A LOOK INSIDE THE HUTTERITE WORLD

So, we are surrounded here in S. Alberta by Hutterite colonies.  Every time I turn around, I am finding out that there is another one around us.  I think next to the Church, they must be the biggest land-owners in the area.  And I am thrilled - and intrigued by them.  In studying what they are about, we can possibly learn how to correct the things that went wrong with the United Order, as it was presented as a sub-set of the Law of Consecration.  Having said this, it is much too little, much too late.  Our fate is sealed because of very fundamental things we all are missing to make it work.

The Hutterites, however, have made it work - even if it is a bit archaic and even if it does follow a lesser set of principles.  At least it works - where Consecration, with it's higher ideals did not.

I had some friends over on Sunday who have been tied into the colonies and I learned some very interesting things.  First of all, there is no "share" given to each member of a colony, therefore making it hard to leave if things are not working out.  Under the United Order, you put all your things (plows, tools, horses, etc) into the pot and you were issued a receipt for that "share" or percentage of the total pot.  If things were not working out, you were allowed to leave and take the original "share", plus any interest or increase in the size of the pot, with you.

In the Hutterite model, you are basically a slave or worker bee, for life.  If you leave, you are shunned and have nothing with which to start over with outside of the Colony life.  Divorce is not allowed (for clear Biblical reasons), therefore your options are pretty limited.

When it comes to comparing amongst the members within the life, there is little to compare to.  Most everyone dresses modestly and tv is mostly non-existent, so thankfully, they do not have to compete with the unexplainable draw to the Kardtrashians and other babylonian filth the rest of us have to have our kids exposed to as part of the cost of admission to this ride, and "being in the world, but not of it".

The part that amazes me is the economy of scale of doing everything on an industrial scale.  Their cars/vans are usually new and in perfect running order.  Their farm equipment, impeccable.  When you share costs on big-ticket items, you can do amazing things.  Not every individual farmer needs a 2018 model harvester, so the equipment of the individual tends to be out-dated as other priorities take precedent.  But a group that size, can use 10 quite efficiently.

The other thing that shocked me - was learning from an LDS ranch boss, that they are very hard on the equipment they do have - even as nice as it is.  Repairs for negligence can run into the tens of thousands of dollars.  And this is where the model breaks down.  There apparently is a long distance from the guy running the machine (who is just a slave and will die with nothing to pass on to his kids or to be a "steward" over), to the guy who is cutting the check to fix the broken equipment due to negligence.  In this model, there is no skin in the game, so to speak.  If the stuff is broken, it is not the user's problem - and the equipment manager is left standing when the music stops.  In the Consecrated model, everyone is a steward over all things not their own, and the Golden Rule is key. 

This is where terrestrial living breaks down in my limited knowledge of the failure in Orderville, Logan Valley, Kingston UT and a few others that I am still studying.  In poverty, all work together.  When value sets begin to crumble (some family groups are filled with pride - want nicer clothes, better food, nicer horse/wagon) - or some parents cannot feel to trust their kids with the other kids (I struggle with this - as some kids are media-addled and think the Kardtrashians are the cat's meow - and I do not want my kids around those kids), and the list goes on and on and on..... then it collapses.

So, it is a struggle.  By having a draconian set of rules, the Hutterites have managed to avoid many of the pitfalls.  Most "westerners" would not consent to their lifestyle because they could or would not abide it.  Many suffer from a subtle form of greed and cannot live the golden rule and "return it better than they found it".  Many, as in the days of Peter in the earliest incarnation of this that I am aware of, would suffer from overt greed and would withhold a portion - and thus there would be a imperceptible, but accelerating leaking in the dam that holds back the inevitable tide of human imperfection awaiting to spill out and ruin the experiment.

It likely, other than the companion Consecration analog of Plural Marriage, is the hardest thing a group of people will ever do on this fallen orb.  To get it right - nearly impossible.

The only time it has really ever worked was associated with a catastrophe.  Shem (Melchizedek) with the city of Salem and the flood.  The Nephites after the destruction at the First Coming and then we will shortly have our turn after the destruction of the Second Coming.  By force of circumstance, we will be forced (in a different way than the Hutterites), to make it happen.  It will be refreshing to be in this pickle.  IF we cannot abide the principles in all the forms above, we will not be part of the equation.  The bar is exceedingly high.  Most of us, including myself, have been incredibly complacent.  The wake-up call will be incredibly harsh. 

Ministering is part of that equation.  Being less selfish - and more centered in others' lives.  This is all part of the sifting process.  A Patriarch from a different Stake got up and shared this testimony - and apparently was mocked for it.  I add my witness, that it is so.  We can either choose to get with the program, or we will get tossed off the train.