Bruderhof Communities
The Bruderhof (/ˈbruːdərˌhɔːf/; 'place of brothers') is an Anabaptist Christian movement that was founded in Germany in 1920 by Eberhard Arnold. The movement has communities in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Paraguay, and Australia.
| Bruderhof | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Anabaptist |
| Scripture | Christian Bible Foundations of Our Faith and Calling (2012) |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Associations | Fellowship for Intentional Community |
| Region | Worldwide |
| Founder | Eberhard Arnold |
| Origin | 1920 Sinntal, Germany |
| Separated from | Hutterite Church, 1995 |
| Communities | 26 |
| Number of followers | 2,900 (2020) |
| Official website | bruderhof |
The Bruderhof practises believer's baptism, non-violence and peacemaking, common ownership, the proclamation of the gospel, and lifelong faithfulness in marriage. The Bruderhof is an intentional community as defined by the Fellowship for Intentional Community.
The communities are best known by the name "Bruderhof" or sometimes "Bruderhof Communities", although "Bruderhof" is the name used on their website. The communities are legally incorporated in the US as Church Communities International. Their corporation used to be called The Society of Brothers (1939 to 1978). Bruderhof maintained connections with the traditional Hutterite Church, from which they broke in 1995. The word "Bruderhof" was first used by the early Anabaptists in Moravia. As of September 2020, there are 26 Bruderhof communities.