This course invites you to look beyond the occasional news headline, Late Show quips, and the ubiquitous ads for Amish-made products to examine the Amish in historical, religious, and cultural contexts. Learn about the well-honed ability of the Amish to negotiate with modernity, technology and culture to manage change and safeguard what is most sacred. You will learn about the values and commitments that govern Amish life: Gelassenheit (humility), Gemeinshchaft (community), and Ordnung (informal blueprint or covenant).

John is a recently retired historian who taught history and Bible at Hesston College. He is a former director of the Mennonite Church USA Historical Committee and Archives. John holds an M.Div. from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary and has 15 years of experience as a pastor. Among his books are My Calling to Fulfill: The Orie O. Miller Story, released in 2015 by Herald Press, and The Bible as Story with Marion Bontrager and Michele Hershberger, published by WorkPlay Publishing in 2016 and 2017. As a tour guide for TourMagination, he takes groups to Western Europe, Central Asia, and Prague and Poland. He is married to Michele Miller Sharp and they are the parents of three adult children (two living) and have four exceptional grandchildren.