Plain Answers About the Amish Life (10 page)

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Submission
: Following the technology rules of the order demonstrates obedience to God, to the group, and to history.

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Community
: Staying off the grid prevents dependence on the outside world.

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Simplicity
: Life without computers, e-mail, or other forms of electronic interruption is more peaceful.

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Thrift
: A low-tech life prevents excessive phone bills, car insurance premiums, cable TV charges, Internet costs, music download fees, and so on.

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Family
: Owning and driving one's own car provides too many opportunities for temptation and allows one to roam too far from home.

Also, it's important to remember that external technologies such as cars are used only with intention, never capriciously. An Amish person would never hire a car and driver for a mere joy ride. The ride in the car needs to come from necessity; for example, a doctor's appointment or to visit a distant relative.

Rules that seem contradictory usually relate to the overriding goal of being masters over technology rather than slaves to it. Any non-Amish person who has ever felt a prisoner to a constantly ringing phone or a full e-mail inbox can surely understand that concept.

Who and/or what determines if a technology fits into the value system?

As explained in chapter 9, “Rules,” when a new technology becomes available to a district, church leaders will evaluate its potential for causing harm to Amish life and values and then decide whether to allow it. No technology, regardless of how labor-saving it may be, is permissible if the leaders determine it will be spiritually detrimental to the community.

What are some examples of acceptable technological devices?

Though the rules vary widely from district to district, many technological items are allowed in Amish homes and farms, such as
calculators, flashlights, manual typewriters, gas grills, chain saws, and inline skates. Some districts permit gas-powered lawn mowers and even weed whackers.

Is it true the Amish don't have electricity?

Yes. Most Amish do not have electricity in their homes.

Do they use other forms of power?

Yes. In many Amish homes and farms, certain items are allowed as long as they have been adapted to work with non-electric fuel sources, such as propane or batteries. These would include refrigerators, lights, shop tools, fans, copy machines, sewing machines, smoke alarms, some farm equipment, hot water heaters, washing machines, and more.

What do they use to power these adapted devices?

Not all districts allow all types of power, but the Amish have found remarkably ingenious ways to make their lives easier using permissible power sources instead of hooking into the grid, for example:

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lanterns and lamps powered by kerosene, naphtha, gasoline, or propane

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stoves powered by wood, kerosene, bottled gas, or propane

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refrigerators powered by kerosene or propane

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small appliances powered by compressed air

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plumbing powered by wind, water, gas, diesel, compressed air, or gravity

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water heaters powered by wood, coal, kerosene, or bottled gas

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household heaters powered by wood, propane, or natural gas

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washing machines powered by compressed air or gasoline

Is high-tech farm equipment also adapted?

Frequently, yes. Tractors often must be changed so that they can be used for off-road use only, lest they provide the opportunity to go too far from home. This usually means steel tires rather than rubber. In many communities, tractors are not used in the fields at all but instead may only be used inside or near the barn as sources for high-powered needs such as blowing silage to the top of silos, powering feed grinders and hydraulic systems, pumping liquid manure, and so on.

In most cases, hay balers can be used in the fields as long as they are pulled by horses rather than self-propelled.

What about digital technology?

Digital technology is one of the greatest current technological threats to the Amish way of life. As more and more Amish leave farming behind and take up manufacturing and other jobs, they are exposed to computers, cell phones, and the Internet. To further complicate matters, many Amish-owned businesses, including farms, have felt compelled to enter the computer and cell-phone age as well.

If this type of technology is such a problem, why don't the Amish just ban digital devices altogether?

When the success or failure of a business depends on a device, leaders hesitate to draw the line and say it cannot be used—at least, not hastily and without an enormous amount of thought and debate first. How these problems will be handled remains to be seen.

Have the Amish ever faced anything like this in the past?

To an extent. For example, the use of tractors on farms has been problematic for years. Starting as far back as the 1920s, leaders have faced tractor-related conundrums that have required much thought and careful decision making all along the way, especially with the release of each new type of tractor technology that has come along.

Isn't there a big difference between a tractor and a laptop?

Yes. Unfortunately for the Amish, digital technology development races along at a speed far greater than that of mechanical tractor
development. Until districts draw hard-and-fast rules for or against various types of digital technology, more and more Amish are gaining exposure to and experience with them.

What about cell phones?

Cell phones are a huge issue as they are used both by parents in the workplace and often by teens prior to baptism. One isn't likely to see a cell phone at an Amish dinner table anytime soon, but many are kept tucked away to be used in more private moments.

One Amish mother explains that she wouldn't have a problem with her teens owning cell phones (as long as they didn't use them while inside the home), but she
is
concerned about the Internet access that her children would get through those cell phones.

Until a final decision is made, this quiet infiltration is likely to continue. On a recent trip to Lancaster County, I personally saw a sight that made me do a double take: an Amish youth, relaxing on a trampoline in his front yard, busily texting away with his thumbs just like any other American teenager.

Are there rules about landline telephones?

Yes. Telephones are not installed in Amish homes, for various reasons, but primarily because:

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Landlines form a connection with the world.

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Telephones can disrupt the peacefulness of home life.

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Unnecessary telephone conversations can lead to gossip.

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Telephone use eliminates the need for many face-to-face interactions with other members of the community.

Because of the necessity of this type of communication in certain situations (emergencies, long-distance relationships that require an immediate response to a need or question, and necessary interaction with the non-Amish), shared telephones are used in most districts. Such phones will often be installed in barns or in “phone shanties” and are used by the surrounding families as needed.

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I cannot imagine what it would be like if we had a telephone in the house. Even with the phone out in the barn, our teenager already calls her friends two or three times a week!

What's a phone shanty?

A phone shanty is a little building, not connected to any home, that contains a telephone and phone book. Shanties are located between neighboring farms so they can be used by more than one family. Calls are recorded in a notebook or “call log” and bills settled at the end of each month.

Do these shared phones have voice mail or answering machines?

Usually they do, though messages may be checked and calls returned somewhat infrequently.

What about cameras? Is it true that the Amish don't want to be photographed?

Yes, that is true. Most Amish do not own cameras or take photographs, though this has nothing to do with restrictions on technology. Instead, they believe photographs are biblically prohibited by Exodus 20:4, which says, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.”

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TRANSPORTATION

Why don't the Amish use cars?

The Amish do not drive or own cars for several reasons, including:

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Humility
: A lack of expensive, fancy cars provides less opportunity for pride.

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Submission
: Following the transportation rules demonstrates obedience to God, to the group, and to history.

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Community
: When travel is limited, everyone stays closer together and depends on one another.

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Thrift
: Not owning a car eliminates loan payments, insurance, repairs, maintenance, and gasoline.

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Family
: Owning and driving one's own car provides too many opportunities for temptation and allows one to roam too far from home.

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Separation
: Their distinctive form of transportation provides a visible symbol of their separation from the world.

But why horse and buggy? Aren't there easier ways to get around?

The Amish say that riding in a horse and buggy keeps life at a slower pace and allows more time to look around and notice the beauty of their surroundings.

Are there rules related to Amish buggies?

Yes. Almost all aspects of buggies are regulated by the district in one way or another. These rules deal with color (black, gray, brown, white, or yellow), lights (battery powered or kerosene), style (covered or uncovered), mirrors, blinkers, safety markings, and more.

Why do I see Amish using different types of buggies?