One of the most essential components of a trip to southern Pennsylvania is a visit to beautiful Lancaster County, the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Some have said that Lancaster County is one of the most beautiful counties in the United States. After seeing it for myself, I certainly couldn’t disagree. The county’s 
reputation for beauty is derived from its seemingly endless acres of peaceful and picturesque farm land, unspoiled for the most part by any sign of what we generally call “progress.” The reason for the land’s preserved beauty is that it’s primarily owned and diligently maintained by members of the Amish community.
The Old Order Amish are an intriguing people. Because of their strong religious convictions, they maintain a careful distance from the world-at-large in an effort to protect their homes and families from worldly influences. They have no electricity or telephones in their homes, because they want no direct connection with the outside world. They neither own nor operate
automobiles, so as not to be tempted to venture too far from their homes and become enticed by the ways of the world. Instead, they typically travel by horse and buggy. They live close to the soil, but refuse to use tractors or other power-driven farm machinery, preferring teams of mules or horses to pull their plows. They dress in very plain and modest—but certainly strictly regimented—attire, so as not to promote vanity or draw attention to their individuality. One would imagine that their simple 19th Century lifestyles—in stark contrast to the world around them—would cause their numbers to be dwindling. But, actually, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, since 1960, the Amish population in Lancaster County has almost tripled! (The Amish generally have large families, and a high-percentage of their children embrace the faith and remain with the community when they grow up.)
People from far and wide find themselves drawn to Amish country. In fact, in many of the villages and towns of Lancaster County, the main thoroughfares are busy with traffic generated by the growing tourism trade. (Supposedly, tourism really hit a spike in Lancaster County
following the 1985 Harrison Ford film “Witness” which was filmed on location there.) I imagine that Amish buggies find it challenging to safely navigate highways filled with so many out-of-state automobiles. Honestly, Sandy and I were somewhat surprised at the touristy nature of things along the main roadways. (A lot of businesses seem to be profiting from the Amish. Of course, some of the Amish are profiting as well.) But when you get out on some of the rural back roads—where you have just one Amish farm after another—you can still drive for miles and miles and enjoy tons of breathtakingly beautiful, non-commercialized scenery. Farmhouses and barns and silos and cornfields and fences and horses and cattle and covered bridges—it’s Norman Rockwell Americana at its best.
What were some of our favorite things about the Amish country? Well, without question, we had the best pretzels there that we’ve ever had in our lives. Soft, buttery, fresh-from-the-oven. Hmm. Hmm. I’ve never had another pretzel anywhere that even comes close! I suppose that from now on I’ll think of a Pennsylvania Dutch Country pretzel the same way I think of crab cakes from Baltimore. There’s nothing else quite like them. And no pretzel (or crab) cooked anywhere else is ever going to measure up.
Another thing we enjoyed was homemade root beer. Several of the farmers made it and sold it right off their farms. Again, I’ve never had anything quite like it. Not too sweet. A very unusual, but natural flavor. Certainly an altogether different taste than A & W. We also had dinner at a couple of well-known family style farm house restaurants. Good ole country cookin’. Then, there was the farmers market. We bought some different canned goods like apple butter, blackberry preserves, tomato jam, and pickled beets.
We also learned more about the Amish and their beliefs and practices, which was quite interesting. During our visit, we tried very much to be respectful of the Amish, who don’t like having their photos made. I’m sure they get
tired of gawking tourists. Sandy and I saw some amazing scenes of Amish families working in their fields. Men were mowing their lawns by pushing old-fashioned, human powered lawnmowers. (The kind my grandmother used to use, always swearing that they cut so much better than a gas-powered mower.) We saw Amish children walking to school, and Amish women doing their household chores. It was all somewhat like a scene out of Little House on the Prairie. But a lot of those scenes we couldn’t photograph because it would have been impolite to do so.
By the way, if you want to learn about the Amish by reading some good Christian fiction, Sandy has been reading some works by Beverly Lewis which can be found in our church library. Beverly Lewis has done several series of novels using Lancaster County, Pennsylvania as the setting.
The Amish certainly are an interesting people. Although I personally would not wish to emulate their lifestyle, there is something indeed refreshing about their “less is more” approach to life, especially when contrasted with the fast-paced, stress-inducing age in which we live. Their simplicity looks quite appealing when laid alongside the hollowness of today’s “whoever-dies-with-the-most-toys-wins” philosophy of life.
I’ll just make one or two comments about Amish theology. The Bible teaches us to be separate from the world. But this obviously can be taken
to extreme. Separation is not virtual isolation. We certainly are in the world, but not of it. But we are definitely in it. So we cannot retreat fully from it by hiding our heads in the sand like an ostrich. We have to engage the culture. We have to build relationships with others. Like Jesus, we have to go where other people are, and personally show them the love of God.
Another thing. Legalism is a dangerous path for a Christian to navigate. When we start putting all kinds of manmade rules on what we wear, where we go, what we can do, and how we can do it, we start becoming not unlike the Pharisees of Jesus’ day. Our “faith” degenerates into little more than
a set of rules to which we must conform. One’s strict adherence to rules can even become a source of spiritual pride or arrogance. The unfortunate thing about this is that so much emphasis is placed on externals, that it minimizes the more vital matter of focusing on the inner person. Truly, the outward expression of our lives should flow from what is on the inside of us, and not from anything less.
Pastor Danny
reputation for beauty is derived from its seemingly endless acres of peaceful and picturesque farm land, unspoiled for the most part by any sign of what we generally call “progress.” The reason for the land’s preserved beauty is that it’s primarily owned and diligently maintained by members of the Amish community.The Old Order Amish are an intriguing people. Because of their strong religious convictions, they maintain a careful distance from the world-at-large in an effort to protect their homes and families from worldly influences. They have no electricity or telephones in their homes, because they want no direct connection with the outside world. They neither own nor operate
automobiles, so as not to be tempted to venture too far from their homes and become enticed by the ways of the world. Instead, they typically travel by horse and buggy. They live close to the soil, but refuse to use tractors or other power-driven farm machinery, preferring teams of mules or horses to pull their plows. They dress in very plain and modest—but certainly strictly regimented—attire, so as not to promote vanity or draw attention to their individuality. One would imagine that their simple 19th Century lifestyles—in stark contrast to the world around them—would cause their numbers to be dwindling. But, actually, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, since 1960, the Amish population in Lancaster County has almost tripled! (The Amish generally have large families, and a high-percentage of their children embrace the faith and remain with the community when they grow up.)People from far and wide find themselves drawn to Amish country. In fact, in many of the villages and towns of Lancaster County, the main thoroughfares are busy with traffic generated by the growing tourism trade. (Supposedly, tourism really hit a spike in Lancaster County
following the 1985 Harrison Ford film “Witness” which was filmed on location there.) I imagine that Amish buggies find it challenging to safely navigate highways filled with so many out-of-state automobiles. Honestly, Sandy and I were somewhat surprised at the touristy nature of things along the main roadways. (A lot of businesses seem to be profiting from the Amish. Of course, some of the Amish are profiting as well.) But when you get out on some of the rural back roads—where you have just one Amish farm after another—you can still drive for miles and miles and enjoy tons of breathtakingly beautiful, non-commercialized scenery. Farmhouses and barns and silos and cornfields and fences and horses and cattle and covered bridges—it’s Norman Rockwell Americana at its best.
What were some of our favorite things about the Amish country? Well, without question, we had the best pretzels there that we’ve ever had in our lives. Soft, buttery, fresh-from-the-oven. Hmm. Hmm. I’ve never had another pretzel anywhere that even comes close! I suppose that from now on I’ll think of a Pennsylvania Dutch Country pretzel the same way I think of crab cakes from Baltimore. There’s nothing else quite like them. And no pretzel (or crab) cooked anywhere else is ever going to measure up.
Another thing we enjoyed was homemade root beer. Several of the farmers made it and sold it right off their farms. Again, I’ve never had anything quite like it. Not too sweet. A very unusual, but natural flavor. Certainly an altogether different taste than A & W. We also had dinner at a couple of well-known family style farm house restaurants. Good ole country cookin’. Then, there was the farmers market. We bought some different canned goods like apple butter, blackberry preserves, tomato jam, and pickled beets.We also learned more about the Amish and their beliefs and practices, which was quite interesting. During our visit, we tried very much to be respectful of the Amish, who don’t like having their photos made. I’m sure they get
tired of gawking tourists. Sandy and I saw some amazing scenes of Amish families working in their fields. Men were mowing their lawns by pushing old-fashioned, human powered lawnmowers. (The kind my grandmother used to use, always swearing that they cut so much better than a gas-powered mower.) We saw Amish children walking to school, and Amish women doing their household chores. It was all somewhat like a scene out of Little House on the Prairie. But a lot of those scenes we couldn’t photograph because it would have been impolite to do so.
By the way, if you want to learn about the Amish by reading some good Christian fiction, Sandy has been reading some works by Beverly Lewis which can be found in our church library. Beverly Lewis has done several series of novels using Lancaster County, Pennsylvania as the setting.The Amish certainly are an interesting people. Although I personally would not wish to emulate their lifestyle, there is something indeed refreshing about their “less is more” approach to life, especially when contrasted with the fast-paced, stress-inducing age in which we live. Their simplicity looks quite appealing when laid alongside the hollowness of today’s “whoever-dies-with-the-most-toys-wins” philosophy of life.
I’ll just make one or two comments about Amish theology. The Bible teaches us to be separate from the world. But this obviously can be taken
to extreme. Separation is not virtual isolation. We certainly are in the world, but not of it. But we are definitely in it. So we cannot retreat fully from it by hiding our heads in the sand like an ostrich. We have to engage the culture. We have to build relationships with others. Like Jesus, we have to go where other people are, and personally show them the love of God.Another thing. Legalism is a dangerous path for a Christian to navigate. When we start putting all kinds of manmade rules on what we wear, where we go, what we can do, and how we can do it, we start becoming not unlike the Pharisees of Jesus’ day. Our “faith” degenerates into little more than
a set of rules to which we must conform. One’s strict adherence to rules can even become a source of spiritual pride or arrogance. The unfortunate thing about this is that so much emphasis is placed on externals, that it minimizes the more vital matter of focusing on the inner person. Truly, the outward expression of our lives should flow from what is on the inside of us, and not from anything less.Pastor Danny
