April 2, 2025
Parallel Polis Publishing
by Joel Salatin, Plain Values
In animal husbandry and livestock production, probably the most common violation of God’s design is failure to mimic animal movement.
Whether it’s a horse paddock, dog run, or a 1,000 cow herd, keeping animals requires intentional and managed movement. Studying God’s design in nature reveals a remarkably sophisticated animal choreography. In the wild, animals don’t stay in the same place; they move—dramatically.
by Nic Stoltzfus, Plain Values
I first moved to Pennsylvania in the fall of 2018 to become caretaker of the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead in Reading. I was also nearing completion of a coffee-table book I was working on: German Lutherans to Pennsylvania Amish: The Stoltzfus Family Story. I was unsure about how it would go—although my father Elam was born Amish in Lancaster County and grew up there, I was a stranger to this region. I had never spent more than two weeks in Pennsylvania my whole life and didn’t know much about Amish culture and way of life. After all, I was a Floridian who was raised on grits and sunshine, not snow and scrapple.
I made it my mission to learn as much as I could about my Amish and Stoltzfus heritage, and this past year I learned a great deal.
by Jerry D, Plain Values
The balance between the blessings and pit-falls of modern-day technology can be hard to find. How do we balance using technology with staying connected to our community?
Answered by: Jerry D Miller, a minister in his local Amish church
In today’s clown world people are seeking effective means to express their beliefs and fight for causes they hold dear. While protests, social media activism, and political engagement are common approaches, a lesser-known yet powerful weapon in the culture war lies in our purchasing power. The ability to shape corporate behavior and culture through our consumer choices can have a profound impact on the direction society takes. Our purchasing power has a profound impact and we need to start using it more. We can no longer support brands that promote worldviews that are diametrically opposed to Truth. We need to continue making examples of brands who do these things by refusing to purchase their products and services.
by Rory Feek, Plain Values
April is my birthday month, which is always interesting for me. Each year, although I physically turn another year older, my mind never seems to age. The voice inside my head seems to stay forever young and stuck in another time, convinced that time stands still. But the face that I see in the mirror tells a different story. The lines around my eyes are like chapters carved in the book of life that I have lived, the life that I am living still.
When my wife Joey passed away in March 2016, and we came back home to the farm after being gone for five months, I had to find a way to keep living and somehow find new life. I had to find a way to take where we’ve been and all we have learned and carry it into where we are going. I had to find a way to go where God has been leading us all along.
By Shawn and Beth Dougherty, Plain Values
There’s no time like spring for seeing how bountifully God provides for His creatures, and that’s especially true here in central Appalachia, where young, green grass and blossoming fruit trees are everywhere we look. Our seven dairy cows put gallons of rich, creamy milk in the bucket every day. Their calves race around the pasture or lie in the soft grass and nap in the sun. Chicks in mobile pens scratch and forage, new feathers pushing through their baby down. Pigs are growing fast on skim milk and forage. We’re never more grateful for our small farm lifestyle than now when life is so beautiful and abundant.
by Joel Salatin, Plain Values
Last month I introduced the concept of the carbon economy for soil fertility and the numerous ways God designed soil fertility and development to run on sunbeams converted to biomass. From bison on the prairie to wildebeests on the Serengeti, perennial prairie polycultures pruned by herbivores chased by predators built the deepest and most fertile soils on the planet.
That’s the big picture, but how do we apply it to our gardens and farms? How do we catalyze on-site carbon development and utilization to build the organic matter by cycling biomass into the soil?
by Ivan Keim, Plain Values This Month’s Question: The balance between the blessings and pit-falls of modern-day technology can be hard to find. How do…
by Rory Feek, Plain Values
Here in the middle of Tennessee, the arrival of March signals the return of spring. The long-awaited blooming of yellow daffodils that encircle our family cemetery here on the farm lets us know that winter is wearing thin and that warmer weather will soon be on its way. The pretty daffodils are also a gentle reminder of my beautiful bride Joey’s passing this month six years ago.
By Joel Salatin, Plain Values Five hundred years ago, North America produced more food than it does today. That should stir your imagination and make…
by John Moody
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have the government show up at your door? To come to your business or your homestead? To your farm or your house? To shut you down or take your stuff or even arrest you?
by John Heers, of First Things Foundation
First, before we dig into some heavy things, did you know that there is something called the Gay Travel Index?
Here’s what this index does: It ranks the world’s nations for friendliness toward gay people. The index is published by The Advocate, an LGBTQ+-friendly magazine. They use certain criteria. Things like same-sex marriage prohibitions give your country a low score. Gay rights enshrined in law, like the right to adopt as same-sex couples, those things create a high score. The best score is a 10. The worst score is -14.
Do you know who scores very, very high on the Gay Travel Index (GTI)?
