No Lasting Home
A Year in the Paraguayan Wilderness
It is summer, 1940. As Hitler’s armies turn mainland Europe into a mass graveyard, his feared Luftwaffe rain bombs on England. Meanwhile, amid the green hills of the Cotswolds, a nest of “enemy aliens” has been discovered: the Bruderhof, a Christian commune made up of German, Dutch, and Swiss refugees, and growing numbers of English pacifists.
Having fled Nazi Germany to escape persecution, the Bruderhof had at first been welcomed in England. Now, at the height of the Battle of Britain, it is feared. Curfews and travel restrictions are imposed; nasty newspaper articles appear, and local patriots initiate a boycott. Debates over whether the community should be allowed to exist go all the way to Parliament.
Determined to remain together as a witness for peace in a war-torn world, the little group of 300 – half of them babies and young children – looks for a new home. No country in Europe will allow them to stay, and Canada and the United States refuse to take them. Where should the refugees try to resettle next? This is their story.
213 pages, 3.5 Mb
Responses
Can I describe the book for you? No, I cannot. But I can assure you this is a story you will not want to miss, and once started you will not be able to stop reading...Along with its deeply thought-provoking text, the book has a wealth of pictures, each one "speaking more than a thousand words" on its own....So many adventures, so many failures, yet so many triumphs of the grace of God! What a blessing where we may come together and speak with humility and honesty about the past, recognising where we stand now, so we may work toward a future in the unshakeable Kingdom of God!
Peter
Rocky Cape Christian Community
Tasmania, Australia
I really am excited about the new book No Lasting Home! It is gripping and I would so much like to obtain a hard copy. Please let me know how I can do this and how much. The title really shows how things really are in this life- but we have a sure anchor and steadfast hope!
I would also sometime like to get a copy of the book Homage to a Broken Man.
Thank you for your help and information!
I really appreciate your website! I like it when there are new articles posted and we appreciate so much!
Greetings!
Michael Harris
Casstown, OH
Hello. I attended the Mennonite World Conference last week in Asuncion, Paraguay, and came away intrigued with the presentation of your people. I sit on the board of Mennonite Historical Society in Abbotsford, British Columbia, and do a great deal of writing for the Society's newsletter, which has a wide readership here. I'd like to do an overview of No Lasting Home... (And I love your website.)
Keep up the good work.
Robert Martens
Abbotsford, BC
Your Turn. Tell us what you thought about this book:
Michael Blough at the 2009 Mennonite World Conference tells about our history in Paraguay. Click image to enlarge and play video.