Simple Dignity

P.O Box 1540, Albany Western Australia 6331
Phone/Fax: (08) 98 418 418
E-mail: abl-alb@omninet.net.au

Simple Dignity
It is obvious that the Amish have adopted something of a fortress mentality against the modern world. They do not confront the world beyond their communities with prophetic denunciation. Neither do they embrace the ways and means of a technological society wholesale. But there are many good things about their simple ways. The best-known features of the Amish way are not for everybody. And some of them seem not only "peculiar" but contradictory to their literalist beliefs. For example, the Bible's appeals for modest dress are meant to keep people from drawing undue attention to themselves. But what could draw more attention to a person in a crowd than eighteenth-century hats and clothes, hairdos and shoes? In the wake of the recent shooting in America of ten little girls in the West Nickel Mines Amish School and the death of five of them, some things more noteworthy than the quaint dress of these pietistic people has come to public attention. However, these qualities are far harder to come by than hook-and-eye fasteners. And they should not just be preserved by a mere handful of people who live in out-of-the-way agrarian cultures. For one thing, the Pennsylvania community of Amish who had been victimized by such horrible violence had the dignity to grieve together out of the public eye. They appointed no media spokesperson and hired no lawyers to file lawsuits. They huddled together, prayed for grace, and buried their dead. As they carried the bodies of their children to be buried, they did not route the procession of horses and buggies so as to avoid passing the house of their murderer. They even invited his widow and children to grieve with them. Then, when the 32-year-old man who had killed their children was buried, dozens of members of the Amish community were at the service. They joined in grief with his survivors. And when a fund was established to receive money for the burial expenses of the murdered girls and the medical expenses of the surviving ones, they insisted that the killer's family be helped from the same charity. A Detroit Free Press columnist said: "To an outside world that understands recrimination better than redemption, it was a dumb-founding spectacle." Indeed! Friend, as I reflect on the amazing fortitude and compassion displayed by that community of Amish people in Pennsylvania, who had suffered such a terrible tragedy, I can't help but acknowledge that what our world needs so desperately is not a ban on Uranium mining, the abandonment of computers, and the universal adoption of farming. More than anything else, we need the dignity and grace that come of a God-centred life. We need to learn humility, pardon, and unselfishness. We need to close gaps and build community. The truth is, whether you wear jeans or a business suit, you too can become a part of a unique and transforming experiment. The question is, where might you begin the process today? And as you consider the question I have just asked, I hope you will remember that wherever you are, whatever you do, you have a circle of influence which needs to be salted by a spirit of goodness which is gracious and kind. If you would like some help in cultivating gracious goodness, just write to me for a FREE booklet titled by that name, "GRACIOUS GOODNESS". My address is: P.O. Box 1540, Albany, W.A. 6331. You may also Phone/Fax your request on: (08) 9841 8418. Email: abl-alb@omninet.net.au I look forward to sharing more thoughts next week and hope this is a very good day for you.

Simple Dignity

It is obvious that the Amish have adopted something of a fortress mentality against the modern world. They do not confront the world beyond their communities with prophetic denunciation. Neither do they embrace the ways and means of a technological society wholesale. But there are many good things about their simple ways.

The best-known features of the Amish way are not for everybody. And some of them seem not only "peculiar" but contradictory to their literalist beliefs. For example, the Bible's appeals for modest dress are meant to keep people from drawing undue attention to themselves. But what could draw more attention to a person in a crowd than eighteenth-century hats and clothes, hairdos and shoes?

In the wake of the recent shooting in America of ten little girls in the West Nickel Mines Amish School and the death of five of them, some things more noteworthy than the quaint dress of these pietistic people has come to public attention. However, these qualities are far harder to come by than hook-and-eye fasteners. And they should not just be preserved by a mere handful of people who live in out-of-the-way agrarian cultures.

For one thing, the Pennsylvania community of Amish who had been victimized by such horrible violence had the dignity to grieve together out of the public eye. They appointed no media spokesperson and hired no lawyers to file lawsuits. They huddled together, prayed for grace, and buried their dead.

As they carried the bodies of their children to be buried, they did not route the procession of horses and buggies so as to avoid passing the house of their murderer. They even invited his widow and children to grieve with them.

Then, when the 32-year-old man who had killed their children was buried, dozens of members of the Amish community were at the service. They joined in grief with his survivors. And when a fund was established to receive money for the burial expenses of the murdered girls and the medical expenses of the surviving ones, they insisted that the killer's family be helped from the same charity.

A Detroit Free Press columnist said: "To an outside world that understands recrimination better than redemption, it was a dumb-founding spectacle." Indeed!

Friend, as I reflect on the amazing fortitude and compassion displayed by that community of Amish people in Pennsylvania, who had suffered such a terrible tragedy, I can't help but acknowledge that what our world needs so desperately is not a ban on Uranium mining, the abandonment of computers, and the universal adoption of farming. More than anything else, we need the dignity and grace that come of a God-centred life. We need to learn humility, pardon, and unselfishness. We need to close gaps and build community.

The truth is, whether you wear jeans or a business suit, you too can become a part of a unique and transforming experiment. The question is, where might you begin the process today? And as you consider the question I have just asked, I hope you will remember that wherever you are, whatever you do, you have a circle of influence which needs to be salted by a spirit of goodness which is gracious and kind.

If you would like some help in cultivating gracious goodness, just write to me for a FREE booklet titled by that name, "GRACIOUS GOODNESS". My address is: P.O. Box 1540, Albany, W.A. 6331. You may also Phone/Fax your request on: (08) 9841 8418. Email: abl-alb@omninet.net.au

I look forward to sharing more thoughts next week and hope this is a very good day for you.