Amish Life

JAPAS Spring 2016 Issue Now Available

ByErik Wesner September 14, 2016September 22, 2016

The latest edition of the Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies was recently released. It can be viewed in full here.

This open source journal features academic articles on the Amish, Old Order Mennonites and other Plain Anabaptist groups, and also contains regular book reviews. This is the seventh issue since the journal debuted in 2013.

All previous issues can be found here and are available online for free. You can also read an interview with one of the founders, Cory Anderson, here.

Articles in the latest issue cover an attempt by Amish to settle Honduras in the 1960s and 1970s, two Hutterite topics (a comparison of colony layout and housing in different Hutterite groups, and the role of the teacher-principal in Hutterite schools), a defense lawyer’s view of the Amish beard-cutting case, and several book reviews, including of a revised 3rd edition of A History of the Amish by Steven Nolt.

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Amish Life

Stan Wesner 1946-2014

ByErik Wesner September 9, 2014September 9, 2014

103 Comments

My father passed away two weeks ago, having been diagnosed with mesothelioma back in March. Following surgery in July, we were hopeful, but shortly thereafter learned that the cancer had already spread, and there was little more to be done. We lost him a few weeks later, at home. When you read about mesothelioma, a rare, aggressive disease which comes from asbestos exposure, you learn it is…

Amish Life

Amish Now Live In This New State (Video)

ByErik Wesner September 23, 2022January 10, 2023

1 Comment

If you caught my post from July, you already know which state I’m talking about. Amish now have a presence in a 32nd state, which I discuss in this short video. If you’d rather read about it, you can do that here. Funny enough, I happened to find myself just a few miles away from this new community last year, but did not realize it…

Amish Life

An Interview With Swartzentruber Amishman Dennis Hershberger (Video)

ByErik Wesner August 12, 2020May 26, 2021

18 Comments

“I grew up Amish…and for somebody that never was Amish, and goes Amish, I have no way of telling you what that guy would have to go through,” he laughs. “I imagine it would be pretty tough.” That’s Swartzentruber Amishman Dennis Hershberger discussing Amish life, from a very nicely done 8-minute video showing us the community at Harmony, Minnesota. In it, we ride along with…

Amish Life

Rainbows & Sunshine: Subscription Winner and Excerpts

ByErik Wesner February 14, 2017February 19, 2017

3 Comments

Today we have a winner of the Rainbows and Sunshine subscription. If you missed the first post, Rainbows and Sunshine is a new children’s publication edited by Amish mother Freida Stoltzfus of Lancaster County, PA. You can read about it here. I was in touch with Freida again yesterday; I think she really enjoyed seeing all your comments. And she had this response to one of them: The comment…

Amish Life

A Closer Look at Amish Phone Shacks (11 Photos)

ByErik Wesner April 16, 2019March 3, 2020

9 Comments

The first clue that I’d arrived in the Amish area of Charlotte County, Virginia was a sign warning of buggy traffic for the next 15+ miles. The second indication was this little building on the side of the road: There were phone shacks (or shanties) just like this one found throughout this community of two churches. The Amish here have ties to the Mechanicsville (St….