Page:Mennonite Handbook of Information 1925.djvu/23

 and meekly submitted to persecution and the reproach of those who sought to make life hard for him.

His advance to the point when he could make this solemn declaration was when he was at the age of forty years, and after thirteen years of service had been given to the Roman Catholic Church. During the remaining twenty-four years of his life, in all his preaching and writings, we see the foundation principles set forth on which, in the next seventy years after his death, his followers were able to clearly set forth what are today known as the Eighteen Articles of the Mennonite Confession of Faith.

Briefly summed up, the following points appear:

 God, as the Creator of all Things. The Fall of Man and the Entrance of Sin into the World. Restoration of Man through the Promises of God. The Coming of Christ into the World. The Gospel Message as given in New Testament Scriptures. Repentance and the renewed Life in Righteousness. Holy Baptism for Adults by Pouring. <li>The Visible Church of Christ on Earth.</li> <li>Teachers, Deacons, and Deaconesses Chosen by the Church.</li> <li>Emblems of the Sacrament—Bread and Wine. </li> <li>Washing (literally with hands) of the Saint's Feet.</li> <li>The State of Matrimony—and Sign of Woman's Place in the Church.</li> <li>The Place and Purpose of Civil Authority.</li> <li>On Revenge and Carnal Warfare.</li> <li>On Swearing of Oaths.</li> </ol>