An Introduction to the Russian Mennonites

by Kroeker, Wally

• ISBN13: 9781561483914
• ISBN10: 1561483915
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-05-30
• Publisher: Good Books

Summary

Mennonites in Russia? Invited by Catherine the Great to farm the Russian steppes-in exchange for exemption from military service-Mennonite emigrants from Polish Prussia and The Netherlands made their home in Russia. Some remain today; many more eventually left for North and South Americas and Europe. Nearly all retain memories and stories from that place-unbelievable prosperity for some; unspeakable terror for many; church tensions; struggles between the landed and the landless; exquisite clockmaking, storytelling, musicmaking, and food. Himself a Russian Mennonite, Kroeker heads into the history, but also the later movement of these people to the U.S. and Canada. Are they at all distinctive today? What has drawn some to the cities and professions, and others to the rural prairies? What about those in Europe, and those still in the former Soviet Union? Kroeker tells it all with vibrancy-the overview and the memorable details. Includes dozens of historic and contemporary photographs.

Author Biography

     
     Wally Kroeker grew up in southern Manitoba with one foot on the farm and one in the city. He descends from two different streams of Russian Mennonites. His paternal ancestors emigrated from the Chortitza Colony, Russia, to southern Manitoba in 1876. His mother migrated as a child from the Molotschna Colony, Russia, in 1925. He has spent more than 35 years as a reporter and editor, specializing in business and religion. He began his career with the Regina (Saskatchewan) Leader-Post and later served as editor of the Saskatchewan Business Journal and as business writer and assistant city editor of the Winnipeg Tribune. He was assistant editor of Moody Monthly (Chicago) and for 10 years was editor of The Christian Leader, the magazine of the U.S. Mennonite Brethren Church. Since 1985 Kroeker has been director of publications for Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) and editor of its magazine, The Marketplace. His freelance articles have appeared in nearly a hundred business and religious publications. He is author of God’s Week Has Seven Days (Herald) and co-author of Faith Dilemmas for Marketplace Christians (Herald). Kroeker studied journalism at Northwestern University in Chicago and completed his undergraduate degree in religious studies at Tabor College, Hillsboro, Kansas. He has a Master of Arts degree in theology from the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary, Fresno, Calif. He and his wife Millie have two sons, Scott and Joel.

Table of Contents

Introduction	3	(2)
1. How They Got to Russia	5	(8)
2. Building the Mennonite Colonies	13	(10)
3. The Golden Age in Russia	23	(16)
4. The Great Treks	39	(10)
5. Settlers Again	49	(21)
6. The Rural-Urban Shift	70	(9)
7. A Coat of Many Colors	79	(8)
8. What Does A Russian Mennonite Look Like?	87	(6)
9. Where Are They Today?	93	(20)
Epilogue	113	(2)
Readings and Sources	115	(6)
About the Author	121