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A little over three years ago I would never have thought that I'd be a plain Mennonite.

Then I read that Jesus said "not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven." That was the opposite of what I'd been taught.

Then I discovered that eternal security was contributing to the wrong way I and my evangelical friends were living. (This despite us constantly teaching that grace was not a license to sin.)

So I began to seek the kingdom of God.

On occasion, I drive down the road and think, "what have I gotten myself into?" Then I think it through, and it makes sense.

Bootstrap wrote:Question for the plain Mennos and Anabaptists who have posted.

I think I am hearing most people say that they wouldn't join just any plain Mennonite / Anabaptist church, and that the entire package is really important to them. I think I am also hearing people say that much of what is most important is not being plain per se, but other things that they think are found in their own plain churches.

Is that true, or am I misinterpreting? I imagine the answer might be different for each person.

Both of those would be true for me.

That said, I have decided to value the "plainness," because I want to join a plain church. Not valuing it but merely deciding "oh well, guess it's gotta come with the package" is a recipe to chafe at the rules. So it is of some value, but not the most important.

Plain Christianity is a consequence, for me, of following the scriptures. Once I try to follow the whole message of what Jesus and the apostles teach in the scriptures, you end up being plain.

Josh wrote:Plain Christianity is a consequence, for me, of following the scriptures. Once I try to follow the whole message of what Jesus and the apostles teach in the scriptures, you end up being plain.

Can you say more about that?

I would assume that you could follow the whole message without necessarily wearing clothing influenced by Dutch / Swiss / German heritage, and perhaps with a very different cultural perspective, couldn't you? Which aspects of being plain do you think are inevitable if you try to follow the whole message?

Bootstrap wrote:

Josh wrote:Plain Christianity is a consequence, for me, of following the scriptures. Once I try to follow the whole message of what Jesus and the apostles teach in the scriptures, you end up being plain.

Can you say more about that?

I would assume that you could follow the whole message without necessarily wearing clothing influenced by Dutch / Swiss / German heritage, and perhaps with a very different cultural perspective, couldn't you? Which aspects of being plain do you think are inevitable if you try to follow the whole message?

Maybe Josh just means 'plain', not 'Plain'.

I'll give Boot a longer reply, but I want to make it clear I think plainness exists outside the scope of Swiss / Dutch / German culture.

For example, Apostolic Nazareans are plain, yet their cultural background is almost entirely Eastern European. Romanian Pentecostals and Russian Baptists are (sometimes) plain, but their styles and culture feel entirely Eastern European or Slavic.

Holdeman Mennonites in Nigeria and Belize don't wear European influenced styles at all beyond where their own culture has had broad European influence. Some of them never really need to change their attire at all if culturally they already are simple /plain as is the case in those two countries.

Josh wrote:I'll give Boot a longer reply, but I want to make it clear I think plainness exists outside the scope of Swiss / Dutch / German culture.

This is interesting, and I'd like to hear your longer reply. What defines plainness?

Bootstrap wrote:

Josh wrote:I'll give Boot a longer reply, but I want to make it clear I think plainness exists outside the scope of Swiss / Dutch / German culture.

This is interesting, and I'd like to hear your longer reply. What defines plainness?

Me too, I am confused on what this 'plainness' is all about as it isn't a word I find in the NT and it seems in one sense, Christianity is far from being 'plain'. If Jesus came to give us abundant life of unspeakable joy and peace, it can't mean that.

My guess would be it refers to a way of life that doesn't put the world's values in material stuff and position (quite unlike the prosperity gospel). But it also sounds like a drab looking appearance dress wise and possessions wise linked with being humble. How off am I on this ?

Sudsy wrote:

Bootstrap wrote:

Josh wrote:I'll give Boot a longer reply, but I want to make it clear I think plainness exists outside the scope of Swiss / Dutch / German culture.

This is interesting, and I'd like to hear your longer reply. What defines plainness?

Me too, I am confused on what this 'plainness' is all about as it isn't a word I find in the NT and it seems in one sense, Christianity is far from being 'plain'. If Jesus came to give us abundant life of unspeakable joy and peace, it can't mean that.

My guess would be it refers to a way of life that doesn't put the world's values in material stuff and position (quite unlike the prosperity gospel). But it also sounds like a drab looking appearance dress wise and possessions wise linked with being humble. How off am I on this ?

Way off.

I think there are tens of thousands of Plain Anabaptists who would gladly switch to a plain Christian church, if they knew of a plain Christian church that had nearly all the good values of Plain Anabaptists plus some additional good values.
Beyond that, I think there would be hundreds of thousands of Christians worldwide who would want to be part of such a church if it existed.
Until then, Plain Anabaptists will continue to defend their beliefs and way of life until someone comes up with a better alternative.