In our last conversation, Ben Riehl and I did a follow-up on the “Do Amish think they’re the only true Christians?” topic. Specifically, you may have heard some people who have left the Amish, describe being taught that they will be doomed to hell – if they leave the Amish. I wanted to get Ben’s thoughts on this – how accurate is this, where does it…
Here we have a quite traditional Amish home in the settlement at Lamoni, Iowa (Decatur County). It’s one of Iowa’s two-dozen-plus Amish communities. This community was started in 1997, and has three church districts. Lamoni has been mentioned here before, most recently in Joe Donnermeyer’s look at ‘The 14 “Two-State” Amish Settlements‘. As Joe reported at the time, around a dozen of the settlement’s homes…
Sunday was a bad day for Amish buggies on the road. Two Amish children – a teen and a younger one – were killed in separate accidents, in Virginia, and New York. Another Bad Crash in Farmville, VA To start with Virginia, I’m not quite sure what is wrong with the drivers in the Farmville area. A young Amish girl was killed and six others…
A New York State Police K-9 Handler is being hailed as a hero after he saved a four-year-old Amish girl in a runaway buggy. This actually happened back in May, but there was little-to-no coverage of it – at least none that came across my radar. Now, the trooper is in the news after being praised for his selfless actions. From the Sun Community News:…
By the end of 2024, the number of Amish communities, known as settlements, will likely exceed 700. As recently as 1999, that number was slightly less than 300. The phenomenal growth of Amish settlements is nearly as rapid as the growth of its population. Although settlement growth is remarkable, there is the other side of Amish history – the settlements that did not make it….
As noted in the latest update, the trial of Shawn C. Cranston will take place this coming November. The Corry, PA resident is accused of killing Amish woman Rebekah Byler, 23, and her unborn baby. A bit more news has come out after Cranston appeared at a pre-trial proceeding Monday. Jury selection has been scheduled for November 12. Other details from the report at yourerie.com:…
Report of a tragic loss in Lancaster County. Warning, this one is hard to read about. From Fox 56: LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — A 9-year-old Amish girl has died after an accident that led to multiple serious injuries on Tuesday. The unnamed child, who lived in Kinzers, was caught in the reins of of her horse that was then “suddenly spooked during training,” according…
In our latest video, Marlene Lehman of Plain & Simple shares a collection of homemade crafts. And, she explains how two of them are made. The first one, “seed bombs”, I had never heard of before. But what a neat, simple idea. I like the idea of sending these organic gifts in letters. I also ask Marlene to explain how long it takes to make…
In this video Ben answers two viewer/reader questions – on why Amish don’t fly in planes, and on Amish in Florida. We also touch on why Amish in his community (Lancaster County) mostly use only scooters – but not bicycles. This puzzles people especially since Amish in Lancaster County generally are among the most progressive when it comes to technology. While Amish in other major…
Stories of Amish and Mennonite people doing outreach projects pop up often in the news. This one caught my eye for a couple of reasons. One is the place where they did the work. But the main reason has to do with how they commemorated the experience. Fixing up a “Deaf Camp” The Amish and Mennonites in this story helped repair what’s called in the…