By Lillian Kwon | Christian Post Reporter

Hutterite bishops are crying foul over a new show on the National Geographic Channel that they say distorts their community and way of life.
“American Colony: Meet the Hutterites” is the name of the reality series and while it aims to provide a glimpse into an otherwise private community, Hutterite leaders say much of it is contrived.
“What was promised by the producers to be a ‘factual documentary’ is, in fact, a distorted and exploitative version of Hutterite life that paints all 50,000 Hutterites in North America in a negative and inaccurate way. Scenes and dialogue were contrived resulting in a ‘make believe’ depiction of how we live and the spiritual beliefs we cherish,” Bishops John Stahl, Peter Entz and John Waldner said in a statement Thursday.
Hutterites share a common ancestry with the Anabaptists, along with the Mennonites and Amish. They share many of the same beliefs and doctrine but where the Hutterites differ is their belief in sharing their possessions.
The show focuses on one of nearly 500 Hutterite Colonies – the King Ranch Colony in Montana which is made up of 59 people, almost all of whom are related.
But considering the Hutterites are a very private community, it was a surprise that the show’s creators were able to get access at all.
Like us on Facebook