History:- Mennonite Church is an offshoot of the
Anabaptist movement of the 16th Century. Anabaptist were the Swiss Brethren who were radically opposed to Zwingly. Anabaptists
preached adult baptism and organised independent congregations.
Mennonite Church is named after Menno Simons
(1496-1561), a Dutch Catholic priest who deserted the Catholic Church and led
reform movement. Simons was born at Witmarsum, Northern Holland in 1496. He was ordained priest in 1524, remained so
for eight years and then left the Catholic church and
got married. He was a good writer. He became famous but did not establish any
Church or wish his name be adopted by any Church. On Jan 30,
1536,
he expressed his commitment to Christ.
He fled after a theological debate with Micron in 1554, to Wuestenfide. He died
on Jan.31, 1561.
The
title Mennonite brethren was first used by two ministers, Martin Boehm and Philip
William at their evangelistic meeting at Baltimore. They grasped their hands and proclaimed, “We
are brethren”. Hence forth Mennonite Church was known as Mennonite Brethren Church.
Persecution
made them flee to Russia in 1860. Mennonite came to America between1860-1929. Today Mennonite are around the world with
large congregations in Angola, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia,
Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Russia, United States,
Uruguay and Zaire.
It was the Russian missionaries who came first to India. In 1889 Rev. Freser
J. Abraham and his wife came to India from Russia. He was followed in 1899 by Hubert, the first
American Mennonite to reach India. Later, missionaries could not come from Russia, so American missionaries
took up Indian mission.
There are
six Mennonite groups in India today. They can be broadly divided into two: Mennonite Brethren Church of Andhra Pradesh
and other Mennonite Churches. The ‘other five Churches are:
- Mennonite Church of India, Dhamtari
- Brethren in Christ Church, Britain
- United Missionary Church, Calcutta
- Bharatiya General Conference, Raipur, M.P.
- Bihar Mennonite Mandali.
Mennonite Brethren Church of Andhra Pradesh has the
largest following.
