A Baby for Hannah (Hannah's Heart 3)

by Jerry S. Eicher

  Hannah moved on the bench, feeling goose bumps running up her arms. Jake and the other ministers must be very concerned about something. Likely it was the Mennonite revival meetings heralded by the posters on the grocery store door or perhaps it was some news Jake had learned this morning. But surely not. Or had Mr. Brunson ignored Jake’s advice and spoken to Mary Keim about his interest in her? And even worse, had Mary accepted?

  Hannah turned her head slightly, finding Mary’s face on the other side of the room. She looked calm and untroubled, so it must be the Mennonite meetings.

  “I will now bring what I have to say to a close,” Jake said, sitting down. “Would both of the other ministers give testimony to what has been said—and perhaps Will Riley also?”

  Hannah listened while Bishop John spoke. He seemed to like what Jake had said, but she had already known that. This meant Minister Mose Chupp wouldn’t object either unless he broke the tradition. Glancing at him quickly, Mose looked calm enough, so nothing negative must be coming. That left Will Riley, but what could he say against what Jake said? He liked Jake.

  The bishop closed his remarks, wishing the blessing of God on His Word, and then he glanced toward Mose. Mose nodded and began speaking. He didn’t have much to say though, only quoting one of the verses Jake had recited and closing with his blessing.

  Hannah moved slightly on the bench as a long silence hung over the room. Several of the men cleared their throats, but none of them sounded like Will. He must be really nervous at having been asked for testimony and is having a hard time finding his voice, she thought.

  Bishop John raised his head to look in Will’s direction, and Will started speaking with a sudden burst of sound. Hannah couldn’t understand what he was saying, even when he ran out of breath and slowed down.

  No one was looking at Will, but Hannah glanced at him. Still unable to understand the rush of words, she listened more closely.

  Bishop John shook his head in Will’s direction, but the layman continued talking. Slowly comprehension came over her. Jake’s jaw was even tighter than it had been while he was preaching. Bishop John looked ready to stand and say something.

  Faintly Hannah caught some of the words. “I can’t agree with the implications of what was said here today…I do appreciate Minister Jake…his testimony that he has, but today I cannot help but think he is guilty of twisting the Word of God to fit his own purposes. Why don’t we all be honest and admit that we all know what is happening around us?

  “If we would open our eyes we would see that the world is changing…We have to move along with it. This is all about the Mennonite revival meetings…We all know they are coming to town this summer. And I don’t think we should be speaking against what other Christians are doing.

  “And don’t say that I’m immature…that I don’t know what I’m saying. I’m married and have two young children whom I desire to raise in the fear of the Lord. But this is not the way to do it. We don’t have to make Scripture fit our purposes to try and accomplish the will of God.”

  Will paused, taking a deep breath, “So I don’t give my blessing to Minister Jake’s sermon…I wish he would speak more plainly if he wishes to instruct us, without hiding behind the true Word of God.”

  Silence hung heavy over the room as Jake got slowly to his feet, his eyes watching the floor.

  “I regret that our brother does not give his blessing, and it was not my intention to hide behind the Word of God. Rather I thought I was using the Word of God to open our eyes to what is going on around us. I will take counsel with the other ministers and see if they have any further words of correction for me.”

  Jake raised his eyes to look in Will’s direction, nodding once. “I hope that is satisfactory with the brother. If not, he is welcome to speak further with the bishop about the matter. Let us pray now.”

  A soft rustle filled the room, and Hannah knelt with the rest of the people. What in the world had come over Will to cause such an outburst—and in public at that? Soft sobs came from across the room as Hannah covered her face with her hands. There was no need to look around to know who was crying. The voice of Will’s wife, Rebecca, was clearly recognizable.

  Jake read the prayer, his voice rising and falling like usual. He must be handling things very well, but then he always did. She was the one who wasn’t. Her heart was pounding so hard it hurt. Why did those Mennonites have to come into the community and make trouble for all of them? Didn’t they know life caused enough trouble already?

  Jake closed his prayer with a strong voice, “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

  Hannah rose slowly, sitting back on the bench. Elizabeth was looking sideways at her. She reached over to squeeze Hannah’s hand, which didn’t help much. It just made the threatening tears that much closer to falling. She wiped her eyes with her handkerchief as Bishop John announced the close of the service, and the smaller boys made a dash for the outside.

  Will’s oldest boy, Andrew, followed behind them, already too old to walk fast at six years of age. He was the spitting image of his father, walking erect, and grabbing his black hat by the front door. How his mom loved her children, and now Will was acting up again. Apparently Will’s desire to leave the Amish hadn’t been fully resolved last year, even with Jake’s best efforts.

  Bishop John couldn’t blame Jake for that, could he? Jake had tried his best and had come away from a difficult task with excellent results. It was those Mennonites who were stirring things up. They were the ones to blame, but she must not be bitter about it. Da Hah gave grace to all, and He wished His people to love even those who did them wrong.

  Hannah watched the short line of older boys get up and walk toward the front door. Not that long ago Jake would have been in that line, and her heart would have been pounding with joy instead of wrenched in pain.

  Will’s brother, Dennis Riley, was the last one in the line, stooping low to pick up his hat before stepping outside. He was tall, even taller than his brother, and good looking. Why had he never married? Surely he could find a girl if he wished to? Sylvia’s sister Susie had been looking at him at the last Sunday evening hymn sing, smiling in his direction in between songs. Apparently he wasn’t interested in her attentions or was taking his gut time about it.

  But then perhaps he shared Will’s desire to leave the Amish and wasn’t interested in an Amish girl? Wouldn’t that be an awful thing? Yes, but surely not as awful as the situation Rebecca was in—married with two small children and her husband disagreeing with one of the ministers in public. Bishop John wouldn’t let Will’s outburst pass, but Jake would likely speak on Will’s behalf for patience. Jake was that kind of man.

  Why didn’t Dennis date? Perhaps he had, and she didn’t know about it. It wasn’t likely that any girl would have dumped him though. He wasn’t the kind of boy a girl would do that to. Miriam was coming soon, and cold chills ran up Hannah’s spine at the thought. Miriam was looking for a relationship. This is too horrible to even contemplate! If Miriam falls for Dennis, and he for her, what will happen? Surely Miriam wouldn’t join the Mennonites—but then Rebecca hadn’t wished to either. It was her man who did.

  Was there time yet to warn Miriam? She would arrive soon. Even a rushed phone call would not reach her in time. And would she believe her anyway? What would she tell her mom? Something like, “I noticed again how handsome one of our young unmarried boys is, and I’m suspicious of him because his brother criticized Jake’s preaching today.” What sense did that make, except that she might be sore at him because his brother spoke against Jake? And Miriam would laugh anyway. She had yet to meet a boy who impressed her, and she had seen lots of them in Indiana. The young folk gatherings were crawling with Amish boys, and there were always plenty of visitors. Certainly not like Montana, which saw Amish visitors only once in a blue moon.

  No, there was no use in warning Miriam. She wouldn’t listen anyway. Regardless, their mom had given her blessing to the trip, and
that was that. Perhaps Miriam would have enough sense not to fall for Dennis once she arrived. She was a sensible sister most of the time, but love did seem to bring out the strangest qualities in people.

  Elizabeth squeezed her hand again, and Hannah got to her feet. Behind them the benches had already emptied out, the women heading toward the kitchen. Hannah followed them, pausing when Betty grabbed her arm and pulled her into the bedroom. Several young children lay sleeping on the bed, with two babies lying on the floor, one with his eyes open, staring at them while he sucked his thumb.

  Betty shut the door behind her.

  “I can’t believe Will would do something like that,” Betty whispered. “That was another of Jake’s wonderful sermons, and Will was completely out of line. The man ought to be rebuked and called out in front of the church for his transgression.”

  “Jake asked him for his testimony,” Hannah said. “And I guess he gave it.”

  Betty jerked her arm, “Don’t be trying to butter things up, and don’t you go counseling Jake to be soft on Will when Bishop John wants to deal with the man. I saw your face afterward. And did you hear Rebecca sobbing? The poor woman. Will broke her heart in pieces, and this after we thought their problems from last year were over with.”

  “It’s the Mennonite meetings that are causing the problem,” Hannah said.

  “I think so too,” Betty said. “It’s disturbing the life of the community.”

  “That’s not the worst thing,” Hannah said. “I just had the most horrible thought after church. I was thinking, what would happen if Miriam falls for Will’s brother, Dennis? She’s coming here hoping to find someone.”

  Betty’s eyes widened and she clucked her tongue. “Yes, it’s going to be a hard time ahead. I do indeed feel it in my bones, child.”

  Nine

  Jake drove silently, his eyes on the road ahead. Hannah glanced briefly at him as she rubbed her forehead. A pounding headache was forming and promised to burst into full bloom.

  “I’m sorry it went so late,” he said. “But the ministry needed to talk.”

  “How are you doing?” she asked, touching his arm.

  “Okay,” he said, not looking at her.

  “What does Bishop John think should be done about Will?”

  “He’s going over to visit him tonight.”

  “That’s better than sending you like he did last year.”

  “I guess I failed in my mission.”

  “You didn’t, Jake. It’s those Mennonites. They are the problem.”

  “Don’t say that,” Jake said, turning to look at her. “We shouldn’t blame other people for our own failures.”

  “But you didn’t fail.” Hannah squeezed his arm. “You gave Will excellent advice that night. I was there and I heard it and Will listened. You can’t carry all the weight of the world’s burdens, Jake.”

  “I have to carry the ones that are my fault.”

  “This wasn’t your fault, Jake. Believe me, it wasn’t.”

  “I wish it were that easy. Bishop John wants to discipline Will, maybe make him do a church confession. He said we can’t have people disrespecting the ministry like that.”

  “It was disrespectful. But I don’t know about discipline. That could make things worse. And poor Rebecca. She already took it hard enough the way it is.”

  “I know,” Jake said. “And there are their two children to think of. I don’t think it’s good for young boys to see their fathers in trouble with the church.”

  “Maybe Bishop John will accept a private apology—if you ask him to?”

  “I already said that, but I guess we will have to see. Will might not even back down that far. And with that Mennonite revival coming, well, it could just pick off any of our discontented members.”

  “They are the only reason Will is acting up,” Hannah said.

  “Do you really think so?”

  “I do. And isn’t there something that can be done about that? Can’t you go to the Mennonite leaders, whoever they are, and speak with them? Surely Ben Stoll would know who they are. You could ask them to call this meeting off.”

  Jake laughed dryly. “I don’t think that would work from what I’ve heard. There’s this movement sweeping across the Mennonite communities right now, and a lot of them are into this kind of thing. I don’t think they’ll stop just because the people they want to convert object.”

  “Convert? That’s sounds awful. What are we supposed to convert to?”

  Jake shrugged, “It’s a good word—if what you are converting to is good.”

  “You wouldn’t ever convert, would you, Jake?”

  He laughed, slapping the reins. “Now, why do you ask that?”

  “Well, you’re a really gut preacher. My guess is they’d put you right to work preaching all over the country in a fancy new car they might even buy for you themselves!”

  Jake shook his head, laughing again. “You are full of strange ideas, Hannah. But don’t worry, I’m not converting to their way of doing things.”

  “Are you going to attend the meetings? You said once you wanted to see what goes on.”

  “I was teasing,” Jake said, turning up their driveway. “I have no plans to go.”

  “What does Bishop John say about people going? Is he going to forbid it?”

  “We talked about that,” Jake said, allowing Mosey to walk up the hill toward the cabin. “He wants a rule against any attendance, and Mose feels the same way.”

  “And you?”

  “I don’t know. I’m afraid it will be perceived as too harsh and it might backfire.”

  “But what if people go? From the talk today, I’d say Will is going to drag Rebecca there whether she wants to go or not.”

  “It’s the end result we have to keep in mind. The summer will be over in a few months, the Mennonites will be gone, and we will have to live with ourselves.”

  “So you will defy Bishop John’s opinion?” Hannah asked, her hand shaking a bit on Jake’s arm.

  He turned, a weak smile on his face. “I just gave my opinion. Bishop John can do what he wants.”

  “You know he wouldn’t want to go against your opinion. Can’t you tell him you’ve changed your mind? Betty thinks it’s time for harsh measures with all the trouble we’re having.”

  “It’s always time to do what’s right,” Jake said, pulling to a stop in front of the barn.

  Hannah climbed down and took the tugs off of her side of the buggy, holding the shafts while Jake led Mosey forward. She watched him disappear into the barn before she walked toward the house. Jake was always right and had a way of saying things that made one shut one’s mouth. Still, Betty wouldn’t be convinced, but Hannah had done her duty. She had advised Jake not to be soft on Will.

  Jake was taking an awful risk in holding to a different stand than Bishop John. He could say what he wanted to, but that was what it was. If things went wrong this summer, and the worst happened with several or even a few of their members being lost to the Mennonite revival, Jake would take a lot of the blame. Word would leak out that Jake had been the one who stood in the way of dealing harshly with the ones who chose to attend the tent meetings.

  She rubbed her forehead again. Thankfully her threatening headache had subsided. It must have been the conversation with Jake. He could do that for her, and soon they would be able to comfort each other as a family. Wouldn’t that be wonderfully gut? They could sit around the gas lantern at night, the baby playing in the crib, and be a happy and complete family regardless of what people thought of Jake.

  Hannah opened the cabin door, and walked in, hanging her shawl on the rocker before taking off her bonnet. She needed to start supper soon. At this hour it would need to be warmed-over casserole from last night and the blueberry pie she had made yesterday. That would still leave enough pie for Jake’s lunch tomorrow. She would do additional baking then.

  While starting the fire in the stove, the cabin door opened and she glanced into the livin
g room. Jake tossed his hat on the floor and lowered himself on the couch, his face streaked with weariness.

  “I’ll have supper soon,” Hannah said. “It’s already quite late.”

  “That would be gut as I’m starving.”

  While the casserole warmed, she made a batch of popcorn and brought it to Jake. A smile spread over his face as he took the bowl Hannah gave him.

  “Don’t eat too much,” she said, “or you won’t have room for supper.”

  “I can always find room for your delicious food,” he said.

  “Thanks, and I’m glad you like my food. But you haven’t gotten fat yet.”

  “Am I supposed to get fat?” he asked, laughing.

  “Well, some men do once they get married. But I guess you work too hard. And then there’s the church work.”

  He smiled halfheartedly. “It would keep anyone thin.”

  “I don’t want you fat anyway,” Hannah said, nibbling from her own bowl of popcorn.

  Jake sat upright suddenly, listening. “There’s a buggy coming up the lane.”

  “Oh no,” Hannah gasped, standing up so fast her bowl tipped over, spilling the white kernels across the floor. “I hope it’s not trouble. We can’t stand any more of that tonight.”

  His face shadowed, Jake gave her a quick look. “I’m sorry this is so hard on you. But I don’t know what to do about it.”

  “You can’t do anything. It’s not your fault.”

  He ran his fingers gently down her cheek. He stood up, went to the cabin door, opened it, and stepped out onto the porch.

  Hannah quickly swept the spilled popcorn into a pile with her hands and deposited it into the wastebasket. She could at least present a clean house to whomever was coming.

  Voices reached her from the front porch—muffled sounds of laughter. Who would be laughing when the visit has to be a serious one? Hannah wondered.

  She watched as the door swung open and Jake held it while Betty and Steve walked inside.