Beachy Amish

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The Beachy Amish are a Protestant denomination in the tradition of the Anabaptists . They were created by secession from the Amish old order, but they are much less traditional than the Amish old and new order . The Beachy Amish are a loose association of communities with no central governing body. Hence, there are few features that all Beachy communities share.

Even if they kept the name “Amish”, they are very different from what is generally thought of as Amish: They neither use horse and cart, nor do they - with a few exceptions - speak Pennsylvania German . They also have very few restrictions when it comes to modern technology. In the three decades after World War II , most transformed into evangelical , revival churches. The traditionalists, who wanted to preserve the old forms and traditions of the Beachy Amish, then withdrew from the existing communities and founded their own communities. Today they are known as "Old Beachy Amish" or "Midwest Beachy Amish Mennonite Church".

history

The Beachy Amish emerged from a division of the Amish old order in Somerset County, Pennsylvania in 1927 . Bishop Moses M. Beachy led the ward during this time and his name became the name of the group. The Beachys advocated less severe punishment for members whose only offense was conversion to another Anabaptist church.

The Beachy Amish became a more evangelical group by the mid-20th century, both through the inclusion of revival Amish supporters who had left their original churches and joined the Beachy Amish, and through growing awakening influence within the Beachy Amish.

Differences from the old Amish order

Unlike the old order Amish, the Beachys have meeting houses, Sunday schools, and a Bible school for young adults. Most also support missionary work. Ban and avoidance are practiced less often and accompanying prohibitions are even rarer.

Most of the Beachy churches today are more like the Conservative Mennonites than the old-order Amish. Practices and lifestyle that are still similar to the ancient Amish order include:

  • Women wear headgear
  • Married men wear beards in most communities
  • Television and radio are prohibited

Practices that distinguish Beachy Church from ancient order Amish include:

  • Colloquial language is English, hardly any knowledge of German
  • Filtered internet is allowed in most communities
  • Men wear ready-made clothes, not self-made clothes
  • Personal ownership and use of cars
  • Hardly any restrictions on the use of modern technology
  • Strong missionary focus

Population and distribution

In 2000 there were 7,365 members out of a total population of approximately 14,000 in 103 Beachy Amish parishes, most of them in Pennsylvania , Indiana, and Ohio . International Beachy Churches or Missions exist in El Salvador , Belize , Nicaragua , Costa Rica , Paraguay , Ireland , Ukraine , Romania , Kenya , Australia and Canada . Mission work is sponsored by Amish Mennonite Aid (AMA), Mennonite Interests Committee (MIC) or individual churches.

literature

  • Alvin J. Beachy: The Rise and Development of the Beachy Amish Mennonite Churches . Mennonite Quarterly Review, Vol. 29, No. 2, 1955, pages 118-140.
  • Aaron Lapp: Weavertown Church History . Sugarcreek: Carlisle Printing 2003.
  • JB Mast: Facts Concerning the Beachy AM Division of 1927 . Meyersdale, PA 1950.
  • Mennonite Church Information 2007 . Harrisonburg: Christian Light Publications 2007.
  • Devon Miller: Amish Mennonite Directory . Millersburg, OH 2008. A directory of all US and Canadian Amish Mennonites, including the Beachys.
  • Dorthy Schwieder and Elmer Schwieder: The Beachy Amish in Iowa: A Case Study . Mennonite Quarterly Review, Vol. 51, No. 1, 1977 p. 41-51.
  • Elmer S. Yoder: The Beachy Amish Mennonite Fellowship Churches . Hartville, OH 1987.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Beachy Amish Mennonite Fellowship in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia online.
  2. ↑ Midwest Beachy Amish Mennonite Church in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia online.
  3. ↑ Donald B. Kraybill and Nelson Hostetter: Anabaptist World USA , Scottdale, PA, and Waterloo, ON, 2001, 144.