"Being a Lutheran can be a cross, especially in trying times. Why insist on believers having citizenship in two distinct kingdoms—earth and heaven—when one of them, the world around us, is so dysfunctional? So I took a three-day leave of absence to join an Amish congregation whose bishop, Vernon Raber, told me, "We are citizens of one kingdom only, the kingdom of Jesus Christ!" I thought they were an excellent group to escape to, good Christians singing and praying in German, my mother tongue, and avoiding the vulgarities of politics. I liked it.">> Article continued in Christianity Today.
What do you think, you who like me walk a media-rich, multi-tasking, ever-outward-reaching way. Do you sometimes long to get away from the fragmentation and ambiguity of modern life? Should we go spend some time with the Amish?
We have a lot of Amish in Northern NY and I don't think they are necessarily 'stress free.' Farming, for me anyway, is a stressful occupation. Personally, my time spent in an Amish home, was VERY stressful. (I was having my third child in the Amish midwife's home!)
ReplyDeleteI suppose one man's stresser is another's...what? Pacifier?
Or maybe the Buddists?
ReplyDeletePat, as I was looking for photos to suggest Amish-ness I remembered how much work farming can be!
ReplyDeleteDad, you're right - if I wanted to get serious about disengaging from pain, the world, unmet expectations... Buddhism would be the road to take! I can see the appeal.