Toews, Johann (1803-1889)

Johann Toews: ordained minister and Ältester of the Ladekopp Mennonite Church; born 10 December 1803 in Schönsee, West Prussia; married to Catharina Wall (1803-1858), the daughter of minister Johann (1765-1831) and Helena (Klaassen) (1772-1846) Wall; died on 19 February 1889 in Fresenheim, Am Trakt Mennonite Settlement, Russia.

Johann was first elected minister in 1832 and Ältester in 1853. As minister and later as Ältester of the Mennonite congregation at Bröskerfelde, then in Ladekopp and Pordenau, West Prussia, he rendered his brotherhood meritorious services by his vigorous, sympathetic work. In 1836 he took part in the founding of a school (Vereinsschule) in Bröskerfelde, contributing the land for the building and grounds. He corresponded with brethren in other countries, especially in Russia. In the Mennonitische Blätter he repeatedly replied to the articles by Christian Schmutz of Rappenau on mission work, the proposed ministerial training school, and the monument to Menno Simons.

His brother-in-law, Johann Wall, and Claas Epp, two ministers of the Ladekopp Mennonite Church in West Prussia led a group of families in the migration to Russia in 1852, where they established the Am Trakt Mennonite Settlement. Toews visited this settlement in 1861.

Johann Toews visited the Mennonites of the Molotschna settlement in the South Russia repeatedly and advocated the founding of the General Mennonite Conference. (See Allgemeine Bundeskonferenz der Mennonitengemeinden in Russland.)

In 1869 Johann Toews migrated to Russia from Prussia and continued to function as the honorary elder for the Koeppental Mennonite Church. Very little was known about his life. This may be the explanation why the earlier version of GAMEO included 3 entries for him – Töws, Johann (19th Century), Toews, Johann (1803-1887) and Töws, Johann (1805-1887).

Bibliography

Ediger, H. Beschlüsse . . . der Konferenzen. Berdyansk, 1914: 1.

Friesen, Peter M. Die Alt-Evangelische Mennonitische Brüderschaft in Russland (1789-1910) im Rahmen der mennonitischen Gesamtgeschichte. Halbstadt: Verlagsgesellschaft "Raduga", 1911: 719.

Goertz, Adalbert. "List of Mennonite Ministers in Prussia." 23 May 2005. Web. 6 November 2012. http://www.mennonitegenealogy.com/prussia/prediger.htm.

Hege, Christian and Christian Neff. Mennonitisches Lexikon, 4 vols. Frankfurt & Weierhof: Hege; Karlsruhe: Schneider, 1913-1967: v. IV, 347.

Mennonitische Blätter (1860): 21; (1862): 15; (1866): 29; (1867): 46, 54; (1889): 59.

Rempel, Mary. “Church Record of those in the Ladekopp District Marriages, Births, Deaths and Communicants Recorded in each year 1775-1829”. [This is a draft transcription of "1775-1829 Geburten, Trauungen Todesfälle (OK60)” housed at the Mennonitische Forschungsstelle, Weierhof, Germany]. Available online at: https://mla.bethelks.edu/archives/cong_306/cong306.pdf

Author(s)	Cornelius Krahn
	Christian Neff
	Alf Redekopp
Date Published	November 2020

Cite This Article

MLA style

Krahn, Cornelius, Christian Neff and Alf Redekopp. "Toews, Johann (1803-1889)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. November 2020. Web. 25 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Toews,_Johann_(1803-1889)&oldid=169479.

APA style

Krahn, Cornelius, Christian Neff and Alf Redekopp. (November 2020). Toews, Johann (1803-1889). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 25 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Toews,_Johann_(1803-1889)&oldid=169479.

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Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, pp. 740, 1129-1130. All rights reserved.

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