Plain and Amish: An Alternative to Modern Pessimism

806 Pages·1994·5.51 MB·English

by  Bernd G. Längin

Plain and Amish : An Alternative to
title:
Modern Pessimism
author: Längin, Bernd G.
publisher: Herald Press
isbn10 | asin: 0836136659
print isbn13: 9780836136654
ebook isbn13: 9780585364414
language: English
Amish--Indiana--Allen County--Social life
and customs, Allen County (Ind.)--Social
subject
life and customs, Amish--Social life and
customs.
publication date: 1994
lcc: F532.A4L36 1994eb
ddc: 977.2/74043/088287
Amish--Indiana--Allen County--Social life
subject: and customs, Allen County (Ind.)--Social
life and customs, Amish--Social life and
customs.
Page 3
Plain and Amish
An Alternative to Modern Pessimism
Bernd G. Längin
Die Amischen
Revised by Bernd G. Längin
Translated by Jack Thiessen
Page 4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Längin, Bernd G., 1941-
[Amischen. English]
Plain and Amish : an alternative to modern pessimism / Bernd G.
Längin ; revised by Bernd G. Längin ; translated by Jack Thiessen.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8361-3665-9
1. AmishIndianaAllen CountySocial life and customs.
2. Allen County (Ind.)Social life and customs. 3. AmishSocial life
and customs. I. Title.
F532.A4L36 1994
977.2'74043'088287dc20 94-8324
The paper used in this publication is recycled and meets the minimum
requirements of American National Standard for Information
SciencesPermanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI
Z39.48-1984.
Scripture is from Martin Luther's German translation, Die Bibel, or
adapted from The Holy Bible, King James Version.
The Amish did not pose for any of the photos in this book. Unless
otherwise noted, the photos are by Bernd G. Längin, who holds the
copyright © 1994 for them.
Plain and Amish is the author's revision of his book Die Amischen:
Vom Geheimnis des einfachen Lebens (Paul List Verlag, 1990),
translated by Jack Thiessen.
PLAIN AND AMISH
Copyright © 1994 by Herald Press, Scottdale, Pa. 15683
Published simultaneously in Canada by Herald Press,
Waterloo, Ont. N2L 6H7. All rights reserved
Library of Congress Catalog Number: 94-8324
International Standard Book Number: 0-8361-3665-9
Printed in the United States of America
Book design by Jim Butti/Cover photo by Bernd G. Längin
03 02 01 00 99 98 10 9 8 7 6 5 4
Page 5
To Christiane
Page 7
Contents
Foreword by Leonard Gross 9
Map of Amish Origins in Europe 13
Map of Major Amish Settlements to 1900 14
Dramatic Expansion 16
What Took Me to Allen County 17
1. The Buckboard Still 36
2. The Rebellion of the Saints 57
3. Secrets of a Simple Life 81
4. Old Faith in a New World 122
5. Reformers without Luther 162
6. Idyllic World before the Fall 192
7. Peace As a Lifestyle 230
8. The Past in Present Blossom 251
9. God's Second Choice 328
10. The Hard Search for Paradise 347
Timetable 384
Biblical Principles of Amish Faith 390
Bibliography 395
Index of Persons 400
Index of Places 407
The Author 415
Page 8
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.
If any one loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world,
the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life,
is not of the Father, but is of the world.
And the world passes away, and the lust thereof;
but whoever does the will of God abides for ever.
1 John 2:1517
Page 9
Foreword
''Solitude without community is merely loneliness."
Robert N. Bellah
Most of us in the Western world know of the Amish only through
newspaper features on Amish barn raisings or spring plowing. Many
among us have seen the film, Witness, or one or more documentaries
on the Amish. A few of us have needed to slow down behind one of
those "horse-drawn vehicles," of which the road signs warn us in
Amish areas.
Journalist Bernd Längin took it upon himself to go further in
attempting to discover the Amish world in depth. He took the time to
rub shoulders with the Amish, stepping into their world and living
there as possible for months on end. The result is this book, describing
virtually every aspect of Amish life and faith, hope and vision.
Plain and Amish is unique among books on the Amish. The author has
found a way to help the reader enter into the life of an Amish
communityexperience with them their special moments at home, at
work, in school, in worship: their hopes and fears, their fortitude and
foibles, their keen wisdom and admonitions, their conclusions about
the whirlwind and insatiable society of modernity.
The book's subtitle, An Alternative to Modern Pessimism, is
appropriate for those of us who feel caught in the modern web of
manipulation and the machinations of current society. For example,
the Amish in general have not lost the art of conversation. They hold
tenaciously to the vision of placing human relations above money and
possessions and power.
Längin returns again and again to three motifs of the Amish