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2008-11-04 issue:

300th anniversary

AMBS observes Brethren history.

by Mary E. Klassen

Print Article

A reunion of cousins is what participants called the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Brethren churches hosted by Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Ind.

The Oct. 2-3 event included several opportunities for representatives of Church of the Brethren and Brethren Church to meet with students and faculty of AMBS.

The celebration was an opportunity to “listen and affirm affinity between these two Anabaptist groups with parallel origins,” said Jeff Bach, one of the presenters.

Bach, who is director of the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist studies in Elizabethtown, Pa., gave an overview of the Brethren movement that began with the baptism of three people by immersion in 1708. He continued by enumerating overlapping concerns among the Brethren and Mennonites. Both are Scripture-rooted movements, he said, with emphasis on an effort to live out the faith, practice discipleship, do mission and prepare for Christ’s second coming.

Mennonites and Brethren both “emerged because of dissatisfaction with the reforms that were happening,” Bach said. “People now are wondering whether the concerns of these early movements could be helpful today.”

Though he cautioned listeners not to use history as a blueprint for the future, Bach said that concerns of the early members of the groups, such as the emphasis on Scripture and following Christ, can guide people of faith today.