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

the organization of the church of the Mennonite brotherhood in South Russia in both areas. IX. UNREST AND REFORM EFFORTS IN THE MOLOTSCHNA CHURCHES 1. Elder Jakob Enns’ term of office was not a happy one. The different groups of “brethren,” coming as they did from the various Prussian congregations, soon ran afoul of one another. Each had acquired experiences and customs in the independent administration of their church affairs that went back hundreds of years. Each congregation had lived in one location, with approximately the same families, under the same circumstances and customs for a long time. Now everything had changed: with the exception of doctrine, church organization and a not quite uniform tradition, the old accustomed ties had disappeared. Everything was new and everyone equal. In addition, they now lived in closed civil communities and jurisdictional districts in which they not only could, but were forced to perform the quite considerable, though menial, police and judicial tasks of that time. That would cost them dearly. In addition, Enns, although very energetic, was a man of little Spirit— perhaps better, entirely devoid of God’s life-giving Spirit— and an exceedingly violent character. His quarrel with Klaas Wiens [whom he banned], first mayor and founder of Steinbach, caused a great deal of harm, for the temporal and spiritual spheres of influence— the spiritual “Mennonite brother- hood” and civil “Mennonite jurisdiction”— had yet to learn how to differentiate and get along with one another in this new frame of reference. Many could not grasp the fact that "brethren,” elected to run the civil government, should exercise civil, police and judicial power— i.e. should rule in the ways of the world— over other “brethren,” while others exercised such ecclesiastical powers as admonition and excommunication, powers which had very soon to be applied because of the not very pious character of the immigrants. This resulted in a new division, the first in Russia (even though the independent organization of Unrest and Reform 93 the Kronsweide Frisian congregation, in opposition to the initial goal, can be considered a kind of separation). 2. Between 1812-19, under the leadership of Klaas Reimer and several of his fellow church leaders, the Kleine Gemeinde came into existence. Persecutions, instigated by Elder Enns, only made the breach irreparable. Nevertheless, the Kleine Gemeinde was soon tolerated and finally, through the mediation of Johann Comies, was officially recognized by the government. The religious disposition of Klaas Reimer, although a sincerely pious one, was devoid of any joyous knowledge of God’s grace, while his confessional stance in educational and cultural matters was indescribably narrow. Reimer even considered the reading of books published by people of other faiths to be a sign of apostasy and of the coming Antichrist. Extreme severity in matters of dress,