The Amish community numbers about 250 000 people. The most curious thing about them is that they presently live the way their ancestors did 300 years ago.
The largest Amish communities are in the US. They live mainly in the states of Indiana, Pennsylvania and Ohio. The Amish strictly follow every passage of the Bible and that is why they see most things in modern reality as creations of the Devil.
Their beliefs idolize the community, not the individual. That is why they dress in a particular fashion. In this way, they distinguish themselves from people who are not Amish and also show their cohesiveness as a community.
Amish women wear dresses down to their ankles and hats, and the men - pants, a shirt and hat, which they have made themselves. The Amish don't buy clothes, let alone modern ones, since they see it as an expression of vanity, a horrendous sin in the Bible.
The Amish community began in 1630 in Switzerland with a group of Mennonites at the time. The Mennonites belong to a radical reformist Anabaptist movement.
Years later, the Amish were subjected to cruel persecution in the European countries, which is why the greater majority of them emigrated to America.
Their faith requires humility and modesty. What this means, is that besides their clothing, the Amish deprive themselves of all modern technology in their homes. No Amish house uses electricity or internet.
The Amish don't use automobiles and don't ride in such modes of transportation. For longer distances, they travel using horse and carriage, as their ancestors had done 300 years in the past.
Amish women never cut their hair. They also don't use protection when having sex, which is why a family can usually have between 10 and 15 children.
The Amish also reject education. They go to school until 14 years of age at the latest, then the children begin helping their parents. Most Amish are either farmers or construction workers, laboring from dawn till dusk.
If an Amish person were to leave the community, he accepts that he is dooming himself to an afterlife in Hell and eternal suffering.
