Helmut Isaak

Here Am I Lord, Send Me Helmut Isaak

Helmut Isaak is one of the least visible ministers of the Mennonite churches on three continents. He is well-known in Paraguay, Bolivia, and some places in British Columbia, Alberta, and Germany. The story of his commitment and devotion to the church of Christ has remained largely hidden from the Mennonite churches. This book tells that dramatic story of his love and devotion to that church.



Helmut Isaak is an extraordinarily gifted person. He was born into and raised in a strong family in Fernheim, Paraguay. He saw devoted commitment to church and community demonstrated by his father, a minister, and his mother, soul of a household of twelve children. His lively intellect led to his acquiring an education to the doctoral level which fitted him for his vocation. To his native Low German were added over the years the languages High German, Spanish, Dutch, English, as well as the biblical languages Hebrew and Greek. He was an accomplished teacher, and a decisive administrator. As a pastor and preacher he was passionate and wise about the gospel. He had the ability to see through thickets of confusion and resistance to the heart of a matter, and thus able to help resolve many an apparently intractable problem. He was a counsellor who listened patiently to those who came to him. As a skilled carpenter he built houses for his family. As a scholar he wrote and published the important book Menno Simons and the New Jerusalem. His education in the Netherlands gave him scholarly distinction as well as an ecumenical spirit.



These were the gifts he needed to live out a truly international vocation. Beginning in Paraguay and continuing in British Columbia, Alberta, and Germany, he was teacher and pastor. In Alberta, Mexico, and Bolivia he was teacher and counsellor to troubled people.