Michael Holzach (1947–1983)

Holzach was a journalist who worked for a news magazine Die Zeit in Hamburg Germany until the late 1970s. He had majored in Social Studies at the University of Bochum and often reported on the problems of minorities in West German society. He later worked as a freelance writer, and for some reason decided he would live for an entire year in a Hutterite colony in Alberta Canada. Without prior notice, he arrived at the Wilson Hutterite Colony and pledged to “integrate myself totally into the community, to share in the work, the prayers, the songs – in short, to experience everything first hand in order to some day maybe write a book about my experiences.” After an uncomfortable greeting he was accepted as a guest of the colony and eventually became a productive member of their highly structured and isolated community that is totally built upon their belief in God and the rewards of the afterlife for those who live a pious lifestyle. In addition to the Bible, the Anabaptist Hutterite society is based upon the teachings of their venerable patriarchs, Jakob Hutter, Peter Riedemann, and Peter Walpot. Virtually every aspect of life is prescribed by written guidebooks that have been passed down from the early years of Hutterite persecution, which began in Moravia during the 1500s. Many of these books have been repeatedly copied by hand to ensure their availability for future Hutterians. Jacob Hutter was eventually burned at the stake in Innsbruck in 1536 and the Hutterites began a centuries-long migration to find religious freedom that took them to Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Transylvania, Russia and other locations. Eventually, in 1874, 250 Hutterites moved to South Dakota via Hamburg and New York. Many Hutterites still remain in South Dakota, but during World War I the anti-Hutterite attitude toward them due to their stringent pacifistic beliefs and their refusal to serve in the military drove many of them to Canada. Holzach spent one year living with the Darius Hutterites in two different colonies in Alberta. He took part in every aspect of their society and his book presents a very informative and revealing portrayal of their life. He included much historical background and many quotes from Hutterite reference documents, bibles, song books, and Apocrypha. While he struggled with their very ridged lifestyle and attitudes about modern society, he comes to appreciate much about their society, including the social support they receive from each other, the hard work they embrace for the good of the community, and even the community of goods that requires each person to work for the wealth of the colony with no wealth for individuals. He covers most every custom including schooling, death, dating, marriage, baptism, and much more. He also reveals some ironic aspects of Hutterite society such as their use of high-technology farming equipment, and discusses the relationships between the different Hutterite colonies and between the Hutterites and the larger society. Hozach provides a very good ethnographic study of two Hutterite colonies. For more information about Hutterites, check out Hutterites: A Selected Bibliography at http://www.hutterites.info/.… (altro)