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Posted on 04/02/2014 8:25:03 AM PDT by Laissez-faire capitalist
After Rumspringa (running around) is over, the Amish young person returns after being gone for two years, and agrees to live according to the Amish ordnung (rules for living) pertaining to clothing, trnasportation, electrical appliances/power, etc, how do Amish bishops, ministers and deacons deal with the inward person(s) that none can see?
Which is a greater threat to an Amish person's salvation - the "English" or the carnal man/sinful nature that we (Christian or non-Christian still possess and have to deal with until we are are glorified in heaven?
The Apostle Paul: I do the things that I don't want to do, and I don't do the things that I want to do. Who will deliver me from this body of death?
The Apostle Paul said that he was not perfect by any means, but he said that he forgot that which was behind and pressed towards the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
If an Amish person (like the rest of us) is going to have to continually crucify the flesh and keep the carnal "man" under submission (as Paul said) - regardless of where they are at - why then bother to leave their local Amish community at all?
Rumspringa won't help with that by any means when they return. There are sins that Amish people can engage in that one might never see.
1.) Is it all about doing outward things and conforming to them?
2.) If salvation and living for Jesus Christ are truly the most important goals in life, how does Rumspringa help with these? Every 16 year old Amish person can stay and fight the good fight of faith and would not have to leave to do this. This fight will continue and be ever-present regardless of where they are at.
3.) How can leaving for two years get rid of inwardly craving sin or deal with sinful thoughts that would creep into any person regardless of whether or not they left at 16 years of age?
3.) And are Asians, Africans, Native Americans the "English," too?
“1.) Is it all about doing outward things and conforming to them?”
Amish young people join the church as adults. This is a time they learn first-hand what the rest of the world is like before making a lifetime commitment to the Amish church. The level of “worldliness” among the youth varies.
“2.) If salvation and living for Jesus Christ are truly the most important goals in life, how does Rumspringa help with these? Every 16 year old Amish person can stay and fight the good fight of faith and would not have to leave to do this. This fight will continue and be ever-present regardless of where they are at.”
Salvation is questionable. It is a works oriented version of Christianity. Obviously, like any works-oriented version of Christianity, there are believers mixed in.
“3.) How can leaving for two years get rid of inwardly craving sin or deal with sinful thoughts that would creep into any person regardless of whether or not they left at 16 years of age?”
They don’t “leave for two years, generally. Most don’t even “leave”. This isn’t about ridding them of sinful thoughts. It is a way for them to make a free choice with full commitment. Again, not every youth takes it to an extreme.
“3.) And are Asians, Africans, Native Americans the “English,” too?”
Don’t know. They are outsiders.
The problem for anybody wanting to leave, is that they don't even have a high-school education, which greatly limits their options in the outside world. This may be by design.
There are several Amish settlements in my area and one of them does have internet in their school.
I have lived amongst the Amish and Mennonites most of my life. They don’t bother anyone. They pretty much stick to themselves. What they believe is none of my business. I am sure most would be appalled if they attended our Divine Liturgy. However, it is not an issue, as it does not really matter. For me to be right, everyone else does not have to be wrong. For the most part, the Amish and Mennonites are very nice and gentle folk. Don’t believe everything you see on TV.
Formerly from “upstate NY” too - southern tier, Chautauqua county, and knew the amish very well. We often used an Amish contractor on our building projects.
They can use power tools when they work for us “English”, but when they build their own houses, they must use traditional non-power tools, or they get in big trouble with their elders.
Rumspringa, as I understand it, is accepting the natural curiosity that teens have for worldly experiences, and their desire for their youth to make a conscious choice to accept the Amish life.
There are a few, but they don’t do anything that is modern out in the open.
There will be few, if any, Amish replying to your post. I suggest an educational trip to Wisconsin, Indiana or Pennsylvania.
Maybe you should ping the Amish ping list:
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Maybe all kids raised in religious homes and never been any place except to church should do the Rumspringa.
If they only know one thing and have no options how can they actually choose? or is it scriptural for some one else to choose for them?
Y’all are missing the point. I live in an area with a large Amish community. The point of their rules is not that technology is sinful, it’s that it is unnecessary.
The Amish say that “the luxuries of one generation become the necessities of the next.” In this they are completely correct. Why have electric lights in your home, with all that is required to support them, when candles or lamps work fine? Why drive a car when you have a horse?
Their lifestyle is all about simplicity and self reliance. We would do well to learn from them instead of mocking them.
I’m no expert, but I don’t think the Amish are dependent upon their clergy. They support themselves and are generally governed by their traditions.
So they're not on the grid.
I believe "English" means non-Amish.
“3.) And are Asians, Africans, Native Americans the “English,” too?”..Don’t think they ever envisioned our wonderful pristine country as having been invaded by Third word scabs. They did, however, have a (nice ?) way of dealing with Native Americans (indians). Fought’em hand to hand and the top dog got it all.
This error in the Latin Vulgate was compounded in 1515 when Michelangelo carved horns on his famous statue of Moses, which can be seen today in the Church of San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome.
So, did Moses have horns, Kansas58?
How can leaving for two years get rid of inwardly craving sin or deal with sinful thoughts that would creep into any person regardless of whether or not they left at 16 years of age?
Acting on sinful desires or carnal thoughts doesn’t diminish them; on the contrary it is akin to throwing gasoline on a fire.
We would do well to learn from them instead of mocking them.
Some Mennonites would use the web, others wouldn’t. The kind that would seem to be fairly liberal leaning, at least that I have observed in my area. I can’t recall ever seeing someone who claims to be Mennonite on FR, but of course that doesn’t mean they aren’t here by any means.
Old order Mennonites and Amish haven’t accepted divorce and remarriage or birth control within marriage to my understanding, it would be interesting to get their point of view on those debates when they come up on FR.
Freegards
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