Harold S. Bender, 1897-1962 by Albert N. Keim (review)

BOOK REVIEWS331 In both GiUis' writings, and the recoUections voiced after his death in 1957, images of warfare and fighting for the Lord abound; the ultimate contest was fought on a battleground which pitted the forces of light and goodness against the forces of darkness and evU. Throughout a long and productive Ufe, James Martin GUUs fought vaUantly against myriad manifestations of these forces— Satan, secularism, and Communism—guided by his steadfast faith in Christ and the cross, the "fear of God" as his shield. According to Gribble, these stark images shed light on the private as weU as the public Ufe of the Paulist priest. Employing GiIUs' own references to the "heart and soul of man as a battleground of Titans" and applying the self-assessed "JekyU and Hyde" metaphor from GiUis' conflicted mind and soul (between the public and private sides of his personality and spirituality) throughout his book—sometimes to an excessive degree—Father Gribble has written a fine interpretation of this zealous "guardian" of the traditional values of his Church and his nation. Among its greatest strengths is the even-handed yet critical tone which Gribble adopts; acknowledging that GiUis' struggles often bordered on obsession in no way takes away from his appreciation of the significance ofJames Martin GiUis' contribution as a man of profound courage and discipline. In the final analysis, the life of James Martin GiUis gave witness to an exemplary struggle for spiritual renewal —for himself, his Church, and his nation. And students of American CathoUcism owe a debt of gratitude to Richard Gribble, C.S.C, for his exemplary efforts to preserve his subject's memory, and for demonstrating anew that the "art of biography" Uves on as a prism of history. Kathleen L. Riley Ohio Dominican College Harold S. Bender, 1897-1962. By Albert N. Keim. (Scottdale, Pennsylvania: Herald Press. 1998. Pp. 590. $23-99 paperback.) As the dominant inteUectual and ecclesiastical leader of Mennonites in the United States in this century, Harold S. Bender has long been in need of a proper biography. In the early 1990's, the Mennonite Historical Society—one of the many church agencies which Bender had founded—tapped Albert Keim of Eastern Mennonite University to write one. The result is a book that stands not only as the definitive biography of Bender, but also as a landmark study in recent Mennonite historical scholarship. Keim adeptly moves through the major passages of Bender's Ufe, repeatedly setting him and events in their larger historical context. For example, he shows how Bender's father performed a leading role in the Mennonite "quickening" of the turn of the century, in which progressive members of this rural ethnoreUgious sect urged the adoption of outside innovations such as mission agencies and Sunday Schools. By the 1920's, however, conservative leaders 332book reviews endeavored to draw the Une against further change by maintaining strong channels of church hierarchy, which they themselves headed. This is the context into which Bender came into adulthood, and it marked him accordingly. As a young progressive, his choices were either exUe, or a pragmatic acceptance of the possibilities that could be achieved within the limits imposed by conservative control. Bender was temperamentaUy suited for the latter course; Keim summarizes his "regard for decorum and authority, his instinctive search for a middle-ground, his aversion to risk-taking ... his comfort with conventional orthodoxy , his persistence, and his intellectual prowess" (p. 1 18). By the 1950's, such character traits had helped to establish Bender at the apex of upwards of fourteen major Mennonite church institutions or church bureaucracies. This rise was made possible both through his adept mastering of church politics and through the compelling vision he mapped out for the church. Keim carefuUy explores the development and inteUectual power of Bender's fundamental "Anabaptist Vision"—a conception that, says Keim, emerged as Bender's ultimate contribution to his church. Keim's Bender is not without flaws, however. Goshen College faculty colleagues found him "pushy and impetuous" (p. 226); as faculty dean and chair of Mennonite Central Committee, he moved people around like chess pieces. He guarded his own authority jealously, unwilling or unable to delegate it...