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The Anabaptists, the Mennonites, and the Amish The Anabaptists Mennonites and Amish are both descended spiritually from the Anabaptists, a radical wing of the Protestant Reformation. In 1525 a group of men and women broke away from Ulrich Zwingli, the Reformed leader in Zurich, Switzerland. Eventually this group became known as Anabaptists. They emphasized following Jesus, being reborn spiritually, taking the Bible seriously, baptizing believers, renouncing the sword, and other distinctives. About one million people in the world now consider themselves to belong to the Anabaptist tradition of faith. The Mennonites Around 1600, many of the Anabaptists came to be called Mennonites, after an early Dutch leader, Menno Simons. The name stuck as these Mennonites migrated to many different countries around the world. The Amish The Amish broke away from the Mennonites in 1693, under the leadership of Jacob Ammann, after whom the Amish are named. The Amish chose to follow a simpler, more conservative way of life than most Mennonites. Although there are many different Amish groups, each with peculiar characteristics, the Amish generally use horses rather than cars and tractors, live without electricity or make their own from generators, wear dark colored clothing, and speak Pennsylvania Dutch.
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