What is an Amish County like?

Question

I know they don't have technology and all that... but is it like a cult or something? I don't mean to be offensive, I just have no idea what it is like. I just heard they took a 6th girl off life support... 6 year old girl. it is sooooooo sad and awful!!! It looks like a cute little town with their horses and buggies...

Answer 1

I live in New York and for a couple of months several years back my job took me to Western New York, South of Buffalo. I hadn't realized it, but there are Amish out there. It really isn't far from Pennsylvania so I wasn't too surprised. They are simple living and unassuming people, very religious (Christians). They live with the most basic of things. They are skilled craftsmen, and do amazing woodwork - all by hand. They keep to themselves and mind their own business. What happened at that schoolhouse was sick. It just goes to show you that no matter how insulated you think you are, you are never completely safe from the sick SOB's that roam this planet.

Answer 2

It is just like it looks on TV. I can't believe such a terrible thing happened. And the Amish are being so forgiving.

Answer 3

Thumbs-up for an excellent question !!!
I,m praying for all the young girls & their families.

Lifestyle and culture
Amish lifestyle is dictated by the Ordnung, which differs from community to community, and, within a community, from district to district. What is acceptable in one community may not be acceptable in another. No summary of Amish lifestyle and culture can be totally adequate because there are few generalities that are true for all Amish. Groups may separate over matters such as the width of a hat-brim, the use of tobacco (permitted among older and more conservative groups), the color of buggies, or various other issues.

Quilting is perhaps one of the best-known talents of Amish women. Amish quilts are made from scraps of worn clothing and therefore, incorporate those colors. The Pennsylvania Star, Idaho Star, and Shoo-Fly patterns are some of the more popular among their quilts. Most quilts are completely hand-sewn and passed down through each generation. They are often sold at auctions, along with Amish furniture and canned goods.

Modern technology

Amish and modern transportation in Pennsylvania.Many Amish, especially those of the Old Order, are renowned for their avoidance of modern technologies. The avoidance of items such as automobiles and electricity is largely misunderstood. The Amish do not view technology as evil. Individuals may petition for acceptance of a particular technology in the local community. In some communities, the church leaders meet to review such proposals. In others, it is done whenever necessary. Because the Amish, like other Mennonites, and unlike the Catholic or Anglican Churches, do not have a top-down governing structure, differing communities often have different ideas as to which technological items are acceptable.

Telephone booth set up by an "English" farmer for emergency use by local Amish families.Electricity, for instance, is viewed as a connection to the "World", the "English", or "Yankees" (the outside world). The use of electricity also could lead to the use of household appliances, which would complicate the Amish tradition of a simple life, and introduce individualist competition for worldly goods that would be destructive of community. However, in certain Amish groups, electricity can be used in very specific situations. In some groups, for example, electricity can be produced without access to outside power lines. Twelve-volt batteries are acceptable to these groups. Electric generators can only be used for welding, recharging batteries, and powering milk stirrers. The reasoning behind the twelve-volt system is that it limits what an individual can do with the electricity and acts as a preventive measure against potential abuses. Most twelve-volt power sources cannot generate enough current to power what are viewed as worldly, modern appliances such as televisions or hair dryers. In certain situations, outdoor electrical appliances may be used: lawn mowers (riding and hand-pushed) and string trimmers, for example. Many Amish families have non-electric versions of vital appliances, such as kerosene-powered refrigerators.[4]

Amish communities often adopt compromise solutions involving technology which may seem strange to outsiders. For example, many communities will allow gas powered farm equipment such as tillers or mowers, but only if they are pushed by a human or pulled by a horse. The reasoning is that Amish farmers will not be tempted to purchase more land and outcompete other farmers in their community, if they still have to move the equipment manually. Many Amish communities also accept the use of chemical pesticides and GM crops.

The Ordnung is viewed as a guide to community standards, rather than doctrine that defines sin. The four Old Order Amish communities of Allen County, Indiana, are more conservative than most; they use open buggies, even during the winter, and they wear black leather shoes even in the hot summer. However, in the 1970s, a farmer near Milan Center, Indiana, was ordered by his bishop to buy a conventional tractor. He had severe progressive arthritis and, with no sons to harness the horses for him, the tractor was seen as a need, rather than a vanity. The rest of the community continued farming with horses.

The Amish will hire drivers, for example, for visiting family, monthly grocery shopping, commuting to the workplace off the farm, though this too is subject to local regulation and variation. Hiring a taxi is forbidden on Sundays (as is any transfer of money). The practice increases the geographic reach of the Amish, and decreases isolation: a horse can travel only about 25 miles and then must rest for a considerable period, restricting the Amish to a radius of 12.5 miles from home. Moreover, a horse and buggy can only sustain 10 MPH over an extended distance.[5] A 25 mile ride in a buggy takes almost 4 hours, whereas a taxi ride of the same distance in rural areas requires only 30 minutes. Regular bus service between Amish communities has been established in some areas.

The telephone is another technology whose avoidance is often misunderstood. The telephone is despised because it eliminates face-to-face communication and with it the subtleties of facial and body language. Again, practicality has its place; most Lancaster County, PA, Amish use telephones with the restriction that the phone booth must be far enough from the house, as not to make its use too convenient. Almost all of these Amish phones have voice mail service from the phone companies. The Amish will also use trusted English neighbors as contact points for passing on family emergency messages.

Answer 4

Very Religious and very Plain people. Nothing fancy!