Hutterite Beginnings. Communitarian Experiments During the Reformation

Abstract

The oldest and largest communal society in North America, the Hutterites - Anabaptists of German origin, like the Amish - have long been the subject of scholarly study and popular curiosity. This work tells the story of the Hutterite beginnings in their original homelands, particularly in Tyrol and Moravia. By examining these origins, it reveals relationships among early Anabaptist sects. The book contains a biography of group founder Jacob Hutter, describing his struggle for group leadership, his efforts to save his followers from King Ferdinand's bounty hunters, and his ultimate capture and death by public execution in 1536. It also provides anecdotes about a number of figures, including Jacob Hutter's wife. It tells of arrest, of imprisonment and of torture, as well as of efforts to care for the orphans left behind by those put to death for their faith. And it describes the defensive measures taken by the victims of official terror, their underground organizations, their secret practices and religious beliefs. The book shows how three early Anabaptist orders relate to each other, then lays bare the developing hermeneutic on which they were based, offering an insight into worship practices of the earliest Anabaptists.