It was inevitable that a people [Anabaptists/Mennonite], who took the Scriptures as seriously as these people did, would come to believe in the doctrine of nonresistance. They made no attempt to rationalize the teachings of Christ; they engaged in no philosophical discussions about their meaning.They asked no questions as to their practicability. They simply took the words of Jesus as they found them in the Gospels and proceeded to live by them. They took for granted that Christ meant what He said, and they saw no reason why they should not obey without question. To these Christians it was perfectly reasonable to ask: How can a Christian, living according to the way of Jesus, consistently retaliate, rebel, war, murder, slay, torture, steal, rob, burn cities and conquer countries? Since Jesus Christ had forbidden such conduct, the Christian could not engage in it. It was just as simple as that.
War, Peace, and Nonresistance (1969)
-Guy Franklin Hershberger, PhD (1896-1989)
The preeminent Mennonite theologian of his generation
