Amish on hold as cells beckon

19th-Century Cell  (Photo by Adrian Grycuk)

Although the use of technology is not generally viewed as idol worship, the Amish may be onto something.

The New York Times recently interviewed an Amish family.  Its patriarch, John, is a woodworker who sometimes operates a “computer-guided saw.”  Fearing such infiltration of technology into Amish businesses, John worries that Pandora’s computer-assisted Box is now opened.

His wife, Lizzie, is even more adamant.  While serving up a feast of homegrown vittles, she declared:  “People are treating those [smart]phones like they are gods.”  She went on to explain that folks are “bowing down” to phones while eating and walking, which seems “dangerously close” to idol worship.

These smart “Boxes” go way beyond even what Pandora experienced.  Community is at the heart and soul of Amish life.  When hanging onto a phone for dear life, the user is “isolated from the rest of society.”  This type of behavior seems "profoundly anti-Amish."  The ready-made barrage of bait that streams through such phones is also a source of deep concern. 

Resources

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careersandeducation/in-amish-country-the-future-is-calling/ar-AArY5sn?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=BHEA000 

Copyright September 16, 2017 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved