Who are the Amish?

Amish, also called Amish Mennonite, a member of a Christian group in North America, primarily the Old Order Amish Mennonite Church. The church originated at the end of the 17th century among the disciples of Jakob Ammann.

History and architecture of the Church

Jakob Ammann (c. 1644–c. 1730) was a Mennonite leader whose controversial teachings caused a schism among his coreligionists in Switzerland, Alsace, and southern Germany. Ammann insisted that any disfellowshipped Mennonite church member be socially ostracized and that anyone who lied be excommunicated. Following the example of Jesus , he introduced foot washing into worship and taught that church members should dress uniformly , that beards should not be trimmed, and that it was improper to attend. to services in a state church. Although Mr. Ammann sought reconciliation with the Mennonites, he continued to insist that all those who had been excommunicated be excluded, and his attempts at reconciliation therefore failed. Amish communities arose in Switzerland, Alsace, Germany, Russia and Holland, but emigration to North America in the 19th and 20th centuries and assimilation with Mennonite groups gradually eliminated the Amish in Europe.

The Amish began emigrating to North America in the early 18th century; they first settled in eastern Pennsylvania, where a large population remains. Schism and upheaval occurred after 1850 due to tensions between the "new order" Amish , who accepted social change and technological innovation, and the "old order", or traditional, Amish, who did not. generally did not accept it. Over the next 50 years, about two-thirds of the Amish formed small, separate churches or joined the Mennonite Church or the General Conference Mennonite Church.

Most traditional Amish are members of the Old Order Amish Mennonite Church. At the start of the 21st century, approximately 250,000 Amish lived in more than 200 Old Order Amish settlements in the United States and Canada; the largest were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, and Kansas, and others in Wisconsin, Maine, Missouri, and Minnesota. Their colonies are divided into ecclesiastical districts, self-governing congregations of approximately 75 baptized members. If the district becomes much larger, it is divided again, as members meet at each other's homes. There are no church buildings. Each district has a bishop, two to four preachers, and an elder, but there are no general conferences, mission groups, or cooperative agencies.

Beliefs and lifestyles

Humility, family, community and separation from the world are the pillars of the Amish . Daily life and customs are governed by an unwritten code of conduct called Ordnung , and rejection (Meidung) remains an essential way for the community to deal with disobedient members. In official religious doctrine, the Amish differ little from the Mennonites. Holy Communion is celebrated twice a year, and foot washing is practiced by both groups. People are baptized when they are admitted as official members of the church, around the age of 17 to 20. Religious services are conducted in High German , and Pennsylvania Dutch (see Pennsylvania German )—a mixture of High German, various German dialects, and English—is spoken locally and is common in everyday speech. Services are organized on a rotating basis in family homes and barns. A large cart, filled with benches for serving and dishes and food for the meal that follows, will often be pulled to the host's property. In most Amish homes, a special place is reserved next to the Bible for the Martyrs' Mirror , a book that traces Amish history and honors the many Amish, Mennonite, and Anabaptist ancestors who died for their faith. The Budget , established in 1890, is the national newspaper serving the many Amish and Mennonite communities; it is published in Sugarcreek, Ohio.

The mirror of the martyrs

The Amish are best known for their plain clothing, much of it homemade, and their nonconformist lifestyle. Men and boys wear black wide-brimmed hats, dark-colored suits, straight-cut coats without lapels, wide-brimmed pants, suspenders, solid-colored shirts, and black socks and shoes . Their shirts can fasten with conventional buttons, but their coats and vests fasten with hooks and eyes. Men grow beards after marriage, but are prohibited from wearing mustaches. Old Order Amish women and girls wear bonnets, long robes complete with capes over the shoulders, shawls, black shoes and stockings; their capes and aprons are fastened with straight pins or snaps. Amish women never cut their hair, which is worn in a bun, and they are not allowed to wear jewelry of any kind. Amish dress, which is essentially that of 17th-century European peasants, reflects their reluctance to change, their respect for tradition, and their interpretation of biblical restrictions that prevent them from conforming to worldly customs (e.g., Romans 12 :2 ).

The Old Order Amish avoid personal home telephones but sometimes use a community telephone. They also avoid automobiles. They travel by bicycle and horse-drawn carriage, but many of them sometimes take other people's car, train or bus in an emergency. Although buggies are traditional box-shaped vehicles, they are not always black, as is commonly thought; some are white, gray or even yellow, and many Amish and Mennonite groups are distinguished by the color chosen for their buggy. Strollers can also be equipped with modern conveniences such as heaters, wipers and padded seats. The use of electricity is, however, strongly avoided, as it is a prime connection with the world that could lead to temptations and worldly conveniences detrimental to community and family life; exceptions to this ban have sometimes been made by Amish who must use electric turn signals on their buggies in order to legally drive in their communities and certain agricultural equipment which could not operate without a minimal amount of electricity and without which economic subsistence of the community would be threatened; for example, some milking equipment may be impossible to operate without some electricity, and electric fences may be considered essential for raising livestock. Bottled gas is often used to operate appliances, even barbecue grills, and gas lanterns and lamps can be used for indoor lighting. The New Order Amish allows the use of electricity, car ownership, and telephones in the home.

The Amish use electric flashers for their strollers.

The Amish are considered excellent farmers, growing and storing the majority of their food and only purchasing staples like flour and sugar from stores. The Old Order Amish refuse to use most modern agricultural machinery, preferring the sweat of their brow to the ease of modern conveniences. The modern machines they use often do not run on electricity, but using an alternative energy source. The Amish are famous for their barn raising. These cooperative efforts often involve hundreds of men, as well as dozens of women who feed the workers. These custom-made barns are a constant reminder of Amish tradition, community, industry and craftsmanship. The hexagonal signs that often adorn barns—round geometric emblems painted to ward off evil—are synonymous with the farming communities of the “ Pennsylvania Dutch .”

The Amish generally agree to photograph their way of life, but they refrain from photographing themselves , believing that such things are graven images in violation of the Second Commandment . For this same reason, the dolls that young Amish girls play with are traditionally faceless. Musical instruments are also prohibited by the Old Order Amish, because playing them, according to them, would be a "worldly" act contrary to critical Gelassenheit: that spirit of humility, modesty and informality which is at the heart of heart of the Amish way of life and which, according to the Amish, was exemplified by Jesus Christ; other Amish may play an instrument in private, such as the accordion or harmonica, but never in public. Singing, however, is important in Amish life, whether at work or play, at home or in church. Excerpts from the Ausband (their anthem) are commonly sung. Group chants are always in unison and are never harmonized. Hymn singing is popular on Sunday evenings, particularly among young Amish people, and on this occasion a separate hymn (with "faster tunes"), called a "thin book", is used.

Amish quilts, meticulously sewn by groups of Amish girls and women, are popular with tourists and highly valued by collectors . Quilts are a form of socialization and relaxation for Amish women, and the group effort reflects the Amish virtues of community and cooperation. Quilts can have an intricate design with colorful patterns but cannot contain representative images, which are considered fanciful and proud. Selling quilts, crafts such as spell signs, and their famous baked goods like Friendship Bread and Shoofly Pie is a common source of income for Amish families. The Amish recipes of Elizabeth Coblenz (d. 2002) have been published in hundreds of newspapers and her cookbooks are famous around the world.

Amish children typically attend community-run one-room schools , and they only attend school until eighth grade; this eighth grade cutoff in the United States was deemed acceptable by a 1972 Supreme Court ruling. Instruction is provided in English and focuses on the basics of reading, writing, and mathematics. Amish history and practical farming and homemaking skills are also taught. As with many breakaway branches of Protestantism, convincing children of believers to remain in the religious community can often be a challenge. If a young man joins a Mennonite church or another less demanding religion, the Amish will often say "he got a haircut." If a young person abandons the faith completely, that person is said to have “become English.”

The Amish are not involved in state or national politics, and as pacifists, they do not serve in the military. They also disavow Social Security and most types of insurance, often pooling their resources to help Amish families in need, but they go to doctors, dentists, and opticians. As has often been said, the Amish are in the world but not really of it, as they try, in their simple and placid way, to maintain as much separation as possible from the rest of society.

Amish FAQs

Why don't the Amish use electricity?

"The Amish interpret connecting with electric wires as connecting with the world – and the Bible tells them that they are not to be 'conformed to this present age.'" ( Romans 12:2 ) In 1919, Amish leaders agreed that connecting to power lines would not be in the best interest of the Amish community. They did not make this decision because they believed electricity was evil in itself, but because easy access to it. Electricity could lead to many temptations and the deterioration of church and family life.

A book describing how to do without electricity using the Amish as an example.

Why do the Amish have beards and why do the Amish not have mustaches?

"There are many scriptures that mention beards in the Bible. An example would be Psalm 133:1,2 . An Amishman does not shave his beard after marriage; a long beard is the mark of an adult Amishman. Mustaches, on the other hand, have long been associated with the military, and are therefore forbidden among the Amish.”

Why do Amish wear black hats?

"Here in Lancaster County, Amish men wear wide-brimmed black felt hats. The width of the brim and band of the hat, and the height and shape of the crown are variables that measure the he orthodoxy of the group and the individual wearer A wide brim, low crown and narrow hat band denote the oldest and most traditional style. Within religious groups, a person's age and status are. often reflected by the dimensions of one's hat. In hot weather, simple men prefer straw hats.