If you are new to the world of Anabaptist faith, you are probably overwhelmed trying to understand the differences you see. Visitors come and go from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania everyday and many of them visit sites that try to explain the story of the Amish and Mennonites very quickly.
I would like to give you a broader perspective. The distance between my house and the Philadelphia airport is approximately sixty miles. Sixty miles, in inches, is approximately four million inches.
There are approximately four million Anabaptists scattered around the world. If the most ultra conservative Amish person stood at my driveway and the most liberal Mennonite in the world stood at the entrance to the airport, we could fill every inch along the way. To fulfill this imaginary challenge, every person would need to find his or her place in what I call the ‘conservative line’.
The number-one most conservative is very strict. No phones, no electricity, no cars, no rubber on wheels, only speaks Pennsylvania Dutch in church… the list of restrictions could go on and on. Number four million, the most liberal, probably would not have any likeness in faith to number one. They would be worlds apart and may not even acknowledge the other as having a relationship with God. They are vastly different even though they both fall under the umbrella of the Anabaptist faith.
Since it is hard to compare number one with number four million, let’s make an easier comparison. Let’s try making a distinction between the first million, second million, third million—and remember I am using guesswork to determine the distinctions on this line. Number one million is a woman who wears a plain dress, a small white covering, no makeup, drives a car, uses electricity, and goes to a typical American Protestant church. Number two million is also a woman but she dresses similar to any other woman of her age and social context. An outside observer would never guess that she is in the same belief-category as number one million. These two women could be close friends. There may not be any judgment between them because they accept their differences in clothing and outward appearance. Actually, they may even go to the same church.
The differences along this line can be very subtle. Maybe even arguable. Haircut styles. Pattern dress vs. plain dress. Jewelry vs. no jewelry. Dresses vs. trousers. Oh, and are you seeing a trend there—the markings on the line are much more noticeable for the women than the men. Yes. There is a very different line for the women. They are easy to spot and place on the line because so much of their external appearance will define who they are.
Someone who is knowledgeable will be able to look at a room full of women and know what church they go to just by small differences in dress and coverings. That still amazes me! Strings on a head covering or a pattern on a dress can say a lot in this community. Just in coverings alone, there are vast differences.
The men get away easier. There are rules with the plain members, for example no zippers, no belts, no beards, et cetera. But once we get to the more liberal side of the line there are very few differences between Anabaptist men and “regular” men. That is a joke term that we use—are they ‘plain’ or ‘regular?’ You might have heard the term “English”. We like to use the term “Regular”. It’s a joke.
People shift their position on the line from time to time. I remember when my mom wore a covering and then she stopped. I don’t think the verses in the Bible that talk about women covering their heads changed. It was the interpretation of scripture that changed, as well as what “everyone else was doing.” That phrase doesn’t apply only to our children. It also applies to adults on this line. I often find people moving on the line to follow a friend who made the move first. It often comes down to peer pressure, just like the social dynamics in other groups.
Young people will also jump out off the line when they are in other settings or with “regular” friends. I have seen Amish kids at events and I had no idea they were Amish until someone told me. They may also dress differently when they are volunteering in a mission project in another country.
Where do I personally fit on the line? Somewhere close to the airport. I struggle with the most liberal Mennonite churches. There are battles being fought in the church that I never thought would be possible. I am not going to discuss them here. Just the mention of them can cause a disturbance. It’s no longer the questions of television and insurance dividing the church. I wish it were that simple but the challenges today are hard to agree on.
Ervin Stutzman is executive director for Mennonite Church USA.
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