Mennonite Life
MENNONITE LIFEJUNE 1991 In this Issue The Mennonite encounter with National Socialism in the 1930s and 1940s remains a troubling event in Mennonite history, even as the memory of World War II and the Holocaust continue to sear the conscience of Western civilization. How could such evil happen? How could people of good will be so compromised? Mennonites have been a people of two kingdoms. Their loyalty to Christ’s kingdom has priority, but they also believe and confess, in the words of the Dortrecht Confession (1632) that “ God has ordained power and authority, and set them to punish the evil, and protect the good, to govern the world, and maintain countries and cities with their subjects in good order and regulation.” The sorting out of heavenly and worldly allegiances has never been simple. Rulers in all times and places, from Phillip II in the Spanish Netherlands to George Bush in the Persian Gulf region, have claimed to fulfill a divine mandate. In his time Adolf Hitler offered protection from anarchy and from communism. There should be no surprise that some Mennonites, especially recent victims of Russian Communism, found the National Socialist program attractive. In this issue three young Mennonite scholars, all of whom researched their topics in work toward master’s degrees, examine the Mennonite response to National Socialism in three countries: Paraguay, Germany, and Canada. John D. Thiesen, archivist at Mennonite Library and Archives at Bethel College, recounts the story as it unfolded in Paraguay. This article is drawn from his thesis completed at Wichita State University in 1990.
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