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The Anabaptists, meaning “re-baptizers,” broke off from the Reformed tradition in Switzerland when they could see no grounds for infant baptism in scripture. Baptism was only for adult believers, a mark of their commitment to living in a radically new life in the Christian community, which was sharply separated from “the world.” Since “the world” included most of Christendom, Anabaptists were persecuted as dangerous rebels—some of them were. They took over the Dutch city of Münster by force. But after they were slaughtered, the Anabaptist tradition took a pacifist turn, led by Menno Simons, after whom the Mennonites are named. Its most severe and controversial form of discipline was excommunication or the ban. Other strands of the radical reformation included the Rationalist Socinians, who denied the doctrine of the Trinity, and spiritualists such as Sebastian Franck who denied any need for an institutional church.
