Wagler: All the old style values, of course. There’s a big, big difference in the degree of harshness from level to level, from Amish community to Amish community.ĬP: In going back through your life, what are some things you believe are benefits in the Amish culture that everyone else can learn from? Shunning was part of my experience, but we were always welcomed home, if only for short stays. I came from a much more moderate type of Amish. The plainer a community gets, the harsher the shunning when you leave. Wagler: I suppose it all comes down to community “standards” or rules.

We genuinely care for each other.ĬP: How does someone who is Amish have a genuine relationship with someone who is no longer practicing the Amish lifestyle? My relationship with all my siblings, Amish and non-Amish, could not be better. And we all have love and forbearance for each other. We have reached the age where old differences just don’t make much sense anymore. Wagler: We have all forgiven each other, yes. It seems like when you stay focused on your own flaws instead of the flaws of others, then many good things, including forgiveness, can flow from that.ĬP: Was your family forgiving as well? How is your relationship with them now? Wagler: I don’t know that it was so much me forgiving my family as it was me seeking forgiveness from my family. Since my life has consisted of many broken roads, that title seemed fitting.ĬP: Can you briefly share your journey to forgiving your family and returning to your father? Wagler: It was a long process, but I realized some years ago that my next book would be about my father. The following is an edited transcript of The Christian Post's interview with the popular blogger and speaker’s, in which Wagler shares how forgiveness made his once broken relationships with his family better than ever despite trading the Amish lifestyle for a modern one.Ĭhristian Post: How did the inspiration for your new book, Broken Roads, come about? Like his bestselling book, Wagler unapologetically gives readers insight into the Amish community through his lens after leaving, returning to his Amish father, and how they might mend the broken roads between them before it's too late. The author, from Aylmer, Ontario, explores his difficult reunion, his confrontations, betrayals, and questions with faith and identity. In a follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Growing Up Amish, Wagler has a new book out, titled Broken Roads: Returning to My Amish Father, where he recounts his reconciliation with his father, family, and heritage after he walked away from the Amish culture over 30 years ago. Ira Wagler says forgiveness has made his relationship with his Amish family better than ever. Ira Wagler penned a new book titled, Broken Roads: Returning to My Amish Father, | 130 Agency

Growing up amish by ira wagler