“We need a new generation of textbooks… We could gather around these stories in church groups, in seminary classrooms, around campfires. It’s a process of…realizing that many of our forebears in faith come from other continents… We need to recognize them as kin.”
Anicka Fast, series editor
Many Anabaptists live in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and yet most histories of the Anabaptist movement primarily tell stories from Europe and North America.
This needs to change.
We need a broader story of what it means to be a global Anabaptist church.
The Global Mennonite History Project, which offered an overview of the history of the Anabaptist church on five continents, was a first attempt to follow this new vision. It was an innovative approach that provided a much-needed corrective to Eurocentric histories.
But many voices and stories were still left out.
Global Anabaptist Forebearsis a new global history series based on biography.
Biographies offer a way to hear the voices of people who are marginalized in other histories: such as women, or local missionaries and leaders.
Each volume in the new series grows out of a workshop, co-taught by lecturers with local and global expertise.
The first volume of the series, featuring stories of Congolese Mennonites from participants in a 2023 workshop in Kinshasa, is expected in 2026. Its provisional title is
Fighters for the Lord: Stories of Faith and Leadership from Congo (Combattants pour le Seigneur: Histoires de foi et de leadership au Congo).
Biographies featured
Sengu Rebecca (1908–1985) by Mundedi Bercie
Khelendende Léonie (1950–1999) by Malembe Charlie
Kholoma Esther (1924–2000) by Kapeme Guy
Njoko David (ca. 1895–2003) by Mihala Donatien
Masheke David (1914–1974) by Birakara Joly
Makeka Natala Rebecca (1920–2003) by Musangu Adasa and Tshimika Pakisa
Djoloko Sophie (1953–2018) by Felo Gracia
Malengeza Kalunga Marthe (1938–2021) by Kabeya Flore
Tshianze Tambwe Delvaux (1954–2011) by Tambwe Doris
Mwamba Kavuya Charles (1940–2022) by Kuzombuka Charles
Zihindula Namashombwe Pierre (1958–2009) by Selemani Josué
Lusangu Kavuya Pierre (ca. 1914–2009) by Matwala Watson
Kazadi Lukuna Matthieu (1900–1994) by Cimbalanga Jean-Félix
Mbuyi Kapinga Rosalie (1924–2005) by Kalubi Liévin
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Eight core values underlie the book series
Small scale
Collaborative
Quality
Focus on biography
Global History framework
Centering women’s stories
Accessible
Ecumenical and missional
The books will be available for sale in print and as free open access PDFs, published by Regnum Books.
To support the new history series, including Anicka’s work as series editor and the costs of workshops and publications, donate to Mennonite World Conference
To donate online, select the “Designation” box to expand the options. Select “Other,” then “Global Mennonite History Project.”
To donate by cheque, note: “Global Mennonite History Project.”
Mail to Mennonite World Conference, PO Box 5364, Lancaster, PA 17606-5364 (US banks) or 50 Kent Ave., Suite 206, Kitchener, ON N2G 3R1 (Canadian banks)
Watch this longer (9-minute) video to learn more about Anicka Fast’s vision for the series, to get a taste for the collaborative research that goes into each biography, and to be inspired by the life and example of a Congolese Mennonite leader, Sengu Rebecca (1908-1985), and the author of her biography, Bercie Mundedi.
