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

ecause the forgiveness of sin is not obtained in or through the ban, but by the merit of Jesus Christ. This was also Menno’s conviction, as recorded in Vol. Ill, pp. 334 and 335. However, an unrepentant sinner may not be accepted into the fellowship of believers until he be genuinely converted to Christ. k) “In all other articles of our confession, we are in full agreement with Menno Simons. Elizabethtal, January 6, 1860 “Abraham Cornelssen, Cornelius Wiens, Isaak Koop, Franz Klassen, Abram Wiens, Martin Klassen, Abram Wiens, Daniel Hoppe, August Strauss, Jacob Becker, Isaak Regehr, Andreas Voth, Jakob Wall, Johann Claassen, Heinrich Huebert, Peter Stobbe, Abram Peters, Diedrich Claassen. l) “This shall serve to inform the elders, in case they desire to turn to our fellowship with regard to this matter, that they address themselves to the following designated members: Abraham Cornelssen, Isaak Koop and Johann Claassen.’’ 2. That the brethren remained “Mennonites” appears to be more than amply documented. XV. THE STRUGGLE OF THE M.B. CHURCH TO ATTAIN THE RIGHTS AND STATUS OF A LEGAL AND INDEPENDENT MENNONITE CHURCH 1. The response of the church elders to the document of the brethren §84 of January 6 reads as follows: “To the honorable Area Administrative Office. On January 6, we, the undersigned church elders received a document from the following persons (the eighteen names follow), in which the signers completely dissociate themselves from the decadent church, as they express themselves, and, as can be seen from their document, desire to create their own church. On January 18, at a general conference of all elders, it was decided that this could not be allowed, and because these members have completely dissociated themselves from us, we are turning them over to the honorable Area Administrative Office with the request that you may do your part to dissuade them from embarking upon their erroneous intentions. Alexanderwohl, January 18, 1860. The church elders: Toews, Ratzlaff, Wedel, Warkentin, Lenzmann.’’ 2. On December 20, 1862, Jakob Martens of Tiegenhagen, minister §84(2) of the Ohrloff-Halbstadt congregation, sent a statement to the publisher of the Mennonitische Blaetter (the Minister Mannhardt of Danzig, Prussia) , accompanying the most important documents in this matter, to the effect that, as a consequence of the document of the eighteen brethren of January 6, a general church and area administrative elders’ 31 conference had taken place, at which the Ohrloff-Halbstadt Church Council is supposed to have insisted that the general decadence be opposed on the basis of the Holy Scriptures, but in vain, in spite of the fact that the reality of this decadence could not be denied. Instead of uniting behind such an attempt, they were handed the above paper by the five elders. Pastor Dobbert of Prischib, in the document already cited (cf. #170), calls the statement of the five eld