How Can We Get “Nonconformity” Right?
When was the last time you heard a sermon about nonconformity? How many of the younger generation of Mennonites in CMC can claim that nonconformity to the world was a special emphasis in their development—reinforced at every turn?
Nonconformity to the world, until fairly recently, was an intense preoccupation for Mennonites. You might say it is a gene in the Anabaptist DNA.
Coming into this historical stream from outside the faith, I felt a strong need to sort the issue out for myself to see if I could adopt this group and could legitimately call myself a Mennonite. I had been formed spiritually as a young Christian to engage the world boldly, not avoid it.
I did a fair amount of study—J.C. Wenger’s Separated Unto God, and many other now less well-known books. I read confessions of faith and special statements. I tracked the minutes and read the tracts of the standing Nonconformity Committee in one Mennonite conference. I tried to track down the old guard and hear from them, and so on.
Without going into painful detail, what I found was that in the last century nonconformity became a “doctrine in distress,” and then in the big Mennonite bodies essentially died. Throughout Mennonite history, before nonconformity died, it led to lots of division and pain. As you probably know, there are many break-off groups who still practice the “plain” ways.
Nonconformity went a long way toward making Mennonites an ethnic group rather than a living expression of New Testament faith.
What happened? Perhaps nonconformity had not been well-understood in the first place and thus got off to a bad start. In any case, the doctrine deteriorated. Far more often than not, it became “frozen in time.” It ceased to be a renewable discussion in which each generation worked together to decide on sound practice. It was rarely taught gently as part of the discipleship process. Instead, nonconformity became a bundle of rigid, tacked-down rules that could show measurable compliance.
The heart of nonconformity in Christian character development was reduced almost exclusively to rules about dress and entertainment. Nonconformity markers in dress and activities became social boundaries, and dictated who was in or out, and who could take communion. Do Christians have TVs, radios? Do they wear neckties? Have Christmas trees? Go to the movies? I read tracts that challenged going to bowling alleys and farm shows.
As practiced among North American Mennonites, nonconformity went a long way toward making Mennonites an ethnic group rather than a living expression of New Testament faith.
Pride entered into it, and outward compliance seemed to devour the sense of what people were actually like. A very unloving, greedy, judgmental, or harsh person could conform to measurable rules, but still be something of a spiritual basket case. The rules were heavy-handed and extreme, and they became increasingly unpopular and regarded as unnecessary, unhelpful.
I noticed something else that troubled me. Adults were treated like children, personal prerogative was unthinkable, and exposure to anything non-Mennonite led inevitably to sin. The doctrine died, and it remains a question how severely this death separates many modern Mennonites from their own past. Can we be Anabaptists without practicing nonconformity to the world?
Surprisingly, I don’t think we can be Anabaptist—in a meaningful historical sense—without this doctrine. Nonconformity is biblical, not just an historical or cultural quirk.
Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (NKJV).
But this doctrine needs to be reconfigured if it is to ever again blossom and be beautiful in our world. Some earlier leaders saw the problems developing but their advice apparently went unheeded.
Nonconformity is first of all something that God is doing in us, not something we are doing for ourselves. Our evaluation of culture and what we’re trying to become as nonconformers has to be seen first in our character. Then our practices will follow somewhat naturally.
We need to give people personal space and personal prerogatives with regard to many areas of life that are matters of application rather than clearly accepted biblical boundaries. Nonconformity has to be a discussion renewed in each generation, and not a dictation from an older, quainter form of practice. The discussion needs to be steered by moderate, prudent minds and voices, not authoritarian leaders.
Mistakes were certainly made. The question is whether it is too late to correct them.
Photo and play credit, Vicki Sairs:
From the play Remember Us, which explores what happens when a contemporary woman tries to figure out her church’s Amish heritage and her spiritual ancestors’ focus on rules. Here, Newcomer (Elizabeth Yoder) disagrees with Framework Man (Ryan Freed), left, while Historical Man (Preston Yoder) tries to mediate.
6 Responses
I enjoyed the article, Reuben. When I look at the photo, the woman looks more like Carrie Miller Beitzel than Elizabeth Shenk Yoder. It’s interesting to see that Preston is always practicing his passion for conflict resolution, even when it’s just in a play.
Yep, that’s our Preston!
Jerry, I think it’s Elizabeth (Diller) Yoder, not Shenk. She’s the daughter of Lester and Ardis Diller. Does that help?
We came to join a church of Mennonites after the era of conformity was judged by the way one dressed. We joined because the people we met there were set apart from the world. They where friendly, loving and caring. They where like a family, even though they were from different family trees. In my opinion, they were non conformist with the world, but conformist with Jesus teachings of love your neighbor as yourself in the purest sense. I believe they were and are modeling the behavior Paul speaks of in Colossians 3.
Thank you for this article, Reuben! I am not quite young enough to be a millennial, but I will share my two cents to represent Gen X.
Perhaps we would see more positive results if we focused on conforming ourselves to the character and example of Jesus in discipleship, which could then inform discussions about nonconformity. In our current cultural climate, I think it is important to remember we are part of the upside-down kingdom as followers of Jesus. What sets us apart may not be our appearance or avoiding certain activities, but our outrageous love, forgiveness, generosity, willingness to serve, turn the other cheek, resolve conflict and point people to Jesus rather than to any solution the world has to offer. Jesus had a higher ethical standard than anyone could ever hope to achieve, but he still drew the masses to himself. I don’t think it needs to be either/or. We can be separate from the world in our character and beliefs, but also very much involved in messy situations with needy people that are not yet following Jesus.
I enjoyed this article, being in my sixties I am old enough to have experienced numerous occasions in my past life where this issue and the practice and application of it caused lots of fragmenting in the body. The fruit of this practice always seemed to have the opposite results when compared to the unity that Jesus said was to be a trademark of the faith, John 17. I would be interested in hearing some comments from the generation of millennials, is this a dead issue for them and we older people just need to forget it and move on, or is non-conformity still alive and well only with different issues ?