Troubles in Paradise

Every year, my extended family holds a family reunion in Lancaster County, so I was there a few weeks ago.

The ride from Philly is always a pleasure, as I pass through towns like Intercourse on my way to the reunion. This year, the weather was glorious, so I drove The Red Menace with the top down. In fact, as I was stopped at a light, I spotted an Old Order Amish man staring at me. I was sure that he was going to call me out as a sinner for my worldly ways. Instead, he smiled, gave me a thumbs up & said, "great car."

Likewise, I view the Amish lifestyle with respect and admiration, even though it is not a way of life I would want for myself. The school shooting is especially grievous, for a peaceful people as the Amish.

There are a few interesting articles, all from the United Kingdom, that I have seen about the Amish in the wake of this sad event. The BBC News, in Who are the Amish? provides a good background about the Pennsylvania Dutch people, as they are sometimes called.

I heard British journalist Jill Thompson yesterday on NPR discuss her experiences living with the Amish. She has an article in the Telegraph, They aren't as unworldly as they appear, describing her time in Lancaster County. And the Times writes They are grieving, but not angry . . . and not a twitch of emotion shows, about the aftermath of this tragedy. As the piece notes:

But in this hamlet of 27 homes and one church, there were no pictures of the victims to see yesterday — the Amish forbid photography. There were no relatives weeping to camera, describing their grief. There were no publicity agents lining up interviews with Oprah Winfrey, or family spokesmen releasing names. There was nothing — except a quiet, but enormously powerful, public stoicism.

* * * *

Nickel Mines is little more than a crossroads: a cluster of stone houses, an auction house, and a Mennonite church, surrounded by cornfields, grain silos and vast, hand-built Dutch barns. It was settled in 1744, and for 260 years life has meandered along, largely unchanged.

The Amish do not use machines, and farm work is still done by hand. There are few telephones, and no televisions. They do not drive cars.

The Amish who live here are conservative, deeply pacifist and revere God. They dress like their German peasant forbears, the men in straw hats, braces and boots, the women in plain dresses and bonnets.

* * * *

Donald Kraybill, an expert on the Amish community, said: “In many ways, they are better prepared than most Americans to deal with such a tragedy.

“They have a huge family support network. They will not get angry. The pain will be deep, but they will not have to process it alone. They will cry, but it will be in private.

“And they will believe that it is God’s will and that it is nobody else’s business.”

(Picture of young boy at work, taken at our reunion lunch)

Tags: News, Religion, Amish