Read Online A Wedding Quilt for Ella by Jerry S. Eicher - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jerry S. Eicher
Ads: Link
telling the story of Jacob from the Old Testament waiting seven years for Rachel. He then waited another seven when he was given Leah to marry first. Aden liked the point of the story—that others had walked this same road he was on and had found the prize to be worth the effort.
Daniel smiled as he remembered the look on Preacher Stutzman’s face. He would snort in disgust if he knew of Aden’s application of his sermon. Stutzman was just a young fellow, quite zealous about things, and certainly would have been repelled by the use of Scripture for such a mundane and carnal reason. In Preacher Stutzman’s mind, all Scriptures were given by inspiration of God to support and defend the church Ordnung . Beyond that all uses of Scripture were less than godly.
Could Aden have been kept from a visit to the clinic by his desire to save money—the money he needed desperately to build the house for Ella and himself? Aden hadn’t wanted to borrow money even though others in the community borrowed money under certain circumstances. Often farms were too large to be purchased totally with cash, or a person needed start-up money to begin a new business.
If Aden’s obsession had affected his decision, Daniel decided he had better not mention the matter to anyone. He didn’t know for sure, and, besides, what difference would it make now? Many of the Amish put off medical needs because of financial difficulties.
Daniel remembered, though, that Aden had based some other decisions on money. One had been the way they had conducted business. Aden and Daniel worked in the construction business, and often Aden contracted their work. According to the Ordnung, contracting was a great evil. It led many souls to the lust of money and from there to worse sins. A man would face temptations, the preachers said, beyond his ability to bear if he was allowed to state a price upfront and then perform the work afterward. He might be tempted to cut the quality of the work, work faster than the body was made to labor, and use materials that could fail later after the money had been collected and the check cashed. Only righteous work could be done when the labor was performed by the hour—at least according to the preachers and the Ordnung.
Aden had snorted through his nose at this idea, not in front of their daett but in private to Daniel. Aden also said he would take responsibility for breaking the Ordnung in this matter and would never allow Daniel’s reputation to be compromised if they were ever caught. “It’s all a bunch of baloney,” he said. “A man is righteous because his heart is righteous. Out of the heart come the important things in life. That’s in the Scriptures somewhere if Preacher Stutzman really cares to read it.”
Aden had enough nerve to approach Bishop Mast one Sunday afternoon in Preacher Stutzman’s hearing and start a conversation about contracting. The noon meal of peanut butter sandwiches, dill pickles, cheese, and coffee had just been eaten. Benches had been taken out to the lawn, and the men were relaxing in the shade, chewing on grass stems, and talking about whatever crossed their minds while the women folks cleaned up inside the house.
“It’s not fair,” Aden had said. “Why aren’t the carpenters allowed to contract? All of you furniture makers set a price beforehand. The bakeries do it. The cabinet shops do too. Just about everyone else. Even milk has a set price.”
Bishop Mast smiled. “S’pose that’s just the way things are done, and they’re not likely to change—at least while the church is my responsibility.”
Stutzman, though, rose up in a glorious burst of righteous indignation and said, “I can’t believe you bring this up today, Aden. I’m terribly disappointed to hear one of the young men of the church bringing up this question of contracting. This is all a great evil, and a greater one can hardly be imagined. It would be like a cancer in the soul of the church if contracting
Daniel smiled as he remembered the look on Preacher Stutzman’s face. He would snort in disgust if he knew of Aden’s application of his sermon. Stutzman was just a young fellow, quite zealous about things, and certainly would have been repelled by the use of Scripture for such a mundane and carnal reason. In Preacher Stutzman’s mind, all Scriptures were given by inspiration of God to support and defend the church Ordnung . Beyond that all uses of Scripture were less than godly.
Could Aden have been kept from a visit to the clinic by his desire to save money—the money he needed desperately to build the house for Ella and himself? Aden hadn’t wanted to borrow money even though others in the community borrowed money under certain circumstances. Often farms were too large to be purchased totally with cash, or a person needed start-up money to begin a new business.
If Aden’s obsession had affected his decision, Daniel decided he had better not mention the matter to anyone. He didn’t know for sure, and, besides, what difference would it make now? Many of the Amish put off medical needs because of financial difficulties.
Daniel remembered, though, that Aden had based some other decisions on money. One had been the way they had conducted business. Aden and Daniel worked in the construction business, and often Aden contracted their work. According to the Ordnung, contracting was a great evil. It led many souls to the lust of money and from there to worse sins. A man would face temptations, the preachers said, beyond his ability to bear if he was allowed to state a price upfront and then perform the work afterward. He might be tempted to cut the quality of the work, work faster than the body was made to labor, and use materials that could fail later after the money had been collected and the check cashed. Only righteous work could be done when the labor was performed by the hour—at least according to the preachers and the Ordnung.
Aden had snorted through his nose at this idea, not in front of their daett but in private to Daniel. Aden also said he would take responsibility for breaking the Ordnung in this matter and would never allow Daniel’s reputation to be compromised if they were ever caught. “It’s all a bunch of baloney,” he said. “A man is righteous because his heart is righteous. Out of the heart come the important things in life. That’s in the Scriptures somewhere if Preacher Stutzman really cares to read it.”
Aden had enough nerve to approach Bishop Mast one Sunday afternoon in Preacher Stutzman’s hearing and start a conversation about contracting. The noon meal of peanut butter sandwiches, dill pickles, cheese, and coffee had just been eaten. Benches had been taken out to the lawn, and the men were relaxing in the shade, chewing on grass stems, and talking about whatever crossed their minds while the women folks cleaned up inside the house.
“It’s not fair,” Aden had said. “Why aren’t the carpenters allowed to contract? All of you furniture makers set a price beforehand. The bakeries do it. The cabinet shops do too. Just about everyone else. Even milk has a set price.”
Bishop Mast smiled. “S’pose that’s just the way things are done, and they’re not likely to change—at least while the church is my responsibility.”
Stutzman, though, rose up in a glorious burst of righteous indignation and said, “I can’t believe you bring this up today, Aden. I’m terribly disappointed to hear one of the young men of the church bringing up this question of contracting. This is all a great evil, and a greater one can hardly be imagined. It would be like a cancer in the soul of the church if contracting
Similar Books
