Isaac H. Tiessen (1904– )
1947–1985.
.5 cm textual material.
Biographical sketch
Isaac Tiessen, son of Heinrich and Elizabeth Wiens Thiessen, was born in 1904 in Krutojarewka in the Ukraine, the youngest of eleven children. When he was fourteen years old, marauding bandits broke into the Thiessen home and the family was forced to flee to Friedensruh, in the Molotschna Colony. There, during a revival service, he was converted. In 1925, Tiessen appeared before the provincial court at Melitopol where it was confirmed that “the citizen Isaac Henry Tiessen of the village of Friedensruh...may spend his military service time in the non-combatant ranks of the Red Army.” In the same year, Tiessen was ordained as a minister. Also in 1925 through arrangements made by B.B. Janz, he was permitted to immigrate to Canada, arriving at Kingsville, Ontario where he worked for a farmer. In 1930, he married Anna Huebert, daughter to Abraham Huebert and Anna Bergen Huebert. Tiessen became active in the ministry soon after he came to Canada. He was a leader in the Ontario Mennonite Brethren Conference from its inception.
Isaac Tiessen wrote Why I Do Not Take the Sword, published by Pathway Publishers, 1991 (158 pp). Because of his experiences in the revolution and famine in Russia, Tiessen was convinced that a non-resistant life was the only way for a Christian.
Taken from Why I Do Not Take the Sword by Isaac Tiessen.
Scope and content
The Isaac H. Tiessen fonds consists of three letters written to C.C. Peters by Tiessen, in the German language, and one letter to Tiessen from Peters. All relate to conference affairs. Also in the fonds are two unpublished articles by Tiessen, reflecting his concern for the peace position and his love for the church.
Notes
- Volume 1060.
- Title taken from contents of fonds.
- Finding Aid: Small collections T, file 4.
File list
Volume 1060
- 4:1 “Wer das Schwert nimmt.” An article submitted to the Mennonitische Rundschau editor Abram Schellenberg. – 1985.
- 4:2 “Lessons On the Christian Life in its Relationship to the Church.” An article written for a baptismal course in the Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church. – 1965.
- 4:3 Correspondence. – 1947–1948
