Review
"It provides a good critical analysis of women's roles in Anabaptism, showing where women took on leadership roles previously unknown and where their lives were circumscribed by their gender....For those interested in further research, a comprehensive review of existing literature on women in Anabaptism is included as an appendix. This book is well compiled and written. It is a major contribution to the study of women in the Radical Reformation. It gives voice to Anabaptist women who previously were considered a silenced group." --
Tammy Sutherland, , Mennonite Brethren Herald"Reading Profiles of Anabaptist Women is like finding an old diary in the attic that contains page after page of fascinating family history previously undiscovered....This book has helped to bring that balance to the history of Anabaptism. Profiles of Anabaptist Women could be used for classroom study as well as for personal growth and inspiration." --
Mennonite Historian"Snyder and Huebert Hecht provide well-researched portraits of many Anabaptist women, based on sixteenth-century government records, court testimonies, hymns, and poems that depict the staunch convictions of women in Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands....One cannot read these poignant records of intense courage and deep faith without being moved. The examples of these women should motivate believers today to a more resolute commitment to Christ." --
Roy B. Zuck, , Bibliotheca Sacra"These profiles offer tantalizing glimpses into the way the inclusion of gender into religious history deepens our understanding of continuity as well as of change." --
Journal of Mennonite StudiesProfiles Of Anabaptist Women: Sixteenth-century Reforming Pioneers provides lively, well-researched portraits of the courageous women who chose to risk persecution and martyrdom to pursue this unsanctioned religion. A religion that, unlike the established religions of the day, initially offered them opportunity and encouragement to proselytize and take on leadership roles. These personal stories of courage, faith, commitment, and resourcefulness interweave women's lives into the greater milieu, relating them to the dominant male context and the socio-political background of the 16th Century reformation. Taken together, these sketches will give readers an appreciation for the central role played by Anabaptist women in the emergence and persistence of this radical branch of Protestantism. Profiles Of Anabaptist Women is a masterpiece of historical research and is an astonishing contribution toward a more complete, accurate understanding of the Reformation. --
Midwest Book Review
About the Author
C. Arnold Snyder’s research focuses on sixteenth-century Radical Reformation studies, with a specialization in the Anabaptist branch. Currently, he teaches history at Conrad Grebel College, University of Waterloo, and is editor of
The Conrad Grebel Review.
Linda A. Huebert Hecht is an independent scholar in Waterloo, Ontario, and author of several articles on Anabaptist women.
