A Pilgrimage of Faith: The Mennonite Brethren Church in Russia and North America, 1860-1990It is now [1990] one hundred and thirty years since the birth of the Mennonite Brethren Church and therefore time for someone in that church to take a backward glance to see how things have developed. Who better to do this John B. Toews. His life spans well over half of those years and he has experienced much of what he writes. "JB" as he is affectionately known by both students and colleagues is a patriarchal figure in the Mennonite Brethren Church. Born in Ukraine, the Russian Revolution and its aftermath were the crucible that shaped his youth and young adult years. After studying in Western Europe, Toews immigrated to Canada in the late 1920s. Much of his life has been in Mennonite Brethren educational institutions in Canada and the United States. During ten years as Executive Secretary of the Mennonite Brethren Board of Missions he traveled widely and came to know Mennonite Brethren people around the world. In between educational and mission administrative responsibilities he pastored in Kansas and California. After retiring from the presidency of the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary he became the founding Director of the Historical Commission of the Mennonite Brethren Church.
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... congregations as " left with an ecclesiastical , doctrinally cor- rect , moral formalism ( always , however , with the exception of ' Elijah's 7000 ' ) . Correct doctrine and morality had replaced true faith . The good house of Menno ...
... congregation ) ( 1812-1819 ) . This renewal movement , led by Klaas Reimer ( 1770-1837 ) , was the result of small prayer circles of those who were discontented with conditions in the larger church . Reimer was concerned to reform the ...
... congregation selecting new leadership . " 7 Another expression of a growing new mood was the Ohrloff School Society , which established a private school in the early 1820s to bolster education among Russian Mennon- ites . Founded under ...
... congregations formally joined Gnadenfeld because they sympathized with its position . " 33 During this time there also sprang up private study groups interested in outreach . These included mission sewing circles , Bible studies and ...
... congregational meet- ing on December 19 , 1859 , Jacob Reimer and Johann Claassen were openly challenged to leave the church . They did so , along with ten others . " Community ostracism followed shortly . For their future fellowship a ...