The Amish: A People of Preservation

Directed by John L. Ruth

The Amish continue to intrigue their technology-current neighbors by keeping alive ways and beliefs that many modern Americans regard as irretrievably lost to progress. In this colorful, award-winning documentary, newly revised and augmented, Mennonite historian John L. Ruth takes us sympathetically into the Amish mindset. Appreciative neighbors, a well-known physician, an artist, and respected scholar John A. Hostetler, author of Amish Society, provide insightful commentary on the survival of an alternative to the kind of world we have made. As the Amish increase exponentially in numbers, some migrate toward more open farmland. Those staying in centuries-old communities where the land is too crowded to farm have developed an amazing variety of cottage industries. But all changes are made very carefully, in order not to undermine the spiritual covenant and community.