No Holiday Sex for You!

My post title takes me to a Seinfeld episode with the Soup Nazi, "No soup for you!" Then he screams, "Next!"

I belong to an ex-Amish group [I'm not ex-Amish] and the myriad topics we discuss attract anger, angst, disagreements and - sometimes - dissension. More often, though, we laugh and learn from each another.

With more than 15 Amish orders, each with different rules and behavior, even within an ex-Amish group individuals say, "That wasn't my experience." Or they ask another, "Why'd you do that?"
Most of my experience and relationships are with the uber strict Swartzentruber Order. Ex-Amish from the higher - more progressive - orders learn about Swartzentrubers, when I jump in on a topic. "Why do they do that?" they ask me.

Occasionally I can explain. Sometimes my answer is, "I dunno. Better ask another former Swartzie."

One topic we discussed was about a strict bishop who prohibited his married congregation members to have sex after child-bearing age. Well, that topic led to an extended, highly spirited conversation!
Then we chewed on how Amish celebrate holidays. Each contributor had a different perspective and story. I added, "In the Swartzentruber Ordnung, sex between married couples is prohibited on holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Olde Christmas.

"What!?"

"Why?"

"How would a bishop know?"

Another ex-Swartzentruber, who had been a Church member, explained the history behind the no holiday sex for you rule.

• Only Church members know this insider info. Even Swartzentruber youth or non-members have no clue. Why? Membership candidates are instructed in the Ordnung (rules). The weeks prior to baptism and membership are a sort of catechism. Therefore if a non-member leaves, he'd not know this tid-bit.

"We always understood it," she explained, "as applying to the fast & prayer holidays, Good Friday, Thanksgiving, only Old Christmas and the Sunday between Ordnungs Gma [church service] and Communion are some examples. Those days the mornings were to be spent fasting and in prayer, reading the Bible etc as a way of purifying and repentance to God and the no sex applied to the night before only as you entered into the fasting phase. I know it is hardly ever explained (or kept) as it was intended. So there was originally a good intend to the rule."

I maintain that the great minds are always learning. What'd you learn in reading this blog post today? Leave your comment below.

(c)Copyright, 2014. Brenda Nixon