A special 500th anniversary edition of Mennonite History and Thought!
Aug. 26-Dec. 11, 2025
Tuesday and Thursday 1:00-2:15p Eastern
Community members are invited to join EMU undergraduates and seminary students for this special course, on campus or online.
Auditor Registration Fee: $300*
*A special, discounted rate for this historic opportunity.
500 years ago, some ordinary people challenged the established religious, political and social order in Europe. This faith movement has since become a global Anabaptist-Mennonite church. Historian Mary Sprunger and theologian Andrew Suderman team up to offer a special interdisciplinary course in 2025 to commemorate how five centuries of this "Radical Reformation" have shaped personal and communal faith; identity; economic practice; response to persecution, war and nationalism; migration patterns; missions past and present; food history; higher education; and much more. If you have ever asked any of the following questions, we invite you to join us for an exploration of the beliefs, histories and cultures of Mennonites around the world (you don't need to be Mennonite):
What is the "Mennonite" in EMU all about?
- Why are Mennonites pacifist (except when they aren’t)?
- Is “Mennonite” a faith, a culture or an ethnic group?
- How did the Anabaptist faith spread from Europe to the Americas, Africa and Asia?
- What is an "Anabaptist Christian"? Does it mean the same thing in Ethiopia as it does in Japan or Bolivia?
- What role did Mennonites play in the institution of slavery and its abolition?
- Why do North American Mennonites produce so many cookbooks?
- What does it mean to be “countercultural”?
- Did some Mennonites really turn a blind eye to Nazi atrocities?
- How are religious beliefs and practices shaped by history?
Community members are invited to join EMU undergraduates and seminary students for this special course, running from Aug. 26 to Dec.11, 2025, on campus or online. Along with many other shorter readings, this course will use the new overview of Anabaptist and Mennonite history, Radicals and Reformers: A Survey of Global Anabaptist History (2024) with author Dr. Troy Osborne as a special speaker in the class and on campus in October.
Mary Sprunger
Dr. Sprunger has taught history for three decades at EMU, including courses in World, Women’s, European, Food, and Mennonite history, and is an expert on the social and economic history of the Dutch Mennonites.
Andrew Suderman
Dr. Suderman, who serves as the Director of Global Partnerships at Mennonite Mission Network and the Secretary of Mennonite World Conference’s Peace Commission, in addition to teaching Theology, Peace and Mission at EMU, brings his extensive international experience and connections to bear on the Anabaptist story.
