‘Life has to go on’ for Amish community 

Ron Allen Correspondent • Profile

NICKEL MINES, Pa. — "We don't know what God's purpose is," John told me, "but we believe there is a purpose." We were standing on the edge of a pumpkin patch.

John is an Amish man who had stepped away from a picking crew of four other men. They gently tossed each pumpkin to another worker riding on the back of a wagon pulled by a horse. No tractor. No engine.

John said he wouldn't do a television interview. The Amish believe pictures are a sign of vanity, and pictures on TV are an even worse way of indulging in the evils of the world.

But John was willing to talk about the horrible school shooting that brought so much evil to this peaceful world. "We're very concerned that no message of revenge gets out," he said. "We believe in forgiveness.”

‘Life has to go on’
My assignment was to find out how the Amish community is dealing with this unspeakable tragedy. John was one of the few members of the community who spoke openly, but only on the condition of anonymity because he did not feel comfortable being identified.

The pumpkin patch was at the bottom of a hillside where a one-room schoolhouse sat. It was just like the schoolhouse that Charles Carl Roberts besieged.

Kids were playing in the yard outside of the school, as John chatted with us. I was surprised. He wasn't. "Life has to go on, we have to pick up the pieces and go on," he said almost matter-of-factly.

Don't misunderstand John or the other members of his community. Don't let the 18th century clothes he wore, plain black slacks held up by suspenders, plain white shirt, his straight beard, and otherwise clean shaven face and straw hat, don't let that make you think for one second that he doesn't hurt, grieve or mourn.

His faith teaches him to believe all of this horror will help bring him and his neighbors closer to their God, closer to each other and closer to "the English."

The English are the rest of the surrounding community because that's the language they speak. The Amish speak a dialect of German in their homes and to each other. Not with the outside world.

Part of the community
John explained that the Amish aren't as isolated as many people apparently think. In fact, Professor Donald Kraybill, a cultural sociologist and local expert, says 60 percent of the Amish run small businesses; only 40 percent these days are traditional farmers.

They work in businesses that include woodworking, furniture making and metal manufacturing. Trade-based businesses, rather than service- or sales-based businesses, that generate in some cases $4 million to $5 million a year in revenue.

Myron Stoltzfus runs a butcher shop and deli in the village of Intercourse. He and John are neighbors and friends. Stoltzfus explained how the Amish aren't really a separate community, but rather a part of the entire community here.

I asked if he thought the shooting would change the way of life around here? "No, not at all," Stoltzfus answered without hesitation. "They believe what happened was God ordained," he said. "They don't want to be trapped by bitterness."

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