Mennonites in Belize

  Who are they and when did they arrive in Belize?   Earlier in this blog I explained that when I use the word Conservative with a capital C, I am referring to a particular branch of the Mennonite faith, which has its roots in the Old Order Amish religion. Sort of an Amish and Mennonite hybrid which appeared in early to mid-twentieth century up north in the US. In Belize, these Mennonite churches which often operate independently from each other are made up of Mestizos, Mayas, Creoles and North American Mennonite immigrants; they do not live in autonomous colonies. The men are not easily noticeable but the women are quite conspicuous with their floor length plain cape dresses and white head coverings.   From what I understand the Conservative church firmly established itself in Belize in the 1980's, after an Amish mission organization from the US paved the way earlier in the 1960's, shortly after the "Russian" Mennonites of Spanish Lookout and Shipyard had arrived fro...

   Go for it, buddy!   Oh, I'm sure we all love some crazy fun and daring adventure now and then, something out of the ordinary, stuff that makes our peers open their mouth in admiration or laughter yet makes our parents and groosmamas  shake their heads and stare at us with a sepulchral frown. I myself will never forget my teenage years of popping wheelies on the middle of the road, drag racing , midnight Halloween pranks(my conservative Mennonite parents disapproved of it), nose-diving in an airplane with my buddies, hitchhiking at night on the mountains of Guatemala, etc. Those days are past, and unfortunately those days the smartphone was just invented so I don't have any of my stuff recorded, but here are a few mild reminders of some good old fun. Crazy Mennonites, right? Or to be more honest, Mennonites who are simply being themselves and enjoying it. From  drifting a pickup... ...to custom-made manual Oldsmobile ... ...and don't forget a bit of...

   A girl picks mangoes in Shipyard, an Old Colony Mennonite community in Orange Walk, Belize   Mango season is at its height throughout Belize. In spite of being a small country, not all mangoes can be found everywhere since some varieties grow better in certain areas than in others. How do the Mennonite ladies use mangoes? Well, among the ultra conservative groups, mangoes are turned into jams, jellies, moos , or preserved by canning since they do not use electricity. My favorite way of eating canned mangoes is to pour some Carnation milk over them or a bit of Fanta.    Other modern Mennonites find it easier to slice up the mangoes and store them in Ziploc bags in the freezer; when needed for a recipe or as a snack simply soak the bag in room-temperature water for a bit.    The most popular mango for eating and canning is the Cambrean type, with a thick, smooth orange texture and juice. When full grown it is slightly bigger than a common red apple an...

     Not long ago I saw a comment made by an ex-Old Colony Mennonite on a Belizean social media platform, "those are not real Mennonites they just dress like that because they go to that church". The persons in question were white North Americans who had grown up in the Beachy Mennonite church and were active members. This led me to do some more research. Below is my discovery:   While many think of Plautdietsch Mennonites as a distinct race, the truth is they're not. Yes, they are a recognized ethnic group, i.e. "Russian Mennonites" complete with their own dialect, cultural habits and names, but they are not a race  nor are they the only real Mennonites. Simply because your name is Friesen and you grew up speaking Dietsch and eating glums  and borsch  does not make you more Mennonite than a 20 year old Maya who embraces the teachings of Menno Simons for the rest of his life.   That said, some experts have classified certain groups as ethno-religi...

       My Opinion of the One True Church      First of all, the Holdeman (official name Church of God in Christ, Mennonite) church is not the  only true church. John Holdeman in the 19th century did not receive any special revelation like Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon religion. In all fairness, he was a sort of Martin Luther, seeing and realizing a need to break away from the lax and lukewarm old Mennonite church in order for a spiritual revival and renewal to begin its work. Well, a revival did happen. A return to the original teachings of the Anabaptists to a certain extent. However as time went by and the church grew and became more organized, the main focus-apostolic teachings-became somewhat obscured by the belief that "we" are the true church. This led to rigid Mennonite traditions that eventually led the church into turmoil in the 1970's in the US. William and Viv Stoppel have written extensively on the Holdeman church and even do...

     At some point, except for the Old Colony group, Mennonites from various branches end up with missionary intentions. The ironic thing is that while they try to convert other Mennonite groups to their  way of life or more correctly their way of viewing Christian life, other Mennonite groups are busy trying to convert them . For example, the Kleine Gemeinde have a mission outreach in the Old Colony community of Little Belize in the Corozal District. Meanwhile the EMMC (Evangelical Mennonite Mission Church) is trying to win converts from both the Kleine Gemeinde and Old Colony. The Holdeman Mennonites arrived in the 1970's as missionaries to the Kleine Gemeinde and succeeded in winning quite a large number. (the converts left for Canada decades ago) Conservative and Beachy Mennonites seem to be more tolerant of other religions which is surprising due to their conservative beliefs; however they too hope to win over the Holdemans from their "one true church" mentality...

     Decades ago a commercial airliner was dismantled and hauled to the Mennonite colony of Blue Creek on the northern end of Belize, where it was converted into a power plant that generated electricity for dozens of families in the community. Here is the  story  of the Mennonite pioneer who made it happen as well as a look at his farm.                                                         A. Mendoza