The Amish are a close-knit community that strongly values Anabaptist origins and large families. They are also known for simple living, plain dress and aversion to the mainstream society’s fast-paced living and technology. Although some view this community as “stuck in time,” they are never really frozen. “No society can be frozen. They have to change — no matter what,” Cory Anderson, the speaker for Thursday’s Kreider Lecture, said.
Anderson is now completing his Ph.D. in rural sociology and is the manager of BeachAm.org. He is a co-editor and founder of a new publication called the Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies (JAPAS).
Anderson likened this new journal to a few other peer-reviewed scholarly journals, such as Mennonite Quarterly Review and Journal of Mennonite Studies. However, in JAPAS, there is more of a database, rather than a philosophical focus.
On March 20, Anderson explained to the group gathered in the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies why such a different community in relation to our mainstream society still exists after hundreds of years.
His main reasons were the following: ideology, social structure, socialization and population. Although each of these aspects is vital to Amish survival, they are connected in many different ways. Without one, the others will fail.
Anderson discussed that Amish ideology stresses their literal take on the Bible and heritage, shuns what is deemed wicked and values togetherness. Ideology is not enough; socialization and population remain the two most important influences on why the Amish have survived so long.
Every 22 years, the Amish population doubles because of a large birth rate. Amish couples that have no children are at an extremely low three percent and, within the Amish community, married couples average close to 16 years of fertility. In relation to the typical American society, the Amish have children at a younger age and continue childbearing until a later age.
With more and more people being born into this community, they have the numbers to keep their faith and lifestyle alive. Within the community, the Amish keep each other relatively close. The mainstream American society is more fragmented than that of the Amish. The Amish maintain more connections.
Anderson used the example of neighbors; in the Amish community, your neighbor might also be your brother or your child’s teacher, someone who practices the same religion as you and shares a common interest with you. In American society, your neighbor could just be your neighbor — no other ties bring you together.
This socialization relates back to the value the Amish place on the importance of togetherness. Socialization of young Amish people is vital because adults train children to live specifically in their society, not allowing them to experience anything different. This allows the young people of the society to grow into their roles and provide for their people.
During the lecture, Anderson also highlighted the importance of equality in the Amish community, something that creates more peace and prevents conflict. The ancestry, religion and clothing all provide more stability and satisfaction because they are the same.
One of the first things people recognize when coming across an Amish person is their individual choice in attire. The clothing is not only practical in keeping them warm, but also shows their religion and reinforces equality.
This sameness creates boundaries with the outside world, thus furthering them from it and diminishing its impact on their community. The clothing also differentiates them from the outside world so that they can be easily recognized.
When ideology, social structure, population and socialization are put aside, there are three things that come to mind as to why the Amish continue to flourish: rituals, shunning and rewards, Anderson concluded. These rituals that they share bring people together, and the rewards they give for tasks create a happier society than America’s mainstream.
Anderson noted that statistically, the Amish are happier than our society as a whole because they are not bothered by material things and enjoy more equality. The last explanation of why the Amish have survived is shunning — an effective interception to stop people from straying from the norm. A small part of the shunning is gossip. “It’s true. Gossip helps keep people in line because everyone and everything is so connected,” Anderson said.