Mennonite Brethren Churches
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On January 6, 1860 a small group of Mennonites in the Ukraine, influenced somewhat by the Moravian Brethren, and to a greater degree by Lutheran Pietism through the influential preaching of Eduard Wuest, met in the village of Elisabeththal, Molotschna and formed the Mennonite Brethren Church. They felt the Mennonites had grown cold and formal, and were seeking greater emphasis on discipline, prayer and Bible study. The immediate catalyst for the new organization was the discipline placed on a body of brethren who met to observe communion in a private home without the elders' sanction. The Mennonite Brethren were also in contact with and influenced by German Baptists J. G. Oncken and August Liebig. Due to migrations, World War I and the rise of communism, this body ceased to exist in Russia by 1930.
Currently (2003), there are Mennonite Brethren congregations in more than 20 countries representing well over 300,000 believers. The largest conferences are the Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Church of India, with 103,488 members in 840 congregations, and the Communauté des Eglises de Frères Mennonites au Congo, with 85,648 members in 629 congregations. There are 225 congregations with 34,864 members in Canada, 188 congregations with 26,219 members in the United States, and 28 congregations with 1872 members in Japan. Some of the churches of the Bund Taufgesinnter Gemeinden in Germany are Mennonite Brethren (about 12 congregatons). There are also 45 independent Mennonite Brethren congregations in Germany with 13,250 members.
See also