Interesting Amish Documentary

[Innocent Lamb]

I was watching a documentary about 5 Amish teens who were visiting England and staying with different families to get a taste of the outside world. They met hip-hop dancers, a Muslim girl, and some guys that played in a band at an event that looked like a mini-Woodstock.

What struck me was that, although they were much more sheltered, they were far less judgemental than your average fundamentalist. (At least, the ones I've run across.) They asked lots of questions ("Why do you like dancing?" "Why do you like your music so loud?") but they were asking them for information, not to judge. One girl and several of the boys even tried out dancing, and had fun. They also explained their culture (why they dress the way they do, why they choose not to listen to rock music, etc.) but they were not defensive. One of the girls expressed sadness that she didn't want "all of these nice people to go to hell," referring to some of the people she met who did not profess to be Christians. She also said that, after meeting the Muslim girl who she liked very much, it made her wonder how anyone can know that they are right with all the different religions in the world. It was clear that they were going into this with an open mind, truly wanting to learn.

They even admitted on camera that while some of their habits are backed up by scripture, others are just part of their traditional culture. That impressed me, since the fundamentalists I know think they can back up EVERYTHING they do/say/think with scripture and therefore tell you how wrong you are for not doing the same.

In all, I was left with a more favorable view of the Amish community, which I previously knew very little about. I wasn't thrilled with some of their patriarchal sentiments, but I appreciated their honesty and sincerity. And you know what else? They never tried to pressure one single person to believe as they believe.

Did anyone else see this? I think it was on National Geographic.