My biggest complaint about many of the books about the Amish is that they contain little theological or spiritual meat. I don't think I'm alone in asserting that my interest in the Amish doesn't stem upon their farming abilities or how they fit into the rest of society from a sociological point of view. I would even say I'm less interested in their history as a people than I am in their present day spirituality.
When the tragedy of a mad-man shooting innocent girls in an amish schoolhouse in October of 2005 occurred there were a lot more people who suddenly got interested in the more meaty issues of Amish life and spirituality. "Amish Grace," published within six months of that tragedy, was an attempt to dive into the Amish ideal of practicing forgiveness - and it does a real good job.
I hadn't read this book earlier because the superficial or sociological books mentioned above all had one of three names on them - Kraybill, Nolt, and Weaver-Zercher. These same three collaberated on "Amish Grace." So I was very surprised at how well they explained why the Amish practiced forgiveness in the aftermath of the Nickel Mines shooting tragedy.
The Nickel Mines tragedy is the focus of the book but the writers do dive into all aspects of why the Amish forgive. There is a lot of discussion on other aspects of the Amish faith as well - told in pretty good detail - such as the Amish practice of shunning, non-resistance, and the "ordnung (which is the non-written code dealing with seperating from society)."
After living near the Amish now for more than two years - these practices of faith are not new to me - but after reading this book I understand a little better why the Amish live and do things the way they do. I am less inclined to think of their lifestyle as "legalistic" than I once was after reading a lot of the info here.
The Amish are by no means perfect - they struggle spiritually just like the rest of us. But their steadfastness in living the words of Christ seems to be done with more fervor and genuiness than any other Christian group that I can think of.
One other thought I'd like to leave here is that reading the first section of the book was painfull. Nickel Mines is fairly close to where we live and there is an Apple Orchard there that we go to regularly that is owned by an Amish family. In fact we had been there the Saturday before the shooting. So though it is very loose - I do feel a bit of a connection to the Amish in Nickel Mines. The first section of the book goes into detail through documented witness and police accounts what happened in the school that fatefully day and it was just heart-wrenching for me to read about the horrible deaths suffered by the five young girls who were killed. Still - after reading that account - the amazing efforts at forgiveness by the Amish families involved just blew me away.
When the tragedy of a mad-man shooting innocent girls in an amish schoolhouse in October of 2005 occurred there were a lot more people who suddenly got interested in the more meaty issues of Amish life and spirituality. "Amish Grace," published within six months of that tragedy, was an attempt to dive into the Amish ideal of practicing forgiveness - and it does a real good job.
I hadn't read this book earlier because the superficial or sociological books mentioned above all had one of three names on them - Kraybill, Nolt, and Weaver-Zercher. These same three collaberated on "Amish Grace." So I was very surprised at how well they explained why the Amish practiced forgiveness in the aftermath of the Nickel Mines shooting tragedy.
The Nickel Mines tragedy is the focus of the book but the writers do dive into all aspects of why the Amish forgive. There is a lot of discussion on other aspects of the Amish faith as well - told in pretty good detail - such as the Amish practice of shunning, non-resistance, and the "ordnung (which is the non-written code dealing with seperating from society)."
After living near the Amish now for more than two years - these practices of faith are not new to me - but after reading this book I understand a little better why the Amish live and do things the way they do. I am less inclined to think of their lifestyle as "legalistic" than I once was after reading a lot of the info here.
The Amish are by no means perfect - they struggle spiritually just like the rest of us. But their steadfastness in living the words of Christ seems to be done with more fervor and genuiness than any other Christian group that I can think of.
One other thought I'd like to leave here is that reading the first section of the book was painfull. Nickel Mines is fairly close to where we live and there is an Apple Orchard there that we go to regularly that is owned by an Amish family. In fact we had been there the Saturday before the shooting. So though it is very loose - I do feel a bit of a connection to the Amish in Nickel Mines. The first section of the book goes into detail through documented witness and police accounts what happened in the school that fatefully day and it was just heart-wrenching for me to read about the horrible deaths suffered by the five young girls who were killed. Still - after reading that account - the amazing efforts at forgiveness by the Amish families involved just blew me away.
