[Reichstraten]

Hello, I have the following question.
Which of the following Christian communities/movements do you consider to be the most left-wing?
I personally know some left-wing Mennonites (or Doopsgezinden as they are called here), but I'm not sure if they are considered left-wing in the United States.
I'd like to hear any perspectives on this.

[Deutschmania]

Hard question to altogether answer in a more complete sense. I chose Quaker/Society of Friends, as they are known to have a history of social justice, and anti-war activism. However there are also Evangelical Friends , who would have some overlap with their evangelical counterparts. As to Mennonites in my country, the United States, in my experience, a number of them tend to be if anything right-wing, while some may be left leaning, but a considerable percentage askew political involvement altogether. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/ , https://record.goshen.edu/news/mennonites-shift-political-involvement , https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a53717/mennonites-protest-trump/ , https://www.liquisearch.com/general_conference_mennonite_church/political_involvement , https://www.quakersintheworld.org/quakers-in-action/89/-Politics , https://cincinnatifriends.org/quakers-and-politics , https://quakerspeak.com/video/why-do-quakers-care-about-politics/

[Tainari88]

I voted Catholic due to Roman Catholics in Latin America and Africa and Europe following Liberation Theology. Many RC sects are communally centered and that many parts of the Catholic clergy do require a vow of poverty. It means being rich is corrupt. In general. So that side of RC religious practices is very leftist. The other side is authoritarian and hypocritical and loves money, class consciousness, and ostentatious egotism. Both sides are present in the RC church. But the RC church does have leftist cores.

[Drlee]

I haven't voted yet. It is hard to say. Clearly Jesus was about as left wing as it gets. Evangelicals find him an embarrassment so rule them out.

I think the answer lies in what we decide are "left-wing" ideals. For example. I agree with @Tainari88 that the RC Church is politically leftish. At the same time it opposes abortion and much birth control. It is awful on woman's rights. It is great with the poor and oppressed.

In my work with homeless people clearly the Roman Catholic Church is up front. Some evangelicals operate shelters but the are really intent on discipline and "Christian Values". Many homeless people hate them.

Methodists are not sure what they believe. (I am one.) I think we believe that you can get into heaven but you have to bring a covered dish. Shitty on same sex marriage. Very middle class and not particularly politically involved. But there is one outlier in Tucson that welcomes and helps undocumented people. There are some fairly liberal Methodist churches here and there but the main body of the church is still arguing about the color of altar drapes.

So I'll go with what @Tainari88 says. Roman Catholic gets my vote.

[wat0n]

I voted Catholic due to Roman Catholics in Latin America and Africa and Europe following Liberation Theology. Many RC sects are communally centered and that many parts of the Catholic clergy do require a vow of poverty. It means being rich is corrupt. In general. So that side of RC religious practices is very leftist. The other side is authoritarian and hypocritical and loves money, class consciousness, and ostentatious egotism. Both sides are present in the RC church. But the RC church does have leftist cores.

I don't know. You get those Liberation Theology guys, but you also get ultramontane Opus Dei people. Both are Catholic.

[Reichstraten]

However there are also Evangelical Friends , who would have some overlap with their evangelical counterparts.

Thanks, I've never heard of them before.

As to Mennonites in my country, the United States, in my experience, a number of them tend to be if anything right-wing, while some may be left leaning, but a considerable percentage askew political involvement altogether.

In the Netherlands I think Mennonites are a bit more left leaning then in the US (but the same may be said about the whole political spectrum).


My local Mennonite church for example expressed their solidarity with the lgbtq-community by raising a rainbow flag.

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a53717/mennonites-protest-trump/

Love it!

I voted Catholic due to Roman Catholics in Latin America and Africa and Europe following Liberation Theology. Many RC sects are communally centered and that many parts of the Catholic clergy do require a vow of poverty. It means being rich is corrupt. In general. So that side of RC religious practices is very leftist. The other side is authoritarian and hypocritical and loves money, class consciousness, and ostentatious egotism. Both sides are present in the RC church. But the RC church does have leftist cores.

Yeah, the Roman Catholic church is a church with many rooms isn't it?
The Catholics didn't break up in different denominations in the same way the protestants did.
One big Mother Church, I kinda like that.

Of course there's a leftist core, it's called Jesus!

Do you know Dorthee Sölle? She's as far as my knowledge of Liberation Theology goes. She coined the term "Christofascism".

Methodists are not sure what they believe. (I am one.)

Also never heard of Methodists before, but I like this:

In addition to evangelism, Methodism emphasizes charity and support for the sick, the poor, and the afflicted through the works of mercy. These ideals, collectively known as the Social Gospel, are put into practice by the establishment of hospitals, orphanages, soup kitchens, and schools to follow Christ's command to spread the gospel and serve all people.

and

Methodists are historically known for their adherence to the doctrine of nonconformity to the world, reflected by their traditional standards of a commitment to teetotalism, proscription of gambling, regular attendance at class meetings, and weekly observance of the Friday fast.

[Deutschmania]

In the Netherlands I think Mennonites are a bit more left leaning then in the US (but the same may be said about the whole political spectrum).

If I were to be basing my assessment on the example of Hannie Schaft alone, in terms of at least a culturally Mennonite Christian, not sure as to her personal religious beliefs, I would say that it would be indicative that the Mennonites tend to be very far left . https://www.tracesofwar.com/articles/2920/Schaft-Hannie.htm However, on the flipside, some have also lent support to fascism. https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/history/articles/heinrich-hamm-mennonite-holocaust , https://anabaptisthistorians.org/2021/10/07/hitlers-mennonite-voters/ , https://www.eumen.net/en/locations/netherlands/25-history-politics.html?ml=1

[Reichstraten]

If I were to be basing my assessment on the example of Hannie Schaft alone, in terms of at least a culturally Mennonite Christian, not sure as to her personal religious beliefs, I would say that it would be indicative that the Mennonites tend to be very far left .

Thanks, didn't knew that she had Mennonite parents.
From what I've read it strikes me that there have been many left-leaning politicians/writers with Mennonite parents, but who are not Mennonites themselves.

There's a group called Marginal Mennonite Society. This is their declaration:

We are Marginal Mennonites and we’re not ashamed. We’re marginal because no respectable Mennonite organization would have us. Yet we are also, we believe, amongst the legitimate heirs to the Anabaptist tradition.

We are inclusive. There are no dues or fees for membership. The only requirement is the desire to identify as a Marginal Mennonite. If you say you’re a Marginal Mennonite that’s good enough for us.

We are universalists. In our view, everyone who’s ever lived gets a seat at the celestial banquet table. We claim kinship in this belief with Anabaptist leader Hans Denck, Brethren leader Alexander Mack, and Quaker leader Elias Hicks, among many other universalists throughout history.

We reject creeds, doctrines, rites, and rituals. Because they’re man-made, created for the purpose of excluding people. Their primary function is to determine who’s in and who’s out.

We see God as Mother as well as Father, a heavenly parent who cares for all her children. (Isaiah 49:15: “Can a woman forget her nursing baby, or show no compassion for the child who came from her womb? Even these may forget, yet I won’t forget you.”)

We like Jesus. A lot. The real Jesus. The human teacher who moved around in space and time. The Galilean sage who was obsessed with the Commonwealth of God. The wandering wise man who said “Become passersby!” (Gospel of Thomas 42).

We believe the Commonwealth of God is a state of being, a state of transformed consciousness, available to everyone. (Luke 17:21: “People won’t be able to say it’s over here or over there. For God’s Commonwealth is inside you and around you now.”)

We oppose the proselytizing of non-Christians. For us, religious diversity is beautiful. It would be a shame if all Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Jews, Jains, Pagans, Rastafarians, Pastafarians, Sufis, etc., were converted to Christianity. So we reject evangelism and missionary programs, no matter how well-meaning they claim to be.

We endorse the “Sermon on the Mount.” In particular the sayings identified by modern scholarship as most authentic. Especially the ones on the following themes:

1. Nonviolence (Matthew 5:39-40/Luke 6:29);
2. Generosity (Matthew 5:42a/Luke 6:30);
3. Unconditional love (Matthew 5:44/Luke 6:27-28);
4. Universalism (Matthew 5:45b/Luke 6:35d);
5. Mercy (Matthew 5:48/Luke 6:36);
6. Forgiveness (Matthew 6:14-15/Luke 6:37c/Mark 11:25);
7. Non-attachment to things (Matthew 6:19-21/Luke 12:33-34/Gospel of Thomas 76:3);
8. Freedom from anxiety (Matthew 6:25-30/Luke 12:22-28/Gospel of Thomas 36:1-2);
9. Non-judgment (Matthew 7:3-5/Luke 6:41-42/Gospel of Thomas 26:1-2);
10. Compassion (Matthew 7:9-11/Luke 11:11-13).

We are pacifists, in the tradition of Bayard Rustin, Vincent and Rosemarie Harding, Cesar Chavez, Dorothy Day, A.J. Muste, Kees and Betty Boeke, Peter Maurin, Mahatma Gandhi, Jane Addams, Leo Tolstoy, Adin Ballou, Lucretia and James Mott, Hannah Barnard, the nonviolent Anabaptists, and of course Jesus.

We are humanists, feminists, and freethinkers. We are gay, carefree, and fabulous. We believe in art, evolution, revolution, relativity, synchronicity, serendipity, the scientific method, and putty tats. We value irreverence, outrageousness, and a strong cup of tea.

We don’t want to take ourselves too seriously. As someone once said: “God is a comedian playing to an audience too afraid to laugh.” For us, hilariousness is next to godliness.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

This declaration is not a creed or doctrinal statement. It carries no weight of authority. We are anti-authority. The above “beliefs” are suggestions only. We could be wrong.

The Marginal Mennonite Society was created in February 2011. Declaration last revised April 1, 2018. Charlie Kraybill, MMS Page administrator.

[Deutschmania]

Thanks, didn't knew that she had Mennonite parents.
From what I've read it strikes me that there have been many left-leaning politicians/writers with Mennonite parents, but who are not Mennonites themselves.

There's a group called Marginal Mennonite Society. This is their declaration:

Coincidentally, on Facebook, I am part of this group. There is a wide range of views expressed on the page, although many people are sympathetic towards Marxism, and even questioning towards religious doctrine.

[Negotiator]

Dont know, dont care, why would that be a thing ?

Leftwing is a type of political conviction.

Religion isnt a political conviction.

[Deutschmania]

Dont know, dont care, why would that be a thing ?

Leftwing is a type of political conviction.

Religion isnt a political conviction.

I would agree in ideal principle that religion should not be politicized, and that conversely politics should not be dogmatized. However, in practice, there has arisen both a Christian right , and a Christian left , each selectively invoking biblical passages for political purposes.