John Sharp is a recently retired historian who taught at Hesston (KS) College. He is a former director of the Mennonite Church USA Historical Committee and Archives. John holds an M.Div. from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary and has 15 years of experience as a pastor. John is an instructor of Road Scholar (Elderhostel) courses on Amish life and culture, and is a frequent presenter for lifelong learning programs. Books include My Calling to Fulfill: The Orie O. Miller Story (Herald Press, 2015); and The Bible as Story: An introduction to Biblical Literature (WorkPlay Publishing, 2017). Since 2000, he has led a variety of TourMagination heritage tours to Western Europe, Prague and Poland, and Central Asia. He is married to Michele Miller Sharp, a former physician assistant in family practice and currently compliance officer at Hesston College. Their family also includes two living daughters and four grandchildren. Recently, his storytelling has focused on the life and work of his son MJ, who in 2017 was abducted and murdered in the Democratic Republic of the Congo while on a mission for the United Nations. As for traveling, John says There's nothing like hearing stories on site. As always, I am eagerly anticipating the stories, landscapes, and fellowship that await us!
On this classic Anabaptist heritage tour in Europe, visit significant sites that will bring to life the stories of Menno Simons, Jacob Hutter, Pilgram Marpeck, Dirk Willems, Jakob Amman, and other important Anabaptist leaders. See the historic Dutch village of Zaanse Schans, take a cable car up Stockhorn mountain, reflect in a cave where Anabaptists worshipped in secret, and stay in the homes of generous, hospitable locals in the town of Berlikum. Also explore art and culture in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Switzerland, and Austria. Experienced tour leader and former Hesston College Professor John Sharp will guide you on this journey of discovery and fellowship.
This delightful tour combines sight-seeing in Eastern Europe with investigating the history of Mennonites in Poland. During a few days in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, marvel at colourful baroque buildings, Gothic churches, and the city’s famous Old Town Square. Also visit important sites in Krakow and Warsaw in Poland. Guided by Mennonite historian, John Sharp, learn more about the country that sheltered Dutch and German Mennonites beginning as early as the 1530’s right up to the Second World War. Some families stayed in the Vistula Delta of Poland for generations, later migrating to South Russia, Ukraine, and the American Midwest.
