Book Reviews A r n o l d D y c k , Collected W o r k s / Werke, Volume IV. Edited b y G e o r g e K. E p p a n d Elisabeth Peters (Winnipeg: M a n i t o b a M e n n o n i t e Historical Society, 1990). i x + 504 pp. $25.00 This is the final volume in the edition of Arnold Dyck's Collected W o r k s edited by Victor G. Doerksen, George I(. Epp, Harry Loewen, Elisabeth Peters, and A1 Reimer since 1986. It consists of three main sections, including various editorial introductions and annotations, as well as an appendix. Part I (pp. 3-291) offers Dyck's only known poem, eight pieces of short fiction, and two previously unpublished literary items: the fantasy Peter Spatz and the polyglot drama Daut Jeburtsdach, which has never been staged. P a r t I I (pp. 295-330) features a portfolio of illustrations by and about Dyclc, m o s t of them drawings and paintings by him. Part I11 (pp. 333-471) presents eight essays and a selection of 48 letters by Dyck, most of them in the f o r m of excerpts. The Appendix (pp. 475-504) comprises a synopsis of the four- volume edition, the essay Mein Vatet; ein Wanderer zwisclze~z zwei Welten by Dyck's eldest daughter Hedwig Knoop, and three poems by Fritz S e n n in memory of Arnold Dyck. Because this is such a richly diverse volume, any reviewer wanting t o avoid a mehanical enumeration must be selective. A thematic approach t o these texts would seem to be particularly justified since Arnold Dyck dedicated most of his life to writing, primarily for a Mennonite audience, a b o u t Mennonite issues. Most of the literary texts in this volume first appeared in the Mennoni- tische Volkswarte (later Meniionitische Warte) edited by Dyck 1935-38, and the Warte-Jahrbuch (1943-44). Writing under his own name as well a s the pseudonyms Fritz Walden, Hans Ennen, and Onkel Peter, Dyck applied the proven concept of prodesse et delecfare in a variety of narrative techniques, moods, and settings. While the delectare is most immediate in his Low German writings, the prodesse is probably more pronounced in his High German prose. To be sure, narrative fiction lilce Das Kalb urzd die PerZen (pp. 25-3 I), Kanzpfe itz Sarzssot~ci (pp. 59-68), and Die kleineiz Dirzge des Leberzs (pp. 75-86) is as entertaining as any Dyck authored in Low German. These stories have their setting in rural Southern Manitoba and reflect the less than jocose daily life of the Mennonites that had come here, like Dyclc, after emigrating from Russia in the 1920s. For Dyck, however, humour is never far removed from seriousness, as exemplified in Die lzeue Weltnzacht (pp. 33-47) and Unter lcarzadischen Busclzrnannern (pp. 87-124). In the former, a Forstei veteran, after eating Schmorkur7zst for supper, has a dream vision of a J o u r r ~ a / of hfel717~1Ji~e Studies I'Ol. 9, 1991 Book Re\~iruls 137 modern Mennonite state as an economic power to he reckoned with. Underlying this is the serious concept of a Mennostaat as contemplated by Jakob Hildebrandt (p. 23, fn. 2) and Dyck himself (cf. JMS, vol. 6, [I9881 128-129). In the latter story, the views voiced by the Kommerzienrat (Canadian Mennonites' neglect of their German heritage; skepticism about the Canadian press and Canadian politics; advocacy of what would nowadays be called M~~lticulturalism) are undoubtedly Dyck's own. As the editors correctly observe (p. 334), he was a Volkserzielzer second only t o Jakob R. Janzen, and it was the Vollcswarte's avowed purpose to counteract Mennonite complacency (p. 335). With essays like Manitobaer Schulwoclze (pp. 359-362) and Ztn Erziehungsfiage (pp. 385-389), Dyck urged Manitoba Mennonites to overcome their bias against education as a necessary evil, t o participate actively in shaping the schools towards their own goals, and even to establish a Mennonite college for training qualified teachers. In order t o live up to their talents and creative potential, Mennonites must also rid themselves of their "national vice" of looking at the world too seriously, advises Dyck in Meirz Freutzdvalz der Diinen (pp. 49-59). For all great art, we are told, grows out of and, in turn, inspires enthusiasm. Sustained sobriety (Niiclztertzlzeit) stifles and kills the imagination. Crucial to the pedagogical function underlying all of Dyck's works is his concept of a distinct Mennonite identity, which for him is based on pride in collective achievements as well as the German ethnic and cultural heritage. His poem Keine Heinzat (pp. 14-18), first published 1938 in Die Warte, is a lyric formulation of this premise. It shows the displacement of the Russian father figure by the German mother image as well as the shift from belief t o knowledge. Although the poem alludes to the Bible and integrates a prayer, it expresses essentially an enlightened and secularized notion of Mennonitism. No Mennonite author before Dyck would have written lines like Ein kostlich Pfand, jedoch wir heute mit uns nehmen, nachdem die wahre Heimat wir geschaut. Ganz tief im Herzen liegt es still verborgen. Das ist der grossen Sehnsucht Schmerz, das ist das heil'ge Heimatweh. ( p . 18) with reference to a specific worldly country. Such insights did not come gratuitously, as the odyssey of Dyck's own "official" nationalities illustrates (pp. 351-353). A corollary of Dyck's definition of Mennonitism was that he considered Russia and Canada the old and new Stieji'7einlar (p. 349), and that Mennonites would have to become conscious of their "profane" history (pp. 430, 436), previously overshadowed by the pre-eminence of church affairs. It is obvious that Dyck had to assign the utmost importance to the role of German as the language common to all Mennonites. Among Canadian Mennonites, however, the use of Low and High German declined sharply and irreversably soon after World War 11. Dyck's story Der Weilz~zaclztszug (pp. 363-369), published in 1946, still expressed the modest hope that the German books written by the Mennonite authors of his own generation would find 138 Jo~rrnal of Menrzorzite Studfes more buyers. In Mein Weihnachtsn~anr (pp. 371-383), published two years later, he resigned himself to the conclusion that it was easier to sell snake oil than those books. Indeed, the bulk of the sixteen books published by the Echo-Verlag (funded 1944 mainly as a result of Dyck's own efforts, and guided by h i m until 1970) remained unsold. A sense of disappointment pervades almost all that Dyck wrote in his remaining years The fable-like fantasy Peter Spatz (p. 148-217), previously unpublished, shows the writer withdrawing t o the periphery of a shallow hedonistic society. And the short story Nicht seine Schuld (pp. 127-143), contrary to its ironic title, implies that the loss of a linguistic and cultural heritage is tantamount to murdering one's ancestors. Dyck's growing sense of isolation and, at times, personal failure also marks the selection of letters and Hedi Knoop's biographical essay. Both provide information pertaining mostly to Dyck's life after World W a r 11, a period on which Dyck's autobiographical sketch A ~ t s ~?zeinenz Lebetz o f 1966 (published in volume one) is almost silent. Most striking in the letters is the fact that almost all of Dyck's friends and correspondents remained on a formal reserved Sie basis. From its outset in 1986, the now completed edition of Dyck's works was intended to be selective. Contrary to the announcement in the 1984 subscription brochure, however, volume four has omitted Meine Detltsch- latzcijhhrt as a "rather dated Reiseplauderei" (p. 30). Also lacking is Dyck's unpublished novel Das Steppefzdorf in? Biirgerkrieg, for which the manu- script was not available to the editors. Perhaps both of these works would warrant one or two additional volumes, which might also offer an alphabeti- cal index and a badly needed chronology of Dyck's works (the one-page survey on p. 477 is only quantitative and applies merely to his contributions t o Mennonite periodicals and more information about (or from) the diaries mentioned by Dyck's daughter (p. 492). Even a list of errata might be indicated in light of the following findings. Like the previous volumes, the fourth one includes informative, lucid and, for, the most part, cogent introductions to the various sections and many specific works. By i t s very nature, however, editorial work also requires a vast amount of tedious and pedantic detail which a conscientious reviewer cannot simply ignore. T o be brief: 1. The German texts in volume four contain a number of minor misspellings as well as faulty divisions of German words and omissions of commas. According to the editorial practice defined in volume one (p. 515), these errors should have been rectified or avoided. Sample errors are for vor for vorz (p. 14, 1. 2 from below); B. D. I/: for B. D.M. (p. 47); Sorzntagsstatt for Sofz~ztagsstaai (p. 91), and Statt for Staat (p. 364); Laiten for Lappen (p. 206). Unfortunately the editorial Vorwort (p. vii) is also marred by a number of errors, most conspicuous being a grammatical one in t h e very first sentence - in a statement (wisely omitted in the English Foreword) that is in itself misleading. 2. The editors' endnotes are of inconsistent quality and quantity. Dyck himself knew his readership and annotated his writings sparingly. The question his editors had to aslz themselves a generation later is: "Who a r e our readers?" The answer would have to be: Those with a reading knowledge of both English (for the introductions and notes) and German (the texts). Why then are some words rendered in translations (e.g., pp. 4, 5, 336-337) and others not (e.g., pp. 296, 338 ff.)? At least nine of the t e n items from Das Kalb za7d die Perlelz are glossed superfluously (p. 32). I t would have been more helpful, for example, to find explanations of t h e literal meaning of the name Sa~wsouci and the allusions to Goethe (pp. 78, 83, 385) or Cervantes (p. 81) which, otherwise, even "educated" readers of our time may not understand. 3. The editorial introduction to Kei~ze Heimat incorporates verbatim what Victor Doerksen previously published about this poem ( J M S , vol. 6, [1988], 134-135). Should one therefore surmise that some of the other editorial commentaries in volume four have been written by someone other than the two editors named? Why not give credit where credit is due? The above-mentioned three matters should be understood as legitimate criticisms that are not meant to invalidate the many merits of the volume under discussion. But, to use a phrase of Dyck's, die lileine17 Diizge des Lebens apply to the making of books as well. Gerhard K. Friesen Wilfrid Laurier University Tlze Me~zizorzite Eizcyclopedia. A Co17zprehe1zsive Reference W o r k o n t h e Analzaptist-Meizizoizite Movenzerzt, Volume V, A-Z. E d i t e d b y C o r n e l i u s J. Dyck a n d D e n n i s M a r t i n ( S c o t t d a l e , P e n n s y l v a n i a / W a t e r l o o , O n t a r i o : H e r a l d P r e s s , 1990), pp. 961. $100. ( C a n . ) The appearance of the original four-volume Meiznonite Eizcyclopedia (1955-1959) was a remarkable feat in its time, made possible no doubt in part by the pioneering work of the European Mennonites and their Merznoni- fisches Lexikon (1913-1967). In the decades since its publcation there has been much activity and change in the "Mennonite world." Among other things, the very self-understanding of that world, the powerful and influential "Anabaptist Vision" put forward by the E?7cyclopedia's editor, Harold Bender, has undergone serious revision. I n addition, some of the traditional Mennonite energy has gone into new areas of creativity and research, especially the social sciences, and brought to bear the questions of those disciplines o n the nature of the movement. It is therefore not only a changed Mennonite phenomenon which is presented here; new methodologies are now being seriously applied and are providing new forms of information. Also, the "world" under consideration has both shrunk and grown; Menno- nites in many parts of the world must be taken into account in a world that is coming closer to all of us as time goes on. These and many other concerns were involved in the discussions leading up to the production of t h e new, supplementary volume. At the time the decision was made to publish a supplement arguments were advanced for a revision of the whole Encyclopedia, an approach which was ultimately dismissed as unrealistic, especially from a financial point of view. It is clear that such a project would have been much more long-term and only time perhaps will permit a judgement on the decision taken. That having been said, the editors, authors and all concerned with the production o f this volume have earned the gratitude of many for their labors; they have created both an extemely useful and endlessly fascinating volume, one which should surely be present in the home as well as in libraries and institutions of learning, both Mennonite and otherwise. It is in the nature of such a volume that it contains everything from "Abortion" to "John Roe1 Zook." By submitting to the discipline o f the alphabet many potential problems of organisation have been precluded. Within this pragmatic arrangement the various agenda items find their place: it was of course necessary to update many of the substantial articles of the original Erzcj~clopedia, as for example the article "Historiography," which its author, John Oyer, has of necessity supplied with an immense bibliography. Oyer lists thirteen areas of revision as well as nine newer themes characteriz- ing recent research. Due in part to its derivation from the Lexikon, Bender's Eizc~~clopedia had a narrower range of method, leaning to traditional historical investigation. Both social history and the social science disciplines have entered into Anabaptist-Mennonite studies to such a degree in t h e past several decades that it is not surprisng to see a great many articles i n this volume reporting the results of sociological research. The work of Kauffmanl Harder and Leo Driedger on socialization and urbanization informs u s on current attitudes and trends. It is more difficult to describe the welcome inclusion of many new articles on the Mennonte presence in many places in the world little known to us. This kind of information is increasingly vital as world developments force us to make (or be complicit in) decisions which impact diverse parts of the globe. In an introductory "Reader's Guide" the editors rightly point out that some articles of a rather provisional nature were included because little or no research had been done in those areas, a good decision which may lead to useful future work. In a volume containing some 1,300 items the articles, by some 600 h a n d s and on such a plethora of topics, will quite naturally be of varied range and quality. This is not the place to attempt any individual critiques of particular articles. It is apparent that a great deal of careful work has gone into these individual essays, some of them masterpieces of economy, and that we must accept that in the main the reader is left with the expertls or with the person most knowledgeable, and one cannot really ask for more. This volume does not boast illustrations, apart from some typically ascetic Mennonite maps and the tables which are the sine qua I I O I ? of ~ o o k Re11ien.s 141 sociology: there are plenty of Mennonite "coffee table books" by now. crammed - sometimes tastefully arranged - with Mennonite photographs and so this is a reasonable economy. Also, the new Me1717017ite Historical Atlas of William Schroeder and Helmut Huebert is a useful supplement. But the editors did add something distinctive t o this volume - the " H u m a n Interest Features" (listed o n p. xiv). This novel addition is perhaps of less relevance in a scholarly review of the Eizc~~clopeclia, but its inclusion demonstrates a n effort t o place this work into a more general setting. Anecdotes like "Menno's White Lie" put the reader in touch with traditional subtexts which undergird the official history. Simlarly, the new articles o n Mennonite literature, music and art recognize the increasingly important role played by the arts in the self-understanding sought by many if not all Mennonites. Many serious issues are dealt with in the substantial articles on faith a n d life a m o n g the Mennonites. It would be wrong to consider these as definitive statements. Encyclopedias in o u r period are at best reports f r o m ar! ongoing database, attempts t o inform a b o u t the current state of affairs. Judged on this basis, the Merzrzoizite Eizcj~clopeclia Vis a splendid success. It should stand o n many a domestic and institutional booltshelf, but it should not be allowed t o collect dust. Victor G. Doerksen University of M a n i t o b a William Schroeder and Helmut T. Huebert, Mer7rzonite Histori- cal Atlas (Winnipeg, 1990). Maps and commentary, 133 pp. F o r some time the need f o r a n atlas of Mennonite sites has been apparent. Decades of publishing have resulted in a n impressive number of historical and other books o n the Mennonite tradition, usually accompanied by t h barest and most austere maps. T h e degree t o which those maps have been accurate is a matter for conjecture. In the atlas before us we have the result of a personal hobby which is offered - in a n attractive format - as a contribution t o filling the obvious gap. Given this circumstance it is n o t surprising t o find that it does n o t measure u p t o the exacting standards of the professional geographer and it remains to ask a b o u t the degree t o which it supplies the perceived need. T h a t need is presumably more modest: the reader of the histories of P.M. Friesen o r J a m e s Urry and the tourist "mennoniting" his/her way across historical terrain, these are presumably the target audience. If it is true t h a t the devil is in the detail, then such a devil is particularly diabolical in a n atlas, where the detail is, in a sense, everything. Those w h o have been involved with Mennonite historical projects Itnow how difficult it is to find consensus o n orthography and agreement on which names t o use - Chortitza o r Khortitsa? (Here: Chortiza), and so on. Unfortunately, a n u m b e r 142 Jo~rrrzal oj'Menrzorzire Studies of errors quite apart from such considerations have a!so been committed: Gronigen f o r Groningen, Hainaut for Hainault, Summerfeld for Sommerfeld, Warkentine f o r Warkentin, Blumengart for Blumenort, Prityat for Pripyat, etc. A professional geographer has also pointed out that feature symbols have not been used consistently and that represented features (Kurgany - burial mounds) have not been identified. Another problem mentioned was t h a t the attribution of sources for maps is not complete. For a non-specialist it is not apparent which basic maps are in the public domain. Clearly t h e r e is attribution of some of the maps, especially those outside the a r e a of Schroeder's primary interest. At the same time it must be recognized that these maps (or cartograms or charts) d o not claim to be more than they are, graphic illustrations of where certain places are (or were) to be found, and n o more. Perhaps the atlas would have had a more complete raison d'etre if it had been limited t o the "Russian Mennonite experience," since this is where William Schroeder's own primary interest and much of his effort lies. I n moving t o encompass the whole world, s o t o speak, the authors may have been too ambitious. Certainly there are some better maps of other parts o f t h e Mennonite world. But these have been scatterd in places almost as r e m o t e as the geographic sites themselves, and so we have reason t o be thankful f o r this collection into one manageable volume. It has been a labor of love f o r the amateur mapmaker William Schroeder, and in the same spirit the c o m m e n t a - ries by Helmut Huebert, often containing anecdotal narrative, can serve the reader well. A list of sources, glossary, table of weights and measures a n d a n index complete the volume. Victor G. Doerksen University of Maniitoba James Juhnke. Vision, Doctrine, War: Meizrzonite Identity and Orgarzizatiorz irz Arnericn, 1890 -1 930. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1989. pp. 393. $24.95. Here, in Volume Three of the Merztzo17ite Experience it7 Anzerica series, is a n outstanding expos6 of the dynamic interaction of Mennonites w i t h the wider American society. It is rich in its description of the diversity o f the Mennonites in the United States, but especially of the Mennonites' diverse strategies f o r cultural continuity. J u h n k e reflects the maturity of A m e r i c a n ethnic historiography which no longer engages in the simplistic "change o r continuity" debate. He seeks evidence neither of assimilation nor of static continuity. H e does describe the Abgejbllen, the Leiseys of the Cleveland breweries and the Gordon Friesens of Flanzethro~~ers fame. And h e does describe the O ~ C J I I L I I I ~ among Old Order circles, the plain coats, the Book Revie~ps I 4 3 bonnets, and the meetinghouses. But Juhnke is more interested in how Mennonites changed to survive culturally. This interaction between Mennonites and American society is central in the book. Unlike some historians who have charted the dose of American Mennonitism by the growing acceptance of Protestant church methods and ideology, Juhnke argues that "the denominational pattern in America allowed Mennonites to gain legitimacy and yet [to] maintain a distinctive and separate identity." (55) Hence, "Mennonites borrowed the means of resist- ance from American culture itself." ( I 19) Sometimes the changes were overt: Daniel Kaufmann's Marzual of Bible Doctrirze, for example, relegated "Mennonite beliefs ... to a third-level status ... [and framed] the real gospel ... in terms borrowed from American evangelicalism." (1 16) At other times the adaptations were more subtle, a conservative community "adapting at its own pace, for its own purposes" (69), or humanist scholars, who, while "peer[s] in the Halls of Athens ... did not forsake Jerusalem." (302) The second theme in the book is American Mennonite heterogeneity. According to Juhnke "the American Mennonite mosaic had a bipolar shape"; the 40,000 Mennonites of 1890 were divided into Swiss/American and Dutch/Russian components. Juhnke boldly asserts that the former were characterized by their soft spoken nature, "humility, nonresistance, and separation"; the latter reflected a "Low German folk culture," "an apprecia- tion of material culture" and "more dimensions of worldly involvement." (37) This polarization also followed geographic divisions of east and west - Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana on one hand, and Kansas and California o n the other. The first region was more Anglicized, but more conservative theologically and in lifestyle; the second was more congregational and liberal, being freed in the "crucibles of creative unsettlement." Finally, the Menno- nites were also divided by denomination: the large "old" Mennonite church, moderately conservative, episcopal in church polity, was tied to Pennsylvania by kin and historical identity; the conservative Old Order church, was especially relevant because it "lent definition" to the other Mennonites; the Mennonite Brethren, exclusively Dutch/ Russian, exhibited the strongest elements of pietism; and the largest body, the General Conference, an amalgam of the Dutch and Swiss streams, was characterized by "progressive and ecumenical intentions." This bipolarity, of well rooted Swiss/ American Mennonites and more accommodating Dutch/Russians, is woven throughout the book. It is the framework on which Juhnke proceeds to describe different attitudes t o higher education, missions, politics, and military service. Indeed, the book covers a wide spectrum of subjects. The title Vision, Doctrine, War, introduces the main features of the American Mennonite debate. The vision of what it meant to be Mennonite in modern America is carefully outlined for each of the major church groups. Separate chapters account for the different visions of the "Old Order Way of Yieldedness," the Dutch Russian "Congregation[al] Christendom," and the "Mennonitism" of the "old" Mennonites. And there is 144 Jo~rrllal of Merrrzonite Studies a chapter on how World War I "caught Mennonites in a permanent crisis of identity," as their easy identification with the American nation came t o an end. But the book covers other subjects as well. There are chapters on Mennonite demography - an account of social and economic mobility, an analysis of the significance of private hospitals and colleges, a description of the fundamentalist/liberal debate, a portrait of the new breed of leaders that sometimes included women, and an expose of the growing missionary movement. Juhnke's appreciation for the complex, the symbolic and the ironic has provided a history with few cardboard figures and caricatures. In fact each chapter begins with a real life situation, a snapshot of life in microcosm, and then proceeds to an empathetic portrayal of the main subjects in the story. His sense of the ironic allows Juhnke to provide a balanced account o f the incredible diversity of the Mennonite experience. Dutch/ Russian Menno- nites developed a strong link with German culture and organizations such as the German Teachers' Associations, and in the process developed an unprecedented sense of ethnicity. SwisslAmerican Mennonites accepted Protestant church methods to reestablish Mennonitism. Mennonite colleges were "crucibles of contradictions," standing as they did between German Mennonite culture and Anglo American society, and helping Mennonites to make the shift from farm to town. The book is also kind to both losers and winners. C. H. Wedel's "opus" that spoke of Genzei~zdekirche and "Christen- tunz" failed to provide Mennonites with a vision. Harold Bender and Orie Miller - two Elkart men and "eldest sons" - succeeded in disarming their conservative opponents and articulating a new Anabaptist vision that was strong on concern and love for others. Juhnke reveals his strongest empathy in the description of the folkways of the most conservative and least literate of the Mennonite churches, t h e Old Order. His approach is highly sympathetic. The Old Order use of the lot i s not seen as undemocratic but as a protection "against the consolidation of power"; separation by age and sex is not discriminatory but conducive t o the creation of "sacred space" and "communal activity"; opposition to music results in "rituals of active silence"; lack of formal theological training leads to a view of the Bible as "a historic drama of redemption more than a body of specific laws." Juhnke might be criticized for romanticizing this group. Indeed, he has no similar portrayal of the conservative ideology of other groups like the Dutch/Russian Krimmer Mennonites and the United Mennonite Brethren (BMB); these groups are summarily dismissed as possessing a "tendency toward exclusion and division" and finding in "form of baptism ... a bone of contention." (100) Finally, Juhnke alludes to subjects often ignored by standard Mennonite histories: the ''language of the farm," the role of women, the migrations and the re-migrations, and the Abgefalleiz, are not often written about. O n e can only wish that Juhnke would have elaborated on this informal story. Unfortunately the Mennonite farm household, the foundation of Mennonite society, is mentioned only in passing. While Juhnke notes the value of hard farm work, he does not outline the changing shape of the household unit, its gender roles, its lines of authority, its life cycle, its social dynamics and its strategies for generational succession. And while the first woman preacher and the first female licensed doctor are listed, the lives of farm women are not; the household matriarchs, the brides who owned land and influenced settlement patterns, the female producers of farm products, the mothers who socialized their children in the Mennonite culture, remain a people without a history. A final observation reflects my Canadian perspective. Is it possible that the Meiznonite Experieizce in Anzerica series, like the Merzi7orzites ii7 Canada series, has been too arbitrary in its separation of the American and Canadian communities? Does Juhnke, for example, reflect a certain American paroch- ialism when he speaks of the migrations from the east to west within the United States, but fails to mention the significant migration of Mennonites from the Midwest to the Canadian Prairie? And what does he mean when he refers to changes among Mennonites as "Americanization'? Does this mean anglicization, urbanization, the development of a gain mentality, an increa- singly nationalistic or patriotic spirit, a giving in to the inexorable force of modernization? To a Canadian, it is not clear. Despite these minor criticisms, which may be dismissed as alluding t o a book Juhnke chose not to write, this work is an important and well-crafted contribution to Mennonite historiography. Here is a careful analysis, filled with both objective data and empathy, of real people charting a course in an integrative society to ensure the survival of what they considered the "essence of life." Juhnke's sense of how Mennonites chose various elements of mainstream society to ensure their own continuity will be the legacy of this book. Royden Loewen, St. Paul's College University of Manitoba Abraham Friesen, Tlzornas M~lentzel; a Destroyer of tlze Godless. The Making of a Sixfeeiztlz-Century Religiotrs Revolutionary (Berkeley/ Los Angeles/ Oxford: Univ. of California Press, 1990). Hardcover, 332 pp., $39.95 (U.S.). This important new study of one of the most controversial figures of the sixteenth century will no doubt cause a stir among students of the Reformation. Conservative Lutheran scholars will be delighted to find confirmed what they have believed all along, namely that Thomas Muentzer had never really been a Lutheran, even though he was initially drawn to and influenced by the German reformer. Left-wing historians, on the other hand, will be disappointed to read that Muentzer was not the great "proto- communist," as was thought by some earlier Marxist writers, nor the fearless and charismatic leader of the oppressed common people. What emerges instead in this study is a radical reformer who was steeped in medieval mystical and patristic thinking and who sought to restore the Apostolic Church in his time, but who in the end became a defeated, weak, forsaken, and evcn disillusioned man. In the first few chapters the author traces meticulously Muentzer's I-cading of J o h n Tauler - or what he thought to be Tauler - particularly this mystic's work on the Holy Spirit, Eusebius' history of the church, a n d S t . Augustine's interpretation of the Parable of the Tares. Through the study of these thinkers Muentzer came t o believe that the church had "fallen" s o o n after the original Apostles had left the scene. The church thereafter degenerated, according to Muentzer, because evil leaders, the clergy, had c a ~ ~ s e d the Holy Spirit to depart from it. However, while Augustine believed that the Tares should be left within the church until the time of harvest a t the end when God himself would weed them out, Muentzer believed t h a t the end-time had actually arrived and that the godly, that is those who possessed the Holy Spirit, should become God's instruments of the destruction of the godless. This belief led Muentzer to his involvement with the rebellious peasants in 1525 and their eventual defeat at the hands of the princes. Although the sources concerning Muentzer's life and movements are scant, the intellectual development of this radical reformer becomes fairly clear and convincing in this study. Since this is an intellectual history, the author is not all that interested in the documentary gaps in Muentzer's biography. Friesen deals with Muentzer's ideas and their origin, and with how he applied them to the religious and social issues of his day. Thus the author's educated guesses, conjectures and deductions contribute t o believable probabilities. Here is an example of Friesen's argumentation: "Once again, it probably was Augustine who provided him [Muentzer] with the context f o r his thinking about the time of harvest. For in his letters and sermons Augustlne spoke of two harvests .... If Muentzer took these two harvests as parallel ... and i f h e accepted Luther's argument that the good seed h a d not been sown for at least four hundred years ... then we have the context within which Muentzer's thinking o n this subject 177ust have taken place" (p. 66. Italics mine). With regard to influences upon Muentzer's thought, Friesen goes t o considerable length demonstrating that this radical developed his ideas independently of Luther and of the Zwickau Prophets. While Muentzer at first hailed Luther as a leader who like J o h n Hus sought to reform the church, he, Muentzer, did not consider himself a "Martinian" but a reformer i n his own right. And with regard to the Zwickau Prophets, Muentzer, according t o Friesen, "had his own program well in hand upon arrival in Zwicltau a n d lost no time in setting about trying to implement it" (p.77). Eventually Muentzer Book Revieli~s I47 came to see the Prophets as "false brothers" and Luther became f o r him a pharisee in alliance with the princes who resisted the Holy Spirit. The irony of Muentzer's calling Luther a servant of the princes is t h a t he himself sought to enlist the "pious Christian" princes in his cause. While Friesen does not point out this irony in so many words, his analysis of Muentzer's Fuersterzprecligt makes it quite clear that Muentzer's appeal t o the "godly rulers" was more direct and pressing than that of Luther. T h e main difference between the two reformers lay in the fact that Muentzer failed to get his much desired princely support, whereas Luther succeeded. At this point Friesen might have shown briefly, at least in a footnote, how different Muentzer and Luther were f r o m some of the Anabaptists, notably the Swiss, who o n principle separated church and state. It might be added that the author merely mentions the Grebe1 letter (September 5, 1524) t o Muentzer without pointing out its significance. Throughout the book Friesen remains fairly objective with regard t o Muentzer's intellectual and spiritual development, even sympathetic toward his subject. However, toward the end the author becomes most critical, even sarcastic, in his evaluation of Muentzer the man. Commenting on Muent- zer's flight from Allstedt, Friesen writes: "Muentzer once more chose escape as a better part of valor. His attack o n Luther's conduct at the Diet of Worms was beginning t o sound more hollow" (p. 216). And in the last chapter t h e a u t h o r asks: "Why was not Muentzer found among the vast majority who were killed?" His answer: "Since he was one of the few to escape the field of battle, he must have been in the forefront of those who fled" (p. 262). Muentzer's human frailty and weakness in the face of overwhelming odds was of short duration. While he was critical of the peasants because of their inability or unwillingness t o rise t o the demands of the gospe1,he continued to believe in the rightness of their cause and in the truth of his own vision. He never recanted his beliefs and views concerning the nature of the church and his mission. As Friesen rightly concludes: "There is no evidence to suggest that he changed his mind" (p. 268). I n a preemptive response t o some possible critics of his book, Friesen states that "one cannot d o justice t o Muentzer's involvement in the events leading up to the Peasants' War by ignoring the political context a n d emphasizing only the intellectual influences" (p. 270). This study has purposely side-stepped the political, economic and social issues surround- ing Muentzer and his intellectual-theological development. Thus Friesen's illuminating book must be read alongside other recent Muentzer studies t o fill in the puzzling gaps in the life and thought of this illusive radical reformer. Harry Loewen The University of Winnipeg G a r y K . Waite, David Joris arzd Dutch Ar~abaptisnz 1524-1543 (Waterloo, O n t . : Wilfrid L a u r i e r University Press, 1990). 235 pp., Hardcover, $27.95 (Can.), $32.50 (Us). Mennonite scholarship has not been kind to David Joris and his followers. In his "Brief Biography of Menno Simons," included in The Corliplete Writirlgs of'Meil17o Sitl1orzs c. 1496-1561, Harold S. Bender follows Menno's assessment of Joris and the "Davidians." As is well known, Menno condemned Joris in his Foundation Book and other writings, calling h i m and his disciples a "corrupt sect." J. C. Wenger, the editor of the Conlplete Writii7gs. notes that Joris was "unbalanced, fanatical, and unsound." "A study of the Davidians reveals what a corrupt sect they were, and justifies the severity of Menno's judgment" (p. 1019). And Gerhard Hein in the Men11onitiscl7es Lexilcoil and the Mel~nonite Encyclopeclia agrees with Menno that Joris under the pretext of humility and in the name of virtue promoted "devilish defiance ... various vices and shameful deeds" ( A f E I I , 18). Gary K . Waite's more objective study of David Joris and Dutch Anabaptism, originally a doctoral dissertation, reflects a post-Bender approach t o the writing of Anabaptist history, emphasizing the multiple origins and diversity of the Anabaptist movement. Following the work of James Stayer and Werner Packull, Waite demonstrates that Muentzer and the rebellious peasants had a considerable influence upon the southern and northern Anabaptists. The connecting links between the two groups were Muentzer, Hans Hut, and Melchior Hoffman. It was Hoffman, a south-German artisan, who put his stamp upon northern Anabaptism in general and David Joris in particular. The strength of this book lies in its careful analysis of the beginning of reform in the Netherlands and of the social, economic, and religious factors which made this reform possible. As elsewhere in Europe, anti-clericalism lay at the basis of the reform movement in the Netherlands, with town-dwellers especially contributing greatly toward change. Their radicalism included iconoclasm, rejection of the sacraments, and turning away from old-church dogma. The Chambers of Rhetoric which dramatized the pitiful state of the church and society played a significant role in the Dutch reformation. David Joris, like many other reformers in the Netherlands, was at first influenced by Lutheran ideas, but eventually turned to Melchiorite teaching and radical Anabaptism. Especially the artisans, seeking to better their economic and social conditions, found the apocalypticism of Melchior Hoffman both attractive and useful. By means of tables Waite shows that the Anabaptists of Amsterdam and The Hague came primarily from the working class, that their leaders generally lacked a formal education, and that women played an important role among them. "A similar state of affairs with respect to leadership existed in Friesland, where only one of 85 Anabaptists named in the sources could be considered formally educated" (pp. 29-30). Book Reviell1s 149 The author is careful t o point out that while Joris and his followers sympathized with the more militant Anabaptists of Muenster and the Netherlands, they rejected their violence, polygamy, and other excesses. J o r i s himself upheld and practised monogamy, but in the interest of winning the defeated Muensterites and other diverse factions among the northern Anabaptists, he de-emphasized the importance of strict monogamy. More- over, his view of sexuality was influenced by his spiritualism, stressing t h e restoration of a pre-Adamic purity which enabled the believer to remain sinless in thought if not in deed. It was n o doubt this mystical view of sexual ethics which caused the biblicist Menno Simons to reject the Davidians. It appears from this study that until about 1538 there existed a power struggle between Joris and other Anabaptist leaders like Menno Simons. Joris' appearance at the Bocholt and Strasbourg conferences, for example, were attempts on his part to gain a greater leadership role among t h e Anabaptists. Waite suggests that Joris' failure in this regard, particularly in Strasbourg, was due t o the Anabaptists' suspicion of charismatic leadership of the northern type. This may be true in part. It seems to me that spiritualists with their disregard for structures, institutions, and externals, were not successful church builders and organizers. It was thus left to biblicist leaders like Menno Simons t o organize the scattered Anabaptists into congregations and chart their theological and ethical course. Waite's study is concise and focused.The author resists the temptation to dwell on issues and details, however interesting, which have been dealt with elsewhere. F o r example, Joris' relationship t o Anna Jans is just briefly told, so as to explain the man's visions and spiritualistic tendencies. It is unfortunate, however, that other relationships and issues have not been dealt with sufficiently in this book. The relationship between Joris and Menno Simons could have been explored more fully, for this is, after all, a study of Dutch Anabaptism and its leadership. Also, Joris' spiritualism would have become clearer had the author probed in greater depth the relationships between Joris and contemporaries such as Sebastian Franck, Caspar von Schwenckfeld, and Castellio. The most serious omission in this study, it seems to me, is an explanation of Joris' work as a glass painter and the significance of his Wonder Book. Waite's study includes excellent illustrations from Joris' work and art, but little information and analysis are provided. What the reader would like to know is how Joris'glass painting and symbolic art reflect the mysticism and spiritualism of this man. This well-written book includes six appendices, an extensive bibliogra- phy, and a useful index of names and subjects. The book is relatively free of misprints. Wilfrid Laurier University Press is to be commended for produ- cing another fine publication. And the price is to be noted - less in C a n a d a than in the United States! Harry Loewen The University of Winnipeg 150 J o r ~ r r ~ a l of Merlrlot~ire Studies W. Eruce Lincoln, Red Victory: A History of the Rtcssion Civi! Wnr (New York: S i m o n & Schuster, 1989), 637 pp. Lars T. Lih, Bread and Atlthority in Russia, 1914-1921 (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990), xvii, 303 pp. The Russian Revolution of 1917 and subsequent Civil War and famine have been incorporated into the martyrdom mythology so important to Mennonite self-identity. Indeed, for Mennonites from the Dutch/ Prussianl Russian wing, these events, along with the tyrannies of the Stalin years and the post World War I1 diaspora, are central to such self-understanding. A s is so often the case when confessional history is told, the events are seen purely from an internal perspective. Outsiders are considered in a one-dimensional manner, their story being of interest only to the extent that it impinges directly on the Mennonite community. Thus, for example, the anarchist leader Makhno appears only in the role of an evil intruder who from time t o time leads his murderous bands on looting expeditions into the peaceful M e a n o - nite communities. Some Mennonite voices have been raised within the community in an effort to tell the story from a less parochial perspective, but they are a minority. These two books are of interest exactly to those who want to see and understand the events of this period from a broader perspective. In Red Victory: A History of' the Russian Civil War, Lincoln tells an incredible story of the unprecedented savagery which was the Russian Civil War. He records atrocities perpetrated by all participants. In the winter of 1919 three railway freight cars marked "fresh meat, destination Petrograd" were discovered to contain the naked bodies of 100 Red Guard soldiers frozen in obscene positions. A White Army detachment in Taganrog captured s o m e factory workers who had expressed Red sympathies. They were tortured and mutilated before being buried alive. Red partisans tied weights to the feet of some White Army officers and drowned them in Novorossiisk harbour where they were discovered swaying to and fro in ranks as if talking to one another. Scenes such as these were commonplace, with the Bolshevik secret police, the notorious Cheka, behind many of the most atrocious acts. By 1921 the combination of atrocities, executions, battles, famine and epidemics had claimed some 20 million lives to be added to the 7 million Russian dead f r o m World War I. The author tries to understand and lay bare the roots of such unspeakable slaughter. Perhaps this is an impossible task, but he does help to clarify some of the issues for us. Although he is evenhanded in handling the evidence and does not spare any faction in his treatment, the reader has t o conclude t h a t the blame for starting the horror ultimately rests with the Bolsheviks. Fearful of mass starvation in Petrograd, Lenin authorized a rural food requisitioning programme. Groups of armed worlcers fanned out over the countryside, authorized to use force as they saw fit to confiscate grain from any peasant suspected of hoarding it, unleashing a reign of terror which engulfed the whole society. Book Re\~ie~r~s 151 Ultimate victory belonged to the Bolsheviks. Lenin had shown himself t o be masterful at marshalling human and material resources to defend t h e revolutian staged in the name of the masses, even while the principles of empowerment of the people were being subverted under the rubric of "democratic centralism." Readers of this journal will perhaps be most interested in the events in t h e Ukraine and the role Makhno played in them. The German occupation of 191 7-1 9 18 had been welcomed a t first. When they experienced f o o d shortages a t home, the Germans initiated a draconian food requisition programme, causing much bitterness. When the German Army left in late 1918 the stage was set for a complex struggle involving Denikin's White Army, Malchno's anarchist bands and the Bolsheviks. Denikin and his a r m y were closely identified with the Germans and resentment over their f o o d procurement programme created an opportunity for Malchno t o ally himself with the Bolsheviks. The havoc this caused behind the White Army lines was of tremendous importance t o the Reds in their ultimate victory. Makhno, a s a true anarchist, did not gain political power from this. He fought all authority. His subsequent aid t o the White Army trapped in the Crimea under Wrangel led t o his exile in Paris. Lenin's use of nationalistic animosities within the country goes a long way toward explaining some of the bitter feelings which are bubbling up in t h e Soviet Union in these days of perestroika and glasnost. Cheka members were recruited f r o m all different nationalities but were invariably sent t o other parts of the country. In the Ukraine, for example, with its long record of anti-Semitism, seven out of ten Cheka agents were Jews. A Latvian by the name of Iakov Peters ( a possible Mennonite connection?), a chief deputy t o Dzerzhinskii, head of the Cheka, led the final assault on the Left Socialist Revolutionaries in Moscow o n July 7, 19 18. To be fair, it was not only Lenin's policy which exacerbated nationalist animosities. I n the Baltic states t h e White Army organized so-called Freikorps units, seen by many as a vanguard of Nazism, who unleashed a veritable reign of terror in Latvia and Estonia. Red Victoly is a well-written book, one which not only provides some much-needed background t o help understand the Mennonite experience in Russia, but also provides a useful perspective for the events in Eastern Europe today. I n Bread alzd A ~ l t h o r i t j , it7 Rtwsia, 1914-1921, Lih examines the period from the disintegration of the Romanov dynasty and its ultimate downfall t o the final consolidation of Bolshevik power with the proclamation of the New Economic Policy (NEP) in March 21, 192 1. He calls this period "the time of troubles" which he defines as "...a period of disruption of society-wide coordinating institutions, accompanied by a breakdown of central political authority." 152 Journal of Mennonite Studies A central feature of this period, one which was both a symptom and intensifier of the institutional breakdown, was the ongoing food-supply crisis. Lih uses the food procurement policies of the various regimes, f r o m the Tsar to Kerensky to the Bolsheviks, as the umbrella mechanism for organizing his analysis. Lih sees two possibilities for the re-establishment of central political authority after a "time of trouble." On the one hand, there is the possibility of agztberrzaforial solzctioiz, where order is imposed from above. This approach, one which is clearly identified with the Tsarist Regime, needs a strong central political base. The other possibility is an eizlistineizf solzction, where the central government's authority rests on the earned confidence of the governed who, so to speak, have been enlisted in the political class. Both the liberal democratic centre and the socialist left advocated this approach, at least a t the beginning of the period. Lenin's hope for an enlistment solution foundered on the rocks of the perceived need for a food procurement policy dictated from the centre. Eih feels that fairness requires us to note that this implied distrust ofthe market as a food allocation mechanism was shared by all shades of the political spectrum, not just the centre and the left. Political differences showed u p as variations in approach to the problem, not in attitude toward reliance o n the market. Enforcement of food procurement regulations became ever more draco- nian as the crisis lengthened and intensified. Peasants with grain surpluses refused to hand them over to collection committees sent out from the cities. Demands for stronger authority to back up the workers led to stiffer resistance. The growth of sackmanism, where itinerant peddlers would buy small quantities of grain at black market prices in surplus areas and carry them in sacks to deficit areas, led to more demands for control. Blockades were set up on the rail lines to intercept these sackmen in their travels, thus creating bottleneclcs in the rail transport network and exacerbating the food crisis. It became increasingly clear that the enlistment solution was not working. Increasingly, it was abandoned in favour cf the gubernatorial solution under the "democratic centralism" rubric. By the time that the New Economic Policy was implemented in 1921 the internal divisions and suspicions were so deeply ingrained that their legacy is still with us. A s Lih puts it, "..the Bolsheviks discovered the New Economic Policy just as Columbus discovered the New World - by hoping it was something else." Bread aizd Authority in Russia, 1914-1921 is worthwhile reading for anyone interested in this period of traumatic change in Russia. It is an excellent companion to Red Victory. Although Lih perhaps is more understanding of the dilemma that faced Lenin and the Bolsheviks in trying to consolidate political authority after their successful revolution, both books arrive at the conclusion that responsibility for the worst features of the Soviet System ultimately rests with them. Book Revieltls 153 Although neither of these two books sheds direct light on the Mennonite experience in Russia, they are of interest either for the background they give for the events which play such a large role in our self-understanding or for the light that they shed on the events of the last few years in the USSR and Eastern Europe. P A . Koop King's College, London, Ontario Peter I? Klassen, Die Deutsclz-Vdlcisclze Zeit in der Kolo~zie Fern- Izeirn, Chaco Paraguay, 1933 -1 945 (Bolanden-Weierhof: Mennoni- tischer Geschichtsverein e.V, 1990), Paperback, pp. 144, $10.00. Peter Klassen has chosen the title "Deutsch-volkische Zeit" for his book, which deals with a period when German nationalism found considerable resonance among the settlers of the Fernheim Colony. These were a remnant of the 25,000 refugees who had escaped Russia in 1930 after revolution, civil war, anarchy and dictatorship, and had settled in the most inhospitable region of Paraguay, the Gran Chaco. Three years earlier Canadian Mennonites had made a courageous start in that region, at great cost in human life. The Canadians had come of their own free will, but for the Fernheim refugees from Russia, who had had their eyes on Canada, the "Green Hell" of the Chaco was the only place left for them to go. Poor and destitute, they felt rejected and betrayed by the world, and many were convinced that the Chaco could not be a home for their agricultural colonies. No sooner had they made their difficult start when the Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay broke out and once more they were threatened by a violent conflict that ultimately claimed 150,000 lives. Miraculously the Mennonite settlements survived this ordeal, but the number of those who were determined to get out had grown substantially. And just at that time, in 1933, the ideas of a new "fatherland" began to reach Fernheim from Germany. Could there be hope for the desperate Chaco settlers in these new ideas? When one of their young men, the gifted teacher Fritz Kliewer, returned home from his studies in Germany, the new German nationalism entered the colony in a serious way. Tensions rose. The ministerial of the three churches almost unanimously opposed the trend, but Kliewer had a strong following among the young people and also among some older members of the community, who saw in the new movement the solution to the problems of the settlement. The situation became even more complicated when at least one of the MCC workers from the USA introduced his American nationalism into this situation, involving the American Embassy and American army officers in the affairs of the Mennonite Colony in the Chaco. This sad and tragic period for the Fernheim settlers has now found its historian in Peter Klassen. There were earlier attempts but they have never 154 Jo~irnol of M e ~ l t ~ o n i t e Studies reached the stage of publication. J.S.Postma3s attempt in the early 1950s to record the events on the basis of the available documentation was a valuable aid for future researchers but, as Postma later commented, he was simply too close to the events and its actors. Gerhard Ratzlaff's thesis (Fresno, 1974) added to an understanding of the events, and the same can be said about H a n s (Juan) Neufeld's boolclet Die Affare Dr. Fritz Kliewer; 1940-1944, " W i e es war" (Asuncion, 1988). However, a more thorough and objective historical account based on critical analysis of the available sources was not available until now. Peter Klassen was an eye witness of the vollcische Zeit in Fernheim; he knew the Mennonite churches and the administrative authorities of that critical period. Although he was young at the time of the events he was a keen observer and thus he brings some valuable assets to his task. Klassen traces the gradual spread of nationalistic propaganda and its effect o n the Fernheim Colony. As well, he throws light on the role played by American and European Mennonite leaders in these "un-Mennonite" activities. Harold Bender, Orie Miller and Benjamin Unruh, who enjoyed high respect i n the international Mennonite community, all attempted to influence events. Unfortunately, letters were slow and what might have been resolved in consultation remained unresolved. No one seems to have understood the dictator Hitler at that time and B.H.UnruhYs well-meaning efforts in connection with the movement Heiin ins Reich can perhaps best be characterized as naive. Of great interest are Peter Klassen's reflections on the way the three Fernheim churches, the Mennonite Brethren, the Alliatzzge~neinde a n d the Kirclzliclze responded to the challenges of the 1930s. There were significant differences of attitude, which in part may be attributed to the individual leaders. Although the author uncovers the painful experiences of this community in considerable detail, he at no point makes himself the judge of history or of its actors. We are grateful to Peter Klassen for this balanced account, as we are to the Fernheim Colony for opening its records t o this research. George K. Epp Menno Simons College The University of Winnipeg William J a n z e n . Limits on Liberty: Tlze Experietzce of Merznoizite, H~ctterite arzcl Douklzobor Co~?717ztazities in Carznda ( T o r o n t o : U n i v e r - sity o f T o r o n t o Press, 1990), P p . 375. Bibliography, index. $39.95 (cloth). This book examines the manner in which the Canadian government has responded to demands for special privileges from ethno-religious minorities. Book Revieirjs 155 Janzen has chosen three agrarian groups for the study, the Mennonites, Hutterites and Doukhobors. He suggests they shared a common "pursuit. .. of living in a more communal manner somewhat separate from the larger society." (Janzen does not indicate why other group settlers such as the Icelanders, Mormons, Jews, English utopians and Ukrainians who also negotiated special settlement arrangements or sought communal-oriented rights were not chosen.) To understand the complex interaction between a modern liberal-democratic government and these religious minorities Janzen has selected four historical issues that pitted government against minority. Three sections of the book describe the Mennonite, Hutterite and Douk- hobor negotiations for special land blocs, their desires for parochial schools, and their demand for total exemption from military service in the two world wars. A fourth section considers the recent demand of Hutterites and Old Order Ontario Mennonites for exemption from universal social programs, particularly the Canada Pension Plan. Janzen's central argument is that Canadian governments have been characterized by a "liberal culture that has emphasized individualism ... majority rule, integration and participation ...." (2). Although it is apolitical culture that has celebrated liberty, it is a liberty with limits. Those limits become clear when minority groups seek more than simple freedom of personal religious belief, but also the right to pursue ways of life demanded by their religion. According to Janzen, there is a conflict between the state's "narrow view of liberty" and minority groups' "broad view of liberty." He suggests that the state is often ambivalent in its approach to minority requests, usually practicing the narrow view but occasionally allowing for the broader view. Janzen thoroughly recounts how the narrow and broad views of liberty interacted in each of the four issues. He notes how the government pursued a "fairly broad liberty" (34) and bent its own Homestead Act to allow for Mennonite villages in the 1870s; he describes the manner in which Doukho- bors received even more accommodating land reserves in the 1890s; and he shows how governments showed new flexibility when Hutterite colonies were allowed to continue despite rising nativism in the 1940s. But each of the cases had its "limit on liberty." Mennonites were not granted land reserves in northern Alberta in the late 1920s; Doukhobor land was reclaimed when they refused Canadian citizenship; Hutterites were forced to compromise with various restrictive provincial land statutes. The same interaction between government generosity and restriction was exhibited in the schools question, conscientious objection to war, and opposition to the welfare state. The dichotomy between narrow and broad liberties, however, was never simplistic. Sometimes, as in the schools question, the "limits on liberty" evolved, being broader for Mennonites in 1873 than during the xenophobic, Anglo-conformity days of World War I. Sometimes those limits differed from place to place; Doukhobors, for example, had a more difficult time in Anglo-dominant, centralized British Columbia than they did on the Prairies. 156 Jourtzal o f Metztzonite Studies Sometimes those limits were challenged by one group but not by another; Hutterites may have demanded communal-land privileges but were quite accommodating in matters of public education (142). Often the "limits to liberty" were not overt; Hutterites, for example, often failed to benefit f r o m the social welfare state simply because it was biased towards individuals who owned land or homes (246). Readers will find two aspects of Janzen's book especially noteworthy. The first is the magnitude of Janzen's research. Despite dealing with three different ethnic groups and covering four issues Janzen makes a t h o r o u g h case for each. In the process Janzen has accomplished a comparative study of ethnic groups in Canada and added to our understanding of an important dimension of Canadian society. For Mennonite scholars, here is a book by a Mennonite about Mennonites without the hagiographical claim for M e n - nonite peculiarity. And because Janzen has thoroughly documented the experience of each group with records from the National Archives of Canada and from an exhaustive survey of relevant secondary sources, this book will also become a tool for further historical research. The s t o r y of Mennonite bloc settlement, for example, has been advanced by showing how the provisions of the 1873 "Privilegium" were kept alive only b y a constant barrage of new orders in council, rulings by the Minister of the Interior, changes to the Dominion Lands Act, and by correspondence between different officials over the years. A second noteworthy feature of the book is Janzen's interpretation. His argument that Canadian political culture is innately "liberal" counters the views of Gad Horowitz, S.M. Lipset, Allan Smith, and others. These writers have argued that Canadian society is not "liberal," but "tory," w i t h a tradition of communal-orientation and a n openness t o group privileges t h a t is deeply rooted in Canada's antipathy to the tenets of the American Revolution. Janzen's careful analysis of the liberal character of C a n a d a is not matched by an analysis of "broad liberties" that contradicted t h a t character. His argument that government overtures t o minorities reflect "elements of sympathy in the culture" (197) and that they are rooted i n a "sentiment rather than a precise principle" (297) begs a more elaborate analysis of the "tory" principles in Canada. Janzen also counters a widely held view that the 1982 Charter of Rights will have an individualizing effect on Canadian society. His references to recent cases in which minority g r o u p rights were protected is impressive, but he does not sufficiently explain his implicit hope that the Charter may "allow certain restrictions o n the freedom of individuals if they are needed for such groups t o continue"(306). Such a ruling would certainly contradict the intentions of the authors o f the Charter. Nor does he address the implications of the charter o n the governments' ability to extend informal group privileges that are not undergirded with the rule of law. Without doubt, Janzen's ideas will stimulate debate on the political nature of Canada. ~ o o k ~ e v i e t t - s 157 Here is a thoroughly researched and well-conceived study that will add to our historical knowledge of certain aspects of Mennonite, Hutterite a n d Doukhobor history, but also t o the debate about the real nature of Canadian society. Royden Loewen St. Paul's College University of Manitoba D e l b e r t P l e t t , e d . , Pioi7eers arzd Pilgrims. The Mennonite Kleine Genzeiizde in Manitoba, Nebraslca and Karzsas, 1874 to 1882 ( S t e i n - b a c h : D.F.P. P u b l i c a t i o n s , 1990). P b . , 6 0 4 pp. $19.95 As Volume 5 in the Mei~izonite Kleine Geineirzde Historical Series, this title brings the productivity of that series to a total of 1775 pages. T h e translation and publication of documents related to the Kleine Gemeinde story, beginning in 18 12, remains a primary goal - though not exclusively t h e content - of this volume, as it was of the others. In something of a pot-pourri collection of materials one should mention the themes of the five parts which make up the book. Part I consists of previously unpublished correspondence and writings from the settlement period (from 1874 on). 11 contains reminiscences and accounts written by pioneers themselves. Their descend- ants have contributed writings which are included in 111. Then follows a series of family history sketches with much genealogical d a t a in Part IV. In the final section (V) there are a number of short biographies of persons, mostly Aeltester, who were involved in some way in the 1882 division. (This schism led many members to join the Church of God in Christ Mennonite Church at that time.) Faced with this enormous amount of detailed d a t a the reviewer will be forgiven for limiting himself to some general observations on what is presented here. Here it must be said again, as earlier, that this series has broken new ground in making such abundant new material available f o r current research. This is the kind of enterprise which has been lacking in some other areas of Mennonite research, and to judge by the plans for a sixth volume, editor Delbert Plett is not done yet. The material is basically well organized and readable - though in the oft-decried small print - and equipped with an index (mostly of names). A few editorial "bugs" persist. Foreign words continue to be a problem, Russian words particularly. Terms like sarai (appearing as serrei), senzljanka, versl, etc. have come through the translated German manuscripts uncorrected f o r accurate transliteration. Then there are the German Umlauts, which have been omitted here and there (e.g. p.264). A more serious problem in this reviewer's copy of the book was the fact that pp. 529-560 were missing altogether (no doubt a printing defect). One might suggest that introductory material would be more helpful if it were prepared for each individual section, especially when the content of the materials varies so considerably from section to section. There may well be good justification for gathering such a variety of documents, since social historians are interested in less formal or official materials which give information which is different from the traditional diplomatic documenta- tion. Historians will be grateful to Delbert Plett for the project he is carrying out, making available such a cornucopia of source materials for an understanding of a particular part of Mennonite history. Lawrence Klippenstein Mennonite Heritage Center Canadian Mennonite Bible College Arzabaptist -Mc~zrzotziie Idc~zrities in Fernzeizt, edited by Leo D r i e d g e r a n d L e l a n d H a r d e r (Elkhart, Ind.: Institute of M e n n o n i t e S t u d i e s , Ind., 1990). This volume arises from the participation of forty Mennonite and Brethren in Christ scholars in a consultation on the Church Member Profile I I research project in November of 1980. The research project, an extensive survey of Mennonites in North America, was launched a year earlier by Howard Kauffman and Leland Harder as a followup to their 1972 survey of Mennonites. The consultation featured major papers by two theologians and five sociologists, with responses to each paper and an introduction by editors Driedger and Harder. From a theological perspective, Walter Klaassen provides a review of Mennonite history and describes the call to nonconformity that has been central to Anabaptist identity. A paper by Norman Kraus identifies a range of contemporary theological trends which may be influencing Mennonite attitudes. The major contributions by sociologists include a discussion of the concepts of sect by Calvin Redekop, modernization by Donald Kraybill, and secularization by Peter Hamm. Also included is a discourse o n the relationship between communal commitment and individualism by Stephen Ainlay, and an essay by Leo Driedger on the relationship between identity and assimilation. Each of these papers is in turn followed by responses f r o m a range of scholars. Initial comparisons of this volume with the 1988 publication Merzrzonite Irlenfitjj: Historical and Co~itenzporaiy Perspectives, edited by Calvin Redelcop and Samuel Steiner, and based on contributions of a gathering of Mennonite scholars, are inevitable. The focus of this earlier collection was also on Mennonite identity, with the same kind of format involving a combination of major papers and responses. As well, many if not most of the authors included in the present volume contributed to this earlier publication. Booli Reviews 159 The question must be asked, then, why we needed another so similar a volume. In response, it is possible to point to at least one significant difference between the two: the fact that the contributers to the present volume are bounded by the constraints of the focus on empirical research in the form of the Church Member Profile. It must be said that the authors for the most part have taken this task seriously, and have focused their discussions on concepts and definitions that are at least in principle empirically measurable. As a result, we have several clear and straightforward explanations of basic concepts by veteran researchers like Redekop, Kraybill and Driedger which can provide guidance for present and future researchers. The articles in the first two sections of this volume in particular point out some of the hazards of the adoption of the concepts of secular social science to understand the Anabaptist-Mennonite reality. Such concepts as moderniza- tion and secularization, o r Troeltch's church-state model seem to assume the decline of the traditional and the sacred in the face of powerful and inevitable social forces. The preservation of something like Anabaptist-Mennonite identity becomes by implication a kind of holding action against these profound worldly forces. Some corrective, and hence a more optimistic element, is introduced by Peter Hamm's article, in which he describes a dialectical relationship between secularization and the alternate forces of sacralization, which can account for the renewal and persistence of religion in contrast with the corrosive forces of secularization. In a similar vein, Driedger speaks of "countervailing sources of identity" in his article. In keeping with the workmanlike approach adhered to by the major presenters, responders have clearly made an effort to address the issues at hand. Generally, they avoid the kind of tendency to self-promotion that scholars in such circumstances are prone to. In a number of cases, they in fact provide useful clarifications and extensions of the papers they are responding to. It would have been helpful, though, for the editors to have taken greater care with the inclusion of responses. At one point, for example, the reader is left to puzzle through a response by Tom Meyers to Calvin Redekop's paper, wondering how the response can be to the same paper one has just read, only to be informed at the end that in fact Professor Myers was responding t o an earlier and substantially different version. As well, some of the responses have quite a casual kind of off-the-cuff quality which does not come off as well in print as it perhaps did in the spontaneity of the moment. Overall, this volume does provide the reader with a good overview of some basic concepts in the field of Mennonite studies, and may serve as a useful reference point for others contemplating research into the question of Mennonite identity. Paul Redekop Menno Simons College The University of Winnipeg