IRELAND: Victims of the shooting at a one-room Amish school in Pennsylvania would have had no way to fathom the brutality that would befall them, according to a Amish Mennonite man who lives near Waterford.
"These people are not acquainted with violence and things that most of the culture sees on television and movies," said Daniel Yoder, the 55-year-old pastor of the Amish Mennonite church in Dunmore East, about 10 miles southeast of Waterford. "It's like something out of another world for them."
Mr Yoder said he first heard about the incident from an Amish Mennonite friend in his community.
"News travelled pretty fast through family connections," said Mr Yoder. "Of course, being of a similar faith, we would have much sympathy for them."
Significant differences exist between Mennonites and Old Order Amish. Most notably, Mennonites do not shun modern technology as the Amish do.
Moreover, with about 30 people in half a dozen families, the Amish Mennonites in Dunmore East are not part of a closed commune, but associate freely with others. Still, their neighbours have taken note of their religion.
"We appreciate the many messages of sympathy and condolence that have been expressed by many of the local people," Mr Yoder said.
"They identify us with what happened over there, so we must say that the Irish people have been very gracious."
The Amish Mennonite community of Dunmore East has a petrol station, convenience store, bakery and furniture store, which is the primary means of support for the Amish Mennonites.
"Many of the Mennonites would live pretty well like all other people," said Mr Yoder. "We would still maintain some of the lifestyle practices of the Amish group, so we're sort of a mixture of Amish and Mennonites."
Like the Mennonites and Amish who immigrated to North America centuries ago, Amish Mennonites are now sending missions back to Europe, as well as other continents. The Amish Mennonite presence in Ireland is an attempt to increase awareness of their religion and to be of help to the Irish people as good neighbours, according to Mr Yoder, himself a native of the US.
In addition to American emigrants, Mr Yoder said the Mennonite mission in Dunmore East has some Irish and Polish members, plus an Englishman and a German woman.
"Basically, we just try to live a life of love and honesty," said Mr Yoder.