In addition, members of the Amish community are allowed to remarry after their spouse passes. Widows sometimes garner financial assistance from their families or the church and may even find work outside of the home, according to Amish America.
Not only do the Amish not actively practice polygamy, they certainly don't believe in it. They view polygamy as adultery. Although the various Amish settlements may interpret certain rules slightly differently, there is no deviation from this law. The Amish believe in traditional marriage between one man and one woman.
In short, Amish women don't shave because they aren't allowed to cut their hair. Similarly, married men don't shave their beards, but do shave their cheeks and trim to keep their beards tidy. Along with maintaining their lush hair, the Amish believe that everything they do should be of high quality.
Birth control and abortion are forbidden by religious doctrine, even when pregnancy is life threatening. The Amish church has no rule against immunization, but only 16-26% of Amish children have received immunizations against the common childhood diseases.
Since morning comes early, most Amish families are in bed by 8:30 – 9:00 pm. Rest and getting adequate sleep is imperative for the Amish since much of their day is spent doing manual labor.
In summer, conservative Amish tend to bathe at least twice weekly to eliminate dirt and sweat. The women may bathe more frequently and keep the home clean as well. New Order Amish may bathe more frequently than the Swatzentruber order, taking advantage of running water for showers or baths.
Amish Birth Culture
Members of this faith-based community typically practice home births, which are performed without modern medical interventions such as epidurals or pain relief medications.
As part of their Ordnung, Old Order Amish forbid owning automobiles; tapping electricity from public utility lines; owning televisions, radios, or personal computers; attending high school or college; joining the military; and initiating divorce. All Amish groups expect men and women to wear prescribed clothing.
In the Amish community, things like pregnancy are very sacred and secret. People's privacy is important, and intimate details are often not shared with other members of the community until it is more than obvious.
Each person sleeps on their side of the bed, with a board in between them to prevent any physical contact. The couple is allowed to talk to each other during the night, but they're not allowed to touch each other.
I think the level of integration with the modern world varies community to community (some Amish communities are more insular than others) but the most conservative of them will probably use the same methods women used for hundreds of years — wrapping themselves with strips of material, or wrapping their shift/ ...
Amish women pin their hair into buns, and then cover their heads with a prayer kapp, following Paul's instruction to women in 1 Corinthians 11:5 to cover their heads. The idea is that one should always be prepared to pray, and one should be prayerful throughout their days.
While bathing is more common amongst the Amish, they do also take showers. Again, it's very dependent on the community and the individual family. Some Amish families have gas-powered hot water heaters to take showers. There are even some communities that have large indoor showers just like we do.
Their approach to simple living is embodied by wearing plain dress, possessing a small wardrobe, and not owning any personal jewelry. So, many people want to know - do Amish wear wedding rings? The answer is a simple no.
Because the Amish community does not allow for divorce, the courting process is taken very seriously.
The marriages are dependent on if they are between two members of the Amish church or a member and an outsider of the Amish church. The decision to marry a person outside of the Amish church is one that comes with a decision to be made by the person in the community, but before they are baptized by the church.
Scientists are making strides in understanding sudden infant death syndrome, the mysterious condition that kills more than 2,000 U.S. infants every year. A recent study, which identified a gene for a SIDS-like condition among the Amish, is one of several pointing to a genetic link to the disorder.
But they don't pick up their children to hug and kiss them. There are no rules against such demonstrations of love… it is just not done. Another interesting fact about affections, is that the Amish don't have a way of saying “I love you” in their language.
The Amish believe that going barefoot keeps them closer to the earth and nature, and therefore keeps them closer to God. There's no easier way to enhance the bond with God's natural creations. As such a pious people, this is of great importance to the Amish.
There's no prohibition on alcohol in most communities, but certain strict Old Order communities aren't in favor of it. You'll never see Amish men going outside of the community to bars and other such establishments. If they do drink, they do so at home or in the community, at a social gathering.
There are many restrictions on technology that are more or less universal among the Old Order Amish, as the ban on cars as well as the ban on radio, television and in most cases the use of the internet, see above.
Phones and computers are prohibited in nearly all Amish homes. The Amish often view many forms of technology as something that can separate families or weaken the community structure by distancing individuals.
The population explosion is due to a belief in large families, seen as a blessing from God. The large number of children also provide labor for their farming enterprises. Traditionally, farming of all kinds has been at the center of Amish work life.
However, the Amish do not throw baby showers and do not expect large amounts of new baby gifts with each new child. This is because the Amish do not like to focus on a single event or individual, so to shower someone with baby gifts would be considered too extravagant or unnecessary to the typical Amish person.