The Great Trek of the Russian Mennonites to Central Asia, 1880-1884, Fred Richard Belk, 1976

vania: Herald Press, 1967), p. 29. Anabaptists were considered the radicals of the left by conservative Catholics. ‘Anabaptist’ is a Greek term meaning “‘rebaptizer’’ and was used in Latin Christendom after the fourth century. These rebaptizers did not use the term themselves because it was one of derision. During the Reformation the term was used indiscriminately to apply to all left-wing radicals. Even then the Anabaptists did not use the German form (Wiedertdufer) or the Dutch term (Wederdooper); most simply called themselves “Brethren.” 12. See Harold S. Bender, “Conrad Grebel as a Zwinglian, 1522-23," MOR, Vol. XV, No. 2 (April, 1941), pp. 67-82. 13. M. Simeon Friederich Rues, Aufrichtigen Nachrichten von den gegenwdrtigen Zustinden der Mennoniten, oder Taufgesinnten, wie auch Collegianten, oder Reis- birger (Jena: n.p., 1743), pp. 25-27. Most contemporary Mennonite-Anabaptist his- toriography tends to emphasize theology rather than its radical social implications in the context of the sixteenth century. For a stimulating dissenting view see Lowell H. Zuck. ‘‘Anabaptism: Abortive Counter-Revolt Within the Reformation,’ Church History, Vol. XXVI (September, 1957), pp. 211-226. John H. Yoder emphasizes Zwingli’s fears of the social effects of Anabaptism in “Anabaptist Origins in Switzerland,” in Dyck (ed.), An Introduction to Mennonite History, pp. 30, 33. A recent and challenging Marxist interpretation of the Anabaptists is found in Gerhard Brendler, Das Téuferretch zu Minster, 1534-35 (Berlin: Deutscher Verlag der Wissenschaften, 1966), pp. 11-70. 14. Romans 12:1-2 and Luke 6:27-28 were frequent Scripture references. 15. A. Brons, Ursprung, Entwickelung und Schicksale der Taufgesinnten oder Mennoniten (Norden: Druck von Diedr. Soltan, 1884), p. 88. Also see C. H. Smith, Story of the Mennonites, p. 106. 16. A good description of the Minster uprisings and an evaluation of the litera- ture is in Cornelius Krahn, “Minster Anabaptists,’ ME, III, pp. 777-782. Mennonite Life and MOR issues of the last decade have also devoted an increasing amount of at- tention to Minster. Leading Minster scholars such as Stayer, Hillerbrand, Gretsch, and Franz wrote concerning Minster in the MQR between 1963 and 1970. Walter Klaas- sen, Hans-Jiirgen Goertz, and Krahn contributed writings on Minster during this same period. In addition, books by Krahn and John Oyer deal with the Minster issue in some measure. See Krahn, Dutch Anabaptism: Origin, Spread, Life and Thought (1450-1600) (The Hague: Martinus Nyhoff, 1968) and John S. Oyer, Lutheran Reformers Against Anabaptism (The Hague: Martinus Nyhoff, 1964). 17. James H. Waltner, This We Believe (Newton, Kansas: Faith and Life Press, 1968), p. 135. For the Schleitheim Confession see Robert Friedmann, “The Schleitheim Confession (1527) and Other Doctrinal Writings of the Swiss Brethren in a Hitherto Unknown Edition,” MQR, Vol. XVI, No. 2 (April, 1942), pp. 82-98. The