Surviving The Apocalypse

A model to consider

May 27, 2023

The one group of people I've really come to admire over the course of the last few years or so are the Anabaptists. For those of you unfamiliar with them, they include subgroups or “denominations,” if you will, that may sound more familiar to you like the Amish, the Mennonites, the Brethren and the Hutterite communities. The Anabaptist's grew out of the Reformation movement that began with Martin Luther and his break from Catholicism after the Catholic church had become totally corrupt and immoral. Thanks to Luther, suddenly, after centuries of repression and secrecy, it became cool to question authority.

On the surface anyway, Luther didn't much care for the way they, the Catholic Church, conducted business and he thought that they were misleading the people about how to get right with God. Instead of selling indulgences, a corrupt funding scheme from hell if there ever was one, he thought that the Just should simply live by faith over blindly following their leaders and trying to bribe one’s way into heaven. However, in his own Lutheran movement, some argue that he didn’t go far enough. For example, he kept much of the tradition, pomp and circumstance of the old church and created a sort of “Catholic Lite” version of Protestant Christianity with him in charge. I would argue, and I think the Anabaptists would agree, that the Protestant reformation movement was a good idea that just didn’t go far enough.

The Anabaptist's took Luther's reforms a bit further. First, they broke from many of the old Catholic traditions, especially those that were related to the old pre-Christian pagan ways. One of the methods by which the Catholic religion gained converts through the centuries was by incorporating old pagan traditions and celebrations into the Catholic faith and then, as if by magic, turning old pagan leaders into Saints of the Catholic Church and then, adding insult to injury, telling the pagan peoples that now they were all, by default, Catholics, so pay your tithes to Rome. Another main point of contention was the practice of infant baptism. The Catholic Church used infant baptism as a method by which to grow membership. The Anabaptists believed that only people who were old enough to understand the scriptures, actually believed them and made a conscious decision to follow in “the way” (what early Christianity was called) should be baptized. Finally, although there are many more which could be mentioned, the Anabaptists believed that they should live their faith in simplicity without all the pomp and circumstance of religious appearances.

Granted, like any movement, they’ve had their share of failures and controversy. The wildest of which was the Munster Rebellion. I’m sure most of you may be more familiar with the Amish and to a lesser degree, the Mennonite aversion to modern technology. The much smaller Hutterite movement has practically gone full collectivist by living in farming communes. In the present, even the far more progressive Brethren “denomination” as well as some Mennonite churches have had problems dealing with modern issues such as what to do about LBGTQ, an individuals relationship with the government as well as how to conduct local church governance. They’re no stranger to scandal either. One “Brethren Mega-Church” (an oxymoron if there ever was one) in Canada has even had it’s lead pastor removed for a sex scandal.

Why do things like that happen? I think that it’s because the larger an organization gets, the more hierarchal they become and this is the downfall of every religious movement whether it be the gargantuan Catholic Church all the way down to the local Guru with his handful of cultish followers. human nature is such that some, perhaps even most, people crave power and they are drawn to hierarchal organizations.

For believers, I believe that hierarchy should be the antitheses to what we believe and practice, but when you look at the modern institutional church, that’s all we see. Even most protestant churches fall under a denominational governing body whereby the pastor/minister/bishop etc. must abide by the rules set by the leaders or leave. Even your local independent Baptist Church can be ruled over by a dictatorial pastor who rules his flock as though it were his personal kingdom instead of a people to whom they have been called to serve.

Interesting quote that I believe encapsulates where “Christianity” went wrong:

“In the beginning the church was a fellowship of men and women centering on the living Christ. Then the church moved to Greece where it became a philosophy. Then it moved to Rome where it became an institution. Next, it moved to Europe, where it became a culture. And, finally, it moved to America where it became an enterprise.”
~ Richard Halverson

Hierarchy within the “Body of Christ” a.k.a. “The Church” a.k.a. “The Ecclesia” a.k.a. the called out “Assembly of believers,” is something I think God hates! Why? Because he said so! Let’s begin in Revelation 2:6, where Jesus told the church of Ephesus, “But this thou hast [in your favor], that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.” Now some think that the sin of the Nicolaitans is somehow related to the eating of meat sacrificed to idols. I have a different take on the matter. The name “Nicolaitans” is derived from the Greek word nikolaos, a compound of the words nikos and laos. The word nikos is the Greek word that means to conquer or to subdue. The word laos is the Greek word for the people. It is also where we get the word laity. When these two words are compounded into one, they form the word Nicolaos, which literally means one who conquers and subdues the people. It seems to suggest that the Nicolaitans were somehow conquering and subduing the people. It indicates a hierarchal model of rule.

Secondly, after God freed the Children of Israel from bondage in Egypt, he didn’t set up a king for them right away. Rather, they lived under a system of tribal elders and they also had judges. The Judges was a result of a suggestion by Moses’ father-in-law. The role of the judges was NOT to rule over the people, but to help settle disputes between them. It was then, is now and I believe always has been God’s plan for Him to be our King. It was only after many years and the Children of Israel rejecting God as their king that he reluctantly allowed them to have one who would rule over them. Lesson to be learned, be careful what you ask for because you just might get it. I don’t know if this is true, but I do think that this is one reason out of many why the various Anabaptist branches distrust and shun the government.

While not universally true among the various branches of the Anabaptist tree, by and large, they have rejected the hierarchal model of living and worship. For the most part, particularly in the Amish communities, what I have observed and learned over the years is that they believe in and practice the “Priesthood of all Believers” model for their worship. When they meet together, everyone is allowed to share with the rest of the assembly what God has been doing in their lives, where they are failing, where they need the assistance of the assembly and they regularly practice communion and the breaking of bread together. Discipleship, accountability and regular study of the word is freely encouraged.

Granted, like all humans, they have had their problems walking the walk but, of all of the branches of the “Christian” religion, they truly strive to live out their faith. That whole aversion to technology thingy, the facial hair and fashion stuff is IMHO a little overdone. But that’s cool, to each his own. But you have to admire them. To them, their relationship with the almighty is much more than just a monthly tithe to pay the salaries of the hireling(s) who rule over them, pay the rent on the building and the electric bills. Membership to the community means more than darkening the door at the local clubhouse once or twice a week. It is my personal belief that when it comes to how Christians are supposed to practice their faith, the way our Lord desired that we worship him, the Anabaptists are the closest to the way it ought to be done.

So, Why did I go down the long dark rabbit hole? Am I advocating that we sell all of our toys, buy a horse and buggy, get a straw hat, grow a beard and go full Amish? Absolutely not. Rather, I’m saying the $#!†’s about to get real and we need to have a plan as to how we survive it all. The Anabaptist’s, the Amish in particular know how to survive well!

What advocate is that each of us examine what we are doing and take it to the Lord. Ask Him how we ought to live and then do our individual best to live our lives as He leads us. But, if you needed a model as to how we ought to meet with our fellow believers to worship God and live out our lives together as an assembly of believers and survive after the fecal matter hits the oscillating cooling device, the Amish are a pretty good model to follow.

Side note with links:

The Amish in particular have their own way of dealing with problems. Here’s an interesting video about how they handled the Bat Stew Flu “Plandemic” I think many of you will find interesting.

Amish Covid – Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson - YouTube (5:37)

Amish vs. Mennonites: What’s the Difference? - YouTube (8:03)

Can you name >5 unvaxxed Amish who died from COVID? Why not? They are "supposed to be" dying in droves! - Steve Kirsch

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Can you name >5 unvaxxed Amish who died from COVID? Why not? They are "supposed to be" dying in droves!

Sojourn In Exile

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