THE MENNONITE BROTHERHOOD IN RUSSIA (1789 - 1910), P. M. Friesen, 1911

ere richly blessed, strengthened and refreshed, even rebuked in our spirit, through the Holy Spirit, and we took courage, determined to live for the Lord and continue to walk in His ways. He continued in this way for some years, whereupon the enemy attempted to disrupt the work from within by creating dissensions among the brethren” . . . [Because of differing religious viewpoints and because of the “Brotherhood School"— above #H51 and 53]. b) The late Elder Heinrich Huebert of Liebenau, who died in the Kuban, tells the following story in his “Recollections of the Early Years of our M.B. Church, 1884,” written for the twenty-fifth anniversary history: . Thus it happened, through the guidance of Him who directs the hearts of kings as the water of the brooks, that our Mennonite people were allowed to settle in this vast Russia in 1804 [the Molotschna colonies]. Even though considerable progress had been made in regard to farming, planting and the building of houses, there was hardly a trace of a fellowship of faith according to the Gospel, as we now know it, to be found; for a rude and immoral behavior often manifested itself during festive occasions, at which even the ministers were present, which was completely at odds with the character of the “quiet in the land” [as the Mennonites were known]. How far this could have gone— God alone knows! But His eternal love found a solution. [He 208 THE MENNONITE BRETHREN CHURCH recounts the developments under Elder Bernhard Fast and Tobias Voth, Huebert’s teacher in Ohrloff, which have already been described above. Until 1860, Huebert was a member of the Ohrloff congregation.] In the 1840s Pastor Wuest, a remarkable revivalist who soon drew the wrath of the ministers and pastors upon himself, made his appearance among the Wuerttembergers. Mission meetings and mission festivals were held, attended by visitors from far and near who often experienced a blessed fellowship. During a trip to Odessa, where he conducted morning and evening devotions in the German colonies— for he was forbidden to preach— he had found many attentive listeners. So deeply had the good news affected them and so moved were they by it that one of them had stood up and spoken the following words: ‘Dear Savior, You have a big heart, 1 have a small one; I jump into your heart. Brethren, follow me!’ When he [Wuest] related this incident to us, he declared that this was how he wished things to be, that the Gospel might move souls to be free and spontaneous. Yet, no matter how good and beautiful this might appear, it nevertheless led some in the wrong direction in that they believed they were acting according to the mind of Christ if they followed their emotions, expressing them with outward gestures and jumping and shouting for joy. Among these were men of no mean talents, and thus many soon began to follow them. Pastor Wuest realized quite clearly that the Lord, as a result of this attitud