Random Strict Rules You Must Follow When You're Amish (13 items)

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  (#13) No Rest For The Pregnant

  You won’t catch a pregnant woman lazing about in the Amish community. They work right through the entire pregnancy. The Amish also don’t believe in birth control, so they tend to be pregnant a lot. The only birth control they approve is Lactational Amenorrhea Method (LAM), which is a natural form of birth control that is found in woman’s body while she is nursing a child. Also, a pregnancy is not to be discussed in the Amish community with anyone besides the husband and midwife. So, a woman must continue to toil away at her work as though it’s business as usual, essentially till her water breaks. Then all babies are born at home, without pain medication, unless there is an emergency, when they will allow the woman to go to the hospital.
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  (#10) Once You're Excommunicated, Church Members Have To Give You The Cold Shoulder

  The greatest punishment in the Amish community is excommunication. If a member violates a tenet of the Ordung, they risk being excommunicated. This can be for something as small as using a cell phone to something as serious as assault. The Amish derive this practice from several Bible passages: “And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed,” Thessalonians 3:14.

  If all efforts to reconcile a transgressor into the faith have failed, community leaders will vote on excommunication. Once the member has been excommunicated, the shunning, or "Meidung", goes into effect. Once an individual is shunned, they will lose all contact and support from the community. While shunning is mostly permanent, it is possible to return to the community if extraordinary repentance is demonstrated.
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  (#3) The Way Couples Have To Date Is Straight Out Of The Old Testament

  While it is falling out of fashion in Amish communities, bundling - also known as "bed courtship" - is still practiced by some ultra-conservative Amish today. It involves a courting couple lying together fully-clothed in bed. While lying in bed, the couple are encouraged to speak to each other all night to become emotionally closer. While some Amish still practice bundling, the tradition originally stems from the Old Testament, and was mentioned in the Book of Ruth as a common Jewish practice.
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  (#4) They Have To Make The Dedication To Baptism On Their Own

  Unlike some other Christian sects, the Amish don’t believe in baptizing children. They believe one must make the conscious decision to dedicate their life to the church before they can become a fully-fledged member of the community. The Amish broke off from the Anabaptists in Switzerland in 1693 to form a more conservative sect known as Ammann and settled in America in the 1730s. One of the core beliefs of the Anabaptists was adult baptism. Anabaptists “felt that baptizing babies could not be supported by Scriptures. They argued that sin entered the world with a knowledge of good and evil (Gen.3). Since an infant does not have this knowledge, it cannot have sin,” wrote Amish-born scholar John A. Hostetler.  
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  (#12) The Dress Code Is Strict For Men And Women

  Zippers are not allowed in the Amish community as they are considered too fancy. So men’s trousers only have buttons in the front. Men can also only use suspenders to hold up their pants, as belts and belt buckles are far too opulent. For church services, men will wear a plain white shirt and a black suit coat. However, the suit coat does not fasten shut, as buttons on a coat are reminiscent of military jackets.

  For women, they have a limited wardrobe of about four dresses. They have one to wash, one to wear, one for formal occasions, and a spare dress. Single women wear white prayer caps, while married women wear black ones. Amish womens’ wedding dresses are blue and the bride makes it herself. The wedding dress will then serve as her Sunday church dress.
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  (#11) They Don't Allow Photos - Well, Maybe In Certain Situations

  There are thousands of photos of the Amish, but the Amish consider photos, like their dolls, to be examples of “graven images.” Some Amish completely refuse to be photographed, while others tend to bend the rules on this a bit. They make a distinction between posed photos and photos that depict them in a natural setting. So, a portrait photo is certainly not allowed, but a photo of an Amish woman churning butter or a group of Amish men raising a barn is more acceptable.

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