Against the Wind: Eberhard Arnold and the Bruderhof - Plough

Against the Wind
chance to seak, as was the usual custom. Everybody in the circle could express his
or her own impressions. Here is a short extract from the transcript of this decisive
meeting:
Emmy Arnold: We must know exactly what is actually happening. Nothing is being
written about it. Herr G—– from Heubach… said that a line is being drawn through
the parish – those with Hitler on one side, and on the other those who are unable
to cooperate on grounds of conscience. He said no one could risk using the word
“justice” for fear of immediately being labeled a communist. He is surprised he hasn’t
been taken away yet. A Heubach woman’s father-in-law was beaten to death in Fulda.
Now the Jews are being persecuted, next it will be the Christians.”
Else Boller: It is urgently necessary for us to make perfectly clear to the authorities why
we live as we do and what our purpose is. Hitler says terrible things in his seeches.
Eberhard Arnold: We want to put all our efforts into building up this place, as long as
we have it, as a memorial to God’s honor, so to our last moment here we want to do
the very utmost that can be done…It is inherent in imitatio, in being Christlike, that
we are ready for imprisonment and death. We are prepared to leave here; we are also
prepared to remain. We shall not flee without an esecially valid reason. We shall stay
firmly in this place that was shown to us until God sends us a direct call to leave it.
And so we continue with our building and daily work…We carry on working as before
so that no one can say, “The Bruderhof has changed its way of work because of the
change of government.” If that can be said of us, then it would be right to accuse us of
cowardice and unfaithfulness…
I believe it possible to seak very plainly to this government… So we must ask
God that an interview will be possible and that we are granted a completely frank
exchange. Then we must take up the cause of prisoners and those in distress, inquire
at places where we can get authentic information, do our utmost and be extremely
acive, even without the magazine. We cannot publish a magazine at this moment.
So we must follow the Hutterian example, seaking person to person, the way of
personal contact. 28
In saying this Eberhard gave the community its marching orders for the following
years. Hold out. Do not be intimidated. Do not yield one inch without just cause
or need – that would remain the Bruderhof ’s directive until 1937. By taking the
offensive and meeting the authorities openly, Eberhard and a few other brothers
gained access to people at the top levels of the National Socialist government
and succeeded in getting an ear. Here, personal relationships played a key role.
For example, Norman Körber, the nature lover and friend from Berlin and early
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