Insidious. I’ve lived among them for 47 years and never realized it.
All the men have beards.
The women are covered head to foot. No skin showing but hands and face. And always the dark clothes, no bright colors. Outside of the home they always keep their heads covered.
You never see them smile. Never see them show humor.
No music except their holy music. No rock ‘n roll, bluegrass, jazz, blues. None of it.
You never see them in bars, never see them drink. No carousing. Although they do use the tobacco. No cussing from them either.
And they keep to themselves, very wary of outsiders.
Even amongst themselves they segregate. The women always off to the side, rarely congregating with the men.
The women staying at home to do the cooking, cleaning, housekeeping, child rearing, seldom seen outside without their men.
And the children, raised early to work. When they go to school it’s all grades in one room. And always studying that book.
They follow a very strict adherence to their religious texts. And if you leave the faith none will have anything further to do with you.
No public displays of affection. No hand holding, no kissing, no hugging.
And God forbid you should marry outside the faith.
With their names strange to American ears, they claim no allegiance to our laws, but that they are guided by the laws and teachings of their God, that is what guides them and what they live and breath and work and die by.
And such strict observance of prayer. Faithful to their services at the appointed time. The singing. Chanting. Praying. And always, that book. The one they live by. All they need they say. The word of their God handed down through his earthly messengers.
Yes, I see I’ve been a fool. All these years I’ve been blinded by their taqiyya while living right among them.
The blatant lie that theirs is a peaceful religion. That all they want is to live in peace and be left to themselves, to live as they believe their faith commands them to.
But no more can they fool me.
I see through it all now.
After all, if it looks like a duck, acts like a duck, walks like a duck, it must be a duck.
Right?
Update:
Right?
Wrong.
This was meant to be about appearances. How someone appears to us and our reaction to it, absent any other information beyond the appearance.
Or how someone wants to appear to us, though they may or may not be successful at it.
Or how someone wants us to perceive someone else. For good or for ill.
Muslims want us to think they are peaceful, that they can live among us, follow their own laws without imposing on us. And many do. But clearly, we have seen, a great many can't.
The Amish are a perfect example that it can be done if the people are truly willing to do so. They live peacefully among us but keep themselves separate from out modern trappings.
They largely follow their own moral laws and code. They do contribute to society and certainly the economy (the goods they make and sell) but they ask for and take little or nothing from it. They largely care for their elderly themselves. Unemployment is not a problem. The community takes care of itself without imposing it's beliefs on others.
But also I was thinking about our discussions on ODS. BNP. VB. and so forth.
Just because he has a Muslim name does not a Muslim make.. Just because he has socialist ideas does not make him an America Hating Manchurian candidate bent on the destruction of the United States.
Just because they say they're mainstream, they say they're peaceful, they say they are friends of the Jews doesn't mean it is so. Doesn't mean they aren't really anti-semites. Doesn't mean they aren't racist.
So if someone tells you a man must be Muslim because "he has a beard" remember this post.
Conversely, if someone tells you they are Amish and look and dress the part, yet you see them going to mosque every Friday. . .
I think you get the idea. Maybe it was a clumsy way to go about it but strange things happen when I make notes deep in the night after hitting the Wild Turkey.
One final thing.
Lest anyone think otherwise, I have the deepest respect for The Amish. I don't agree with many of their ideas (pacifism for starters) but they walk the walk if you will. If I had faith as deep and strong as they I could move mountains.
And maybe we could take a bit of a lesson from them. Not necessarily their beliefs or religion, but the way they live their lives. Simply. Off the grid.
When that EMP goes off they are best set to survive the aftermath.
If they could only take up the gun.
39 comments:
True, but there's far more meaning here than that.
And I suspect either you, Epa or Revere will be the first to see it.
Something that stands out about such sects as the Amish and some other ultra-orthodox religious groups in the US is that they do not proselytize and seek to gain converts. Non-mainstream religions such as the Mormons, which do proselytize, have submitted to the rule of the Constitution and do not engage in illegal acts. (Of course the fundamentalist Mormon sects do that all the time and get away with it anyway.)
One reason conflicts arise over "cults" is that cults aggressively seek converts, frequently use deceptive and manipulative means of recruitment, often threaten and/or persecute those who leave, and usually stage aggressive campaigns to discredit critics. They have that in common with Islam.
I would quite certainly have become an ex-Amish/Mormon/ultraorthodox anything I was raised (instead of low-church Episcopalian) in by the time I was about 19. But we are all raised in some belief system and must make choices as adults whether to remain with them. For some people this is more of a challenge than for that. Those who leave the Amish life make a painful choice that cuts them off from their family and their past. But no one goes out looking for them with a knife or gun. The Amish belief system tells them to remain apart, not to force others to follow their ways.
So long as renunciation of the initiation of force is practiced, people can follow all sorts of beliefs while respecting one another's rights. Once force is introduced the whole picture changes. The threat of force is built into Islam and until it is universally renounced they don't get a free pass like the Amish.
It ain't gonna be me. Can't wait to hear the explanation to the mystery though.
:)
midnight rider,
The Amish are a pacifist faith. How can they be violent? How can they be a threat to America? They are not even allowed to kill in self defense. They maybe fundamentalists, but they are peaceful fundamentalists. I wouldn't be happy living as one of them personally, but there not about to arm themselves and try to force non Amish to accept their culture. I don't even think that they vote, so how could their pacifist ideas influence our foreign policy?
I thought that the Amish made their own booze. I could be mistaken about that.
And they do allow Rumspringen (sp?) so as to choose whether or not to come back to the Amish community.
Always On Watch,
I agree, whatever criticisms one my have of the Amish, they are not violent.
The post is partly metaphorical and not intended to slur the Amish, Damien. I know fully the Amish are not violent but extremely peaceful, though you wouldn't want one to take you behind the woodshed or have even the friendliest wrestling match with one of their farmboys.
midnight rider,
Than what exactly is the point of the post?
They do make their own booze. They do smoke, and they don't cover their womenfolk up. I have worked with them in bakeries all around Lancaster County. They are the most generous people....don't buy dogs from the Amish, though, they tend to be dangerously inbred and can snap after a year or two. MRs point is well taken. I completely get it. He isn't smearing the Amish or Mennonites, he's smearing the smearers who equate these fundamentalists with the Muslim kind.
Jewel,
That makes sense.
midnight rider,
I that what you are doing?
Jewel -- I was hoping you'd read this. I knew you worked and lived closer to them than I.
In part Jewelhas it. But there's more.
Keep talking. And don't think just Jihadis and Amish, though that is part of it.
It's always a hot topic here, one Damien and Pasto and Epa & I always agree on, as do most, but not all, others.
Been a couple slow days, stretch them brains :)
Well, if it's about obeying a god, you know I'm going to have to fold 'em and walk away from this one. I only follow a philosophy that demonstrates it is immoral to initiate force against anyone, so what do I know.
But if you are going to obey a god, make sure it is one who does not require you to harm others. The Muslims have one who does. The Amish do not. Big difference.
MR,
FYI...My father was of Mennonite stock, a particular offshoot therefrom: the Dunkards.
Is it something to do with words and actions ie if your religion preaches peace with its words then the actions of its people following the words should also be peaceful as demonstrated by the amish?
AOW,
I met a woman recently who was raised Mennonite. She decided to leave the faith when she was in her early 20's, and her whole family abandoned her.
Very sad.
She's about 50 now, but you could still see the pain in her eyes, when she talked about it.
Appearances should always be double-checked against actions. Unfortunately, in the case of Muslims being consistent with the core teachings of their religions has the opposite result from that of the Amish. In the case of Islam it is those who do not "walk the walk" who are safe to be around.
And I only really trust the ones who have bailed out altogether. They are literally risking their lives to live by their own principles. That's walking the walk in my book.
The Amish are way cool. There are a ton of them in Southern Indiana. They make amazing furniture. Jewel's right about the puppy mills, though. I see carloads of teenage Amish folks sometimes. It's weird.
There are a lot of Mormons down here, too. While I fully believe that Mormonism is a cult, I have always found the Mormons I've known to be very kind, gracious, giving people. They also have lots of kids, which is good.
jdamn13,
I agree, contrary to what many people think, the big problem is that too few westerners are willing to have large families. If they were, Europe might not be importing so many Muslim Jihadists without even realizing it.
Jaco, you touched upon a point of contention that I have with the dunkards. Not DRUNKARDS people, but the Anabaptists or as they are sometimes called here: Dunkards. It is the whole concept of Meidung, or shunning. Meidung isn't just applied to those who turn away from the faith, but who may even embrace a tenet within the schism of the Amish. There are many kinds of Amish and Mennonites, and you can be shunned for switching within the community of Amish. On the other hand, it is the concept to forgive even the most heinous sin committed against them by 'the English' and suing outsiders isn't very common. Recently, here, there was a suit thrown out of court against an Amish man suing his family.
But putting that all aside, and focusing upon the vilification of Christians by the left tards and the press and grubmint: Realzing that when you blame the Jooz for everything that goes wrong, long after you've run out of jooz, it is always best to have a back up scape goat, and Christians fill the bill nicely, since they exhibit paranoid tendencies like: Patriotism, rigid moral absolutism, intolerance for lifestyles that are at odds with whatever they 'deem' moral or normal. You get it.
Damien -- precisely the point Steyn makes in America Alone.
Jewel can attest to this: The Amish cooking is second to none.
I agree about the Mormons but I will also say the woman who got me back to shooting again a few years ago (right after V Tech) was a wonderful grandmother I work with. Sweet little old lady who was intent on and got her concealed carry permit and can handle a handgun very well. I've seen her targets.
She's a devout Mormon.
Revere -- everything you said a resounding yes.
MR-I thought you were headed in the direction of the report - last night -Thurs.- somewhere on FOX-about the Amish having a robust economy....
Of course-the image that drew me to watch was the beautiful horse pulling the buggy...
HMMM-horses are kind-quiet while doing their work -and -well-the Amish seem to be doing OK $$$ wise- and they still use them ....
C-CS
CS-- I missed that report. That would have been interesting.
Horses pulling buggies are a peaceful idyllic sight.
Until you get behind one on a narrow road :)
You can always tell it's a tourist in front of you around here. They slow down to look at the buggies. You watch them -- can predict -- when they're going to slow down and point out cows or sheep in a field to their kids.
Bad joke: What goes clop clop clop clop clop BANG clop clop clop clop?
An Amish drive by shooting (quit yer groanin')
If they could only take up the gun.What will the Amish do when the slaves of Allah come for them? Did anyone ever put this question to the Amish?
Abu -- I agree. I said they are best prepared to survive the EMP if they'd take up the gun. Truth is, without that, in an event like that their's are the first places that would be raided as things stand now.
Midnight rider,a well written and thoughtful piece....I think we could all do with observing the way the Amish live off grid, sounds like a very 'robust' people to me...
wow, look what happens when you get busy for a day ... now I have a zillion comments to bloviate over
While I am not sure if the Amish regard the bible as the untouched word of god, it is what THEY believe about what the Lord requires of them which distinguishes them.
As it does for those who self identify within the ascendant form of Islam today.
The Amish believe if you do not follow their ways you better find them to discuss it quietly and find a better path in that way.
Like the jews who lived thru the ages (some for their own reasons, and some enforced by outside societies) apart very much as the Amish, there is little force behind the idea of searching out more to believe in the way they do.
Being different for reasons of faith has a very ancient history among men, but only a very few groupings find in that difference group violence as either a means to spread the faith which makes them apart, or to be called to death to fulfill that separateness. I would imagine that to the Amish such martyrdom would be honorable in upholding the pacifism central to the devotion to God. As among the jews it has been to save the Torah from physical destruction.
Being different for reasons of faith has ALWAYS inspired suspicion and tribal accusations, even today, we find the so called highest minds in the most developed society merely framing thought to justify the suspicions. I am confident we can find such stupidities about the Amish.
I have seen women with head coverings so becoming and so strikingly beautiful themselves that it is minutes before I realize why they MIGHT be covered.
I don't associate it with danger.
THEN.
Only after am I left wondering what is taught at the religious school where the woman attends mosque.
Is martyrdom in suffering the fate of hewing to your faith, your difference, in conscious decision alone?
Or is martyrdom the act of killing those who are not like you because your conscience has been set free from the responsibility for their deaths, because THAT IS WHAT IS TAUGHT?
There may be hints about a group because the differences in how they appear suggest they belong to a group whose consciences MAY be untrammeled in this way...but that is all.
Hints, may, appearance.
This is America.
A lot of refugees and children of refugees here, who WERE DIFFERENT from the group
It's tough to think past tribal suspicions.
And remain vigilant as well.
But if it was easy, trained dogs could do it....
Pastorius,
I met a woman recently who was raised Mennonite. She decided to leave the faith when she was in her early 20's, and her whole family abandoned her.My father used shunning only one time, and it had nothing to do with leaving the faith. In fact, my father left the Dunkard sect when I was about 4 years old.
When Dad shunned his sister, he first gave fair warning, his sister refused, he shunned her.
In a way, shunning is a form of peer pressure and discipline. Worked well for me, a headstrong child who'd have gotten into a heap of trouble had I not understood that shunning was a possibility.
Odd thing about shunning as I've seen it: shunning doesn't mean not forgiving. I can't really explain exactly how it works as I wasn't reared as an Anabaptist.
Abu Abdullah,
You wrote,
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If they could only take up the gun. What will the Amish do when the slaves of Allah come for them? Did anyone ever put this question to the Amish?
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When the Jihadists come for the Amish, they will either submit or be killed. Pacifism is self defeating, because pacifists need people who reject Pacifism to defend them. The really sad thing is through that the Jihadist would have absolutely no appreciation for the peaceful, cooperative nature of Amish culture. In fact, they would just kill them or make them into Dhimmi's like they would do with all non Muslims.
An interesting side note about the Amish verses Muslim Fundamentalism is that by our standards, Amish women are very modest, but Islam is so extreme in its treatment of women, that it would see them as harlots.
You might be surprised to find the Mennonites flung far and wide across the planet. There are many living in central America and South America. They have communities all over the world. When the first persecutions came at the hands of the Catholics and even the Protestants in the late 1600s and early 1700s they fled and went to two places: Pennsylvania (which was established by Penn as a religious sanctuary for Huguenots, Quakers and Amish, as well as other sects within Christianity...you might be surprised to find that some of the colonies persecuted non Protestants, and Maryland was a haven for Catholics facing persecution in Massachussetts and Connecticut). And the Mennonites went to Southern Russia, which had been opened by Catherine the Great to them to populate parts of Russia with Germans. Many fled from their before WWI and came here to the US. Usually, when it comes to faith under persecution, it's flee or die with the Mennonites.
As for war, and pacifism, many have served as medics in the Army and Navy, valiantly.
What's stopping the Amish from hiring mercenaries for protection? That way, they can still be pacifist.
Not only are they Pacifist, they are notoriously cheap.
I, for one, would do it just for their cooking.
Are you saying that they are so cheap as to be unwilling to hire mercenaries? Then that's dumb.
Abu Abdullah,
You Wrote,
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What's stopping the Amish from hiring mercenaries for protection? That way, they can still be pacifist.
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Even if they had the money, they couldn't do that without violating their religious tenets.
If people can pretend that meat comes from supermarkets, then the Amish can cherry-pick the Bible to make it kosher.
Abu Abdullah,
They'd still be going against their long held traditions.
Those of you with guns in Amish country may want to lend a helping hand when the s*** hits.
After the girls in that Amish school were killed, I wanted to help them out. The Mennonites were the group that facilitated getting the money and material to the Amish. The Amish were very grateful and did not refuse any help from the "English."
I think they gave some of the cash to the widow and kids of the murderer, if I recall correctly.
So, all you "English" out there close to those communities with means to help protect them may want to consider that.
Ro
Ro -- already considering that. You are correct. They did help out the widow and kids of the killer. And they forgave the killer. That takes a faith you & I can't understand. I have a very dear friend who lives under two miles from the schoolhouse.
But you got to git your Dutch accent on. It's "Anglish".
:)
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