Uithuizen (Groningen, Netherlands)
Uithuizen, a village in the Dutch province of Groningen, from the 16th century a seat of a Mennonite congregation, which had to endure many hardships in the last decades of this century after the persecution had officially ended. In 1583 Johan Arents, the district governor of Uithuizen, fined all the Mennonites, prevented their meetings, and tried to compel them to attend the Reformed services and have their children baptized. In the 17th century it sided with the Groningen Old Flemish and joined the Old Flemish conference.
Until ca. 1820 it was served by lay preachers chosen from the membership; Tjaard Pieters served it 1725-78, more than half a century. An influential elder was Lubbert Egges, preacher from 1739, elder 1755, serving until his death in 1770. After his death the congregation steadily declined. The old doctrines were no longer maintained and the young people did not join the church. In 1710 the baptized membership numbered about 65, in 1733, 58, in 1754, 37 (a meeting held on 19 June of this year led by Lubbert Jans Kremer was, however, attended by more than 130 persons), in 1767, 35, in 1798, 25, in 1834 only 15. The last preacher chosen from the congregation was Hendrik Pieters, serving 1789- ca. 1820. From then the pulpit was vacant until 1842.
In 1835 the congregation numbered hardly a dozen members and dissolution seemed inevitable; but Simon Gorter, pastor of neighboring Zijldijk, succeeded in infusing new life in the Laodiceanism of the Uithuizen church. By 1840 the membership had risen to nearly 30; in 1842-44, A. J. van Pesch, a retired minister of Rotterdam, served, followed by D. Plantinus, 1845-47, H. C. Dronrijp Uges, 1847-56, L van Cleeff, 1857-94, M. Honigh, 1896-1900, P. Oosterbaan, 1901-7, H. Hooghiemster, 1908-27; after six years of vacancy M. J. J. Gaaikema, 1933-46, Dj. E. W. Siccama, 1946-50, Miss N. Klassen, 1954- . The membership, 29 in 1840, was 53 in 1861, 98 in 1900, 102 in 1925, and 101 in 1958. A parsonage was built in 1842 and a new meetinghouse in 1868, dedicated 30 August (with organ of 1898). Church activities include a ladies’ circle, youth group 12-18, and Sunday school for children.
Bibliography
Cate, Steven Blaupot ten. Geschiedenis der Doopsgezinden in Groningen, Overijssel en Oost-Friesland, 2 vols. Leeuwarden: W. Eekhoff en J. B. Wolters, 1842: v. I, 87, 127, 140, 142, 197 ff., 238.
Doopsgezinde Bijdragen (1868): 169; (1877): 108; (1879): 6; (1898): 240.
Doopsgezind Jaarboekje (1840): 43; (1850): 58 ff.
Scheffer, Hoop and Jacob Gijsbert de. Inventaris der Archiefstukken berustende bij de Vereenigde Doopsgezinde Gemeente to Amsterdam, 2 vols. Amsterdam: Uitgegeven en ten geschenke aangeboden door den Kerkeraad dier Gemeente, 1883-1884: v. II, No. 2285 ff.
| Author(s) | Nanne van der Zijpp |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1959 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Zijpp, Nanne van der. "Uithuizen (Groningen, Netherlands)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1959. Web. 23 Nov 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Uithuizen_(Groningen,_Netherlands)&oldid=125145.
APA style
Zijpp, Nanne van der. (1959). Uithuizen (Groningen, Netherlands). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 23 November 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Uithuizen_(Groningen,_Netherlands)&oldid=125145.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, pp. 762-763. All rights reserved.
©1996-2024 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.