The Swiss Mennonite Conference commemorated the beginning of the Anabaptist movement in Zurich on the 500th anniversary of the first adult baptisms with a celebration that recalled the movement’s origins and reflected on current challenges.
Anabaptists now number over 2 million believers worldwide. About 1,800 belong to the Swiss conference, spread across 13 congregations. Just over 60 representatives of these congregations and conference committees joined the Jan. 21 celebration.
The event began with a memorial service on the Limmat River that commemorated both the persecution of the first Anabaptists and the 2004 reconciliation of the Anabaptist movement with the Zurich City Council and the Reformed Church of Zurich.
“We stand on this foundation of reconciliation. When we remember our beginnings, we do not forget our new sense of togetherness,” said conference co-president Lukas Amstutz.
He spoke of the emergence of the Anabaptist movement, which emphasized voluntary church fellowship and following Jesus, and also the rupture that this emergence represented. He asked whether the rupture was necessary and encouraged reflection on how strong convictions can be dealt with today without dividing or excluding. Part of the legacy of the Anabaptist movement is to counter violence with the courage of love.
The second part of the event moved to Streetchurch, a Reformed Church congregation. Mennonite conference general secretary Jürg Bräker used the image of a candle to invite participants to consider shattered hopes, successful projects and unexpected gifts. Representatives brought candle remnants, which were melted and cast into new candles.
“Perhaps we need to let go of used materials in order to be able to receive them anew — to remember and preserve the precious things that brought light and joy into the world and to set them free so that new life can emerge from them,” he said.
Each congregation and committee received a candle and small bag of salt as a symbolic gift and invitation to be salt and light in the world.
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