Donald Kraybill brings together legal scholars and social scientists to explore the series of conflicts between a traditional religious minority and the modern state. In the process, the authors trace the preservation - and erosion - of religious liberty in American life. Kraybill begins with an overview of the Amish in North America and describes the "negotiation model" used throughout the book to interpret legal conflicts over military service and conscription, social security and taxes, education, health care, land use and zoning, regulation of slow-moving vehicles, and other First Amendment issues. New concluding chapters assess the Amish contribution to preserving religious liberty in the United States.