Twas seeding time

About this book

In 'Twas Seeding Time, author John L. Ruth gives readers some little-known insights concerning Mennonite community life in America 200 years ago. On the eve of the Revolution, nearly a century after the first Mennonite settlers arrived in Pennsylvania, these formerly oppressed Swiss-Germans were enjoying the liberties of the Quaker Commonwealth. Their small farms, laboriously carved out of "Penn's Woods," provided an adequate livelihood, and their simple meetinghouses showed the reality of the religious freedom so often denied them in Europe. While their belief in love and nonresistance was tested at times in their contacts with the Indians, they dwelt in peace and contentment under the British crown and the sympathetic Quaker government of Pennsylvania. But the real trial of faith came with the rising sentiment of rebellion in the colonies. Following the first battles of the Revolution in Massachusetts during the spring of 1775, the martial spirit spread to Pennsylvania. All able-bodied men came under pressure to respond to the call to arms, or if conscience prevented that, to contribute liberally of their means to the patriots' cause. Thus, whether in the eighteenth century or the twentieth, American Mennonites have found it difficult to remain uncompromised in their relation to government. John L. Ruth's lively account is far more than a collection of interesting stories and anecdotes. It provides a fine historical perspective to help us evaluate our role in American society today. - Robert M. Schrag, Mennonite Weekly Review, on back cover.