In this thread I'd like to discuss the hutterite sect of christianity. There is a documentary (not free) on amazon prime that outlines their life, at least from an outside televised perspective. I have met a few hutterites and they typically have some sort of canadian-german hybrid accent. They have a bit of an "angry german" temperament -- they are a bit more brash than you might expect from a christian group. Basically the hutterites broke away from the catholic church during the radical reformation. They live communally in a "community of goods" model. They have been living this way for hundreds of years. There is a lot of merit to the community of goods model but there are some deep rooted issues within the hutterite communities. In the second episode we saw that some of the children were going to high school, which was apparently against the rules. When the elders found out then they shunned their mother until the kids stopped going to school. The reason that was given was that the elders thought that kids would be more likely to leave the community if they got an education. While the mother thought that God would want for children to get an education. Then as a result of the shunning the mother fell into line and pulled her kids out of high school. It's obviously pretty wrong to deny people an education to control them. But there are actually a lot of groups that do this. Obviously they are having difficulty adjusting to the rapid cultural changes of the last century. But this is an issue that all christians must face and it will take real character to stand against the moral tides of society without oppressing members of the church. I'll bring up other issues that I see in the documentary but im only on the third episode. Any thoughts?
There are communities in North Dakota. One up north farms and did farm some just up the highway from me. Another community builds truss rafters supposedly. They dress from like another time. That's all I know about them.
Yes thank you for bringing that up. I think that the way that the hutterites dress is an important part of this thread. The hutterites do dress like they are from another time. To some, clothes might not seem like a big deal. But certainly there are plenty of people that do judge others based on what they are wearing. Like I mentioned, they are having difficulty adjusting to the cultural changes of the last century. But truly, it is better to not alienate people. Surely God would be more pleased with people not getting alienated by the way people dress than He would with people dressing traditionally. Most people think that people that are dressed in amish-like clothes look rediculous. I hope that everyone can follow my train of thought here when I quote the apostle Paul when he told us that he became all things to all men: 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 [19]For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; [20]and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might win those who are under the law; [21]to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; [22]to the weak I became as weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. [23]Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you. I think that what he meant was that it wasnt as important to go against your personsal traditions as it was to have empathy for people from different cultures -- and even, if necessary, wear totally different clothes.
