The Amish
"According to Amish belief, only
adults who know the difference
between right and wrong can be
baptized and officially join the
church. Choose not to, and you
may be shunned by your family
and faith for all eternity, which
is precisely why Amish teenagers
on the verge of adulthood face
such a monumental decision."Schadler
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2W5KHsBzzI
(:20-:50)
Intro
• A group of traditionalist Christian church
fellowships that are a subgroup of the Mennonite
churches
• Known for simple living, plain dress, and reluctance
to adopt modern technology
• Have their own unwritten code called the Ordnung;
stresses the virtues of humility, obedience and
simplicity
• Began in Switzerland led by Jakob Ammann; those
who followed him became known as the Amish
Intro
• Currently communities in 27 of the U.S. states and the Canadian
province of Ontario
• Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana have the largest population
• Currently, there is a rapid population growth in Amish
communities so new settlements are being grown or formed
Education
Goals: to teach children the worth of hard work, ethical living, and how to be a
valuable member of the Amish community
• Preschool:
– The Amish have no pre-school
– They believe that it is important that very young children are with their
parents and learning under their guidance
• Post school:
After 8th grade,
Amish education
moves from the
school back to
into the home
and community
Education
• Female adolescents as teachers:
– 8th grade education; it is more important that she is strong in
faith and will stick to the Amish way of thinking as she teaches
the children
– Chosen members from society
– A new teacher is usually a young girl
– Men usually do agricultural work therefor, it leaves women as
teachers
Education
• Is Amish Education
Adequate?
– This successfully
achieves the goal of
preparing Amish kids
to become outstanding
members of the Amish
society while having
the skills to do business
in the outside world
Religion
• Relating to a Baptist sect
• Private people who believe that
God has called them to live a
simple life of faith, discipline,
dedication and humility
• Believe that God has a personal
abiding interest in their lives,
families, and communities and
that’s why they should be
separated from the rest of the
world
Religion
• Faith-based Amish traditions include wearing plain clothing,
living in a simple manner and helping a neighbor in need
• Communities are divided into church districts geographically,
which enables services to be held in church members’ homes
• One of their biggest beliefs is against infant baptism – a person
needs to be old enough to make that decision; this usually takes
place after Rumspringa
Family Relationships
• Amish families tend to
settle around each other,
growing up and living
surrounded by their
extended family.
• When an Amish family
moves into a home they
usually stay there for life,
this is especially true of
those who settle near
their extended families.
Family Relationships
• Families are generally started
during late adolescence after
Rumspringa
• Families have an average of 6
children per household.
• Having a large family is
greatly valued by the church,
who wishes to continue
growth to their community.
• The traditional Amish family
works and does chores
everyday and attends service
every other Sunday.
Marriage
• Marriage generally occurs around the
ages of 18-21 in late adolescence
• In a marriage, the man is the leader of
the family and the primary
breadwinner making all of the major
decisions for the family, business, and
household.
• The degree to which a wife is included
in decision making varies from family
to family.
• A traditional Amish family depends on
both parents being active and present
for the supervision and raising of the
children.
Marriage: Roles
• Traditionally the wife is in charge of the household she
cooks, cleans, and is the seamstress of the home as well.
• Other responsibilities include: childcare, yard work,
laundry, food preservation, helping with barn chores and
harvesting.
• A young Amish girl is expected to practice these skills to
prepare her for her own household.
Amish Dating
• Children normally attend
school until about the 8th
grade, leaving few places for
teens to socialize and meet
potential partners.
• Amish customs on dating
differ greatly from church to
church, each following their
own Ordnung.
• Courtship traditionally begins
around the ages of 14 and 15
for girls, and around 16 for
boys.
Sunday Night Singing
• Teens stay after church on alternating Sundays to participate
in Sunday night singing
• boys and girls are seated at a long table facing each other
• between songs teens have plenty of time to socialize, as well
as 2 hours of socializing after singing is done
• If a couple hits it off, the boy then asks the girl if he can drive
her home where they may sit up the whole night getting to
know one another while the household is asleep
• If couples are willing they can start seeing each other
regularly and going steady
• On weekends when there is no Sunday service the teens will
usually go out on Saturday nights,
Amish Dating
• More conservative couples follow traditional
dating practices, dating in buggies and
participating in group activities or activities
with parents as well.
• Couples that follow more progressive church
teaching may go into town for a date or even
drive into town, although this group is a very
small minority.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lKlBPdgA_E
(1:00-2:00)
Bed Courtship
• Another method that some
Amish traditions utilize is
bed courtship.
• In this practice the boy will
ask the girl if he may drive
her home, if she accepts they
will go to her home go
upstairs and get into her bed
fully clothed.
• Teens must follow tradition
and are expected not to
touch but only talk
throughout the night.
• Bed courtship is a tradition
practiced only by very
conservative churches.
Social Aspects
• More lenient free time
– Teens in some Amish communities have
the freedom to:
•
•
•
•
Wear tight jeans
Put subwoofer’s in their buggy
Use a cell phone
Go to Sunday singings for social interactions
Adolescence, for the Amish, seems to be a time
where a person is held accountable for
forming their concept of right and wrong.
They are out of school, they have their own
responsibilities to manage themselves and
their faith and to determine what is right and
wrong. This is why they are also given some
freedom to explore modern and non-Amish
things.
Social Aspects
• Examples of common teen social activities:
– Go to Sunday singings
– Go bowling
– Some teens may even be allowed to go to parties
Note: Some Amish teens go to community events in order to meet a
significant other that they can one day marry. While it is true that
some Amish teens engage in more wild behavior, especially during
Rumspringa, many Amish teens stay closer to what they know and
in more expected social spheres
Social Aspects
• Differing Expectations and Freedoms
– 40 different Amish affiliations in the U.S.
“Some of the subgroups are very conservative, very
isolated, and doing very well protecting their way of
life because they basically reject much more
technology than the more progressive ones” –
Kraybill
Social Aspects
• This difference can have a huge impact on the social
expectations of teens in the Amish communities. In
progressive communities, teens may feel they have
incremental freedoms that slowly allow them to gain some
autonomy.
• In more authoritarian situations and conservative
communities, it is not very uncommon that a teen will
attempt to run away, leaving everything they know behind
forever.
• Because of this, the social expectations and norms of how
Amish teens gain autonomy and what level of autonomy
they gain during adolescence can differ a lot on a case by
case basis.
Rumspringa
• “running around”
• Youth in the Amish community
temporarily leaves the community to
experiences the world
• During this period, they are no longer
under control of their parents, not
under authority of the church
• Begins at 14-16 and ends when a
youth (boys more than girls) chooses
baptism within Amish church or
instead leaves community.
• At the end, faced with choice to return
to Amish community or reject it
Note: vast majority choose baptism and remain in the
church
Rumspringa
• Elders generally view this time
as a time for courtship and
finding a spouse
• Most youth continue traditional
Amish behavior, others
experiment with worldly
behaviors:
–
–
–
–
Buying a car
Going to the movies
Wearing non-Amish clothes
Buying a T.V./DVD player
• Knowing they have a choice
likely strengthens their
willingness to obey church
standards and, in the long run,
the authority of the church itself
Conclusion
• Hard to define adolescence in the Amish
community
References
A Look at Amish Education. (2010, November 17). Retrieved from http://www.exploring-amishcountry.com/amish-education.html
Amish America. (2010). What is Rumspringa? Retrieved November 28, 2013, from http://amishamerica.com/what-is-rumspringa/
Amish Studies. (2013). Rumspringa. Retrieved November 28, 2013 from http://www2.etown.edu/amishstudies/Rumspringa.asp
Brady, J. (2013, September 2). Amish community not anti-technology, just more thoughtful. Retrieved December 1, 2013, from
NPR website: http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2013/09/02/217287028/amish-community-not-antitechnology-just-more-thoughful
Fulong, S. (2012, June 13). About Amish. That Rumspringa Misconception, Again. Retrieved November 28, 2013, from
http://aboutamish.blogspot.com/2012/06/that-rumspringa-misconception-again.html
Lindener-Stawski, G. (n.d.). Patterns of amish courtship. Retrieved November 24, 2013, from
http://web.missouri.edu/~hartmanj/rs150/papers/ws993-1.html
Neal, C. (n.d). Rumspringa: Amish teens venture into modern vices. Talk Of The Nation (NPR), Amish customs. (n.d.). Retrieved
November 28, 2013, from Exploring Amish Country website: http://www.exploring-amish-country.com/amishcustoms.html
Schadler, J. (2009). Will Amish teens commit to old lifestyle?. 20/20 (Abc), 1.
Townes and Heritage of Amish Communities. (2007, April 1). Retrieved fromhttp://www.padutchcountry.com/towns-and-heritage/amishcountry/amish-religious-traditions.asp
Stevick, R. (2007). Growing Up Amish: The Teenage Years. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.