I think all the shows were made in the past 1-2 years, and in my opinion were quite well done. I guess they'd be classified as documentary/reality shows, but not in the typical reality-show type of way. I have to admit, I was completely fascinated.
One is called Amish: A Secret Life. Its a BBC documentary about an Old Order Amish family who for all intents and purposes are on their way out of the Amish church. They're still members of the church, but have come to a personal relationship with Christ and have been re-baptized; that along with allowing the BBC to film them and also continued socialization with people who have been ex-communicated from the Amish church for beliefs similar to theirs will likely get them ex-communicated at some point in the future. They're very open about their faith in Jesus and how He is the only way to salvation; not adherence to a set of rules. They still cherish their Amish culture and their simple way of life, and are very big on spending family time together and raising their children in the nurture of the Lord. One of the points the show highlights is the tension they are feeling between following what they believe the Bible clearly teaches about salvation and the pull they feel by their family, culture, and church. It struck me that they are willing to give up everything they have ever known in order to follow Jesus.
The other is a two-half series. The first is Meet the Amish: The World's Squarest Teenagers. Five Amish/conservative teenagers go spend 4 weeks in the UK. Each week they are with a different family/group of people. They spend time with inner-city families, a group of laid back musicians/artists, a well-to-do Scottish family, and a group of surfers. Of course, I don't know how much of the show is scripted, but the dialogue feels pretty genuine. The second part is called Living With The Amish and this time a group of six British teenagers go spend 6 weeks with the Amish; they spend a week with each family (Old Order, New Order, Old Order Mennonite, and former Amish). I know most Amish wouldn't agree with having a film crew in their home, so I'm not exactly sure how that worked out, but again this show seemed pretty genuine also. What fascinated me most about these two shows was the dialogues that took place. In both series the Amish and the British were very open to learning about each others world view and way of living. The British were questioning of, but willing to listen to, the Amish beliefs and reason behind many of their practices. And the Amish were willing to not judge and condemn (at least not visibly) the British for their lifestyles, but were willing to explore and hear the individual stories of the British, all while holding firmly to their beliefs and sharing their faith in a very gracious manner.
Now, I need to mention a few things: first, I have always romanticized the country to a degree, and if you offered me a farm and said I could move there and successfully grow my own food and spend pretty much all of my time there, I'd probably take you up on that offer. I love the idea of my work being so intertwined with my life rather than a distinct "this over here is my job" and "that over there is my home/not-work-life" sort of thing. Second, I grew up in a Christian home with a loving mother and father, and was home schooled K-12. And, most (all?) of my friends growing up came from similar family backgrounds and some of them were home schooled as well. For the record: I in no way think you have to be home schooled to turn out well....neither of my best friends were home schooled, and they are wonderful, Godly ladies!
Okay, now that we've gotten that disclaimer out of the way, I'll continue my analysis and thoughts. If I remember correctly, of all the British on both shows, only one has grown up in an overtly Christian home, and she is rather nominally Christian at the time of filming. Over time, they are quite honest about why they do what they do, and how they are trying to find fulfillment/meaning/purpose in life through what their (and our) culture tells us is important: looks, grades, getting into a good university, getting a good job, becoming independent and self-reliant, getting a boyfriend/girlfriend etc. And at one point or another, they all admit that its not working as well as they hoped. Some of them come from two parents homes, others have divorced parents or only one parent in the picture; they are students at great schools and drop-outs. They are just like our/my neighbors and co-workers were at 18 years of age. They are searching, even though not all of them realize it.
The Amish are the polar opposite in many ways. There is no divorce. There are no single parents. Their lives are very family-centric and community-centric; that is why their leaders have decried much of modern technology: because it would speed up life and takes them away from home (and they view it as opening up a door to a modern world filled with temptation). They have defined gender roles and are happy in them; a point brought up several times as several of the British are rather astounded at the complementarian approach the Amish take to gender roles in general, and marriage in particular. Many of them home school their children because they don't want them to spend so many precious hours of their young lives outside the home. Those who do go to "real" school, go to the local Amish one-room school until 14 when they all leave school to join the family business full time. And so much of their daily routine revolves around their relationship with God, be it obedience that comes from love for their Savior or be it adherence to what their church teaches is "godly".
One thing I noted is that while some of the Amish clearly saw many of their rules as extra-Biblical, to others adherence to the rules is crucial in order to be in good standing with the church and thus with God. As is mentioned in Amish: A Secret Life; some Amish are ex-communicated for searching the scriptures for themselves and developing a personal relationship with God, trusting solely in Christ Jesus for salvation, and believing that they have assurance of salvation. They are the ones on these shows who "get it". They see the benefits to their way of life, and continue the parts that they view as beneficial, but they no longer have a fear-based relationship with God; they have found freedom.
I also noted how isolated they are from the rest of the world. Yes, raising our children in the Lord is vitally important. And spending time with our family is crucial. Personally, if I ever have children I hope to home school them, as I have increasingly seen the benefits in my own life. One of my greatest prayers is to one day be a stay-at-home wife and mother. It is also important that the church as a whole becomes more intentional about "guarding our hearts, for it is a wellspring of life" in what we chose to allow into our lives in terms of fashion, entertainment etc. I personally think that for many years the culture's version of "acceptable" has slowly infiltrated the church's version of "acceptable". That being said, it is also important we don't become legalistic and Pharisaical a la some of the Amish.
But, while surrounding ourselves with truth is important, it is also crucial that we remember those around us. We cannot be lights in the darkness if we seclude ourselves in a Christian bubble. We must teach our children truth, but must also teach them how to be ambassadors for Christ. Christ has called us to "go into all the world and make disciples", we can't do this without spending time with non-believers. We must figure out how to be in the world but not of it. And I'l be the first to admit that I don't have all the answers on how to do this. The Amish are automatically viewed as "different" on first glance because of their clothes. Now, I don't wear Amish clothes, but my prayer is that I would be perceived as "different" by those around me, and they would want to know what makes me tick. May I be bold enough to be honest and share truth when the opportunity arises!
In summary: we need to be intentional with our time, family, dress, and entertainment choices. But we need to be careful not to isolate ourselves; rather we need to be developing relationships and loving our neighbors as ourselves. We need to remember the gospel! I'm pretty sure that's not what the BBC/Channel 4 intended me to get out of their shows. But it is what it is!
Bottom line: look up these shows and watch them. If for no other reason, watch them because they really are interesting and educational! They're all available on Youtube. Amish: A Secret Life is probably my favorite, followed by episodes 5 and 6 of Living With the Amish. It may take a while, but you really should take the time to watch all of them; the episodes build upon each other (watch Meet the Amish prior to Living with the Amish). Enjoy!
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