Serving Bread

I was struck, like the rest of you, by the beauty of the Amish community in the past week. Every media report that I have read or watched expressed surprise, wonder, and appreciation to the way that the community has come together and has extended forgiveness to Charles Carl Roberts IV and his family, for the brutal murder of the five little girls in this small town. As a Christian, I can understand how the Amish would respond with such an expression of care and love in the midst of intense mourning. As I watch how the secular media is trying to understand all of this, I chuckle because they are taking in images and an expression of faith for which they have no category. And most of that attention has been placed on how quickly they extended forgiveness.

But the thing that has struck me as well that has not received as much media attention is the way that this community seems to do just that–community. They do it well. While the Church has always been about community, the last several years has ushered in a new season where people are trying to do intentional community (specifically, but not exclusively through small groups). Books, seminars, workshops, conferences, and even new religious movements, are emerging everywhere on how to do community well. There were several things that struck me on how the Amish express community.

1. The community comes together to mourn. This was not an act of violence against the handful of families involved. The entire community took on the pain and the mourning process. The writer of Hebrews concludes the letter saying, “Remember those who are in prison as though in prison with them; and those who are ill-treated, since you also are in the body” (Hebrews 13.3). This community has taken on the mourning process together. The few people who are speaking to the media are not necessarily connected to these families, yet in their words and actions and sorrow, you see that this is a communal tragedy.
2. The community extends forgiveness. This is not a divided community. They have extended forgiveness, and I have not heard of any dissenting voices in this community to not extend forgiveness. There is no debate. The entire community is extending forgiveness, not just the families directly affected by the tragedy. Half of the people who were at Roberts’ funeral were Amish. This is not just about words being extended. They truly believe in extending forgiveness.
3. The community holds its tongue. As mentioned above, very few people are speaking to the media. They are not processing their mourning with the outside world. They are not exploiting this situation to “witness” their way of life. They are not using this to enforce or advance agenda and legislation. If there was any “dirty laundry”, it is not being dealt in a public manner.
4. The community expresses true witness. It is not about individuals expressing glory to God and using this situation to give people a picture of the kingdom. As a community, they are an expression to true witness. This community lives out its convictions, and when tests come their way, they are being true to what they believe. And as a community those convictions are expressing themselves in witness. It’s not about one family or one person who is witnessing, the community itself is a witness

I am sure the Amish in Pennsylvania are not a perfect community. They probably have their own share of problems and conflicts. And theologically (like the rest of us) they don’t have it all together. However, in a time where people are seeking true community and in a time where Christian witness is tainted by political ambitions, this community inspires me and challenges me to live and believe in community.