What happens when an Amish person leaves the community? Any member of the Amish church is free to leave at any time. Members who choose to leave might be allowed to rejoin the church. However, those who leave permanently are shunned.
Wayward members are reinstated if they confess their transgression. Some congregations end the shunning if an ex-member joins a pacifist plain-dressing church such as conservative Mennonites. Unbaptized people who leave are not shunned, because they never made baptismal promises and joined the church.
While outsiders might view it as punishment, the Amish consider it an act of love to help those who have strayed from their beliefs. Each individual church decides when to shun others and what kind of punishment they face.
The Process of Leaving the Amish Community
During this period, they can decide whether to commit to the Amish church and its way of life or to pursue a different path. Keep in mind that not every Amish person who chooses to leave does so during Rumspringa; some may make this decision later in life.
It's a way to separate the offender from the community and make them realize the error of their ways. When someone is shunned, they're cut off from all social interaction. This includes family, friends, and even business associates. Shunning can be temporary or permanent.
Forgiveness is woven into the fabric of Amish faith. And that is why words of forgiveness were sent to the killer's family before the blood had dried on the schoolhouse floor. It was just the natural thing to do, the Amish way of doing things.
Women are to keep their hair long and worn in a single braid or bun that is pinned behind their head. Hair must be kept out of sight, as it's seen as too sensual and can be distracting for men in the community. The reason Amish women don't cut their hair is more than just aesthetic preference.
Any member of the Amish church is free to leave at any time. Members who choose to leave might be allowed to rejoin the church. However, those who leave permanently are shunned. They become strangers and are not permitted to participate in the community.
Amish people aren't forbidden from interacting with outsiders, whom they refer to as 'the English', but there are only a few situations where this is allowed. An example of such a situation is their work. Just like any other community, the Amish people need to earn a living and support their families.
So, the Amish don't really have a special name for people who aren't Amish. Instead, they usually call them "English," which basically means anyone who's not Amish. The term shouldn't be taken as an insult. It's just a way for the Amish to set themselves apart from the rest of the world.
For Amish youth, the Rumspringa normally begins at age 16 and ends when a youth chooses either to be baptized in the Amish church or to leave the community.
Although the verb shun means to deliberately avoid anything, it has a specific meaning in certain groups and communities. In this case, it means to ostracize or expel from that group or community. The Amish, for example, may shun members of their order who repeatedly ignore the beliefs and rules of Amish society.
For the Amish, excommunication (Bann) and shunning (Meidung) are community-wide tough love. When someone is baptized and joins an Amish church-community, that person makes a vow to God to embrace the Christian faith as practiced by that community, a congregation of those who have made this same promise.
All types of birth control, and also all forms of natural family planning such as calendar-based methods, are forbidden in Old-Order Amish communities. However, especially in recent years, more Amish women have begun using contraception.
Marriage in the Amish community is seen as a passage into adulthood. To get married in the Amish community, members must be baptized in the church. Outsiders, non-Amish, or 'English', as they call the rest of the world, are not permitted to marry within the Amish community.
Now, the English and Amish can't be the typical friends. Don't expect to hang out for no reason other than spend time with each other. They don't do that with the English, but you can have a useful relationship. One of my best Amish friends would barter with me often.
An Amish man may only have one wife. Should that wife pass away, he is free to remarry. The same goes for Amish women. They may remarry in the event of their husband's death.
Out of respect for their privacy, it is best to avoid approaching the Amish unless they appear open to company. They are just like you and don't really appreciate strangers knocking at their door. When you do have a need to approach a group of Amish, it is polite to speak to a male, if possible.
People with the mutation live to be 85 on average, significantly longer than their predicted average lifespan of 71 for Amish in general, which hasn't changed much over the last century.
Feminine Hygiene
Female Amish wash their hair and wear it in a bun. As for makeup, Amish women aren't allowed to wear cosmetics or adornments considered worldly. This includes lipstick, mascara, eye shadow, and jewelry.
However, in addition to the modesty aspect, women must keep their heads covered at all times so that they can pray at any time. Both modesty and prayer are central to the daily lives of Amish people and for women, wearing head coverings and bonnets is an important part of that.
The Amish believe that technology, especially cell phones, separates people and takes away important face-to-face communication and social interaction. In more lenient communities, cell phones may be used by families in a central location, with no particular owner, to keep in touch with family.
Q: May outsiders join the Amish? A: Yes. Although the Amish do not actively evangelize, several dozen outside people have joined the Amish. Potential members must be willing to learn the dialect and accept the rules of the church in order to be baptized and become members of the church.
Old Order Amish people also oppose church buildings, preferring to meet in individual homes. This reflects their wariness of organized religion in general; they think of their house meetings as more organic and unregulated. They also deliberately avoid modern technologies like cars, electricity and tractors.
Values. The Amish are honest and ethical in everything they do, even in the smallest business transactions.