The History of the Amish Essay

The Amish is a group of traditionalist Christians that rely on simple living, plain dress and refuse to adapt to modern technology. The history of the Amish started in Switzerland in 1693 led by Jakob Amman. Today majority of the traditional descendants of the Amish live in Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Where: They live in the northern areas of North America where it is very cold such as Alaska (the Alaskan coast), and Canada. This cold climate influences their whole way of living.

The Amish society first originated in 1962 in Europe and the first Amish arrived in Pennsylvania in the 1730’s to escape persecution in Europe.The Amish church started as a breakaway from the Annabaptists (adult baptizers) in Switzerland in 1693, led by Jakob Ammann. Frater, J. (2012) According to BBC Religions (2009) the Amish believe that the community is at the heart of their life and faith, and that the way to salvation is to live as a loving community apart from the world. Individualism is avoided.

As a person that has grown most of my own food, without chemicals or engine powered equipment, for the last 15 years and lesser so for many more years I can relate to some degree what it may have been like for a farmer in the 1800’s (I even live in a house built in 1850).

America — a land known for its ideals of freedom and new opportunities, a nation built under the idea that every man and women is created equal. However, the definition of what makes a person an American is entirely different from what it is that makes up America, itself. J.Hector St. John Crevecoeur, author of Letters from an American Farmer (1782), exposes what he believes makes an American. However, when compared to the standards of what makes an American in today’s world, it seems that becoming an American then was much simpler then, than it is today. The definition of an American is always evolving due to the influences of our changing nation. During a simpler time, Crevecoeur defined an American as someone of European

8. “Known to use humble modes of transportation, feet or donkey preferred.” Since they live in the poorest district, District 12, the main means of transportation is by foot.

The populations have decreased over the last 35 years. They hold a smaller proportion of the US population now.

From the early beginnings of America to well into the nineteenth century, America has been dominantly an agricultural country. Farming and the country life have always been a great part of the American culture. Thomas Jefferson even expressed his gratitude for the farming class by saying

The Hutterian Brethren originate from canada and the united states. They are germanic people are found mainly in the provinces of Alberta, Manitoba, and the united states. They keep colonies small, but because of high birth rates they have many colonies. The colonies are farm based, they survive and plant all food. The hutterian community had to pay taxes in 1961. They live in the upper plains of the states. Unlike darlington we use much technology, we use farming and hunting ect.

Church services are held in houses of the Amish families, rotating every week, rather than in a permanent church building.

The novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe and published in the United States in 1852. The novel depicted slavery as a moral evil and was the cause of much controversy at the time and long after. Uncle Tom's Cabin outraged the South and received praise in the North. The publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin was a major turning point for the United States which helped bring about the Civil War.

This name was given to the Amish that branched off from the Old Order in the 1960s. The New Order Amish settlements are found exclusively in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Although they are very similar to the Old Order, they use new farming technologies like the tractor and include the use of telephones and electricity in their homes. The New Order Amish perform missions work abroad, prohibit the use of alcohol and tobacco, occasionally travel by airplane, have more elaborate buggies, hold formal Bible meetings, and a lower percentage of the New Order church youth join the church ("Amish America," 2010). On a humorous note, the New Order Amish lean toward a clean courtship between the youth breaking away from the Old Order tradition of bundling where a courting couple lay down together fully clothed

The thriller film ‘Witness’, directed by Peter Weir in 1985, tells about cultural conflicts between the Amish of Western Pennsylvania and Modern American corruption and violence. Philadelphia Police officer, John Book was obligated to hide from the three brutally and corrupt police officers as they were looking for a little Amish boy, Samuel Lapp. The boy witnessed the brutal killings and identified the killer as the three police officers. The ‘Witness’ strongly displayed many images of people and incorporated several techniques and images in various scenes to portray the contrast between two different worlds.

The Amish are a small group of people that live in a secluded area of the eastern United States of America. The cultural group known as the Amish has constituted themselves as a unique entity in America's diverse landscape. Amish life is centered on religion, agriculture, and the family. For most people who live outside of the Amish culture, this group seems out of touch with the present time; a culture of another era. This belief is primarily attributable to the Amish belief in simplicity and their rejection of modern technologies (The Amish 2011). One of the most important aspects of Amish life and livelihood is agriculture; the Amish focus much of their life on the growth and harvest of food and other crops. The various factors that affect the culture are based upon agriculture; including the Amish beliefs and values, economic organization, gender relations, kinship, political organization, sickness, social change, and social organization.

To start off let's talk about who are the Old Older Mennonites. “From the 1920s through the 1950s, Old Older Amish and Old Older Mennonites disagreed over two major matters: first, whether to shun members who switch to a less conservative plain church, and two, whether modern conveniences such as automobiles, electricity, telephones should be permitted for members’ private use”(The Beachy Amish-Mennonites). The Old Older Mennonites in addition with the old older amish refused to do changes to their lifestyle and integrate technology to their daily routines because of this they decided to segregate and form their own groups. The Old Older Mennonites no longer followed the regular Mennonites modern rules instead they continued to follow the old