As an opening topic for my blog, I asked some friends,  “What are some commonly asked questions none-Hutterites ask Hutterites?” I got some important, and yes, predictable responses, but by far the most interesting was, “Where are you from?” Where am I from? Seeing we are dressed differently, and speak a foreign language, I always imagine a faraway, improbable country people expect when they ask us, “Where are you from?” But then we have to answer, “I live near Rochester,” or “near Brandon,” near Sioux Falls, or Winnipeg. T....

Written by Lisa Guenther  Writer with Grainews and Country Guide.

Paul Wipf is a Hutterite ambassador of sorts. He has talked about life on Hutterite colonies at Alberta farm shows, he speaks openly to reporters, and he puts time and effort into helping the general public see what it means to be Hutterite.

Wipf is also the farm steward — he doesn’t like the title “farm boss” — on the Viking Colony, about two hours southeast of Edmonton. Typically, Hutterite colonies have a range of ventures, and the Viking Colony, which....

[By HANS JAKOB CHRISTOPH GRIMELSHAUSEN]                                                   Hans Jakob Christoph von Grimmelshausen (1621-17 August 1676), author of the famous novel, Der abenteuerliche Simplizissimus, published in 1668. In book V, chapter 19, he gives a remarkable picture of "Hungarian Anabaptists" and their communal way of living, and there can be no doubt that Hutterite colonies in Slovakia are thus portrayed. To him it was almost like Utopia come true.

"Finally I recognize from all my st....

My name is Carol Maendel. I am a 26-year-old wife and mother who lives at Forest River Colony near Fordville, North Dakota with 100+ other people. I am a Hutterite. I was married a year ago and moved from my colony to my husband's, as is our custom. Growing up at my small mother colony in Montana, I attended a public school in town, got a driver's license when I was 15 and graduated in 2006 from Roundup High School.  I worked at the colony and spent time with my family until I was baptized. I then married and moved to Forest River.

I live, ....

Reprinted with the permission of Author Dave Hubert

The Hutterian Brethren living on the Great Plains of western North America are much studied but little understood. They come from a history of 400 years of unrelenting persecution, and almost extinction. Their history of steadfastness and perseverance is unique in the annals of Christian history. And while this glorious history lies behind them, the contributions they ....