Mennonite Historical Bulletin

Fourteen young men look into the camera on a faded postcard captioned "2^nd Causal Company, Ft. Hamilton, N.Y. June 8, 1918." My grandfather, John S. Zimmerman (1893-1970), stands in the back row, wearing a battered felt hat and a broad grin. Grandpa was one of over fifty Mennonite conscientious objectors who joined the American Friends Service Committee to bring relief and reconstruction to devastated communities in France near the end of and following the First World War.

I wish I been with him on his journey. I would have liked to see his face when on January 12, 1919; passengers sighted a whale on the voyage from New York to Liverpool. What an adventure the train ride to Paris must have been for this earnest young Mennonite from Rothsville, Pa. Grandpa was assigned to the équipe at Grange le Comte, a large rural estate in the Verdun sector, along with a large contingent of English and American Quakers and a handful of Mennonites. By March 1919, he was chief wireman in the electrical department. By day, he rode a specially equipped motorcycle throughout the countryside, rebuilding telephone and electrical wires. At night, he was night operator at the powerhouse, responsible for keeping watch over the generators.

At a desk in the powerhouse, he often wrote letters to E. Elmira Hess, a young woman back home in Brunnerville, who had promised to share news from the boys in France with the Young People's Meeting at Ephrata Mennonite Church. His letters to Elmira describe his work, his travel, and, most of all, his questions about what God requires of Mennonites of his generation.

Periodically, the Mennonites serving in France had opportunities to gather. On one occasion, some forty met.

"We aim to sustain our religious life by frequent meetings such as was held March 30, 1919, in a shell torn chateau near Neuville, France. It was truly inspirational, for so large a group of us in common faith had not had the privilege of meeting since leaving for military camp. From our discussion here and small pervious meetings, five important problems may be deduced among others which we hope to discuss at a 2 day conference to be held near Verdun about June 1^st or 2^nd. Will you not favor us with your frank opinion and judgment as God reveals it on these matters.

1. The relation of the individual to the church.

2. Should the church at large or a few individuals control the activities of the church.

3. What should be the church's attitude toward her present educational institutions and toward Christian education.

4. Should the church interest herself in an aggressive social and mission program for the world.

5. Should the young people of the church be trusted to effect some permanent organization aiming toward annual open conference … with a view of acting on their religious convictions."(Letter dated April 10, 1919)

I wish I could have heard these discussions. In one of his early letters he wrote, "The church is in need of both young men and women who can say I am willing to do my part. I am looking forward to a great missionary epoch in the history of the Mennonite church." The boys in France had visions for the future. They were passionate in their deliberations, and they wanted their peers at home to test these visions along with them. Grandpa's five important problems resonate with contemporary challenges facing the church. I wonder how he would answer his questions today.

Diane Zimmerman Umble is professor and chair in the department of communication and theatre at Millersville University. She is author of Holding the Line: The Telephone in Old Order Mennonite andAmish Life, and co-editor of Strangers at Home: Amish and Mennonite Women in History.