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

e flesh are deceivers. This certainly may not rightly be said of them [those who according to Huebert's letter of January 4 had been excommunicated in Documentary Supplements 431 Einlage]; no more than of those believers who do not completely agree with us, whether living here or far away among the heathen or elsewhere, but known to us as Christians. Up to the present we could not do without the work of Luther, Hiller and many other men of faith. Let us therefore be careful not to judge them, for in so doing we shall judge ourselves, according to Romans 2:1. Philippians 1:18 states: Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed. It is therefore advisable to be careful not to reject the efforts of others who are working for the kingdom of God, since we too are so prone to error, and since so much error has occurred among the brethren, long ago as well as in recent times. 2) “Banning also is not done according to the Word of God. I Timothy 5:20 states: Those who sin, rebuke in the presence of all, etc., and according to I Corinthians 5:4. According to this, six or seven brethren— that is, if they do not constitute an entire church— do not have the right to find others of like mind and judge someone. Menno, the reformer, gives very good advice in this matter, and it should be taken to heart in this issue as well as in many others, since it is known that the brethren do not reject the Foundation of Menno; indeed, one of their leaders has recognized the work and presented it, as our basic principles, to high authority. [Apparently G. Wieler is meant; see his petition to the Tsar, above?] Also, in their attitude toward the banned ones the brethren contradict the accepted confession of faith as expressed in a catechism [the ‘Rudnerweider’]. If, in the ban, the leaders of the brethren are relying on the Apostle Paul, who personally exercised the ban on occasion, they should read Acts 20, from verse 18 to the end of the chapter, as well as II Corinthians 11, from verse 28 to the end. Then they will arrive at a different conclusion, provided they have some of that spirit of discernment of which they are boasting; if not, they should ask themselves if what Paul says in II Cor. 11:12-15 applies to them. 3) “The esteem of persons. This is forbidden in the letter of James, yet it was clearly evident in the last meeting of the brethren, for unreasonable, carnally-minded zealots, who in the previous meeting of the brethren contended for the law, were justified; others— their loving and gentle convictions belittled by some brethren and, on the basis of the new covenant, generally declared to be evil— were threatened with the ban if they did not abandon their convictions and humble themselves to the satisfaction of their opponents. 4) "The God-blessed life. In I Timothy 4:8, 9 we read: Train yourself in godliness, for while bodily exercise is of some value, godliness holds promi