AMISH FORGIVENESS The Amish, who have been Lancaster County's primary tourist attraction despite their desire to be left alone to practice their quaint and bucolic ways, and a life-style centered in another century, have taught the world a lesson that it is most in need of learning. When a deranged man, suffering from unrelenting guilt over his aberrant behavior twenty years ago, invaded a one-room school house and murdered five young Amish girls, the shock waves reached around the world. The striking polarity of deadly violence in a peaceful community that desires no more than to be separate from worldly events is a compelling reminder that there are no safe refuges in this life, and that at anytime and anywhere the world intrudes upon us. In any other community there would be outrage, and perhaps demonstrations for stricter gun-control, more police protection, increased surveillance, and other measures designed to address prevention of the symptoms of violent behavior and calling for society's revenge against the perpetrator. But that's not the Amish way. They have taught us something about the way of Christ as they have come together as a community to bring healing through forgiveness and quietly accepting what comes their way. There is pain, but the pain is balanced with love, not hate. When the Amish community reached out to comfort the family of the killer and even attended his funeral, they provided an extraordinary example of their faith put into practice. Daniel Esh, a 57-year-old Amish artist and woodworker whose three grandnephews were inside the school during the attack, said of the killer's family, "I hope they stay around here and they'll have a lot of friends and a lot of support." Life is filled with many hurts. Those that are inflicted upon us by others. Those that we inflict, whether intentionally or unintentionally. And then there is the pain we bring upon ourselves. We often say that it is important to forgive and forget. But it is far more important to forgive and re-member. Forgiveness makes it possible for a community to come back together, to be restored to wholeness, to be a community in every sense of the word. To break bread at Christ's table. When we think of the insurmountable pain and anguish of Job and how he maintained his faith in the midst of the greatest calamity, we will also remember the Amish community and the strength, love, forgiveness, and grace that exemplifies their communal life. Church families hold together when faced with a crisis. They reach out in love and support to those who are in need of it. They do so because they have a strong and abiding faith in a loving God who cares for all his children. It is a lesson all of us need to learn.
|
|
