Notes

The Amish response to the murders of five schoolgirls in Nickel Mines, Pa., October 2006, was even more surprising than the intrusion of evil into bucolic Lancaster County.

Just hours after the shootings, the community forgave killer Charles Roberts and reached out to his widow, attending his burial and contributing to a fund for the family. How could the Amish offer such radical forgiveness in the face of their own sorrow and grief?

Leading Anabaptist scholars Steven M. Nolt, Donald B. Kraybill, and David L. Weaver-Zercher have co-written Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy, which explores the history, theology and culture of the Amish, connecting forgiveness to their entire way of life. They also spoke to the relatives of the gunman.

“Regardless of the details of the Nickel Mines story one message rings clear: religion was not used to justify rage and revenge but to inspire goodness, forgiveness, and grace,” the authors conclude. “That is the big lesson for the rest of us regardless of our faith or nationality.”

All royalties go to Mennonite Central Committee benefit children suffering because of poverty, war, and natural disaster.

“As Bishop Tutu observed, forgiveness is the best form of self-interest. It is also the best revenge.” Thus Mennonite minister John L. Ruth, director of a PBS documentary on the Amish and former college English professor, concludes his sleek volume Forgiveness. Inside anecdotes of the Amish school legacy of hope include part personal, spiritual and historical reflection, granting the book an elegant readability.

More with less, Claiborne style

Pseudo-Anabaptist activist Shane Claiborne teamed up with his old sociology prof., the liberal evangelical Tony Campolo, in a series of talks on DVD called “Simply Enough.” Six discussions focus on how to be faithful Christians in an age of consumerist idolatry. A meek and dreadlocked Claiborne shares his experience of community living in Philadelphia in an effort to bridge the gap between young and old simplicity seekers. “If the Bible says so, why not do it?” they say.

Interspersed with folk worship tunes, a biblically based discussion about Buy Nothing Christmas encourages viewers to imagine other ways of doing life. If Jesus was born a refugee in a manger surrounded by cow dung, why the tinsel hype?

Campolo’s colloquial flair and Claiborne’s matter-of-fact simplicity make this DVD a good discussion starter for church groups who want to “become part of a new society of those who reject consumerism.” Available from simpleliving.org.

Poetry and watercolours guide contemplation

When artist Martha Pauls of Sorrento, B.C.’s River of Life Community Church teamed up with poet Donna Richards, out poured common inspiration. Together, they have produced an 80-page book with Kindred Productions called Quiet Reflections.

The collaboration was almost an after-the-fact endeavour: most of the poems and paintings had already been composed before they met. The two were amazed to find a similarity in their themes and renderings. The book is dedicated to Martha’s grandson, who died suddenly at a young age, making Quiet Reflections a book of comfort as well.

—BM