The Amish stand out in this world for many reasons. One is their reverence for the Sabbath day. This is something that even those who know little of the Amish are aware of. Â Even their “No Sunday Sales” business signs advertise this key belief. While most Christians shift gears and attend church on that day, Amish take it further, both in degree, and in their…
I’ll admit it’s a little odd to see an Amishman plant a kiss on his neighbor. But it’s a common-enough sight, one you’ll see before Amish church service. What is the Holy Kiss? The holy kiss is a practice with Scriptural basis (more on that below). As with other Amish practices, the way it is done varies. In some groups just the ministers exchange the…
Traveling through Amish settlements you may notice something like this: That’s not a Plain people hauler, nor the caboose of some sort of horse-drawn train. Â This bulky vehicle is a church wagon, and you’ll see them throughout Amish America. Each Amish church district will have its own wagon, used to transport benches from one location to the next. The benches are mainly used as seating…
Which Bible do Amish use? Â Typically, the Amish use the German Martin Luther version, particularly for church readings. Â For an English version, the most favored translation is the King James edition (KJV). Some Amish use the New International Version (NIV) as well. Â Often, the Bible Amish read in the home will have a dual format-German on one side of the page, English on the other….
The concept of “Amish community” has a number of meanings The term “Amish community” is often used to refer to the Amish in general.  For instance, you might hear the questions, “What does the Amish community do when a barn burns down?” or  “What does the Amish community believe about technology?” Sometimes the term is used appropriately, ie “My friend Lavern comes from the Nappanee Amish…
Last week, an excerpt from The Amish Way mentioned a gentleman named Abner, a deceased Amish historian whose trade was bookbinding. Abner was apparently quite a remarkable person who touched a lot of people in his community. Â Brad Igou (The Amish in Their Own Words) knew Abner well and has shared some remembrances which he recorded after Abner’s death in 2002: A good friend has…
I’m happy to share the Amish Way winners with you today. It was a lot of fun to run this contest and I much enjoyed the interview with authors Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt, and David Weaver-Zercher (if you missed it: Part 1 and Part 2). I particularly appreciated the point they make about shunning–that it is the “flip side to the community barn raising that…
“Brimming with many children,” write the authors of The Amish Way, “most Amish homes produce eight or more sets of dirty dishes three times a day. Â That means at least twenty-four glasses, dozens of plates, and countless pieces of silverware, not to mention pots, pans, mixing bowls, platters, and serving utensils.” Yet you won’t find an automatic dishwasher in any Amish home. For the Amish,…
Are Amish “born again”? Are cars immoral? When describing church, why do Amish use the term “Gmay” instead of “Kirche”? And who actually decides the rules that guide Amish life? The Amish Way: Patient Faith in a Perilous World is the first book to explore Amish spirituality and religious practices in-depth, addressing these and many other questions along the way. Authors Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt,…
I’ve been looking forward to this new addition to Amish America for a long time. Various questions seem to recur on Amish topics. I thought it might be nice to put together a resource to try to answer some of those questions. The Amish Online Encyclopedia (AOE) covers a variety of subjects including Amish culture, beliefs, the different Amish affiliations, occupations, education, transportation, and so…