Amish paradise??

Reading yesterday’s USA Today’s article on the Amish, in light of their recent school shooting, I was reminded of just how important dialogue with other religions is, especially those who claim Christ as their model. With what this article put forth, we can certainly learn much by simply watching the Amish in their way of life. Sadly enough, much of what we can learn has already been taught by the Church for years. But that is exactly where we lack, I think—putting into action all that we profess, both directly and indirectly.

For instance, the Amish communities live out exactly that—community life. They are there for each other in both good times and in bad. According to the article, “…Amish less directly affected by the deaths helped to prepare for the series of wakes, funerals, burials and meals that began Tuesday and will continue through Friday.” In the next paragraph, it goes on, “On Wednesday, for instance, three Amish women dressed in black helped by mowing and raking the yard of… one of the murder victims.”

Also, those who lost children in the shooting forgave the shooter. “There faith tells them to suffer like Christ did on his way to the cross.” Why do you think that it is recommended for a Catholic to have a crucifix in every room? The answer is the same reason that every Catholic Church has the Stations of the Cross in it. Christ’s suffering is central to who we are and where we are today. It is through his suffering that the Eucharist became the Sacrament that it is for us today, thanks of course to his defeat of death. Man’s enemy had to be defeated by man. And Christ, as both human and divine, did just that—he defeated death by suffering far worse than we ever will have to.

True, the Amish religion has its shortcomings, such as, among other things, being “taught from a young age not to do anything to differentiate themselves individually”. Nonetheless, by simply looking at them, we can learn a lot. And this goes for any religion. But, at the same time, we must also hold true to what we do believe, and especially to our rational capacity (strengthened by our faith, of course), which keeps us from being led blindly. And this, I hope, is worthy of leading into my reflections next week on the Holy Father’s recent speech in Germany, which was wrongly reacted to as bashing Islam, Fundamentalism, and other systems of belief and theology. As you will see, I feel it had a much different tone to it.