Showing 14648 results

Bender to D. H. Bender, March 25, 1917 [D. H. as “Principal” and “Dear Uncle” at Hesston Kansas (i.e. Hesston College and Bible School); written from 1424 S. 8th Street, Goshen Indiana]: had D.H.’s letter of the 18th [not extant here] regarding a place on the Hesston faculty next year; “... I am willing...”; had consulted with his father [George L. Bender]; did not want the post if it deprived anyone else.
• • • CONTIGUOUS, document, “Answer to Questionnaire”, penciled “...Bender, D. H., 1917/18” [handwritten, paper same as the letter]: numbered points of basic information on Harold Stauffer Bender: address 1711 Prairie Street, Elkhart; education--Elkhart schools with high school diploma, expecting an A.B. degree from Goshen College in 1918, in 1916-1917 had taught at high school of Thornton, Indiana; psychology courses as only professional preparation; at Goshen College had served as assistant in English, same in Chemistry; several reference persons; member of the Mennonite Church eight years, holding no office; in harmony with his church; God’s Word as espoused by his church provided his “sole standard of conduct”; “constant purpose” was to do only what best would “promote the Cause of Christ,” and that above “personal considerations”; “...my principle of living” was to live “simply and soberly as a member of our faith.”
• • • CONTIGUOUS, D. H. Bender to Bender, April 16, 1918 [stationery of Hesston Academy and Bible School, D. H. Bender the Principal]: your paper was before the Faculty Committee; list of courses being named for you in the catalogue; more about teaching load....

A small set of personal papers consisting primarily of diaries and autobiographical writing.

1/4" stack mostly handwritten (even when on letterhead of journal The Sword and Trumpet), from the George R. Brunk who lived 1871-1938.

Papers of a mid-twentieth century Goshen College and Hesston College physics professor and administrator, divided into two series:

(1) Personal and Professional Papers, circa 1920-1985

(2) Draft Counseling Files, circa 1953-1956

Half-dozen letters with church leader in Ontario.

Thin (1 item) folder.

February 27, 1920: about the movement for an interMennonite seminary [cf. Witmarsum]: also, did not like so many Mennonites attending Princeton or want Bender to go there.

16 pages full of agrumentative questions after beginning with statements that he is not acquainted with Bender but loved Bender's father and that he had read letters between Bender and "J. L. S." [John L. Stauffer]] and is glad to have his own "religious discussions" spread through the church. (This from the letter captures the tone of it all: "There is no such thing as dead orthodxy in fact. You might as well speak of spiritual infidelity. It is a contradiction in terms.") Objects to Young People's Conference, and objects to Bender's having defended the "boys" overseas [reference surely to Clermont Conference]. His criticism of those boys and their working with the Quakers is lengthy. "I have heard so much a out the boys being staunch on non-Resistance. . . . Why so strong on that and weak on other doctrines. . . ." Some language against having democracy in the church. Much defense of Virginia Mennonite policies. A P.S. about how schools [i.e., Goshen, Hesston, Eastern Mennonite] should be controlled by the church, but saying as yet the church was not able to control Goshen.

Paul Bender to Harold S. Bender, August 1, 1920 [handwritten from Conway Kansas]: [Note: Paul Bender (a first cousin of H. S. Bender, two years younger than H.S.) was a student at Hesston College 1919-21; perhaps the Conway address was quite temporary]; had been busy “working and running around”; mentioned that four had gone to Oklahoma in Ed Yoder’s car [?? Edward Yoder ??]; mentioned working at harvest; places they had been in Kansas; mention attending an Old Order Amish church one morning and a Methodist Church in that evening; mentioned Jesse Martin as if one of the four, same re John Detwiler; mentioned Titus Lapp in Nebraska; more about travels in Kansas; mentioned being “here in McPherson county; about working at threshing...; Kansas-Nebraska Mennonite Conference would be a Canton [Canton Kansas]; what were Harold’s plans for next year--supposed Princeton; for himself, reference to “the Russian proposition”; Paul doubted he would consider relief work.... [post WWI relief].
«

D. H. Bender to Bender, October 2, 1920 [stationery of Hesston Academy and Bible School, D. H. Bender the Principal]: writing as uncle to “Dear Nephew”; sorry about fall that Bender’s father [George L. Bender] had suffered; G. L. in “serious and extraordinary condition” [see appropriate pages in Albert N. Keim, Harold S. Bender]; letter is a lengthy discussion about whether to take G. L. south as doctors were recommending; question apparently whether Bender’s mother [Elsie Kolb Bender], would go with G. L. as caregiver; mention Florida, Louisiana, and the Rio Grande Valley; consideration of family issues and “the Board’s” responses if Elsie went south [leaving her role as matron of Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities house at 17ll Prairie Street in Elkhart]....

18 hand-written pages on the Young People's Conference movement evidently in response to a questionnaire YPC executives (Bender being executive committee chair) had sent out. Bender wrote: YPC leaders were trying to upbuild the church; appreciating Burkholder's tone; YPC did not want to compete with other church organizations for youths' participation; evidence of marginal young people becoming more loyal to the church; etc etc. At one point Bender turned the tables and asked what young people in Ontario were doing by way of mission, etc. Bender admitted that the YPC was too dominated by Goshen people. Mention of N. O. Blosser and J. B. Shank and Jesse Smucker as speakers (Smucker's "address ... certainly was a clear, sound testimony with theemphasis on inspiration, atonement, the cross etc." [cf. fundamentalism or at least orthodoxy]. Remarks about attire, and too-easy "familiarity of the sexes" and a "sprit of entertainment." The question of authority. (Note: the letter has some lines marked through with pencil, as if it were not the final draft; moreover, there is one page here of what appears to be carbon of a typed copy; and yes, there is a 6 pp, typed, single-spaced carbon version of the letter here.)

D. H. Bender to Bender, November 25, 1920 [stationery of Hesston Academy and Bible School, D. H. Bender now the President]: your special delivery letter came this morning [not extant here]; about whether D. H. would be coming to Elkhart--difficult, discussed his schedule; reference to H. S. Bender letter to Oscar Burkholder [not extant here]; then much about a meeting [somehow related to] “your questionaire” [sic]; wrote as if the meeting dealt with controversy [annotator’s guess is that it may have been a meeting of the Young People’s Conference--Bender had been made chairman of its Executive Committee the previous July (see Albert N. Keim’s biography, Harold S. Bender, 1897-1962, page 98 and elsewhere--see “Young People’s Conference” in index); also a reference to the matter being related to “the movement started in France” [see on-line in GAMEO, “Reconstruction Work (France)”, and “Young People's Conference”; in June 1919 workers in France had held a controversial conference at Clermont-en-Argonne that had helped spawn the Young People’s Conference in the U.S.A.]; rest of letter seems to be advice on how Bender should respond to these developments laden with generational conflict...; P.S., wanted Minnie Swartzendruber Geometry grade [later Minnie Graber, spouse of J. D. Graber (Joseph D.)].

D. H. Bender to Bender, December 10, 1920 [stationery of Hesston Academy and Bible School, D. H. Bender now the President]: got your letter yesterday [not extant here]; had decided to send Ernest Miller couple, in January, if they got papers [to India? Ernest E. Miller, Ruth Blosser Miller; D. H. writing as if he were member of Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities? Daniel H. Bender; Argentina “needs help”--mention the Litwillers [likely Nelson Litwiller, Ada Ramseyer Litwiller], about their possibly going; sorry to hear of gradual decline of George L. Bender.

D. H. Bender to Bender, December 15, 1920 [stationery of Hesston Academy and Bible School, D. H. Bender now the President]: had Bender letter of December 12 [not extant here]; sorry to hear that George L. Bender was running a temperature...; rest of letter is D. H.’s comments and advice about Bender’s leadership of the Young People’s Conference; spelled out the dilemma from the church leadership point of view, and how the dispute might be healed [the YPC side admitting error, and then...]; how the matter might look after some time; advice to go slowly; etc.