Includes bibliographical references (p. [333]-345) and index
CONTENTS NOTE
Text of Note
Who are the Wenger Mennonites? -- The fabric of faith and culture -- Mobility and identity -- The architecture of community -- The rhythm of sacred ritual -- Passages from birth to death -- Making a living together -- Technology and social change -- Pilgrims in a postmodern world
0
SUMMARY OR ABSTRACT
Text of Note
"On a May Sunday in 1927, progress and tradition collided at the Groffdale Old Order Mennonite Church in eastern Pennsylvania when half the congregation shunned the cup of wine offered by Bishop Moses Horning. The boycott of this holiest of Mennonite customs was in direct response to Horning's decision to endorse the automobile after years of debate within the church. The resulting schism over opposing views of technology produced the group known as the Wenger Mennonites. In the nearly eighty years since the establishment of this church, the initial group of five hundred has grown to a community of eighteen thousand Wenger Mennonites. They have large families and typically retain 95 percent or more of their youth. For many years their main community was based in Lancaster County, but in recent decades they have expanded into eight other states with new communities most recently established in Iowa and Michigan. Despite their continued rejection of modern technology, the Wengers - popularly known as horse-and-buggy Mennonites - continue to thrive on their own terms. In this study of the Wenger Mennonites, Kraybill and Hurd - a sociologist and an anthropologist - use cultural analysis to interpret the Wengers both in and outside Pennsylvania. They systematically compare the Wengers with other Mennonite groups as well as with the Amish, showing how relationships with these other groups have had a powerful impact on shaping the identity of the Wenger Mennonites in the Anabaptist world. As Kraybill and Hurd show, the Wengers have learned that it is impossible to maintain a static culture in an ever-changing, high-tech world. Examining how the Wengers have cautiously and incrementally adapted to the changes swirling around them, this book offers an invaluable case study of a traditional group caught in the throes of a postmodern world."--BOOK JACKET