Amish Grace, Donald B. Kraybill
Amish Grace, Donald B. Kraybill
2 Rating(s)
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Amish Grace
How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy

Author: Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, David L. Weaver-Zercher

Narrator: Richard Powers

Unabridged: 6 hr 59 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/01/2008


Synopsis

On Monday morning, October 2, 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. In front of twenty-five horrified pupils, thirty-two-year-old Charles Roberts ordered the boys and the teacher to leave. After tying the legs of the ten remaining girls, Roberts prepared to shoot them execution style with an automatic rifle and four hundred rounds of ammunition. The oldest hostage, a thirteen-year-old, begged Roberts to "shoot me first and let the little ones go." Refusing her offer, he opened fire on all of them, killing five and leaving the others critically wounded. He then shot himself as police stormed the building. His motivation? "I'm angry at God for taking my little daughter," he told the children before the massacre.The Amish community's remarkable responseto this horrific shooting stunned the larger world.Amish Gracetells the incredible story of this community's reaction to the senseless crime and explores its profoundly countercultural practice of forgiveness.Outsiders often hold a stereotypical view of the Amish as a stubbornly backwards people—a view rooted in the picturesque images of buggies, beards, and bonnets. But the community's collective and radical act of forgiveness—the loving and compassionate response to the shooter and his family—gives us insights into who the Amish truly are and how they live their faith. In a world where religion spawns so much violence and vengeance, the surprising act of Amish forgiveness begs for deeper consideration.

About Donald B. Kraybill

Donald B. Kraybill, PhD, is senior fellow at the Young Center of Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. Among his many publications, he has authored, coauthored, or edited six books on the Amish.

About Steven M. Nolt

Steven M. Nolt, PhD, is associate professor of history at Goshen College in Indiana. He has written on the history of the Amish and their culture.

About David L. Weaver-Zercher

David L. Weaver-Zercher, PhD, is associate professor of American religious history at Messiah College in Pennsylvania. He has written or edited numerous books on the Amish.

About Richard Powers

Richard Powers has published thirteen novels. He is a MacArthur Fellow and received the National Book Award. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Overstory, and Bewilderment was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Heather on January 02, 2010

I grew up near Lancaster, PA and when the shooting in Nickel Mines occurred in 2006 I was among the very, very shocked and very saddened. When I heard of the forgiveness bestowed by the Amish, I had disbelief and after reading this book, it became clearer to me that forgiveness wasn't really a choic......more

Goodreads review by Laurel on January 05, 2023

Thorough and beautiful.......more

Goodreads review by Chase on August 04, 2011

This book takes a look at the tragic shooting in a school house in the Amish community in Lancaster, PA. Parents lost five children in the shooting yet amazed the world by forgiving the man almost immediately after it happened. This book asks the question why and how were they able to forgive so qui......more

Goodreads review by Dawn on August 28, 2017

The first 50 pages detailing a horrific incident and it's aftermath are worth reading the book alone. And I think the book is worth owning, not just borrowing from the library. And it's worth reading (at least the first 50 pages) more than once. It's heartbreaking, uplifting, beautiful. I had to kee......more

Goodreads review by Laurel on February 26, 2010

I first thought very highly (and I guess I still do)of the Amish's ability and willingness to forgive and reach to the families of offenders. But, now in light of knowing that the Amish believe that if they do not forgive then they will not be forgiven by God. The book talked about how important and......more


Quotes

“In a world where repaying evil with evil is almost second nature, the Amish remind us there’s a better way.” Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking

“This intelligent, compassionate, and hopeful book is a welcome addition to the growing literature on forgiveness.” Publishers Weekly

“[A] work that nourishes both mind and soul.” Library Journal

“At times difficult to read, this anguished and devastating account of a national tragedy and a hopeful, life-affirming lesson in how to live is itself a marvel of grace.” Booklist

“A story our polarized country needs to hear: It is still grace that saves.” Bill Moyers, New York Times bestselling author