From: Kevin Hiebert Subject: (pgimf-talk) Fwd: Questions for a project on Mennonites Date: 14 Dec 1998 21:37:14 -0800 I figured this would be good way to test the PGIMF-TALK mailing list. Maybe we can circulate contributions so I can reply to her with a formal PGIMF response? Or maybe we can just chat about the relevance of the questions ;-)?. >Read-Receipt-To: "Heather Hutchison" >To: kevin@gastown.com >From: "Heather Hutchison" >Subject: Questions for a project on Mennonites >Date: Wed, 09 Dec 98 06:04:47 PST > >To whom it may concern, > >Hello, my name is Heather Hutchison and I am an OAC student at St. Mary's >Highschool in Woodstock, Ontario. I am doing a project in my sociology class >on the Mennonite society, and I was wondering if I could ask you a few >questions. This personal perspective in necessary for my project; just >reading material presented in a book isn't quite as effective. If any >question renders you unable to reply, or are in a position of discomfort as >a result of the question, please do not answer it. I value your input, and >any information that you volunteer is greatly appreciated. Thank you. > >Sincerly, >Heather Hutchison > >Questions: >1. Why are most Mennonites so resist to change? What factor(s) enable this? >2. In your opinion, will the Mennonite people continue to grow and survive >the centuries? If so, how will this be done? >3. How do the Mennonites respond to the current advancements in society, >both technologically and socially? >4. What are the current attitudes toward the Mennonites? How do the >Mennonite people feel about this? >5. How much liberation should the Mennonites be granted from the government? >6. What makes Mennonites different from the rest of society? >7. What is Mennonite home life like? >8. How important is the family within Mennonite society? >9. What sort of gender differences are there? >10. Is there a model of the "ideal" Mennonite? If so, what is it? >11.What do the Mennonite people want from life? >12. What do the Mennonite people think about the rest of the society? -- Kevin Hiebert + http://home.istar.ca/~khiebert also reachable at + http://www.bcog.org/kevin and at * PGP public key available for secure messages * "... the world premiere is showing for the first time, anywhere!" -- TNT - To unsubscribe to pgimf-talk, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe pgimf-talk" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Kevin Hiebert Subject: (pgimf-talk) Re: Questions for a project on Mennonites Date: 20 Dec 1998 12:38:38 -0800 I didn't see any submissions to the list or to me directly, so I made up a few answers to questions 1-6. Please contribute to the remaining questions: 6. What makes Mennonites different from the rest of society? 7. What is Mennonite home life like? 8. How important is the family within Mennonite society? 9. What sort of gender differences are there? 10. Is there a model of the "ideal" Mennonite? If so, what is it? 11.What do the Mennonite people want from life? 12. What do the Mennonite people think about the rest of the society? * * * Hi Heather. I forwarded your message to a discussion list, but I think everyone is too busy "barn raising" to reply -- hahaha ;-). Mennonites on the west coast of Canada like us are very different from 'Old Order' and similar Mennonites on the east coast. Ethnicity has been de-emphasized in order to win people over to our unique faith. At 06:04 AM 12/9/98 -0800, you wrote: > 1. Why are most Mennonites so resist to change? What factor(s) enable this? Since the Bible is treated as the reliable Word of God which applies to all times and peoples, popular trends are treated with a degree of suspicion lest they lead us to a way of life which conflicts with the lessons of the Bible. > 2. In your opinion, will the Mennonite people continue to grow and survive > the centuries? If so, how will this be done? You would think that a Pacifist people would be at great risk of being wiped out, but Mennonites have demonstrated their ability to survive through fleeing to safe havens and winning local political support for their non-participation in war. The bigger risks to Mennonite beliefs are: a) loss of storytelling - young people in Mennonite circles usually don't have the attention span or interest in hearing and passing down the stories of faith and perseverance from their grandparents, who are quickly passing away. b) religous relativism - many Mennonite churches have dropped the word "Mennonite" from their names in order to be more approachable. Liberal theology and other movements risk fragmenting Mennonite beliefs to the point that they become indistinguishable from mainstream Evangelical Christian beliefs. The strong communal ties of Mennonite families in Mennonite churches will ensure that Mennonite society will survive for a long time. > 3. How do the Mennonites respond to the current advancements in society, > both technologically and socially? They adopt advancements, but slowly because skepticism. For example, women can be pastors in churches, but some Mennonite denominations do not allow a woman to be the "Senior Pastor (i.e. shepherd of the flock)". Technologies are readily adopted, but the Media is criticized for pushing values that conflict with Mennonite beliefs (i.e. violent videogames, oversexed movies, etc.). > 4. What are the current attitudes toward the Mennonites? How do the > Mennonite people feel about this? We are rather amused and a little indignant when people think that we drive black cars and don't have telephones. We are proud to be recognized as an efficient and caring provider of international relief work through common agencies such as the MCC (Mennonite Central Committee) and outreach teams such as YES (Youth Evangelism Service) and (YWAM) Youth With A Mission. > 5. How much liberation should the Mennonites be granted from the government? The main areas of contention between Mennonites and the Government have been: Military Service - Western governments have been very accomodating in allowing Mennonites to perform alternative service during war time. We have a good track record of being willing to perform difficult and dangerous labor, so we are not seen as draft dodgers. Taxes - Many Mennonites would prefer to redirect the portion of their taxes that is used for the military into other purposes. Like all churches, Mennonites enjoy freedom from property tax, which frees up more money for projects that benefit the community much more than those same tax dollars would do in the hands of the government. Justice - This is an area where Mennonites seek to influence the government to pass laws affecting all of society. Most Mennonites are against the death penalty and are Pro-Life. Mennonites are involved with work called "Restorative Justice" which seeks to encourage Victim-Offender reconciliation regardless of the duration of the incarceration sentence. Family and Religious Freedom - Like most parents, Mennonites want to be able to educate and discipline their children as they see fit. Most children attend public schools, but Mennonite private schools are sometimes a desired alternative. I've run out of steam, so I'll leave the remaining questions for others to answer. -- Kevin Hiebert + http://home.istar.ca/~khiebert also reachable at + http://www.bcog.org/kevin and at * PGP public key available for secure messages * "Microsoft says it will always give its browser away. Because the browser is supposedly integrated into the operating system, shouldn't it then give away the operating system to fulfill this promise?" -- John C. Dvorak - To unsubscribe to pgimf-talk, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.com" with "unsubscribe pgimf-talk" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message.