Amish women are conservative. Due to their strict observance of the bible scriptures, Amish women are more submissive and reserved than men.
Amish Women do not shave their hair or apply excessive treatments to it. Amish women never shave their armpits and legs out of obedience to God, interpreting 1 Corinthians 11; 5-15, which considers shaved or shorn hair shameful.
Apostle Paul forbids women from shaving their hair, which Amish women have applied in all their hair grooming aspects.
Amish women are traditionally forbidden to shave their legs, head, and armpits because it involves the biblical text.
Shaving hair in Amish culture is a disrespectful act as they have faith in the Bible teaches Amish women to allow their hair to grow and men to never shave them after they marry.
Ultimately, the Amish community maintains biblical virtues of humility, modesty, simplicity, and nonconformity to the world. These beliefs form the foundation for their unique, not shaving culture.
Rumspringa Hair.
Nonetheless, Amish women can cut their bangs during rumspringa to fit in non-Amish communities. Rumspringa is the only time the young women can dress like other non-Amish teenagers for easier interaction.
The young teenagers might decide to secretly continue with some of the habits they learned or conducted during rumspringa.
For instance, they may continue to shave their legs which will go unnoticed due to their long dresses and socks.
Amish women with mustaches are forbidden to shave by the Ordnung. Yet the Amish men shave their upper lips to separate themselves from the military while leaving their beards to grow.
They believe the mustache was a military symbol, whereas the Amish do not believe in war. The beards represent the longevity of their marriages in part of wedding rings.
Also, they symbolize their commitment and submission to their God, family, and wives. Amish facial hair is one of the many captivating facts about their way of life for non-Amish observers.
Amish rules on shaving vary differently between Amish communities and the Amish church. Thus, other Amish women may have fewer restrictions on shaving, and the decision may be left purely to them to decide whether to shave or not.
For instance, the Amish Mennonites women are allowed to shave their hair. The Mennonites can generally do what they desire with their body hair within the confines or limits of their churches and communities.
How do Amish women groom the hair on their heads?
Amish women have guidelines on how to groom their hair.
The Ordnung, recorded in the Swartzentruber Amish Ordinance Letter, states that Amish women should not shave their hair, and they are to wear the hair up and ensure it is out of sight unless in the confines of their homes after a tiring day.
Amish women's hair is considered a sacred symbol of dedication toward God. So, many Amish communities perceive women shaving their hair as disgraceful.
Instead, the women are expected to arrange their hair in a bun tucked neatly under a bonnet. Amish women are supposed to wear their head bonnets all the time.
The bonnets used are made in different colors, indicating Amish women's community origin and marital status. For instance, the white bonnet is for married women, and the black bonnet is for young unmarried women.
In hair grooming, the bonnet color is the only expression an Amish woman can make so as not to be against their beliefs of modesty and simplicity.
During house chores, the women can replace their bonnets with bandanas to avoid damaging and dirtying their coverings.
What’s the Amish Dress Color Meaning? Click to Read
Amish Biblical Interpretation
1 Corinthians 11: 5-6 interprets that a wife should not prophesy or pray with her head uncovered as it dishonors her head, similar to having a shaven head.
Also, if a wife will not cover her head, she should cut her hair short. Although cutting hair short is shameful, women can only cover their heads.
However, in a situation where an Amish woman is struggling with heavy hair, she is allowed to thin her hair using a thinning comb which does not count as hair cutting.
Also, Amish women never use hair adornments as it indicates showing off status or a pointer of vanity, which is strongly frowned upon. Notably, the customs on hair grooming vary slightly among the Amish communities or Amish churches within the same community.
Also, the Amish women cover their heads in prayer Kapp, which explains the idea that one should always be ready to pray and be prayerful throughout their days.
An Amish bride grooms her hair in a bun during the wedding and then tucks it under a bonnet. Amish women's hair is groomed the same on every occasion and daily.
Also, Check out: What do Amish babies wear?
Do Amish women shave their legs?
The Ordnung rule on not shaving applies to everybody's hair of the Amish Women.
Their leg hair is still considered a sacred religious symbol. Thereby, Amish women do not shave their legs.
Typically, they wear clothing that ends at the calves, with their feet and legs tucked inside dark-colored socks.
Due to this dressing practice, shaving legs that stay covered is considered a waste of sin. Not all Amish communities and churches restrict women from shaving their legs.
Since the Amish women wear long dresses and black stockings, shaving their legs may also go unnoticed.
What are the bathing habits of Amish women?
Due to the misinterpretation of the Amish people's ways, there has been a misunderstanding about their hygiene and cultural practices.
For instance, other non-Amish people would judge the hygiene of unshaved armpits. Yet, the women have been able to maintain hygiene regardless of their not shaving culture.
Bathing is an essential hygiene habit among Amish women, where they take their bath twice a week or more. Amis women are sticklers of good hygiene in an outdated way.
However, Amish women are allowed to wear deodorants, reducing the fear of body odor from unshaven armpits.
Yet, the Amish men are restricted from using any shaving lotion and deodorants. Amish women's hygiene covers many conducts, all accentuating cleanliness while upholding modesty.
The conservative Amish use bathtubs and well-drawn water for bathing themselves, whereas the modern Amish have walk-in showers and indoor plumbing.
Similarly, the rural setting of the Amish communities yields a lot of dirt which might result in their hair getting dirty frequently.
Thus, the Amish women lightly clean their homes daily. Amish women make their shampoos and home cleaning agents from scratch. From this, they have mastered numerous shortcuts and cleaning hacks which do not require modern technology.
What are the consequences of shaving?
In an Amish community, cutting hair is a highly disrespectful act. According to the traditional Amish, the women are instructed to grow their hair without cutting.
Similarly, men have to grow their beards and never shave after they marry. Amish women are not allowed to braid their hair and leave it uncovered. Covering their hair is symbolized as a sign of submission to their husband.
Violation of the not shaving rule among women results in reprimanding. The woman may be only warned not to do it again, be warned not to do it again and get a shunning, or be shunned until she repents in case of repeated counts of the offense.
In case of repeated counts of this violation, the women may be subjected to stricter punishments or even ex-communication by the authorities.
The ex-communicated members are typically shunned to shame them into returning to the church and the Amish ways. The members are accepted back if they come back and confess their sins against the Ordnung.
If a member does not repent, the person is separated from other Amish members. She will not be able to communicate, handshake or share the same table as the others.
The Bishop suggests the punishments after the individual has been warned. Additionally, the Amish believe in forgiveness.
They give the women who have violated the not shaving rule a second chance. Generally, the punishment will differ depending on the Amish community the woman resides in. other communities may not pay attention to minor offenses like leg shaving.
Many Amish communities have also replaced some traditional ways with modern ones. Modernization has been influenced by the interaction of the Amish people with the non-Amish people.
Bottom Line.
In conclusion, the Amish women are forbidden by the Swartzentruber to shave any body hair. From interpreting 1 Corinthians 11; 5-15, the Amish consider shaved or shorn hair shameful.
They understand that Apostle Paul has forbidden hair shaving, which the Amish women have followed in all their hair grooming aspects.
Amish women cannot shave their heads, armpits, or leg hair. Amish women's hair is considered a sacred symbol of dedication toward God.
Their head hair is groomed by tying the hair in a bun and tucking it in a bonnet. Since the Amish women wear long dresses and knee-length socks, shaving their legs is considered vanity.
Violating the not shaving rule usually results in reprimanding, ex-communication, or complete shunning in case of repeated violation.
However, the law differs differently in different Amish communities and churches.
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