Preservings 11 (1997) - Plett Foundation

Preservings
Left Page: Copy of fly leaf page of Franz Froese, Menno Simon’s Fundamentabueck. Shows the inscription of
its first owner, “Maria Penner, Prangenau, 1848.” Photo courtesy of Heritage Village Musuem, Steinbach,
Manitoba.
Middle Page: Title page of Franz Froese, Menno Simon’s Fundamentabuck. It is interesting that the date of
publication is stated as being in the first one-third part of the 19th century. Photo courtesy of Heritage Village
Musuem, Steinbach, Manitoba.
Right Page: Copy of fly leaf page of Franz Froese, Menno Simon’s Fundamentabueck. Again shows the inscription
of its first owner, “Maria Penner, Prangenau” and then in a different handwriting, “1863 Franz
Froese Rudnerweide.” The last inscription is “Peter B. Froese Rosenort, Manitoba, 1911.” Photo courtesy of
Heritage Village Musuem, Steinbach, Manitoba.
with excommunication if he did not immediately
surrender the books. After an intense personal
struggle and out of concern for his family Peter
finally agreed to deliver up the books which were
stored in the attic of the Tiegenhagen Mennonite
church were they were exposed to great damage
from moisture, mold and mice.
After further lobbying the Prussian Bishops
finally allowed some of the books to be released
for shipment to Russia. Here they were distributed
by the KG and from whence some of them,
such as Franz Froeses’ copy, found their way to
America.
Unfortunately, the reading of the “Foundation”
books and their contents were not supported
among the wider Mennonite brotherhood in Russia,
either. At a meeting between KG leaders and
the Bishops of the Gemeinden in the Molotschna
Colony, Jakob Warkentin, Aeltester of the Grosse
Gemeinde, “expressed his dissatisfaction regarding
the Menno Simons books in the presence of
four other Aeltesten at the home of Klaas Reimer.
He went on to say that he had never read the books
and that he would also make sure that he would
not do so in the future”—(Golden Years, page
277).
This view was also echoed among pietist Mennonites,
although for different reasons. In 1910,
Peter M. Friesen, the leading historian among pietist
Mennonites in Russia, wrote, “On the whole,
Menno’s polemical writings do not belong to those
that one reads with spiritual pleasure, indeed one
cannot read them without a feeling of spiritual
uneasiness”—(P.M.Friesen, page 18).
Instead P. M. Friesen, and most leading clergymen,
endorsed and propagated the
premillennial teachings of Heinrich Jung-Stilling
which held that the Second Coming would occur
in in the East (Russia) which would also be the
refuge of the “true” church during the coming
tribulation, and that the Czar would be the saviour
of the church during the end times. The date
for the second coming was initially set for 1881.
This explained why so many pietist Mennonites
did not emigrate in 1874 when they had the chance
and why they ridiculed those who did depart for
America (Note Three).
Eine Seltsame Begebenheit, 1911.
The story was not quite finished. A response
to Peter M. Friesen’s comment was published in
1911 by Bishop Peter Toews, formerly of the KG
and by now leader of the Canadian Holdemans.
The response came in the form of a small booklet
entitled Eine Seltsame Begebenheit and was written
to answer an inquiry by Professor Mannhardt
of Danzig and with the encouragement of Nebraska
State Senator Peter Jansen and Steinbach
flour mill owner Johann I. Friesen, grandsons of
Peter von Riesen and Klaas Friesen, respectively,
two of the principals involved. In the little
booklet, Peter Toews tells the story of the publication
of the Menno Simons “Foundation Book”
and how the despised little KG had defied the
Mennonite establishment of the day, to bring to
light some of the finest Christian literature of all
time.
Froese Family Background.
What was is especially exciting about the
“Menno Simons Book” are the endorsements on
the title pages which identify it as the property of
Franz Froese of Rudnerweide, Molotschna, in
1863, having previously been owned by Maria
Penner in Prangenau in 1848. The identity of
Maria Penner is not certain at this time, although
she may be Maria Penner (b. 1828), daughter of
KG minister Peter Penner of Prangenau: see
Preservings, No. 9, Dec 1996, Part One, pages
26-29.
98
Franz Froese, the owner of the book was born
in 1825, possibly in Prussia. He was the son of
Johann Johann Froese who settled on Wirtschaft
17 in Rudnerweide in 1826. Shortly thereafter,
Franz’ father died and his mother married for the
second time to Georg Adrian. The family is listed
in the 1835 census as follows: step-son Franz
Froese born 1825 and a step-daughter Elisabeth
born 1820.
The father of Franz Froese died when he was
relatively young. As a result no information was
available regarding his parents. Some information,
however, has recently come to light regarding
Elisabeth, Franz’ only sibling. In 1916 Peter
P. Isaac of Swalwell, Alberta, wrote in his
“Stammbuch Meiner Voreltern” that the children
of Franz Froese were cousins to Johann Regehr
of Kansas (Note Four). Johann was the son of
Abraham Regehr (1813-72) and Elisabeth Froese
(1820-96), whose daughter, Marie Regehr (1854-
1935), Mrs. Johann A. Fast, lived in Goessel,
Marion County, Kansas (Note Five).
Franz Froese (1825-1913).
Franz Froese was baptized in 1844.
On March 4, 1851, Franz Froese was presented
for membership in the KG at a brotherhood
meeting held after worship services in
Neukirch. On March 18, Franz was accepted as a
Son Peter B. Froese (1883-1952) and Mrs. Froese,
nee Maria P. Penner (1879-1934). In a note written
January 22, 1935, Peter B. Froese wrote that his
teacher “during his first term” was Heinrich Enns
from Rosenort, his second teacher was Peter W. Toews
and his last teacher, Johann W. Dueck. He wrote how
clearly he remembered coming home from school one
day where his mother was busy at the bake oven and
how excitedly he went to her and told her about the
beautiful picture he had just received from his teacher.
Photo courtesy of grandson Brent Froese, Steinbach,
Manitoba.