It was a hard time to be a pacifist during World War I.

When the U.S. officially entered the war in 1917, American Mennonites and other Anabaptists largely held fast to the pacifistic stance of nonresistance. Young Mennonite men were conscripted into military training camps upon the government’s promise they wouldn’t be coerced into service against their conscience. Some accepted noncombatant roles and served in medical or supply and support services, while others were allowed to work on farm furloughs or went to Europe to serve with the Friends Reconstruction Unit, said Dr. Andrew Suderman, associate professor in theology, peace, and mission at 91����Ƶ. 

“The War Department, however, in fact, intended to persuade as many pacifists as possible to join the war crusade,” he said.

A number of conscientious objectors (COs) were court-martialed and sent to prison, he said, with some COs used as test subjects during the war. These tests included “positional resiliency”—forcing COs to maintain uncomfortable or strenuous positions for extended periods, often under harsh conditions—as well as nutritional limits and needs. “In other words,” Suderman said, “how few calories does a human actually need to live?”

“Due to this conflict … some European Mennonites saw the need for Mennonites from different nations to come together and wrestle with what it means to be a community of faith that spans different nationalities, including the nationalities that were in conflict with each other,” he said. “This led in June of 1925 to the first gathering of the Mennonite World Conference, which also commemorated the 400-year anniversary of the Anabaptist movement.”

The professor, who serves as director of global partnerships at Mennonite Mission Network and as the secretary of Mennonite World Conference’s Peace Commission, delivered the fifth and final installment in the “Anabaptism 1525/2025: Five Centuries, Five Lectures” series on Thursday evening in Martin Chapel. He spoke about the history of Anabaptism in the 20th century and explored how the faith movement, which began in Europe and largely remained in the North Atlantic region during its first four centuries, has become a truly global phenomenon.

Today, there are over 2 million Christians in the world who identify as Anabaptists, he said, including 72% of whom live in the Global South or “Majority World.” Suderman shared his own experiences of witnessing the Mennonite presence and influence in Colombia and South Africa.

The lecture series was sponsored by the Shenandoah Mennonite Historians, planned by Caleb Schrock-Hurst ’18, MA ’22, and Elwood Yoder ’81, and partially funded by the Kennel-Charles Lecture Series at Eastern Mennonite School (EMS). It featured five speakers who traced the journey of the Anabaptist movement throughout the five centuries. Starting on Thursday, Jan. 30 (), Dr. John D. Roth, project director of MennoMedia’s Anabaptism at 500 , highlighted the emergence of Anabaptism in the 1500s. On Feb. 6 (), Dr. Mary Sprunger, professor of history at 91����Ƶ, spoke about how Anabaptists were already in places and positions of wealth and privilege by the 1600s. On Feb. 13 (), longtime EMS teacher Yoder shared how Anabaptists in the 1700s were pressured because of their faith and how it challenged some of the social norms. On Feb. 20 (), Schrock-Hurst, a member of the Virginia Mennonite Conference, highlighted the ways Mennonites were affected by and leaned into modernization during the 1800s. This lecture series was a grassroots collaboration by historians, theologians, and church leaders to mark the 500th anniversary of Anabaptism.

In his lecture, Suderman spoke about the dangers of continuing to only deconstruct the Anabaptist narrative without considering what is being constructed. In a message to 91����Ƶ News, he clarified that “there are things that need to be deconstructed. But many around the world also find the Anabaptist story and identity as life-giving.”

“Because of our growing distance from life-and-death struggles, perhaps largely because of our general affluence when compared to the rest of the world, Anabaptism too easily becomes a concept that we can debate rather than an embodied way of life,” he said during the lecture. “Our global companions, however, experience Anabaptism as a life-giving, emancipatory way of being in the world.”

Watch his lecture on YouTube .

The Shenandoah Mennonite Historians have promoted the study, interest, and awareness of Mennonite history since 1993. They conduct tours, hold an annual meeting, and produce a quarterly journal called Shenandoah Mennonite Historian. The Historian officers who endorsed this lecture series are Jim Hershberger, Chair; 91����Ƶ Professor Emeritus of History, Gerald Brunk; Jim Rush; Gary Smucker; Norman Wenger; and Elwood Yoder.

Learn more here:

The upcoming lecture features historian, author, and investigative reporter Rick Shenkman on the topic, “Why is Democracy so @#$&! Hard?” at 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28.

The event is free and open to the public on . (You do not need a Facebook account to view.) Members of the 91����Ƶ community can access a Zoom link through logging into My91����Ƶ and visiting the events calendar.

History department chair Mary Sprunger believes Keim – “ a voracious consumer of political news” – would have appreciated this timely appearance, so close to an important election, of a historian-provacateur. 

Sprunger says she’s hoped to invite Shenkman to campus for many years: “He first came to my attention as the founder and editor (recently retired) of (HNN), an online platform that brings history to bear on the news. When I saw his book, (Basic Books, 2016), I was even more intrigued. His work brings together history and politics in the best kind of way and, with the election just around the corner, he was the perfect speaker for this fall.”

This event is part of the 91����Ƶ University Colloquium Series, and is co-sponsored by the Keim Lectureship. 

More on Shenkman’s Lecture

In the 1940s, six in ten Americans hadn’t gone past the eighth grade. Today a majority have attended college. But surveys show that Americans today are no better educated about politics. A majority don’t even know that we have three branches of government. What’s gone wrong? The answer to the question would seem to be that we have a voter problem.  But Shenkman argues what we actually have is a human being problem. In his talk he draws on research in history and science to explain why modern humans fail so often at tasks they should be good at (like deciding which politicians we can trust with power). He also asks why, despite obvious improvements in our democracy — such as the extension of voting rights to African Americans in 1965 — the system seems to be so frustratingly unequal to the challenges we face.  He ends his talk on an optimistic note. Science shows that for all their faults human beings share one gift that saves them time and again:  our adaptability to change and our willingness in the end to face reality.  

More on Shenkman

Shenkman is the founder of George Washington University’s , a website that features leading historians’ perspectives on current events. He can regularly be seen on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC. He is a New York Times best-selling author of seven history books and an Emmy award-winning investigative reporter and the former managing editor of KIRO-TV, the CBS affiliate in Seattle. In 1997, he was the host, writer and producer of a prime time series for The Learning Channel inspired by his books on myths. In 2008, he was elected a Fellow of the Society of American Historians. He gives lectures at colleges around the country on several topics, including American myths and presidential politics.

More on the Keim Lecture Series

The Albert N. Keim Lecture Series honors the memory of Professor Albert N. Keim who has served as a history professor here for 35 years and was the academic dean from 1977 to 1984.

Learn more about past presenters, in this sampling:

2020: Professor Ernesto Verdeja, of the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at University of Notre Dame, discusses early warning and risk assessment projects to anticipate, and thus prepare for, possible outbreaks of mass political violence. 

2019: Federal public defender, immigrant rights attorney and playwright Kara Hartzler ’94 spoke on “Borders, Jails, and Long Drives in the Desert: 25 Years of Immigration Law in the Southwest.”

2017: Dr. Dongping Han, professor at Warren-Wilson College and a native of rural China, addressed “The Cultural Revolution: A Reinterpretation from Today’s China.”

2016: Artist/activist provided a lecture titled “Performing Statistics: Connecting incarcerated youth, artists, and leading policy experts to challenge Virginia’s juvenile justice system.”

2015: , political scientist in the University of Kansas’s School of Public Affairs and Administration, presented “The Police and Racial Discrimination in America.”

2014: , a pastor, activist and history professor who helped EMC professors initiate social change in Harrisonburg during the early 1960s, presented “Is America Possible?”

First date of publication 10/17/2020

Describe your field of study and research.

After graduating from 91����Ƶ, I studied government at Johns Hopkins University concentrating on political communication and democracy studies. My thesis topic was on the importance of local government and how it has a greater impact on the everyday lives of citizens than our federal and state governments that tend to dominate the headlines. I examined this through a case study of the impacts high school consolidation in Rockbridge County, Virginia, and national trends to consolidate schools.

After I finished graduate school, Paul Yoder [professor of teacher education at 91����Ƶ] and I wrote an article for the , where we used a lesson about school consolidation in Rockbridge County as a way to teach how local government works through inquiry and primary source research.

How did your academic studies and professors at 91����Ƶ prepare you for your graduate studies?

Professors Paul Yoder and Mary Sprunger helped me immensely in my preparation for graduate school. My senior history seminar thesis focused on Rockbridge County’s school and local history and I carried that over into my Honors Program capstone, where, under Paul’s guidance, I used my research to develop lesson plans to teach students about local government. 

These two projects challenged my ability to synthesize, summarize, and analyze a ton of information in such a way that I could present it clearly to a younger audience. Going into graduate school, these skills were useful for my work on my thesis portfolio and for comprehensive assignments and projects for my other classes.

What do you think made your application to graduate school stand out among others?

I think the focus of my writing samples on local government helped. I submitted one short paper that I wrote in a juvenile justice course about the closing of one juvenile facility in Natural Bridge, Virginia. Most of my colleagues in the graduate program were focusing on national or state level issues of government and politics. While these are still important, my focus on the local level from Day One provided a unique perspective. While my colleagues would focus on President Trump, redistricting, and partisanship, I would discuss how individual communities would be affected by different policies.

What attracted you to attend 91����Ƶ as an undergraduate?

When I was looking at different colleges I had three criteria: I wanted to go to a school with a strong education program, I wanted to go to a Christian university, and I wanted to run cross country. As I got to know some of the faculty and staff through my visits at 91����Ƶ, I felt that not only did  it fit my criteria, but that I was at home. Even though my family had a strong military background — very different from a Mennonite one — I was accepted by the staff and eventually my peers in my first semester. 91����Ƶ provided a welcoming community along with the tools for success I was seeking. 

What are some favorite memories of your time at 91����Ƶ?

I best remember my time with my cross country and track and field teammates. We bonded well, had great discussions, and were very competitive against other teams. My roommates all studied very different majors from me, so I remember always discovering different or unique perspectives in conversation. My time at 91����Ƶ helped me grow a lot.

What do you think makes 91����Ƶ graduates distinctive?

Their focus on worldview and placing their perspective in the context of other perspectives. This focus fosters a big picture approach to problem-solving and critical thinking when it is easy to get stuck in the small details.

Tell us about your current work and what you most enjoy about it.

I currently teach government, both regular and for college credit, and world history at Powhatan High School. I greatly enjoy the discussions that take place in my government classes. It is an interesting time to study our president and Congress, and the students have so many questions and are genuinely interested. My students in all of my classes are very curious and I enjoy working with them and teaching them through their inquiry.

What will a post-pandemic world look like? How is COVID-19 affecting each of us differently, and what are our responsibilities to one another in the face of those disparities? What do we know about the biology of the virus? And are there things that are changing for the better because of this crisis?

A free seven-week online course offered at 91����Ƶ this summer will delve into those questions and more. Community members are welcome. Students can opt for a pass/fail grade and will have online access to readings, videos, and other materials before each class. 

The course meets each Tuesday evening, beginning June 30, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. for seven weeks, with a different pair or trio of faculty and staff from different academic fields leading each class.

The lectures and Q and A will be recorded and available for viewing later.

The course is co-led by language and literature professor Kevin Seidel and chemistry professor Laurie Yoder.

“What pulled me in at first was the possibility of teaching with faculty from all three schools – sciences, social sciences, and humanities – talking together and learning from one another about the virus,” Seidel said. When the pandemic hit, he started fervently gathering information and perspective: from scientists, from fictive literature, and from poetry, trying to make sense of “this strange new world.” 

Week 1 | June 30, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Treating COVID-19

What do we know about the biology of COVID-19? What’s next in vaccine development? What public health measures are working to slow the spread of COVID-19?

Kristopher Schmidt, Associate Professor of Biology

Kate Clark, Assistant Professor of Nursing

Week 2 | July 7, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Pandemic History and Data

What can we learn from past pandemics about life after this one? What can we learn from visual presentations of data about the pandemic? 

Mary Sprunger, Professor of History

Daniel Showalter, Associate Professor of Mathematics

Week 3 | July 14, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Politics and Collective Trauma

Why has the U.S. response to COVID-19 been so contentious and uneven? What is collective trauma and what might it have to do with that response?

Mark Metzler Sawin, Professor of History

Ryan Thompson, Assistant Professor of Psychology

Trina Trotter Nussbaum, Associate Director, Center for Interfaith Engagement

Week 4 | July 21, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Zoonotic Viruses, Wet Markets, and the Economics of COVID-19

Where do coronaviruses come from? What are the links between environmental degradation and pandemics? What does COVID-19 have to teach us about how our economy is connected to the natural world? What are the economic impacts from a pandemic?

Jim Yoder, Professor of Biology

Jim Leaman, Associate Professor of Business and Leadership

Week 5 | July 28, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Our Life with Animals, Our Life with God

Why are so many people taking refuge in nature during the pandemic? Why is that refuge harder to come by for some people? What do the scriptures say about how our life with God is related to our life with animals? 

Steven Johnson, Professor of Visual and Communication Arts 

Andrea Saner, Associate Professor of Old Testament

Week 6 | August 4, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Systemic Racism in the U.S. before and after COVID-19

Why has COVID-19 hit African-Americans harder than other groups? Why does rural Navajo Nation have the highest infection rates in the country?

Jenni Holsinger, Associate Professor of Sociology 

Matt Tibbles, Teaching Fellow, Applied Social Sciences

Jim Yoder, Professor of Biology

Week 7 | August 11, Tuesday, 6:30–8:30 p.m.

Resilience, Repair, and Transformation after COVID-19

How do we carry forward what we’ve learned about COVID-19, trauma, and restorative justice? 

Johonna Turner, Assistant Professor of Restorative Justice and Peacebuilding

Katie Mansfield, Lead Trainer, Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR)

Through its strategic location in Washington D.C. and over 40 years of relationship-building with local organizations, WCSC is well-situated to provide impactful learning and internship experiences for all students, including those in 91����Ƶ’s new political studies and global studies majors. Political studies students will have a semester at WCSC built into their program.

“WCSC has long-term connections and a history of successful placements with many area organizations working in public policy, advocacy, and international aid, among other fields,” said Director Kimberly Schmidt. “We are one of the few liberal arts universities with dedicated buildings and a local staff, which shows a real commitment to offering this kind of resume-building and urban cultural experience to students in all academic programs.”

During the visit, students majoring in history, peacebuilding and development, and global studies learned how their studies might apply to different types of positions and professions.

Informing politicians

The day began at the . After a tour, the group settled in for a discussion about MCC’s initiatives. MCC staff described how their office brings policy points from the organization’s worldwide peacebuilding and humanitarian projects back to Washington to inform politicians at the national level and advocate for justice issues.

“MCC’s D.C. office provides students [with the opportunity] to learn the nuts-and-bolts of advocacy work from within a pragmatic but also deeply Anabaptist setting,” said history professor Mark Metzler Sawin.

Members of the , a local group that includes several 91����Ƶ and WCSC program alums, joined the conversation for lunch. Pastors discussed how they have worked to reconcile and bridge the divide between the political overlay of DC and local populations that remain underserved and underrepresented.

Connecting equity issues to international challenges

Discussion of this local landscape offered context for the group’s next stop at , which engages in community organizing for equity and local housing rights. Here they joined current WCSC students for a special seminar with the organization’s leaders and with intern Kamran Mamedovi, a second-year graduate student at 91����Ƶ’s . Mamedovi and another fellow graduate student are completing a required semester-long practicum while living in community with WCSC students.

Mamedovi described why he chose ONE DC for his practicum and his initial goal of learning frameworks from the Black struggle for equality in the US that he could apply to situations of ethnic inequality in his home country of Georgia. Along with ONE DC staff, he discussed the organization’s theory of change, which focuses on structural changes that go beyond service and advocacy alone. While Mamedovi noted that the answers to his questions are far more difficult and complex than he had imagined, he holds hope. “The biggest hope [for structural change] is if you can create an environment where everyone feels ownership and trust–where you feel it’s yours.”

The politics of climate change

The last stop before heading to the WCSC Nelson Good House for dinner was with , a communications non-profit focusing on climate change. The group met with Senior Research Associate Nathan Kauffman ‘10, who participated in the WCSC program during his junior year.

“Nathan’s work vividly illustrates where strong research and writing skills can take you,” Sawin said. “Climate Nexus is an excellent internship option for people interested in environmental policy, but also those interested in honing their persuasive skills.”

Interns contribute to social, political landscape

The visit helped students and professors alike to see the variety of organizations and methods of engaging in policy work that students can explore. “These internships help students gain professional experience and distinguish themselves to potential employers,” Schmidt said.

“WCSC offers more than a typical internship program,” said Director of Career Services Kimberly Phillips. “Students are given the opportunity to contribute in meaningful ways and change the social and political landscapes around them.”

Students on the fall-cross-cultural, led by Professor Mary Sprunger and Myrrl Byler, experienced the vastness and diversity of China, from Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Buddhist temples and the Great Wall to villages, rice fields and sacred mountains. 

While the semester of travel was an experiential introduction to the county’s social, political and environmental challenges and 4,000-year history, it also provided connection to its people, with the group of 10 students visiting with Chinese Christians and university students, as well as staying with host families.

91����Ƶ faculty have introduced students to cultural learning through educational travel in more than 80 locations around the globe over the last 30 years. Graduates call the experiences “life-changing,” and say they provide a foundation for global living, leading and serving. Through studying in China, 91����Ƶ students gained insights into the country that, with the world’s largest population, will become even more globally significant in coming decades.

The students shared and stories of their experiences during a December campus worship service, and wrote blog posts throughout the semester.

The group was based in Nanchong, a “small provincial city” of “only about 1.3 million,” Brandi Nelson wrote. There they were able to observe urban and rural life away from Western influence and the modernization in larger cities. That location “gave us a more realistic view of China,” she wrote.

When students met their host families in Nanchong, Anna Cahill wrote, “I was terrified, but I was also hopeful. … I silently prayed to be assigned to a family who knew English.” They didn’t – but Cahill soon found them to be “wonderful” and “loving.”

The story of (Hyperion Children’s Books, 2009), written by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustrated by Scott Magoon, is one of Huxman’s favorites, she told the crowd in Lehman Auditorium, and provides an encouraging lesson relevant to the start of the new academic year.

Little Spoon decides life isn’t “cutting it,” and it takes hearing from the other utensils about their limitations and what they envy about him (for example, he has the joy of diving into a bowl of ice cream and the warmth of swirling around in a cup of hot tea) to make him think twice about his own capabilities.

“We should zealously value the diverse attributes of others if we want to succeed as citizens, as experts in our field, and as innovative entrepreneurs in society,” Huxman said.

Sometimes reflecting on “your special attributes and your unique talents” in the company of others brings a new perspective, that “your talents are important, valued, and even necessary,” she concluded.

With diversify joining grow, engage and celebrate as one of the four goals of 91����Ƶ’s 2017-22 strategic plan, Huxman encouraged students to become active partners and participants: “Students, I wish you well. In addition to doing well in class and making new friends, I encourage you to think boldly and ask yourself, ‘How can I engage around the table with a diversity of people and ideas?’”

To highlight diversity around campus, Huxman introduced representatives from four of the 30 campus clubs. Jakiran Richardson, with Black Student Union, Ariel Barbosa, Latino Student Alliance, and Paul Kayembe, International Student Organization, each spoke briefly about upcoming opportunities for involvement. Celeste Thomas, director of Multicultural Student Services, gave a brief plug for February’s Martin Luther King Day – a “day on,” she called it – of service, learning and remembrance.

Convocation also included a welcome from Provost Fred Kniss, who situated 91����Ƶ as a faith-based learning community within a larger history and legacy of liberal arts institutions.

91����Ƶ is “a safe place where faculty and students can explore together the most difficult and most significant questions of our day, using all the tools of science and scholarly inquiry,” he said. “And we do this within the context of a community of faith.  As we gain a deeper understanding of our world, our society, and our selves, we also come to know more deeply who God is and how to live more faithful lives.”

The standing ovation of the morning (supplemented by heartfelt whoops of admiration) was awarded to Professor David Berry, who performed a jazzy piano selection billed as an “instrumental response” to the preceding speakers. (.)

Convocation closed with a commissioning of the China cross-cultural group, departing late in the evening, led by Professor Mary Sprunger and Myrrl Byler, adjunct professor and director of Mennonite Partners in China.

And then ice cream was served on Thomas Plaza. Spoons were available.

Among the 80 participants were representatives of each of the five schools, all founded in the 30 years between 1887 and 1917. The oldest, Bethel College, was founded in 1887, followed by Goshen College (1893), Bluffton University (1899), Hesston College (1908) and 91����Ƶ (1917). Since their founding, all have undergone dramatic transformations in purpose, subjects taught and extracurricular activities, and student demographics.  

“Origin stories are important to help us understand present realities,” said Bluffton University President James Harder, who joined presidents emeriti Loren Swartzendruber, of 91����Ƶ, and Victor Stoltzfus, of Goshen College, as guest speakers.

Panel sessions with the authors and other commentators highlighted the “commonality and unity” among Mennonite institutions during the previous century and considered how Mennonite higher education might look in the challenges and opportunities of the next century, said Professor Mark Metzler Sawin, who organized the conference with colleague Professor Mary Sprunger.

“It was an energizing and fascinating day,” he said. “What came through was a strong desire for these schools to maintain distinctively Anabaptist identities, but to do so in ways that embrace and celebrate the changes that have come and will continue to come in the next years and decades.”

“Among the many stimulating aspects of this gathering,” said Susan Fisher Miller, author of Goshen College’s history, “were the ways old questions covered in the college histories were recognized, by the time we reached the evening session, to impinge with relevance on the new questions in the current life of the colleges, or even the ways the new questions cast light backward on the old.”

Learning from the past

Sprunger, a historian herself and daughter of Bethel history author Professor Keith Sprunger, said that the genesis of a comparative centennial histories symposium came from several sources: The late Robert Kreider, founder of the Marpeck Dean’s fund, provided some initial ideas. She also tapped into a similarly themed roundtable hosted by Bethel College as part of the launch of her father’s book and input from Hesston College history author and professor John Sharp, who suggested a future-focused frame.

“He wanted to explore how board members, administrators, faculty, students and churches could learn from past mistakes and achievements,” Sprunger said. “He gave me the idea that these college histories could serve not as blueprints for the future, because history doesn’t work that way, but as providing an informed understanding of how our colleges developed as we think about the future. It then made sense to focus on the five Mennonite Church USA-affiliated colleges, since we are facing many of the same challenges.”

Some of those challenges include the smaller percentage of Mennonite students; lowered denominational and institutional loyalty; and stiff competition for students, especially related to financial costs, according to Sawin and Sprunger.

Crowd-sourced responses to current challenges

After two morning sessions that spanned historical context over the first 100 years, beginning with the purposes and distinctives of each school and moving into past challenges and adversity, an afternoon discussion forum stoked conversation in small groups about current challenges.

Some questions addressed include:

• ������������What should the guiding mission and purpose of Mennonite schools be in the coming years given the changes in both the church and the student bodies?
• ������������What can Mennonite colleges do to remain financially competitive? Do we have a responsibility to provide an education for even the economically “least of these”?
• ������������How will Mennonite colleges need to change to remain relevant in the future? What are the “givens” that must remain? What are the traditions that may need to change? Where does innovation need to occur?

Current students from the colleges and universities engaged in “lively conversation, sharing ideas such as now to equip students of all backgrounds to participate in leadership opportunities around campus,” Sprunger said. Their points helped to fuel the final session about the present and future of Mennonite higher education.

Student presence and participation was noted by the other speakers, who pointed out that the future of the colleges will soon rest in their hands.

For more coverage, read a blog entry by 91����Ƶ archivist Simone Horst at the .

***

Participating authors

Perry Bush is the author of (Cascadia Publishing House, 2000). He is professor of history at Bluffton University where he has taught since 1994. Bush has written widely on social, peace and religious history in 20th-century America in both popular and scholarly journals and is the author of three additional books, most recently Peace, Progress and the Professor: The Mennonite History of C. Henry Smith (Herald Press, 2015). He is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon University.

Susan Fisher Miller is the author of (Goshen College, 1994). At Northwestern University, she is senior associate director in the Office of Foundation Relations, where she helps faculty members obtain research funding from private foundations. Fisher Miller previously taught at Goshen and Wheaton colleges and North Park University. She has been a member of the Goshen College Board of Directors since 2015. She is a graduate of Goshen College and Northwestern University.

Donald B. Kraybill is the author of (Penn State Press, 2017). He is internationally recognized for his scholarship on Anabaptist groups and often consulted by the news media regarding the Amish. He is distinguished professor and senior fellow emeritus at the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College. Kraybill is the author, coauthor, or editor of many books and professional articles on Anabaptist-related topics and his Mennonite best-seller, the Upside Down Kingdom (Herald Press) has just appeared in a 40th-anniversary edition.

John Sharp is the author of Hesston’s history, (Cascadia Publishing House, 2008), where he teaches history and Bible. Since, he has written My Calling to Fulfill: The Orie O. Miller Story (Herald Press, 2015) and The Bible as Story: An Introduction to Biblical Literature (WorkPlay Publishing, 2016) with co-authors Michele Hershberger and Marion Bontrager.

Keith Sprunger wrote (Mennonite Press, 2011), his eighth and most recent book to date, to celebrate the 125th anniversary, or quasquicentennial, of Bethel’s founding. Sprunger, who is Oswald H. Wedel Professor Emeritus of History at Bethel College, has published on topics of 17th-century English and Dutch Puritanism, Mennonite history, oral history and historic preservation. He retired after nearly 40 years of teaching in 2001. He is a graduate of Wheaton College and University of Illinois.

Participating presidents

Loren Swartzendruber began his career in Mennonite higher education as associate director of admissions and associate campus pastor at 91����Ƶ. He has been a pastor, a staff member on the Mennonite Board of Education, and president of Hesston College and 91����Ƶ.

Victor Stoltzfus studied at Goshen College, AMBS, Kent State University and Penn State. He worked for 15 years in public universities and 15 years in administration at Goshen College, for three years as academic dean and 12 years as president (1984-1996). He is the father of current Goshen president Rebecca Stoltzfus.

James Harder, a graduate of Bethel College and University of Notre Dame, is Bluffton University’s ninth president in its 119-year history. He will have completed 12 years in that role upon his planned retirement on June 30. He has also been on the faculty at Bethel College and Bluffton in business and economics. and his wife Karen taught and worked together in Kenya, Tanzania and Bangladesh and India with Mennonite Central Committee and MEDA. Harder is active on church-wide boards and agencies.

More than 340 participants from 11 countries and 19 states attended the conference, titled “Crossing The Line: Women of Anabaptist Traditions Encounter Borders and Boundaries.” Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman, 91����Ƶ’s first female president, was warmly received during , which included the “Tale of Two Margarets,” highlighting persecuted Anabaptist heroine Margaret Hellwart and 91����Ƶ’s own Dr. Margaret “Speedy” Martin Gehman.

The conference brought together esteemed scholars, such as keynote speaker Hasia Diner, professor of history at New York University, and Old Colony artists such as Veronica Enns, of Chihuahua, Mexico.

Though nervous about sharing her stories and artwork with strangers, Enns says she quickly found warmth, hospitality and a deep commonality with conference attendees from different educational backgrounds and geographic roots.

“We all had walked common grounds as woman who often encounter similar boundaries,” she said. “I had found my tribe.”

For more conference coverage, visit the .

Comparative dialogue encouraged

“Crossing the Line” was initiated and planned by a bi-national committee, some of whom were involved in the first conference in the United States on the history of women of Anabaptist tradition. This conference, titled “Quiet in the Land?” took place in 1995 at Millersville University. 91����Ƶ 35 participants returned for the 2017 event.

Professors and , of 91����Ƶ, were conference organizers. Schmidt had also co-chaired the 1995 planning committee.

A common theme of both conferences was the fostering of engagement with the broader field of United States women’s history. That comparative dialogue was encouraged from the first plenary session, in which Diner spoke about Jewish American women’s history.

Subsequent evenings brought perspectives of Cynthia Peacock, with 38 years experience working with Mennonite Central Committee in India, and Dr. Sofia Samatar, an award-winning author of European Mennonite and Somali heritage, who has confronted challenges in both her personal life and in leadership of a women’s organization in the church.

Diner, professor of history at New York University, opened the conference with a lecture on American Jewish women: “a group of women who represent a globally dispersed community … shaped by the inability to disconnect religion and group identity, shaped by what religion demanded of them as articulated in sacred texts as well as traditions that developed over time, and defined as outsiders in the many places they lived around the world … experiencing persecutions and opportunities in societies of male hierarchy.”

Diner pointed out that her scholarly work focused on a different group of women, “but maybe not so different at all.”

Throughout the rest of the conference, which focused on Mennonite and Brethren in Christ women, “attendees could then draw comparisons to the ways in which Jewish women in America gradually gained voices—by asking for, begging for, demanding or claiming public presence and rights,” Sprunger said.

‘Step forward with more confidence’

Twenty-four panel sessions focused on a variety of themes and topics: expressive arts, peace and feminist theology, mission fields and experiences of women from various denominations.

“We also saw other themes emerge over the course of the conference, such as LGBTQ themes, sexual abuse in church institutions and women being shut out of pastoral ministry,” Sprunger said.

Jessie Hyejung Yum, a doctoral student at Emmanuel College, University of Toronto, spoke of her experiences within the Korean patriarchal ministerial community. She was particularly encouraged “to hear many stories and discuss topics mostly in women’s perspectives in diverse forms, from dance, music and art to personal, communal and social stories from around the world.” The experience of learning from and with “wise and courageous women of many different fields and locations was great encouragement to me to step forward with more confidence,” she said.

Art exhibits, readings of poetry and non-fiction, and performances of literary and musical memoirs were also offered.

Esther Muhagachi, of Tanzania, especially enjoyed the bus tour exploring Shenandoah Valley Mennonite women’s history and culture.

“I was very much encouraged to hear how women have been struggling to cross over the traditional boundaries for decades and decades,” she said, noting her own unique experience as the wife of a bishop in the Tanzanian Mennonite Church.

Looking ahead for new boundaries to cross

Session moderator Rosalind Andreas, a retired professor and university administrator with degrees from Bethel College, University of Kansas and University of Michigan, traveled from Kansas to enjoy fellowship and support the scholarship of former colleagues and friends.

“I’ve been watching many of these scholars work for some time …,” she said. “I’m coming away from each session with wonderful reflections on how boundaries get crossed in very challenging areas, which leads to some discernment about where next and what new boundaries can we look for.”

When asked if she was a boundary-breaker herself, Andreas shared that she was the first female dean of students at University of Arizona — a role she’s been recognized for in the university’s Women’s Plaza of Honor. Andreas was later vice president of student affairs at University of Vermont from 1989-1995.

Panel explores impact on women working and worshiping in global mission fields

Like the diverse offerings of the plenary speakers, concurrent sessions brought together both speakers and participants with varied backgrounds. For example, in a session titled “Lines of Memory and Encounter on the ‘Mission Field,’” panelists described women in missions and the impacts of missionary work on women in receiving countries.

Joel Horst Nofziger ‘13, of the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society, noted the changes over time for women missionaries in Ethiopia, who experienced fewer social constraints for women than in their home communities, but were still dissuaded from inter-cultural marriages.

Jan Bender Shetler, professor of history at Goshen College, described how the personal narratives of spiritual testimony, shared at revivals, created a new self-consciousness for women in the Tanzania Mennonite Church. [Her paper was delivered by Goshen student Jeanne Longenecker.]

And for the Dalit — the untouchables — of India, said Reverend Yennamalla Jayaker of the Mennonite Brethren Centenary Bible College, the educational roles of mission workers “brought political, social, economic, and religious consciousness,” leading to many teachers, lawyers and politicians who are both Dalit and Christian. The first such missionary, he said, was Elizabeth Neufeld, who opened a primary school with eight students in 1904. In following years, mission schools opened boarding homes for students.

“I was thrilled with the international presence at the conference and by the significant investment from younger scholars,” Schmidt said. “Judging from the breadth of topics and the ability of these younger scholars to engage in critical history, Mennonite history is in good hands.”

For more coverage

•  Shirley Showalter, author and president emeritus of Goshen College. writes about the conference on her ,
• as does author ,
• and as mentioned above, , provides excellent and thorough coverage of plenary speakers and some concurrent sessions.

Staff writer Chrisopher Clymer Kurtz contributed to this article.

In a recent blog post, Payne reflected her own growth as she ‘mimicks’ her experienced guides and then steps off on her own.

As a child, I played follow the leader. I mimicked the actions of others for fun.

As a college student, I find myself in a very similar situation. This cross-cultural is an extreme game of follow the leader.

Our leaders, Kim and Seth, model how to function in contemporary Europe. They guide us through cities and on public transportation. They gladly share their wisdom and calm our nerves. We follow. We learn by example.

These times of mimicking prepare us for times of independence. Almost daily we are given opportunities to explore or assignments to find specific locations. This is when the roles reverse. My peers and I will take turns directing, learning through practice.

Although this ever-changing game of follow the leader is fun and challenging, it has a specific focus. We are tracing the paths of our Anabaptist roots.

Besides the “Radical Europe” tour of Anabaptist sites in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, 91����Ƶ cross-cultural groups are in Bolivia, the Navajo Nation and Spain.

• The Bolivia group is led by Brian Martin Burkholder, campus pastor, and Linda Martin Burkholder, cross-cultural program assistant.
• The Navajo Nation group is led by Gloria Rhodes, chair of the applied social sciences department, and Jim Yoder, biology professor.
• The Spain group is led by Professor Adriana Rojas, of the language and literature department, her husband Patrick Campbell, and Barbara Byer, the department’s administrative assistant.

The 91����Ƶ cross-cultural experience, which has been part of the curriculum for more than 30 years, is very different from the typical “study abroad” program. Approximately 68 percent of all 91����Ƶ graduates go on an international cross-cultural trip; the remaining students fulfill the cross-cultural requirement exploring the vast diversity here in the United States. Most graduates name their cross-cultural experience as a significant part of their 91����Ƶ education.

Trips are led by faculty members who have deep roots in the countries and communities where groups travel. As an example of these deep roots, nearly 20 faculty and staff are “Third Culture Kids,” who spent significant years of their youth in another country/countries. Some 20 countries on six different continents are represented tin these experiences. Most 91����Ƶ faculty and staff have also lived and worked abroad for significant periods of time.

Upcoming cross-cultural trips include:

• Israel/Palestine, fall 2018, with Bill Goldberg, director of the Summer Peacebuilding Insitute, and Lisa Schirch, research professor at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding;
• Guatemala and Cuba, spring 2018, with Byron Peachey, academic advocacy program adviser, and Lisa King, instructor in the nursing department;
• India, spring 2018, Kim G. Brenneman, psychology professor, and her husband, Bob Brenneman;
• Kenya, summer 2018, with Roxy Allen Kioko, professor of business, and her husband, Felix Kioko;
• Paraguay, summer 2018, with Greta Anne Herin, professor of biology, and Laura Yoder, professor of nursing;
• Marginal(ized) Europe: Bulgaria and Greece, summer 2018, with Andrew White, professor of English, and his wife, Daria White;
• Lithuania, summer 2018, with Jerry Holsopple, professor in the visual and communication arts department;
• , offered each semester in Washington D.C. allows for immersion into urban culture, while acquiring valuable work experience in an internship.

Twenty-five concurrent sessions on a range of topics feature scholars and artists from around the United States and Canada, as well as India, Tanzania, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Germany, Mexico and Columbia.

“I anticipate that the breadth of scholarship, artistic engagement, as well as ethnic, racial and gender identities of the presenters and artists will provide rich comparative, cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural analyses,” says , professor of history at 91����Ƶ and director of the in Washington D.C.

“The program is so rich that it will be hard to choose which sessions to attend,” adds , chair of 91����Ƶ’s and co-director with Schmidt of the . “Come with some friends so you can divide and conquer, and compare notes later each day over coffee.”

Professor Hasia Diner offers the keynote address. Professor Sofia Samatar and veteran international aid administrator Cynthia Peacock provide plenary sessions.

Two bus tours on the theme of Mennonite women in the Shenandoah Valley are also offered, which include a family-style dinner in an Old Order Mennonite home.

Evening sessions offer a different experience in the arts: a visual gallery, poetry recitation and reading performance, and dance exhibition.

“Like many of the conference planning committee members, I’m a historian by trade, but I’m excited by the interdisciplinary nature of the sessions and evening events,” said Sprunger.

is open through May 15, with late fees applying after that date. Cost is $100 or $35 per day.

Plenary speakers

Keynote speaker Professor Hasia Diner opens the conference with a presentation that broadens the topic beyond women in the Anabaptist tradition. She will speak about Jewish women in America.

Schmidt says this choice was purposeful. “Comparative studies enable us to engage in the broader scholarly world. This lecture forces us to think of Mennonite women’s history not as separate and apart from the history of women, but as part of it. Mennonite women, like Jewish women, are members of distinctive ethno-religious communities and one of the key questions we’re asking at this conference is how that specific identity informs women’s agency.”

A professor of history at New York University, Diner has studied and written extensively about 19th and 20th century immigrant populations in the U.S. She has focused on Jewish, Irish and Italian immigrants, and their gender and religious structures.

On Friday, June 23, Cynthia Peacock will speak about “Overcoming Barriers and Building Empowerment: Stories of Anabaptist Women in India.” She is the Mennonite World Conference’s South Asia representative for India and Nepal, and serves her regional church communities in a variety of capacities. She worked for Mennonite Central Committee for 38 years doing social work, women’s empowerment training, and other development projects in India.

On Saturday, June 24, Sofia Samatar addresses “In Search of Women’s Histories: Crossing Space, Crossing Communities, Crossing Time.” Samatar, professor of English at James Madison University, moved around the world in childhood with her Somali father and Swiss-German Mennonite mother. Samatar specializes in the study of contemporary African and Arabic literature, and has won several awards for her fiction writings.

Sponsorships honor empowered Anabaptist women

In addition to major sponsorships by Marpeck Foundation, Mennonite Quarterly Review, Just Pax Fund, The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, the conference is also notably and uniquely funded by in their lives, including pastors, professors and family members.

Many were historians themselves, compiling genealogies and contributing to family histories and church newsletters. Others, such as Virginia Joy Peachey Spicher, earned a college degree as an adult, “commuting, working as a nurse, maintaining a 4.0.”

Daughter Julia Spicher Kasdorf graduated with her mother in 1984. She shares on the conference website, “Now I see what her degree meant.”

First conference on Anabaptist women’s history was in 1995

The conference builds on a 21-year-old legacy of a groundbreaking conference on women of Anabaptist traditions in history at Millersville University (Pa.) in 1995. That conference was titled “The Quiet in the Land? Women of Anabaptist Traditions in Historical Perspective.”

The phrase women of Anabaptist traditions has been retained in the new title to highlight the significant contributions to the field made both at Millersville and in the years since then, says Schmidt, who chaired the 1995 planning committee. “Women’s history among Mennonite scholars was definitely in its infancy in 1995,” she says. “There was a group of us who had graduated from American and Canadian universities who wanted to push forward the field, not only for scholars of Mennonite history, but to make sure we were engaging with the broader field of women’s history.”

Significantly, four other members on the 1995 planning committee have joined Schmidt to lead the efforts for the 2017 event. Schmidt returns in her role as co-chair, sharing leadership with Sprunger.

The lecture, titled “The Cultural Revolution: A Reinterpretation from Today’s China,” will be at 5 p.m. in the Strite Conference Room (#105) of 91����Ƶ’s Campus Center. It is sponsored by the Albert N. Keim Lecture Series and the 91����Ƶ History Department.

Following the lecture, Evan Davis, a sophomore history major from Falls Church, Virginia, and Wu Jing, a junior psychology major from Beijing, China, will provide brief responses.

“Understanding the story of modern China and especially how the Chinese themselves view their own history is essential for those who want to be informed about global politics and economics,” says Professor , chair of the 91����Ƶ . She leads a c to China in fall 2018.

Cross cultural co-leader Dr. , who teaches the history of Asia at 91����Ƶ and is executive director of , points out that Han’s lecture provides an important and distinctive perspective on the Cultural Revolution.

“There are good reasons why catastrophic events in history are presented from only one side,” he says. “However, the overwhelming negative consequences of such events can hide narratives that give context and a larger perspective. China’s size, diversity and complexity make it an easy target for generalizations and misunderstanding. The strategic importance of China in today’s world makes it imperative that we listen discerningly to voices that present the complexity of significant events.”

Han grew up in rural Shangdong province. After studying English literature, translation and education in China and Singapore, he completed a master’s degree in history at the University of Vermont and a PhD in politics at Brandeis University. In addition to teaching at Warren-Wilson, where he’s been since 2000, he holds special teaching appointments at Wenzhou University and Hebei University.

Han has published a range of scholarly works, including “The Unknown Cultural Revolution: Life and Change in a Chinese Village” (2008). He commentates on economics and politics for such news and analysis sites as China Daily and China-U.S. Focus. He has received many fellowships and research awards as well.

91����Ƶ has strong connections with China. Each year, the campus hosts 10-12 from approximately eight different universities for a sabbatical semester to learn about American culture and pedagogy. Additionally, an was formalized for cultural exchange in January 2015.

A cross-cultural group from 91����Ƶ, co-led by Byler, was last in China in the fall of 2015 (visit their cross-cultural blog).

More about the Albert N. Keim Lecture Series

Professor Albert “Al” N. Keim died in 2008 at the age of 72 of complications following a liver transplant. He served as a professor at 91����Ƶ for 35 years and was the academic dean from 1977 to 1984. The lecture series honors his memory.

Learn more about past presenters, in this sampling:

2016: Artist/activist provided a lecture titled “Performing Statistics: Connecting incarcerated youth, artists, and leading policy experts to challenge Virginia’s juvenile justice system.”

2015: , political scientist in the University of Kansas’s School of Public Affairs and Administration, presented “The Police and Racial Discrimination in America.”

2014: , a pastor, activist and history professor who helped EMC professors initiate social change in Harrisonburg during the early 1960s, presented “Is America Possible?”

Participants include , emeritus professor of peace theology; , now vice president of and the School of Graduate and Professional Studies;  history professor and department chair; archivist and seminary professor ; and , executive director of the .

The film gives a historical account of reformer Martin Luther’s life, the revolutionary act of his 95 theses, and the theological impact on Christianity. Key questions raised by the filmmakers are “Did the Reformation go too far?” and “Can the unity Jesus called for ever be achieved?”

“It gives a good overview of the 16th century Reformation in an interesting and engaging way,” says Grimsrud. “There is helpful attention paid to present-day relevance of that event.”

The 91����Ƶ representatives primarily speak on Anabaptist history, specifically its role in and reaction to the Reformation. Other featured experts include university and seminary faculty, theologians and clergymen.

“Certainly, and appropriately, the bulk of the film focuses on the mainline Reformation – Lutherans and Reformed – and the Catholic response. But the Anabaptists do get lengthy and respectful attention,” says Grimsrud.

Byler was tapped primarily to talk about “the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding as a contemporary Anabaptist expression of engaging the world,” he said. “Mohan’s emphasis on the tendency of denominational bodies to stress their differences rather than commonalities is an important challenge in this new season of polarization.”

91����Ƶ’s featured experts and their talking points

• Grimsrud gives an introduction Anabaptist history, including Menno Simons’ early life as a Catholic priest and brother’s involvement in the small, violent “Munsterite” faction of Anabaptism.
• Sprunger explains historical context as to the political subversion of adult baptism. “It was a movement of the people,” she says in the film, peasants and artisans forming separate congregations with distinct personalities.
• Byler and King round out Anabaptist perspectives on nonviolence, a literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount and humanization of “the enemy.”
• Yoder contributes bonus material to the film about conscientious objectors in World War I and intra-church dynamics among early Anabaptists. He explains that the Anabaptist’s Reformation was “radical” in the sense that it was “going back to the root,” both to emulate the purity of early Christianity, and to excise the corruption resulting from the conflation of church and state.

The three-hour series is available on DVD and online streaming at

In Sawin’s African-American history class, students investigate how African-American music and film impact larger American culture. This exploration raises other intersections of privilege, class, economics and politics.

“How, for example, can Louis Armstrong be the most popular performer in America at the same time that the KKK is winning elections in the South and promoting a racist agenda?” Sawin says. “And then later, we look at Blaxploitation films of the ‘70s. What does the financial and artistic success of these films, which simultaneously celebrate African-American culture but reinforce stereotypes at the same time, tell us about what is going on in the country at the time?”

Sawin, who has taught at 91����Ƶ since 2001, shares a contagious enthusiasm for American history that has spurred his undergraduate students and 91����Ƶ graduates to their own academic successes in the field. Last spring, then-junior E the Francis J. Ryan Undergraduate American Studies Paper Award at the Eastern American Studies Association annual conference.

Two alumni, Holly Scott ‘02 and Peter Lehman ‘09, were encouraged to pursue doctoral work in the field. Scott, a professor and graduate writing tutor at 91����Ƶ who recently completed her first book on US protest movements, earned a master’s degree in American studies at Penn State and a PhD in history at American University in American Studies. Lehman teaches at Hesston College in Kansas while completing his doctorate in American studies at Penn State.

“The way that Dr. Sawin can inspire students to produce conference-quality original scholarship on American cultural topics is a great asset to our history program at 91����Ƶ,” says department chair .

She adds that the interdisciplinary approach to history is present in other courses as well, and that students are encouraged to gain a global perspective, offered through area studies courses, such as the history of Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia. Sprunger, who has taught at 91����Ƶ for 24 years, says she introduced a world history survey course to curriculum offerings “because I think it is important for us as global citizens to have some idea of what has shaped the international context we inhabit.”

‘What makes America America?’

While 91����Ƶ doesn’t have a formal American studies program, Sawin teaches all his courses with the kind of creative, interdisciplinary approach that is the hallmark of the field. Both the field and the interdisciplinary approach has gained popularity around the world: next spring, Sawin will return to teach an American studies course at the University of Zagreb, Croatia, where he taught classes on US culture, literature and religion as a Fulbright Scholar in 2008-09.

A quick history lesson: The field of American studies developed during the Cold War, when the United States government wanted more academics exploring, studying and generally praising American culture and history to “reinforce America’s superiority to the Soviets.”

“The question American studies perpetually asks is, ‘What makes America American?’” Sawin says.

By the early 1950s, most schools had responded to this initiative with at least one class on American history viewed through the lens of culture. Programs soon morphed into anything but a conservative, patriotic agenda.

“Any time the federal government tries to do something with academics, it backfires,” Sawin says with a laugh. “It became left-leaning and socially active pretty quickly.”

Holly Scott’s area of specialization is social change movements: she is publishing her first book—Younger Than That Now: The Politics of Age in the 1960s—in June. She says her experience learning about and working in social justice issues as an undergraduate student at 91����Ƶ was a prime influence in her focus.

“Seeing their passion for their subject matters,” says Scott, who praises 91����Ƶ history professors for challenging her intellectually. “Enjoying the

world of ideas definitely put the idea of graduate study in my mind. I went to a large high school and never really saw myself as someone who might go into academic work. I think without the small classes and individual attention at 91����Ƶ, I probably never would have gone on to graduate school.”

Scott says she came to 91����Ƶ from a home where “lively political discussions” flourished. “And my dad has a great collection of 1960s record albums. As I dived deeper into the records, I started to see the connections between music, culture and politics—a combination that fits well in the American Studies world.”

That kind of cultural engagement is an experience that current students bring with them into the 91����Ƶ history classes, Sawin says. “Often, their experience with high school history is thin, mostly politics and economics with a little social culture. So when we look at film, music and literature, and when we take the religious, scientific and social movements of the country seriously, it helps create a more complete picture of America.”

Research inspires careers

Opportunities for independent research projects, often with an ethnographic slant, encourage students to look critically at the world and culture they live in. This spring, four students who had written research papers in Sawin’s “History of Recent America” class were invited to present at the American Studies Association’s Eastern Region conference (Sawin has served on the region’s executive committee since 2003, including two years as president and 91����Ƶ hosted the regional conference in 2013).

Peter Lehman took two courses with Sawin—“Reading 19th Century America” and “The History We Tell Ourselves,” which prompted the pursuit of American studies in his graduate work.

“I was interested in the histories of many different regions, but often felt like as Americans, we have the extra responsibility to have a clear-eyed view of our own history. It so greatly affects our self-perceptions,” Lehman says. “I have always enjoyed literature, as well, so American studies seemed like a great way to combine those two fields in a useful way.”

His time at 91����Ƶ, he added, also brought a faith lens and “sense of mission” to his studies.

“It can be interesting and fun studying U.S. culture,” he says, “but we as Christians must also understand where we should fit, how we can serve others, resist and otherwise relate to culture, while remaining sensitive to the impact of our own actions, narratives and traditions.”

Sawin hopes painting the tapestry of history with broad brushstrokes continues to inspire new learners.

“Students like having things made relevant, and cultural pieces are ones they resonate well with,” Sawin says. “You see how people lived day to day. It takes a lot of different methodologies from different disciplines to help people best understand.”

Conference participants are encouraged to think creatively and across disciplines about how Anabaptists, Mennonites, Amish and related groups have crossed and continue to cross lines, borders and boundaries.

Applicants should submit a one-page CV and a 250-word abstract describing the paper, presentation, performance or panel/workshop session (with presenters indicated) to awcrossingtheline@gmail.com by Sept. 1, 2016.

Maturing field of study

The conference builds on a 21-year-old legacy of a groundbreaking conference on women of Anabaptist traditions in history at Millersville University in 1995. That conference was titled “The Quiet in the Land? Women of Anabaptist Traditions in Historical Perspective.”

The phrase women of Anabaptist traditions has been retained in the new title to highlight the significant contributions to the field made both at Millersville and in the years since then, says planning committee chair Professor of 91����Ƶ.

“Women’s history among Mennonite scholars was definitely in its infancy in 1995,” says Schmidt, professor of history and director of the in Washington D.C. “There was a group of us who had graduated from American and Canadian universities who wanted to push forward the field, not only for scholars of Mennonite history, but to make sure we were engaging with the broader field of women’s history.”

Significantly, four other members on the 1995 planning committee have joined Schmidt to lead the efforts for the 2017 event. Schmidt returns in her role as chair.

One important objective of the 1995 conference, Schmidt says, was to “to engage in a dialogue with American and Canadian women’s historians who had already made names for themselves to help us all to think about how Mennonite women’s history relates to the broader regional and global women’s histories.”

Major contribution to the field

The mentorship and energy of that conference resulted in several publications, including (Johns Hopkins Press, 2002), co-edited by Schmidt with Diane Zimmerman Umble and Steven D. Reschly. The essay collection features work from leading scholars on the diverse experiences of Amish, Mennonite and other women of Anabaptist traditions, from sixteenth-century Europe to contemporary North America.

Schmidt is looking forward to seeing “new topics, approaches and viewpoints among a wide variety of participants.” Possible themes of boundaries and borders could include “how women have challenged, traversed and negotiated various lines between church and the world; gender lines and constructions; and lines of race, ethnicity and class,” she says.

An overarching question, she adds, is “How does the religious lens that women of Anabaptist traditions have inform their agency?”

Conference organizers hope the event will contribute to “similar mentoring relationships that crossed traditions and disciplines and age groups,” Schmidt said.

She encourages women of color, women of the global South, junior scholars and students to attend and present their work.

The planning committee includes artists and scholars in a variety of academic disciplines, including , professor of history, 91����Ƶ; , a feminist art historian, printmaker and professor at Bethel College;  Julia Spicher Kasdorf, at Penn State; , interim dean and professor of history and peace and conflict studies, Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo; , independent scholar; , professor of social work and scholar-in-residence at the Centre for Refugee Studies, York University; , professor of history, Washburn University; and , professor of history, Goshen College.