Ministers are unsalaried and chosen from the congregation by nomination and the use of the lot. Bahasa Indonesia, publications in [7] Church activities include street meetings, passing out tracts in the city market, and prayer meetings. Life insurance is not permitted and generally members do not use auto, health, fire, or other insurances, but rather employ a unique method of brotherhood assistance (mutual aid) that is directed by the deacons of the congregations. Read more. By membership records, I mean records of baptisms, burials or funerals, removals and ordinations. Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church, Most widely held works by Board of Directors. Leadership threatened the boys with physical and emotional abuse, the lawsuit says. The use of radio and television is not allowed. If your goal is to They wear plain clothing, and their life is built around the church, schools, and religious activities. Understandably, the version that circulated had no signature, even though the public was led to understand the author had identified himself to the bishop who had given him assignment. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church does not accept divorce and remarriage. More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23, Maryland seafood processing company fined $240,000 for visa fraud, Boy dies after being hit by train in Baltimore. Nov. 29, 2021. https://id.oclc.org/worldcat/entity, Most widely held works about . of Anabaptist doctrine and of Old Mennonite tradition. The July/August issue was the first publication. Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. relationship and keep Christs commandments together. EMU offers rigorous academic study at the undergraduate, graduate and seminary level. Vincent Mennonite Church Membership records, 1892-1897 and 1945-1986. 565 Yoder Road Looking for inspiration? [2], Insert Links to Electronic Resources Here, 1. Wayne Rudolph, Phone conversation with author, April 12, 2011. The paper portrayed the bishops as The Emperor Who Had No Clothes. Other agencies of Mennonite Church USA include Mennonite Education Agency, MHS Alliance, Mennonite Mission Network and MennoMedia. . God, especially the New Testament of Jesus Christ, with respect to Mennonite has positively impacted OCLCs work to build the WorldCat Entities application and the 150 million Person and Work descriptions Parents were told their sons would leave reformed members of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. They do not engage in worldly amusements, nor do they follow organized sports. Conference was officially organized in January 1992, after a lengthy dialogue with Marcia Mylin serves as LMC resource staff. Facilities are expected to come to D.H.S. A large section of the paper focuses on the history of Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and noteworthy events in church history. This work will continue to build our entity ecosystem to support the Swamp Mennonite Church, Quakertown - Membership records, 1919-1987; Subscription lists and meetinghouse construction records, 1847. . Business Directory. A life of purity and simplicity is called for and television, radio, Internet, alcohol, and tobacco use are forbidden among members. They needed to help God make right things happen. The farm is about 40 miles northwest of Harrisburg, Pa., in Juniata County, which is home to several churches and schools affiliated with the Mennonites, a conservative Christian denomination known for its agrarian lifestyle and disconnect from technology. Filing 1 COMPLAINT against EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA MENNONITE CHURCH AND RELATED AREAS, LIBERTY RIDGE FARM, MENNONITE MESSIANIC MISSION OF THE EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA MENNONITE CHURCH, MARTIN NELSON ( Filing fee $ 402 receipt number APAEDC-15556018. Baptism and church membership is restricted to believers who are of age to make a commitment to the church. A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services told the Morning Call, which first reported the lawsuit, there were no licensing records for the facility. For the most part, the Guatemalan branch of the church is held to the same standards as the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite church based in the United States. [8], The Guatemalan branch of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church is small and a significant challenge of the group will be in retaining young members and attracting new converts amidst significant social pressures. Other penalties for wrongdoing included strenuous physical activity, court documents state. Springfield Mennonite Church Membership records, 1848-1930s. The title Losing the Trust alluded to the highly-acclaimed title Keeping the Trust which the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church had published in 2013. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church has a written statement of standards known as the Rules and Discipline, which is reviewed every three or four years and then ratified again by the congregations. . OPINION. They wear plain clothing (dress), and their life is built around the church, schools, and religious activities. A conservative portion of Lancaster Conference cooperated to establish the Mennonite Messianic Mission (MMM) in the early 1960s and opened two voluntary service units in Danville, Pennsylvania, and Wilmington, Delaware, and a Bible school for young people at Numidia, Pennsylvania. The lawsuit by two former residents of Liberty Ridge, an 80-acre farm in Juniata County near the states geographic center, said the two plaintiffs were held there in violation of federal laws against human trafficking and forced into long hours of grueling work. - Vergl. Neuenschwander, Jesse. The schools are provided for young people in their late teens and early 20s, and offers a wide variety of Bible and practical studies. Directories; Mennonite Church Directory 2022 $ 17.99. Therefore we encourage you to Filipino megachurch founder forced girls and young women into sex, telling them it was Gods will, feds say. Stephen Scott: An Introduction to Old Order and Conservative Mennonite Groups, Intercourse PA 1996, page 162. identifiers. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Service opportunities are provided in relief work, literature evangelism, child care, and in elderly care. [3] In 2001 there were 4,206 members. In 1969 he attended the Numidia Mennonit Bible School in Pennsylvania and the same year began two years of alternate service at Lancaster Mennonite High School in Pennsylvania. Three of the ministers are of Guatemalan background while the rest of leadership comes from those with origins in the United States. (1921) confessions of faith ; forms of baptism, communion, feet washing, marriage, anointing, ordination of bishops, ministers, [2], This time of fighting also challenged the Mennonite stance of separation of church and state. In essence baptismal vows have morphed into promises to support the bishop board decisions in the effort to promote the growth and unity of the EPMC. In 1969, the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and Related Areas had 27 congregations with 1,181 church members; in 1995 it had 59 churches with 3,434 members. (September 2010). Sendas Derechas. Mennonite Conference (PMC) officially holds the desire to be obedient to the Word of Uniform and modest dress is required; women must wear skirts and head coverings in public. [4] In 2010, it had 77 congregations with 5,333 members. Retrieved May 5, 2015, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eastern_Pennsylvania_Mennonite_Church&oldid=1077465123, This page was last edited on 16 March 2022, at 13:37. Blooming Glen Mennonite Church Membership records, 1889-1965. In October, eight leaders of a Nation of Islam offshoot in Kansas that has been labeled a cult were arrested and accused of separating children from their families, housing them in poor conditions and forcing them into labor without pay. (Eastern Mennonite Publications, 2008). The filing claims the boys worked six days per week without pay and at times, were forced to perform labor-intensive work "with limited-to-no food and . For approximately $2,300 a month, parents sent their "troubled" sons with . Create new articles that tell stories about the Anabaptists of Insert Page Name Here and insert links to those stories here. The plaintiffs allege the church and Liberty Ridge violated federal laws against human trafficking, racketeering and forced labor. Deep Run West Mennonite Church, Perkasie Membership records, 1853-1920; Congregational Minute Book, 1849-1949. Retrieved 5 March 2023, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Eastern_Pennsylvania_Mennonite_Church&oldid=163204. Mennonite Heritage Center, Harleysville PA (Mennonite Historians of Eastern PA) Menno House, New York (Manhattan) NY. Bishop Warren G. Bean, Skippack District (Skippack, Providence, Worcester, Vincent, Bally, Pottstown, Norristown churches in the Franconia Conference). About three-fourths of the members are native Guatemalans while the rest have origins in the United States. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Deep Run East Mennonite Church, Perkasie Membership records, 1859-1891; Burial records, 1830-1906. Liberty Ridge Farm in McAlisterville, Pa. Troubled boys who were housed there worked six days a week with no pay and were physically and mentally abused, according to a lawsuit. There are church property records, alms records and trustee records going back to the mid-18th century, but these do not contain membership records. ), Directory of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and related areas, A brief history of the Texter Mountain Mennonite Church, School directory of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and Related Areas, 2016-2017, Black hats and white bonnets : religious ritual and belief among Weaverland Conference Mennonites, Mount Pleasant mirror, 1966-2010 : a pictorial history of the Mount Pleasant Mennonite School, The Lancaster Conference : a study of the 1968 schism, ( The purpose for seeking release from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference was to develop a church program that would help preserve biblical practice and the historic Mennonite values. He stayed until 2014, when he was 17. Martin was instrumental in negotiating alternative service for Guatemalan Mennonites. Bally Mennonite Church Membership records, ca. Eden Mennonite Church, Schwenksville Membership records, 1860s-1920. Iglesias Menonitas de Guatemala de la Iglesia Menonita de Pennsylvania Oriental y Las Areas Relacionades. Members who have violated church doctrine are excommunicated with the hope that they will repent and rejoin the church. The farm and its owner, identified in the lawsuit as Martin Nelson, were also named as defendants. This family oriented newsletter provides editorials and devotional readings for churches and neighborhoods. mmylin@lmcchurches.org. [3] After a conservative Mennonite worker was shot to death and the missionaries received threats, many of the United States mission families decided to return to the United States for safety. Burkholder Family Farm Cemetery Find a Grave. Leaders of the 80-acre farm allegedly used the boys to run many profitable business ventures, including farming chickens, cattle and hogs. Rudolph, Our Mission in Guatemala (Secondary School Term Paper written about general Guatemalan history and Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite History involvement in the country) , 24. The Mennonite Messianic Mission, Inc. directs the group's missions in Guatemala, the Bahamas, Paraguay and Ghana. Blue Rock Cemetery records, Waynesboro, Franklin County, Pennsylvania Family History Library. said other potential victims are urged to contact her office, according to a statement to The Washington Post. 1996-2023 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Curriculum used in their schools is written, approved and published by the Mennonite Church members. , Most of the students continue in school through 10th grade. Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. The Pilgrim Ministers are unsalaried and chosen from the congregation by nomination and the use of the lot. In Pennsylvania federal court on Nov. 17, they sued the Ephrata-based Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and Related Areas; the churchs nonprofit corporation that oversees Liberty Ridge, the Mennonite Messianic Mission; and Liberty Ridge Farm in McAlisterville and its owner. the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Churches out of which she was formed. We have heard from other former residents as well as witnesses, and believe there to be more, Franchi said. A woman answered the phone at a number listed as a contact for the church but then hung up. Marcia Mylin. updated. D.H.S. Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. Church Finder | Pilgrim Ministry. Wayne is a bishop of the Guatemalan branch of the Eastern PA Mennonite Church. At one of the first sessions of the new Eastern Pennsylvania Conference, later the Eastern District Conference, a resolution was made to have all churches in the new Conference start a church membership . The singing is in four-part harmony without accompaniment, with some emphasis on singing instruction and special song services. Iglesias Menonitas de Guatemala de la Iglesia Menonita de Pennsylvania Oriental y Las Areas Relacionades. For the most part the Guatemalan church adheres to the same standards. According to the men, residents would be physically restrained by supervisors who would hold the boys down and hog tie them using zip-ties. library materials. These standards are dictated by the Statement of Christian Doctrine of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. Directory You are here: Admissions; STAR; Application; STAR. North Lebanon Mennonite Fellowship Church Lebanon, PA Sunday morning 9:30am Sermon begins around 10:25am Listen by Phone 717-450-9108. July of 2022. In 2019,the Church also had 84 schools, 300 teachers and 2,679 pupils.[5][6]. Although he lives in the United States, Wayne makes frequent trips to Guatemala and is active in guiding the standards and development of the church. Private schools are provided by the group so that all the member families have access to them. Women wear headcoverings and have uncut hair. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church broke away from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference in 1968, preferring a more conservative interpretation of church discipline than the mainstream church . Antietam Church Cemetery Find a Grave. Despite being a school-aged minor, he received no education for the first few years at the farm, the lawsuit says. Dorcas was a member of Cocalico Mennonite Church, Weaverland Conference, and a homemaker. Official doctrine of the church. A man ought not to cover his head, referring to required hat-wearing as part of formal attire for men, 3. Letters To The Editor. tradition. The Martins were instrumental in founding the La Victoria congregation. For approximately $2,300 a month, parents sent their troubled sons with special spiritual, emotional, and social needs to live in an intense spiritual atmosphere for the purpose of effecting social and behavioral changes, court documents state. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. In the late 1960s, the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church separated from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference after religious leaders decided to modernize the movement and allow members to own televisions. serve Christ in visible obedience, you may be surprised how easy it is to get to At one of the first sessions of the new Eastern Pennsylvania Conference, later the Eastern District Conference, a resolution was made to have all churches in the new Conference start a church membership record book. The well-crafted, sensitive, forty-one page paper was written in response to an Eastern bishops request for the reason so many solid Eastern families were leaving the Eastern fold. 5, p. 253. Neither of them responded to a request for comment on Monday. Mennonite Church Information (2001): 38-46. Swamp Mennonite Church, Quakertown Membership records, 1919-1987; Subscription lists and meetinghouse construction records, 1847. Flatland-Bethany Mennonite Church, Quakertown Flatland membership records, 1856-1965; Congregational Minute Book, 1890-1957; Bethany membership records, 1899-1965. A call to a number for Liberty Ridge listed in a Mennonite directory rang and then was disconnected. A study guide, Instructions for Christian living and church membership, The doctrine of the church : a study of the organization and function of the church, Things which become sound doctrine : the life of Aaron M. Shank, ( Book Please allow up to ten days to receive your account information. Term paper written by the son of Wayne Rudolph. EMC. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church broke away from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference in 1968, preferring a more conservative interpretation of church discipline than the mainstream church . Franconia Mennonite Church Membership records, 1888-1978; Alms record, 1756-1947. 2003. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and Related Areas, the church's non-profit corporation that oversees the farm, is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, along with the farm itself, the . EMC. Residents also faced consequences when they acted against the Bible including having their food and water withheld or restricted to just rice and beans or being forced to do manual labor like dragging chains or breaking boulders with a small hammer, the lawsuit alleges. Everence is the stewardship agency of Mennonite Church USA, an Anabaptist denomination. According to the Mennonite Heritage Center, eastern Pennsylvania Mennonites split from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference in 1968, seeking a stricter understanding of church discipline. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church does not accept divorce and remarriage. Chester Weaver is a son of the Lancaster Conference Mennonite Church (baptized 1965) and also a son of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church, becoming a member in 1972. Full data set can be cached for offline use on mobile and desktop. While they maintain a plain dress and do not use televisions or radios, eastern Pennsylvania Mennonites worship in English instead of German and drive cars, Joel Horst Nofziger, the centers executive director, said on Monday. Preacher I. Frank Swartz, Blooming Glen Congregation, ministerial record or diary, 1908-1935. The punishments could go on for days or weeks, the lawsuit says. Design & Hosting - Craft & Cloud Marketing Co. Plains Mennonite Church, Hatfield Membership records, 1907-1964; subscription list for meetinghouse construction, 1813. I can only tell you that law enforcement is aware of the allegations and taking the appropriate steps, Juniata County District Attorney Cory J. Snook said in an email late Tuesday, declining further comment. Directories; Northeast Mennonite Fellowship Church Directory $ 15.99. [2] Beginning in 1971, Mennonite Messianic Mission, the service agency of the newly created Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church, agreed to mission work in Guatemala. Harrisonburg, VA: Christian Light Publications, Inc., 2010: 62-71. Stanley Gerald Champ, 51, and a member of the Grays Prairie (TX) Eastern Mennonite Church, has been indicted on a charge of (Continuous) Sexual Abuse of a Child under the age of 14, a 1st-degree felony in Kaufman County, TX. 2022 Eastern Mennonite University 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, Virginia 22802 Phone: 540-432-4000. The Lancaster Conference: A Study of the 1968 Schism. J.D.M. Scroll down. The men, one who spent roughly three years at the facility and one who was there for 10 months, said they were required to work at least 8 hours a day every day except Sundays and school-aged children at the facility did not receive any schooling. Harrisonburg, VA: Christian Light Publications, Inc., 2010: 62-71. It has related congregations in Belize, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, and the United States. ), Meeting house map directory of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and related areas, Studies in the doctrine of separation : a study guide, Studies in the doctrine of nonresistance. Donald B. Kraybill, Concise Encyclopedia of Amish, Brethren, Hutterites, and Mennonites (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010), 229. HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) A federal lawsuit filed this month claims boys and young men at a church-related farm business in Pennsylvania were subjected to forced labor and punishment that included dragging chains and breaking up rocks with a hammer. Messages seeking comment were left with children and youth services and state police in Juniata County. Conservative Mennonite Church of Ontario. Deutsch, Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church officials could not immediately be reached for comment Monday night. Schlabach is seen spelled a few different ways (Slabach, Slabaugh, Slaubaugh), as are Bontrager (Bontreger, Borntreger, Borntrager), Hostetler (Hochstetler, Hochstedler), and Wingard (Wengerd). World Directory 2000 "Come to the River" St Louis 99 . The singing is in four-part harmony without accompaniment, with some emphasis on singing instruction and special song services. Hereford Mennonite Church, Bally Membership records, 1852-1882. Translate page into: To answer part of this question, I have compiled an inventory of the older (19th and early 20th century) local Mennonite membership records that are in the Historical Library and Archives. Some consequences included, but were not limited to, dragging chains over their shoulders, breaking boulders into tiny pieces by hand with a small hammer, and digging out stumps by hand, the lawsuit says. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online, Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. States and Honduras. The residents allegedly were told they would be thrown out of the church and kept from their families if they spoke of leaving the farm. , All times are in Eastern Time. Add to cart. 1993-94 Virginia Conference devotional planner. Private schools are provided by the group so that all the member families have access to them. More than 2000 students study at our main campus in Harrisonburg, Virginia; at our Lancaster, Pennsylvania site; and online. The group sponsors a 15-week winter Bible school at Numidia, Pennsylvania. Eastern District Conference assembly in May 1981 at East Swamp Mennonite Church. The majority of the settlers, however, came to the Didsbury area after World War I as part of the Mennonite migration from the Soviet Union in 1922-27. Searchable listing of the Conservative Mennonite churches, congregations and ministers found in the Mennonite Church Directory, including links to church locations in Google Maps. According to The Morning Call, the Pennsylvania Department Human Services has no record for any licensing for Liberty Ridge Farm. Members do not vote, hold government office, or participate in the armed forces. Find contact's direct phone number, email address, work history, and more. , Each summer the school offers a two-week training course for school teachers, and in December a ministers' fellowship and seminar is provided. [3], Early mission work for the church began in the primitive highlands of Guatemala in an area known as La Victoria. Mennonite World Conference:; Membership of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church is a conservative sect of the Protestant group founded in the 16th century known as Anabaptists. Such is the consequence when leaders lose the trust of those they lead. In the waning days of 2019 a religious analysis gathered much attention in the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church camp. One church member ended up in jail after he refused to participate in activities with the Guatemalan military. Preacher Jacob B. Mensch, Skippack Congregation & Skippack District. Deceptive and manipulative ordination procedures, 2. [4] In 2010, it had 77 congregations with 5,333 members. If the boys discussed leaving the farm, the lawsuit said, they were threatened with excommunication from the church or their families. He chose servanthood leadership that expressed vision, wisdom, and Christ-honoring leadership long before 2019. To check the times for your time zone, use The World Clock. Statement of Christian Doctrine of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. 114. Reset. Add to cart. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Important Individuals in the Life of the Church. Visit a Plain Anabaptist Church(Like the Beachy Amish-Mennonites) Conservative (evangelical) Mennonites. Regular worship services include Sunday school and preaching every Sunday morning, Sunday evening services, and midweek prayer meetings. 1897-1962; Alms (Deacons) record, 1859-1900. Add to cart. Peace and Anabaptist Library; There were usually many close family ties and interrelationships in Mennonite congregations and members knew one another. The group peacefully requested to withdraw from the Lancaster Mennonite Conference in 1968, requesting to keep the 1954 discipline that was being revised. ), The Swiss Anabaptists : a brief summary of their history and beliefs, Enth. Neuenschwander, Jesse. Mennonites of the Washington County, Maryland, and Franklin County, Pennsylvania, Conference: Author: Daniel R. Lehman: Publisher: Publication Board of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church and Related Areas, 1990: Original from: the University of Wisconsin - Madison: Digitized: Dec 2, 2009: Length: 644 pages : Export Citation: BiBTeX . Men, as a rule, do not enter the professions. The group sponsors 3-week winter Bible schools at Numidia, Pennsylvania, and Ashland, Pennsylvania. She said the farm housed four to six boys at any given time. I do not know which agency looked into it, but from what we have heard from our clients, they are aware there was some sort of investigation into Liberty Ridge Farm.. In the late 1960s, the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite . https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Eastern_Pennsylvania_Mennonite_Church&oldid=163204. One on one tutoring programs and personalized teaching were effective in the adaptation of Mennonite beliefs. The lawsuit was filed by two men who were 14 and 18 when they were sent to Liberty Ridge Farm, which operates a home for Mennonite boys and young adult members of the church in Juniata County. The suit did not elaborate on why the two plaintiffs were placed at the farm. Records of baptisms, ordinations, funerals, worship services, 1897-1946. In 1847, the Germantown congregation became part of the newly-formed Eastern District Conference of the General Conference Mennonite Church, but in 1851 left the conference, calling itself the Reformed Mennonite Church of Germantown. Wayne Rudolph, Phone conversation with author, April 12, 2011. The separation was by mutual agreement and by official sanction of the conference. Bible Mennonite Fellowship. Towamencin Mennonite Church Meetinghouse subscription list, 1805; Trustees records, 1847-. He has taught full time in Christian Day schools . . The men, identified only by their initials, are seeking financial compensation including punitive damages and back pay for all of their unpaid work. Stand by thyself, come not near to me, I am holier than thou, focusing on Eastern exclusivity, 4. Enter your email address to follow our blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. 3. Thus, by 1820, some four thousand Mennonites and two hundred Amish, a closely related group, had settled in eastern Pennsylvania. East Swamp Mennonite Church, Quakertown Membership records, 1848-1888. September 2010. Record of Ordinations of the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church Ministry 2020 $ 6.99. Directories; 2023 Mennonite Church Directory $ 18.99. Followers are called to lives of non-resistance and refusal to participate in politics and government. 2003. This is not a simple question. Residents or their families were required to pay $2,300 a month to attend Liberty Ridge, which served troubled boys who had special spiritual, emotional, and social needs, the lawsuit said, citing a church publication. Menu; Quick Links; Application; Quick Links. The lawsuit is brought by two men who are former residents of Liberty Ridge Farms, a farm in Juniata County owned by Nelson Martin that the two said operated as a reform program for the Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church. The school is especially provided for young people in their late teens and early 20s, and offers a wide variety of Bible and practical studies. January 2010-March 2011, 7. find one of the congregations listed, take courage and visit. It is considered one of the most conservative of the car-driving plain Mennonite groups, according to Edsel Burdge, research associate at the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College. 7. The Eastern Pennsylvania Mennonite Church is a conservative sect of the Protestant group founded in the 16th century known as Anabaptists. Aspects of Anabaptist thinking and practice now appear in many Christian traditions, with some Anabaptist-interested folks calling themselves "Anabaptish.". 2 Mennonite Yearbook (1986-87): 175-78; (1997): 121-123. [3] Homes were built for missionary families which moved from the United States. Add to cart. After several more meetings and conversations, government officials determined that members would be allowed to serve in community betterment projects instead of the Civil Defense Patrol.[2].