What's WRONG with these people?!?!

[WorkerCaste]

Sometimes people can be a bit TOO serious about their religion. It's kind of why we're fighting a jihad right now.

Nothin' wrong with be serious about your religion when it only affects you. They believe in strong community, limiting distracting influences, and not worrying about what others are doing. As I understand it, they don't baptise until adulthood to make sure that the life is actually chosen by each member. It's when you believe that everyone should worship as you do and are willing to take active steps to make that happen that the trouble begins.

[Harrdy]

There was a very nice text by a baptist pastor in south carolina which ends with the following words:

So, I appeal to you today. Let the Spirit of Christ guide you even if you are not a Christian. You won't go wrong if you do. Do not use the Constitution of our beloved state to marginalize a segment of our citizenry. Do not listen to the fear-mongers. They have always been among us throughout our history trying to scare us with their doomsday scenarios, trying to marginalize one segment of society and then another. And, they have always been proven wrong at the end of the day. Trust the spirit of Christ. Trust Easter. Or as my Daddy might have said, "IT'S JUST PLAIN NOT RIGHT TO TREAT FOLKS LIKE THEY DON'T COUNT."

full text, I really liked the text: http://satyrblade.livejournal.com/96...ml?view=996394

PeAcE

[frulad]

From what I've read, they're not as stringent as they once were. Teenagers go into town and stuff now.

The process of Rumsprigga (sp?), where older teens are allowed to move through the English world before taking their final religous vows has long been part of the Amish tradition. Track down the recent documentary The Devil's Playground for a fascinating look at the whole process.

[Dr Maturin]

So much for Amish tradition...I just watched an interview with one of the women. Unless it's only MEN who don't like their mug on film.

[Jan]

I think there's some confusion. From everything I've read, the Amish *often* allow pictures to be taken of themselves but they don't *keep* images of themselves or each other. Plus, each Fellowship seems to have its own traditions and conventions.

Jan

[AmyG]

One of my best friends is Jewish, and he occasionally eats bacon.

Read what I wrote. I said "Orthodox Jewish." Guaranteed, if your friend is Orthodox Jewish, he is not eating bacon. Conversely, if he is eating bacon, he is not Orthodox.

Regarding the photos thing, and having done a little research, I think Jan is right that we may be attributing the wrong reasoning to it. It's not "Don't take my picture because you are stealing my soul"; rather, it's an endeavor to be as humble, and not driven by personal vanity, as possible. If you start taking pictures of yourself and keeping them around, you'll start to care about how you look, and that is vanity, and that is considered wrong in the eyes of their God. And that's probably interpreted differently by just about every Amish parish/region. So, some might feel it's okay to appear on television to talk to a reporter about something, if they're not then running over to their English friends' home to watch themselves on tv on the 6 o'clock news that evening. But it's definitely up to the elders of each community how to specifically interpret that.

Generally, though, if you're traveling in Lancaster, local etiquette says that you DON'T take their pictures, except maybe a long shot of a buggy passing by.

[Dr Maturin]

I used to have a lot of Arab, Pakistani and Indian Muslim friends in college and they'd all eat pork in secret. Pork is just too good.