The lives of the Amish in the US | DW Documentary

The lives of the Amish in the US | DW Documentary

They lead their lives almost the same way they did 300 years ago the Amish are a religious community in the US that originated in Europe their rules are called odnom and include adult baptism and at times in strict communities the refusal of technological advancements they wear old-fashioned clothes and head

Coverings and the men have long beards spending time with the Amish is like delving into the Past my name is Ena Sall I am married to Martha Miller Sall now we have seven children we are old order Amish and we live on a 94 Acre Farm we try to stay out of Technology we try to stay away from that as much as we can the more you keep away from it the better we we like it just too much technology just brings problems 40-year-old Enos is a farmer and a blacksmith his children are

Between 5 and 15 years old the slave off family lives in Middlefield Ohio in Joga County home of one of the world’s largest Amish communities the old order Amish is horse oriented you know we don’t use vehicles or tra it’s more just horses so so yeah that’s that’s been a

Long time uh tradition is using horses is our way of life the way we hide these horses together to work three of them AB breast is all what my dad caught me you know I’ve from the young boy we we did though it’s 5:30 a.m. the two eldest Sons 12-year-old Marcus and 9-year-old

MyON are helping their father in the tables before school get and them Pi old seeds life according to the old N means no cars television or computers electricity comes only from batteries and generators enus owns 21 horses which he loans out for farm work and transport besides that he lives from selling his

Harvest and from his work as a blacksmith whatever feed I can raise then I don’t have to buy it saves me $3,000 a month if I raise this I got to thinking about this well 3,000 a month I yeah it’s well worth it that’s 36,000 a year you know that’s

Literally like making money you know really I mean if you save that it’s money you don’t have to spend so you can get by cheaper so it’s well worth it Marcus and Myon are always there to Help they have to do their chores in the morning they get up early in the morning and then feed all the animals and get ready to go to school and come back home and do it all over again school starts at 8:30 it’s 3 km away the respect and and behavior is

Taught at a very small age that will lead them through the rest of their life what you teach them when they’re young is what stays with them all your Life there are 350 private Amish schools across Ohio the Amish pay school tax that allow them to run private schools with their own teachers whether at home in places of worship or at school in Middlefield people enjoy singing together but only religious songs there’s only one class which teaches children between 5 and

14 the Bible takes up most of the the lesson explains teacher Kathleen Sall well we usually do well in the morning we sing first we say the Lord’s Prayer and sing then they usually do their writing first and spelling and arithmetic vocabulary after lunch we usually do English geography and that about TS it up German is us the first thing in the morning

Also after eth grade when children turn 14 their education is over but what if students want to continue learning I don’t know I’ve never heard of someone who like to be a doctor pilot or something factories Carpenters Masons pretty much anything to Kathleen the Bible has utmost Priority it’s very important our that’s the main reason that we want our school is because we’re so allowed to teach them the Bible and teach them about God becoming an Amish teacher doesn’t involve lengthy studies in higher education they begin as a teaching assistant accompanying lessons for 4

Years beyond that there are several private courses on offer as well as meetups where teachers can exchange Experiences Yes just like it any other school everyone loves recess after school kids have chores awaiting them at home 12-year-old Raymond slay ball is no different uh we just go home and it’s basically whatever my our dads and moms have us to work or sometimes if FL but

No usually we don’t have homework the Amish preserves centuries old Tradition John gingerich is the son of an Amish father and a non-amish mother he’s very familiar with life in the community he’s been collecting interesting and noteworthy artifacts from Amish history years ago he and several members of the Amish community founded this library and museum in Middlefield it houses over 300

Books we founded this library in 2014 with the purpose of collecting and preserving the history of the Amish uh focusing on this community in northeastern Ohio and also Amish history in general uh we’ve been collecting old books Bibles prayer books articles of clothing documents letters some going

Back to the 16th century uh all relating to Amish History we have for example a Bible that was printed in Zurich Switzerland by the fro shower printing firm that was printed in 1534 so it’s a very early German Printing old handsone dolls without faces or embellishments are meant to discourage children from pride and vanity as per the rules of the old order Amish not every Community interprets these strict rules the same way but certain values have remained unchanged these include a bond with nature and

With horses as well as the practice of traditional skilled trades this Workshop produces kitchen and bedroom Furnishings Ray slau employs 13 Amish workers since Amish people are not allowed to own a computer they receive their orders through a service contractor who delivers the orders on paper the countless machines are powered

With generators and batteries the community allows electricity for business operations the order books are chalk full do we modernize a little bit more so than our parents yes uh I think every generation goes through that but we try to keep uh you know what’s important to us is is horse and Buggies

That’s our mode of transportation but in our work in our business we also have drivers that drive for us to deliver our products uh to take us to measure jobs uh Etc Rey is a member of the old order every member of the Amish community must decide for themselves how much they wish

To adapt to the modern world but one thing always remains certain church and family comes before the business every time or supposed to sometimes we have to remind ourselves of that Ry needs to be available for his customers this is why the old order Amish permit telephones and answering

Machines if it’s for business purposes but not at home too much technology disrupts Family Life often times we’re eating supper and somebody calls we’ll let it ring like we’re eating supper I to be in the house you’d probably have to pick it up you know so Ry and Mary have nine children

Between 6 and 20 years old possible that we can accomp the eldest daughter also lives on the farm along with her husband and child I the one that you know um sure there’s food here sure there’s clothes um and you know keep the house clean and then the husband is usually

The one that is I guess you say the winner he’s the one that goes out with the has a job and brings money in to support the family the gender roles are accepted unconditionally as per their interpretation of the Bible God comes first followed by men then women then

Children amongst themselves they speak Pennsylvania Dutch but it’s actually more like a southern German dialect we call it that’s how we call it I usually raise my own deas but I not having enough room in my garden this year so yeah I’m just buying them I guess usually it’s time for myself

Usually after the kids are in bed or that hour I had in the morning when my older kids go to work and before the younger kids that go to school you know I’ve got from 6:00 to 7:00 that’s usually my time before lunch Mary quickly takes down the laundry 14 people live

Here I have about six loads every time I do laundry um cowels and you know all that and then the darks which is that that over there is usually around five loads every day um no it’s every other day I just do Monday Wednesday and Friday okay we’ll do a silent

Traditionally Amish people pray together before each meal meat with mashed potatoes is a frequent Dish It’s an esteemed virtue among the Amish to cultivate what the community needs with their own hands but only 7% of this community can live exclusively from what their harvests yield enus is Changing Horses the other horses are tired from working in the sun uh in the heat oh

Oh in the heat they have to drink lot oh his wife Mary and daughter Rachel take a taxi back home from grocery shopping the stores are too far away for a horse and buggy I’m here to uh uh take uh enus or his family to places they

Need to go to if they if they want to go somewhere this that’s further than a horse and buggy would take them yeah Jim rudasill has been driving the slay ball family for 12 years no I I would I wouldn’t want to be omish I I I’m too used to the way of

Life that I have and you know I understand why they do what they do it’s it’s part of how they feel they should live and you know that’s that’s fine I have no problem what I’m doing at 15-year-old daughter Rachel finished school a year ago now she’s helping out

On the farm for the most part she’s responsible for the laundry and looking after the horses what about the future well probably be a mom Mar you be a mom work with es that’s one thing I want to give I like my life the way it is and I

Wouldn’t wish it for any other way um I still yeah I like my life away Chester Curts a friend of enus arrives at the farm on his horse granny well I am here cuz uh enus is my blacksmith he puts some H shoes on my

Horse let to trim his feet and reho him so uh here I am Chester isn’t a farmer he’s a construction manager and a subcontractor arranging jobs for Tradesmen he lives 7 miles away hard does not feel it you can see she doesn’t even Flinch with 8,000 horses in and around

Middlefield there’s always lots of work for blacksmiths a profession being kept Alive by the Amish community there’s there’s almost no young English kids have an interest in non Amish I guess yeah would be the right term for they just it’s it’s work and that’s not in the new generation’s

Agenda you’re looking not so many people do it yeah there in the past 5 years there’s been quite a few Amish started Simon ball and there’s a there’s a good group of young Amish faers that are really doing Good granny is all done an entire horseshoe set costs $400 per horse Chester is on the way to his next errand his buggy needs new Wheels an estimated 370,000 Amish people live in the USA most in Indiana Pennsylvania and Ohio these states have several thousand Buggies that means plenty of jobs for a carriage Builder like Al Yoda Al’s grandfather used to own this Workshop the wheels for Chester’s buggy are due today is that what you were finding Lo this after yeah I got the tire all ready to go all I got to do is pop forb heat

It up in the past only wooden Wheels with steel were permitted now most Amish buggies have rubber wheels so I see you got a lot of slack there yeah it is changing uh the yeah the rules did change on that the last years and not just with buggies but our whole culture

Is being able to adapt you know if we have uh strict rigid rules and we’d still live or try to make a living like we did in the 1800s we couldn’t we couldn’t compete in our businesses we couldn’t so I think to me uh the reason that we as a culture

Are still surviving is because we have been able to adapt uh to the economy and to you know social pressures we’ve been able to regulate uh the amount of Technology we allow and and still try to keep a balance in our family values and and business Chester’s wheels are ready

$1,600 for a set of four time to Beat It 2 km away Chester and his family live on a small farm he and his wife Martha have seven children they too follow the old Amish UNG at home with little technology electricity restricted to batteries and generators old-fashioned washing machines and heating with wood

From the nearby Forest even with during Co and and all this turmoil about you know uh that was worldwide we’ve been able to retain a a way of living that promotes inner peace and I don’t think that’s possible with uh if you’re always 247 if you’re completely connected to social media and

The out outside world and even even businesses completely run uh with you know programs to Plat instant communication um great it’s great for a business I’m so happy I can step back from it and that’s the way I keep my Sanity in the early morning he heads to his construction business it’s 20 M away too far for horse and buggy he takes a private taxi instead he says he doesn’t find the Amish lifestyle hypocritical for allowing modern technology in businesses and offices it’s allowed for business if I

Don’t own it so at home No Mr berer and in order to succeed and make a living and support our family uh we can’t compete if we’re out here trying to build houses with hand saws and Hammers and Nails we would have no job because it would take us way too

Long and nobody could get a hold of us you know Chester used to be a carpenter in bricklayer according to a study by Elizabeth Town College in Pennsylvania over 80% of Amish business are very successful I don’t have a college education I don’t even have a high school

Diploma um but the education I have is on the job and learning from my masters and teachers I think it’s just because of our work ethic uh we tend to start small uh and you know offer our services or we work with our hands there’s always

A demand for that so it is very possible even with eight grades of education for an Amish businessman to succeed Chester oversees several projects in the area surrounding Middlefield one of them is the construction of this 2 million Villa for an American businessman Wayne just started here

Fresh out of school he’s the 14-year-old son of Chester’s cousin I have to make smaller the smaller and Supply stop with stop break and keep them supplied sometimes I have to cut yeah I I Like yeah so he’s he’s being paid about $15 an hour and that’s that’s where it starts and then as you uh gain more experience um so like my top foremen the manage the top managers in our in our company are being paid about $32 an hour at this point so but that constantly

Changes too Amish teenagers are only allowed to keep a small part of their earnings before they turn 20 until then the parents receive their income some of them continue to live at home but now they pay rent for their room and B Bo another major difference within the

Amish community is their Health Care System they use the same Services as the general public but they don’t have health insurance the community pays privately Chester and his non-amish friend John gingerich are attending an auction events like these are Central to their Healthcare this is a benefit auction and is something that happens

Quite regularly in our community but uh is to raise finances raise money money for medical expenses um but what it is is people just donate items to sell over Auction as a culture we don’t like to be dependent on government heal so we don’t want to accept any handouts we do not pay into Social Security we also don’t get the benefits we don’t get Medicaid or Medicare um but we do within the community we have some church

Or Community funded uh programs where it’s all nonprofit and so for myself I pay in about $200 every month and that gives me basic coverage up to $100,000 a year um that’s just for my family today they’re raising funds for a 10-year-old Amish boy who needs an operation the treatment costs

$50,000 more than 250 Amish people have come along in within our culture there is a lot of uh we call it gassen height okay and it means for the for the sake of the for the good of the whole okay it means putting your individual desires your

Selfish desires to the side and doing what is good for the community Treatments in hospitals and medical practices are covered through the so-called Amish fund and auctions like these 22 the bidding was a success they even managed to raise more money than was needed for the operation $80,000 in total [Applause] The Amish have no governing body that dictates what a state’s Church districts should and shouldn’t do there’s no official head of the church such as the pope for the Catholic Church however there are Bishops who are the spiritual leaders and heads of individual Church districts they decide how to interpret the old

Ordon I believe their their language their clothing styles the way they travel uh the way they live their lives at home uh without being connected to the public grid without being dependent on the government uh for their security uh I think they’ll retain that even over

The next 100 years once a year founding members of the library and Museum meet here including Chester Tom berer is the team leader he’s also a minister and a businessman from coach ranton Pennsylvania not far from Here Museum here we coming to we have a museum here we get together and have a good time and learn new things and try to help out in our communities young people learn from our heritage from our history about where we’re from from Germany and Switzerland this is coach Ranon where

Tom lives now he was 18 when he left his Amish family and joined the US Army he was stationed at the Ramin Airbase in Germany for 2 years at 22 he returned home got baptized and married today he has five children he’s a volunteer Minister and owns an antique

Store well I’ve always been excited about old things since I was a boy I like history but I like the old handmade quality stuff there’s so many things that are unique they’re handmade and it’s amazing what the older Generations how they would invent something there was no technology one thing that’s interesting

Here is as I was going along I like glass myself old glass I love old rare glass and I collect some myself I came up with this case here and I found this this old glass figurine of of the baby Jesus and Mary on the donkey I put it

Here and I started thinking and I wrote down take a good look at this baby we are here because of him so it’s like a witness to people down the road from his antique shop Tom has just opened up a bakery we don’t have a lot of uh you know

Farming going on in our community because of how it is with the farming indust you know the agriculture isn’t it like it used to be and the Amish are very business oriented small business you know small family businesses that uh you know that are run by families or

Friends and we work together as a team and that so yeah this is our Bakery Linda’s Bakery and I like our motto it says how can we make your day sweeter hi mvin this is it for yes okay okay we had a lot more this morning but I bet you Did Tom’s friends and family help out at the bakery American customers are especially fond of the cream filled cakes Tom and his family live from the business earnings his job as a minister is Voluntary every Sunday Amish communities attend 3-hour long church services in simple Parish Halls out inside the town Tom has been a minister here for 34 years we believe in total uh commitment when we marry we don’t believe in divorce you can’t be a member in our church and actually divorce we consider

Marriage one man one woman lifetime as it was ordained in the Bible yeah we ask that they stay together for Life yeah and it’s pretty rare amongst our people to find any divorce it can happen but it’s pretty rare Amish families have six children on

Average each seen as a gift from God you know can they can discontinue having children you know I can stop having children and for medical reasons yeah we think that’s okay but we don’t believe in abortion no Aborting they sing songs from the Asun a German language him book that’s the oldest of the anabaptist movement first printed in 1564 it’s been in continuous use to this day baptized members who leave the community are excommunicated from then on they’re allowed to remain in contact

But not to share a table with their own family 90 M away Lloyd and Edna Miller live with their six children they run their Farm on solar power they have Wall sockets for electricity a cell phone and they ride ebikes and quad bikes they live from their 50 dairy cows and the

Yields from their 40 Hector Farm Edna has all of the modern kitchen appliances her Amish community permits them most Amish people I would say do have some kind of a a mixer some some people that don’t have electricity they have mixers like this but they would be uh run with a battery

They have a battery they attached to the back here but yeah for us it’s we do have electricity so we just you see electricity Edna sees things pragmatically she’s open to talking about otherwise taboo topics like sex and contraception I think especially in our in my case we had our two two first

Children were C-section born by C-section so the other four were born naturally but the doctor told us it’s a risk to have a lot more children so I think for us it was a we just decided that’s enough and so we did measures to not to to prevent it

So I think if if if the ladies if the woman’s health is at stake I don’t I don’t think it’s wrong to do that if if the woman’s health is at risk but to just do it for a selfish reason like that you just don’t want to be bother

With more children I don’t think that’s really right but Edna is also critical of the Amish world I don’t want to paint a picture that these Amish people are just these perfect little Pious people they are not always because there is there are cases among the Amish and it’s it’s very sad

Because and that’s what I was saying is when when you have people that don’t have a relationship personally with God and then that that stuff happens but there are there are cases with and even fathers sexually abusing their children that has happened among the Amish and

It’s so sad it’s very sad and it’s a it’s a Disgrace her husband Lloyd enjoys the self- dependence of the Amish lifestyle when Co came um a lot of people panicked and and they were so people aren’t even sure where their food is coming from today uh and those are those are real life issues real life iss

Issues and I think you know um yeah we’re not completely um unreliable on things from on you know we buy some fuel we buy we um but for the most part we could be self- sustainable for quite quite a long time quite a especially within the group

Within the group of people that we personally know uh we could survive a pretty good long time without any outside input the pacifist Amish refuse to go to war for their country and the president but they do respect political leadership as ordained by God I have never voted I have never voted for anybody um and that’s a little controversial among Amish people we follow what Jesus taught when he said that he that takes the sword and defends himself or it will be killed by The Sword and he also said

That we should turn the other cheek so it shows somebody that’s res non-resistant if I vote and I put the commanderin-chief he’s the president is the commander-in-chief and he goes he’s the head of the army that he calls the orders um I would be um representing

That and although I have a high respect for authority I respect our president I respect I respect our leaders God ordained those people and and I I respect that here too the family prays before each meal as is tradition we thank him for our F Saints we all our

Give us Lord Our Daily Bread amen two of the six children still live on the farm daughter Julie and son Jason Edna rides her ebike to go shopping she says it’s quicker and more comfortable than then taking a horer Buggy and anyway the 12 miles over and back across the hilly landscape would be too strenuous for a horse she only buys what she doesn’t grow in her own garden and Fields I needed some bolt food stuff like stuff to bake my own bread like um flour and sugar these fruits and veggies here look so attractive and nice but I don’t I don’t need to buy them because I grow them in my own garden I think it’s just

A good feeling to grow your own and they’re not I don’t know if these veggies are sprayed or all that you know at home it’s like organic and I know I know where he comes from so that’s a good feeling Edna only visits the supermarket once a Week The Miller’s day begins early at 4:30 a.m. each day they milk their 50 cows the organic milk and meet the cow provide are in high demand the Millers are doing well financially milk prices are high and the family can live comfortably from their profits the youngest daughter Julie still works on the

Farm I know kind of what my my duties are here at home so I can kind of make my own schedule work extra hard one day then take the day off the next day once they complete School Amish teenagers have a chance to take a year off off

Known as ringer we don’t I don’t really Ro spring but I was to Florida already but I don’t really call that Ro springy like I wouldn’t do anything down there that I don’t do at home or like it’s not that I go down there and do an obnoxious obnoxious things

Or not far from here a group between 16 and 20 years old have arranged to meet now is the time to experiment with things that are otherwise forbidden like drinking smoking and driving at the end of this time the young people must decide between Modern Life or Amish life

So you’re not necessarily under the oing not really under the oing or the ording um at that time so that’s I mean your parents will admonish you and make sure you know you’re going the right path but you know as young kids sometimes we tend to stray away a little Bit when your room spring that’s when you’re old enough to to date a girl or a girl to date a boy uh that’s when you basically leave your parents on the weekends and go out with your friends members of this group drink alcohol and smoke but most of the time

Don’t it’s just a chance to you know hang out weekends and get to know you know and that’s when we start dating so you look for a Partner be room spring on your whole life I guess but it basically stops for you after after you’re member of the church after you get baptized in this group views are so solidified that none are too quick to jump at anything new the world has to Offer Yes every day we need God by us to guide us and and we absolutely depend on our faith to to pull us through and and I think if we try to follow his teachings and everything he will get us through hard times for Sure we always are looking to improve the future and and the more we teach our children respect uh we discipline them to to make them obey and everything is going to make the Amish a better future the Amish lifestyle is no longer as cut off as it

Once was the modern world has found its way in but nevertheless most Amish people still hold on to their centuries old principles and Values

A life just as it was 300 years ago: the Amish in the US. They live according to their own rules, reject technological advances, wear old-fashioned clothing and drive horse-drawn carts. An encounter with the Amish is like traveling back in time.

Originating from southern Germany and Switzerland, the Amish community brought its culture and language to the New World. Deeply rooted in their faith, the Amish adhere to strict codes and reject modern technology. For outsiders, these rules can sometimes appear strange. They traverse their rural communities in horse-drawn carts, but if a distance is too far, they’re allowed to use a shuttle service. They don’t use telephones unless it’s for business purposes and the device is located outside of the home.
Children are expected to help with housework even when they’re attending school. But before they’re baptized as young adults and finally become part of the Amish community, they’re allowed to try what’s called the rumspringa: a period of time when they’re encouraged to behave like regular teenagers – before deciding on which lifestyle they prefer. But those who opt for a conventional, modern existence are exiled. The film sheds light on a fascinating world governed by tradition.

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