Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy [Hardcover]

Donald B. Kraybill (Author), Steven M. Nolt (Author), David L. Weaver-Zercher (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0787997617 | ISBN-13: 978-0787997618 | Publication Date: September 21, 2007 | Edition: 1

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?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. When a gunman killed five Amish children and injured five others last fall in a Nickel Mines, Pa., schoolhouse, media attention rapidly turned from the tragic events to the extraordinary forgiveness demonstrated by the Amish community. The authors, who teach at small colleges with Anabaptist roots and have published books on the Amish, were contacted repeatedly by the media after the shootings to interpret this subculture. In response to the questions why—and how—did they forgive? Kraybill and his colleagues present a compelling study of Amish grace. After describing the heartbreaking attack and its aftermath, the authors establish that forgiveness is embedded in Amish society through five centuries of Anabaptist tradition, and grounded in the firm belief that forgiveness is required by the New Testament. The community's acts of forgiveness were not isolated decisions by saintly individuals but hard-won countercultural practices supported by all aspects of Amish life. Common objections to Amish forgiveness are addressed in a chapter entitled, What About Shunning? The authors carefully distinguish between forgiveness, pardon and reconciliation, as well as analyzethe complexities of mainstream America's response and the extent to which the Amish example can be applied elsewhere. This intelligent, compassionate and hopeful book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on forgiveness. (Sept. 21)
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* The crime—shooting innocent schoolchildren in a one-room schoolhouse—was shockingly vicious. More shocking, virtually incredible, was where it happened, in the heart of Pennsylvania's Amish country, commonly associated with bucolic tranquility, not gun violence. This remarkable book explains, exceedingly well, Amish reaction to the horrific Nickel Mines shootings. The outside world was gravely taken aback by the Amish response of forgiveness. Some in the media criticized the Amish as naive and hypocritical (didn't they shun members of their own community?), but most simply couldn't understand the Amish concept of forgiveness as unmerited gift. How could they forgive humanly embodied evil? The authors, all authorities on Amish culture, emphasize that the Amish response reflected the sect's heritage and deeply embedded faith. They distinguish forgiveness from pardon and reconciliation. Forgiveness relinquishes the right to vengeance, while pardon forfeits punishment altogether, and reconciliation restores the relationship of victim and offender or creates a new one. They discuss the shooting mercifully straightforwardly before exploring the broader perspectives of forgiveness and concluding with reflections on the meaning of forgiveness. At times difficult to read, this anguished and devastating account of a national tragedy and a hopeful, life-affirming lesson in how to live is itself a marvel of grace. Sawyers, June

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (September 21, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787997617
• ISBN-13: 978-0787997618
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 1 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #348,146 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

101 of 103 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surprised me with its excellence, October 3, 2007

By 

Kurt A. Johnson (North-Central Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy (Hardcover)

I love reading, and read voraciously. However, every once in a while, a book comes along that surprises me with its excellence. Amish Grace is one of those books.

In the aftermath of the October 2, 2006, massacre at the Nickel Mines School, much was made about the quick response the Amish made in forgiving the shooter. However, there were also many questions asked, and many dubious conclusions drawn from their forgiveness. As such, three experts on the Amish community talked with the Amish themselves, and sought to gain a true understanding of the Amish, their faith, and their forgiveness.

Overall, I found this to be a wonderful book. The authors do a great job of giving an in-depth explanation of Amish forgiveness in the context of their lives and theology (which are not truly separable). It gave me a much more deep understanding of the Amish than I had gained from many other books. Having been raised with the Anabaptist faith ever at my elbow (Mennonite, in my case), I never had a true feeling of otherness from the Amish that many people seem to feel, but now I more truly understand that feeling than I ever had before.

But, don't get me wrong, this is not a dispassionate, academic book. The tragedy that occurred that day echoes and reechoes throughout the book, and the Amish forgiveness is shown to have come from deeper within them than some people seem to think.

Overall, I found this to be a wonderful book. It helped me to understand the Amish intellectually, and it helped me to look at myself and my faith more deeply. I give this book my highest recommendations.

56 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A profound book on grace and forgiveness for everyone, September 25, 2007

By 

Nancy Kurtz Boyd (Lancaster, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy (Hardcover)

This book achieves what most books don't. It combines a rich well of scholarly research on the part of three academicians without sacrificing the soul of what occurred at Nickel Mines during and after the event. In addition to being well researched the book has a poetically lyrical and haunting quality that honors, reflects, and conveys the hearts, souls, and minds of the Amish community. One of the most difficult things a writer can achieve is to step out of the way and allow the pictures and voices tell the story without the writer's ego coming into play. This is what was achieved in this book. I haven't been grasped by anything this powerful in a long time. It challenges me to try to live with intentionality each day and continue to struggle with what forgiveness looks like in the ordinary moments and encounters of my life.

43 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Amish Grace - Must Read, September 28, 2007

By 

L. M. Hyder-Darlington "Librarian" (Elizabethtown, PA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy (Hardcover)

Amish Grace is a truly amazing and grace-filled book that will reach out to every reader. Written by three known scholars in the areas of Amish culture, history and religion - the early chapters recount the horrifying events of October 2, 2006 at the Nickel Mines Amish schoolhouse. The agony in reading these first few pages quickly gives way to the amazing story of sudden Amish forgiveness in the wake of tragedy. The authors, writing in one clear and concise voice - lead us through the story that emerges - how can they have forgiven such cruelty so quickly and what does this mean to each one of us? The violence of Nickel Mines has been described by the Amish as their 9/11. What role would such forgiveness have played as we each address the pain of 9/11. While this book does not attempt to solve the ongoing debates over such forgiveness, it goes a long way to help us understand the argument and determine what forgiveness may mean to each of us. This book is a must read on many levels - whether you are a student, teacher, parent, married, single, Christian, non-Christian - we are all human and this book is beautifully written on a human level. Amish Grace is an easy read and paints a broad enough picture that anyone can find the application of forgiveness in their own life - road-rage ring a bell? This is the kind of book that people will stop and ask you about as you read in the airport, doctor's office, and at home. It is also the kind of book that you will be more than happy to share as well.