by John R. Smucker, edited by Emily Smucker-Beidler
A major theme and pillar in the story of the Schmucker family has been of faith and discipleship. I have personally espoused that faith as a youth and it has sustained me for my 74 years...and I am counting on it for the year or so I have left. It only takes one generation to lose it and interestingly enough, often the connection with the family is lost with it as well.
Our family can look back on eight generations of faithful Christians. During my seminary days, H.S. Bender once made the statement that the reason the Amish/Mennonite church has survived is not because of great intellectual leaders or well educated persons, or even terrific leadership, but rather it has survived because the leaders were good, sincere people. Considering the men and women of these eight generations, there were no ministers in my direct line. Other than my father who taught grade school for about three years, all my other ancestors were farmers. I feel fortunate for this lineage. And as our society changes, I hope that my grandchildren can say the same as they spread their wings.
Currently, we do not know when the Schmucker family joined the Taufer or Anabaptist movement. These two movements had begun about 200 years before the Schmuckers left Switzerland, moving to France for eight years, and then finally settling in America. We can say this with a reasonable amount of confidence.
As a matter of historical significance, the Anabaptist movement had three basic areas of development. The first was in Holland. Anabaptists there experienced persecution from the Catholic Church and also the Reformed Church, however, eventual acceptance was more rapid here than in other locations. Secondly, Southern Germany was populated by Lutherans. Unfortunately, the Lutheran reformation did very little for the peasants and serfs. In practice, the Lutheran lords and princes were little different from those of the Catholic ruling class. This despite the fact that Luther’s early preaching was championed by the peasants, who craved the message of freedom and opportunity.
For these peasants, in desperate circumstances, chose clubs and pitchforks, formed revolts and were mercilessly put down by the ruling powers. It is for this reason that rulers were highly suspicious of anything which smelled of anti- government or anti-church. Traveling Anabaptist preachers had eager converts, and many joined the Anabaptist community. However, the pressure from the ruling class stifled the nurture of congregations.
Third, in Switzerland, Anabaptists have a long history of bloody persecution and tight regulations. So by the time of Christian Schmucker, the pressure was not so much on the death sentence, as it was many restrictions on Anabaptist life. For instance,there is a reference to Christian Schmucker in
the archives in Berne, Switzerland which indicates that he was put in the Trachslelwald Castle prison for four days. His charge was that of a teacher and a pietist. This may have been the last straw which caused the authorities to combat the Anabaptist message. As long as the Anabaptist remained relatively isolated, 3000 feet high up in their Alpine homes, the authorities looked away. But in this arrest, Christian Schmucker was down in their territory, actively preaching a message not sanctioned by the state church. The fact that he remained imprisoned for only four days and the evidence that the family shortly thereafter moved to France, indicates that leaving Switzerland was one of his choices.
The eight years in France were likely lived as sharecroppers. The Catholic princes who owned the land did not care about the tenants’ religion as long as they were making money from the land. The Schmuckers probably felt like foreigners with little reason to be attached to the land. Some of those who remained in this general area for several generations prospered. They excelled in dairy cattle breeding. Indeed, the result of this time was the “Mennonite Cow,” large as a Holstein, with Guernsey colors.
When William Penn began recruiting those seeking religious tolerance, it is understandable why these ousted Swiss tenant farmers found the lure of freedom of religion and owning one’s own land a major draw. In 1752, the list of people leaving Europe on the
St.Andrew had Christian Schmucker’s name listed at the top. It also may indicate that he helped to organize this venture.
Was the situation in America an improvement over what they had in France? Some of the early Dutch Mennonites who came to Germantown wrote back to their home congregations pondering whether they had made a mistake in coming to America. The opportunity to own land had been fulfilled, but what would the future be like for them? Would their rejection of violence be tolerated? Would they be conscripted into the militia?
Just a few words to give an overview of the initial religious situation in Pennsylvania: William Penn, an English Quaker, was granted the land of Pennsylvania by the King of England in 1681. He could dispose of it in any way he chose, with un- limited power to govern the settlers with political institutions he thought best. Penn’s first mission was to establish a place of refuge for English Quakers who were being oppressed in their own country, and to other religious groups who were being denied the usual civil and religious rites.
Beginning in 1710, and through 1756, there were continuous migrations of Mennonites from Switzerland and the German Palatinate. In this early period of time, about 3,000 Mennonites reached Pennsylvania and 400 Amish. By 1776, there were about 100.000 German speaking people in Pennsylvania, about one third of the population. Of that group, the Amish and Mennonites were less than 10%. Then the immigration waves from Europe to America began again after the French and Indian War in 1815.
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