Rod Janzen - The Hutterites in North America

Representatives from each of the Hutterite groups have responded to early drafts of the book, and we have taken their suggestions seriously. We especially acknowledge John S. Hofer, Patrick Murphy, and Tony Waldner, from the Schmiedeleut Two; Arnold Hofer, Edward Kleinsasser, Jacob Kleinsasser, Dora Maendel, Jonathan Maendel, and Kenny Wollman, from the Schmiedeleut One; Heidi Entz, Hilda Entz, Noah Entz, Joseph Hofer, Margaret Hofer, and Jacob Wipf, members of the Lehrerleut; and William Gross, Annie Walter, Esther Walter, and Paul M. Wipf, of the Dariusleut.

We also thank the Mennonite Historical Society, Goshen, Indiana, for a research grant that supported this project. The Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, offered Rod Janzen a fellowship devoted to specific aspects of the Hutterite experience. Thanks also to Merrill Ewert, Fresno Pacific University president, for a faculty research appointment that offered time and financial resources. We also note the importance of lengthy early-1980s conversations with two Hutterite individuals: Hans Decker Jr. (19281990), a Schmiedeleut minister, spoke with Rod Janzen; and Dariusleut member Annie Walter spoke with Max Stanton. It was Decker and Walter who first introduced the authors to the cultural and religious importance, and the natural beauty, of Old Order communal Christianity.

Visiting Hutterite colonies requires movement between the United States and Canada. Both of us have encountered skeptical American and Canadian border agents who searched our vehicles top to bottom looking for contraband. Often those officials listened suspiciously to our reason for constant border crossings: to spend time with people who live a life that is so different. But each time, when we arrived at our destinations, hospitable colony members were ready to receive us. We owe hundreds of individual Hutterites a great debt for their hospitality, friendship, and willingness to answer questions, share insights, and provide access to valuable documents.

We also thank Deborah Janzen and Margaret Stanton, spouses of the authors, who have, themselves, visited many Hutterite colonies. They always offered important insights and perspectives, and they have assisted, in different ways, in the research and writing process. Appreciation is also extended to academic scholars who read early drafts or engaged in important conversations, or both. These include Leonard Gross, Suzanne Kobzeff, Donald B. Kraybill, Ruth Baer Lambach, Stuart McFeeters, and Timothy Miller.

We are indebted as well to the manuscript editor for the Johns Hopkins University Press, Lois Crum, who made this a much better book, and to the work of Greg Nicholl.

Publications

Allard, William A. The Hutterites, Plain People of the West. National Geographic, July 1970, 98125.

. Solace at Surprise Creek. National Geographic, June 2006, 132147.

American Bible Society, ed. Hutterische Bibl Tschiehten I. New York: American Bible Society, 2002.

American Industrial Committee, ed. Crucifixions in the 20th Century. Chicago: American Industrial Committee, 1919.

Anderson, James. The Pentecost Preaching of Acts 2: An Aspect of Hutterite Theology. Ph.D. diss., University of Iowa, 1972.

Anderson, Lawrence. Hutterite Colonies: Toponymic Identification, 1983. Tony

Waldner Collection, Forest River Colony, Fordville, ND.

. Hutterite Names, with an Emphasis on the Knels Family Name, January 1985. Tony Waldner Collection, Fordville, ND.

. Hutterite Ordnungen: Sixty Years of Direction from the Early Hutterite Church in South Dakota, 18761935, 1984. Tony Waldner Collection, Fordville, ND.

. The Hutterites: Spatial Considerations, 1987. Tony Waldner Collection, Forest River Colony, Fordville, ND.

. Prudent Plain People on the Plains and Prairies of North America: The Hutterian Brethren, 1983. Tony Waldner Collection, Forest River Colony, Fordville, ND.

Arndt, Karl J. George Rapps Successors and Material Heirs, 18471916. Cranbury, NJ: Associated University Presses, 1971.

. The Harmonists and the Hutterites. American-German Review (August 1944): 2427.

Bach, Marcus. The Dream Gate. New York: Bobbs-Merrill, 1949.

. Faith and Our Friends. New York: Bobbs-Merrill, 1951.