Meet the Mennonites: Inside the Ultra-Conservative Community | ENDEVR Documentary

it's a journey back in time in central america boys in overalls and hats girls in long dresses all of them are part of an intriguing community known as the mennonites ultra-conservative protestants who wish to escape the modern world their school system is stuck in the 19th century [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] girls on one side boys on the other they're reciting passages from the bible in german [Music] this morning the youngest children are learning the alphabet they follow the letters with a wooden pointer the older children are reading the new testament in gothic lettering no foreign languages no history or geography the bible is their only manual treat evenly and reacting but it would like admit to all the sun what were you down the children go to school starting at age six and finish at age 13 just enough time to learn the basics they will not take their studies any further that is the ruling of the community but this is how we learn from when i went to school when my father my grandfather went to school that's how we always have no universities not any high school college or anything our studying is practicing by learning you see what hannah but the father is doing with his hands abram left school to learn to be a blacksmith like his father he has 20 children three of his 60 grandchildren are students in this class the mennonites believe the more children you have the closer you are to god blonde with blue eyes originating from germany the netherlands and switzerland the mennonites fled europe 250 years ago to move to the remotest parts of both central and south america [Music] devout protestants they strictly adhere to the doctrine of a dutch priest from the 16th century they lead a life of rigor and discipline there are nearly 350 000 traditional mennonites in the world they are almost completely self-sufficient living in colonies with their own schools churches and trade this isolation helps to protect them from the temptations of the modern world for the first time one of the most closed off communities in the world has agreed to be filmed in this private universe life revolves around the bible everything is systematized even the color of their clothes you just have to wear these kind of dresses the skins are religion if you do all kinds of different clues here the rules are very strict there are severe consequences if they are broken parking down and uh magnetic personality unfortunately there are several temptations a few months ago franz allowed a forbidden object into his house a mobile phone i know the reality now i do not feel guilty i see there are so many good things in it behind the apparent calm certain individuals are rebelling and challenging the very foundation of the doctrine wilhelm the doctor was excommunicated and their mind like a cell phone it's made by satan so can't sit and do anything nothing abraham is against any change just like pioneers he and several other families have gone in search of the last untouched areas of civilization they hope to create an ideal community deep in the heart of the amazon everything you have to start anew that's from starting from zero to grow so who are the mennonites and why are they fleeing civilization in this day and age is it still possible to escape the modern world we take a look inside one of the most mysterious communities of the 21st century [Music] our journey begins under the caribbean sun in a small country in central america surrounded by turquoise waters [Music] nine thousand kilometers from france situated between mexico and guatemala is belize lots of communities live together in this ancient english colony made up of 360 000 inhabitants the descendants of the mayans as well as creoles and africans but to find the mennonites you have to travel deeper into the country three hours away from the towns this is where they chose to set up their home in the 70s hidden in the rural world is the colony of little belize here time seems to have stopped cars are forbidden only horse-drawn carts are used to get around the mennonites are not used to being in contact with strangers although they are not hostile they still do not understand why we are here our cameras intrigue them some even hide their faces like this woman is it possible to go there with you we don't allowed it because people get frightened and young ladies where when they get pregnant they get sick and so on when they're filmed yeah in their film because they they're frightened they're they're not they're not used to it that's the reason the mennonites reject all types of technology [Music] but some of them are willing to face their fears [Music] france is one such individual he's agreed to talk to us i'm born here and i'm raising here the whole of my life i have never seen somewhere else it's my home home country i like it out here i like the culture and everything it's it's beautiful and i enjoy my life franz is 36 years old he lives on this farm which he built himself he's married to elizabeth and they have seven children [Music] there are the twins anna and katarina aged 15 then there is agatha age 13 and elizabeth age 10. abraham and peter are six and eight and finally there is sarah who is four years old this is the norm for the mennonites the families are usually composed of between 7 and 12 children they lead a simple life a few fields a chicken coop and some cows are enough to feed the family the girls take care of the livestock [Music] franz works from home he's a mechanic in his workshop he repairs engines for clients who live outside of the community on average he earns around 500 a month his daughter katarina is 15 years old she left school two years ago since then she's been working with her father we have only girls that's why she have to do jobs like this if he had boys big boys in that age i think she will have to work inside and the boys will have to do this job this is probably a job for for boys the roles in a mennonite household are clearly established the women take care of the home the cooking the cleaning the laundry and they are also in charge of sewing clothes for the whole family but even in this domain the rules are very strict elizabeth the mother of the family always goes to the colony's local shop to get the fabric she needs there is no sign or advert in the shop window here the choices are limited but that is how the community likes it [Music] [Music] the lighter fabrics are reserved for the younger girls dresses whereas the darker fabrics are for the married women the men have to wear plaid patterns and a light hat everything is systematized [Music] this is a foreign dialect used only by the mennonites her sister-in-law margaret speaks english and she explains the rules to us [Music] yeah that's we have learned like that since my parents my grandparents great grandparents we just keep it like that it's you can open like that all the time you cannot wear what you want no you just have to wear this kind of dresses the skins are religion if you do all kind of different clothes you don't have any rings no no no nothing at all no makeup nothing no makeup no makeup no makeup is forbidden yet why i don't know just oh call all men are needs just have it like that you like it like that well we don't know anything else you have to eight euros worth of fabric for two dresses and a shirt here there is no excessive spending the mennonites lead a life so austere it is almost monastic no distractions no music no sport and no television [Music] their only moment of leisure is in church every sunday we were not allowed to film it but as an exception one of the leaders of the colony agreed to meet with us william the leader of the community is equivalent to the mayor he also has seven children he agreed to explain their doctrine to us he invited us to his home for a meal the only source of light is the oil lamp in his house electricity is forbidden the decor is sparse there are no paintings on the walls only the bare minimum the girls are seated on both sides while the leader and his son sit at the head of the table the meal is conducted in silence this is a tradition that the mennonites have carried on for centuries on the menu beans a simple vegetable soup and sausages it's like living in the 19th century well not with wood clothes the law is absolute either you obey the rules or you are banished from the community but in this day and age is it still possible to maintain this austerity everything has changed in belize since the mennonites set up their community 50 years ago before this was nothing more than a jungle now the colony is spread out over a hundred square kilometers an area the size of paris for nearly three thousand inhabitants when rhodes appeared they brought modernity with them [Music] in spite of their respect for the doctrine some believers find modernity difficult to resist for france it all began when he had to buy a telephone for work he's taking a huge risk by showing it to us before when i saw a phone or something or if i had used it a little bit i feel very guilty i feel very guilty now i know the reality no i do not feel guilty i see there are so many good things in it france discovered the internet and a new love for music the rhythm of country music has revolutionized his family's life [Music] they're very fascinated they really like their new life it's a new lifestyle for us really before we had never seen any music so we [Music] but suddenly franz has to switch off his phone there's someone coming oh my brother is you must hide your phone now that someone is coming for my brother yes i have to hide my phone because not really but i don't like to to see them mad if they don't see the phone they will be more happy to me so that's maybe in the future they will start to know more about the reality no even around his brother franz has to be careful if anyone found out he had a phone he would risk being excommunicated this is what happened to wilhelm the community's former doctor he lives just next door to france [Music] kind of a surgery room they sit down here i sit down here and then i have a speech and then i would probably try if they have pain in their abdomen i would have them lay down cover them up check there all the people from the village came here and sat here oh yeah preachers sat there yeah for 20 years wilhelm took care of all the families in the colony he's not a real doctor his mother was a nurse and he taught himself by studying medical textbooks he bought a phone to save lives and i felt like i had to have it because there were so many accidents and then i felt like an obligation to call a taxi or to call on the doctors or i said that was so useful for me and i i had it and they were complaining about that and they wanted me to to lose it i mean and i say no this choice cost him dearly by breaking the rules he lost everything the day they knew that they would excommunicate me the day before i would say i had about at least 60 patients at least 16 that went on the whole day up till late in the night the next day i got excommunicated no one claims again so that stops from 60 to overnight to zero since his exclusion wilhelm has been shunned from the community he is no longer allowed to work there nor to do his shopping there nobody speaks to him anymore now he sells tires an hour away from the colony but he has decided to react by creating a new non-conformist community within the conservative colony pick up trucks driven by mennonites it's a surprising sight dozens of families have decided to change their old routines they've just started their own church at first sight the loyal followers still seem to be abiding by the traditional mennonite codes but modernity has found its place among them the sermon itself can even be seen as a direct provocation the mobile phone has replaced the physical bible as wilhelm initiated the construction of this new church here everything is permitted well almost everything oh yeah they are allowed vehicles are allowed music is allowed you are practicing music and yeah that's all i know only what is not allowed is drinking and all that what what the bible says is wrong this evolution scares the more traditional mennonites they believe they're losing their souls abram age 43 is one such individual he's decided to leave belize to create a new colony in peru one that is more loyal to the doctrine [Music] yeah like we will build that more traditional and and the community so that they will be more more more and i don't know exactly how to explain but the people more conservative more people together father to seven children abram a farmer is going on this new adventure with his family even though he built his life here so this is the house what i had built at the first point so now i'm i want to leave it so that for other people can use it now if they want to change i have a better one so they can put a new one and so that's how i'm thinking now and now i want to sell it for with everything and the land for abram and his family peru represents a hope for a better life the first point is uh like there it sounds like the soil and everything it sounds better to work there and um having um having more um more uh like more people in the town who will buy us all the vegetables and corn and soya and beans and all the things what we produce they will buy more so we could sell more what we produce that will makes her more happier [Music] life is hard in belize for the mennonites abram's daughter elena and her husband live in this bus newly wedded couple did not have enough money to buy a house uh it's an upside and there it was a monk and then saying i'm partnering they've decided to leave because there's no future for them here there is no more available land yesterday the young couple don't have many possessions so they want to take everything with them bowls pans and all their wedding gifts everything has to fit into these two suitcases they are not the only ones leaving the colony around 40 families are joining them on this slightly crazy project they're all getting ready for the big trip [Music] all of these mennonites have chosen an isolated location where they hope to escape from modernity in peru deep in the heart of the amazon forest this is what the mennonites have always done migrate to the remotest corners of the planet in order to conserve their way of life six families have already left to scout out the land they've already drawn out the plans for the future colony each piece of land has been allocated the land has already been purchased empty spaces where everything still needs to be built roads and houses alike but this does not scare them from less than three months left before the big move for france leaving is not an option although he does not consider joining the dissidents he is still tempted by modernity today he and his family have decided to go into town really exceptional why we usually now go not go to town we are planning to go to town right now some shopping france has called a chauffeur to take them into town the mennonites are allowed to use a car as long as they are not the ones driving it they are headed to orange walk the nearest town located an hour's drive away france has a surprise in store for his children ice cream tasting for them this is a rare experience [Music] tinker ice cream and cone and cone because we don't know how ice cream in our community and if they went to town they like to eat ice cream the children savor their ice cream they only eat it once or twice a year well yet you know trying that one two that's what it needs to live outside yeah the children rarely leave their colony so going into shops is a real spectacle for them [Music] this is the first time sada the youngest child has ever been inside one she is astonished that's the first time that she had been in town we have go by to a chipped yard but not stop in town and walk around like this she feels happy yeah but she would like to care the whole store even though franz doesn't have much money he can't resist buying his children a little gift they each get the same plastic ball in public the mennonites have to cover their heads they do not go unnoticed it's a real culture shock the children can't help watching the passers-by attentively you see all kind of people's here and they see it too different they are drastic so different we are just all more similar all the minutes are almost dressed at the same it's not coming to them to do this [Music] but what goes on inside these children's minds after facing modern society in the girls room we were able to ask them this question in private during a music session with a new guitar that their father just bought them this guitar is forbidden in the colony [Music] their cousin margaret is with them she speaks english so she acts as an interpreter for us lived in a more open mennonite colony in canada she'll soon be getting married here so she'll have to make some sacrifices do you listen to music i only know selena gomez [Music] oh i know there was some more but i don't know on the name and you like it sometimes yes but no i now i can't listen yet anymore why because i want to get married and first i have to to tell the priestess that i will be be a good girl i will not do that anymore and i will be a christian i have to say that all before i married because the priestess told us don't listen music or to drink or everything like like like like um alcohol you can't drink alcohol or smoke or anything it's a bit hard no isn't it sometimes but not all the time [Music] for these girls it's hard to break the rules even if this family is slightly more open to modernity the more conservative mennonites are organizing everything for their departure the whole community is coming together for this special event [Music] the mennonites leaving for peru are selling all their possessions before they go for common and awkward going with thief dollar here on fire fire jakob has to sell as much as he can nothing is off limits whether it be a simple bin or a plastic bottle everything has to go dollar earned is very precious this money will help him to start afresh in the new colony thank you very much the auction will last the whole day abram is loading all the agricultural tools he wants to take to peru with him he and 10 other families all contributed so that they could share this container there's a lot we have to put everything together together together until it fits the mennonites are taking all their most precious possessions to build their new life in peru that includes tractors and machines to clear the roads the country has a few things they are not big farmers inside in the country so that's why we think about we can carry cheaper we have it here and we carry it over there cheaper than we buy it from brazil or anywhere [Music] the container will reach them two months after their arrival there is very little space but abram has a surprise in store for his wife he's going to take their marriage bed the only memory from their past life this is the bed so that is what we have ready at once your wife wanted to keep yeah my wife wanted to keep this she want to keep the beds so that she will be happy there not lose everything she lose a big amount but not lose everything [Music] it's the last evening before their big departure to peru abram's family starts to feel a little apprehensive especially his wife elena [Music] why is for now their biggest worry is the plane journey they will all be flying for the first time tomorrow [Music] [Laughter] [Music] is it's finally time for abram and his family to leave everything behind yeah it's a big movement the biggest one that i ever had in my life abram's parents have come to support them it's a difficult moment for his mother since he is the first of his siblings to leave the colony go high question yeah yeah okay three hours later the family arrives at belize city airport they are the first to get there the others are still making their way for abram this is where the adventure truly begins it's the first time that i am taking the plane that's why i'm telling my children now i'm waiting 43 years i want to go with the plane so now my children all they they're happy oh they can go with me together long time when i see a jet in the air ah when i will cool and i will go so the other mennonites arrived seven families 53 people they all purchased one-way tickets only returning isn't an option [Music] now it's time to say goodbye abram's parents also came to the airport to make the most of their last few moments with their family [Music] there's no kissing a simple handshake is enough for the mennonites every action is always composed but this time the emotions are running too high abram's mother breaks down she does not know if she will ever see her son or her grandchildren again those left behind have heavy hearts and those going on the journey are taking a leap into the unknown [Music] even the escalator is a new challenge for them [Music] [Music] are you scared [Music] for now everything is going well the plane has not left the runway yet the girls are looking at the security leaflet and then the plane takes off abram keeps smiling but his wife elena is a little worried their adventure has begun a 24-hour journey with a stopover in panama before arriving in lima the capital of peru [Music] in the waiting room the mennonites can't keep their eyes open they've spent the night in the lima airport abram and his family have not slept since leaving belize lazy lazy lazy it's a long trip huh it's a long trip in peru the group does not go unnoticed they received several stunned looks the air hostess who checks in their bags is curious she knows the place the mennonites are going to live and asks them about it [Music] for example is people always surprised a little bit they don't know you or they yeah but not a lot of people they are surprised they they look good they look at us um so they are asking for where are you coming where you want to go so what what happens what's going on and so because they don't know you no they don't know i still look people some but they sometimes they think about traveling but but nuts wanna grow so many in a group and so many baggage the mennonites are taking their third and final plane to pukalpa a town situated in the northeast of peru very near to the amazon forest they've already traveled almost 3500 kilometers when they arrive a few local taxis are waiting for them the mennonites also attract some attention here abram and his family are headed to the hotel where they can finally get a good night's sleep in a real bed pukalpa is the entry port for the amazon it's the largest port for merchandise in the region it has 200 000 inhabitants [Music] all of the merchants from the surrounding villages come here to sell their products abram is seeing it for the first time i'm here looks so such pride but looks happy beautiful yeah he immediately sees all of the potential in the region oh they look nice it looks so it looks like they had lots of movement yeah yeah that's that old on the back it's big here looks up lots of movement so right here i think here we can work like how we like to because i see the people's moving and lots and lots of people so it will be a big big difference then in belize because police so poor and so a little bit people and everything tight that's how ordered over and there abram has no time to lose he left belize with the bare minimum so now he has to gather some supplies before heading into the amazon forest first of all he has to exchange his [Music] money this is abram's life savings 30 years of work his house his land his furniture sold at the auction but we sell horses and calls and whatever what we sell on the action sale and then i got the money so then i change them for buying things more or buy my land or open my land the grand total is 17 000 euros that's very little for starting a new life so for each expenditure the mennonites regroup to work out where they can save money first on the shopping list mattresses yeah all together because above 10 then they have a different price that's why we are all together going and buying things water but i'm a flu shot the day is coming to an end in pukalpa but abram's work is just beginning he's going to be the first to scout out the new colony tomorrow abram has booked a seat on the first boat to tiara blanca the final village before the colony johann another member of the community is accompanying him the trek begins traveling for two days on the ukayali river one of the tributaries of the amazon i don't have any idea i come and look and i i see what happened and what's going on so i'm wondering everything so it looks all different than i know before and the least so everything is different but this is interesting a few hours later the houses begin to disappear they're replaced by long stretches of forest terrain but this does not worry abraham quite the contrary that's what i like if there is that's what i like that's what i love why because that looks like the soil is strong and they have power so they grow vegetables or anything but we like to work on the farm [Music] after 48 hours on the boat abram has almost reached his eldorado this time the crossing is done on a much smaller boat it's the only way to access the colony hidden deep in the heart of the amazon almost no one crosses the river past this point finally reach their destination there is no port and no pier only a dirt track they still have an hour and a half to travel but this time a scooter takes them over the muddy and slippery road [Music] in spite of the difficulties nothing can break abram's optimism the road is very difficult yeah so difficult but they have they could change we could change it that's the first time yeah we have to work that's we want you want to work yeah that's why you want to come here you have to do everything huh yeah everything you have to start anew that's from starting from zero to grow after two hours the first house finally appears it was built by the six mennonite families who arrived here a year ago now we reached [Music] there are around 50 mennonites living here completely isolated in the middle of this untouched forest they have no electricity or running water [Music] there is still lots to do abraham and his family will first have to live in tents before building their own house like this one hello he says one week he had work and so maybe two two three days more and then he had his house ready only two weeks to build a house the mennonites are seasoned carpenters they make the most of all of nature's resources the people in belize a lot of times they say how how could that happen dad we people don't go to school and we do a lot different things than they do and how could it be but they say we say we work on the farm and practice on the farm we don't go to school we go to school on the farm a little further on in the forest abram is about to discover his own land he's been waiting for this moment for a year only a few meters to go what is this this is that my piece of land here yeah so now this is how we how we first uh open this is the bosch and so now right now we will go inside and there i could show you how i will make my house [Music] this land was reclaimed by the community abram's first instinct is to grab a handful of the earth [Music] to plant carrots and all the vegetables for this one will be very very good abram can already picture his new life here on one side it will be the house and on other side there will be a shelter and the vegetables will be here in front and on the yard yard so when people come and they see okay right here is a pretty yard and pretty veggie towels oh okay happy today abram dreams of rebuilding a community based on authentic mennonite traditions like here we will be more isolated and more helpful more love and everything it will be more together people living in a year's time 40 families and nearly 300 people will have settled in this forest the amazon has become the last refuge for the mennonites you

Channel: ENDEVR

Views: 7,426,906

Keywords: Free documentary, documentaries, full documentary, hd documentary, documentary - topic, documentary (tv genre), Business Documentary, mennonites, meet the mennonites, christian, ultra conservative, alternative community, christian community, mennonite comunity, documentary about mennonite, investigative documentary, documentary, Mennonites Belize, Mennonites Peru, Conservative Christians, Christian Conservatives, Mennonites Documentary, Deutsche Well Documentary

Id: yWfGXOjBF2E

Length: 51min 42sec (3102 seconds)

Published: Wed Oct 27 2021