Explores the moral dilemmas faced by various religious sects and how these groups struggled to come to terms with the effects of wartime Americanization-- without sacrificing their religious beliefs and values.

Jacob Hildebrand took practical steps to assist his three sons in the Army of Northern Virginia; often traveling to their camps to deliver food and clothing necessary to supplement inadequate army rations. The family's story shows that the strong pacifist beliefs of the Mennonite church were not always observed by many of its members who supported the Southern cause and honored days of prayer and humility proclaimed by Jefferson Davis.

Drawing on more than twenty years of fieldwork and collaborative research, The Amish: A Concise Introduction is a compact but richly detailed portrait of Amish life. In fewer than 150 pages, readers will come away with a clear understanding of the complexities of these simple people.

Fourteen-year-old Manny Weaver, a Mennonite boy living near Harrisonburg, Virginia, in 1861, has a habit of biting off more than he can chew. The Weavers are Unionists and pacifists and do not wish to secede from the Union or to participate in the fighting. In the past, Manny's father and uncle have avoided militia service by paying a small fine, but when Virginia secedes from the Union, the fine is no longer accepted. Manny loves his family and would do anything to protect Father and Uncle Davy from being forced to join the Confederate Army. That's when his trouble begins!With his world crumbling into chaos, Manny is forced to deal with issues of honesty, justice, loyalty, and good judgment. He must find answers to serious questions. Is it really better to "turn the other cheek," as his Mennonite faith tells him? What actions lead to peace? How does a boy grow into a man?

Using letters, diaries, and regimental newspapers to take us inside the minds of Civil War soldiers—black and white, Northern and Southern—as they fought and marched across a divided country, this unprecedented account is “an essential contribution to our understanding of slavery and the Civil War" (The Philadelphia Inquirer). In this unprecedented account, Chandra Manning With stunning poise and narrative verve, Manning explores how the Union and Confederate soldiers came to identify slavery as the central issue of the war and what that meant for a tumultuous nation. This is a brilliant and eye-opening debut and an invaluable addition to our understanding of the Civil War as it has never been rendered before.

Edsel Burdge Jr. and Samuel L. Horst tell the stories of three centuries of faith and life among the Washington County (Md.), and Franklin County (Pa.) Mennonites. From small beginnings in colonial American settlements, issues such as personal spiritual commitment, corporate accountability, nonconformity, and peace have been constants. As questions of language, fashion, work, education, and mission produced internal stresses, they struggle to maintain group unity. This history describes in detail the particulars of that struggle as well as recounting stories illustrative of community life in general.