The Amish

In the land of rock and roll, the space shuttle, and computerized living, who could imagine that about 50,000 Americans do not use telephones, electric lights, or cars, not because they are poor, but out of choice? As hard as this may be to imagine, the Amish, or more properly, the Amish Mennonites, still live a traditional, rural lifestyle direct from 17th century Europe!
　　To understand these unique Americans better, it is necessary to understand their history. Beginning with the revolution started by Martin Luther, leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany in the 16th century, Europe was wracked by religious wars for several hundred years. Modern Europe is a product of these wars and of the political and religious philosophies of those times. The main figures in this tragic period were the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestants, those who rebelled against papal rule from Rome. Among the thousands of splinter groups formed outside of Rome's religious rule were the Mennonites, a group of particularly conservative, rural Christians situated in what is today Switzerland, part of eastern France, and southern Germany.
　　To make a long story short, the Mennonite Amish were so conservative that they made more enemies than friends. In order to preserve their peculiar lifestyle, they began to immigrate to the British colonies in North America in about 1720 (before Canada and the United States were formed as independent countries). There they found the religious freedom they had sought. Amish settlements sprang up in the colonies and territories of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana as well as in Ontario, in what is today Canada. Surprisingly, there are no Amish groups today in Europe.
　　Little has changed about their lifestyle since then. Just how conservative are the Amish? A group of Amish looks like a cast from a biblical movie set. All the men wear large brimmed black hats, beards (but not mustaches), and clothes made by their wives. The women wear a hair covering called a bonnet, long dresses, and black shoes. Even though all Amish men and women marry, you will not see a wedding ring, for even this simplest type of jewelry is banned among them. The Amish are primarily farmers, and good ones, despite the fact that they do not use modern farm machinery. Their children are educated in local primary schools, but secondary education is in the home. Sundays are spent mostly in church. An old dialect of German mixed with English is used in church and at home. Their lives are uncomplicated and few Amish leave their homes to enter the mainstream American society.
　　Rural Pennsylvania where most of the Amish live is beautiful countryside. If you have the opportunity to drive through the gentle, rolling hills amidst lush farmlands, perhaps you will see a horse and buggy driven by a family dressed mostly in black. These are the Amish, an enduring and endearing people.

　　在摇滚乐、航天器和计算机化生活的国度里，谁会想到有大约5万名美国人不用电话、电灯或汽车，不是因为他们穷，而是出自于选择呢？同样令人难以想象的是，亚米希人，或更正确的称呼——亚米希‧门诺那特人，如今仍过着17世纪欧洲延续下来的传统乡村生活方式呢！
　　想更进一步了解这些独特的美国人，我们必须了解他们的历史。自16世纪德国新教徒改革领袖马丁‧路德所发起的革命之后数百年间，欧洲就饱受宗教战争的摧残。现代欧洲是这些战争和当时政治和宗教哲学的产物。这段悲剧时期的主角是罗马天主教会和反罗马教皇统治的新教徒们。在数以千计脱离罗马宗教统治而形成的支派中，门诺那特人是其中特别保守、属于乡间基督徒的一支，他们当时聚居在今天的瑞士、法国东部的一部分和德国南部一带。
　　长话短说，亚米希‧门诺那特人由于太过保守以致树立的敌人比交到的朋友还多。为了保存他们独特的生活方式，他们于1720年左右（在加拿大和美国成为独立国家之前）开始移居到北美的英国殖民地。在那儿他们找到追求已久的宗教自由。亚米希人的新建村落出现在宾西法尼亚州、俄亥俄州和印第安纳州，以及现今的加拿大安大略省等殖民区和领地。令人惊讶的是，欧洲现在竟没有亚米希人的团体。
　　自从那时候开始，他们的生活方式几乎没有改变。亚米希人到底有多么保守？一群亚米希人看起来就像圣经电影中的一个场景。男人都戴着有帽檐儿的黑色大帽子、留胡子（但不留八字胡）以及穿妻子亲手做的衣服。女人都戴着一种绑带子的包头软帽，穿连衣裙和黑鞋。尽管亚米希人也男婚女嫁，你却看不到一只结婚戒指，因为即使这种形式最简单的珠宝，在他们当中也是被禁止的。亚米希人主要是农民，而且尽管不使用现代农耕机械，他们还是把农事做得很好。他们的孩子在当地的小学受教育，但中等教育却在家里教授。礼拜天大多在教堂里度过。上教堂和在家时，他们使用一种混合德语和英语的古老方言。他们的生活不复杂，而且很少有亚米希人离家进入美国主流社会。
　　田园式的宾西法尼亚州有着美丽的乡间，大部分的亚米希人就居住于此。如果你有机会开车穿过那些绿油油农田中静谧、逶迤的山丘，也许你会看见驾着四轮马车大部分都穿着黑衣的一家人。这些就是亚米希人，一个屹立不摇又令人喜爱的民族。