The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser

Amish-Mennonite Man Says I Was a Christian When He Knew Me as a Pastor

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Bruce Gerencser

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In the 1980s and 1990s, I pastored Somerset Baptist Church in Mt. Perry, Ohio. I planted the church, and in its heyday it surpassed 200 in attendance. Not far from our church sat Calvary Bible Fellowship — a large Amish-Mennonite community. My partner and I, along with our children, attended Calvary Bible on occasion. We really enjoyed the accapella music.

I befriended some of the church men over the years. I suspect they viewed me as an oddity: Fundamentalist like them, but not quite. Suspicious of most religious sects, the folks at Calvary Bible were not quick to paint someone a Christian.

Recently, I received a short email from an Amish-Mennonite man named John. John remembers my preaching and witness for Christ, but doesn’t remember personally talking with me much. He’s older than me, so I will attribute his faulty memory to age. 🙂 John and I had several discussions over the years, including at his business down the road from the church.

John wrote:

A, born again believer has a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. He had repented of his sins, recognizing that he needs a savior, and an asked Jesus to come into his life the Holy Spirit to guide him, and even a true Christian enjoys his relationship with the Lord he has assurance of salvation and he would not leave that relationship and become an atheist. I’m sorry to say but Bruce I still love you and I know that the Lord does too and he’s calling you to come back to him and race receive a relationship with him and obtain eternal life at the end. I was a minister at Calvary Bible Fellowship for early 20 years. I still remember you were quite diligent and in talking to people about the Lord and as I remember you challenge the Catholics, but I don’t remember personally talking with you very much that I can remember.

For the purpose of this post, I want readers to ignore John’s sermons. Nothing new there; nothing I haven’t heard countless times before — albeit from an Arminian perspective. I want to focus on John’s description of me:

I still remember you were quite diligent and in talking to people about the Lord and as I remember you challenge the Catholics.

Think of how many zealots and apologists have attacked my character, saying I was a fraud, a liar, a deceiver Several preachers have spread far and wide the lie that I never was a pastor. My story is a legend, not lived history. John, who knew me better than ANY of my critics, saw me differently. John and I crossed paths many times over the years. He and his family lived two miles down the road from our church and “spacious” 12’x60 foot Hillbilly Mansion on wheels. We saw each other here and there, usually trading pleasantries, and, on occasion, talking about the decline of society, the Bible, and Christian education (we used books from Mennonite publisher, Rod & Staff, in our private Christian school). I found John to be a good man; someone I enjoyed talking to, on occasion. He certainly took his faith seriously.

I snickered a bit when John mentioned me challenging Catholics. Yeah, there was a time when I had no contact with Catholics other than trying to evangelize them. John likely remembers me and a few men from the church street preaching in front of the Catholic church in Somerset as they held their annual Garden Party (which featured beer and gambling). This was how the church raised funds to operate for the year. Years later, after actual exposure to Catholics, I moderated my views on Catholics, grudgingly admitting they were Christians, The Baptist in me took a long time to die.

I enjoyed hearing from John. I know he’s disappointed in me, but I have many fond memories of our years in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.

Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

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Comments

10 responses to “Amish-Mennonite Man Says I Was a Christian When He Knew Me as a Pastor”

  1. Avatar
    John S.

    Bruce this was an awesome story. I personally have a soft spot for the Amish-Mennonites. My wife is from Preble County/Eaton, and there they have always had German Baptists, which are a plain group that can drive cars and have electricity in the home. Recently conservative Mennonites and Amish have also established communities there too.
    I know like all religious communities they have their share of stories of abuse, fundamentalism, etc. But their focus on simple living, physical work and enjoying the end of the day on the front porch smoking a pipe (depending on which sect you’re part of that is) is something that is appealing sometimes.
    I also greatly appreciate your charitable attitude towards your old friend. This is why I read and enjoy your page. You always place an example before me of how I should be towards others who may not share my beliefs, but strive be good and decent to themselves and others. I greatly appreciate what you do.

    Reply
    1. Avatar
      Environmental Scientist

      Their puppy mills are stuff of nightmares.

      Reply
      1. Avatar
        Bruce Gerencser

        As far as I know, they didn’t operate any puppy mills, though they did have veal calves — another barbaric livestock practice.

        There’s a difference between the Amish and Amish-Mennonite people.

        Reply
        1. Avatar
          John S.

          I believe the Amish-Mennonites are also sometimes called “Beachy Amish”, after a Bishop who led a break away community. They can own cars, and their clothing, while still plain, is not as 1800’s looking as the more conservative Amish groups. Broadly speaking, the Amish have three sects, Old Order, New Order and Swartzentriber. Most “Amish” are some variation of Old Order. Swatzentruber are the most conservative when it comes to technology and comfort. New Order allow more technology jut are usually still “horse and buggy”. Beachy Amish-Mennonites, which are kind of more “Mennonite” in appearance, allow the use of cars with no chrome, hence another nickname- “black bumper Amish”, when they used to literally paint over any chrome on a vehicle.

          These categorizations are very broad, though. An Old Order community may allow some electricity for a business (like pallet making) but not allow the men to use tobacco. A Swartzentriber group may say no use of electric tools even if they belong to an English person, but allow tobacco use.

          Animal abuse, along with sexual abuse, is one of the kind of hidden atrocities of some Amish communities, but to be fair our society at large doesn’t value the lives of animals (full disclosure, I am a meat eater), or, as we’re finding out, the lives of other people in general. Amish farm practices vary depending on what is allowed in their “district” but most use some technology to comply with health regulations. Along with veal and puppy mills, there is a well known case in PA of an Amish farmer selling raw milk products which caused food poisoning in some of his customers. The state raided his farm and he became a hero to the RFK minded folks.

          Like America itself, there is the Amish ideal and then there is the everyday life of reality. I think most Amish don’t actually care for being put on a pedestal or display. They want to live their lives, and they usually try avoid friction with English society. However the more conservative the group the less effort is made. In general, these groups subscribe to the “Two kingdoms” doctrine- the kingdom of the World and the kingdom of Heaven. The world is heading to perdition (and the way things are with Dear Leader I can’t say I disagree), so to them complying with the English is complying with the world. The difference in general is that the Amish practice passive resistance to the English (no, the show “Amish Mafia” isn’t real). But this resistance to outside authority manifests itself in little to no accountability for abusers, whether that be of animals or other Amish people.

          Reply
          1. Avatar
            Bruce Gerencser

            I vaguely remember (dangerous ground for this geezer)🤣🤣 Calvary Bible Fellowship is part of a group of churches that split from the Beachy Amish over something to do with salvation. I’ll see if I can verify what I “think” I know 🤣🤣. They were quite Evangelical in some respects, but how they lived was an interesting mix of Amish and modernity. As you stated, Amish in dress and simplicity, but modern when it came to utilities, vehicles (only black or white) farm equipment, and shop equipment, to name a few.

  2. Avatar
    matilddaa

    I’m sure other commenters will make this same observation….my immediate thought was of all the fundies who are doubtless going to respond, ‘Ah, Bruce, remember Amish and Mennonites are Not True Xtians, not like we are, you were fooled again, repent and come back to our-one-true-fold! Or else……!!!!

    Reply
    1. Avatar
      … Zoe ~

      I was going to but now I don’t have to. 🙂

      Reply
  3. Avatar
    TheDutchGuy

    Decent honest men trying their best to be honest with each other in spite of their basic disagreement about the meanings of their very lives. Something about that touches my soul. That is to say, it touches whatever my soul is, if anything at all. Some would say it’s just a feeling. For lack of a better descriptive word, I’ll just say my soul was touched. Thanks Bruce.

    Reply
  4. Troy

    Bruce, I think you make too much of an effort to disprove what is essentially fundamentalist dogma. Of course you were sincere, the only one who doubt this is those that have a dogmatic belief that “if you lose faith you never really had it”.
    As an example that isn’t tied to dogma, in 5th grade I had debates with the girl in front of me on the question of Santa Claus. There was no doubt that I was a Santa believer and she never broke my belief, though it might have been the first inkling that I was naive. (Of course now my Santa is Bruce Almighty–but that is beside the point!)

    Reply
  5. Avatar
    ObstacleChick

    It’s interesting that this man reached out to you after all these years.

    I find separatist religious groups to be interesting. Even more interesting is the increasing segmentation based on small differences. When I talk with people about Christian Nationalism, I try to explain the as a group gains mire power, it will continuously shift the hoalposts of “purity”. What starts off as a large tent of coalition will whittle down more and more over small differences. Eventually there becomes more out-group than in-group.

    Reply

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