Amish History and the Anabaptists Movement
Amish people are devoutly devoted to their religion and their communities are as well.
The group began as a break away from the Catholic Church initiated during the Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luther.
When the group began, they called themselves the Anabaptists.
Their belief was that the infant baptism practiced by the Catholic Church was not enough for eternal salvation.
Their beliefs were that a whole life commitment was the only way, a choice made when a person became an adult and signified by water baptism.
Menno Simons became involved in the movement in 1536; he was a young Dutch Catholic Priest and a powerful leader and writer.
Soon the name Mennonites were attributed to his followers.
He was instrumental in bringing the Anabaptist groups together.
It was not until later that the Mennonites split into two groups after a dispute over the practice of shunning, a church discipline that was used to bring the sinner to repentance.
Joseph Amman felt that the current practice was not enough and believed that shunning should be complete and not just for the communion table, this split resulted in what is known as Amish.
All reformation groups were severely persecuted by the Catholic Church, the Amish and Mennonites were no exception.
To escape they moved to areas in southern Germany and Switzerland, the land was perfect for farming and afforded them some protection.
They continued their religion by meeting together in each others homes.
William Penn was responsible for their move to the United States.
He offered all who were fleeing religious persecution to join him in Pennsylvania.
The Amish settled in Berks County until the French and Indian war brought marauders to their doorsteps.
They fled their homes for the relative safety of Lancaster County, Pa.
It was here that differences over their code of life, called the Ordnung caused further division.
New communities were quickly established elsewhere.
Their numbers were further increased with immigrants from Europe.
In the United States today you will find the largest Amish settlements in Lancaster Pa, Holmes County, Oh and Lagrange, Indiana.
As the population growth continued it led to land shortages that coupled with more differences about the Ordnung Amish families have moved to 25 states and Canada.
The widely visible Amish families seen today are the Old Order Amish and maintain the strictest Ordnung.
Commonly referred to as Pennsylvania Dutch the Amish are actually of German-Swiss descent.
The word Dutch comes from a misspelling of the word Deutsch which is a common word for the German language.
This language can still be heard in many Old Order Amish homes today.
There are currently between 200,000 and 250,000 Old Order Amish community members today.
Even though there have been many disagreements about the Ordnung the Old Order Amish remain in peaceful fellowship with Mennonites and Anabaptists.
There is a marked difference in their beliefs about what the bible teaches about conformation to the world around them.
The strictest beliefs are held by the Amish when it comes to how they dress, their manner of farming and what if any modern technology to use.
The last Amish communities in Europe merged with Mennonite fellowships in the mid 20th century, a pattern that has been imitated here in the states on a smaller scale.
The group began as a break away from the Catholic Church initiated during the Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luther.
When the group began, they called themselves the Anabaptists.
Their belief was that the infant baptism practiced by the Catholic Church was not enough for eternal salvation.
Their beliefs were that a whole life commitment was the only way, a choice made when a person became an adult and signified by water baptism.
Menno Simons became involved in the movement in 1536; he was a young Dutch Catholic Priest and a powerful leader and writer.
Soon the name Mennonites were attributed to his followers.
He was instrumental in bringing the Anabaptist groups together.
It was not until later that the Mennonites split into two groups after a dispute over the practice of shunning, a church discipline that was used to bring the sinner to repentance.
Joseph Amman felt that the current practice was not enough and believed that shunning should be complete and not just for the communion table, this split resulted in what is known as Amish.
All reformation groups were severely persecuted by the Catholic Church, the Amish and Mennonites were no exception.
To escape they moved to areas in southern Germany and Switzerland, the land was perfect for farming and afforded them some protection.
They continued their religion by meeting together in each others homes.
William Penn was responsible for their move to the United States.
He offered all who were fleeing religious persecution to join him in Pennsylvania.
The Amish settled in Berks County until the French and Indian war brought marauders to their doorsteps.
They fled their homes for the relative safety of Lancaster County, Pa.
It was here that differences over their code of life, called the Ordnung caused further division.
New communities were quickly established elsewhere.
Their numbers were further increased with immigrants from Europe.
In the United States today you will find the largest Amish settlements in Lancaster Pa, Holmes County, Oh and Lagrange, Indiana.
As the population growth continued it led to land shortages that coupled with more differences about the Ordnung Amish families have moved to 25 states and Canada.
The widely visible Amish families seen today are the Old Order Amish and maintain the strictest Ordnung.
Commonly referred to as Pennsylvania Dutch the Amish are actually of German-Swiss descent.
The word Dutch comes from a misspelling of the word Deutsch which is a common word for the German language.
This language can still be heard in many Old Order Amish homes today.
There are currently between 200,000 and 250,000 Old Order Amish community members today.
Even though there have been many disagreements about the Ordnung the Old Order Amish remain in peaceful fellowship with Mennonites and Anabaptists.
There is a marked difference in their beliefs about what the bible teaches about conformation to the world around them.
The strictest beliefs are held by the Amish when it comes to how they dress, their manner of farming and what if any modern technology to use.
The last Amish communities in Europe merged with Mennonite fellowships in the mid 20th century, a pattern that has been imitated here in the states on a smaller scale.
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