Posts by Saloma Furlong
When Someone Leaves the Amish
The Roads Taken There are as many paths out of an Amish community as there are those who have left. The one most often taken is the one towards what many call “spiritual freedom.” In most Amish communities, it is not encouraged to study or interpret the Bible for oneself. There is more emphasis on…
Read MoreIntroduction: About Amish and Beyond
Prepare for the new; expect the new; embrace the new. Otherwise, you’ll just repeat what’s old. ~ Marianne Williamson Ever so long ago (in 2009), I started my first blog, About Amish. At that time, I felt like a lone voice trying to challenge widespread misconceptions about the Amish. Many of them came from the…
Read MoreFinding Inspiration and Life Meaning
So much has happened since my last post, back in early November. I’ll give a brief synopsis of some of these events, and then share my thoughts on the future of this blog. I’m back in communication with two of my long-lost sisters. I’ve had no communications with any of my sisters for the past…
Read MorePromoting Safety for Horse and Buggy Travelers
Today I discovered another report about the new law in Ohio that requires all buggies to have yellow blinking lights and how some of the Amish men are non-compliant. Most of them are pleading no contest in court, resulting in a guilty verdict and then refusing to pay their fines. I don’t know how to…
Read MoreHow Prevalent is Sexual Abuse Among the Amish?
The question in my title today has been asked of me ever since I published my first book, Why I Left the Amish. Because my story was one of the first to expose both sexual and physical abuse in an Amish community, the answer was elusive. I would answer this question by saying that because…
Read MoreAmish Customs: A Prejudice Against Pride
Last week Jim Potter wrote: “My question for you is about pride, specifically, Amish pride. I’ve heard that to the Amish, showing pride is a bad thing. Is that true?” In short, the answer is yes. The Amish make no distinction between taking satisfaction in an accomplishment and being haughty or arrogant. All pride is…
Read MoreBook Launch and First Blog Review of Liberating Lomie
In her third memoir, Liberating Lomie, Furlong revisits her childhood memories from the vantage of a mother-daughter relationship. And that bond, like Amish culture, is complicated. ~Sabrina R Völz, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Germany Today is launch day for Liberating Lomie: Memoir of an Amish Childhood. It has finally arrived! I picked up the books from…
Read MoreLiberating Lomie for Sale and Interview with BBC Radio 4
When we think of a community with fewer modern technologies, our minds usually go directly to the Amish. By eschewing many modern technologies, do the Amish also avoid the unintended consequences of the technologies most in the mainstream adopt without question? This question is explored on a program called Digital Human on BBC Radio 4…
Read MoreRelease Date for Liberating Lomie
I am pleased to announce the release date for Liberating Lomie: Memoir of an Amish Childhood. June 22, 2022. Yay, Hurray! I plan to have books in hand to fulfill orders by the 22, and it will also be available through Amazon for retail sales, and through IngramSpark for wholesale to bookstores and libraries. You…
Read MoreFilm Series about Sexual Abuse among Plain People: “Sins of the Amish”
I have written this on my blog before about the Amish culture, and I will again. Abuse can only exist in the dark shadows of silence and secrecy that shroud abuse in all cultures. However, the insular nature of Plain communities makes the silence so thick, it becomes nearly impenetrable. This makes it dauntingly difficult…
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