Perilous Journey: The Mennonite Brethren in Russia 1860-1910, John B. Toews, 1988

llianz could not be discussed openly. There were serious discussions and even harsh confrontations in the [executive] council." 11 External pressures finally helped to bring an end to the conflict. As early as 1908 St. Petersburg lawgivers announced their intentions of drafting new regulations for the various religious minorities in Russia. In part the retention of historic Mennonite privileges now depended on a common front. Then, too, the outbreak of World War I enhanced anti-German senti- ments. Intense discussions and consultations finally produced an "evangelical Mennonite Confession" of faith. It included all three groups, the Old Church, the Brethren and the Allianz. Whether the "inner" journey of the Brethren had actually graduated towards broader tolerance remained an open question. At the height of the open communion controversy the Rueckenau church best illustrated the Brethren dilemma. It sheltered both Jakob Reimer, popular evangelist and open 69 communion practitioner, and elder David Schellenberg, an advocate of closed communion. The latter supported Reimer's dismissal from the itinerant ministry when the matter came before the Rueckenau congregation. A few years later (1909) Schellenberg himself was deposed as elder. 13 Some spoke of bookkeeping irregularities in the various funds entrusted to the elder; others pointed to irregularities associated with his second marriage. The issues underlying the attack on the unfortunate elder were probably broader. Brethren narrowness and exclu- siveness experienced increasing theological discomfort as the surrounding religious world expanded. As apprehensions inten- sified a reactionary conference deposed an itinerant minister while a liberal congregation moved against an orthodox elder. As he neared the end of his monumental study in 1910, P.M. Friesen pondered why a people given to missions and evangelism for decades had become tardy in their own spiritual growth. Was the beauty of late nineteenth-century piety fading? The prevailing tempo of Christian activity hardly supported such a conclusion. Itinerant ministers still reported their evangelistic and deeper life services. Revivals and baptisms were still the order of the day. The response to the widespread Bible courses and conferences was generally enthusiastic. Home and foreign missions found strong support. Special conferences and workshops infused new vigor into the Sunday School movement. There was Brethren affirmation of welfare and benevolence projects. Sunday morning choirs made their appearance during the 1890s and before long choral festivals became a regular feature of Brethren congregational life. According to Hermann Neufeld the 1894 Rueckenau Saengerfest attracted 2,000 listeners and featured 300 singers from eleven choirs. New songs and new tempos were not foreign to such a setting, yet were not considered too innovative. This continued capacity for openness and acco