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A typical early Sunday morning you will hear the clip clopping of fast paced horses pulling family sized, black colored, covered carriages on their way to morning church. The amiable Amish are respected for their stand for the abstinence of technology usage and clean living. Crofton, Kentucky is a short distance north of historic Hopkinsville in the southwestern portion of Kentucky State.

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Christian County and Todd County (KY) have seen a lot of Mennonite and Amish immigration over the last few decades. I think it really began during the late 1970's which was a rough time for U.S. farmers. Interest rates were unbelievably high and many areas suffered severe drought. Farm bankruptcies rose across the nation and continued throughout the 1980's.

As nice farms in Christian and Todd Counties came on the market, Mennonite and Amish families (especially from Pennsylvania) began moving into the area. They were able to sell their farmland back east at a good price for development and industry, and they got a lot more land for their money when they reinvested it here.

As recently as 15 years ago, some local residents seemed to be very hostile about the influx of Mennonite and Amish families. There was a lot of resentment about local farmers going broke and losing their land, only to see it sold to Mennonites and Amish. The Kentucky New Era, our local newspaper, wrote several articles about vandalism and hate pamphlets.

I believe that the Mennonites and Amish are better accepted now that people have grown accustomed to them and perhaps have even become acquainted with some of them. After all, they are just people, much like you and me in many ways. Where there is ill will now, it is most often about the damage done to highways by the steel shoes on horses and the steel wheels on buggies and equipment.

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The Amish, sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches. The Amish are known for simple living, plain dress, and reluctance to adopt many conveniences of modern technology.

The history of the Amish church began with a schism in Switzerland within a group of Swiss and Alsatian Anabaptists in 1693 led by Jakob Ammann. Those who followed Ammann became known as Amish. These followers were originally from three main places: the German-speaking parts of Switzerland, Alsace (now part of France), and the Palatinate of Germany. In the early 18th century, many Amish and Mennonites immigrated to Pennsylvania for a variety of reasons. Today, the most traditional descendants of the Amish continue to speak Pennsylvania German, also known as Pennsylvania Dutch. However, a dialect of Swiss German predominates in some Old Order Amish communities, especially in the American state of Indiana. As of 2000, over 165,000 Old Order Amish live in Canada and the United States. A 2008 study suggested their numbers have increased to 227,000, and in 2010 a new study suggested their population had grown by 10% in the past two years to 249,000, with increasing movement to the West.

Amish church membership begins with baptism, usually between the ages of 16 and 25. It is a requirement for marriage, and once a person has affiliated with the church, he or she may only marry within the faith. Church districts average between 20 and 40 families, and worship services are held every other Sunday in a member's home. The district is led by a bishop and several ministers and deacons.

The rules of the church, the Ordnung, must be observed by every member. These rules cover most aspects of day-to-day living, and include prohibitions or limitations on the use of power-line electricity, telephones, and automobiles, as well as regulations on clothing. Many Amish church members may not buy insurance or accept government assistance such as Social Security. As Anabaptists, Amish church members practice nonresistance and will not perform any type of military service. Members who do not conform to these expectations and who cannot be convinced to repent are excommunicated. In addition to excommunication, members may be shunned, a practice that limits social contacts to shame the wayward member into returning to the church. During adolescence (rumspringa or "running around" in some communities), nonconforming behavior that would result in the shunning of an adult who had made the permanent commitment of baptism may meet with a degree of forbearance.

Amish church groups seek to maintain a degree of separation from the non-Amish world. There is generally a heavy emphasis on church and family relationships. They typically operate their own one-room schools and discontinue formal education at grade eight. They value rural life, manual labor and humility. Because of a smaller gene pool, some groups have increased incidences of certain inheritable conditions.

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Amish Church goers along Highway 41 heading through the town of Crofton, Kentucky on their way to church - August 28, 2011.