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Post by prv31wife on May 9, 2008 23:05:11 GMT -5
Wow Sister Nancy that seems very unusual. Maybe she had someone in the hospital and wasn't thinking clearly. I'm sure if you visited that church you would be more than welcome. I've had nothing but good experiences with the conservative Mennonites I have met. Maybe it depends upon the area where you live. Can you PM me and you can tell me where you live. We have an older conservative Mennonite friend who is familar with many of the conservative Mennonites churches all over the US so if you gave me the name of the church, I can find out if he knows the bishop there.
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Post by allglorytogod on May 12, 2008 23:00:52 GMT -5
I know this is a thread on how Mennonite men dress but I saw something new today ... it involves Amish women ... in my area you see the women dressed totally in black from head to toe ... that's the norm ... however, today I saw an Amish woman and she was wearing a , maybe tan colored, long dress and a huge black bonnet ... in addition she was wearing something from her neck down that was black ... it came midway down her front and midway down her back ... it came to a point ( V - shaped ) ... I imagined it was for modesty especially covering the front of her dress ... it was an unusual sight, seeing how they always wear all black. End of story
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Post by Brother Ben on May 13, 2008 7:31:38 GMT -5
Not all Amish dress all black. The Schwarzentrubers usually do, (and offshoot groups from them,) but other Amish do not. Especially when they go to South and Central America. The friends we have that are helping us build our house, (90% from the Amish,) wear solids, but not hardly ever just black.
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Post by mitchell on May 13, 2008 18:34:47 GMT -5
I just wear the dresses and skirts that I had when I started dressing more modestly. I had always worn longish skirts anyway, but now get them a bit longer than even before. While I don't think we should dress to call attention to ourselves, I do think that even nature tells us that the Lord likes pretty colors. The flowers come in every color imaginable. I would have a hard time being able to replace my entire wardrobe to join some group that dictated the number of pleats that have to be in a bonnet (not true of all Amish, I know, but some) or that ordered that I had to wear all black all the time. - I notice in the photograph above that the Ukrainian sisters are covered in lovely, lightweight, sheer white scarves. No one looks flashy or in competition with anyone else. It would be my guess, though, that to some Amish or Mennonite groups, their mode of covering would be deemed unacceptable; just as the covering I wear would not fit in to their rules. Not that I'm trying to fit into their rules, nor would I expect them to meet my ideas of what we ought to look like. - Legalism can be a killer of the spirit.
W.
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Post by George on May 13, 2008 18:46:59 GMT -5
Ah, that ugly term rears its head again. It is quite ironic that most people who use the term "legalism" do not understand the meaning of that term. Legalism is defined as adding something to salvation. Nor more, no less.
When a person, a group or a Church attempts to follow the Bible as well as they possible can they are often called legalists. In the vast majority of cases that is not true.
By following the letter of the law we are called legalists. I am not speaking of Old Testament Law. We know that Jesus freed us from the law of sin and death. However the law is still in place. Witness the following:
(Mat 5:20) 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.
Do you see what our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ had to say there? The scribes and the Pharisees had the reputation of being the ones who prescribed to the law better than others. Here in the New Testament we see that the Law has not actually been done away with but rather that we are to adhere to it even more so. It is plainly said that unless our righteousness is more vast than that of the scribes and Pharisees we shall IN NO CASE enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Is that legalism? If it is then legalism has been sanctioned by our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Living as closely as we can to the teachings of the bible is seen as legalism by many but it is not even so. The folks in the more liberal denominations say that by being fundamentalists, no matter which sect we align ourselves with, if we do not become involved in worldly things we are legalists.
In Christ, George
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Post by allglorytogod on May 13, 2008 19:53:08 GMT -5
Brother Ben
Thanks for your post
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Post by mitchell on May 13, 2008 21:08:37 GMT -5
George,
That is not what I was saying. I was referring to the man-made rules and regulations that have absolutely NOTHING to do with scriptural admonitions. I do not think I have made any comments on this board (or any other) that indicate that I am against the careful following and teaching of scripture. The letter of MANS' rules and regulations are definitely crippling to the spirit of a person, and those who find themselves under the authority of leaders who like to frivolously dictate what color bonnet or how many pleats are to be in a bonnet; that a woman is sinful if she wears a pink or yellow dress instead of a black one, then they have gone too far.
Wanda
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kscarle
Member
Philippians 4:4, Romans 12:1, John 14:15
Posts: 97
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Post by kscarle on May 14, 2008 7:23:14 GMT -5
I agree that legalism is wrong I believe your saved by grace through faith not of works works salvation= legalism I have been called a legalist just for wanting to live right. Of course we all fall short.
but not all rules are bad. we do need some guidelines. A pastor should not be a dictator, but its not necessarily wrong to have some standards. There are different groups of Mennonites in my area, and certain ones wear black caps, some traditional white caps, some the D covering. I do not agree that they should be dictated to on which kind they wear, but perhaps the pastor knows there likeliness to become vain and so has a standard.
At the church where I go to college, the pastor does not allow slits and he wants a cloth piece put in a certain away where it was because if it is sewed up it will just make it tighter. If a dress has darts he wants an over-shirt/sweater over it. He is not a legalist by any means, just cautious about what could eventually happen. we all have a free will.
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Post by Brother Ben on May 14, 2008 13:19:36 GMT -5
My pastor back in Texas was an accountant with General Motors when he surrendered to the ministry. He always said, "If is alright for GM to have high standards of excellence, why can't Christians have high standards too!" I greatly appreciate a pastor who is not afraid to teach carefulness with a good spirit.
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Post by allglorytogod on May 14, 2008 15:39:59 GMT -5
AMEN
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Post by Tammy on May 14, 2008 18:22:37 GMT -5
LOL! I like that.
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Post by Tammy on May 14, 2008 18:27:00 GMT -5
Could it be that the Lord was referring to His righteousness, which must be imputed on us in order for us to be saved?
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Post by mitchell on May 14, 2008 18:44:43 GMT -5
CHRIST is the only one who has ever lived in the human form to be able to keep the whole law. . or am I mistaken about this as well?
Wanda
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Post by Tammy on May 14, 2008 19:11:00 GMT -5
You are absolutely right, Sis Wanda.
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Post by nivek on May 15, 2008 12:17:25 GMT -5
To reply to allglorytogod's question a few posts back, it sounds like the triangular-shaped black covering was her cape. As I understand it, in traditional Amish dress a woman wears a dress with a separate cape and a separate apron. The cape is sometimes square in the front and back, sometimes triangular in the back (or even the front?). Color variations also exist with the cape matching the dress, cape matching the apron, or all matching. It seems to vary by church district (Ohio vs. PA, etc.). It is indeed worn for modesty.
I think most Mennonites that wear cape dresses nowadays just make the dress with the cape attached, and many do not wear an apron.
We recently got a copy of the book "Why Do They Dress That Way" by Stephen Scott which talks a lot about the dress patterns of conservative Amish and Mennonites. Interesting reading...
Brother Kevin
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