Amish are a group of Protestant Anabaptist Mennonites (also known as Amish) in the United States and Ontario, Canada. They reject modern facilities such as cars and electricity. Known for living a simple life. Amish is a traditional and strict religious organization formed by descendants of German-Swiss immigrants. It lives in isolation. It came from Switzerland in 1525 and split from the Mennonites or the Anabaptists. They do not work in the military, do not receive social welfare, or any form of government help, and many do not buy insurance. Most Amish people speak a unique dialect of High German at home, also known as Pennsylvania German.
Two important concepts help to understand the daily behavior of the Amish: the fear of "pride" and the admiration of "humility". Humility is usually expressed as "submission" and "commitment." Perhaps a more accurate understanding is reluctance to express self-assertion. The willingness to obey the will of God and express it as a group norm is an anomaly in the American individualistic-centered culture. Anti-individualism is the starting point for the following behaviors: refusal to use labor-saving technologies so as not to rely on the help of neighbors; not to use electricity to avoid competition for purchasing goods that show status; not to take pictures to avoid personal or family vanity . A similar approach also includes rejecting education above junior high school, especially theoretical studies, which will not help daily farm life and will only trigger personal or material ambitions. In American high school education, it is a good thing to cultivate a sense of competition and self-reliance, which is diametrically opposed to the values of the Amish.
The life of the Amish is very simple. Most Amish (especially the old dogma) are known for not using electricity and cars. They also don't have bicycles, only gas motors. Their reasons for doing this are often misunderstood. The Amish do not regard technology as evil. They do not accept modern civilization because they believe that these new things will affect family reunion or complicate life.
For example, electricity is seen as a connection to the "secular world". The use of electricity will lead to the use of household appliances, complicate the simple lifestyle of the Amish, trigger individual competition for material life, and destroy the entire community. However, in some Amish communities, electricity can be used on specific occasions. For example, if you cannot do work without electricity, a 12-volt battery is acceptable. Generators are only allowed to be used for metal welding, battery charging, driving milk mixers, etc. The reason for permitting a 12-volt power system is to prevent misuse of electrical equipment. Most 12-volt power sources are not enough to drive "secular" modern appliances such as televisions, light bulbs or hair dryers. In some cases, outdoor electrical appliances may be allowed, such as lawnmowers.
The Amish community adopts a compromise method to accept technology, which looks very strange to outsiders. For example, in some communities, if someone pushes or pulls a horse, a gasoline-powered lawnmower is permitted. The reason is that if you insist on manual farming, you will not be tempted to buy more land and make yourself more than others in the same community. Many Amish communities also accept chemical pesticides and genetically modified crops. In short, what the Amish people are trying to avoid is not technology, but the negative impact of technology on the community.
In addition to English, most Amish people speak a unique highland accent German called "Pennsylvanian German" or "Pennsylvanian Dutch". Not only the Amish, many German immigrants living in Pennsylvania also speak this language. Amish children learn German first, then English.
They will use Pennsylvanian German in life and worship, and they will learn English in school.
Most men in Amish society wear wide-brimmed straw hats and suspenders. Women wear monochromatic long skirts and scarves, and they wear borderless white caps on their heads. These traditions originated from the clothing of European Switzerland before the re-emigration to the United States in Germany. In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, residents wear this traditional clothing.
The dress code in some communities includes prohibiting buttons and using only gussets. Some communities allow buttons to be sewn on clothing. The reason for banning buttons is its historical relationship with military uniforms. The universal aesthetic standard is "simplicity": one's clothing cannot be eye-catching with tailoring, color, or other styles. However, the clothing styles of the Amish still remain in the 19th century style. When they appear in the outside world, they appear to be maverick. Contrary to their original intentions, they often attract curious eyes.
Amish men shaved cleanly when they were single, and kept their sideburns after they got married. Mustaches are not allowed on the lips, because this was the custom of the military in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries. The custom of having temples is largely derived from a certain Jewish tribe.
The Amish community is plagued by a variety of genetic diseases, such as Ellevi's syndrome. Almost all Amish people are descendants of hundreds of early pioneers, and the founder effect of intermarriage between relatives is the root cause of Amish genetic diseases. Some diseases are rare, unique and serious, resulting in a very high death rate for Amish children. The Amish accept this problem as "God's will". They refuse pre-marital genetic testing and do not perform genetic diagnosis even if a child has a genetic disease. However, many parents are willing to treat their children with modern technology.
Most Amish people do not take any birth control measures, including safe-period contraception.
Amish people do not allow their children to receive education above junior high school, thinking that the basic knowledge at this stage is enough to cope with the Amish lifestyle. Few Amish go to high school, and even more rarely go to college. After the end of the eighth grade, they will teach the boys carpenter skills or agriculture. Girls start to learn cooking and housework at the age of twelve, and they can have a boyfriend at the age of sixteen.
The family of the Amish is their school and their church. Many Amish communities open their own schools, usually in large communal houses, and the teachers also come from the Amish community.
In the past, the Amish had a big conflict with the outside world because of school matters. In 1972, three Amish families refused to send their 14- and 15-year-old children to high school and were fined $5. The Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned this judgment and ruled that it is unjustified to violate the Freedom of Belief clause of the First Amendment of the Constitution on the grounds of "receiving compulsory education." The Federal Supreme Court upheld the review ruling.
Now that most of the conflict has been resolved, the government education authority allows the Amish to educate children in their own way. Some state laws prohibit children under a certain age from dropping out of school, even if the child has graduated from junior high school. The workaround is to keep the child repeating the eighth grade until they can legally leave school.
The Amish as a whole are under pressure from the modern world. For example, the Child Labor Law is a threat to the long-term lifestyle of the Amish. Amish children are taught to work hard at a young age (by 21st century standards). When a child is engaged in a new job, parents usually supervise to ensure efficiency and safety. It is up to parents to decide whether their children can engage in dangerous jobs, which is in contradiction with the modern "Child Labor Law."
Contrary to popular belief, the Amish exercise the right to vote and are regarded by national parties as swing voters with great potential: their pacifism and social morality are attractive to leftist parties, and their conservatism conforms to the image The taste of right-wing parties. They pursue non-violence and non-resistance, so they rarely defend themselves. During the war, they took a conscientious anti-war stance.
Like many Mennonites, the Amish do not participate in insurance, but rely on the support of the church and the community. For example, when a barn is destroyed by fire or other disasters, the entire community will repair it together, usually within a day.
In 1961, the U.S. Revenue Service announced that since Amish people do not accept government social benefits and do not accept insurance for religious reasons, they are also not required to pay related taxes. This policy was officially written into law in 1965. Certain groups and employers are also exempt from social welfare tax, but the law requires them to support elderly and disabled members. The actual taxes of the Amish are relatively heavy, especially real estate taxes, because they rarely receive government services.
Amish people are sometimes hostile and discriminated against by neighboring communities. During the First World War, the pacifist stance of the Amish caused a lot of harassment, and the Amish who were forced to enlist in the army were also subjected to various forms of making things difficult. In today's era, the hatred of the Amish people is prominently manifested as "stone strikes"-when the Amish carriage passes by at night, stones are thrown at them from the side of the road.
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