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My People, the Amish: The True Story of an Amish Father and Son
In My People, the Amish, Joe Keim paints a detailed picture of life behind the bonnets and buggies. More than a biography, this is an honest look at the heart-warming traditions that mingle with the deep-rooted legalism of the Amish community in Ashland, Ohio.
Born, raised, and baptized in an Old Order Amish church, from childhood Joe Keim was taught that if he didn’t follow the twenty-two-page ordinance letter that governed his community, there was no way he could get to heaven. What started as a path of rebellion led Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Englisher Christians who would love them like family and show them how to live out their new found faith in Jesus Christ.
Nine months after their traditional Amish wedding, Joe and Esther left family and friends forever to live openly for Christ, and endured shunning and excommunication with bold faith. Since then, the Lord has brought many former Amish people to Joe and Esther for help. Because of their passion for the Amish people and with the support of fellow believers, they have brought biblical truth to thousands of Amish through the ministry they founded in 2000, Mission to Amish People (MAP).
Born, raised, and baptized in an Old Order Amish church, from childhood Joe Keim was taught that if he didn’t follow the twenty-two-page ordinance letter that governed his community, there was no way he could get to heaven. What started as a path of rebellion led Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Englisher Christians who would love them like family and show them how to live out their new found faith in Jesus Christ.
Nine months after their traditional Amish wedding, Joe and Esther left family and friends forever to live openly for Christ, and endured shunning and excommunication with bold faith. Since then, the Lord has brought many former Amish people to Joe and Esther for help. Because of their passion for the Amish people and with the support of fellow believers, they have brought biblical truth to thousands of Amish through the ministry they founded in 2000, Mission to Amish People (MAP).
219 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2017
1855 people are currently reading
950 people want to read
About the author
Joe Keim
4 books3 followersJoe Keim was born and raised in Ashland, Ohio. He married Esther Keim in 1986 and they left the Old Order Amish community in 1987. They have two grown children, Jonathan and Rachel. In 2001, Joe left his job as a tool and die maker for full-time ministry. The Keims travel all over the US, speaking in churches, as well as to hospital staff, to law enforcement, and at colleges, helping people understand how to communicate with the Amish.
Through personal witness, home Bible studies, home prayer meetings, the Bible Club, The Amish Voice, and the Audio Ministry, the Keims want to see every Amish person hear the clear message of salvation. MAP offers counseling and protection to those who are victims of sexual, mental, and physical abuse. The ministry also provides help with needs such as getting a GED, obtaining a birth certificate, and finding a job. Through the Bible Club alone, they have seen more than 2,500 Amish make commitments for Christ.
Through personal witness, home Bible studies, home prayer meetings, the Bible Club, The Amish Voice, and the Audio Ministry, the Keims want to see every Amish person hear the clear message of salvation. MAP offers counseling and protection to those who are victims of sexual, mental, and physical abuse. The ministry also provides help with needs such as getting a GED, obtaining a birth certificate, and finding a job. Through the Bible Club alone, they have seen more than 2,500 Amish make commitments for Christ.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
September 24, 2018
This was a very interesting book and a good read. It wasn't riveting or a can't put down type of book but it was a book that really delved into the lives of an Amish family, growing up Amish, leaving the Amish and becoming a Christian.
You hear stories and tales of different religions and you don't always know what to believe but this book was believable and interesting.
A good read for someone who is interested in how others live and survive in our world with so many different influences.
You hear stories and tales of different religions and you don't always know what to believe but this book was believable and interesting.
A good read for someone who is interested in how others live and survive in our world with so many different influences.
September 23, 2017
I was born into the Old Order Amish religion and so I naturally found this book to be very good! Beyond my obvious bias, I found Joe Keim’s story to be intriguing and his writing style was excellent!
A great book for those who are interested in learning more about the Amish life and religious beliefs.
A great book for those who are interested in learning more about the Amish life and religious beliefs.
October 16, 2017
It’s a quick read that allows one to understand more about the Amish culture. The Amish and other Anabaptists groups fascinate me! However, the latter part of the book focused on the author’s ministry and a tremendous amount of scripture that reinforced the path to salvation. While it was interesting to learn about his outreach program, it was not why I wanted to read the book. Likewise, I did not need convincing of the gospels. I’m already a believer. So... if you read the book, be prepared. I was expecting to learn of the relationship struggles between the Amish and the English worlds but you get a lot of extra stuff too.
March 19, 2019
Needs a different title
This is a poorly written and unapologetic criticism of the Amish faith combined with a clumsy and heavy-handed, self-righteous story of leaving the Amish to become "saved" and encourage others to do the same. I'm not Amish and I'm not Baptist. I am a Christian, though, and I feel that it is this sort of one-true-way-ism that gives all Christians a black eye and makes us look foolish and narrow-minded to the rest of humanity. The author does not seem to realize that he's left one horribly strict culture for another. I don't wish him ill, just wish he could have written his interesting story better and left out the proselotizing.
This is a poorly written and unapologetic criticism of the Amish faith combined with a clumsy and heavy-handed, self-righteous story of leaving the Amish to become "saved" and encourage others to do the same. I'm not Amish and I'm not Baptist. I am a Christian, though, and I feel that it is this sort of one-true-way-ism that gives all Christians a black eye and makes us look foolish and narrow-minded to the rest of humanity. The author does not seem to realize that he's left one horribly strict culture for another. I don't wish him ill, just wish he could have written his interesting story better and left out the proselotizing.
June 9, 2022
I really liked this one.
It's an autobiography of a man who grew up in an super conservative Amish culture, in fact the MOST conservative of all the Amish sects.
He tells of his struggles with the strict rules of the Amish culture and of their religious view which he felt were contradictory to the Bible.
He left the Amish several times and eventually left for good a year after marrying, with his wife( his first and only sweetheart) Ester.
They founded many organizations to help both Amish and Non Amish with various types of issues including assimilating into English culture, assistance with addictions (of all kinds), and bringing the teachings of Jesus to all that came to them.
I lowered 1 star because the last 1/4 of the book was just about their work in the organizations and it felt like a promotional sell. I'm not against that, they need donations to keep going, but I would have like more stories.
No content concerns.
It's an autobiography of a man who grew up in an super conservative Amish culture, in fact the MOST conservative of all the Amish sects.
He tells of his struggles with the strict rules of the Amish culture and of their religious view which he felt were contradictory to the Bible.
He left the Amish several times and eventually left for good a year after marrying, with his wife( his first and only sweetheart) Ester.
They founded many organizations to help both Amish and Non Amish with various types of issues including assimilating into English culture, assistance with addictions (of all kinds), and bringing the teachings of Jesus to all that came to them.
I lowered 1 star because the last 1/4 of the book was just about their work in the organizations and it felt like a promotional sell. I'm not against that, they need donations to keep going, but I would have like more stories.
No content concerns.
September 5, 2023
I live in a very Amish populated area. I remember going to vacation bible study with a family of Amish children. Even living among them, there is certainly an element of mystery of their faith. This was a very interesting read and I loved learning more about the Amish culture as well as the testimonies throughout this book. I even got emotional a few times.
February 28, 2022
I was super disappointed in both the title, and execution of this memoir.
When I picked it up, I thought I would be reading about a man’s personal growth and description of his life in the Amish ways. I expected an overview of culture, and a lot of the ‘whys’ and ‘what fors’ to be explained. This book doesn’t give any of those answers. Sure, it’s 200 pages max, so it’s a summary at best—but I found it so incredibly lacking in philosophic stamina, and here’s why:
He mentions how certain things make your community (or, his community—he’s speaking for the cues within his personal dynamic, not all Amish people everywhere) can take you further from God—but not WHY they ‘do’ that.
For example: He talks briefly about baseball gloves, and how you can’t use those to play because they’re against the Amish way. So the kids played anyway with many a jammed finger. But why? Why no glove? What is it about it that takes you away from Amish teachings or scripture? There is no ‘why’ to follow up these informational drops throughout the text, and after awhile it’s really taxing to the reader. I was never really certain what was supposedly inferred.
Throughout, you’ll also find Biblical scripture passages, but a lot of them are tangental at best to the individual stories at hand, and their context rift leaves a lot to be desired for explaining behavior.
I had a lot of issues with the phrasing within as well, but I chalked it up to dialect issues—considering he had a very small English educational basis to pull from. Either way, I feel like a more involved editor or co-writer could have made this book better suited for the masses. I feel like an outside influence could have critiqued and included wording that would have made the stories more involved for readers like me who want both an emotional and physical description in order to appreciate a memoir/biography text.
From an outsider to Amish practice, looking in, that’s about how I felt, all the way through. I was looking for something more in-depth, and felt that this only operates as a secondary text to a dictionary of Amish belief, not as a stand-alone novel about the people itself.
When I picked it up, I thought I would be reading about a man’s personal growth and description of his life in the Amish ways. I expected an overview of culture, and a lot of the ‘whys’ and ‘what fors’ to be explained. This book doesn’t give any of those answers. Sure, it’s 200 pages max, so it’s a summary at best—but I found it so incredibly lacking in philosophic stamina, and here’s why:
He mentions how certain things make your community (or, his community—he’s speaking for the cues within his personal dynamic, not all Amish people everywhere) can take you further from God—but not WHY they ‘do’ that.
For example: He talks briefly about baseball gloves, and how you can’t use those to play because they’re against the Amish way. So the kids played anyway with many a jammed finger. But why? Why no glove? What is it about it that takes you away from Amish teachings or scripture? There is no ‘why’ to follow up these informational drops throughout the text, and after awhile it’s really taxing to the reader. I was never really certain what was supposedly inferred.
Throughout, you’ll also find Biblical scripture passages, but a lot of them are tangental at best to the individual stories at hand, and their context rift leaves a lot to be desired for explaining behavior.
I had a lot of issues with the phrasing within as well, but I chalked it up to dialect issues—considering he had a very small English educational basis to pull from. Either way, I feel like a more involved editor or co-writer could have made this book better suited for the masses. I feel like an outside influence could have critiqued and included wording that would have made the stories more involved for readers like me who want both an emotional and physical description in order to appreciate a memoir/biography text.
From an outsider to Amish practice, looking in, that’s about how I felt, all the way through. I was looking for something more in-depth, and felt that this only operates as a secondary text to a dictionary of Amish belief, not as a stand-alone novel about the people itself.
October 24, 2019
My People, The Amish is a book that is emotional to read as it’s the author’s story. He experienced more than his share of deep hurt and disappointment with his upbringing in a large Amish family. While his dad was making a name for himself his family was suffering and never received positive words. Readers be prepared to have tissues handy as your emotions turn to tears while reading this story.
October 9, 2023
I started reading this book thinking it was about the Amish lifestyle. Not a genre I usually read, but thought it might be interesting. It turned out to be so much more. It is about the Amish religion and how the now Non-Amish have turned away from it and now have their religion with the "English".
May 10, 2017
[Note: This book was provided free of charge by Aneko Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.]
This book is a striking example of how a book can answer a question on a seemingly entirely unrelated subject. In reading this book, for example, I was intrigued by how often the author made reference to a classic Anabaptist book of martyrs that I happen to have in my Florida library [1]. Likewise, I was deeply struck by the relevance of the author's experience with his own hardworking but strict and emotionally distant father and my own troubled experience with my own [2]. Indeed, the theme of fatherhood and the elusive balance between discipline and love is a thread that runs deeply through this book and through its humorous appendices about the rules for dating the author's daughter when she was a teenager, something I found highly entertaining to read, despite the potential awkwardness of the subject matter. Indeed, a great deal of this work straddled the line between the candid and the awkward, and between the sound and the unsound.
In terms of the book's structure and contents, this book serves as both a personal memoir of the author's own personal background and as a call for the reader to support his efforts to evangelize among the Amish, bringing them to Christ, as it were. One might think that the Amish, being very serious Anabaptists, were already Christians, but the author seems to imply if not directly state that he does not view them as such, which gives a bit of an edge to his efforts to educate the Amish on the Bible that are discussed towards the end of the book. Throughout the 200 pages of this book the author discusses his own upbringing in a particularly severe Amish group with strict manmade standards about how life was to be--the dimensions of one's buggy, the choice of leaders by lot, the colors of one's drapery and so on, his rebellious teenage years, marriage to a similarly rebellious young woman, and his break from the Amish and his family and professional and spiritual life afterward. Whether or not one agrees with the author--and I found much to disagree with personally--there is also much to empathize with for those of us who grew up in strict circumstances in somewhat marginal subcultures that left us unable to fully get along with outsiders.
How one feels about this book will depend on many factors. For one, I saw the author's view of the Amish world as a mission field for spreading discontent more than a little bit unsettling, the same way I would view someone who saw the Church of God community as a mission field for the author's Antinomian views, which would be particularly unwelcome. Naturally, my own hostility to the author's approach to evangelism certainly colored my view of his supposed conversion narrative which I viewed less than entirely praiseworthy. The author's discussion of his thawed relationship with his father after some decades could also be viewed as an act of moral corruption in which the author seeks to pit love against law, grace against works, in the manner of contemporary degeneracy within our larger culture concerning personal sins. Even so, despite the fact that I did not view the author's own spiritual views or behavior within Amish society all that highly, I thought the author did a good job at explaining his own life, even if his justifications rang more than a little bit hollow for myself personally. Whether or not you get a lot out of this book will depend, more than usually, on what you bring to the table from your own experience, and your own view of our culture's complicated view of the Amish as being backwards and repressive but also as an example of a moral culture that has survived despite our contemporary decadence [3].
[1] https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
[2] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
[3] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
This book is a striking example of how a book can answer a question on a seemingly entirely unrelated subject. In reading this book, for example, I was intrigued by how often the author made reference to a classic Anabaptist book of martyrs that I happen to have in my Florida library [1]. Likewise, I was deeply struck by the relevance of the author's experience with his own hardworking but strict and emotionally distant father and my own troubled experience with my own [2]. Indeed, the theme of fatherhood and the elusive balance between discipline and love is a thread that runs deeply through this book and through its humorous appendices about the rules for dating the author's daughter when she was a teenager, something I found highly entertaining to read, despite the potential awkwardness of the subject matter. Indeed, a great deal of this work straddled the line between the candid and the awkward, and between the sound and the unsound.
In terms of the book's structure and contents, this book serves as both a personal memoir of the author's own personal background and as a call for the reader to support his efforts to evangelize among the Amish, bringing them to Christ, as it were. One might think that the Amish, being very serious Anabaptists, were already Christians, but the author seems to imply if not directly state that he does not view them as such, which gives a bit of an edge to his efforts to educate the Amish on the Bible that are discussed towards the end of the book. Throughout the 200 pages of this book the author discusses his own upbringing in a particularly severe Amish group with strict manmade standards about how life was to be--the dimensions of one's buggy, the choice of leaders by lot, the colors of one's drapery and so on, his rebellious teenage years, marriage to a similarly rebellious young woman, and his break from the Amish and his family and professional and spiritual life afterward. Whether or not one agrees with the author--and I found much to disagree with personally--there is also much to empathize with for those of us who grew up in strict circumstances in somewhat marginal subcultures that left us unable to fully get along with outsiders.
How one feels about this book will depend on many factors. For one, I saw the author's view of the Amish world as a mission field for spreading discontent more than a little bit unsettling, the same way I would view someone who saw the Church of God community as a mission field for the author's Antinomian views, which would be particularly unwelcome. Naturally, my own hostility to the author's approach to evangelism certainly colored my view of his supposed conversion narrative which I viewed less than entirely praiseworthy. The author's discussion of his thawed relationship with his father after some decades could also be viewed as an act of moral corruption in which the author seeks to pit love against law, grace against works, in the manner of contemporary degeneracy within our larger culture concerning personal sins. Even so, despite the fact that I did not view the author's own spiritual views or behavior within Amish society all that highly, I thought the author did a good job at explaining his own life, even if his justifications rang more than a little bit hollow for myself personally. Whether or not you get a lot out of this book will depend, more than usually, on what you bring to the table from your own experience, and your own view of our culture's complicated view of the Amish as being backwards and repressive but also as an example of a moral culture that has survived despite our contemporary decadence [3].
[1] https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
[2] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
[3] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
July 27, 2021
Informative
A wonderful, informative look into the Amish beliefs and lifestyle. Well written. What a wonderful ministry Joe and Ester have begun.
A wonderful, informative look into the Amish beliefs and lifestyle. Well written. What a wonderful ministry Joe and Ester have begun.
June 21, 2019
If I had realized this was one christian church sermon after another I would have passed on this free book from Amazon.
I did learn a few new things about the Amish and the relationship with each other, but not enough to recommend reading the book.
I can understand a struggle with religion but this was just over the top
I did learn a few new things about the Amish and the relationship with each other, but not enough to recommend reading the book.
I can understand a struggle with religion but this was just over the top
June 23, 2020
Found interesting and read on tablet
April 5, 2022
I choose to read this book having seen Joe Keim on an American made PBS TV programme called Amish Shunned which was broadcast on UK TV last Christmas Day. It was made in 2014 and I wanted to know more about the seven people featured who had been shunned by their community. This means that they are formally excommunicated from their church but also from their entire community. They are no longer allowed to eat at the same table as their family and not allowed to accept anything from their hands as well as being generally punished and ignored.
The Amish have many communities which each have their own set of rules known as The Ordinance Letter. Some are liberal but Joe's grandfather moved his family to a district where they were very strict. This is the community which Joe grew up in where the brim on their hats were wider than others Amish groups, there was more restrictive use of buttons on clothes, pleats in women's bonnets, size of horse drawn buggies was very precise and prescriptive and many very petty rules which seem overwhelming and quite ridiculous to the non-Amish.
As a teenager Joe Keim rebelled against the non-sensibility of these rules and left the Amish multiple times. He kept returning as he couldn't cope with the idea of not seeing his family again. He finally left in 1986 having married Esther in an Amish wedding the year before. They then joined Bethel Baptist Church in Savanna, Ohio a few miles from the Amish community they left.
This book is written in 2017 so I was hoping to learn more of Joe's life since and his interaction, or not, with his Amish family. There was a little of that but a lot of it was focussed on his work in Mission to Amish People which was established in 2000 to reach out to and help people still in the Amish community.
Although a committed Christian, I found the constant preaching and use of Bible verses to justify the text in this book tedious and over zealous. This was not helped by the fact that they were all from the King James version which is in a particularly unfathomably language to the 2022 reader. I often looked them up and read them in an New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. I think this overuse of Bible verses would be very off-putting to a reader who does not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They are also very specific to that context and I am sure that a writer of a book refuting this one, i.e. supporting the Amish ways, could come up with Bible verses backing up their strange and petty (to the non-Amish) rules.
I was confused as the book finished at 89% on my Kindle and took me to the Amazon bookstore to review it. However, on returning to the book I was able to advance to see the rest which is a series of Appendices and some interesting photographs at the very end. I found the first two appendices very concerning. They were questions that Joe addressed to his daughter's potential boyfriend, David, before they were allowed to date. Further questions were addressed to David when he wanted to marry Joe's daughter. The questions are highly controlling and intrusive into these young people's privacy. Many of the questions were the standard ones roiled out at some job interviews such as 'what is your greatest weakness?' or 'what do you expect to be doing in five years time?'. I found some quite offensive and can only congratulate the two young people for accepting this intrusion into their lives as they are now married. Up to this point I was full of admiration for the author for his work in helping people who wish to leave the very controlling Amish communities but these appendices just seemed like they were about to be led into a different very controlling community.
If you are concerned on the welfare of animals be warned that this book contains stories of hunting and trapping of muskrats, foxes, coons and pigeons among other creatures and the use of animal pelts.
The Amish have many communities which each have their own set of rules known as The Ordinance Letter. Some are liberal but Joe's grandfather moved his family to a district where they were very strict. This is the community which Joe grew up in where the brim on their hats were wider than others Amish groups, there was more restrictive use of buttons on clothes, pleats in women's bonnets, size of horse drawn buggies was very precise and prescriptive and many very petty rules which seem overwhelming and quite ridiculous to the non-Amish.
As a teenager Joe Keim rebelled against the non-sensibility of these rules and left the Amish multiple times. He kept returning as he couldn't cope with the idea of not seeing his family again. He finally left in 1986 having married Esther in an Amish wedding the year before. They then joined Bethel Baptist Church in Savanna, Ohio a few miles from the Amish community they left.
This book is written in 2017 so I was hoping to learn more of Joe's life since and his interaction, or not, with his Amish family. There was a little of that but a lot of it was focussed on his work in Mission to Amish People which was established in 2000 to reach out to and help people still in the Amish community.
Although a committed Christian, I found the constant preaching and use of Bible verses to justify the text in this book tedious and over zealous. This was not helped by the fact that they were all from the King James version which is in a particularly unfathomably language to the 2022 reader. I often looked them up and read them in an New International Version (NIV) of the Bible. I think this overuse of Bible verses would be very off-putting to a reader who does not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They are also very specific to that context and I am sure that a writer of a book refuting this one, i.e. supporting the Amish ways, could come up with Bible verses backing up their strange and petty (to the non-Amish) rules.
I was confused as the book finished at 89% on my Kindle and took me to the Amazon bookstore to review it. However, on returning to the book I was able to advance to see the rest which is a series of Appendices and some interesting photographs at the very end. I found the first two appendices very concerning. They were questions that Joe addressed to his daughter's potential boyfriend, David, before they were allowed to date. Further questions were addressed to David when he wanted to marry Joe's daughter. The questions are highly controlling and intrusive into these young people's privacy. Many of the questions were the standard ones roiled out at some job interviews such as 'what is your greatest weakness?' or 'what do you expect to be doing in five years time?'. I found some quite offensive and can only congratulate the two young people for accepting this intrusion into their lives as they are now married. Up to this point I was full of admiration for the author for his work in helping people who wish to leave the very controlling Amish communities but these appendices just seemed like they were about to be led into a different very controlling community.
If you are concerned on the welfare of animals be warned that this book contains stories of hunting and trapping of muskrats, foxes, coons and pigeons among other creatures and the use of animal pelts.
September 17, 2021
Mainly an autobiography, it is also a doctrinal explanation of the author’s views on Salvation. Its an interesting story but stylistically it tends to be “preachy” in places.
The author’s story is told clearly and thoughtfully. He (and his wife) seem to have struggled with the way that the Amish “gold plate” Christianity, by adding lots of additional rules, rules which seemed increasingly irrational to them.
For example they could only have 3 buttons on their clothes. A sofa shouldn’t have a back on it (and possibly not sides either). Baptism could not be administered to someone with a folded brim on his hat. When the author made a buggy, it was one inch too tall, so it had to be taken apart. And holy books had to be read in German, which many of the community didn't really understand but was still considered such a holy language that they wondered if Jesus spoke it (Kindle 14%).
Rules like this raise questions, especially when they needlessly made life difficult. Amish farmers would work for weeks at a task that a non-Amish farmer could do in a day, using modern equipment. Access to telephones seems to have been an issue too. If its wrong to have a telephone, how is it okay to keep going to someone else’s house to borrow the use of their telephone? Surely, either telephones are bad - in which case dont use them, or they aren’t bad - in which case why can't Amish have one?
One of the themes which the book raises, is the struggle which individuals have when they question their heritage. Leaving the Amish results in being cut off from family and friends. This caused the author many difficulties, and it also led the author to his mission, to help Amish transition from their communities.
Transitioning out of the Amish is particularly hard when Amish people have no documentation such as birth records. And its even harder when the community cut off a leaver and refuse to cooperate with requests for information. The book tells a poignant story of a young man with no birth certificate who couldn’t get documentation without ID, but he couldn’t get ID without a birth certificate. It also tells of darker tales of suicides by Amish unable to come to terms with their situation.
This raises questions of fairness and abuse, which the author doesn’t really probe. How is it acceptable for a community to effectively “imprison” its members without the legal documentation which would enable them to leave? We also hear of an incident involving his sister. Women were encouraged to vote on community matters but because the elders didn’t like her vote, they told her to change it or they would discipline her (Kindle 57%). Is that a reasonable way to treat women? And the (newly married) author himself spent months working for free to “atone” for his sins in what can only be described as an exploitative situation (47%).
Rather than probing these issues of justice, the book instead focuses upon trying to “disprove” Amish belief in salvation by their works; to instead prove the Reformation idea of salvation by faith alone. Those issues have been debated for 500 years. What makes the book interesting is not those historical arguments, but rather its portrayal of the choices and difficulties faced by modern people wishing to leave the Amish community. I wish there had been a little more focus on those issues.
Overall, the book is accessible to readers from all backgrounds and it is a relatively quick introduction to some of the ways that modernity is challenging the traditional Amish community.
The author’s story is told clearly and thoughtfully. He (and his wife) seem to have struggled with the way that the Amish “gold plate” Christianity, by adding lots of additional rules, rules which seemed increasingly irrational to them.
For example they could only have 3 buttons on their clothes. A sofa shouldn’t have a back on it (and possibly not sides either). Baptism could not be administered to someone with a folded brim on his hat. When the author made a buggy, it was one inch too tall, so it had to be taken apart. And holy books had to be read in German, which many of the community didn't really understand but was still considered such a holy language that they wondered if Jesus spoke it (Kindle 14%).
Rules like this raise questions, especially when they needlessly made life difficult. Amish farmers would work for weeks at a task that a non-Amish farmer could do in a day, using modern equipment. Access to telephones seems to have been an issue too. If its wrong to have a telephone, how is it okay to keep going to someone else’s house to borrow the use of their telephone? Surely, either telephones are bad - in which case dont use them, or they aren’t bad - in which case why can't Amish have one?
One of the themes which the book raises, is the struggle which individuals have when they question their heritage. Leaving the Amish results in being cut off from family and friends. This caused the author many difficulties, and it also led the author to his mission, to help Amish transition from their communities.
Transitioning out of the Amish is particularly hard when Amish people have no documentation such as birth records. And its even harder when the community cut off a leaver and refuse to cooperate with requests for information. The book tells a poignant story of a young man with no birth certificate who couldn’t get documentation without ID, but he couldn’t get ID without a birth certificate. It also tells of darker tales of suicides by Amish unable to come to terms with their situation.
This raises questions of fairness and abuse, which the author doesn’t really probe. How is it acceptable for a community to effectively “imprison” its members without the legal documentation which would enable them to leave? We also hear of an incident involving his sister. Women were encouraged to vote on community matters but because the elders didn’t like her vote, they told her to change it or they would discipline her (Kindle 57%). Is that a reasonable way to treat women? And the (newly married) author himself spent months working for free to “atone” for his sins in what can only be described as an exploitative situation (47%).
Rather than probing these issues of justice, the book instead focuses upon trying to “disprove” Amish belief in salvation by their works; to instead prove the Reformation idea of salvation by faith alone. Those issues have been debated for 500 years. What makes the book interesting is not those historical arguments, but rather its portrayal of the choices and difficulties faced by modern people wishing to leave the Amish community. I wish there had been a little more focus on those issues.
Overall, the book is accessible to readers from all backgrounds and it is a relatively quick introduction to some of the ways that modernity is challenging the traditional Amish community.
May 25, 2017
My People, The Amish was an intriguing book to read because Joe Keim weaves his story of outsider culture (by this I refer to outside mainstream America culture) with Scripture lessons having to do with his ministry to the Amish. His ministry is also unique in that it differentiates between lifestyle and the Gospel. It doesn't necessarily encourage Amish to leave, but if they choose to become "English" he helps them with the tools to do so such as drivers license, GED, and job training.
Even if one has no interest in the Amish lifestyle going into reading this biography, there are many underlying themes that apply to any type of power controlling religion. I observed some similarities in the way I have read Islam is controlling of women's decisions by always making them agree with men's choices at the threat of excommunication. On a more personal note, I observed multiple similarities with the way I grew up in Independent Fundamental Baptist churches. The divisions over buggy height, curtain colors, German only translation usage as well as the silence in sex within marriage and childbirth recalled many conversational and abusive situations allowed by churches in my memory.
The importance of Joe Keim's testimony in relation to revival among multiple denominations of Christianity is so clear. On page 86 the book reads, "What I found with myself and others in the Amish community was that many times because of stringent church rules, we lived double lives." On pages 163-168, Joe explains Old Testament law as dealing with the external and the New Testament bringing about a better covenant with God: that of the heart. He stresses man-made rules and legalism didn't work then and doesn't work now. He deals with this subject in relation to young adult children and parents and addresses generational conflict as well as over-control. So many Christian religions need this call to grace and mercy and step aside from the traditions and power hungry man-made rules infesting their congregations.
The beginning of the book was a little hard to read as far as timeline. Between ages 15-20, Joe ran away and returned back and forth between the Amish community and the English world that a few times I wasn't sure what time of life this was for him as far as before salvation and after salvation. Joe also includes glowing accolades of his two children as well as he and his wife Esther's preferred method of dating and marriage for their children. He provides outlines of questions and topics discussed, specifically in relationship to his daughter, in appendixes at the back of the book. These appeared to be in conflict with his disdain for legalism as his son's dating life seemed to contain less oversight. I did like the verses for further Bible study and information on his free Bible study courses, also provided in appendixes at the back of the book.
Even if one has no interest in the Amish lifestyle going into reading this biography, there are many underlying themes that apply to any type of power controlling religion. I observed some similarities in the way I have read Islam is controlling of women's decisions by always making them agree with men's choices at the threat of excommunication. On a more personal note, I observed multiple similarities with the way I grew up in Independent Fundamental Baptist churches. The divisions over buggy height, curtain colors, German only translation usage as well as the silence in sex within marriage and childbirth recalled many conversational and abusive situations allowed by churches in my memory.
The importance of Joe Keim's testimony in relation to revival among multiple denominations of Christianity is so clear. On page 86 the book reads, "What I found with myself and others in the Amish community was that many times because of stringent church rules, we lived double lives." On pages 163-168, Joe explains Old Testament law as dealing with the external and the New Testament bringing about a better covenant with God: that of the heart. He stresses man-made rules and legalism didn't work then and doesn't work now. He deals with this subject in relation to young adult children and parents and addresses generational conflict as well as over-control. So many Christian religions need this call to grace and mercy and step aside from the traditions and power hungry man-made rules infesting their congregations.
The beginning of the book was a little hard to read as far as timeline. Between ages 15-20, Joe ran away and returned back and forth between the Amish community and the English world that a few times I wasn't sure what time of life this was for him as far as before salvation and after salvation. Joe also includes glowing accolades of his two children as well as he and his wife Esther's preferred method of dating and marriage for their children. He provides outlines of questions and topics discussed, specifically in relationship to his daughter, in appendixes at the back of the book. These appeared to be in conflict with his disdain for legalism as his son's dating life seemed to contain less oversight. I did like the verses for further Bible study and information on his free Bible study courses, also provided in appendixes at the back of the book.
September 8, 2021
This was a really interesting true story of an Amish man and his journey into a new life outside the Amish Community.
I knew very little about the Amish but what I did know seemed almost idyllic. A slow pace of life, lived without modern distractions, built on community and everyone living peacefully with everyone else. I could live that life.
As it turns out they live a very controlled life. A hard life of work and more work with a ton of rules and laws. It is a group who publicly shame and shun people for the slightest demeanor. It is a group who suppress women. It is not a life I could live. I can understand why so many seek to leave. The great sadness is that so many feel that they have no choice but to stay.
****************************
In My People, the Amish, Joe Keim paints a detailed picture of life behind the bonnets and buggies. More than a biography, this is an honest look at the heart-warming traditions that mingle with the deep-rooted legalism of the Amish community in Ashland, Ohio.
Born, raised, and baptized in an Old Order Amish church, from childhood Joe Keim was taught that if he didn’t follow the twenty-two-page ordinance letter that governed his community, there was no way he could get to heaven. What started as a path of rebellion led Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Englisher Christians who would love them like family and show them how to live out their new found faith in Jesus Christ.
Nine months after their traditional Amish wedding, Joe and Esther left family and friends forever to live openly for Christ, and endured shunning and excommunication with bold faith. Since then, the Lord has brought many former Amish people to Joe and Esther for help. Because of their passion for the Amish people and with the support of fellow believers, they have brought biblical truth to thousands of Amish through the ministry they founded in 2000, Mission to Amish People (MAP).
I knew very little about the Amish but what I did know seemed almost idyllic. A slow pace of life, lived without modern distractions, built on community and everyone living peacefully with everyone else. I could live that life.
As it turns out they live a very controlled life. A hard life of work and more work with a ton of rules and laws. It is a group who publicly shame and shun people for the slightest demeanor. It is a group who suppress women. It is not a life I could live. I can understand why so many seek to leave. The great sadness is that so many feel that they have no choice but to stay.
****************************
In My People, the Amish, Joe Keim paints a detailed picture of life behind the bonnets and buggies. More than a biography, this is an honest look at the heart-warming traditions that mingle with the deep-rooted legalism of the Amish community in Ashland, Ohio.
Born, raised, and baptized in an Old Order Amish church, from childhood Joe Keim was taught that if he didn’t follow the twenty-two-page ordinance letter that governed his community, there was no way he could get to heaven. What started as a path of rebellion led Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Englisher Christians who would love them like family and show them how to live out their new found faith in Jesus Christ.
Nine months after their traditional Amish wedding, Joe and Esther left family and friends forever to live openly for Christ, and endured shunning and excommunication with bold faith. Since then, the Lord has brought many former Amish people to Joe and Esther for help. Because of their passion for the Amish people and with the support of fellow believers, they have brought biblical truth to thousands of Amish through the ministry they founded in 2000, Mission to Amish People (MAP).
June 2, 2017
This was such an interesting story to read. I have friend who are Amish and so I am familiar with their heritage. However, they are not an Old Order Amish group, so I found this to be very educational and eye opening. I imagine this was a difficult story to write, as most biographies are. I applaud Joe for telling his story in such an honorable way. Not one sentence felt like he was trying to disrespect his Amish heritage. It really felt like he was just presenting the facts.
Do not expect this to be like the lovely Amish fiction stories you are used to reading. This is real, and will present some difficult facts. Some may even leave you scratching your head a little bit. Ever single part of this story is important to Joe's history, and why he chose the path that he did. I'm sure he did not make his decisions lightly. He really made the Old Order Amish Culture real to me here. Part of it made me sad, but part of it left me in awe. Joe sacrificed a lot by leaving, as did his wife. But it's what Joe does after he leaves that really grabs my attention. And I love the photos provided at the end. Although I cold easily imagine the story in my head as I was reading, the photos confirmed my visions!
For a better look at Amish life (remember that this is current times, it was when Joe was younger), I encourage you to read this and share it with others. It may just clear up some rumors you've heard about the Amish community! And it will give you hope seeing what Joe is doing today. I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a favorable review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Do not expect this to be like the lovely Amish fiction stories you are used to reading. This is real, and will present some difficult facts. Some may even leave you scratching your head a little bit. Ever single part of this story is important to Joe's history, and why he chose the path that he did. I'm sure he did not make his decisions lightly. He really made the Old Order Amish Culture real to me here. Part of it made me sad, but part of it left me in awe. Joe sacrificed a lot by leaving, as did his wife. But it's what Joe does after he leaves that really grabs my attention. And I love the photos provided at the end. Although I cold easily imagine the story in my head as I was reading, the photos confirmed my visions!
For a better look at Amish life (remember that this is current times, it was when Joe was younger), I encourage you to read this and share it with others. It may just clear up some rumors you've heard about the Amish community! And it will give you hope seeing what Joe is doing today. I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a favorable review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
June 29, 2022
Joe Keim was raised in a strict Amish community, though not the most restrictive. He began questioning the rules, regulations, prohibitions, and overall lifestyle when a teenager. This conflicted so dramatically with the community that he ran away several times. Obviously, Joe had conflict with his father, also.
The author explains the Amish people well. Their religion is not necessarily salvation by grace, rather it is salvation by works and rules. One can never actually know if they are saved.
Joe and his wife finally leave the community. The book details their life and their authentic ministry to the Amish. Besides showing love, they have personally kept in their home, over 150 people, seeking to assimilate into the English life, often a painstaking process.
While the author tells of his father and their ups and downs, this is certainly not the prominet theme in the book. The title is misleading.
Many scriptures are given to explain answers the the brutal conflicts former Amish face. The Gospel is plainly and scripturally presented several times.
There are several appendices for further study, reflection, help.
The Amish culture is far removed from what they refer to as our English culture. This book is an eye opener.
Whether you are a Christian or not, the book is worth reading if only to get an idea of what the Amish life entails.
I gave it three stars because it is full of information and the story is inspiring. I am not generous with my star ratings so my 3 does not mean this is not worth your time.
It is. I feel not only edified but also informed after having read this.
The author explains the Amish people well. Their religion is not necessarily salvation by grace, rather it is salvation by works and rules. One can never actually know if they are saved.
Joe and his wife finally leave the community. The book details their life and their authentic ministry to the Amish. Besides showing love, they have personally kept in their home, over 150 people, seeking to assimilate into the English life, often a painstaking process.
While the author tells of his father and their ups and downs, this is certainly not the prominet theme in the book. The title is misleading.
Many scriptures are given to explain answers the the brutal conflicts former Amish face. The Gospel is plainly and scripturally presented several times.
There are several appendices for further study, reflection, help.
The Amish culture is far removed from what they refer to as our English culture. This book is an eye opener.
Whether you are a Christian or not, the book is worth reading if only to get an idea of what the Amish life entails.
I gave it three stars because it is full of information and the story is inspiring. I am not generous with my star ratings so my 3 does not mean this is not worth your time.
It is. I feel not only edified but also informed after having read this.
November 9, 2022
I have been interested in the Amish faith just like I’ve been interested in Shakers, Mennonites, Quakers and Hutterites. Many of their beliefs differ from mine, and although I don’t ascribe to their beliefs, I still find the people fascinating. I no longer read Amish books as they began to blur and sound alike.
This book was different. After much frustration with the strict rules and intolerance within the Amish church, Joe Keim and his wife came to faith when they were given the Gospel; that salvation is through faith alone in Christ alone. Not in rules or by earning it through works, or by unbiblical doctrine. At twenty and after many attempts, they both left the Amish community and have never returned.
They have had an outreach ministry many years with Amish people questioning their faith.
This book tells of his years growing up in his Amish family and community, and his many struggles, primarily with his father who never showed him love except to plead for him to return to the faith after his many attempts at leaving. Not until many many years later was there any affection shown, and it was only after Joe asked his father if they could hug. This about broke my heart.
Toward the end he talked more about his ministry and I began to think of this book as an advertisement for MAP (Mission to Amish People). But I prayed about it and realize he wasn’t asking for support, he was just letting the reader know that outreach to the Amish was in existence. And I was thankful.
In case anyone wants more information about the Keim's here’s a link.
Joe and Esther Keim
This book was different. After much frustration with the strict rules and intolerance within the Amish church, Joe Keim and his wife came to faith when they were given the Gospel; that salvation is through faith alone in Christ alone. Not in rules or by earning it through works, or by unbiblical doctrine. At twenty and after many attempts, they both left the Amish community and have never returned.
They have had an outreach ministry many years with Amish people questioning their faith.
This book tells of his years growing up in his Amish family and community, and his many struggles, primarily with his father who never showed him love except to plead for him to return to the faith after his many attempts at leaving. Not until many many years later was there any affection shown, and it was only after Joe asked his father if they could hug. This about broke my heart.
Toward the end he talked more about his ministry and I began to think of this book as an advertisement for MAP (Mission to Amish People). But I prayed about it and realize he wasn’t asking for support, he was just letting the reader know that outreach to the Amish was in existence. And I was thankful.
In case anyone wants more information about the Keim's here’s a link.
Joe and Esther Keim
February 19, 2021
Wow! The Amish lifestyle is nothing like I had always envisioned...perfect and God-fearing. But, according to this ex-Amish, they are more concerned with keeping with rituals and traditions and mainly the ordinances of the church rather than a close, personal relationship with God. I never would have dreamed. The hypocracy and strict, man-made guidelines for living in every aspect of life are finding more and more young folks wanting to leave their community. This is a good read just not very exciting. When the author gets into talking about his organization and how it has saved people, I found it a little long winded and a bit repetitive.
Joe Keim, one of fourteen children, was born and raised in Ashland, Ohio. It was his grandfather who left a more liberal Amish community and brought his family here and started a new Old Order Amish community with more strict do's and don'ts. Each Amish community adopts their own by-laws and rules and regulations to live by. But, you can tell the difference between the older, more strict order and the newer more liberal order by the size of the men's hats and the ladie's bonnets. The older order requires larger rims on the hats and larger bonnets covering all the women's hair.
Joe's story gives you a rare insight into the real lives of the Amish people. He started rebelling at age 15 when his father told him that he was worthless and didn't even know why he fed him. The Amish are surprisingly not known for outward expressions of love. He even tried three times to leave the Amish community, but his father came for him and talked him into returning before he was excommunicated.
At age twenty, he and his girlfriend finally made a break for it. He became saved, they married and later created an organization called MAPS (Mission to Amish People) where they help the Amish transition outside of the Amish community by offering support and help in getting birth certificates and social security cards for employment. But mainly MAPS introduces them to Jesus Christ and helps them find a church that focuses on the written word.
Joe Keim, one of fourteen children, was born and raised in Ashland, Ohio. It was his grandfather who left a more liberal Amish community and brought his family here and started a new Old Order Amish community with more strict do's and don'ts. Each Amish community adopts their own by-laws and rules and regulations to live by. But, you can tell the difference between the older, more strict order and the newer more liberal order by the size of the men's hats and the ladie's bonnets. The older order requires larger rims on the hats and larger bonnets covering all the women's hair.
Joe's story gives you a rare insight into the real lives of the Amish people. He started rebelling at age 15 when his father told him that he was worthless and didn't even know why he fed him. The Amish are surprisingly not known for outward expressions of love. He even tried three times to leave the Amish community, but his father came for him and talked him into returning before he was excommunicated.
At age twenty, he and his girlfriend finally made a break for it. He became saved, they married and later created an organization called MAPS (Mission to Amish People) where they help the Amish transition outside of the Amish community by offering support and help in getting birth certificates and social security cards for employment. But mainly MAPS introduces them to Jesus Christ and helps them find a church that focuses on the written word.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 13, 2018
Living in Ohio, as the author does, I am familiar with many of the surnames he mentions: Keim, Yoder, etc. I was not aware of the Old Order move to Ashland, OH and appreciated that history. I do know that each district can have different rules--what the author calls the Ordinance Letter and what most Amish fiction calls the Ordnung--so I know rules can differ between different groups.
In this book, Joe Keim attempts to share his experience growing up in an Amish family and what about it caused him to leave the Amish community. Keim puts this on the fact that the Amish he grew up with believed in lots of hard work but rarely voiced appreciation for the hard work or a job well done, or for putting the family first. Because of this, he looked elsewhere for the approval he wanted from his father. In fact, Joe leaves several times, but returns prior to leaving with his wife Esther (also Amish) for good. (Though in recent years, he does seem to have somewhat reconciled with his Amish family, though I was dismayed to see some of the shunning practices continue (such as having to eat at different tables and being served from different containers) even though the immediate family does seem to have accepted them back in some form.)
Keim and his wife eventually began a ministry to help those leaving the Amish to make their way in the world as well as to try to take the message of Christian salvation to the Amish.
In this book, Joe Keim attempts to share his experience growing up in an Amish family and what about it caused him to leave the Amish community. Keim puts this on the fact that the Amish he grew up with believed in lots of hard work but rarely voiced appreciation for the hard work or a job well done, or for putting the family first. Because of this, he looked elsewhere for the approval he wanted from his father. In fact, Joe leaves several times, but returns prior to leaving with his wife Esther (also Amish) for good. (Though in recent years, he does seem to have somewhat reconciled with his Amish family, though I was dismayed to see some of the shunning practices continue (such as having to eat at different tables and being served from different containers) even though the immediate family does seem to have accepted them back in some form.)
Keim and his wife eventually began a ministry to help those leaving the Amish to make their way in the world as well as to try to take the message of Christian salvation to the Amish.
January 4, 2019
When I started to read this I wasn’t extremely excited. I figured it was going to be about growing in the Amish Community and all that entails it. So, with reluctance I dove into it. I couldn’t have been more off the mark with my initial thoughts. Yes, it’s about the Amish and how the live, but there is so much more to it.
We all know how tightly knit these communities are and how the outside world is a place of evil and that the co-existence between the two is tenuous at times. What we don’t know, or at least I didn’t is the strict religious beliefs of the sect and how many different classifications there are for the Amish. Not from the English World but that of the Amish themselves. I am getting off tract.
What is the story really about? A son wanting to spread the word of God as instructed in the scriptures and not the dogma of the Amish but still wanting to keep a relationship with his family. For many of us, that doesn’t seem to big of a deal, but once your ex-communicated from the community, you are never, ever allowed to return! This is the har of the story.
Joe does an excellent retelling of his life and how his awakening took him to heights and places he never dreamed of all the time hoping his father could and would forgive him for his past trespasses and sins. This is the crux of the story, a son’s love for his father, his family and his heavenly Father.
A great story of inspiration and hope!
We all know how tightly knit these communities are and how the outside world is a place of evil and that the co-existence between the two is tenuous at times. What we don’t know, or at least I didn’t is the strict religious beliefs of the sect and how many different classifications there are for the Amish. Not from the English World but that of the Amish themselves. I am getting off tract.
What is the story really about? A son wanting to spread the word of God as instructed in the scriptures and not the dogma of the Amish but still wanting to keep a relationship with his family. For many of us, that doesn’t seem to big of a deal, but once your ex-communicated from the community, you are never, ever allowed to return! This is the har of the story.
Joe does an excellent retelling of his life and how his awakening took him to heights and places he never dreamed of all the time hoping his father could and would forgive him for his past trespasses and sins. This is the crux of the story, a son’s love for his father, his family and his heavenly Father.
A great story of inspiration and hope!
May 24, 2017
My People, The Amish: The True Story of an Amish Father and Son by Joe Keim was a very enjoyable read for me. I received an early review copy in return for my honest opinion and I would recommend this book to those individuals who are interested in the life and culture of the Amish, the life of people working through their own journey to a relationship with Jesus Christ, and those who have struggles with their own families.
Living within a few hours of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, I found Keim’s book interesting fro the start. I have been visiting the area, “Amish Country,” since a sixth grade field trip and found the Amish fascinating to learn about and my opinions of their culture matured with me. Many people find them ‘quant,’ but the very things that promote this stereotype seem to be the beliefs and aspects of their life that people who leave the Amish struggle with – whether for religious reasons or just because they want what the English lifestyle.
Keim’s journey in My People, The Amish, as he describes his childhood, youth, and adulthood, is moving as he finds a close relationship with Jesus and starts the MAP Ministry (Mission to Amish People).
Many of Keim’s stories about his families can also be applicable for our own lives. One example is how he and his wife, Esther, relate to their own children, Jonathan and Rachel, raise them to be godly individuals, and pray over them and their families.
Another great aspect of the My People, The Amish, is the use of multiple Bible quotations throughout as Keim recounts his journey.
My only complaint is the structural organization as parts of the past, life living within the Amish community in Ohio, are told as they relate to more recent events in the life of Keim. At times it is a little confusing but not to the point that it is a huge distraction.
Keim’s message of encouragement to never give up is a wonderful one that is needed in today’s world.
Living within a few hours of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, I found Keim’s book interesting fro the start. I have been visiting the area, “Amish Country,” since a sixth grade field trip and found the Amish fascinating to learn about and my opinions of their culture matured with me. Many people find them ‘quant,’ but the very things that promote this stereotype seem to be the beliefs and aspects of their life that people who leave the Amish struggle with – whether for religious reasons or just because they want what the English lifestyle.
Keim’s journey in My People, The Amish, as he describes his childhood, youth, and adulthood, is moving as he finds a close relationship with Jesus and starts the MAP Ministry (Mission to Amish People).
Many of Keim’s stories about his families can also be applicable for our own lives. One example is how he and his wife, Esther, relate to their own children, Jonathan and Rachel, raise them to be godly individuals, and pray over them and their families.
Another great aspect of the My People, The Amish, is the use of multiple Bible quotations throughout as Keim recounts his journey.
My only complaint is the structural organization as parts of the past, life living within the Amish community in Ohio, are told as they relate to more recent events in the life of Keim. At times it is a little confusing but not to the point that it is a huge distraction.
Keim’s message of encouragement to never give up is a wonderful one that is needed in today’s world.
September 17, 2018
My People, the Amish by Joe Keim is “the true story of an Amish father and son.” The author grew up Amish but left in adulthood. This book is two parts autobiography, two parts documentary, and one part ministry appeal. Keim centers the book around his relationship (or lack thereof) with his dad, and hangs much of the weight of his story there. It is an intensely personal account in which he pulls no punches as he writes about the challenges of growing up Amish. However, this is not a tell-all expose and the author walks the fine line well between honesty and voyeurism. He is here to educate the reader about the Amish and to stir up evangelistic sentiment in support of Amish missions, not to get everyone to gather ‘round so we can point and laugh. I appreciated the balance he brings. Keim starkly portrays the difference between the biblical teaching of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, with the Amish hybrid of right thinking and right living. He calls out the legalism of the Amish while praising their other values. He writes as one who has been there before, because he has. If you have ever wondered what the Amish are all about, I highly recommend the book.
February 6, 2025
A True Story Of An Amish Father and Son - EBK-M, Kindle, @ 2017, Read 2/3/2025. Nonfiction, Biography. I find the Amish, and other religions interesting. And I know that many religions are losing their young people at an alarming rate, but I feel that the Amish and some other faiths have more of a struggle because of their old order laws, their taboos against anything modern, and their strict structure in these more relaxed times.
Born and raised in an old order Amish community, the author, Joe Keim was taught that if he failed to follow the 22 page ordinance letter that governed his Amish community, he could not enter into heaven. What started as rebellious teens, eventually led an adult Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Christians who would love them and show them how to live out their new found faith in a Christian community. This love and support led to Joe and Esther to start a ministry to bring biblical knowledge to the Amish community.
3☆'s = Good. Not what I expected, and lots of biblical references, but interesting to read about different cultures, even in the U.S.A.
Born and raised in an old order Amish community, the author, Joe Keim was taught that if he failed to follow the 22 page ordinance letter that governed his Amish community, he could not enter into heaven. What started as rebellious teens, eventually led an adult Joe and his wife Esther to a caring group of Christians who would love them and show them how to live out their new found faith in a Christian community. This love and support led to Joe and Esther to start a ministry to bring biblical knowledge to the Amish community.
3☆'s = Good. Not what I expected, and lots of biblical references, but interesting to read about different cultures, even in the U.S.A.
February 13, 2020
A short book, which I read on my Kindle. It's about the author's life growing up in an 'old order' Amish community in the United States, and his decision to leave it.
It opens with a good hook, and the first half is interesting and informative, if rather sad in places. The author meets 'English' Christians - Baptists - who invite him to follow Jesus, something he feels is lacking in his home and community. But there's a rigidity about them that I found disturbing in places.
I also felt that there was rather too much 'preaching' in the latter part of the book. The author makes his point several times, and I had to skim quite a bit towards the end.
Still, it's free for the Kindle, and much of it is interesting.
Longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/...
It opens with a good hook, and the first half is interesting and informative, if rather sad in places. The author meets 'English' Christians - Baptists - who invite him to follow Jesus, something he feels is lacking in his home and community. But there's a rigidity about them that I found disturbing in places.
I also felt that there was rather too much 'preaching' in the latter part of the book. The author makes his point several times, and I had to skim quite a bit towards the end.
Still, it's free for the Kindle, and much of it is interesting.
Longer review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/...
January 11, 2018
Fascinating look into the Old Order Amish culture. I appreciated the author’s honesty and heart for ministry and loved the details of daily living and cultural challenges leaving the Amish culture. Since the male and female worlds are so entirely separated, I’d love a companion book from his wife’s point of view. I’m pretty sure Amish girls don’t spend their childhood hunting and racing to the local swimming hole, so what *do* they do?
As for writing craft, the book was well copy-edited and the writing had a Garrison Keillor feel. Homespun and folksy with many sidetracks and author intrusions (plus a lot of gospel/scripture). Because so much of the author’s life is covered, and much of it broad-brushed, I’d say this is solidly an autobiography vs memoir. Fascinating and honest.
As for writing craft, the book was well copy-edited and the writing had a Garrison Keillor feel. Homespun and folksy with many sidetracks and author intrusions (plus a lot of gospel/scripture). Because so much of the author’s life is covered, and much of it broad-brushed, I’d say this is solidly an autobiography vs memoir. Fascinating and honest.
January 26, 2018
Interesting story of a man and his wife who left the Amish and came to live in the English world. The couple joined the Baptist church in their town and over time the man became a minister. He describes the difference in beliefs of his new faith and the Amish primarily how one achieves salvation. Before leaving the Amish faith for good, he left the Amish several times. He notes how hard it is to leave one's family and strike out on one's own with no support system and has formed MAPS, MISSION TO THE AMISH PEOPLE. They do not try to convince persons to leave the Amish world, but should they make the decision to leave the organization is there to assist with such things as living arrangements and job hunting help (as well as other issues).
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