Conference of the Northwest German Mennonite Congregations

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The conference of the north-west German Mennonite congregations is an amalgamation of four Mennonite congregations in the north-west corner of Germany. In addition to the three communities in East Friesland (Emden, Norden and Leer), the Mennonite community of Gronau and the Oldenburg branch of the Leer community also belong to the union.

The conference, which has a joint pastor and a supraregional church office, is a member of the Association of German Mennonite Congregations (KdöR) and through this association also affiliated to the Working Group of Mennonite Congregations (KdöR).

history

The history of the northwest German Mennonites is rooted in the Reformation Anabaptist movement that came to East Frisia through Melchior Hofmann . The Emden community was founded in 1530 and is considered to be the oldest Mennonite community in the world. It was followed by the communities in Leer (around 1540) and Norden (1556).

The conference of the Northwest German Mennonite Congregations began in the early 1920s and is closely connected to the Mennonite preacher Abraham Fast , who came from Russia . It was not until 20 years later that the East Frisian communities of Emden, Leer and Norden were regularly merged with the community of Gronau, founded in 1888 . In 1972 the Mennonite congregations Leer and Oldenburg merged into one congregation. Since then, the Oldenburg Mennonites have also been part of the Northwest German Conference.

Pastors of the Conference of Northwest German Mennonite Congregation

The first pastor of the conference was the aforementioned Abraham Fast. His youngest son Heinold Fast was appointed successor in 1957. He held the pastor's office until 1992. A two-year vacancy was ended by the appointment of Pastor Katharina Herresthal, who held the pastor's office within the conference until 2005. Jan Lüken Schmid has been pastor of the Northwest German Conference since 2006. He has his official seat in Emden.

literature

  • Diether Götz Lichdi: The Mennonites in the past and present. From the Anabaptist Movement to the Worldwide Free Church , Großburgwedel 2004, ISBN 3-88744-402-7
  • East Frisian Mennonite Congregations of the Northwest German Conference (Ed.): The Mennonites in East Frisia. History. Resumes. Municipalities , Emden 2006

Web links

Portal: Anabaptist Movement  - Overview of Wikipedia content about the Anabaptist Movement

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Mennonite Congregation to the North (Ed.): 450 Years of Mennonites in the North. 1556-2006 , Norden 2006, p. 9
  2. ↑ Mennoniten.de: Mennonitengemeinde Gronaus / Westfalen ( Memento of the original from April 25, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; accessed on February 18, 2013 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mennoniten.de
  3. ^ Mennoniten.de: Mennonitengemeinde Leer-Oldenburg, KdöR ( Memento from March 4, 2015 in the Internet Archive ); accessed on February 18, 2013
  4. ↑ MennLex: Article Abraham Fast ; accessed on February 18, 2013
  5. ^ Mennonews: Katharina Herresthal takes over the Brücke editorial office ; accessed on February 18, 2013