Forgivness - Admission/Application Essay Example

The Amish schoolhouse shooting was an unfortunate event that happened in 2006 and that left five dead and a number of others wounded. The way the community responded to the event raised some questions.Were the Amish people that easy to forgive? The Amish people were easy to forgive because it is in their lifestyle and beliefs to forgive. One of the things they practice that could have inspires them to forgive easily is their separatist way of life. As much as the Amish also shun violence, their religious beliefs teach them to conceal their affairs from the rest of the world and forgiveness is a good way to do that.

Whereas non-Amish would looked at such an incident as evil and something for which the culprit and probably his family should be punished for, the Amish prefer taking a separatist stance in looking at the incident as an unfortunate occurrence (Clark 134). Why did they forgive that fast? The Amish forgave that fast because of their emphasis on God and community. To the Amish people, the individual comes after God and community and as such, even if the shooter killed and wounded a number of people, the Amish had to forgive in order to show their steadfast belief in God and their commitment to the community.

They believe strongly in God whom they believe teaches that they forgive because he forgives. Their emphasis for community is seen in their spirit of self-help that makes them to help other members of the society and being humble to one another (Clark 134). Is that because of Jesus the Christ teaching? The Amish are strong followers of the teachings of Jesus and they have much in their belief that resembles Jewish religion. They believe that Jesus’ crucifixion was an act of remission for their sins and they could therefore have forgiven the shooter because Christ teaches that his followers forgive.

Jesus’ teaching that salvation is by grace makes the Amish believe that one can lose their salvation if they do not do things such as show compassion and unconditional love to all and this could have made them forgive the shooter fast. Their Jewish-like belief that good works wins favor from God could have made them think that it is a good work to forgive the shooter (Clark 135).What does forgiveness mean to them? To the Amish, forgiveness is a religious duty because they believe that God forgives them and requires them to do the same to others.

In addition, to the Amish, forgiveness means leaving vengeance to God who avenges for the injustices done to his followers. The Amish believe that forgiveness does not free the wrongdoer from punishment. According to the Amish, forgiveness does not start with a wrongdoing but it is always there for anybody deserving it. Forgiveness to the Amish is a chance to show unconditional love to people especially those that wrong them (Clark 135). How do they teach their children to forgive? The Amish teach their children to forgive by discouraging them from engaging in any open confrontation that involves either physical fights or abusive words.

The Amish teach forgiveness to their children by explaining the Ordnung, a written code of church rules and regulations. One of the teachings of the Amish Ordnung is that when an adult commits to the religion, they commit to lifetime faithfulness to all the rules of the church including forgiveness. They teach their children to forgive by showing them that reporting others to the law when they are wronged is not the right way and that they would rather show unconditional love to them through the act of forgiveness (Clark 136).

In conclusion, the incident taught important lessons on forgiveness. Works CitedClark, Mindy S. Plain Answers About the Amish Life. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2013. Print.