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The Amish Voice 4
sayings and Bible verses that have
already been said by the first preacher
and the deacon, he begins to expound on
the Scripture that has been chosen by
Amish tradition to be his subject.
Today’s Scripture readings are out of
Christ’s
Sermon on the Mount
. The
deacon has read one chapter, and now the
bishop is expounding on his portion of
Scripture.
Matthew 5:17
Ihr sollt nicht wähnen,
daß ich gekommen bin, das Gesetz
oder die Propheten aufzulösen; ich
bin nicht gekommen, aufzulösen,
sondern zu erfüllen.
18
Denn ich sage euch wahrlich: Bis
daß Himmel und Erde zergehe,
wird nicht zergehen der kleinste
Buchstabe noch ein Tüttel vom
Gesetz, bis daß es alles geschehe.
19
Wer nun eines von diesen kleinsten
Geboten auflöst und lehrt die Leute
also, der wird der Kleinste heißen
im Himmelreich; wer es aber tut
und lehrt, der wird groß heißen im
Himmelreich.
20
Denn ich sage euch: Es sei denn
eure Gerechtigkeit besser als der
Schriftgelehrten und Pharisäer, so
werdet
ihr
nicht
in
das
Himmelreich kommen.
Interpreted in English:
Matthew 5:17
Think not that I am
come to destroy the law, or the
prophets: I am not come to destroy,
but to fulfil.
18
For verily I say unto you, Till
heaven and earth pass, one jot or
one tittle shall in no wise pass from
the law, till all be fulfilled.
19
Whosoever therefore shall break
one of these least commandments,
and shall teach men so, he shall be
called the least in the kingdom of
heaven: but whosoever shall do
and teach them, the same shall be
called great in the kingdom of
heaven.
20
For I say unto you, That except your
righteousness shall exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter
into the kingdom of heaven.
The words pressed down on me, and I
squirmed with discomfort on the hard
bench.
Not a single letter will pass from
the law till all will be fulfilled.
I
wondered what Jesus meant when He
said that. Who would be the one fulfilling
the law? Was I supposed to be the one
responsible for fulfilling the law to the
letter? This looked like a mountain of
impossibility. No one I knew was able to
keep the law, especially not to the letter.
No one I knew even claimed to keep the
law. In fact, everyone, including the
bishop, readily confessed that they fell far
short of keeping it. If even the preachers
were sinners and didn’t keep the law,
what hope was there for me? The
seriousness of where I would spend
eternity was so real, I wanted desperately
to do something—anything—to make
sure I ended up in the right place.
Except your righteousness is better than
the scribes and the Pharisees, you will
not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
These words added to my feeling of
hopelessness. I knew I wasn’t better than
the Pharisees, and how would I know
when I was? What could I do to make
sure that I was better than they were? I
didn’t know, except to keep trying. Once
again, I promised myself that I would do
better, that this time I would really get
serious about living a better life.
The bishop continued, quoting the words
from memory:
Matthew 7:13
Gehet ein durch die
enge Pforte. Denn die Pforte ist
weit, und der Weg ist breit, der zur
Verdammnis abführt; und ihrer sind
viele, die darauf wandeln.
14
Und die Pforte ist eng, und der Weg
ist schmal, der zum Leben führt; und
wenige sind ihrer, die ihn finden.
Interpreted in English:
Matthew 7:13
Enter ye in at the strait
gate: for wide is the gate, and broad
is the way, that leadeth to
destruction, and many there be
which go in thereat:
14
Because strait is the gate, and
narrow is the way, which leadeth
unto life, and few there be that find
it.
The question of my life was whether I
was on the narrow road that leads to life
or on the broad one that leads to
damnation. The problem was, I didn’t
know. Certain days I was satisfied
enough with my life that I thought maybe
I was on the right road, but then I would
do, say, or think something that would
cause me to question whether I was.
Sometimes I wished that I would at least
know that I was on the broad road. That
way I would know where I was headed
and could do something about it. This
uncertainty and constant wondering if I
was headed for heaven or hell was
miserable and hopeless, and I longed for
a way to know for certain.
I was told that the Amish way is the
narrow way that leads to life. Sometimes
I believed it, but most of the time I
questioned it. If it really was, then why is
there no Amish person who knows
whether he is going to heaven or hell?
More personally, since I was Amish, why
didn’t I have confidence that I was on the
right road? I guessed maybe I just wasn’t
a good enough Amish person, or that
maybe it was because I hadn’t yet joined
the church. Yet, when I saw my Amish
friends and neighbors, I got the feeling
they didn’t know where they were
headed, either. I hoped the Amish way
was not what Jesus meant, because I was
Amish and I wasn’t convinced that I was
on it, and I didn’t want my entire life to