It did not take long before restrictions on our freedoms were introduced. Soon the congregation had to pay large sums of money to the Red Cross. And even if we weren’t supposed to regard it as contributing to the military or war effort, it was money that went to strengthen the war effort all the same, a fact that was cause for serious reflection in the hearts of many well-meaning people. Few years had passed since the war had started and already one began to read in the papers that there was to be a general registry throughout all of Canada, from which the Mennonites were not going to be exempted. This war – the great European war – that broke out in August of 1914, was the cause of the registry.

And when in December of 1916 it was announced that these registration cards, which were demanded by the government, had to have all twenty-four questions answered and filled out, the concern grew and became more general and the question of whether this might be the beginning of mandatory military service was seriously considered. It was because of this fear that the decision was reached in the entire congregation not to fill out the cards. Regarding this matter all of the brothers were called to a meeting in the church at Reinland where it was unanimously decided not to fill out the cards. Some were glad and felt light in their consciences that the congregation was unified and reached a decision collectively. But what happened next? As we were on our way back from the brotherhood and were on our way to Ohm Peter Harms for lunch, the registrar Bennett, as I recall, had already come to inquire about the outcome of our consultation.¹ And as the dear Aeltester Ohm Johann Friesen explained in few words that, on that present day, more than five hundred brothers from all three congregations had gathered and had unanimously determined not to fill out the registration cards, this man’s friendly countenance was replaced by a dark expression. He asserted that we would find no reasonable objection not to fill out the cards, and that if we would not do it of our own free will, then we would be persuaded by the law to comply. Finally the man asked the Aeltesten and all the other Ohms why we were so afraid to fill out the cards. Aeltester Johann Wall (who was the designated speaker) answered that we were afraid that by filling out the forms we would thereby be pulled into military service. And we were afraid that if we offered our heretofore gracious government but a finger in this matter, they would take the whole hand. To this the registrar calmly replied that this registration in no way implied such consequences for us, but rather, was only a general census of the people to get an estimate, in order to make a calculation of how many people of each sort were in the country, and he even appealed to the passage in the Gospel of Luke, in the second chapter, where it is written: “In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken in the entire Roman world (this was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria). And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him” (Luke 2:1–5). With this the man said, “If Mary and Joseph would take part in the census, why won’t you?” The Aeltester and ministers were silent; they didn’t know how to respond, so they asked the man for permission to call another meeting of the brotherhood to discuss the matter again. He readily agreed to this and with a friendly handshake bid them farewell and left hoping to see his wish fulfilled.

On the following Sunday the brethren were once again summoned to the church in Reinland. Again, a unanimous decision was reached, but this time in favour of filling out the registration cards. It was decided that, as far as our human judgment was concerned, we had no reason not to comply with the wishes of this government representative; rather we desired to do what the government requested of us. But the Sommerfelder congregation was not at peace with this decision and so decided to send a delegation to Ottawa to inquire about a secure decision. This delegation consisted of the following persons: Aeltester Ohm Abram Doerksen, of Sommerfeld (Manitoba); Aeltester Ohm David Toews, from Rosthern (Saskatchewan); Preacher Ohm Heinrich Doerksen, of Niverville (Manitoba); Benjamin Ewert, of Gretna (Manitoba), and Klaas Peters, from Herbert (Saskatchewan). After a twelve-day absence these men returned with the happy news that they had been most pleasantly received by the federal government. They also brought back with them the following news, both orally and in written form, which may be summarized roughly as follows:

We, the five delegates, were received by the high officials and ministers in the friendliest manner. After we presented our case the first minister, Rogers, took the floor and spoke at length about the present war, and the necessities thereof, and of their hopes of a total victory, and so on. He also spoke about how the Mennonites are an agricultural people, and how agriculture is a national service, because without proper nutrition, there is no way that the soldiers could win the war. The Mennonites ought to concern themselves with providing sustenance, and they ought to plant grains even more industriously than in the past. The Privilegium, which was granted to the Mennonites when they first immigrated, was still fully in effect, and would be respected by the government. We would not be forced into doing military service. Mr. Bennett then said the following regarding the registration cards: first, that they should absolutely be filled out, but that they represented no danger to us, and we were in no way obliging ourselves to military service through them. The purpose of the cards is only this: to find out what sorts of people were in the country – how many people were engaged in agriculture, and how many people there were who could do other sorts of work. Mr. Bennett then reassured us that the Mennonites would not be compelled to perform military service, first, because we were an agricultural people which provided an indispensable service, even during wartime. And also because we had a Privilegium from the government, which would be respected by the present one as well as all future governments, as long as Canada remained under the British flag.

If Canada did not win the war, however, then it was likely that the freedom that we Mennonites currently enjoyed in Canada would be lost. Regarding the registration cards, it was asked that we write “Mennonite” directly above the question section, so that it would be obvious to whoever read the cards whom they concerned. We also asked if it would be possible for those of our young people who had already committed themselves to military service to be released from that obligation. The answer was yes. But they had to want to be released. They would have to submit a written request for release to the commanding officer of their battalion and also send a copy to Mr. Rogers in Ottawa in order to have their request granted. This privilege, however, would only apply to those still in Canada. Those already across the ocean were beyond the control of the Canadian government. We also asked who qualified as a Mennonite – only those who were officially a part of the congregation, or also the unbaptized? The response was: “Not only those who are a part of the congregation, but anyone with Mennonite parents. But if they have joined a different denomination, then they will no longer be considered Mennonite.”

This was the written news that the Sommerfelder delegates brought back with them from Ottawa. And although our congregation did not take part in this trip to Ottawa, it was nevertheless welcome news for us as well. The news was followed by a short period of peace, at least in the flesh, but it also served to strengthen a feeling of earthly security and godless living.

1. Since this meeting took place in Manitoba, Dyck is likely referring to P. C. Locke, the superintendent of registration in Manitoba, rather than R. B. Bennett, who was the director general of the National Service Board in Ottawa. ↩︎