MY OLD ORDER MENNONITE HERITAGE

The Booklet My Old Order Mennonite Heritage will appear in a sequel in Cross Cultures; by kind permission from the auther/publisher, Mary Ann Horst. The National Film Board of Canada has chosen it as their source of information for a film strip depicting Old Order Mennonite Life in Waterloo County. In addition to writing this booklet, which has been a local best seller and has been translated into German, Mary Ann Horst has authored Pennsylvania Dutch Fun, Folklor and Cooking. She also wrote the script for the Child's colouring book, Amsey and Sarah of Waterloo County. A long time vendor of Kitchener Farmers' Market, Mary Ann, in collaboration with photographer James Hertel, published the book: Our Wonderful Kitchener Farmers' Market. Twenty-two years, and ten printings later, Mary Ann feels it is time to make a few additions to her booklet. She will endeavour to give some information on some of the changes that have taken place in the last few decades, as well as on the exodus of some of the Waterloo County Mennonites to the Mount Forest area in latest publication, which is a sequel to 'My Old Order Mennonite Heritage', is entitled Old Order to Modern Mennonite. Introduction:

Frequently in my daily contacts with people, I am asked questions concerning the Old Order Mennonites. It is my hope that this booklet will provide answers to many of the questions which people are asking concerning this denomination of my forebears. Old Order Mennonite Worship

I grew up in an Old Order Mennonite home where cars and radios and cosmetics were not permitted. As a child I wore the traditional plain button down the back dress and pinafore apron coming well below my knees.

While I have ceased to practise many of the customs and traditions of my Old Order Mennonite forebears, I have never forgotten that my early life had its roots in this cultural setting and I have in my heart a very warm spot for these people.

Sometimes in my conversations with people I am asked the question, "Why did you leave the Old Order church?"

Usually I reply something like this, "Because I wanted more freedom than they allow their members to have."

However, when I give this reply I always feel it is only a partial answer. To give a more complete answer would require the telling of a good part of my life story. For any who may be interested the following pages will provide an opportunity of a glimpse, not only into my own life, but into the general everyday life of the Old Order Mennonite people.

The Old Order Mennonites are among the most conservative of the Mennonite groups. Most of them are farmers, and have no cars and travel by horse and buggy. Their well kept farm homes are a tribute to their agricultural prowess.

Their church buildings, which they refer to as meeting houses, are of white painted clapboard with no ornamental accessories. Inside the church the walls are white washed, and the only furnishings are plain benches of unvarnished pine wood.

The meeting house which I most frequently attended as a child is a mile outside of the little Ontario village of Floradale. Memories of those two hour Sunday morning services are printed indelibly on my mind.

Behind the long unvarnished pine pulpit sit five or six solemn faced men. These are all ministers or deacons with perhaps one bishop. Like their fellow members the Old Order Mennonite ministers usually are farmers and receive no remuneration for their preaching. They also have no specialized training to equip them for the ministry.

The men are all clean shaven and the older men wear their hair a little longer than most of general society. The young men usually have conventional haircuts but do not follow modern fads in hair styles.

The older men usually wear a suit of dark grey. The coat which has no collar is buttoned up to the neckband and has a few slits up the center back. The young men wear dark colored suits with lapelled collars, navy blue being the most common. The coat may or may not have slits up the center back.

Women sit on one side of the church and men on the other side, with each sex sitting with their approximate age group. The ladies remove their fringed black shawls and coats and hang them in the lobby before entering the main body of the church. On their heads they wear the traditional white prayer cap which is tied under the chin. Their dresses, which are usually of a dark solid color or a small check or floral design, have long full skirts. They wear a cape and apron of the same material.

There is no lobby for the men and they hang their broad-brimmed black hats on the pegs of the wooden bars which hang from the ceiling above the benches.

At their worship services the ordained clergy always greet one another with a kiss. This kiss is not only an expression of brotherly love; it is also practised as an act of obedience to the command given to the early church by the apostle Paul to, "greet one another with a holy kiss."

The office of minister is considered one of grave responsibility. While the Old Order Mennonites are generally not averse to laughter and practical jokes, the Old Order Mennonite minister never makes an attempt at humor in his sermons. I cannot recall ever having seen even the trace of a smile on the faces of any of the ministers when they were behind the pulpit. to be continued...

This article was originally published in Cross Cultures Magazine in Volume 1 - Issue 3 - 1992. Unauthorized copying, distribution or other usage without express written permission of the publisher is prohibited.