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ANABAPTIST - AMISH
The Amish, called "The Plain People", originated in Switzerland about l525. They came
from a division of the Mennonites or Anabaptists
(Re-baptizers). They opposed the union of church and state
and infant baptism. Adult baptism was a crime in the l6th
century. Therefore, the Amish come from an impressive list
of martyrs since as punishment they were put in sacks and
thrown into rivers in Europe and drowned.
There are no Amish left in Europe; The Amish were saved
from extinction by William Penn who granted a haven from
religious persecution in America. Since early colonial days
the Amish have lived in the United States preserving their
distinctive culture, dress, language and religion in peace
and prosperity.
The Amish are very devout in their faith. They believe
in the literal interpretation and application of Scripture
as the Word of God. They take seriously the Biblical
commands to separate themselves from the things of the
world. They believe worldliness can keep them from being
close to God, and can introduce influences that could be
destructive to their communities and to their way of life.
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The Amish blueprint for expected
behavior, called the Ordnung, regulates private, public, and
ceremonial life. Ordnung does not translate readily into English.
Sometimes rendered as "ordnance" or "discipline," the Ordnung
is best thought of as an ordering of the whole way of life. It is a code
of conduct which the church maintains by tradition rather than by
systematic or explicit rules. A member noted: "The order is not
written down. The people just know it, that's all." Rather than a
packet or rules to memorize, the Ordnung is the "understood"
behavior by which the Amish are expected to live. In the same way
that the rules of grammar are learned by children, so the Ordnung,
the grammar of order, is learned by Amish youth. The Ordnung evolved
gradually over the decades as the church sought to strike a delicate
balance between tradition and change. Specific details of the
Ordnung vary across church districts and settlements.
The term "church members" means those who are baptized as adults and
voluntarily commit themselves to a life of obedience to God and the
church. Those who break their baptismal vows are shunned by the Old
Order Amish. Belonging is important and shunning is meant to be
redemptive. It is not an attempt to harm or ruin the individual and
in most cases it does bring that member back into the fellowship
again. Actually, the number of members excommunicated and shunned by
the Amish is small.
In America, the Amish hold major doctrines in common, but as the
years went by, their practices differed. Today, there are a number
of different groups of Amish with the majority affiliated with four
orders: Swartzengruber, Old Order, Andy Weaver,
and New Order Amish. Old Order Amish are the most common. All
the groups operate independently from each other with variations in
how they practice their religion and religion dictates how they
conduct their daily lives. The Swartzengruber Amish are the most
conservative followed by the Old Order Amish. The Andy Weaver are
more progressive and the New Order Amish are the most progressive.
Almost all members are born into and raised in the faith. Converts
from outside of the Amish communities are rare. Some Amish groups
have a very restricted gene pool and are experiencing several
inherited disorders.
Be not conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind
that ye may prove what is that good
and acceptable and perfect will of God.
(Rom. xii.2)
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