Is anyone here a Mennonite, or familiar with the Mennonites? Sissy

-- Sissy Sylvester-Barth (iblong2Him@ilovejesus.net), December 04, 2001

Answers

I am very familar with the Mennonites, our insurance agent for the past 20 years is a Mennonite, and my husband's family is Amish except for his Dad and one sister.

The insurance agent's group he belongs to are fairly conventional in dress and habits, except for the women not allowed to wear pants of any type, there are no other dress restrictions. They drive cars and pickup trucks just like the rest of us "English", and they attend regular public school.

There are more strict sects that have stricter dress codes and vehicle restrictions, but I am not familar with those.

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), December 04, 2001.

I have enjoyed reading about the Amish and Mennonites for years. There is a large Mennonite population in a town about 20 miles from here -- across the state line in Texas. You see them shopping in the stores quite often. I sometimes visit a Christian bookstore they operate.

-- connie in nm (karrelandconnie@msn.com), December 04, 2001.

My farm is in the middle of a large colony of very strict Old Order Amish (S.E. Iowa). Horse-drawn transportation and farming, no electricity, hand-drawn water, etc. These people are still living the 1850's. Interesting lifestyle, but definitely not for me: I enjoy my modern conveniences too much :-)

-- Paul D. (pd-personal@qwest.net), December 05, 2001.

the Amish around here,, MIch,,live without electric,, horse drawn,, ect,,, until they go to work,, where EVERYTHING is modern,, electric,, computers,, even drive new trucks as son as they get to work. I dont understand how they can do that,,if its against their belief

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), December 05, 2001.

Hi Annie: How can your husband's dad NOT be Amish? Don't Amish all marry within their community? Do they ever divorce?

-- Shannon at Grateful Acres Animal Sanctuary (gratacres@aol.com), December 05, 2001.

Hi Shannon, my father-in-law chose not to join the Amish church when be became of age, it is their free choice to join or not to join the church. He chose to join the Air Force and went "across the pond" to work and met my mother-in-law, who is French.

Family memebers who chose not to join are not discriminated against in any way by the church or by the other families in the Amish society, but leaving the church AFTER you have already joined IS a big deal, then you and your family are shunned by the entire church congregation.

Amish society has very similar problems "English" society does, has a relatively higher rate of alcoholism and depression (my Amish uncle committed sucide in fact, with a shotgun), and has the same rates of child and spousal abuse that regular society has, you just don't hear about it in the papers. They take care of their problems within themselves most of the time.

They do have a big problem when an area of settlement stays stagnent for too long, too much marrying within too small a gene pool, causing birth defects, reduced IQ, lack of thriving in small children, stunted growth (at one time society thought this was from lack of proper nutrition before the closed gene pool idea came to light), and other health and behavioral problems.

Folks who think the Amish society is without their own set of problems, as well as the same ones we have, have not observed the society from the inside like I have over 20+ years. No "romantic" notions exist other than their strong work ethic and greater strength of "family", and even then exceptions abound.

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), December 05, 2001.

Annie, Well said, as I too have observed amish life from the inside and indeed they do have much the same problems as outsiders do and even some wouldn't expect such as alcoholism. I rather like the no-frills life as it seems to always be so strong and quiet. I have learned many things from the amish and treasure what they have taught me.

Many of our family members belong to a group in texas that seems to be a cross between mennonite and amish it is in elm mott texas and is called homestead farms they home school and teach all the self done things such as spinning, weaving, farming with horses, sewing, pottery and a very long list of things. each year they hold, on the weekend following thanksgiving, a fair to show and sell all their handmade goods and the children play and sing. my husband and i are seriously thinking of moving down and joining it would be the best of both worlds for us. we have talked about doing it a lot over the past year but since i'm under contract i guess we will have to wait until the contract is up.

Blessings, Sally

-- (mallardhen67@hotmail.com), December 05, 2001.

What a lot of people call mennonites that live in comunes or colonies are actually Hutterites.The dakotas and upper midwest have lot of hutttterite colonies,thru the dakotas ,to most canadian providences where they moved to in the WW2 days to get away from the draft. Since that time in the late 40's and early 50's they came back to their first built colonies of the 1890's and bought back their land. Since that time they have modernized,bought most of the land of local farmers and sprouted to 4 fold.They mostly do not support the small local communities and buy every piece of their farm machinery or vehicles in bulk from large cities and purchase in a group as a whole the major purchases. They do qualify for the wik program and take out most of the handouts given by our government.Most colonies in South Dakota got anywhere from $100k to $877,000 for the government sponsored subsidy programs .. www.ewg.org They are great people who are helpful and frugal.And when it comes time for their work they have the most modern conveniences,computers,and equipment.

-- george sulix (wpds@dtgnet.com), December 05, 2001.

The basic difference between Amish and Mennonites is their method of worship. They come from a common group. At one point in Europe there was a disagreement about how worship services should be held. Those, who are now considered Amish, believe in worshiping in each other's homes. Mennonites worship in churches.

There is a good bit of differences between Amish and Mennonite sects or groups. Generally, the Amish are more strict than the Mennonites on comforts and modern things.

Both groups are basically Ana-Baptist, meaning they do not baptize into the faith until the person decides to do so, often in their late teens or early 20's.

Lehman's carries several books on understanding the Amish and Mennonite faiths.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 05, 2001.

Anyone know of a book on learning the Amish language?

-- Don Amon (peacelane@certainty.net), December 05, 2001.

The Amish language is just German with some local dialect variations.

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), December 05, 2001.

My mom lives in a little town in Central Texas that has a large Mennonite population. They have electricity, drive cars, listen to music, but TV is forbidden. They built their own school and church, the women wear pastel clothing in one style and head coverings with their hair up. I know in the church services, women and men do not sit together, women sit on one side of the church, men sit on the other side.The married women I knew did not work outside the home except to sell baked goods or make goods to sell. The Mennonite men I knew were mostly self employed. The people I knew there were kind, compassionate, joyous people, and had strong family ties.

-- Gina NM (inhock@pvtnetworks.net), December 05, 2001.

Paul D., you must be near Farmington?? I grew up in Keokuk and drive through that area yearly. DW

-- DW (djwallace@sotc.net), December 05, 2001.

Annie:

Technically there are two versions of German - High and Low. High German comes from basically the high countries, such as near the Alps. Low German comes from basically the lower farming areas. I've also heard High German was spoken by the upper classes, so that may have reinforced the name. In another thread someone mentioned 'The Pennsylvania Dutch' don't speak Dutch, but rather High German. I am not sure the language was kept for religious reasons as much as it lets them communicate without the 'English' being able to understand what they are saying.

Interestingly, German was the transitional (common) language for many immigrants to the Mid-west. Using German a foreman didn't need to be able to speak Hungarian, Polish, Slovakian, etc. Also, perhaps of some common bases, it may have been easier for immigrants to first learn German than English.

Story: One of my Aunts wrote back and forth with a cousin in Croatia. She didn't speak Croatian, nor did the cousin speak English. Aunt Theresa would write in German. Matilda would take the letter to a woman locally who would translate it to Croatian. Matilda would then take her reply to the same woman who would translate it into German.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 05, 2001.

We have alot of Mennonites here in North Idaho. From what I know, all the women must wear dresses, usually pastel colors as noted above, and all the same exact style. We also have two different groups; ones who wear black caps and ones who wear white caps. I've been told that the "black caps" are more strict and don't have radio or TV but that the "white caps" are more liberal on such things. I have had some dealings with the local Mennonites and have found them to be hard working and polite, although very non-commital regarding business matters. Someone told me that they absolutely cannot lie and then it made sense to me why the guy seemed to be dancing around answering my question.

-- Lisa (mountainlady@imbris.com), December 05, 2001.

All of my ancestors on my mom's side of the family were Mennonite and Amish. The Amish speak PA Dutch. It is neither high nor low German, but a corruption of German. We all use PA Dutch words in our speech almost everyday--cookie, cluck, peeps, spook are examples.

Mennonites range from the General conference Mennonites whose churches are everywhere, in big cities, foreign countries to the conservative Mennonites whom people confuse with the Amish all the time. In my opinion, the absolute best aspect of the Mennonites is their charitable works. Their organization, The Mennonite relief is rated number one in the world. They are amazing.

German was spoken in this community in OH up until my generation. My Dad could speak fluent German and his ancestors came to OH from Germany in the 1830's! Last week, we had to go to Lehman's hardware to pick up some parts for our woodstove. There were some German tourists in the store and I stalked them around the store just to here them speak German, just for nostalfic reasons. Took me back to when Great Grandpa, and the Great Aunts and Uncles would play euchre, drink beer and eat pickled pigs feet!

-- vicki in NW OH (thga76@aol.com), December 06, 2001.

Interesting thread. The Mennonites near here do not wear pastel dresses. The dresses they wear are rather unattractive IMHO -- they are made out of a black fabric with a small uniform print on it. If they are not all identical, they are very similar. They wear a small, black triangular scarf on their head (not a cap like the amish). Some of the groups are allowed to wear more "English" looking clothes: a long denim skirt, blouse, but they are still very conservative and always wear a headcovering. The men, however, dress like everyone else around hear. Jeans, regular or western shirt boots. You would not be able to identify the men as mennonite by their appearance like you can the women. They, too, speak German. They also have their own schools and many either farm or have their own businesses (cabinetmaking, for example). An elderly woman down the block has a mennonite woman come in and clean her house once a week. I have seen Mennonite women working in their bookstore, but never at Walmart,etc.. I think many of the groups here broke off from groups in Mexico.

A friend of mine tutors a Mennonite woman at the local college. Her husband is in prison -- yes, they have the same problems as everyone else.

-- connie in nm (karrelandconnie@msn.com), December 06, 2001.

my husband is mennonite, as is his family. he is not a christian now, just a nice agnostic guy.

they, however, are "modern" mennonites. I call them "reformed" by my husband just says they are mennonite, and doesn't get what I mean, which is silly. they all wear whatever they want, drive cars, have tvs, etc. so they aren't like the old order mennonites nor are they like the ones who are in between.

I want to know WHY you asked this question to satisfy my nosiness.

-- marcee (thathope@mwt.net), December 06, 2001.

Thankyou everyone for you stories and thoughts. I asked the above question in search of a new body of Christians. Since moving to Flagstaff, I have not been able to find a church to connect with. In my search here in town, I have come across some mennonite women who seem so geniune and Christ-like. I am a strong Christian and was curious to know about their beliefs and practices as Christians. I have since done some extensive research on the internet. Thankyou all again. In His Grace, Sissy

-- Sissy Sylvester-Barth (iblong2Him@ilovejesus.net), December 06, 2001.

Both groups are basically Ana-Baptist, meaning they do not baptize into the faith until the person decides to do so, often in their late teens or early 20's. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

This has always struck me as odd. We call them Ana-Baptist since they do not baptize infants, waiting till older, which mirrors the bible and the baptisim of everyone in it including Christ! With not one example of an infant baptisim in the bible, why do we continue the Roman Catholic virsions of christening? Perhaps we didn't "protest" far enough away from their teachings? Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), December 06, 2001.

Vicki, historically Martin Luther was an Anabaptist at the same time as Menno Simmon but he recanted under threat of beheading (or something similar) and only a few other denominations follow the ana- baptist tradition.

-- diane (gardiacaprines@yahoo.com), December 06, 2001.

Vicky:

I was raised Catholic, but left the church in my late teens. Thus, I am somewhat biased. I suspect part of the reason for infant baptisms is the old "Once a Catholic, always a Catholic" aspect. They don't want to chance having you decide not to be a baptised Catholic. And, yes, I know there is the washing away of Original Sin aspect. Maybe they have slacked off, but it use to be unless you were a baptized Catholic, you couldn't get into heaven. I read somewhere the Catholic Church no longer considers hell to be a place of fire, brimstone and eternal damnation. Rather it is a state of not being with God.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 07, 2001.

Sissy:

I doubt you could just up and become a Mennonite as it is somewhat of a closed community. If you can find a church, I think generally a Chruch of Christ, of theirs, you might attended worship services for a while. Dress conservatively and sit with the women. Let them approach you. If they do, stay and make small talk. If a woman mentions making bread, you might ask if you can come to their house to help them as you would like to learn how to do it. Same for gardening, canning, making clothing, doing laundry by hand, etc. Gradually you may be accepted in the fold.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 07, 2001.

I would like to attempt to answer Stan on the subject of Amish and cars. Amish are not against cars but against he ownership of a car. There are all the reasons such as insurance ( they don't believe in having insurance and states such as Michigan require it to own and operate a car), cost and pridefulness. But one of the main reasons is the belief that owning a car effects the closeness of the community. Having cars mean the community can be a lot more spread out instead of being "buggy" distance from each other. Helpfulness and closeness diminishes with distance. They are also aware of what it has done to the "English" teenagers. They have to support their families just as we do and sometimes have to take jobs off the farm to do so but try to keep their homelife at least simple. Some of the Amish that you see working at "outside" jobs are young men who have not joined the church yet or are earning the money to buy their own land. I have a friend from a former Amish community who joined a Mennonite community in Tennesssee and they now drive but she feels isolated as they live a lot farther from others. She can no long just walk next door and visit.

-- Barb (MJRanch@POP.ctctel.com), December 07, 2001.

We are planning to join the Amish. I have researched this extensively, and did consider the Mennonites at one time. Perhaps I could answer specific questions if you have any? I also know of some great books and other things on learning PA Dutch! I saw that someone had asked about that.

-- Anne Keckler (raymondkeckler@yahoo.com), December 07, 2001.

By the way, anyone can join the Mennonites, and they do not do laundry by hand. Just for the record.

-- Anne Keckler (raymondkeckler@yahoo.com), December 07, 2001.

We live a very simple life in the country. We eat simple foods and we grow a lot of it ourselves, etc. I have a great admiration for the Amish people so in June 2000 when we went to Iowa for vacation for the first time. I was so excited at the thought of seeing the Amish people and had visions of them out plowing their fields and washing clothes by hand.

We entered Iowa at about Bloomfield and saw a road sign saying to watch out for horse drawn vehicles - my excitement grew beyond bounds.

We travel by bikes and stopped to fill up at a convenience store/gas station. A horse drawn buggy was tied up outside and I could not wait to go in and pay and actually SEE AND BE NEAR someone Amish.

Imagine my surprise and shock to see the man, dressed in typical dress with the typical Amish look - buying a Snickers and a Dr. Pepper. My heart sank.

I realized then, they are people who live a different lifestyle but they are still just people

-- Viv (kudzu1@webtv.net), December 08, 2001.