Common Beliefs

In Steinbach (population 9,500) there are 22 churches. These churches represent a wide variety of Mennonite groups -- all the way from the conservative Holdeman Mennonites where the women still wear black head coverings and resemble Hutterites, to the more liberal Mennonite Brethren and General Conference Mennonites.

The overall impression is one of a people with a conservative set of values. Religious faith is at the core of what it means to be Mennonite. Faith gives life meaning, purpose and direction. Mennonites believe that it is not what you say on Sunday that matters but how you live the whole week.

A SENSE OF HISTORY

Besides their common religion, a sense of their history binds Mennonites and gives them a definition of who they are. Those Mennonites in search of their history are likely to find it preserved at one of several archives in Winnipeg and at the Mennonite Heritage Village located at the town of Steinbach, Manitoba.

Each weekend, from spring through fall, thousands of people return to Steinbach to relive "A Day on the Farm" and to learn about what it was like when their Mennonite ancestors first arrived in Manitoba. Here one can go back to the days of a simple, country life -- to the rhythm of the seasons, and the joys of being close to the land. And to learn about what it is to be a Mennonite.

MENNONITE FOOD

For Mennonites food is an important form of expression. It is seen as a gift of god, to be valued and not to be wasted. Many of the foods are variations on traditional Ukrainian dishes like borscht or cabbage soup, vereneke or perogies, and holopschi or cabbage rolls.

EDUCATION

Along with the freedom to practice their own religion, Mennonites in Manitoba were given the freedom to run their own schools. School attendance has been compulsory for Mennonite children from the very first year of settlement - 30 years before it was a governmental requirement.

Historian and archivist Lawrence Klippenstein was a student and, later, a teacher at one of these early Mennonite schools:

"I was born in Southern Manitoba on a farm in the community of Altona, right near the US-Canada border. Grew up on a farm. I took my high school in the area and set out very early to become a teacher. My first school was a class of eight grades. That is grades 1-8, plus one grade of 9 correspondent students whom I tried to teach in the one room schools of the day -- which a lot of my colleagues were doing as they went out in their first teaching job."

In 1916, the Manitoba government initiated a policy of English-only educational instruction. This temporary law applied to all denominational schools and prohibited teaching in German, French, Ukrainian or Polish. Conservative Mennonites were so disturbed by this action that in the 1920s, almost 7,000 left Manitoba for a new life in Mexico.

POLITICAL RELUCTANCE

Most Mennonites are politically reluctant. Their religion teaches one to be separate from the world and as a result in Canada, few Mennonites had run for election before 1950. But that has changed.

"A majority of natural Mennonites today are people who exercise their right to vote. We've had a number of Mennonite politicians on the federal and provincial level. In fact, it's probably unthinkable for a provincial government nowadays to form a government without having a representative Mennonite on cabinet."

Jack Penner is Mennonite who has chosen to make a political contribution in Manitoba. He does not find it surprising that Mennonites have become more involved in public affairs:

"There was a natural evolutionary process that got the Mennonite community involved in the general, day-to-day decision-making process. And out of that, of course, grows a need to recognize that policies are set at a higher level. Some Mennonites actually took it upon themselves to take that next step and become involved in federal and provincial policy-making. It had always been my view that as an individual, we should serve one way or another."

THE MENNONITE WORK ETHIC

Mennonites believe in leading productive lives. This religious dictum results in a people that has purpose -- a people that is hard-working and industrious -- a people that find economic success. But to a Mennonite work is about more just than a paycheck. It's about a sense of well-being, a sense of undertaking meaningful activity and a sense of contributing to society.

Educated by the church, the home, and the school to lead productive lives, the Mennonites are remarkable for what they have achieved in Manitoba. A good work ethic is one reason southern Manitoba is booming economically. With a zero unemployment rate, expansion of value-added food processing industry, and increased diversification, Mennonite communities are among the most prosperous in Manitoba.

And the wealth is shared here. Mennonite communities regularly appear at the very top of tax statistics as providing the highest level of charitable donations anywhere in Canada.

PACIFISM AND ITS CHALLENGES

Menno Simons preached that his followers shall not go to war or engage in strife. "They that have beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks, shall know no war."

As pacifists, Mennonites received exemption from military service from the beginning of their settlement in Canada. Mennonites were not compelled to fight in World War I.

By World War II, Mennonites were trying to find ways of showing their citizenship through alternative forms of service although it was not always easy. Gerhard Ens recalls the difficult years he faced, as a conscientious objector during World War II:

"It was war time and I, as a Mennonite, became a conscientious objector. I had no problem getting the status but apparently it was the policy of the Manitoba government at the time, not to employ conscientious objectors. So I had to leave teaching for a few years. I went into civilian alternative service, and then after the war, I was employed by a private school. And a few years later my teaching privileges were restored. One just waits until the end."

During World War II, 7,500 Canadian Mennonites received exemption military service, working instead in forestry, road-building, parks development, farming and industrial work.

Instead of going to war, Mennonites bought Victory Bonds in high numbers and helped with relief. But during World War II, some Mennonites were wavering in their commitment to pacifism. Although only one person from the Mennonite community of Altona fought in World War I, 101 men from that community enlisted in the Canadian Armed Forces in World War II.

ADMONISHING AGAINST PRIDE

Pride is something Mennonites are warned against and this injunction is taken seriously. In 1856, Helena Friesen ignored conventions by wearing a newly-made dress made to church one Sunday. This pride of appearance angered the ministers who had felt Helena, the wife of one of their leading citizens, should have set an example of humility and modesty. Helena was admonished for her new-fashioned dress, because at age 44, she was judged vain in taking such pains about her looks.

One's pride is allowed only a few forms of expression: a well made quilt, a neat home, a beautiful garden, wonderful cooking, or baking. Or a growing business.

SIMPLICITY

To be a Mennonite is to live the simple life and to believe in simplicity of expression -- one should never take one's self too seriously.

Simplicity is also expressed in Mennonite architecture. Mennonites believe there is no need for ornament or for extravagance in design. Mennonite churches are not decorative or monumental. They are intentionally simple and modest. No gothic arches, no stained glass windows, and no tower rising to meet the heavens.

There was a very practical reason for this plainness. In earlier times in Russia, Mennonite churches were disguised to look like homes in order to avoid undue attention.

MUSIC

But when it comes to music, Mennonites let their spirits soar. Mennonite choirs are renown for their musicality and the profession is full of Mennonite musicians. Irmgard Baerg has risen to the top her profession and teaches music at Concord College:

"I can't remember a time I wasn't interested in music. I remember the greatest experience on the farm was when my parents announced we would get a piano. i was probably n about grade two at that point. Both my sister and I loved to fool around on the piano She was two years older than I. We would play duets and stuff together, but always on other people's pianos. So I remember thinking about the day that the piano arrived in the big truck and the joy that we actually owned this piano. And we played that thing until it fell apart. We played a lot on it, practiced on it, invented a lot. It was like a playground on which we could discover wonderful things. It was hard for (my parents) to buy that piano. It was a big sacrifice."