One of the longest-lived communal societies in North America, the Hutterites have developed multifaceted communitarian perspectives on everything from conflict resolution and decision-making practices to standards of living and care for the elderly. This compellingly written book offers a glimpse into the complex and varied lives of the nearly 500 North American Hutterite communities. North American Hutterites today number around 50,000 and have common roots with and beliefs akin to the Amish and other Old Order Christians. This historical analysis and anthropological investigation draws on existing research, primary sources, and over 25 years of the authors' interaction with Hutterite communities to recount the group's physical and spiritual journey from its 16th-century founding in Eastern Europe and its near disappearance in Transylvania in the 1760s to its late 19th-century transplantation to North America and into the modern era. It explains how the Hutterites found creative ways to manage social and economic changes over more than five centuries while holding to the principles and cultural values embedded in their faith. Religious scholars, anthropologists, and historians of America and the Anabaptist faiths will find this objective-yet-appreciative account of the Hutterites' distinct North American culture to be a valuable and fascinating study both of the religion and of a viable alternative to modern-day capitalism.

Religious scholars, anthropologists, and historians of America and the Anabaptist faiths will find this objective-yet-appreciative account of the Hutterites' distinct North American culture to be a valuable and fascinating study both of the religion and of a viable alternative to modern-day capitalism.

A detatailed and well written account of this group of Anabaptists. The oldest and largest communal society in North America, the Hutterites—Anabaptists of German origin, like the Amish, Mennonites, and Brethren—have long been the subject of scholarly study and popular curiosity. Werner Packull tells the comprehensive story of the Hutterite beginnings in their original homelands—particularly in Tyrol and Moravia—and discovers important relationships among early Anabaptist sects.

Simon M Evans analyzes the German-speaking Anabaptist community, focusing on their history of expansion, their patterns of population growth, the additions they make to the cultural landscape of the northern plains, and their contributions to the agricultural and light manufacturing economies of their home states and provinces.

Paul Tschetter Was a Leading Figure In Late Nineteenth-Century Hutterite history, the "Hutterite Joshua," who convinced 1,250 Hutterites to leave Russia in the 1870s and resettle in Dakota Territory. Tschetter's life elucidates the way that an immigrant community fought for survival in a North American environment that stressed assimilation to radically different political, economic, cultural, and religious values. Janzen provides an in-depth narrative and analysis of Tschetter's influence based on diaries, sermons, hymns, interviews, and other primary materials. "I welcome this long-overdue book on Paul Tschetter. Rod Janzen is to be commended for continuing to preserve the Prairieleut heritage. Paul Tschetter provided much needed leadership in a very transitional period of Hutterian history."---Tony Waldner, Forest River Hutterite Colony "Much has been written on the communal Hutterites, but Rod Janzen is one of the very few scholars who have tracked the history of the more numerous Prairieleut, or noncommunal Hutterites. Spotlighting the pivotal Prairieleut leader Paul Tschetter is a giant step forward in preserving the history of the `other' Hutterites."---Timothy Miller, University of Kansas "Janzen writes the way history ought to be written ... The author builds upon, and then goes far beyond all previous studies---in content, and especially in his solid interpretation and historical analysis where socioreligious perspectives are not shortchanged."---Leonard Gross, author of the Golden Years of the Hutterites "The Tschetter family is grateful for Dr. Janzen's thoughtful biography."---Wesley G. Tschetter, South Dakota State University "Paul Tschetter's biography---so well-written by the careful and detailed research of Rod Janzen---preserves as a lasting tribute the story of a wonderful and many-sided man and the remarkable community of the Prairieleut people in the context of a forever vanished society and era."---Max Stanton, Brigham Young University, Hawaii

In 1969, Ann-Marie’s parents did the unthinkable, leaving a Hutterite colony with their seven children to start a new life. Overnight, the family was thrust into a society they did not understand and did not understand them in this powerful story of understanding how our beginnings often define us. “Your mother and father are running away," said a voice piercing the warm air. I froze and turned toward home. To a Hutterite, nothing is more shameful than that word.” When Ann-Marie's parents decided to leave their Hutterite colony in Canada with their seven children in tow, it was a complete shock. Overnight, the family was thrust into a society they did not understand, and which knew little of their unique culture. The transition was overwhelming. Desperate to be accepted, ten-year-old Ann-Marie was forced to deny her heritage in order to fit in with her peers. I Am Hutterite chronicles Ann-Marie's quest to reinvent herself as she comes to terms with the painful circumstances that led her family to leave community life. Before she left the colony, Ann-Marie had never tasted macaroni and cheese or ridden a bike. She had never heard of Walt Disney or rock-and-roll. With great humor, she describes how she adapted to popular culture, and with raw honesty, her family's deep sense of loss for their community. Winner of the 2007 Saskatchewan Book Award for Non-fiction Unveils the rich history and traditions of the Hutterite people’s extraordinary way of life Includes a glossary of Hutterite words and phrases, family photos, and a family tree In this insightful memoir, venture into the hidden heart of the little-known Hutterite colony. Rich with memorable characters and vivid descriptions, this ground-breaking narrative shines a light on intolerance, illuminating the simple truth that beneath every human exterior beats a heart longing for understanding and acceptance.