Book Review:

It started in 1902 when two church groups, one in Manitoba, the other in Saskatchewan, recognized the need to build connections beyond their own congregations and communities, and joined to form a fledgling conference that eventually became the Conference of Mennonites in Canada (CMC). Within a few decades the CMC spanned the four western provinces and Ontario.

It ended with a delegate vote in St. Louis in 1999 when CMC changed its name to Mennonite Church Canada. After 97 years, this action was more than a change of name; it severed most ties with their more numerous American cousins and also reflected a quest for control of programs and funds. North American Mennonite Brethren have also divided on the basis of our border.

Adolf Ens, former professor at CMBC, provides a valuable account of the struggling beginnings of CMC in the Canadian prairies, its change from a largely rural to an urban based group, its amalgamation with the Swiss descended Mennonites in Ontario and, in the latter part of last century, its emergence as a multicultural church. In many ways this is the story of any Mennonite group in Canada since they all faced the same social and economic pressures

The reasons for churches getting together hasn’t changed much over the years; the initial question raised by Rev. Peter Regier to nine men invited to Tiefengrund, Saskatchewan, was how to minister more effectively to the scattered Mennonite communities. The Bergthaler of Manitoba and the Rosenorter of Saskatchewan agreed to closer relations, pulpit exchanges, and annual gatherings of representatives. The first conference was held near Altona, Manitoba in 1903. Annual sessions were to further God’s desire for unity and to encourage each other in kingdom work. The unity, they said, should not depend on outward forms but on faith, hope and love. The conference was an assembly of congregations, not of ministers. This reflected one of the strengths (and weaknesses) of CMC – congregational autonomy. The conference should not interfere with a congregation unless requested to do so.

The early assemblies heard position papers on church members holding public office, church discipline, home visits, ministry to youth and seniors, furthering spiritual growth, alcohol consumption, dealing with disgruntled members, non-resistance, the need for Christian education and a conference-wide publication. “Reiseprediger” (traveling ministers) were commissioned to relate to scattered groups.

BC joined CMC in 1932 and the first conference held in BC was in Greendale (then Sardis) in 1949. The first Mennonite settlement in BC was at Renata, a community flooded out in 1969 as a result of the Columbia River treaty.

The 1930’s and 40’s saw the establishment of Bible schools in all four western provinces. CMC wanted to join with the Mennonite Brethren in clergy training, but MBBC President J.B. Toews said that his Board indicated “a desire to be sharply separate from other Mennonite groups.” (Now we have CMU in Winnipeg and CBC in Abbotsford, both inter-Mennonite ventures.) The city was feared by many. Ted Regehr cites a report to the 1942 BC MB conference by Vancouver missionary J.B. Thiessen: “But I regret the influx of young men, and many young families attracted by available jobs in shipyards and sawmills, etc. It is not beneficial for our people… may the hour soon come when none of our people can be found in Vancouver, or any other large city…” (Mennonites in Canada, p.167)

Ens echoes the challenges of urbanization and transition to the English language in the 1950 – 1971 era. Moving to the city meant the loss of a sense of community. Ministry to new city residents was not easy.

In the same era, the authority of the bishop (Aeltester) was phased out (1972) and more power given to local congregations. The Aeltester’s role was somewhat replaced by conference ministers, though often without the authority of the former days. The constant struggle between congregational autonomy and accountability continues.

The salaried pastor became the norm with the congregation deciding when a pastor should come and go. Calling pastors from outside of the congregation is more like considering job applicants than a person responding to a call from God to a lifetime vocation, observes Ens.

The 1970’s and 80’s brought house church models, new ethnic churches, and the emergence of women in ministry. Kaethe Hooge and another woman ‘crashed’ the 1954 all male conference in Saskatchewan and were recognized by the body. By 1988, 20 women were serving CMC congregations as pastors.

In 1995, Mennonite Church of Eastern Canada (MCEC) joined, adding a Swiss Mennonite focus to CMC. Ens has provided well-researched and rich background of the Conference of Mennonites in Canada. He helps us look at the past and hopefully learn for the future. Perhaps the greatest tribute to CMC comes from Robert Kreider in 1999: “After the war (WWII), from Canada flowed into the [General] Conference the greatest stream of pastoral, missionary and institutional leadership in its history.”