Mennonites offer support to ‘resilient’ Amish community
-04/10/06
Mennonite Disaster
Mennonites offer support to ‘resilient’ Amish community
-04/10/06
Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC ñ a North American relief and peace organisation) have expressed their sympathy and prayers for families affected by the 2 October shooting at an Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennyslvania ñ and are in contact with Amish community leaders to offer support through a joint response.
MCC and MDS say they are accepting financial contributions to assist the affected community. Contributions may be made by phone, by mail or online. Contributions to the Amish School Recovery Fund will help the affected community with medical care, transportation, supportive care and other needs.
“We call upon churches to unite in prayer and support for the Amish community at this time,” said Kevin King, Mennonite Disaster Service executive director.
Ken Sensenig, assistant director of Mennonite Central Committee East Coast, visited Amish community members after the shooting and said he is observing their resilience and is impressed with their response.
Families banded together to provide emotional support and tend to immediate needs, such as milking cows while parents rushed to the hospital, Sensenig said. Many non-Amish neighbours helped by giving rides to hospitals.
“What impresses me is how strong this community is in the face of terrible tragedy,” Sensenig said.
Background: Another country (Guardian, UK) Contrary to stereotypes, the ‘plain people’ do not live entirely in the past, writes Ed Pilkington. In fact it’s their willingness to adapt that has allowed them to survive, and even prosper, in the 21st century.
[Also on Ekklesia: Amish sustained by forgiveness after killings 04/10/06; Peaceful Amish shocked by brutal school shooting 03/10/06. Resources on the Amish from Metanoia Books, an Ekklesia partner: Who Are the Anabaptists: Amish, Brethren, Hutterites and Mennonite groups; Best of Amish Cooking: Spiral Binding ó Phyllis Pellman Good; Driving the Amish ó Jim Butterfield; Delicious Amish Recipes ó Phyllis Pellman Good; Countryside Cooking and Chatting: Traditional Recipes from the Old Order Mennonites and Amish; Amish Life ó John A Hostetler; Plain and Amish: An Alternative to Modern Pessimism; Real People: Amish and Mennonites in Lancaster County; Amish Roots: A Treasury of History, Wisdom, and Lore; An Amish Kitchen ó Mary Clemens Meyer (Ed.); Amish Portrait: Song of a People ó Merle Good; History of the Amish: Revised Edition 2003 ó Steven M Nolt; 20 Most Asked Questions About the Amish and Mennonites; Amish and the State ó Donald B Kraybill (Ed.); Amish get politically active to defend wood shops – news from Ekklesia; Fixing Tradition: Joseph W Yoder, Amish American ó Julia Kasdorf; The Amish In Their Own Words: Amish Writings]
Mennonites offer support to ‘resilient’ Amish community
-04/10/06
Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC ñ a North American relief and peace organisation) have expressed their sympathy and prayers for families affected by the 2 October shooting at an Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennyslvania ñ and are in contact with Amish community leaders to offer support through a joint response.
MCC and MDS say they are accepting financial contributions to assist the affected community. Contributions may be made by phone, by mail or online. Contributions to the Amish School Recovery Fund will help the affected community with medical care, transportation, supportive care and other needs.
“We call upon churches to unite in prayer and support for the Amish community at this time,” said Kevin King, Mennonite Disaster Service executive director.
Ken Sensenig, assistant director of Mennonite Central Committee East Coast, visited Amish community members after the shooting and said he is observing their resilience and is impressed with their response.
Families banded together to provide emotional support and tend to immediate needs, such as milking cows while parents rushed to the hospital, Sensenig said. Many non-Amish neighbours helped by giving rides to hospitals.
“What impresses me is how strong this community is in the face of terrible tragedy,” Sensenig said.
Background: Another country (Guardian, UK) Contrary to stereotypes, the ‘plain people’ do not live entirely in the past, writes Ed Pilkington. In fact it’s their willingness to adapt that has allowed them to survive, and even prosper, in the 21st century.
[Also on Ekklesia: Amish sustained by forgiveness after killings 04/10/06; Peaceful Amish shocked by brutal school shooting 03/10/06. Resources on the Amish from Metanoia Books, an Ekklesia partner: Who Are the Anabaptists: Amish, Brethren, Hutterites and Mennonite groups; Best of Amish Cooking: Spiral Binding ó Phyllis Pellman Good; Driving the Amish ó Jim Butterfield; Delicious Amish Recipes ó Phyllis Pellman Good; Countryside Cooking and Chatting: Traditional Recipes from the Old Order Mennonites and Amish; Amish Life ó John A Hostetler; Plain and Amish: An Alternative to Modern Pessimism; Real People: Amish and Mennonites in Lancaster County; Amish Roots: A Treasury of History, Wisdom, and Lore; An Amish Kitchen ó Mary Clemens Meyer (Ed.); Amish Portrait: Song of a People ó Merle Good; History of the Amish: Revised Edition 2003 ó Steven M Nolt; 20 Most Asked Questions About the Amish and Mennonites; Amish and the State ó Donald B Kraybill (Ed.); Amish get politically active to defend wood shops – news from Ekklesia; Fixing Tradition: Joseph W Yoder, Amish American ó Julia Kasdorf; The Amish In Their Own Words: Amish Writings]