The Dead Go on to the Afterlife Naturally, the Amish grieve the loss of a loved one, as anyone does, but this grief is tempered by their belief that the deceased leave the physical world to be with God in the spiritual afterlife.
They believe in the Trinity and in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Like many other fundamentalist groups, they believe in life after death through Heaven or Hell. According to the Amish, salvation is a gift from God. For the Amish, salvation is an everyday experience.
Plain Community Burials
Embalming the body is permitted and is done by a local funeral home, being careful not to apply makeup or making cosmetic corrections. After embalming, the family takes over, dressing the loved one in all white and placing them in a simple handmade wood casket.
We believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Christ, a free gift bestowed by God on those who repent and believe.
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.
Feminine Hygiene
Female Amish wash their hair and wear it in a bun. As for makeup, Amish women aren't allowed to wear cosmetics or adornments considered worldly. This includes lipstick, mascara, eye shadow, and jewelry.
The Amish also believe marriage should be between a man and a woman. Same-sex relationships are not allowed within the Amish community. Unmarried Amish men and women aren't supposed to have any physical contact with each other. This includes kissing, hugging, and even holding hands.
Differences and remarriage
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.
The Amish people speak of a living hope of salvation. Their version of being born again is referred to as die neugeburt, and it points to a distinctive understanding of Christian salvation. The Amish view the new birth process as a metaphor for joining the community in a church.
Do the Amish celebrate Christmas? Yes, they do, although their customs are much simpler than our “English” customs. They are oriented toward the family and the religious meaning of the holiday.
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/ ...
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.
Fascinatingly, Amish women do wear underwear, but Amish men are prohibited from wearing underpants. Instead of conventional pajamas, Amish men generally wear long linen shirts to bed, although they do also wear flannel shirts in the winter to keep warm.
Their religious tradition predisposes them to forgive even before an injustice occurs. Amish faith is grounded in the teachings of Jesus to love enemies, reject revenge, and leave vengeance in the hands of God. As a father who lost a daughter in the schoolhouse said, "Forgiveness means giving up the right to revenge."
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.
Pennsylvania and Midwest Mennonite communities closely resemble Amish communities, as they also practice traditions like avoidance of worldly belongings and women wearing prayer caps. But unlike the Amish, most Mennonite congregations have become more and more modern with time.
Amish Marriage. Marriage between Amish and outsiders is rare. That's because it's not allowed by Amish Law. However, should an outsider decide to convert to the Amish faith and get baptized, they'll be accepted as a member of the Amish community.
The Amish believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and would be a part of the protestant stream of theology. They emerged from the Anabaptists who began in the early 1500's. The Anabaptists, meaning re-baptizers, broke from the Catholic Church over infant baptism among other things.
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.
The Amish Community and Dating
Dating among the Amish typically begins around age 16 with most Amish couples marrying between the ages of 20 and 22.
In the case of Amish women, this identification of marital status is very simple. The bonnets they wear are how to tell if an Amish woman is married. They all wear traditional bonnets on their heads, but while single women wear black, married women wear white.
Many Amish women get pregnant between the ages of twenty to twenty-two. This is because Amish culture encourages dating early, from sixteen. Amish couples start having children immediately after marriage as they perceive children as gifts from God. An Amish team's average number of children ranges from seven to eight.
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.
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.
In line with their beliefs and traditions, the Amish don't wear personal jewelry. While this means they don't show off their marriage in the way most other Americans do, they're no less joyous and celebratory of their commitment.