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Redemptive Tales from the Tragedy at Nickel Mines. Theresa and I had the opportunity to hear Don Kraybill's, senior fellow and interim director Elizabethtown College's Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, stirring reflections on the many religious and cultural expressions of love and good will from both Amish and their English neighbors during the past week, which seemed to him a much longer time as his center has been in almost 24/7 contact w/the media since the shooting. After fielding some questions and comments, he invited Eli, a member of the Amish community, to share in handling some additional questions with him (a sacred moment as channel 21's cameras went strangely dim in this media obsessed culture of ours). Below are some notes which I took from his presentation. I attempted to make them readable, so in some places these are not his exact words. May you find them an encouragement. Please post questions, insights, responses . . . If you're not in the Lancaster area, I'm particularly interested in how the media has covered the events and the metatheme of forgiveness in your area.

Note: if you're in the area, we'd love have you to join us for his Amish Life and Culture Lecture Series: October 17, 8pm, From Buggy to the Byte: How the Amish Tame Technology; October 24, 8pm, From Plows to Profits: The Rise of Amish Business; October 31 8pm, Bush Fever: The Amish and the 2004 Election; November 9, 7:30pm, Horse and Buggy Mennonites: Hoofbeats of Humility in a Postmodern World. Hope to see you there (and maybe we can arrange to have some additional conversation before or after a lecture)! Onto the presentation,

Many acts of love and kindness have emerged out of this event revealing the meta-theme of forgiveness which transcended the actual event. It is hard to believe it has only been a week ago when we learned of the event at about 12:30pm. 15 minutes after we learned of the event, we had media calls from around the world, even through yesterday. Our staff worked 24/7 on this thing and I want to take a moment to thank them and media director for Elizabethtown College.

What made this a major story [note: I numbered these on my own]?

1. The amount of attention the media brought to it. There were over 50 media crews on site Tuesday morning. A member of the Patriot newspaper mentioned to me that this was the largest media event in area since TMI, 26 years ago.

2. The questions which emerged, e.g., a Brazilian media outlet asked questions such as, "Do the Amish live in reservations and interact w/neighbors? How did the shooter get past the police to get onto the reservation?"

Other questions for those more familiar w/the Amish, such as "Will they change their schools? Do they interact w/their next door neighbors? Will they harbor animosity toward outsiders?" W/regard to the last one, the Amish understand the shooting was an aberration and do not generalize the event to all of English culture.

3. Questions such as these reveal the mystique of the story, i.e., the separateness of the Amish. A member of the Amish community was quoted, This week we were all Amish. This indicates that the event, leveled the social fences between Amish and English, i.e., those other than the Amish, as they worked together closely to address logistics, e.g., travel to hospitals and along small country roads, access to families, details of funeral planning. We all sensed the pain and horror of the event. There was so much goodwill.

Will this event make the Amish more withdrawn? To the contrary, this will result in more neighborliness and good will in that particular community near Nickel Mines. Excellent cooperation occurred at the local level, e.g., lots of Volunteer Fire Companies in the Nickel Mines area have members of the Old Order Amish community, a number of which carried out their duties directing traffic hidden from popular attention by their helmet and fire jacket. Police support was outstanding from Jeffrey Miller on down. The coordination was superb, e.g., the police barricaded roads for the funerals as two police officers on horseback helped lead the procession.

4. The outpouring from people across the world was overwhelming, e.g., Walmart is said to have provided all the food for the funerals. Several recovery funds have been set-up for medical costs, the building a new school, and the family of the killer. One playground equipment manufacturer offered to donate a playground for the new school. The kindness and generosity has not gone unnoticed. Many Amish are overwhelmed. How surprising in our culture today, to not see a lawyer representing the family asking for or directing money. But the Amish have humbly accepted was has been given.

Here's a Letter from Amish Community which appeared in the Lancaster Sunday News and the Philadelphia Inquirer:

As a member of the Amish community, I wish to say thank you for the overwhelming support so many people have shown to us this week.

While the events in Nickel Mines this past week have been tragic, the generous response of the larger community and the world has been overwhelming. Our perceptions of "worldly" and "outsiders" have been challenged and changed. It has been reaffirmed to us that there is much good in the rest of the world. It is reassuring that in spite of our different identities, we can still reach out to each other as human brothers and sisters with the same hopes, fears, desires and feelings in difficult times.

I know I speak for the rest of the Amish community when I say that we wish to show our appreciation and express our gratitude for all the bountiful support and prayers we have received. Thanks to all the police officials and emergency teams for their efforts and bravery. And thanks to everyone for their acts of kindness, prayers, and goodwill.

We also wish to extend our condolences and prayers to the Roberts and Welk families. I wish yet to say that with God all things are possible and that in heaven the Lion and the Lamb shall lie down together.

Benuel S. Riehl

Narvon, Pa.

Here's a piece on Amish forgiveness in Nickel Mines, which I have just submitted to Christian Century earlier today. This piece borrows heavily from Forgiving is woven into life of Amish: Their forgiveness of a killer mystifies. But anger and revenge simply aren't an option. which appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer [note: please take a moment to read this articulate piece]. Forgiveness so quickly for such a heinous crime? Forgiveness trumped violence, which became the redeeming theme. By Monday, 4pm, 2400 news stories have talked about Amish forgiveness, staff from Oprah had called the center to see if any Amish could be talked into appearing on her show. Was it sincere or just an Amish gimmick, more than words and graveside presence?

We were so hungry for something good and hopeful from this horrific story . . . desperate to hear that some people could still forgive . . . love and hope amid the horror of the schoolhouse . . . The Amish don’t argue w/God. They have an enormous capacity to absorb adversity -- a willingness to yield to divine providence in the face of hostility. Such religious resolve enagles them to move forward without the endless paralysis of analysis that asks why, letting the analysis rest in the hands of God . . . Make no mistake: Death is painful. Many tears are shed. The pain is sharp, searing the hearts of Amish mothers and fathers as it would those of any other parents. But why forgiveness? As do other Anabaptists, the Amish take the life and teachings of Jesus seriously. Without formal creeds, their simple (but not simplistic) faith accents living in the way of Jesus rather than comprehending the complexities of religious doctrine. Their model is the suffering Jesus who carried his cross without complaint. And who, hanging on the cross, extended forgiveness to his tormentors: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

As pragmatic as they are about other things, the Amish do not ask if forgiveness works; they simply seek to practice it as the Jesus way of responding to adversaries, even enemies. Rest assured, grudges are not always easily tossed aside in Amish life. Sometimes forgiveness is harder to dispense to fellow church members, whom Amish people know too well, than to unknown strangers . . . How does forgiveness work for Christians in the world? What about those in positions responsible for dispensing justice? . . . Forgiveness arrived at the killers house before the blood dried on the walls of the schoolhouse . . . the transforming power of forgiveness, the one redeeming thing which trickled from the tragedy at Nickel Mines.

Comments/Questions:

1. “Always something to thank God for” . . . such a beautiful, courageous word to share

2. The Amish kids, except those in the hospital, are meeting at a temporary school

3. The flight of injured is allowed due to special circumstance. This is part of The Riddle of the Amish Culture, they make exceptions as necessary, eg., may allow electricity for a breathing machine in a home for a dying member. There are no regulations regarding modern medical technology (e.g., bypass, open heart surgery, organ transplants). Decisions vary by community and at times governed by families).

4. Counseling accepted from those with previous relationships to the Amish, e.g., Philhaven and mental health

5. Tourists are more of violation of privacy than the journalists of the past week. The Amish do not pose for a face-on photograph. Publications such as People Magazine and the Washington Post called Kraybill with regard to photography and tried to respect the Amish boundaries

6. Amish school security: 1500 schools across North America, each operated by a trustee board of parents. Responses may include: teachers will be more thoughtful and careful when a stranger walks in the school yard, locking doors when school in session, cell phone for the teacher, building relationships w/police (note: many of which have responded by trying to build relationships and let communities know of their availability/presence)

7. No more insight w/regard to the survivors than what is available in the media, 5 survived, 1 has been talking

[At this time all television cameras were turned off and Eli, a member of the Amish community joined Don Kraybill on stage to field questions. Personally I felt as if a sacred space had been made. Afterward, when talking with Amy, a friend from church, it does feel as if we have witnessed and are part of a significant moment. What will be our reponse?]

1. "Amish children appear more calm and happy when compared w/typical English brats." Eli's response, "Come to our house before they have to brush their teeth." Don, "I think there is a very different form of training. We focus on individualism. The Amish focus on obedience to parents, submission to authority."

2. "The 13 year old in the school asked to be killed first reminds me of Jesus facing the cross." Don's response, "Her hope was that he’d be satisfied with her. Some Amish schools have placard posted on their wall, JOY (Jesus first, others second, yourself last)." Eli, "Where was God that day? One minister reflected, “In heaven on the throne exactly where he was when He sent his son to the cross.”

3. "What are the Amish views on the afterlife?" Don's response, "The Amish assume that these children, as they were under the age of accountability (17-20) are safe in the arms of Jesus and at some point they will be reunited w/their families. More joy at a funeral than at a birth as we know that the person is safe in heaven for eternity. The burden is for the children shot in the head and may survive." Eli, "Comforted that the children are in a much better place. Our children are our only earthly thing we can take along to heaven with us."

4. "I wish a member of the Amish community would go on Oprah. It is a light the world needs to see." Don's response, "The Amish don’t want to be bragging about their forgiveness. They did not make a big deal about it. The media made it the bigger story which trumped the bloodshed. There may be a subsequent wave of critical pieces going the opposite direction." Eli, "More important to walk the walk than talk the talk."

5. "What is your worship music like?" Eli's response, "Slow chant. Same since 1500’s. Its good to have something that is not going to change.

6. "Why so many Amish in the Lancaster area?" Don's response, "Germantown point of entry, Berks County. Lancaster settlement didn’t grow much until the 1900’s. How did they grow so rapidly in the 20th century? How come they haven’t died out? These are important questions."

7. "What about the ritual of mourning?" "The family dresses the body in preparation for public viewing in the home before and after the funeral. After the funeral, adult women who have lost a family member will wear black clothing for the next year in public (and sometimes at home). The atire invites questions, leads to Sunday afternoon visits, ritualizes the mourning process. "What happens when the year of mourning is over?" Eli, "Periodic visits to the cemetery, each family takes a turn caring for the cemetery, generally no flowers."

8. "Any insights to leave w/the audience?" Eli responds, "Consider the sovereignty of God, he rules our lives, accept that. It was kind of comfort to realize that He has the full range of emotions that we have, the parent’s grief, understands the killer’s mind, understands when we have joy and take hope from it . . . Outside gifts and support, very definitely overwhelming and humbling; these are things that happen everyday in the world somewhere; lets not forget everyone else that are suffering and facing these tragedies daily"

[Amen!]