Prospects for Change in America’s Amish Community
CHANGE FROM WITHIN AND WITHOUT
Abstract
The Amish community has maintained the integrity of its socio-cultural practices and beliefs for more than 200 years. Today, economic issues and health care problems among a largely in-bred population are causing new problems and exposing the Amish to greater exposure to outside influences. Inexorable change has subtly changed the Amish community, which has nevertheless remained faithful to the founding precepts of the Mennonite order. As core elements of the Amish lifestyle continue to be influenced by mainstream American society, an old way of life will continue to change and be forced to adapt to the exigencies of socio-economic pressure.
Keywords: Amish, Mennonite, lifestyle, socio-economic, health care.
CHANGE FROM WITHIN AND WITHOUT
Change From Within and Without: Prospects for Change in America’s Amish Community
The conservative, agrarian society that occupies wide swathes of farmland in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New York and elsewhere has for hundreds of years aroused both the admiration and antipathy of its neighbors. America’s Amish population, which numbers nearly a quarter of a million, has steadfastly maintained a profoundly religious, culturally simplistic lifestyle despite the dizzying pace of technological change and social turmoil that typifies life in modern America. It is for this reason that many ethnologists and anthropologists have made a living case study of the Amish. Ethnographic studies have much to offer in terms of clarifying the folkways and lifestyle practices of the Amish, who despite living in isolated communities, seemingly frozen in time, abide by the laws of the land and have generally supported the policies of the United States government. While the Amish cannot be said to have remained utterly untouched by the world around them, they have to a remarkable degree maintained the integrity of their core beliefs and a distinct identity in a nation that likes to distinguish itself for having blurred cultural and ethnic distinctions. Yet pressing socio-economic forces, from within and without, are slowly altering Amish society and increasing its reliance on the outside world.
Background
The ancestors of the Amish began coming to America during the 18th century, many in response to William Penn’s promises of a land in which disparate religious groups could live in peace, free from the enforced uniformity that characterized places like Virginia, for example, with its strict adherence to Anglicanism. These German and Swiss adherents to the Swiss Anabaptist sect sought that very sanctuary which religious persecutions in Central Europe denied
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them. These peoples came to be known as Mennonites, a sect that traces its origins to the teachings of Jakob Ammann, and were notable for the simplicity of their clothing, the bearded visages of their men and rejection of worldly goods and practices that could lead to temptation and a diversion from the higher way, to the pursuit of a godly life. Temptation is a complex term among the Amish, whose aim has traditionally been to provide for those needs of subsistence, education and health care, external factors with the potential to weaken faith in the community. Higher education offers one example of a worldly temptation, a direct challenge to the belief that education for its own sake is a manifestation of pride. “If formal schooling is extended beyond the expectations of parents and community, the adolescent may be headed for serious conflict” (Hostetler, 1993, p. 312).
The rejection of modernization continues to be a mainstay of Amish identity, the denial of those products, trends and beliefs that pose threats to the traditional Amish way of life. Store-bought clothing, electrical implements, mechanized farming equipment and automobiles all are considered verboten (forbidden), violations of Amish ordnung (order). From a personal standpoint, the best way to avoid temptation from the secular world is to avoid hochmut, or pride. The observance of humility in all aspects of one’s life is the cornerstone of Amish existence and is an essential part of what makes one Amish. “Ideally, the Amish try to live out their faith in their daily lives. In this endeavor, they are guided by a strong belief in Gelassenheit, which is best translated as a spirit of selflessness, humility, or meekness” (Hurst and McConnell, 2010, p. 18). It is this avoidance of pride that underscores the trials and tribulations of the faithful, and resistance to the blandishments and false promises of the outside world.
CHANGE FROM WITHIN AND WITHOUT
Beliefs and practice
As practitioners of the Mennonite faith, the Amish have remained faithful to the teachings of the 17th-century Mennonite elder Jakob Ammann, who taught that the faithful should remain aloof from the world around them. The church teaches that the world is a sinful place, which emphasizes an alien ethical standard. Consequently, the Amish envision their church and their communities as part of an inextricably linked “counterculture,” one which rejects modern ideas of individualism (USMB, 2012). To that end, worship is a communal expression that promotes “mutual accountability” in matters of conscience and practice (2012). An important element in the Mennonite canon is the belief that the Protestant Reformation did not go far enough in restoring the true faith and the teachings of the New Testament (2012). The communal approach to reinforcing these fundamental beliefs is crucial to the solidarity of the Amish community.
Personal manifestations of faith are rooted in these core principles, characteristics that serve as personal validations of faith. Ammann taught that lying is an unpardonable sin, one that is punishable by excommunication from the church community (Britannica Concise Encyclopedia, 2009). Outward expressions of the Mennonite faith include the wearing of “uniform” clothes and untrimmed beards, both of which express a separation from the world (2009). Men wear pants with suspenders only, and only plain, unadorned buttons are used with shirts. Women wear plain, mono-colored dresses and do not cut their hair, which remains concealed by a plain white cap. For both sexes, the uniformity of dress is an overt and direct expression of a commitment to the Mennonite faith and the Amish way of life.
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Amish religious practice is expressed in multiple variations of the core Anabaptist ethic. These offshoots include the Brethren, representing various branches of the German Baptist Brethren, the Beachy Amish and other subdivided sects (Hurst and McConnell, 2010, p. 32). All of these manifestations of Amish worship are in evidence in places like Holmes County, Ohio, located in the heart of Ohio’s northeastern Amish heartland. Many of these disparate yet loosely related congregations incorporate locals whose ancestors were Amish but who have left the faith. These people retain a fondness and degree of loyalty to the Amish way of life, help support the local churches generally shield the faithful from outside influences, though their support is not restricted to the practice of the Mennonite faith (p. 32). “These persons sympathetic with Amish life partially insulate the Amish from outside pressures, provide legal, medical, and other assistance when necessary” and are a significant reason for the continued attractiveness of the Holmes County community to Amish families (p. 32).
The Amish rejection of technological change is one of the most well-known aspects of Amish life. The community’s religious solidarity and its steadfast commitment to the sanctity of its belief system, “continuously challenges the merits of technological change, not only financially but spiritually” (Logsdon, 2000, p. 133). Preventing the incursion of technologies is particularly important given the fact that the Amish, though spiritually and physically “separate” from the world around them, frequently interact with the “English,” or outside communities (BBC.co.uk, 2009). Thus, the inviolability of communal, religious life is preserved at all costs through the avoidance of modern technological mainstays such as cars, telephones and electricity (in most cases) (2009).
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Sickness and healing
Health care, perhaps more than any other facet of Amish life, has created avenues for interaction with the outside world. Historically, many Amish families have adhered to a belief in “folk medicine,” or a homeopathic approach to medicine that can be traced to Europe. The needs of a growing – and aging – population have required the Amish to make increasing use of modern medicine, though in general the more traditional Amish communities remain largely unfamiliar with modern medical practices and the maintenance of good health habits that it can impart (Hostetler, 1993, p. 328). The religiously informed Amish world view has traditionally been colored by their concept of health care, a matter for the community and another situation best handled by traditional means. Nevertheless, today health care and good nutrition are found in abundance in Amish communities, many of which are located near major metropolitan centers (i.e. Philadelphia, Cleveland, etc.) (p. 170). The hard work that typifies the agricultural Amish community offers its own “fringe benefits.” “Years of physical labor and exercise have kept the body active. When health fails, relatives and friends come to visit frequently” (p. 170).
The communal emphasis looms large in this area of Amish life as well, particularly among the more traditional sects. Members of the community come together in times of need, providing whatever physical and emotional support is necessary, eschewing insurance and other government-sponsored benefits in favor of community-based aid (BBC.co.uk, 2009). While there are no specific religious rules against the use of modern medicine, the extent to which doctors and other external health professionals are consulted depends largely on the particular
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Amish community. In recent years, there have been examples of Amish turning to a variety of health care specialists, ranging from general practitioners to chiropractors (2009).
The growing influence of modern medicine is, in part, symptomatic of chronic problems arising from the closed nature of Amish society. One such manifestation is popularly known as the “founder effect,” which stems from the inbreeding of the hundreds of thousands who comprise America’s Amish community, which traces its origins to a small number of German and Swiss settlers. “Over generations of intermarriage, rare genetic flaws have shown up, flaws which most of us carry within our genetic makeup but don’t show up unless we marry someone else with same rare genetic markers” (McKay, 2009). This genetic phenomenon is the basis for a litany of developmental and long-term health problems, ranging from severe mental retardation to immune system deficiencies (2009). One particularly crippling consequence, called Cohen Syndrome, has become increasingly prevalent among the Amish community. A 2009 CBS News report interviewed an Ohio doctor who treated an Amish family, whose son is unable to speak due to the effects of Cohen Syndrome (2009).
It is likely that the “founder effect” will ultimately have a more erosive effect on the integrity of the Amish community than the cultural or technological advances that the brethren have shunned for so long. It seems that the harsh realities of genetic science will force the Amish to adapt their traditional attitude toward modern medicine, which must eventually lead to increased involvement with physicians, therapists, nurses and other representatives of America’s health care establishment. There is little that homeopathic medicine and fervent religious beliefs can do in the face of a hereditary plague that threatens the Amish way of life.
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Social change
The notion of social change is a two-way street, one that has ramifications for both the Amish and mainstream America. Just as the Amish have had to adapt, albeit incrementally, many of their views concerning the outside world, many elements of American society stand to benefit from the generations-old knowledge accumulated by the Amish, particularly in agriculture. As the country’s population continues to grow, conventional industrial agriculture becomes ever more problematic and consequential for Americans, and for other countries that rely on American agricultural productivity. A 1990 article published in Studies in Technology and Social Change focused on the long-term success of the Amish family farm and the advantages the Amish can impart to a rapacious corporate farming system that has raised serious issues about the renewability of core crops (Yoder, 1990).
This article showed that both societies stand to gain from an exchange of ideas and practices, and that the opportunities for improved understanding hold great potential for mutual social advances. At the same time, social and economic change is slowly moving the Amish toward fundamental changes in their core agricultural mode of subsistence. A 2003 paper on Amish agricultural practices determined that the traditional dichotomy between labor sharing and commodification of labor in Amish agriculture is heightening the commodification of labor – consequently, an intensification of farming activities has combined with population and economic pressures, thus threatening profound change in this core aspect of Amish society (Long, 2003). (This paper focused on anthropological as well as socio-economic factors among Amish farmers in Holmes County, Ohio.)
CHANGE FROM WITHIN AND WITHOUT
Agricultural and economic opportunities and health care challenges represent the most immediate influences on Amish social change. However, as Charles Hurst and David McConnell point out in An Amish Paradox: Diversity and Change in the World’s Largest Amish Community, the Amish church remains the key driver of social change (2010, p. 16). It is the church elders who pass judgment on key matters that impact the stability of life in the community. The strength of their position within the community may be seen in their decisions concerning how Amish farmers go about their business, which has in recent years been enhanced by the use of gasoline engines, while the use of electricity remains a powerful taboo, one that it is feared would lead to the imposition of television and its consequent cultural impact on the community, particularly on the young. The authority of the Amish church and the decisions it renders seem arbitrary at times, but its actions are consistently aimed at preserving a distinct cultural identity and way of life.
As has been discussed, this way of life faces external (and internal) pressures that must inevitably transform Amish society. The Amish and their church have been remarkably successful preventing the assimilation of their people into a powerfully influential cultural mainstream. It has been argued by some historians that the fall of the Soviet Union had nearly as much to do with the overwhelming of strict Communist doctrine by television, Western music and style. If this is so, then the Amish may be said to have done something truly remarkable in maintaining a cohesive, socio-cultural entity. However, growing communal health care needs and the irresistible evolution of Amish agriculture as a primary source of economic subsistence must eventually transform a society that has preserved its own ways for hundreds of years.
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