Brunk, who taught in the 黑料正能量 history department for 36 years and before last week had already presented his impersonation of Simons 96 times, performed 鈥淢y Road to Decision鈥� in a Feb. 8 seminary chapel service. It鈥檚 a bringing-to-life of the writings of Simons focused on the 11 years that culminated in his becoming an Anabaptist.

Brunk said that his years of impersonating Simons has had a 鈥渢remendous impact鈥� on him.

鈥淚t has enabled me not only to understand Menno, but to try to get some feel of what kind of struggle he went through, and what kind of revelations he had,鈥� he said: 鈥淭he courage, the tremendous courage the man had, in him going out as a fugitive and preaching the word.鈥�

A priest鈥檚 鈥榮oul struggle鈥�

Dressed in black robes and cap and wearing a silver cross around his neck, Brunk embodied the 鈥渟oul struggle鈥� that Simons faced beginning in 1525.

Over the next 11 years, as he came to embrace nonviolence and the 鈥渉eresy鈥� of Anabaptism, Simons began to read the Bible 鈥� something that in all his monastic years he鈥檇 never before done.

He began to feel 鈥渘agging doubt鈥� about whether during communion the wine and bread actually became the blood and flesh of Christ and about church doctrine about baptism. He scoured the Bible for clarity, and eventually concluded that scripture contradicted church teaching.

But he was still an active priest 鈥� until something happened that led him to give up the priesthood: In nearby M眉nster, a group of Anabaptists attempted to establish a 鈥渘ew Jerusalem鈥� by violently taking over the city.

鈥淢y brother,鈥� said Brunk speaking as Simons, 鈥渨as part of a group that took over an old monastery not too far from where we are. One hundred and thirty of them were killed outright, and the rest were executed 鈥� including my brother.鈥�

Simons had read in the Bible that Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount had called for his followers to love their enemies, to do good to their persecutors. He had read that in the garden where Jesus was arrested, when his disciple Peter used his sword and sliced off the ear of the servant of the high priest, Jesus said to him, 鈥淭hey who use the sword will die by the sword.鈥�

And Simons鈥� brother鈥檚 name was Peter.

鈥淗e had taken the sword, and he had died by the sword, just as Jesus said,鈥� Simons told the audience, 鈥渁nd so I would write in one of my books these words: 鈥楾he regenerated do not go to war. Neither do they engage in strife. They are the children of peace, who have beaten their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.鈥欌��

What pushed him to act on his growing convictions, though, was seeing his brother鈥檚 and others鈥� courage to act 鈥� albeit violently 鈥� on their faith.

鈥淢y God,鈥� he prayed, 鈥渇orgive me for my hypocrisy鈥�. Give me the courage to preach your word as I know it.鈥�

He began preaching Anabaptist doctrine, then stepped down from the priesthood, and later was himself rebaptised. Although he became a hunted man and faced many difficulties, he was not martyred: he married, had three children, and lived another 25 years before dying a natural death at age 66.

鈥淲hat pains me so,鈥� Simons concluded, 鈥渁re those who have been executed because of me, either because they gave me shelter or my family shelter, or read my books.鈥�

Awareness and appreciation

Seminary student David Gingerich said that Simons鈥� heartbreak 鈥� over the martyrdom of his followers while he lived 鈥� made him think of parallels both in the life of Jesus, who also knew his followers would face persecution, but also in parenting.

鈥淚鈥檓 training my kids to have that same faith, hopefully training them to be countercultural in a lot of ways that may be costly for them,鈥� he said. 鈥淗ow do I do that as a parent? For people in Menno鈥檚 time who were withholding baptism from their babies, it probably seemed cruel 鈥� and then at the same time I鈥檓 training my children to be able to make their own choices.鈥�

Seminary professor Dorothy Jean Weaver was struck by the 鈥渕oments in time when [Simons] came to new awarenesses.鈥� People today 鈥渃annot fully appreciate how big a step鈥� Anabaptism was for early radicals, she said.