Eight great Mennonite Brethren

The CBC’s quest this fall to determine the “greatest” Canadian from a list of ten finalists got me thinking about a list of the greatest Mennonite Brethren.

The notion seemed inappropriate at first. Jesus, after all, rebuked His disciples when they argued about who was the greatest. That simply isn’t a category for the kingdom of God, He said, unless you get there by being “the very last, and the servant of all” (Mark 9:34).

Still, there’s Hebrews 11 and other Scriptures where people are mentioned as examples of greatness, whether in faith or service. In that spirit, here’s my list of eight (because there wasn’t room for 10) great MBs and why they inspire me.

1. Johann Claassen (1820–1876). This one is obvious. Claassen’s achievement, historian P.M. Friesen wrote, was “our Brethren church.” Called a Moses and a Zinzendorf by contemporaries, he sacrificed years away from his family seeking legal standing for the group that seceded from the larger Russian Mennonite church in 1860 to become the MB church, and then led a pioneer settlement to alleviate landlessness. Like Paul, he experienced life’s extremes, from “tuxedo, gloves and top hat” in the capital to “tattered clothes” in the Kuban, but he wore the burdens of leadership with perseverance, resolve and the joy of salvation.
2. P.M. Friesen (1849–1914). He is best known for his massive history of the Mennonites in Russia, and the chronicle of the Mennonite Brethren Church within it. I’m inspired by Friesen’s lively style, generous Christian spirit, and credo for writing about the church: “to say as much good as was possible and as much of the bad as we had to in order to remain truthful.”
3. Katharina Schellenberg (1870–1945). The first MB missionary doctor to India, Schellenberg gave herself wholeheartedly to meeting the physical and spiritual needs of the people she served. Nowadays she would be called a workaholic for her long days and rare holidays, but she said she had “besought” the Lord for strength. She received it and she used it up. The inscription on her tombstone in India reads, “She lived for Christ/ She served others/ She sacrificed herself.”
4. Anna Thiessen (1892–1977). Although she warned of the city as a dangerous “maelstrom,” Thiessen demonstrated just how faith survives the metropolis. Through the Mary-Martha Home, she provided a place of belonging and guidance for hundreds of young women sent to Winnipeg to work as domestics. Specific, active links to the church community are still key to maintaining faith in a culture hostile or indifferent to Christ.
5. C.A. DeFehr (1881–1979). DeFehr was “perhaps the most successful MB businessman of his generation,” achieving prosperity in both Russia and Canada, but he “never lost his capacity to identify with people in many different circumstances.” Offering his resources and acumen to the service of the church on boards and in refugee work, he is a superb model for our gifted entrepreneurs.
6. Maria Wiebe (1846–1922). She started the Schwesterverein (woman’s group) in her Minnesota MB congregation to make items to raise money for missions (an idea soon widely emulated) but I’m most intrigued by the legacy manifested in her descendants. Many children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren served as missionaries or pastors (renowned missiologist Paul Hiebert, for example, is a great-grandchild). Was it the power of Wiebe’s own passion, or her willingness to “release” them to the purposes of God? It cost her the untimely deaths of several children and grandchildren who heeded the call to missions.
7. John F. Harms (1855–1945). This first editor of the first MB publication, the Zionsbote, produced the early paper mostly gratis on a small hand press in a lean-to attached to his house, because he believed in its power to keep a scattered people connected. While technology and the pay have improved, that belief – that we meet in these pages – still inspires, and hopefully animates, the work of our Conference publications.
8. Abraham H. Unruh (1878–1961). Mennonite Brethren have been blessed with many fine preachers over the years. A beloved teacher and preacher, Unruh was a master of the expository form. He was not a good preacher initially, says his biographer David Ewert, but he “stirred up” his gift by thorough preparation, practice and the help of the Spirit. There’s a new hunger, I think, for Bible-based preaching; may Unruh’s tribe increase.

That’s my list, limited to the dead, and otherwise limited too, for there are so many others who could have appeared.

There’s no need to vote. But if you were making a list, who would be on it?

Sources: 1 & 2. The Mennonite Brotherhood in Russia by P.M. Friesen; 3. “Free to Serve” by Esther Jost in Women among the Brethren; 4 & 5. Canadian Mennonite Encyclopedia Online; 6. Reports in Zionsbote & reminiscences by Leona Ewert on the Hiebert website; 8. Stalwart for the Truth by David Ewert.