14,300 (including a deficit of over $4,000) the financial turnover in 1950 amounted to approximately $47,000, yielding a net profit of $4,800. J1 Encouraged by the pros