Fall 2024 · Vol. 53 No. 2 · pp. 141–153
Why MB?
In order to answer the question “Why MB?” it seems necessary to determine, in our individualistic age when people are reluctant to commit to local churches and denominations, if there is any particular value in being Mennonite Brethren? To put this another way, do historical and present-day MB convictions offer unique or particularly valuable perspectives for shaping people’s understanding of their identity and mission as the people of God?
Our Mennonite Brethren forerunners highlighted the need for integrity between profession and practice; they focused on calling people of character into leadership; and they demonstrated a willingness to hold onto their faith and suffer.
Perhaps revisiting our historical roots could help Canadian Mennonite Brethren address present-day realities and chart a course into the future. Since MBs identify themselves as being people of the book, it is necessary to examine whether our denominational beliefs and church structures have consistently been built on a scriptural foundation as we have addressed challenges. 1 Additionally, if our forerunners had a prophetic witness within their own cultural moments, their example may help us determine how p. 142 we should live now in our cultural moment. Examining both Scripture and history should enable us to answer the question today, “Why MB?”
Several key texts can help evaluate how the beliefs and practices of the Mennonite Brethren denomination reflect scriptural teaching. In the Great Commission Jesus told his followers what they should do: make disciples by going, baptizing, and teaching people to obey everything that he commanded (Matt 28:18-20). Are we MBs doing what Jesus commanded? As the church was formed in the book of Acts, Luke reported what this first community was devoted to: the apostles teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of the bread and the prayers (Acts 2:42). Are we MBs devoted to the same things as the first Christians? When the church experienced both growth and persecution, the author of Hebrews exhorted them to understand the nature of their faith and persevere (Heb 10:19-25). Are we MBs positioned to help people begin a journey with Jesus and die following Jesus? This essay will focus its attention on the third text, since the letter to the Hebrews speaks specifically to the long-term sustainability and viability of a Christian community, the heart of the “Why MB?” question. It will evaluate the faithfulness of our MB denomination to the four topics addressed in Hebrews 10:19-25: entrance to faith, assurance of faith, holding onto faith, and living out faith.
Since it is beyond the scope of this essay to comprehensively engage with almost five hundred years of history, it will focus on three key moments in Mennonite Brethren history: the beginning of Anabaptism (in the 1520s), the beginning of the Mennonite Brethren denomination (in the 1860s), and our current and future moment. Each of the four topics in Hebrews will be evaluated in light of what was believed and practiced by our forerunners (the early Anabaptists), our founders (the early MBs), and by Canadian MBs today.
ENTRANCE TO FAITH
Hebrews 10:19-21 begins, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us . . .” do the things that follow (NIV, passim). As the author of Hebrews began this section of text, he reminded his readers that they are family members (brothers and sisters), who have entrance into the throne room of God (the Most Holy Place) through the living way opened for them by the body and blood of Jesus. Do MBs proclaim this same truth?
In the medieval church, entrance into the spiritual and political realm was accomplished shortly after a child was born; through the practice of infant baptism a baby became a member of the state and one of God’s p. 143 people. Our Anabaptist forerunners disagreed with this practice. For them, people were incorporated into the family of faith when they professed faith in the person and work of Christ. In the medieval church, mass was celebrated as a sacrifice, with the bread and wine becoming the body and blood of Jesus each time the mass was taken. Our Anabaptist forerunners insisted, rather, that the “Lord’s Supper” be viewed as a commemoration of the sacrifice made once and for all on the cross. It is a sign of our complete redemption in Christ. The argument of Hebrews, and the argument of the radical reformers (the name given to our forerunners), was that Jesus died once for all, and has made a new and living way through the curtain into relationship with God and his people. John B. Toews, summarizing Menno Simons’ 1537 pamphlet, “The New Birth,” states, “It doesn’t matter if you are the pope, a king or a monk, all must come via Christ and become new creatures. Humans must be in Christ, and he must be in them.” 2
These beliefs were widely opposed within European circles, and so Anabaptists were persecuted, and many Mennonites finally settled in Russia. Here they were offered religious freedom, military exemption, and land but were also required to live separately from the Russians and to govern themselves. 3 Since the privileges of freedom and land were tied to an individual’s membership in the Mennonite community, their experience of church and state merged once more. People professed faith and were baptized in order to be counted among the faith community, get married, and benefit from exemptions. This led to religious nominalism. 4 In the 1830s one minister lamented, “How the light of the gospel has been obscured in so many folk. . . . Godlessness increases because love has grown cold. When will the night of sin vanish? When will the dawn of true enlightenment begin to break among us?” 5 This question was answered in the subsequent years as printed sermons from Charles Spurgeon and German pietists made their way into communities. In the 1850s there were revivals in the Chortitza and Molotschna colonies as Edward Wuest began preaching on sin, judgment, God’s grace, and the need for a new birth. 6 At a private communion service held in Elisabethal in 1859, participants affirmed that “salvation was not only feeling but following, the life of holiness demanded a people of God committed to one another . . . [and] communion was only meaningful in the company of those who had made a decisive commitment to follow Christ.” 7 The Mennonite Brethren denomination was formed shortly thereafter, on January 6, 1860 when eighteen Molotschna villagers drafted a document of separation from the Mennonite Church that explained their theology of conversion and radical discipleship. 8
This historical moment continues to shape the conviction of our current day. The most recent edition of our Mennonite Brethren p. 144 Confession of Faith reads, a “Christian’s primary identity is in Christ, who was sent by the Father to deliver, heal, redeem, and restore the world through his atoning death, resurrection, and ascension to the right hand of God the Father.” 9
Examining history and Scripture, therefore, provides one answer to the question, “Why MB?”: because our confession of faith and historical witness agree with scriptural teaching, we enter faith through the finished work and blood of Jesus. To a world that is teaching that being a good person is what counts, that all roads lead to heaven, and that all religions are simply describing one part of the elephant, the author of Hebrews and Mennonite Brethren respond that the only way to God is through “a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, [Jesus’] body” (Heb 10:19-21). To churches that are teaching the prosperity gospel or moral therapeutic deism—which affirms that God is an agent who makes life on earth good for us and that people need to be affirmed and loved as they are without being called to confess and repent and follow Jesus in a life of discipleship—we offer the same response. Recent offerings in our MB Herald by scholars Brian Cooper and Iain Provan have affirmed this perspective. 10 Christians are called to gather around the person of Jesus. Hebrews 10:19-21 affirms the common human problem and its only solution: we are all sinners and can only enter the Most Holy place through the body and blood of Jesus.
ASSURANCE OF FAITH
As the argument of Hebrews progresses, the author’s focus moves past entrance to faith to assurance of faith. Hebrews 10:22 reads, “let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.” Personal assurance of faith in Jesus is marked by the cleansing of a person’s heart and body through regeneration and baptism and leads to an invitation for others to draw near. 11 Have Mennonite Brethren embraced this idea? We will answer this by returning to the witness of our forerunners.
Since the medieval church was merged with the state, the church was not a place of voluntary association. The distinction between Christians and non-Christians was negated by infant baptism, as people were born and baptized into the medieval church before they could understand and profess faith. During the first public disputation on baptism in January 1525, Conrad Grebel argued from the Gospels and Acts that those who understood and believed in Jesus were baptized. 12 Three days later, he launched an evangelistic campaign and had five hundred baptized converts in short order. Fellow Anabaptist leader Balthasar Hubmaier similarly p. 145 baptized three hundred people in one day. By their words and actions they affirmed the teaching of Hebrews 10:22 that assurance of faith requires hearts be regenerated (sprinkled) and the body washed through baptism. Shortly thereafter, the Schleitheim confession asserted that baptism must be linked to repentance. 13 Menno Simons added to these foundational documents by writing that baptism is both an act of obedience that follows an act of faith and an act of covenant with fellow brothers and sisters. It is not an individual, isolated act but is something to be witnessed by the community so that they can hold each other accountable to their commitment. 14 His convictions align with Hebrews 10:22: “Let us draw near,” not individually, but corporately.
When forming their January 1860 document of secession from the official Mennonite Church, our Mennonite Brethren founders affirmed the foundational Anabaptist teaching that baptism was to be for those with a living faith, 15 and this belief continues to define our current-day practice. Confession Article 8 on Christian Baptism reads,
Baptism is for all those who repent and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, have received the Holy Spirit, and pledge to live as disciples who obey Jesus in all of life. Baptism is for those who understand its basic meaning, are able to be accountable to Christ and the Church, and request it voluntarily. 16
This second examination of historical and contemporary alignment with Scripture provides another answer to the question, “Why MB?” Our forerunners, founders, and current theology and practice agree with the biblical teaching that assurance of faith in Jesus is marked by regeneration and baptism and leads to accountability with others. To Christians who claim that faith is an individual commitment between themselves and Jesus, who see no trouble with worshiping alone or in nature, MBs would say, “let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water” (Heb 10:22). Congregants often view baptism as a private act and want to have it performed in a personal pool or hot tub in a private get together. In response, our confession affirms that “[b]aptism in the New Testament world had strong associations with incorporation or inclusion into a group” 17 and therefore discourages “practicing baptisms which do not lead to belonging to the local church.” 18 These convictions shaped our practice in many churches during the COVID 19 pandemic when public gathering was limited or forbidden in Canada. Responding to changing regulations, one church offered a variety of different options: first, outdoor ceremonies with fifty people in several different pools; next, video-recorded indoor p. 146 ceremonies of ten people that were later shared with the congregation; and finally, indoor baptism services in several fifty-person “zones.” 19 Why did pastors and staff go to these extraordinary efforts? Because they believed that baptism is an act of covenant between believers and Jesus that must be witnessed by believers for God’s glory and for Christian accountability. As such, it is an act that speaks prophetically into our individualistic world.
HOLDING ONTO FAITH
According to the author of Hebrews, Christians who enter into the faith community through the body and blood of Jesus and find assurance in regeneration followed by baptism are not at the end of their journey but must persevere in faith. As the text continues, we read this exhortation: “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful” (Heb 10:23). Returning to our “Why MB?” question, therefore, we must examine if MBs have held unswervingly to their faith in the past and if they are committed to doing so in the present and future.
Revisiting the stories of Anabaptist forerunners reveals that contemporary Mennonite Brethren stand on the shoulders of those who have persevered in the midst of persecution and adversity. Felix Manz, Conrad Grebel, and Balthasar Hubmaier, who are named as the first radical reformers, were all persecuted and killed for their faith. Mennonite historian Bruce Guenther estimates that between five thousand and twelve thousand Anabaptists were executed via drowning or burning. 20 In the 1660s, the book Martyr’s Mirror was published after persecution had subsided in order to remind people of what matters and to inspire them to greater faithfulness. This book records the story of four thousand martyrs in the first sixteen hundred years of the church and mentions many recent Anabaptist deaths in order to encourage people to aspire to a different life.
Relating several of the stories of martyrs in a class on Anabaptist history, John B. Toews summarized Anabaptist ideas regarding perseverance in the midst of suffering by asking, “What do you do if the prevailing culture no longer allows you to live in it because you are a dissident? You move to the cross and yield to what will be, and you build a new countercultural community of love which isn’t perfect, but is becoming more like Christ.” 21
Mennonites moved around Europe, and many of our founders eventually migrated to North and South America because they held unswervingly to their convictions that the church and state should be separated, that they should have the right to educate their children in faith, and that they should not participate in violence. This conviction was tested during World Wars I and II, and many people have written about their experiences of p. 147 being forced to decide between their commitment to their faith and their country. These very personal decisions had massive implications as they led to division within churches and invited ridicule from fellow Canadians. One man writes of his experience this way:
Those of us who objected to bearing of arms were summoned to court. A judge, flanked by army officers, gave each an individual hearing. He was not our friend. His remarks to us were harsh and uncomplimentary. Among other things we were said to be a nuisance to the country. When told that we were willing to die but not willing to kill, he said that Canada would not profit by our death. 22
Another man was notified that he would be arrested, so he closed his shoe repair shop, volunteered at a local MB church during its building project, and waited for the police to show up. When they did at two o’clock one afternoon, he and his new wife prayed in the living room, and then he surrendered himself. After spending the afternoon in a holding cell, “at 11 at night a bus stopped. We were handcuffed in groups of two and were taken by bus to Headingly jail. . . . The receptionist at the jail, (a rough man), cursed at me and said, ‘You conscientious objectors should all be shot.’ With that he sent me into the basement with a guard.” 23 This man was eventually sentenced to six months in prison and hard labor.
These individuals did not only face jail or work camps but also financial hardship:
In addition to being unpopular with the government and general population we suffered considerable financial loss. We were getting $.50 a day while the men in the military were getting full pay. Their wives and children received full support, whereas [our wives] received no support. 24
Examining our history reveals that many of our Anabaptist forerunners and Mennonite Brethren founders held unswervingly to the hope that they professed. Will we follow in their footsteps? What will we do if, to quote John B. Toews, the prevailing culture no longer allows us to live within it? Will we submit ourselves to countercultural biblical teaching? If we are opposed, will we “move to the cross” by embracing forced low-income employment, work-camps or prison? COVID 19 caused much disunity in our congregations, but Mennonite Brethren have been involved in controversial debate before. What can we learn from our forerunners about building unity and holding unswervingly to the gospel hope that we profess in the midst of our own cultural moment?
In order to hold onto the hope they profess, it seems evident that people must first know and understand that hope. During the magisterial p. 148 Reformation of the early 1500s, Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli taught people to rely on faith alone (for salvation) and Scripture alone (for authoritative teaching). Their focus was primarily on defining Christian doctrine. The Anabaptists and Menno Simons agreed that the hope we profess is found in Scripture but added a focus on the application of Christian Scripture. They insisted that people must know the hope intellectually, but that this hope must also transform a person’s character. Additionally, Menno Simons added instruction on who should be allowed to teach the hope that we profess. He insisted that teachers cannot be self-appointed or qualified simply by academic studies. 25 They must be individuals who live by the commands of Jesus, imitate Jesus, and be called into leadership because of the communal witness of God’s work in their lives—as Paul and Barnabas were set apart by the church for ministry in Acts 13:1-3.
With this background in mind, it seems that MBs have always offered countercultural ideas about leadership and therefore may have a prophetic voice for today. In the popular podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill, which focused on Seattle-based Mars Hill church and its controversial pastor, Mark Driscoll, hosts and interviewees identified one of the issues plaguing various North American large churches: pastoral charisma is outpacing pastoral character. 26 From the beginning, Mennonites have emphasized the necessity of character.
Because they took leadership seriously, Mennonite Brethren have consistently concentrated on training in Bible study people identified by congregations as potential leaders. Beginning in 1872, annual conventions focused on training people through itinerant ministry, evangelism, and mission. Several traveling ministers were designated to travel around the Russian empire visiting Mennonite colonies and encouraging them in their efforts to regularly meet in house churches; here they prayed, sang, and discussed Scripture. 27 This commitment to learning and training followed them as they immigrated to North America. Between 1925 and 1950 more than fifteen Bible schools were founded in Canada with the goal of nurturing the faith of those in the next generation and preparing young people for outreach in Canada and abroad. Overseas mission agencies and Canadian mission agencies were born from these Bible schools. 28 In the words of Bruce Guenther, “No denomination in Canada operated more Bible schools during the first half of the 20th century or sent more of its young people to Bible school than the MBs.” 29
Therefore, as we consider the current question—“Why MB?”—it is evident that we have a history of teaching the hope we profess. Are we continuing this legacy, and will it be a mark of our denomination in the future? Perhaps it is time to examine the discipleship ministries of our p. 149 churches and ask ourselves whether study of the Scripture is central to our age-based ministries and our adult ministries. Are our churches invested in formal leadership development? Do we believe that the “word of God is alive and active” (Heb 4:12), and that it is “useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the [people] of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:15-16)? Is this belief shaping our actions?
We also have a history of partnering with others who hold to the hope that we profess. In Russia, our Mennonite Brethren founders partnered with Baptists and sent students to Baptist seminaries and on Baptist missions. 30 In North America, Mennonite Brethren have been known as evangelical Anabaptists, joining with other evangelicals, such as the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, Power to Change, Youth for Christ, Athletes in Action, Crisis Pregnancy Centers, Canadian Institute of Linguistics, Samaritan’s Purse, and other organizations that prioritize the cross, the Bible, conversion, and activism. 31
The hope that we currently profess is articulated in the Confession of Faith of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches, which unites the churches in our denomination. Our MB Confession seeks not to supersede Scripture but rather to articulate our beliefs about Scripture. In recent years, our denomination has held unswervingly to the hope that we profess about God's design for sexuality and gender (which are confessional items), and has given freedom in other issues such as church governance structures that have been deemed nonconfessional. Because we have been willing to stand firm on confessional issues, individual churches from other denominations have taken notice, and several provincial pastors are fielding inquiries from groups wanting to join our family of churches.
LIVING OUT FAITH
According to the author of Hebrews, we are enabled to enter faith through the body and blood of Jesus, draw near to God in assurance of faith through regeneration and baptism, and hold unswervingly to our faith in the midst of trials because of God’s faithfulness. The final exhortation in this section of the letter is to live out our faith: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Heb 10:24-25).
The idea of spurring one another on to love and good deeds was central to early Anabaptist thought. The magisterial Reformation, as was mentioned earlier, was focused on defining Christian doctrine. The Anabaptists agreed with many of these core teachings of doctrine but p. 150 added an emphasis on defining Christian lifestyle. Conrad Grebel, one of the first radical reformers, envisioned a church that is voluntary in membership, concerned with walking in holiness, and willing to discipline those who did not live a circumspect lifestyle. He was mistakenly accused of perfectionism by his opponents, who thought he was teaching that Christians could be sinless. 32 Over time, issues surrounding church discipline became central to Mennonite communities. In the 1550s, Menno Simons held two conferences focused on teaching people how and when to apply a form of shunning called “the ban.” One of the first denominational splits between Flemish and Friesian Mennonite congregations illustrates how secondary matters of practice were being elevated to first-tier confessional level status: while the Flemish insisted on reading sermons, preaching while being seated, baptizing by pouring, and having elders distribute bread at communion, the Friesians declared that sermons should be more free-flowing, pastors should preach standing up, baptism should happen by sprinkling, and people should file past the elders and take bread at communion. Our forerunners needed to determine how to spur one another on toward love and good works in a way that did not split the church. 33
As the Mennonite Brethren denomination was formed in the 1860s, this struggle continued. Early congregations were known for loud, enthusiastic worship services, an emphasis on the “inner word” of the Holy Spirit over the “outer word” of the biblical text, and sometimes inappropriate holy kisses.
The early Brethren were deeply conscious of their struggle with sin and the joy of sins forgiven. There was a reluctance to move faith beyond feeling. The cost of following Jesus was high and for the moment celebration to the beat of loud drums and rousing tempos seemed in keeping with their experience. In the process, however, stable leadership gave way to arrogant and inexperienced men who boldly asserted the total failure of the Old Church and the absolute correctness of the new faith. The task facing the Brethren was formidable. They had to find the balance between a Christian experience which had deep emotional consequences and a discipleship which focused on ethical living. They had to transform a reckless and individualistic celebration of the salvation experience into a responsible covenant community capable of sustaining successive generations. A process of restorations began with sessions of prayer and repentance which culminated in the so-called “June Reforms” of 1865. 34
Examining our history it becomes evident that Anabaptists and MBs have not spurred one another on to love and good deeds perfectly. There p. 151 have been many pendulum swings of reaction and corrections, and yet it is still important to recognize the value of this idea in itself. Both the New and Old Testaments attest to God’s desire that his people be holy, as he is holy (Lev 19:1-2; 1 Peter 1:13-16). Jesus declared that those who love him will obey him (John 14:15, 23; 15:10), and James asserted that faith without works is dead (James 2:14-26).
Our Anabaptist forerunners dedicated themselves to discipleship and defined “spurring one another on” as walking in the way of Christ, being missionary-minded (seeing all of life in light of the missionary task), suffering, and holiness. 35 This vision was caught by our founders. They initially focused missionary efforts on their own Mennonite people (establishing forty-two congregations between the 1860s and 1906), and eventually invested in overseas missions. 36 In 1940 the MB denomination had forty-three missionaries, and by 1960 there were 256. In the early 1990s church planting initiatives in British Columbia and across Canada yielded significant results, and many more new congregations were started. 37
Recently, however, more churches are being closed than being planted. What will be required for our current and future generation to become more missionary-minded? Our current discipleship challenges center around personal holiness, and the question we are asking is, What does it look like to follow Jesus in the midst of twenty-first century cultural ideas regarding sexuality and gender? These are messy and emotionally-laden conversations, and we are being challenged to spur one another on toward love and good works in both grace and truth. We must ask ourselves, individually and corporately, in our individualistic age when people are reluctant to commit to local churches and denominations, whether we are willing to be held accountable to this body of believers because we share confessional convictions and for the sake of mission.
Ultimately, our answer to this question will parallel our answer to the question “Why MB?” As noted throughout this essay, MBs share many theological convictions with other denominations, and it is beyond the scope of this essay to compare our confessional convictions with those of others. Furthermore, it is unnecessary and unfruitful to do so. Our denomination does not have to be deemed better than another denomination in order to be considered viable and worthy of our allegiance; it simply must be considered faithful—faithful to Scripture and faithful to its historical convictions. Our Mennonite Brethren forerunners and founders believed and lived out a biblical understanding of Hebrews 10:19-25: entrance to faith, assurance of faith, holding onto faith, and living out faith. As they did so, they highlighted the need for integrity between profession and practice; they focused on calling people of character into leadership; and they demonstrated a willingness to hold onto their faith and suffer the p. 152 censure of society as they pursued the individual and corporate call to live as disciples of Jesus. Their convictions caused them to persevere within their cultural moment: may their faithful witness encourage our generation to do the same.
NOTES
- “People of the Book” is the title of chap. 4 in Lynn Jost and Connie Faber, Family Matters: Discovering the Mennonite Brethren (Winnipeg. MB: Kindred, 2002), 25–33.
- John B. Toews, “Menno Simons” (The Anabaptist Story: Lecture 7, Regent College, Vancouver, BC, Fall 1997), accessed via Regent audio recording, August 22, 2022.
- Frank H. Epp, Mennonites in Canada, 1786–1920: The History of a Separate People (Toronto, ON: Macmillan of Canada, 1974), 161, https://uwaterloo.ca/grebel/sites/default/files/uploads/files/mic_ireduced.pdf.
- Epp, 164, 170; also John B. Toews, “Early Mennonite Brethren and Evangelism in Russia,” Direction 28 (Fall 1999): 187–200.
- John B. Toews and Abe Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” in Celebrating 150 Years: The Mennonite Brethren Church around the World, ed. Abe. J. Dueck, (Kitchener: Pandora, 2010), 16.
- Toews and Dueck, 17.
- Toews and Dueck, 18.
- Toews and Dueck, 19.
- “Introduction to the MB Confession of Faith (2023),” Confession of Faith of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches: Full Resource Edition (Winnipeg, MB: Kindred, 2023), 11.
- See Brian Cooper, “Living on the Borderland? What Does Being a Community Require of Us?” MB Herald Digest, June 2023, 15–18, https://issuu.com/mbherald/docs/62.06_june2023, and Kristal Toews, “The MB Herald Interview: with Iain Provan,” MB Herald Digest, October 2023, 8–10, https://issuu.com/mbherald/docs/_62.10_oct2023.
- Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1993), s.v. “Heb 10:22.”
- John B. Toews, “Zwingli, Zurich and Anabaptist Origins” (The Anabaptist Story: Lecture 2, Fall 1997).
- See the Schleitheim Confession of 1527, https://www.scribd.com/document/46329725/The-Schleitheim-Confession-Formatted.
- John B. Toews, “Menno Simons.”
- Toews and Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” 19.
- Article 8: Christian Baptism, MB Confession of Faith, 116.
- Article 8: Christian Baptism, MB Confession of Faith, 119.
- Article 8: Christian Baptism, MB Confession of Faith, 126–127. p. 153
- The author’s congregation, Northview Community Church, Abbotsford, BC, Spring 2020–Winter 2022.
- Bruce Guenther, “MB History Tour: Chapter One,” MB Herald, 29 April 2005, https://mbherald.com/mb-history-tour-chapter-one/.
- John B. Toews, “Anabaptist Concept of the Church and Discipleship” (The Anabaptist Story: Lecture 10, Fall 1997).
- David H. Neumann, I Remember (Abbotsford, BC: Self-Published, 1983), 62.
- Abram J. Friesen, God’s Hand upon My Life (Chilliwack: Fraser Valley Custom Printers, 1986), 171.
- Neumann, I Remember, 63.
- John B. Toews, “Menno Simons.”
- Christianity Today podcast, “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill,” https://www.christianitytoday.com/podcasts/the-rise-and-fall-of-mars-hill/.
- Toews and Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” in Celebrating 150 years, 23–24.
- Abe Dueck and Bruce Guenther, “The Mennonite Brethren Church in Canada,” in Celebrating 150 years, 54–60. For a personal testimonial on the impact of Bible schools, see David H. Neumann, I Remember, 59–60.
- Bruce Guenther, “MB History Tour: Chapter Three,” MB Herald, 10 June 2005, https://mbherald.com/mb-history-tour-chapter-three/.
- Toews and Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” 26.
- These four elements of evangelicalism are emphasized by David W. Bebbington in his 1988 book, Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A History from the 1730s to the 1980s (London and New York: Routledge). Similar explanations are also available, such as https://www.nae.org/what-is-an-evangelical/.
- John B. Toews, “Conrad Grebel and Felix Manz” (The Anabaptist Story: Lecture 3, Fall 1997).
- John B. Toews, “Menno Simons.”
- Toews and Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” 21.
- John B. Toews, “Anabaptist Concept of the Church and Discipleship.”
- John B. Toews, “The Mennonite Brethren in Russia during the 1890s,” Direction 30 (Fall 2001): 139–52, https://directionjournal.org/30/2/mennonite-brethren-in-russia-during.html), and also Toews and Dueck, “Mennonite Brethren Beginnings,” 24–25.
- Dueck and Guenther, “The Mennonite Brethren Church in Canada,” 64–71.
