The Brotherhood
In addition to the primary religious denominations, there was an early pietistic movement that evolved into an organized body of considerable strength and influence in the German Russian community. This movement might be described as an auxiliary to the Protestant churches. The Brotherhood or Brethren (Brüderschaft) in America adhered strictly to the practices established in Russia.
Many of our ancestors belonged to the Brotherhood. This section outlines the history, organization, beliefs, and practices of the Brotherhood.
Although they organized private prayer circles and Bible study, they participated at the same time in all the functions of the Church. They put into practice the theory of the priesthood of all believers. Almost without exception, members of the Brotherhood were the nucleus of the individual church organizations and gave direction to their development.
The primary organization in the Brotherhood has been the local prayer meeting. These meetings, which were instituted in behalf of practical piety, were led and directed by laymen. In Russia these meetings were held four times a week—Wednesday evening, Saturday evening, Sunday afternoon and Sunday evening. A Christian bond of union arose among those who met four times a week to hear God’s Word, to confess their sins, to give their testimonies, and to tell of their spiritual triumphs. There they rejoiced with those who rejoiced and wept and wept with those who wept. Bound together by common spiritual aspirations, these circles of pious friends and steadfast companions watched over each other and helped bear one another’s burdens.
At each prayer meeting the elders appointed three Brethren to lead the group. In their addresses the leaders frequently referred to their own conversion and laid down the fundamental premise that all who wished to be saved must be born again. The listeners were made supremely aware of the danger of a literal hell, and told of the horror of everlasting punishment. They condemned this world and thought only of the next.
The Brethren quoted numerous Bible passages in support of their views. The singing of revival hymns was a conspicuous part of the meeting, even before the time of its opening. Necessity forced the adoption of “lining” the hymns, for the whole group possessed only a few copies of each German hymn book. The lines, read by one of the leaders and repeated in song by the group, proved of great value because the converts thereby memorized hundreds of sacred songs.
The prayer meeting was a place where plainness of dress was the rule. Every individual was met and greeted with heartfelt interest, where the story of trouble was heard with deep sympathy. No formality could exist where such feeling reigned. No effort was needed to draw people together. In Russia private homes generally served as the meeting places. In some villages modest prayer-meeting halls were erected.
In the United States the prayer meetings are patterned after those held in Russia, particularly among the Volga Germans. Nothing new was added to the meetings and it is impossible to overestimate the value of these meetings to the movement here. It is chiefly in the prayer meeting that the Brethren, bound together by close ties of tradition and spiritual kinship, cultivate their religious nature. There they sing songs of praise, witness for Christ, exchange their religious experiences, and renew their consecration. The spontaneity of the occasion, the opportunity for general participation, the custom of extemporaneous prayer, create an atmosphere in which the Brethren experience a faith in God and find satisfaction of soul.
The women, Sisters, occupied separate pews and were generally silent during the meetings. Generally upon entering the prayer meeting hall one would see all the men seated in the pews on the left and all the women seated in the pews on the right with their heads “covered.” The meetings among the Volga converts are conducted by three Brethren, adhering to the custom followed in Russia. About 15 minutes before the appointed time for the official opening, songs are sung. Thereafter the elders ask the Brethren to “go forward.” The first named person takes his place on the center chair and takes charge of the meeting. He opens the meeting by announcing a hymn from the Wolgagesangbuch, the church hymnal used in the Lutheran Church among the Volga colonists in Russia. This hymn he “lines” for the audience. Following the hymn he leads in prayer with the converts kneeling. Thereupon, without any announcement, someone in the audience starts a song, which is taken up by the assembled group, and while a few verses are being sung, the center leader chooses the text, usually from eight to twelve verses in length. Following the Scripture reading, chosen on the spot, a song is sung, appropriate to the ideas of the text, he makes timely applications from it.
At the close of his address an appropriate song is sung, after which either the Brother to the right or left of the main leader brings his message. He uses the same text and devotes from eight to ten minutes to his remarks. He frequently begins by saying that what has been said is in harmony with God’s Holy Word. His speech is followed by a few stanzas of a hymn and that in turn by the discourse of the other Brother. The meetings, which last an hour and a half, or even longer, are closed officially with the Lord’s Prayer recited by all.
Source: Eisenach, George J., Pietism and the Russian Germans in the United States (Berne, Indiana: The Berne Publishers, 1948)