Essay On Amish Religion

835 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Amish culture and deviance

In the late 1600’s a small, very devout group of Mennonites challenged the church on the church’s enforcement of Meidung (shunning), its adherence to dress restrictions and the lack of obedience in other matters. This small group, led by Jakob Ammann splintered from the main body of Mennonites, called themselves Amish and moved to America looking for place where they could freely follow their own religious doctrines (religioustolerance.com). The Amish are only separated from the Mennonites by a few different beliefs; the main ones being how strictly they follow the enforcement of Meidung and adherence to a much stricter dress code.
Every instant of Amish life is controlled by a list of rules known as the Ordung. However, the Ordung can change from community to community. It is an outline of the basic tenants of the Amish faith and helps each member to remember just what it means to be an Amish (Powell n.d.). This inconsistency in the Ordung brought about friction between the more conservative members of the church and those who were more liberal in their approach. National meetings called Diener-Versammlungens were held for the leaders of the communities between 1862 and 1868 in a variety of mid central states (religioustolerance.com n.d. 2). The hope of these meetings was to bring a new and committed strength to the church. Although these meetings brought agreement among the different factions on such policies as what would be involved in someone becoming a member of the church and the punishment (excommunication) of those that chose to leave they didn’t fully resolve all of the issues. These disagreements in policy finally resulted in the formation of distinct Amish groups: the highly conservative Old Order Amish and the...

... middle of paper ...

...ger Diener with preaching and teaching the tenants of the Bible.
3. Volliger Armendiener – or Full Deacon helps assists in baptisms and preachings. Common in European communities he is not used very often in American Amish communities.
4. Armendiener – reads the Bible at service and assists the Bishop in his duties. (Nolt 1992, 3).
All of the leadership roles in the community, the church and the home are held by men. Women can vote in the church but are forbidden to hold a leadership position. In the home the man makes all practical decisions, the women may be consulted but the ultimate decision is the man’s. Amish faith teaches that Christ is the head of man and man is the head of woman, an Amish woman submits to the will of her husband just as her husband submits to the will of the Lord (Kraybill 1990). Amish men can seek jobs outside of their community but an A

Show More
Related

  • History and Practices of the Amish Religion

    1368 Words  | 3 Pages

    Developed from the Radical Reformation in the 1300’s, a group was formed called the Anabaptists. These Anabaptists were a joint group between the Mennonites, the Hutterites, and the Amish. The Amish people came from a split in the Swiss Mennonites in 1693 when a man named Jacob Amman and his supporters left their church to begin their own. Jacob Amman was born in Switzerland as an Anabaptist in 1644, and is considered the founder of the Amish religion.

    Read More

  • A Lesson From The Amish Analysis

    2229 Words  | 5 Pages

    Too often, society is too distracted oohing and aahing over the little boys’ miniature overalls and straw hats or the little girls’ dainty bonnet to question the Amish community. Regardless if it are those living around them or tourists, their lifestyles rarely produce criticism. Whether it is deception or no true issue exists is up for interpretation and debate. Regardless when analyzation begins, the Amish communities’ views on education are often overlooked. To try to shed light on literacy and schooling amongst Amish children, educator Andrea Fishman reveals her research in her article “Becoming Literate: A Lesson from the Amish”. Within this piece, Fishman preforms

    Read More

  • History of the Amana Communes

    615 Words  | 2 Pages

    The most interesting point of these communal groups to me might be the overall backing of their desire to create a community. It seems some of the communal groups, such as the Amana, were only created out of feelings of guilt and hope for redemption. From Oveds book, two hundred years of American Communes, he describes the Amana as seeing their community as an island of redemption in a world awash with temptation, sin and avarice; the Elect could come and perfect themselves, if they were prepared to heed the Lord’s call to chastity, poverty, simplicity, hard work, purity, and brotherly love. Although they sought redemption, the main driving force behind the Amana was that they sought religious freedom. Unhappy with their religious rights and flixability in Germany, the Amanas left ifn 1842, settling near Buffalo, New York.

    Read More

  • How Did Britain Influence Colonial America

    756 Words  | 2 Pages

    In 1492, Christopher Columbus came across North America accidentally during his voyage to the East Indies. Columbus’s discovery marked the beginning of a new era; with it the Europeans became aware of the opportunities the New World offered. This encouraged others to set out and explore the North and South America in the 1500s. Although colonial America was governed under the British rule, it developed differently than Britain. Since Colonial America was diversified, it offered new opportunities, different religions, and different political views than Britain.

    Read More

  • An Ethnographic Study of Social Change in Amish Society

    3335 Words  | 7 Pages

    What I found in the process of my observation and interview was that my hypothesis on social change and survival was greatly influenced by my own secular and scientific world view. I had also underplayed the importance of certain key ideas which help to explain Amish cultural ideologies, Amish survival, Amish social change, and dynamics. I found that religion, more than I had assumed, played a crucial role in Amish survival in America. The Amish family, I also found, contributed to the rate of Social Change. Prosperity, to my surprise, played a greater part in social change than I had previously thought. In addition, I was able to establish the accuracy of other research information on Amish society that I had collected and observed.

    Read More

  • The Inconsistent Use of John 15:12 in Peace Shall Destroy Many

    2220 Words  | 5 Pages

    Peace Shall Destroy Many, by Rudy Wiebe, is considered to be a groundbreaking novel. When first published in 1962, it became the, “first realistic novel ever written about Mennonites in western Canada” (RandomHouse.ca). The novel takes place during World War II, and is set in a community that has cut itself off from the rest of the world to strengthen their relationship with Christ. The founder of the community, Peter Block, leads this community to follow the traditional path of those before them, known as “the fathers.” It is the community’s Christian values of peace and love that are called into question by the 20-year old farmer, Thom Wiens, the main character in the novel. In John 15:12, the Bible states: “This is my commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you” (New American Standard Bible, John. 15.12). By reading Peace Shall Destroy Many, the reader discovers that, in the Mennonite religion, this commandment means that everyone must be treated and loved equally. However, it is the inconsistent use of this commandant, by Thom's community that leads him to question the views and opinions of various influential people in his life. Thom sees that this commandment is applied inconsistently when trying to explain why certain members of the community were treated the way they were, why the Mennonites are pacifists, and why the Mennonites do not associate with the nearby Métis. It is through Thom's questions, on his quest to find truth, that he develops as an individual.

    Read More

  • The History of the Salem Witchcraft Trials

    2587 Words  | 6 Pages

    They chose to come live in America and choose their own way of living. They were very strict people, who did not like to act differently from others. They were also very simple people who devoted most of their lives to God. Men hunted for food and were ministers. Women work at home doing chores like sewing, cooking, cleaning, and making clothes.

    Read More

  • Dedham American Dream

    1005 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, as time passed by, the original utopian dream of the settlers in the 1600’s fell apart as it was not suited to the life in North America and was progressively being replaced by religious political and social reforms. The first major change that occurred was the execution of the ‘half way’ covenant which allowed children of saints who did not have the deep emotional and spiritual experience that was required for sainthood to join the church (except for communion) as long they demonstrated understanding and belief and conviction in Christianity and the bible. Initially, the Dedham church was unwilling to compromise in order to preserve the sanctity of their faith but the dwindling number of members and baptisms convinced them to reconsider. This was one of the first signs of the religious flexibility that is present in America

    Read More

  • Healthcare for the Amish and Mennonite Culture

    1323 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the 1700s, the Amish settled mainly in the Midwest after fleeing persecution in Germany (Rearick, 2003). They are branched off of Christianity and came shortly after the Protestant Reformation (Weyer, Hustey, Rathbun, Armstrong, Reed, Ronyak, & Savrin, 2003).

    Read More

  • Deism and Changes in Religious Tolerance in America

    2215 Words  | 5 Pages

    Religious conscience in America has evolved considerably since the first settlers emigrated here from Europe. Primary settlements were established by Puritans and Pilgrims who believed "their errand into the wilderness [America] was above all else a religious errand, and all institutions - town meeting, school, church, family, law-must faithfully reflect that fact" (Gaustad 61). However, as colonies grew, dissenters emerged to challenge Puritan authority; indeed, many of them left the church to join untraditional religious sects such as "the Ranters, the Seekers, the Quakers, the Antinomians, and the Familists" (Westbrook 26). Debates over softening the stance on tolerance in the church engendered hostility in many religious leaders, priming some officials to take action. Whether it was in direct response to "the liberalizing tendencies beginning to take hold in some [. . .] New England churches" (Westbrook 65), or a "reaction against the attempt in the Age of Reason to reduce Christian doctrine to rationalistic explanation" ("Great Awakening"), the Great Awakening impressed upon the issues of religious conscience. Moreover, what spawns from this controversy is a query over the juxtaposition of morality and spirituality: the question of whether these conditions are actually related. The gradual escalation of unconventional thinking in religious affairs facilitated new ideas on what defined spirituality; one religious theory, boosted by Thomas Paine and his book, The Age of Reason, denounced both Christianity and Atheism, proposing instead, a new concept: the middle path of Deism.

    Read More

  • Religion Ethnography Essay

    1230 Words  | 3 Pages

    1.) Intro: I decided to focus my Religious Ethnography on a friend whom I recently have become close with. Adhita Sahai is my friend’s name, which she later told me her first name meant “scholar.” I choose to observe and interview Adhita, after she invited me to her home after hearing about my assignment. I was very humbled that she was open to this, because not only was it a great opportunity for this paper, but it also helped me get to know Adhita better. I took a rather general approach to the religious questions that I proposed to the Sahai family because I didn’t want to push to deep, I could tell Hinduism is extremely important to this family. Because this family does not attend a religious site where they worship, I instead listened to how they do this at home as a family instead.

    Read More

  • Pre and Postnatal Care for the Amish

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    Decisional Conflict R/T Cultural, religious and family beliefs AEB Amish typically do not believe in preventative medicine (Prenatal testing and immunizations).

    Read More

  • Ted Koontz Doing Good Summary

    1302 Words  | 3 Pages

    In many ways Ted Koontz, a Professor of Ethics and Peace Studies at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, continues where Dyck leaves off. In the article, “Commitments and Complications in Doing Good,” Koontz covers a slew of some of the hardest questions when it comes to service. Although Koontz covers both theological and implantation issues, this section will look at only the theological problems. Koontz agrees with the theme, common with previous works, that Mennonites and in particular MCC have emphasized work over words. MCC is a major part of the “Recovery of the Anabaptist Vision” as Koontz puts it. He goes on to stress that the vision is being met by MCC in many ways. Like the Anabaptist vision, MCC is also primarily concerned about ethical living, not “words (worship, evangelism, mission) or religious experience (conversion, piety)…” MCC and the Anabaptist vision both emphasize how Christian discipleship is hard as well.

    Read More

  • The Amish Culture

    1312 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Amish are a traditional community of a protestant and Anabaptist background. They are derived from a group who fled during the Protestant Reformation in

    Read More

  • The Amish Culture And The Mennonite Culture

    1175 Words  | 3 Pages

    I chose to research the Amish culture because it is very separate from the rest of the modern world. There are a lot of “reality” shows now that display the Amish but I cannot be sure that what is said on T.V. is actually accurate. “The Amish people in America are an old religious sect, direct descendants of the Anabaptists of sixteenth-century Europe.” (Powell 2014) The Amish are similar to, but should not be confused with the Mennonite culture. The founder of this culture was Jakob Ammann and he began this way of life in 1639. The Amish live a simple and plain lifestyle that remains “old-fashioned”. According to Wikipedia the population of the Amish community today is around 281,675 people (2014).

    Read More

More about Essay On Amish Religion

Open Document