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Chapter Two: The Call to Discipleship

Chapter Two is based on the assumption that Christ’s call to discipleship is one of two aspects of the archetypal Anabaptist divine call—the second being the call to be in the world but not of it. This chapter illustrates that the distinctive Christ-centeredness of the call to discipleship has, as its goal, walking in the footsteps of the lowly Christ. This makes discipleship costly, because it means that the disciples, like Christ, have to take up their cross in order to follow him. For the early Anabaptists, this understanding of dis­cipleship meant that they were prepared willingly to accept the suffering that came their way in the form of persecution—often to the point of martyrdom.

Christ Centered

Discipleship played a key role in the 20th century quest for the recovery of the Anabaptist vision.1 It was H.S. Bender who first publicly identified it as one of the central concepts of traditional Anabaptism. In his previously mentioned 1943 presidential address, he cited it as one of the three pillars of the original 16th century ‘Anabaptist Vision’—the others being voluntary membership of the church, and non-resisting love. In a sub­se­quent article on ‘The Anabaptist Theology of Discipleship,’2 published in 1950, he went on to describe discipleship as

the most characteristic, most central, most essential and regulative concept in Anabaptist thought which largely determines all else.3

Subsequent scholars firmly endorsed the importance of discipleship for Anabaptist faith and practice—among them J. Lawrence Burkholder, who in his essay ‘Vision of Discipleship,’4 published in 1957, declared it to be ‘at the very heart of the movement.’5 Over time, this view became widely accepted by Mennonite theologians—to the point that by 1970 A.J. Klassen6 remarked:

Critical historical scholarship is all but unanimous in understanding that the concept of radical discipleship (Nachfolge) best expresses the essence of Ana­baptism.7

C. Arnold Snyder, in his Anabaptist History and Theology, reiterates this view by claiming that, for the Anabaptists, ‘the living of a life of discipleship (…) became paramount.’8

Substantial consensus exists not only regarding its importance, but also its distinctives. We shall begin our inquiry into these by first describing the general charac­teristics of discipleship, before investigating the underpinning theological system in more detail.

Rooted in the experience of repentance, faith, and divine grace, Anabaptist disciple­ship is defined through the relationship between the believer and Christ. As such, it derives its concrete guidelines from the teaching and life of the earthly Christ. Differ­ent commentators use varying terms to describe this particular interpretation of the Christian life in relation to Christ. Bender describes it as

… simply bringing the whole of life under the Lordship of Christ and the transformation of this life (…) after his image.9

The core of this definition of discipleship is practical obedience, which aims at Christ being increasingly manifested in the believer. Similarly, Snyder’s expectation of this relationship is ‘for Christ (...) to be “formed” in the believer.’10 Both of these formula­tions imply, or at least leave room for, the disciple being divinely acted upon. However, others prefer to use terms that emphasize the copying, mimicking aspect of discipleship, where the disciple becomes the main agent.

These differences might at first glance look insignificant—yet depending on their wider theological context, they may have far-reaching implications. Firstly, they are likely to determine just how much effort or ‘work’ is expected of the disciple in response to the call of Christ. This in turn gives the terms significant pastoral relevance. Secondly, such implications could lead to a distorted view of both the Christ who calls and the disciple. They not only make the disciple the principal actor, but they are also reduc­tionist insofar as they do not reflect the awe of the disciple for the divine caller that lay at the root of the early Swiss Anabaptists’ experience, nor do they reflect love for Christ, which was, as we shall discuss in the following section, one of the early Anabaptists’ main motives for embracing the suffering attached to the call. Thirdly, the portrayal of the divine caller mainly as a role model for the disciple minimizes Christ’s grace and mercy towards the disciple. Instead, it is likely to burden those who take seriously their calling to copy Christ, but fail to succeed.

Costly Discipleship

In keeping with the overall flavor of 16th century Anabaptism, with its scrupulous tenden­cies, and increasing literalism, their concept of discipleship is characterized by an attitude that takes very seriously Christ’s call—in all its meticulous detail, and in its entirety, inter alia in its private as well as its social dimensions. The term radical discipleship11 is often used to highlight this approach. It contrasts either with a freer or with a more internal-individualistic attitude to the call found among some other faith traditions.

This radical discipleship was reinforced through the imperative link between salva­tion and visible fruit. Bender re-emphasized this imperative link. In doing so he warned against the mid-20th century revivalist ‘distortion’ of Mennonite faith and practice. He points out that ‘the essence of Anabaptism’12

… entails more than the marvelous and wholly necessary experience of the forgiving and cleansing grace of God in Christ, both for the past sinful life and for the inevitable sins of believers.13

Bender warns that this experience

… is intended in God’s plan of salvation to be only the initial step in Christian experience as well as the constant carrying foundation for the daily life, not the whole of the Christian experience nor even its goal.14

In addition to its serious and meticulous nature, Anabaptist discipleship not only applies to the private sphere, but it is all-encompassing. That is, it is in its nature ‘both personal and social.’15

These distinctives, with the underlying theological interpretation of the cross as the sanctifying cross, made Anabaptist discipleship costly, at times to the point of martyrdom.

Suffering and Martyrdom

The significance of suffering in Anabaptist discipleship is clearly evident from their hymn­ology,16 general literature,17 and most famously, the Martyr’s Mirror. They all bear witness to the fact that, for the Anabaptists, responding to the call of Christ always and distinctly includes responding to his call to take up the cross. In his article ‘The Suffering Church in Anabaptism,’ Cornelius Dyck points out just how deeply ingrained this corre­la­tion between suffering and discipleship is when he states that

it may be that the motif of suffering has become a major ingredient of Menno­nite identity, past and present.18

In fact, for the Anabaptist, suffering was the mark of true discipleship. As Ethelbert Stauffer states in his article ‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’

They held that ‘the true church of God has been a suffering church (Märtyrer­gemeinde) at all times’19

The nature of suffering in the Anabaptist tradition was characterized not only by its extensiveness insofar as it was viewed as a normative experience for all true disciples, but also by its intensity, which for many culminated in death through martyrdom. Although the Anabaptists did not go in search of suffering except in some unhealthy cases, they were not known for choosing the easy way out by trying to avoid it. In fact their concept of suffering is that of a passio activa.20

Alan Kreider, in his article ‘The Servant is not Greater than his Master,’21 discovered that the concept of suffering found in the Martyr’s Mirror ‘entails the voluntary accept­ance of avoidable suffering, of outward suffering (…).’22 This outward nature of suffer­ing is of particular importance to the Anabaptist concept of suffering. This theme was stressed by Bender in his critique of the notion of suffering that is found in other tradi­tions, such as those of Thomas à Kempis and the Pietists. Theirs is a more introspective mystic-ascetic approach where the disciple’s ‘suffering’, and ‘carrying his cross,’ represents a means to ‘reach the heavenly country.’ Thereby, disciples

evade the conflict with the world, avoid the constructive labor of establishing the true church, and thus escape the real cross-bearing experience of true dis­cipleship.23

The motives and meanings that the Anabaptists assigned to such avoidable and often severe suffering are diverse, although certain main principles can be identified. They viewed suffering in both a cosmic and a personal perspective. It was inherent to the fundamental spiritual struggle between good and evil, between God and Satan, in which every true disciple is involved. In this fierce conflict, the cross of Christ represents the culmination—from which the disciple’s suffering derives its ultimate meaning. Alan Kreider also found that, in the Martyr’s Mirror, the ‘leitmotif’ for suffering was ‘conformity to Christ,’ summed up in

Gratitude for ‘Christ’s saving generosity in emptying himself and suffering pain and humiliation for them. How could they not suffer for him?24

A ‘sense of participating in him. As they walked in his steps, suffering for his sake, they were (in the words of Peter) being made ‘partakers of his suffer­ings’ (1 Pet.4,13; MM567,643). And he, they sensed, was living and suffering in them. (…)’25

Suffering and living among them as he was, Christ would be with them as they accepted the consequences (…) of their conformity to himself—obedi­ence. (…) Conformity to Christ led to non-conformity to the world, civil dis­obedience, and conflict.26

On a personal level, they sensed that in their suffering God was testing and purifying them insofar as ‘it has always been so, that God (…) tested them like gold in the fire.27 In this context, death and suffering became ‘the narrow gate,’28 through which each true believer had to enter, and ‘the doorway to life.’29

The central role of suffering in the Anabaptist understanding of discipleship is frequently compared with Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s concept of ‘costly’ discipleship.30 A.J. Klassen, for example, in his treatise ‘Discipleship in a Secular World,’ interprets Bonhoef­fer’s definition of Christ’s call—a call to ‘come and die’—as a contemporary Lutheran equivalent of the Anabaptist understanding of discipleship.31

Finally, baptism, for the Anabaptists, reminiscent of the practices of the early church, took on the additional concrete and practical meaning of ‘sealing’ the baptismal candidate ‘unto suffering and death.’32 Stauffer comments:

Often baptism is understood with Paul as dying with Christ. (…) Oftener, however, the martyr’s death for the sake of Christ is understood as a baptism, following the word of Jesus, ‘I have a baptism to be baptized with’ (Luke 12:50; Mk.10,38; Mt.20:220).33

As a primary call of the Mennonite tradition, this understanding of discipleship would consciously or subconsciously play a major role in the missionaries’ understanding of their call to missions.

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1Cf. Chapter One: The Recovery of the Anabaptist Vision.

2BENDER Harold S. , ‘The Anabaptist Theology of Discipleship,’ MQR 24, 1950, pp.25-32.

3Ibid., p.27.

4BURKHOLDER Lawrence J., ‘The Anabaptist Vision of Discipleship,’ in The Recovery of the Anabaptist Vision, pp.135-151.

5Ibid., p.136.

6KLASSEN A.J., ‘Discipleship in a Secular World,’ in Consultation on Anabaptist Mennonite Theology, A.J. Klassen, (ed.), Coucil of Mennonite Seminaries, Fresno, Ca., 1970, pp.100-126.

7 Ibid., p.104.

8Anabaptist History and Theology, p.227.

9‘Anabaptist Theology of Discipleship,’ p.29.

10 Ibid. p.29.

11Radical in respect to its serious, meticulous, and all encompassing approach, not however regarding its break with the Catholic/ascetic tradition.

12‘The Anabaptist Theology of Discipleship,’ p.27.

13Ibid., p.28

14Ibid.

15Ibid., p.29. As such it inherently contains a strong potential for socio-cultural critique, insofar, as the Anabaptists ‘(…) subjected not only the church but the whole social and cultural order to criticism, rejected what they found to be contrary to Christ, and attempted to put into actual practice His teachings as they understood them both ethically and sociologically.’ (ibid.)

16For a brief description of early Anabaptist and related martyr’s hymnology cf. inter alia, STAUFFER Ethelbert, ‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’ MQR 19, 1945, pp. 179-214, pp.184f; more concise in: ‘The Suffering Church in Anabaptism,’ pp.6ff.

17Cf. inter alia, ‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’ pp.188ff.

18‘The Suffering Church in Anabaptism,’ p.5.

19‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’ p.187.

20However, in the case of the movement’s South German branch, their concept of suffering started off as a mystical concept, and only later developed into a theology of martyrdom. Cf. Anabaptist History and Theology, p.77.

21KREIDER Alan F., “The Servant is not Greater Than his Master”: the Anabaptists and the Suffering Church.’ MQR 58, 1984, pp.5-29.

22Ibid., p.19.

23‘The Anabaptist Theology of Discipleship,’ p.30f. In ‘historic Lutheranism,’ ‘modern Fundamentalism,’ and ‘Dispensationalism’ on the other hand, Bender perceives the danger that ‘Justification by faith becomes so great and so wonderful, that sanctification of life and obedience to Christ, and transformation after His image, are in effect minimized and neglected.’

24‘The Servant is not Greater than his Master,’ p.14.

25Ibid., p.14f.

26Ibid., p.15.

27‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’ p.199.

28‘The Suffering Church in Anabaptism,’ p.14.

29‘Anabaptists and the Suffering Church,’ p.23.

30Bonhoeffer was accused by some of his opponents of being a crypto-Anabaptist.

31‘Discipleship in a Secular World,’ pp.110f.

32‘The Anabaptist Theology of Martyrdom,’ p.207.

33Ibid., p.205.