What God Has Done

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Jacob R. Hildebrand

A Mennonite Journal is a unique story of Civil War home-front life recorded by Jacob R. Hildebrand, a devout father, faithful Mennonite, and successful farmer. It provides insight into his political activities, support of the Southern cause, and the military service of his three sons, not all fully consistent with Mennonite beliefs. 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. The Journal describes Augusta County's contribution of men and supplies to three Virginia regiments: the 5th and 52nd Infantry and the 1st Cavalry: it includes Jacob's observations of Jackson's 1862 Valley Campaign, the 1864 raids by Hunter and Sheridan, the Battle of Piedmont and the death of General W. E. "Grumble" Jones and the Battle of Waynesboro, which marked the end of Jubal Early's military career and the last major battle in the Valley. The Journal also describes the war's many impacts on families in the Augusta County farming community just north of Staunton and Waynesboro, Virginia.

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Mary Kloska

"Mary Kloska's experience as a Siberian Missionary was inspired by an appeal from Our Blessed Mother, who prophesied at Fatima, "I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of Reparation on the First Saturdays. If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer, various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she will be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world..." And so, Mary Kloska's days in Russia began. (Our Lady of Fatima, July 13, 1917)"--Back cover.

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Earl P. Olmstead

Thousands of pages of diaries and hundreds of letters serve as David Zeisberger's testament to sixty-three years as a Moravian missionary among North American Indians. This unrivaled record of Indian culture and colonial life provides firsthand evidence of the eighteenth-century struggle between the American Indians and their British and American adversaries. Readers of Blackcoats among the Delaware will find new and interesting historical data taken from recently discovered correspondence and previously untranslated diaries, as well as a fascinating analysis of Zeisberger's unique approach to Christian philosophy vis-a-vis native Indian religion and culture. The final section of the book is devoted to discussing the often tragic lives of the forty Indians buried with Zeisberger in the Goshen cemetery. - Back cover.

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Edmund de Schweinitz

The author stated in the Preface that this 700-page biography is based upon original manuscripts. He wrote, “In addition to their regular correspondence with the Mission Board, Zeisberger and his fellow missionaries wrote voluminous journals of their everyday life among the Indians, as also complete reports of any occurrences of special interest. These manuscripts, which are mostly in the German language and number many thousands of pages, have been preserved, and I have carefully studied them all.” A comprehensive geographical glossary and an exceptionally detailed index are found at the end of the book.