Authors: Donald B. Kraybill,Steven M. Nolt,David L. Weaver-Zercher
The Amish Way (39 page)
Amish Grace
How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy
Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, and David L. Weaver-Zercher
Paper978-0-470-34404-0
“A story our polarized country needs to hear: It is still grace that saves. ”
—Bill
Moyers, Public Affairs Television
Moyers, Public Affairs Television
“Professors Kraybill, Nolt, and Weaver-Zercher have written a superb book—a model of clear, forceful writing about a tragedy and its aftermath. They have an obvious affection for the Amish yet ask tough questions, weigh contradictions, and explore conundrums such as how a
loving God could permit schoolgirls to be massacred. ”
—National
Catholic Reporter
Catholic Reporter
“In a world where repaying evil with evil is almost second nature, the
Amish remind us there’s a better way. In plain and beautiful prose, Amish
Grace recounts the Amish witness and connects it to the heart of their
spirituality. ”
—Sister
Helen Prejean, author, Dead Man Walking
Helen Prejean, author, Dead Man Walking
The remarkable response of the Amish community to the horrific shooting often schoolgirls at Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania, in October 2006 stunned the larger world. Amish Grace tells the incredible story of this community’s reaction to this senseless shooting and explores its profoundly countercultural practice of forgiveness.
Now in paperback, this extraordinary, award-winning account of Amish forgiveness includes an afterword by the authors along with an interview with the mother of the man responsible for the shootings, and a guide for discussion.
a
This procedure has traditionally been called
casting lots
; however, throughout the text we use the term
drawing lots
to describe the process.
casting lots
; however, throughout the text we use the term
drawing lots
to describe the process.
b
In lieu of electricity, the Amish use other types of energy to power household appliances. See Chapter Nine and Appendix I for more detail.
c
Throughout this book, we quote from the 1611 King James Version of the Bible in order to provide readers with the wording that is commonly used by Amish people when they read the Bible in English.
f
The entire new birth chapter of John’s Gospel is read aloud in Amish church services twice each year as part of a five-Sunday sequence that culminates in communion, a significant ritual that we explore in Chapter Five.
h
Examples of flexibility include the use of battery-powered wheelchairs and the use of electrical generators for special medical equipment in the home.
i
Several men in the congregation serve as song leaders. If visitors from other
Gmays
are present, they are often asked to lead a song.
Gmays
are present, they are often asked to lead a song.
j
Holding church services every other Sunday is an old tradition (also common among non-Amish rural churches in the 1800s) that likely developed because horse-drawn travel was difficult on rural roads for much of the year, and to accommodate the role of the family in religious education on the off-Sunday.
k
Holding communion twice a year has been a tradition since the Amish began in 1693. The five-Sunday sequence of preparation discourages a more frequent observance.
l
Although the Amish do not pay Social Security taxes, they do pay income (federal, state, local), sales, inheritance, and property taxes.
n
Musical instruments are not used because the Amish fear that they would call attention to the performance skills of individuals and diminish the quality of communal participation in worship. An Amish handbook notes that Jesus and the apostles didn’t use musical instruments and that instruments tend to distract from the spirit of simplicity.
o
Most youth end their
Rumspringa
activities with baptism, but a few continue them until marriage. Some baptized young men water-ski, snowmobile, travel, and participate in sports activities even though these are discouraged by the church. Depending on the circumstances, participants in such activities may need to confess them to church leaders or the
Gmay
before they are married.
Rumspringa
activities with baptism, but a few continue them until marriage. Some baptized young men water-ski, snowmobile, travel, and participate in sports activities even though these are discouraged by the church. Depending on the circumstances, participants in such activities may need to confess them to church leaders or the
Gmay
before they are married.
p
This study surveyed a scientifically selected sample of 288 Amish and 2,002 non-Amish women of child-bearing age living in eastern Pennsylvania.
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