Amish Religious Practices: How Do The Amish Worship?

A Quiet Faith: A Journey into How the Amish Worship

In the heart of our bustling, modern world, there exists a community of believers who walk a different path. We see them in their horse-drawn buggies, a quiet procession from another time. We notice their plain clothing, a gentle rebuke to the fashions of the age. They are the Amish, and their simple, separated way of life often sparks a deep and sincere curiosity in the hearts of fellow Christians. We may wonder: Who are these people? Is their faith like ours? How do our Amish brothers and sisters worship God, and what can their quiet faith teach us about our own walk with Christ?

This journey is an answer to those heartfelt questions. It is an invitation to look past the buggies and bonnets and into the soul of a people committed to a radical form of Christian discipleship. The Amish way is not an accident of history but a deliberate choice, a path forged through centuries of persecution and a deep desire to live out the teachings of Jesus in the most literal way possible.¹ To understand how the Amish worship, we must first understand what they believe, for every practice, every rule, and every ritual flows from a faith that seeks to be in this world, but not of it.

What Are the Core Beliefs That Shape Amish Worship?

To understand the unique worship practices of the Amish, one must first grasp the deep roots of their faith. Their simple living, plain dress, and separation from the world are not arbitrary customs; they are the outward expressions of a few powerful, foundational beliefs that have been shaped by centuries of history and a powerful commitment to a specific understanding of the Christian walk.

The Anabaptist Heritage: A Radical Faith

The story of the Amish does not begin in the farmlands of Pennsylvania or Ohio, but in the fiery heart of the 16th-century Protestant Reformation in Europe. They are the spiritual children of a movement known as the Anabaptists, a name meaning “re-baptizers” that was given to them by their critics.³ These believers broke away not only from the Roman Catholic Church but also from the major Protestant Reformers like Martin Luther and John Calvin.⁶

Their primary grievances were twofold. They rejected the union of church and state, which was a given for both Catholics and Protestants at the time. They believed the church should not be a state-enforced institution but a voluntary community of committed believers.⁶ and most famously, they rejected the practice of infant baptism. For the Anabaptists, baptism was not something to be done to an unknowing baby; it was a conscious, adult decision to repent and follow Jesus Christ.³

These beliefs were seen as profoundly dangerous and heretical, a threat to the very fabric of society. As a result, the Anabaptists faced horrific persecution from both Catholic and Protestant authorities.⁸ Thousands were tortured and executed for their faith. This history of martyrdom is central to the Amish identity. It is preserved in a massive book called the

Martyrs Mirror, a volume that chronicles these stories of suffering and is revered in many Amish homes, second only to the Bible.¹⁰ This history forged in them a deep conviction that the true church will always be a suffering separate from the powers of the world.

The Bible as a Guide for Life

Like other Christians, the Amish hold the Bible to be the inspired and inerrant Word of God.¹³ But their approach to Scripture is distinct. They place a much stronger emphasis on the New Testament as a literal handbook for daily living, especially the Gospels and the teachings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).¹⁰ For the Amish, faith is less about debating complex theological doctrines and more about the practical, daily work of discipleship. The ultimate question that guides their lives is, “What does it mean to follow Jesus today?”.¹⁵ This leads them to prioritize Jesus’ commands to love their enemies, forgive those who wrong them, practice nonviolence, and live a life of humility and peace.¹⁰

Salvation’s Path: The Tension Between Grace and Works

On the surface, Amish beliefs about salvation sound familiar. They affirm the core tenets of Christian faith: the Trinity, the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, and His atoning death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins.³ They believe that salvation is a gift of God’s grace.¹³

But beneath this surface lies a powerful and difficult tension. Many Amish live out their faith in a way that appears to be a works-based relationship with God. They believe that their final salvation is uncertain and depends on a lifetime of obedience to the church and its unwritten code of conduct, the Ordnung.¹⁸ A key point of divergence is their rejection of the doctrine of “eternal security,” or the assurance of salvation. To claim with certainty, “I know I am saved,” is viewed as an act of powerful pride and arrogance.¹³ Instead of assurance, they speak of having a “living hope”—a humble and lifelong trust that if they remain faithful and obedient, God in His mercy will grant them eternal life.¹⁹

This spiritual uncertainty is a recurring theme in the testimonies of those who have left the Amish faith. They often speak of a deep-seated fear and a constant burden of never being good enough to merit heaven. Vern, a man who grew up Amish, captured this feeling, recalling, “I never knew that you could know that you were going to Heaven… What can I do to be a better person? What can I do to have a better shot at getting into Heaven? And I would be so miserable because I didn’t know”.²⁰

Gelassenheit: The Heart of Amish Spirituality

Perhaps the single most important concept for understanding the soul of Amish worship and life is the German word Gelassenheit. It has no simple English translation, but it encompasses a constellation of virtues: submission, yielding to God’s will, self-surrender, humility, contentment, and a quiet spirit.¹ It is the spiritual posture of “letting go” and “letting be”.²¹

Gelassenheit is the polar opposite of the bold, assertive individualism that is so prized in modern Western culture.¹⁹ It is the theological key that unlocks almost every distinct Amish practice. Their plain dress, their quiet and reserved demeanor, their submission to the authority of the community, and their cautious approach to technology are all practical expressions of

Gelassenheit. They are disciplines designed to root out pride and cultivate a humble, yielded heart before God and others.²¹

This central virtue of humility directly shapes their view of salvation. A confident, personal declaration of being saved is seen as a violation of Gelassenheit, an expression of individual pride. If one cannot have personal assurance, then the path to a “living hope” lies in demonstrating one’s submission through visible, communal obedience. The Ordnung, the church’s rules, becomes the tangible, measurable standard of that submission. Therefore, “works”—obeying the Ordnung—are not seen as a transaction to earn salvation, but as the necessary evidence of a yielded heart. This creates a powerful, self-reinforcing system where the cultural value of humility shapes the theology of salvation, which is then enforced by a social code, leading to the spiritual anxiety so often described by former members.²⁰ It is not merely a theological position but a deeply integrated cultural and religious ecosystem.

Table 1: A Comparison of Core Christian Beliefs
Doctrine	Amish View	Mainstream Evangelical View	Roman Catholic View
The Bible	Inerrant Word of God, with a strong emphasis on the New Testament as a literal guide for life.10	Inerrant Word of God, interpreted through various hermeneutical approaches.	Inspired Word of God, interpreted within Sacred Tradition by the Magisterium.
Salvation	By grace, but final salvation is contingent on a life of obedience to the church (Ordnung).18	By grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.	By grace, initiated at baptism, requiring faith and cooperation through good works.
Assurance of Salvation	Rejected as a sign of pride; one has a “living hope”.17	Generally affirmed as possible and encouraged through faith in Christ’s promises.	Possible through a life of faith and sacraments, but presumption is a sin; final perseverance is a gift.
Baptism	A voluntary, adult ordinance by pouring, signifying a lifelong commitment to the church.3	A voluntary, adult ordinance by immersion, signifying personal identification with Christ’s death and resurrection.	A sacrament, typically for infants, that removes original sin and incorporates one into the Church.
The Church	A visible, separated community of believers who hold each other accountable through the Ordnung.6	A universal body of believers, expressed in local congregations with diverse forms of governance.	A universal, visible, and hierarchical institution founded by Christ with apostolic succession.

Where and How Do the Amish Hold Church Services?

The Amish worship service is a powerful reflection of their core beliefs. Stripped of all worldly adornment and complexity, it is an exercise in humility, tradition, and communal devotion. To witness an Amish service is to step into a different spiritual dimension, one where the focus is entirely on God and the gathered body of believers.

The “House Amish”: A Church Without Walls

The vast majority of Old Order Amish do not construct special buildings for worship.² They are often called “House Amish” because they hold their services in the homes of their members.¹⁶ This practice is rooted in their belief that the true church is not a building but the people themselves—the living body of Christ.²⁷ They find biblical support for this in passages like Acts 17:24, which declares that God “does not dwell in temples made with hands”.¹⁶ This practice also has a practical side: it avoids the great expense and potential for pride associated with building and maintaining a large church building.²⁷

Worship services are held every other Sunday, rotating through the homes of the families in a given church district.² A district is a geographic congregation, typically made up of 25 to 35 families who live close enough to travel to one another’s homes by horse and buggy.¹² On the “off” Sundays, families are free to rest, visit neighbors and relatives, or attend services in a neighboring district.¹⁶

A Glimpse into an Amish Sunday Service

On a service Sunday, the host family rises early to prepare their home. Furniture is moved from a large room, a basement, or even a workshop or barn to make space for the congregation.² A special “bench wagon,” a large wagon owned in common by the district, arrives carrying long, backless wooden benches that will seat up to 150 people.²

The service itself is a solemn and lengthy affair, lasting about three hours.² Men and boys sit in one section, while women and girls sit in another, a practice that minimizes distraction and emphasizes their corporate identity as a congregation.² The service follows a traditional, unvarying order:

1. Opening Hymn and Short Sermon: The service begins with a hymn, followed by a brief opening sermon delivered by one of the ministers or the bishop.¹⁶
2. Scripture and Prayer: A passage from the German Luther Bible is either read aloud or recited from memory. This is followed by a period of silent, kneeling prayer, where the congregation collectively bows before God.¹⁶
3. Main Sermon: Another minister delivers the main sermon, which can be quite long and is often preached with powerful emotion. The preacher is not confined to a pulpit but may move about the various rooms where the congregation is seated.² The messages often focus on living a righteous life, obedience to God, and separation from the world.²
4. Hymns and Closing: The service is interspersed with several more hymns and concludes with a final prayer and song.²

All parts of the service are conducted in a unique blend of languages. Scripture readings and hymns are in High German, while the sermons and everyday conversation are in Pennsylvania Dutch, a German dialect mixed with English words.²

Following the service, the spiritual fellowship transitions into social fellowship. The benches are quickly rearranged to form long tables, and the host family serves a simple, light lunch.² A typical meal might consist of bread, coffee, pickles, red beets, cheese, and “church spread,” a mixture of peanut butter and marshmallow fluff.² This time of eating and socializing is a vital part of the day, reinforcing the bonds of community that were just affirmed in worship.²

The Sound of Worship: The Ausbund

One of the most distinctive features of an Amish service is the music. There are no pianos, organs, or guitars; all singing is a cappella, without any instrumental accompaniment.² Hymns are sung from the

Ausbund, a simple hymnal with words but no musical notation.¹⁰ First published in 1564, it is the oldest Christian hymnal still in continuous use.¹¹ Many of its powerful hymns were penned by Anabaptist martyrs as they awaited execution in 16th-century prisons, and the lyrics are filled with themes of suffering, faithfulness, and heavenly hope.¹⁰

The singing style is haunting and otherworldly. Since there is no written music, the ancient tunes are passed down orally from generation to generation.¹¹ A song leader begins a line, and the congregation joins in, singing in unison in a very slow, drawn-out, chanting style known as the

langsame weis (the slow way).¹⁵ The pace is so deliberate that a single hymn can take fifteen to twenty minutes to complete.¹⁵ This style of singing is a powerful act of communal submission. There is no room for individual vocal flair or harmonizing. It requires immense patience and forces the entire congregation to breathe as one, sing as one, and yield their individual voices to the collective sound. It is, a sonic expression of

Gelassenheit.

Every element of the Amish worship service is a ritualized performance of this core value. Worshipping in a simple home prevents extravagance. The backless benches are a form of minor self-denial. The slow, unison singing strips away personal pride. The entire experience is meticulously designed to humble the individual and reinforce their submission to God and the community.

Who Leads the Amish Church?

The leadership structure of the Amish church is another powerful reflection of their core values of humility and submission. Rejecting the model of a professional, seminary-trained clergy, they have established a system where leaders are chosen from the flock and remain part of it, ensuring that no man is elevated too far above his brothers.

A Ministry of Humility: Bishop, Minister, and Deacon

Each local church district is guided by a team of ordained men who serve without pay and continue in their regular occupations as farmers or craftsmen.² This team typically consists of a bishop, two or three ministers (also called preachers), and a deacon.¹⁶

• The Bishop serves as the senior pastor. He has the primary responsibility for preaching and holds the authority to officiate at the most sacred events in the community’s life: baptisms, weddings, communion services, and funerals.²⁸ He provides the ultimate spiritual oversight for the district.
• The Ministers share the responsibility of preaching with the bishop during the bi-weekly worship services.² Having multiple preachers ensures a variety of voices and prevents any single personality from dominating the pulpit.
• The Deacon has a ministry of practical care. He is responsible for collecting the alms (offerings) given at the end of the communion service and distributing these funds to members of the community who are in financial or material need.²⁹ He also assists the bishop in the rituals of baptism and communion.

Chosen by God: The Solemnity of the Lot

The process by which these leaders are chosen is a powerful expression of the Amish trust in God’s direct guidance. When a position becomes vacant, the selection is not made by vote or appointment but through the casting of lots, a practice they base on the selection of Matthias to replace Judas in the Book of Acts (Acts 1:23-26).³

The process unfolds in two stages. All baptized members of the congregation are given the opportunity to nominate a man from among their own number whom they feel is qualified for the office.¹⁶ Several weeks later, the nominated men are called to the front of the congregation. The bishop takes a number of hymnbooks—one for each candidate—and places them on a bench. Inside one of these books, unknown to anyone, is a small slip of paper containing a Bible verse, often Proverbs 16:33: “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD”.³

Each nominee is asked to choose one of the hymnbooks. After all have made their selection, the books are opened. The man who has chosen the book containing the slip of paper is believed to have been chosen not by men, but by God Himself.³ This ordination is for life.¹⁶

This solemn process is intentionally designed to remove human ambition and pride from the selection of leaders. It prevents the ministry from becoming a popularity contest or a position to be sought after.³ The man who is chosen cannot boast of his charisma or his qualifications; he can only humbly accept the lifelong, unpaid, and heavy burden of responsibility as the will of God for his life. This system ensures that leadership itself becomes the ultimate test of submission, reinforcing the leader’s dependence on God and the community rather than on his own strength or status.

What is the ‘Ordnung’ and How Does It Guide Their Lives?

To many outsiders, Amish life seems to be governed by a long list of strange and arbitrary rules. In reality, these practices are guided by a single, powerful concept: the Ordnung. Understanding the Ordnung is essential to understanding the heart of Amish spirituality and their unique way of being Christian in the modern world.

More Than Rules: A Blueprint for a Separated Life

Ordnung is a German word that means “order,” “discipline,” or “regulation”.⁴ It is a comprehensive set of understandings—most of which are unwritten and passed down through tradition—that governs nearly every detail of Amish life.¹ It is not a legalistic code for its own sake, but a communal blueprint for applying the biblical principle of separation from the world.³¹ It is their way of living out the commands of Scripture to “not be conformed to this world” (Romans 12:2) and to keep oneself “unspotted from the world” (James 1:27).¹⁸

The Ordnung functions like a protective fence around the community, helping to shield it from what the Amish see as the corrupting influences of modern society, such as vanity, greed, and violence.²⁴ It is not a static, universal document. The specific details of the

Ordnung vary from one church district to another and are slowly and carefully adapted over time as the community prayerfully considers new challenges and technologies.⁴

The Theology of Simplicity and Submission

At its heart, the Ordnung is the primary tool for cultivating the central Amish virtue of Gelassenheit (submission and humility).²⁴ By regulating aspects of life that modern people see as matters of personal choice, the

Ordnung seeks to systematically root out the sins of pride, envy, and vanity.²⁴

• Plain Clothing: The distinctive Amish attire is a prime example. The prescribed plain dress—dark suits without lapels, broad-brimmed hats, and suspenders for men; long, solid-colored dresses with capes and aprons and prayer coverings for women—is not a fashion choice. It is a public symbol of an individual’s submission to the group and a visible rejection of the pride and vanity associated with worldly fashion.¹²
• Technology: The famous Amish restrictions on technology are not born from a fear of modernity, but from a desire to preserve the community. The personal automobile is forbidden because its mobility would pull the community apart, scattering families for work and leisure far from home.³⁴ The telephone in the home is restricted because it would interrupt family time and face-to-face fellowship.¹
• Education: Formal schooling for Amish children typically ends after the eighth grade.¹ The Amish believe this level of education provides all the necessary skills for a life of farming, craftsmanship, and homemaking. They fear that high school and college would expose their children to worldly values like individualism and intellectual pride, which are contrary to the spirit of Gelassenheit.¹⁸

Maintaining Order: Affirmation and Discipline

A young Amish person makes a solemn vow to obey the Ordnung for the rest of their life at the time of their adult baptism.³² This covenant with the church is renewed twice a year by the entire congregation. Before the spring and fall communion services, the district holds a special meeting called the

Ordnungsgemeinde (Ordnung church service).³² During this meeting, the rules of the district are reviewed, and every member must publicly affirm their commitment to them. This ensures that the community is in unified agreement before they partake of the Lord’s Supper.³ To willfully and repeatedly violate the

Ordnung without repentance is to break that sacred vow, which can lead to church discipline and, in the most serious cases, the painful practice of shunning (Meidung).²⁴

Table 2: The Ordnung: A Guide to Plain Living
Area of Life	Common Regulation	Theological/Cultural Reason
Clothing	Plain, solid-colored clothing; hooks and eyes instead of buttons; beards for married men; prayer coverings for women.12	Promotes humility and group identity; rejects worldly vanity. Buttons and mustaches were historically associated with military officers, clashing with their pacifist beliefs.24
Technology	No connection to public electricity grid; no personal ownership of automobiles; limited telephone use (often in a shared outbuilding).34	Prevents dependence on the “English” world; strengthens local community bonds; preserves family time and face-to-face interaction; maintains a slower pace of life.1
Education	Formal schooling concludes after the eighth grade.1	Provides necessary practical skills for an agrarian life while protecting children from worldly influences like individualism, competition, and scientific ideas that may conflict with faith.18
Social Life	No posing for personal photographs; no wearing of jewelry, including wedding rings; no commercial insurance or Social Security.1	Fights personal vanity (Exodus 20:4). Marital status is signified by beards and bonnets, not worldly symbols. Fosters complete dependence on God and the mutual aid of the church community, not on outside systems.1

How Do the Amish Practice Baptism?

At the very heart of the Amish faith lies the sacrament of adult baptism. It is the central rite that defines them as Anabaptists and the pivotal moment in the life of every Amish person. It is not a ritual performed on an infant, but a powerful and voluntary covenant made by a mature individual before God and their entire community.

A Believer’s Choice: The Heart of Anabaptism

The Amish, like their Anabaptist forefathers, place supreme importance on the concept of “believer’s baptism”.⁵ They firmly reject the practice of infant baptism because they believe, based on their reading of the New Testament, that baptism must follow a personal confession of faith, an act an infant is incapable of making.³

For the Amish, baptism is far more than a symbolic act. It is the sacred moment when an individual formally joins the church and makes a binding, lifelong promise to God and the gathered community. This vow includes a commitment to forsake the world and to live in obedience to the church and its Ordnung for the rest of their days.³

Most Amish young people choose to be baptized between the ages of 18 and 22.¹² This decision often comes after their period of

Rumspringa (a time of “running around” when youth are given more freedom to socialize and experience the outside world), and frequently coincides with their desire to marry.⁵ Since marriage within the Amish faith is only permitted between baptized church members, the decision to commit to a spouse is inextricably linked to the decision to commit to the church.⁵

Instruction and Solemn Vows

Before being accepted for baptism, candidates must go through a period of instruction. These classes are typically held for several weeks following the spring and fall communion services.²⁹ During this time, the candidates meet with the bishop and ministers to study the 18 articles of the Dordrecht Confession of Faith, a foundational Anabaptist statement of belief written in 1632 that outlines the core doctrines of the faith.¹⁰

The baptismal ceremony itself is a deeply solemn event that takes place during a regular Sunday worship service.⁵ The candidates are asked to kneel before the congregation as the bishop poses a series of life-altering questions. While the exact wording can vary slightly, the vows typically include these three commitments 16:

1. A vow to renounce the devil, the sinful world, and one’s own selfish desires.
2. A vow to commit oneself wholly to Jesus Christ and His promising to live and die in this faith.
3. A vow to accept the discipline of the church and to be obedient and submissive to its rules and order (Ordnung).

To each of these powerful questions, the candidate must answer with a clear and resolute “Yes”.¹⁶

The Simple Ritual of Baptism

The Amish practice baptism by pouring or affusion, rather than by full immersion.³ This tradition is believed to have originated during the intense persecution of the 16th century, when gathering at a river for a public immersion would have been dangerously conspicuous. A quieter, simpler pouring of water was easier to conduct in secret.⁵

After the sacred vows have been made, the ritual proceeds with beautiful simplicity. The deacon takes a ladle or cup, fills it with water from a pail, and hands it to the bishop. The bishop cups his hands over the head of each kneeling candidate and allows the water to trickle over them as he baptizes them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.¹⁶ Following the baptism, the bishop extends a hand to the newly baptized young men, helping them to their feet and greeting them into the fellowship of the church with a holy kiss. The bishop’s wife does the same for the young women, officially welcoming them as sisters in the faith.⁵

This moment marks a critical transition in the life of an Amish person. It is the point of no return. Before baptism, a young person who leaves the community faces social sadness but no formal religious sanction; they never made the vow.²⁹ But after making this public, lifelong covenant, the individual is forever accountable to the church. To break this vow by leaving the faith is considered a grave betrayal, which is why it invokes the severe disciplinary response of shunning. In the Amish worldview, baptism is the sacred threshold where individual freedom is willingly surrendered for lifelong, covenanted membership in the body of Christ.

What Happens During an Amish Communion Service?

Alongside baptism, the communion service stands as one of the two most sacred and major rituals in the Amish religious year. Held only twice annually, in the spring and the fall, it is a deeply solemn, all-day event that serves as a powerful moment of spiritual cleansing, communal reconciliation, and recommitment to the faith.¹⁶

A Sacred Observance: Twice a Year

The Amish approach the Lord’s Supper with the utmost seriousness and reverence. It is not a weekly or monthly observance but a rare and holy occasion that frames their entire spiritual calendar.¹² The service, which can last for up to eight hours, is a time for intense self-examination, the confession of sins, and the spiritual rejuvenation of the entire church community.²⁹ Participation is a serious obligation and is restricted to baptized church members who are “at peace” with God and the community.¹⁶

Preparing the Heart: The Ordnungsgemeinde

The preparation for communion begins two full weeks before the service itself. The congregation gathers for a special members-only meeting called the Ordnungsgemeinde, or “Ordnung Church” service.³⁷ This preparatory council meeting is a time of spiritual house-cleaning for the community. The bishop will carefully review the rules of the

Ordnung, and one by one, each member of the church is expected to publicly reaffirm their vow to live in obedience to these community standards.³

This process is designed to ensure that the congregation is in complete unity before approaching the Lord’s table. It is a time for members to confess any hidden sins, to seek forgiveness, and to mend any broken relationships with their brothers and sisters.³ If a member is not in harmony with the church or refuses to uphold the

Ordnung, they are not permitted to partake in communion. The goal is to achieve a state of communal peace and purity before commemorating Christ’s sacrifice.²⁹

The Communion Ritual: Bread, Wine, and Washing

The communion day itself is long and spiritually demanding. It begins with a standard three-hour morning worship service, followed by a simple lunch.² In the afternoon, the congregation reassembles for the communion service proper.

After more preaching, prayers, and the singing of solemn German hymns, the bishop delivers a sermon focusing on the passion and crucifixion of Jesus.³⁷ Then, the sacred elements are distributed. A simple loaf of bread is broken and a small piece is given to each member. This is followed by wine (or in many communities, grape juice), which is often passed among the members in a single common cup, a powerful symbol of their unity in the body of Christ.²⁹

Following the partaking of the bread and wine, the congregation participates in the ordinance of foot washing. This practice was instituted by the Amish founder, Jakob Ammann, in 1693, based on his literal interpretation of Jesus’ command and example in John chapter 13.⁹ Members pair off by gender, and with great humility, they take turns kneeling to wash and dry one another’s feet.¹⁶ This simple, intimate act is a powerful expression of their commitment to serve one another in love. The service concludes with the collection of alms for the poor, a final prayer, and a closing hymn.²⁹

The entire structure of the communion observance reveals its deep meaning within the Amish faith. The process begins by renewing the horizontal covenant—the member’s relationship and accountability to the church through the Ordnungsgemeinde. Only after this communal peace is established can the vertical covenant—the believer’s relationship with Christ—be celebrated through the elements. The foot washing ritual then beautifully merges these two dimensions: it is an act of obedience to Christ’s command (vertical) that is lived out through a humble act of service to a fellow church member (horizontal). For the Amish, communion is not merely a personal act of remembrance; it is the sacred, bi-annual ritual that dissolves individual concerns back into the collective and formally re-binds the entire community together under the dual authority of the church and of Christ.

What is ‘Meidung’ and Why Do the Amish Practice Shunning?

Among all Amish practices, none is more controversial or more painful to contemplate than Meidung, the practice of shunning. To the outside world, it can seem harsh and unloving. Yet, for the Amish, it is a deeply held religious practice, rooted in their interpretation of Scripture and their understanding of what is necessary to maintain the purity and survival of the church.

A Discipline of Love? The Purpose of the Ban

Meidung, also known as “the ban,” is the most severe form of church discipline, essentially a form of excommunication.³ It is reserved for baptized members of the church who have broken their sacred vows by persistently violating the

Ordnung or openly defying the authority of the church leaders, and who then refuse to confess their sin and repent.¹⁶

The stated purpose of shunning is not simply to punish, but to redeem. The Amish base the practice on their interpretation of biblical commands, such as 1 Corinthians 5:11, which instructs believers “not to associate with anyone who bears the name of a brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.” The hope is that this social and spiritual isolation will bring the wayward individual to a point of shame and repentance, lovingly pressuring them to return to the faith and the community.¹⁶

The Painful Process of Shunning

The application of Meidung varies in severity among different Amish affiliations.³ In the most conservative Old Order communities, the ban requires a near-total social avoidance. Church members are forbidden from eating at the same table with a shunned person, conducting business with them, accepting a ride from them, or even accepting something passed from their hand.¹

This discipline extends to the closest of family ties, creating situations of almost unimaginable emotional pain. A shunned adult son or daughter may attend a family wedding or funeral but will be forced to eat separately from their own parents and siblings.³ One former Amish man, John Glick, recounted the moment of his excommunication, when the church leaders told him to go home alone, while his wife and children were instructed to remain at the service, a stark and immediate severing of his place in the community.⁴³

Stories of Reconciliation and Heartbreak

The ban is not necessarily permanent. If a shunned person has a change of heart, they can make a public confession before the congregation and, upon demonstrating sincere repentance, be forgiven and fully restored to the fellowship.⁴⁰ But for those who choose to leave the Amish faith permanently, the shunning can last a lifetime, creating a permanent and painful rift with the family and community they have known their entire lives. Delila Glick, John’s wife, shared that being shunned by her deeply loved family was the most difficult part of their decision to leave the Amish church.⁴³

It is critically important to understand that shunning applies only to those who have been baptized. An Amish youth who explores the “English” world during their Rumspringa and decides not to join the church is not shunned. They are a source of sadness to their family, but because they never made the baptismal vow, they have not broken a covenant and are not subject to the ban.²⁹

The practice of shunning is the ultimate enforcement mechanism for the Amish collective. The entire social structure is built on the supremacy of the community over the individual. The greatest threat to this structure is a member deciding that their personal conscience is more important than the group’s rules. Meidung is the system’s powerful response to this threat. By leveraging the most fundamental human need for family and belonging, it makes the price of radical individualism almost unbearably high, thereby ensuring the preservation of the community’s identity and traditions.

How Do the Amish Decide Which Technologies to Use?

A common misconception about the Amish is that they are “stuck in time,” rejecting all modern technology out of a simple fear of change. The reality is far more complex and reveals a deeply intentional and thoughtful approach to the tools of modern life. The Amish are not anti-technology; they are pro-community.

Mastering Technology, Not Becoming Its Slave

The Amish do not reject technology outright; they evaluate and adopt it selectively.³⁴ Their ultimate goal is to remain masters of their technology, ensuring that it serves their core values, rather than allowing themselves to become slaves to convenience and innovation in ways that might erode their faith and community life.³⁸

When a new technology emerges, it is not immediately accepted or rejected. Instead, it is subject to a long and careful period of observation and discernment by the community leaders and members. They ask difficult questions about its potential long-term impact.³⁹

The Two Great Commandments of Amish Technology

Analysts who have studied Amish life have noted that their decisions about technology seem to be guided by two primary principles, which mirror the two greatest commandments 39:

1. Does it strengthen the family? The family is the bedrock of Amish society. Any technology that is perceived to pull family members apart, reduce the time they spend in face-to-face fellowship, or introduce worldly values into the home is viewed with extreme caution.
2. Does it strengthen the community? This is the key principle behind their rejection of personal automobile ownership. The Amish understand that the car is not inherently evil, but they recognize that its speed and range would fundamentally alter their society. A horse and buggy keeps life local, ensuring that members work, shop, and worship within a tight-knit geographical area, which in turn supports the fabric of the local community.¹ They fear that with cars, young people would easily find jobs in distant cities, social life would expand beyond the and the community would slowly fragment and dissolve.³⁵

A Firewall Against the World

This community-first logic leads to distinctions that can seem puzzling to outsiders but are perfectly consistent within the Amish worldview. They create what some have called a “firewall” between themselves and the potentially disruptive effects of technology.³⁵

• Electricity: The Amish forbid connecting their homes to the public power grid, as this represents a literal, physical connection to the outside world they seek to be separate from. But many communities permit the use of “off-grid” power from batteries, generators, or solar panels for specific, approved purposes. This allows them to power lights on their buggies for safety or run essential tools for a family business, but the power remains local, limited, and under their control.³⁴
• Telephones: A telephone inside the home is seen as a direct pipeline for worldly influence and a constant interruption to family life. But many districts allow a shared telephone to be kept in a small shanty or booth at the end of the farm lane. This allows for necessary business or emergency calls but maintains the “firewall,” forcing the user to be intentional about the call and preserving the home as a sanctuary of quiet and fellowship.⁴

In a world of constant distraction and passive consumption of media, the Amish offer a powerful model of intentional living. While most people ask of a new technology, “How will this make my life easier or more entertaining?”, the Amish ask, “How will this affect our life together?” By prioritizing the health of the community over the convenience of the individual, they challenge all Christians to think more deeply and prayerfully about the tools we use, and to discern which ones truly build up the values of faith, and fellowship, and which ones may be subtly tearing them down.

What is the Catholic Church’s Stance on Amish Beliefs?

The relationship between the Amish and the Roman Catholic Church is a long and complex story, one that begins in violent conflict and is only after centuries of silence, moving toward a spirit of mutual respect and understanding. To grasp the current stance, one must first appreciate the deep historical wounds that have separated these two Christian traditions.

A Painful History of Persecution

The Anabaptist movement, the spiritual ancestor of the Amish, was born in the 16th century as a “radical reformation,” breaking away not only from the Catholic Church but from mainstream Protestantism as well.³ Their core beliefs—especially the rejection of infant baptism and the separation of church and state—were seen as a powerful threat to the religious and social order of the time.⁸

As a result, Anabaptists were hunted down and brutally persecuted by both Catholic and Protestant authorities. Thousands were imprisoned, tortured, and martyred for their faith.⁸ This history of persecution is a foundational element of Amish identity. It is vividly remembered and passed down through generations in key religious texts, such as the

Ausbund hymnal, which contains songs written by martyrs in prison, and the Martyrs Mirror, their massive book of martyr stories. These texts, which historically contained strong anti-Catholic sentiments, have shaped Amish views of the Catholic Church for centuries.¹¹

Core Theological Divides

Beyond the historical conflict, major theological differences continue to separate the two traditions, even as they share a common faith in the Triune God and the saving work of Jesus Christ.¹⁴

• The Nature of the Church: Catholics understand the Church as a universal, visible, and sacramental institution established by Christ, with its unity guaranteed by apostolic succession through the bishops in communion with the Pope. Anabaptists, in contrast, see the church as a local, voluntary gathering of adult believers, separate from the state, who covenant together to follow Christ.⁶
• Baptism: The original point of conflict remains a key difference: the Catholic practice of infant baptism for the remission of original sin versus the Anabaptist insistence on adult, believer’s baptism as a sign of conscious commitment.⁸
• The Eucharist: Catholics believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist through the doctrine of transubstantiation. The Amish and other Mennonites view the Lord’s Supper as a powerful ordinance and memorial, where Christ is spiritually present in the gathered community, but they do not hold to the Catholic understanding of the elements becoming the literal body and blood of Christ.⁴⁶
• Authority: For Catholics, authority rests in both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, as authentically interpreted by the Church’s Magisterium. For the Amish, authority rests in the Bible alone, as interpreted by the local church community.⁴⁷
• Peace and Violence: While the Catholic Church has a strong peace tradition, it maintains the “Just War” theory, which allows for the use of lethal force by the state under strict, limited conditions as a last resort. The Amish, as pacifists, hold to a position of absolute non-resistance, believing that violence is forbidden for the Christian in all circumstances.⁴⁵

A Modern Journey Toward Healing and Mutual Respect

For most of their shared history, there was virtually no formal dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Anabaptist traditions.¹¹ But in the last several decades, driven by the ecumenical spirit flowing from the Second Vatican Council, this has begun to change.

• Official Dialogue: A groundbreaking international dialogue between the Catholic Church’s Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Mennonite World Conference took place from 1998 to 2003. The dialogue’s final report, titled “Called Together to be Peacemakers,” was a historic effort to move beyond “almost five centuries of mutual isolation and hostility.” A primary goal was the “healing of memories” through re-reading their painful history together and seeking forgiveness.⁴⁷
• Papal Outreach: In recent years, Popes have sent messages to Anabaptist gatherings, expressing a desire for reconciliation. A (fictional but representative) message from “Pope Leo XIV” on the 500th anniversary of the Anabaptist movement urged both Catholics and Mennonites to reflect on their shared history with “honesty and kindness” and to pursue the “call to Christian unity” with love.⁴⁸
• Shared Values: Despite theological differences, many Catholics today express deep admiration for the Amish way of life. They recognize in the Amish a powerful and integrated faith, a powerful commitment to family and community, and a witness to simplicity that challenges a materialistic world.³³ Some have even noted the striking parallels between the disciplined, communal, and agrarian life of the Amish and that of Catholic monastic orders like the Benedictines.⁵¹ From a Catholic perspective, while the Amish approach to separation from the world is more radical, both traditions share the fundamental Christian calling to be “in the world, but not of the world,” discerning how to use created things in fidelity to the Gospel.³³

The relationship has undergone a slow but remarkable evolution. What began as a violent conflict between a state church and a group it deemed heretics has gradually transformed into a respectful dialogue between what one might call distant but respected cousins in Christ. This journey demonstrates that even the most painful divisions within the Body of Christ can begin to heal when the focus shifts from proving who was right in the past to finding common ground in the person of Jesus and His call for all His followers to be peacemakers.

What Can We Learn from the Amish Way of Worship?

As we draw this journey to a close, we are left to ask what we, as Christians living in the wider world, can learn from the quiet faith of our Amish brothers and sisters. It is easy to be distracted by the external differences—the buggies, the bonnets, the beards. But if we look deeper, into the heart of their worship and way of life, we find powerful spiritual lessons and challenges that can enrich our own walk with God.

A Faith That Walks: The Integration of Belief and Life

Perhaps the most powerful and convicting lesson from the Amish is their seamless integration of faith and daily life. For them, religion is not something reserved for Sunday morning. It is a 24/7 reality where every decision—from the clothes they put on in the morning, to the tools they use in the workshop, to the way they spend their leisure time—is a conscious and deliberate religious act.² Their entire lifestyle is an act of worship. They challenge us to examine our own lives and ask: How integrated is my faith? Does my belief in Jesus Christ truly and practically shape my daily choices about how I spend my money, what entertainment I consume, how I use my time, and how I treat my family and neighbors?

The Strength of Community: A People of Mutual Aid

In an age of rampant individualism and loneliness, the Amish provide a stunning example of the power of a truly committed Christian community. They live out the biblical command to “bear one another’s burdens” in the most practical ways imaginable.¹⁰ The barn-raising is their most famous symbol of mutual aid, where the entire community comes together to rebuild a neighbor’s livelihood in a matter of days.²³ But this ethic of care permeates their entire society, replacing the need for commercial life insurance or government social security programs.¹ They depend on God and on each other. Their example is a powerful reminder of the vision of the early church in the Book of Acts and a challenge for us to deepen our own commitment to the local body of believers, moving beyond casual fellowship to true, burden-bearing community.

A Quiet Witness: The Power of Humility and Patience

The Amish do not evangelize in the way that many Christians understand it. They do not send out missionaries or try to win converts from the “English” world.⁵² Their witness is their life. In their quietness, their humility, their simplicity, and their powerful patience—all expressions of

Gelassenheit—they offer a powerful, counter-cultural testimony against the noise, anxiety, and relentless ambition of the modern world.¹

Although we are called by the Great Commission to “go into all the world and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19-20), the Amish, in their radical separation, remind us of the equally vital biblical call to be a holy people, “unspotted from the world” (James 1:27).¹⁸ They challenge every Christian to wrestle with the difficult balance between engaging the world and remaining distinct from it; between being a light

to the world without becoming of the world. Their journey, with all its unique beauty and its powerful challenges, is a quiet but persistent call to all of us, inviting us to a simpler, deeper, and more thoughtful walk with our shared Lord and Savior.

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