Jacob Hochstetler is a peace-loving Amish settler on the Pennsylvania frontier when Native American warriors, goaded on by the hostilities of the French and Indian War, attack his family one September night in 1757. Taken captive by the warriors and grieving for the family members just killed, Jacob finds his beliefs about love and nonresistance severely tested.

Jacob endures a hard winter as a prisoner in an Indian longhouse. Meanwhile, some members of his congregation the first Amish settlement in America move away for fear of further attacks.

Based on actual events, Jacob's Choice describes how one man's commitment to pacifism leads to a season of captivity, a complicated romance, an unrelenting search for missing family members, and an astounding act of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Jacob Hochstetler is a peace-loving Amish settler on the Pennsylvania frontier when Native American warriors, goaded on by the hostilities of the French and Indian War, attack his family one September night in 1757. Taken captive by the warriors and grieving for the family members just killed, Jacob finds his beliefs about love and nonresistance severely tested. Jacob endures a hard winter as a prisoner in an Indian longhouse. Meanwhile, some members of his congregation the first Amish settlement in America move away for fear of further attacks. Based on actual events, Jacob's Choice describes how one man's commitment to pacifism leads to a season of captivity, a complicated romance, an unrelenting search for missing family members, and an astounding act of forgiveness and reconciliation. This expanded edition of Jacob's Choice includes maps, photographs, family tree charts, and other historical documents to help readers enter the story and era of the Hochstetler family.

David W. Shenk and Ervin R. Stutzman weave into the biblical commentary practical applications gleaned from contemporary theology, anthropology, sociology, psychology, and communication theory. Includes questions for review, study and discussion. 232 Pages.

This book invites congregations to learn communal forms of biblical interpretation through which to implement discernment practices guiding us through today's challenging ethical and theological riddles. "How timely it is in the hurly burly fractiousness of our times for Ervin Stutzman . . . to lift up the core practice of discernment for all to consider afresh." --Sara Wenger Shenk, President, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, in the Foreword. "Stutzman proposes that the contemporary church, faced with difficult decisions about moral and practical issues, can learn from the long tradition of communal discernment and biblical interpretation that goes hand-in-hand with the Anabaptist understanding of the congregation as a voluntary community of believers. . . ." --Sally Weaver Glick, Author, In Tune with God: The Art of Congregational Discernment. "Stutzman envisions an increased role of congregational discernment as one of the tools of faithful hermeneutics in the Anabaptist tradition. He explicates the role and complexities of group discernment well and provides a rich treasure trove of insights and information." --Jan Wood, Author (with Lon Fendall and Bruce Bishop) of Practicing Discernment Together: Finding God's Way Forward in Decision Making. "Discernment in the future will require not only the theology and tools Stutzman carefully develops but also a firm rejection of Constantinian models of monolithic decision-making." --David Brubaker, Associate Professor of Organizational Studies at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, Eastern Mennonite University