2024 UPDATE: Don Shenk passed away in late 2021. It was very kind of him to share a collection of his images with us, not long before he died. Originally published in October 2021, I’ve just updated this post with another five favorite images at the end, along with a few comments of mine. I hope you enjoy. Don Shenk’s Amish Photography Don Shenk is…
Following last week’s insightful Q-and-A with Donald Kraybill, we’ve got a winner of What the Amish Teach Us: Plain Living in a Busy World, his new book just released today. This book is unlike others Don has written – a series of 22 essays sharing things that he has learned from his friendships with Amish people and study of Amish life, spanning decades. Before we…
Sometimes I refer obliquely to certain Amish communities having a bad reputation for the behavior of their youth or as regards consumption of alcohol. Keeping in mind that Amish communities can be quite different, of course. In many communities, poor behavior from youth is not common or little-tolerated. And different communities have different approaches to alcohol. That’s all to preface the news of yet another…
Do Amish women have freedom in their marriages? Are they dominated by their husbands? What does “head of household” mean? Read on for some of my own observations on these questions – or check out the video above. Head of household Do Amish husbands control their wives? This is a bit of a sensitive question, I suppose. The Amish male is considered the head of…
Eight children were left without parents after the family buggy was rear-ended Sunday in central Virginia. From the AP: FARMVILLE — A Farmville man died Monday, a day after his wife was killed and their eight children were injured when their Amish horse-drawn buggy was rear-ended in Cumberland County, according to state police. The buggy was traveling south on Cumberland Road before 8 p.m. Sunday…
Donald Kraybill‘s new book What the Amish Teach Us: Plain Living in a Busy World will be out next Tuesday. What the Amish Teach Us features 22 essays on a wide array of important life topics, each drawing lessons from the Amish example. Topics include “Limits: Less Choice, More Joy”, “Parenting: Raising Sturdy Children”, “Hacking: Creative Bypasses”, “Patience: Slow Down and Listen”, and many more….
This latest Amish home for sale has a very simple listing. This is the New Wilmington, Pennsylvania Amish community, and the listing description at Zillow is just two lines long: Amish farm with 2 greenhouses and 1312 SF barn, 3 hydrants. No plumbing, electric, or sewer! The New Wilmington community is on the plainer side of things, as the no plumbing/sewer detail suggests. We previously…
Donald Kraybill’s new podcast is called “What I Learned from the Amish”. Following up last week’s podcast on community, we have the next in the series, on technology. A snippet from this episode: “For starters, let’s just cancel the big fat myth that the Amish reject modern technology. It’s just not true! What is true, is that Amish communities selectively screen new technology, trying to…
I saw and was sent a story on the Amish, COVID, and specifically herd immunity, and I wanted to share a few thoughts on it. It is an interesting report which I learned a few things from – but I’ve also got a few issues with it. Do Amish communities have herd immunity? So we heard stories sharing beliefs that certain Amish communities had reached…
I’m happy to share that the new issue of the Journal of Plain Anabaptist Communities (JPAC) is out. Here’s journal co-editor Joe Donnermeyer on what you’ll find inside the latest edition of this freely available online publication. The third issue of the Journal of Plain Anabaptist Communities was released this past week. On the cover of Volume 2, Issue 1 is a photo showing an…