Mennonites in Early Modern Poland and Prussia
Mennonites in Early Modern Poland and Prussia
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Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
ISBN: 9780801891137
Number of Pages: 280
Published: 20/07/2009
Width: 15.2 cm
Height: 22.9 cm
At a time when religious conflicts and persecution plagued early modern Europe, Poland and Prussia were havens for Mennonites and other religious minorities. Noted Anabaptist scholar Peter J. Klassen examines this extraordinary example of religious tolerance. Through extensive archival research in Poland, Germany, and the Netherlands, Klassen unearths rich material that has rarely, if ever, been studied previously. He demonstrates how the interaction of religious, political, and economic factors created a situation in Poland and Prussia that permitted a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. Mennonites in Early Modern Poland and Prussia focuses on the large Mennonite community in these countries. Klassen reveals how the Anabaptist groups were treated and explores whether the uncommon religious freedom they enjoyed gave rise to a flourishing of their faith or a falling away from its central tenets. Early modern Poland and Prussia are virtually ignored in most studies of the Reformation. Klassen brings them to light and life by focusing on an unusual oasis of tolerance in the midst of a Europe convulsed by the wars of religion.
Klassen's narrative makes an important contribution to the study of religion. -- Adam Darlage Journal of Religion 2010 Worthwhile book. -- James M. Stayer Journal of Church History 2010 A significant contribution to Mennonite history. -- Paul W. Knoll Slavic Review 2010 Pete Klassen has made a valuable contribution to Mennonite historiography, and this book should be read by anyone interested in understanding the history of the Mennonites in Poland and Prussia. -- Richard D. Thiessen Mennonite Historian 2009 Klassen's narrative makes an important contribution to the study of religion, especially for the reader interested in the lives of minority religious groups within contexts of religious pluralism. -- Adam Darlage Journal of Religion 2010
