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

is date, 1910) Jakob Janzen, Sergeievka were active. Special report not available. 5) Burwalde, in the area of the Chortitza Volost, not far from Einlage. We quote freely from the report of Brother Hildebrandt, written for the anniversary history of January 6, 1886. He characterizes the M.B. Church’s manner of working and expanding 282 following the first period of storm and stress. Some years ago, a number of conversions had taken place in some villages here in the Chortitza Colony. But nearly all of these moved out of the colony, with the exception of a number in Einlage, so that things looked "desolate in regard to spiritual matters.” But the Lord did not abandon His work. In Burwalde, where no noticeable awakening had occurred to date, the Lord began to work in Johann Hildebrandt (the reporter) and his wife, through Hildebrandt’s mother. (Thus it was not “completely desolate.”) “Since I was so dead in unbelief, the Lord gave my wife an open ear, where the words of my mother found entrance, and she was converted on August 13, 1876.” When Br. Hildebrandt, who was already repenting, saw that one can really believe that we can be saved, he prayed confidently to the Lord to give him true faith. “Thus I was converted one day later, on August 14, and we rejoiced together because we had both been converted. But it was not long before we began to look about to see whether there were others who would be one with us. We found none in the vicinity. When we came to the recognition that we should be baptized according to the Word of God and turned to the believers [in the M.B. Church], this aroused opposition in our parental home. My wife’s father drove to our place and earnestly advised us not to be baptized. On my side of the family, the grandparents were against it, for I had been raised by my grandparents.” But after six weeks, the Hildebrandts were “baptized and received into the body of Christ, though we were the only ones in our village. None of our members were to be found in the neighboring villages either, except for a few in Niederchortitza. But they were soon excommunicated, and so we were 486 THE MENNONITE BRETHREN CHURCH completely alone.” During the next spring, a couple was converted in the neighboring village of Rosengart. A year after the Hildebrandts’ conversion, a revival occurred in Kronstal, also near Burwalde, and again several persons joined the M.B. Church, etc. “Now we began to conduct meetings in our area, for which we were really glad, though it was not without tumults. Once there was an attempt to disturb our evening meeting, but the village mayor prevented it. After that we had peace, until a time when itinerant preachers did house visitation in our village.” Made restless by a certain man, the village mayor ordered the Mennonite village policeman to get the man out of the village. But because the policeman “was already awakened from sin,” he denied the mayor’s request. Aft