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https://www.cosmopolitan.com/lifestyle/a30284631/amish-sexual-abuse-incest-me-too/

We've talked about the Amish and how they are different from fundies we've come to know and love...that they tend to not evangelize and try to be truly self-sufficient without being pricks etc. However, watching this new show on National Geographics Channel has given me a new perspective on the Amish. The show focuses on the lives of the ex-Amish, being told from the POV of a well known ex-Amish guy who tries to counsel and help those that just left the Amish community. The last few episodes showed how extremely prejudicial and cult-like some of the Amish community are. In conservative Amish communities, if a person leaves, they are shunned to the extent that their families will no longer talk with them, will not allow any ex-Amish back for even a brief visit. One ex-Amish teenager was severely hurt in a car accident, yet only one brother showed up to see him. His parents only made a brief phone call. Had this teen not left the Amish, his entire community would have shown up. However, because he decided to strike out on his own, to live a different path, it's like the entire community has forsaken him. There seems to be no room for forgiveness, for coming together in a tragedy. There was also a case of one nonAmish girl who wanted to be Amish but was told by the conservative Amish family she lived with that she would only be allowed one visit per year with her nonAmish family if she chooses that path. That isn't to say all Amish groups are like that. Among more liberal Amish groups, such as the Beachy Amish, the nonAmish girl found a family that welcomed her into their homes and told her her family was welcomed to visit her anytime. However, the stance of many Amish groups towards their members who leave reminds me of the fundies we know. They circle the wagon when outsiders are involved, they ostracize those that leave the fold. They condemn anyone nonAmish as people who will go to Hell. When one of the ex-Amish kid (age 19) died, his old Amish community came together to bury him. His ex-Amish friends also came to the funeral but they were clearly ostracized, forced to wait outside while everyone went into the house after the burial for food. The bishop at the funeral hinted that the horrible car accident that took the ex-Amish kid's life was the result of leaving the Amish fold and that he is most likely in Hell now. Yikes! how horrible is that? Anyone else see the show? It brings home the point that any closed group can act in a cult-like manner. Even in a pacifist religious group can be unyielding, unforgiving and particularly harsh to those that leave their group. Despite the Amish's reputation for forgiveness, it seems not all groups follow this idea and some seem to revel in the misfortune of those that leave their fold. What do others think?