Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy
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Product Description
On Monday morning, October 2, 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. In front of twenty-five horrified pupils, thirty-two-year-old Charles Roberts ordered the boys and the teacher to leave. After tying the legs of the ten remaining girls, Roberts prepared to shoot them execution with an automatic rifle and four hundred rounds of ammunition that he brought for the task. The oldest hostage, a thirteen-year-old, begged Roberts to "shoot me first and let the little ones go." Refusing her offer, he opened fire on all of them, killing five and leaving the others critically wounded. He then shot himself as police stormed the building. His motivation? "I'm angry at God for taking my little daughter," he told the children before the massacre. The story captured the attention of broadcast and print media in the United States and around the world. By Tuesday morning some fifty television crews had clogged the small village of Nickel Mines, staying for five days until the killer and the killed were buried. The blood was barely dry on the schoolhouse floor when Amish parents brought words of forgiveness to the family of the one who had slain their children. The outside world was incredulous that such forgiveness could be offered so quickly for such a heinous crime. Of the hundreds of media queries that the authors received about the shooting, questions about forgiveness rose to the top. Forgiveness, in fact, eclipsed the tragic story, trumping the violence and arresting the world's attention. Within a week of the murders, Amish forgiveness was a central theme in more than 2,400 news stories around the world. The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today, Newsweek, NBC Nightly News, CBS Morning News, Larry King Live, Fox News, Oprah, and dozens of other media outlets heralded the forgiving Amish. From the Khaleej Times (United Arab Emirates) to Australian television, international media were opining on Amish forgiveness. Three weeks after the shooting, "Amish forgiveness" had appeared in 2,900 news stories worldwide and on 534,000 web sites. Fresh from the funerals where they had buried their own children, grieving Amish families accounted for half of the seventy-five people who attended the killer's burial. Roberts' widow was deeply moved by their presence as Amish families greeted her and her three children. The forgiveness went beyond talk and graveside presence: the Amish also supported a fund for the shooter's family. AMISH GRACE explores the many questions this story raises about the religious beliefs and habits that led the Amish to forgive so quickly. It looks at the ties between forgiveness and membership in a cloistered communal society and ask if Amish practices parallel or diverge from other religious and secular notions of forgiveness. It will also address the matter of why forgiveness became news. "All the religions teach it," mused an observer, "but no one does it like the Amish." Regardless of the cultural seedbed that nourished this story, the surprising act of Amish forgiveness begs for a deeper exploration. How could the Amish do this? What did this act mean to them? And how might their witness prove useful to the rest of us?
Spotlight Customer Reviews:
Summary:
Important
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Comment:
The issue of forgiveness is one of the most difficult and one of the most important issues in Christian life.
I was so impressed with the book that I read the book within 2 days. It continues to linger on my mind. It is a must read! It really deserves 4 1/2 stars. My only criticism is that it appears to be written in a hurry and that the different authors sometimes overlap and repeat the same issue.
The positives far outweigh the small negative.
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Summary:
Eye Opening
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Comment:
This was a well written, informative, sensitive book. It didn't give the feel of some of "sensationalizing" a tragedy. Instead, it gently gave light to our fellow neighbors and countrymen, The Amish. It opened a door and gave us a glimpse of our commonality as Christians,our humanness as fallen man, our common struggle with forgiveness and trying to understand tragedy when it happens, and a glimpse at how the Amish distinctly handles tragedy.
It gave much to ponder and think about, and I am very glad that I have read it. I would recommend it highly, especially to those struggling with forgiveness and justice.
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Summary:
Must read for any serious believer
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Comment:
While I am not 'religious' when one uses the term, as it is so often these days by the media, I am very much Quaker/Mennonite in my views, and the Amish no matter what sect, are much like Quakers and how one is taught from birth to forgive. One walks the talk rather than talk talk talk. Actions speak louder than words.
Doesn't mean one forgets. One simply forgives, because its both biblical and because its healthy and ones body is the temple of God. To not forgive would almost be a sin. Although some will actually remind us that it is a sin.
What I like so much about the book, is how its a great tool for enlightening those who dare read it. As Americans and I speak as one, we seem to live in a society that is so judgmental and wanting some type of radical even mean spirited action when we read, see or hear of something wrong.
And from a Biblical point of view the author reminds the reader that forgiveness is rooted in the scripture going back to Joseph in the Old Testament when he was sold into slavery in Egypt. Or Christ who on the cross said 'Father forgive them for they know not what they do.'
Also like the book because my family has been effected by crime. My husband was hit and later died, after being hit my a drunk driver who never in all the years since the accident/crime, ever said he was sorry. Yet, my husband insisted we not hold a grudge, and that we forgive and hope that the young mans life would be better, not worse.
Like the author and the book, it came down to the Lords Prayer and 'Forgives us our sins/transgressions/failings as we forgive those who sin/transgress/fail against us'. How can we expect mercy and grace if we don't offer it ourselves?
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Summary:
Amish Grace
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Comment:
This is an excellent source of information about the Amish culture, about forgiveness, and how they came to terms with the Nickel Mines incident. It brings you to a much greater understanding of the lifestyle they have chosen, their spirituality and how they practice their faith.
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Summary:
Amish Grace
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Comment:
Amish Grace.
A sensitive & thoughtful discussion of the Amish tragedy & the difficult but necessary task of 'forgiveness'.I found it enlightening illustration of Amish theology & philosophy.
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