Enchanting Swiss Journal: Part 1: Anabaptist Paths to Freedom

 

Over the next several days I will be posting stories from my recent trip to Switzerland to highlight some of the cultural uniqueness of this enchanting land. 

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The castle Trachselwald near Summiswald, in the Emmental Valley of Switzerland, was the site of much persecution during the 1600s. The Emmental was (and still is) the seat of the largest group of Anabaptists at the time. Many ancestors of the Mennonites in the USA have had distant relatives tortured in the castle tower. Hundreds if not thousands left Switzerland because of the harsh hand of the Bernese authorities. A wonderful historical novel by Katherina Zimmerman has been written about a Hirschi (Hershey in the USA) family and their experiences in this are at the time.

My own ancestors left the Emmental around 1680, spent several generations in Germany before emigrating to the USA in 1738. It is rather humbling to visit the torture chambers in the castle tower, knowing full well that many of one's forebearers may have spent time in the prison tower. 

On a rainy Friday, several Swiss friends of ours picked us up to go to the castle of Trachselwald. Esther and I had been there several times before, but we were now going to see the new exhibition titled: “Paths to Freedom” that was recently completed. The exhibition’s website introduction states: “In this exhibition you will be introduced to the history and presence of Swiss Anabaptism. You will gain insight into the lives and beliefs of women and men from the Emmental who came into conflict with "church and state" because of their non-conformist convictions. You will get to know their hopes and fears. And you may be amazed here and there at how topical some themes have remained to this day.” 

The exhibit was well worth the visit, but even more fun was the time spent with our friends, Erwin and Elizabeth Rötlisbacher and Elsbeth Zürcher. Unfortunately Elsbeth’s husband, Ricco, couldn’t join us. I was especially disappointed not to see him—we hit it off very well. These two couples were the first to be curious about us, and befriended us when we attended the Mennonite church in Bern while spending a year in Switzerland after my retirement. 

After our visit to the castle, Erwin, who is very connected to the exhibit’s founding and promoting, took us to the adjacent church and explained how it was built from funds garnered from the Anabaptists collected by Bernese authorities for various issues in which he Anabaptists couldn’t comply with the rules of the government. If they couldn’t pay the fines, their properties were confiscated and sold.

We ended up at Elsbeth’s home for our evening meal. What a spread! Elsbeth followed Swiss protocol. First an “aperitif” with white wine and snacks. Then the meal which consisted of a salad and lasagna. This was followed by dessert provided by Elizabeth: Tiramisu! We caught up on each other’s lives, told stories, and laughed uproariously. After several glasses of wine, my Swiss German rolled off my tongue effortlessly, and Esther was reminded why I was dubbed “the entertainer” in previous encounters with people.