The Anabaptists were part of the Radical Reformation. As such, they are some of the people on whose shoulders I stand. They stood outside the organized church of their day, but paid a bloody price for it. Literally.
The dedication I wrote in Pagan Christianity is written to them as well as to those who came before and after to maintain the testimony of Jesus without compromise in the earth. Here it is:
To our forgotten brothers and sisters throughout the ages who courageously stepped outside the safe bounds of institutional Christianity at the risk of life and limb. You faithfully carried the torch, endured persecution, forfeited reputation, lost family, suffered torture, and spilled your blood to preserve the primitive testimony that Jesus Christ is Head of His church. And that every believer is a priest . . . a minister . . . and a functioning member of God’s house. This book is dedicated to you. (Pagan Christianity, p. vii.)
Jon Zens recently shared some of the untold story of the Anabaptists with a missional church. It was fascinating. You can hear it by clicking here.
(As some of you know, Zens received international notoriety when he publicly shredded a critical review of Pagan Christianity by a well-known scholar. Zens gives some excellent teaching in that piece also.)
Here are some books I recommend on the Anabaptists (all at a discount):
The Reformers and Their Stepchildren
The Complete Writings of Menno Simons
Becoming Anabaptist: The Origin and Significance of Sixteenth-Century Anabaptism
More from Jon Zens
Jon Zens and Frank Viola interview
Jon Zens on the Silence of Women texts
Jon Zens on Beyond Evangelical