The Ear of the Soul

Southern Heroes is now available

2011-11-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

During the North Carolina Yearly Meeting Conservative annual session this year, I heard about an out-of-print book called "Southern Heroes" about southern Friends and their struggles with not participating in the Civil War. I found some of the descriptions I heard compelling, such as men having guns tied to their hands and being put at the front of the battle lines. I spent the next few months cleaning up a scan of the book, reformatting it with LaTeX and indexing it. I am happy to say that printed copies are now available from lulu.com.

I have also posted the PDF to the QuakerQuaker Library.

Seth Loflin and the Firing Squad

2011-11-15T10:35:00.000-08:00

There are so many passages in "Southern Heroes" in which Friends maintained their principles. I found this one particularly touching:

Others of the members of this meeting suffered severely for their principles, but we will now follow our friend Seth W. Loflin in his time of trial.

He had been a member with the Friends but a short time, when he was arrested as a conscript and sent to camp near Petersburg, Va. He was at once ordered to take up arms, which he refused to do, saying that the weapons of the Christian were not carnal, and that he was a Christian and forbidden to fight. The officers evidently thought that by prompt and severe measures he could be made to yield his conscientious scruples, but they knew not of what spirit he was.

First they kept him without sleep for thirty-six hours, a soldier standing by with a bayonet to pierce him, should he fall asleep. Finding that this did not overcome his scruples, they proceeded for three hours each day to buck him down. He was then suspended by his thumbs for an hour and a half. This terrible ordeal was passed through with each day for a week. Then, thinking him conquered, they offered him a gun; but he was unwilling to use the weapon. Threats, abuse and persecution were alike unavailing, and in desperate anger the Colonel ordered him court-martialed. After being tried for insubordination he was ordered shot. Preparations were accordingly made for the execution of this terrible sentence. The army was summoned to witness the scene, and soldiers were detailed. Guns, six loaded with bullets and six without, were handed to twelve chosen men. Seth Loflin, as calm as any man of the immense number surrounding him, asked time for prayer, which, of course, could not be denied him. The supposition was natural that he wished to pray for himself. But he was ready to meet his Lord; and so he prayed not for himself but for them: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Strange was the effect of this familiar prayer upon men used to taking human life and under strict military orders. Each man, however, lowered his gun, and they resolutely declared that they would not shoot such a man, thereby braving the result of disobeying military orders. But the chosen twelve were not the only ones whose hearts were touched. He who holdeth our lives in his hand melted the hearts of the officers as well, and the sentence was revoked. He was led away to prison, where for weeks he suffered uncomplainingly from his severe punishments.

He was finally sent to Windsor Hospital at Richmond, Va., where he was taken very sick, and after a long, severe illness, during which his Christian spirit and patience won the hearts of all around him, he quietly passed away, leaving a wife and seven children. A letter was written to his wife by one of the officers, an extract from which may be a fitting close to the account of this worthy man's suffering.

"It is my painful duty to inform you that Seth W. Loflin died at Windsor Hospital, at Richmond, on the 8th of December, 1864. He died as he had lived, a true, humble and devoted Christian; true to his faith and religion.... We pitied and sympathized with him.... He is rewarded for his fidelity, and is at rest."

Eliza Gurney Meets Abraham Lincoln

2011-11-13T16:16:00.000-08:00

As I continue my work on "Southern Heroes", I would like to present the story of Eliza Gurney, the widow of Joseph John Gurney, meeting Abraham Lincoln.

Eliza P. Gurney of Burlington, N. J., the widow of Joseph John Gurney, was a Friend minister of deep spirituality, reﬁned tastes, and much ability. Her sympathies were enlisted for Abraham Lincoln during the dark days of the war, and she felt constrained in the love of the Gospel to visit him. It was on a rainy morning of the ﬁrst day of the week in 1862, that she and her friends were introduced into the private apartments of the President, who received them very cordially. John M. Whitall, of Philadelphia, one of the party says: “It was a time not soon to be forgotten. I cannot possibly describe the scene; the solemnity of the silence, and the impressive address of our friend, during which the tears ran down the cheeks of our honored President. During the earnest prayer for the nation and himself, he seemed much affected, and as we arose to go he retained the hand of Eliza P. Gurney and made a most beautiful response to what had been said. This response began and ended with the words, ‘I
am glad of this interview.’”

More than a year after, Abraham Lincoln sent Eliza P. Gurney a request to write him a letter, which she did, and so highly did he prize that letter, that it was found in his breast pocket at the time of the fatal shot of J. Wilkes Booth, nearly two years afterwards. Below is a copy of the letter:

Earlham Lodge, 8/18,1863.
To the President of the United States.
ESTEEMED FRIEND, ABRAHAM LINCOLN: Many times, since I was privileged to have an interview with thee nearly a year ago, my mind has turned toward thee with feelings of sincere and Christian interest; and as our friend Isaac Newton offers to be the bearer of a paper messenger, I feel inclined to give thee the assurance of my continued hearty sympathy in all thy heavy burthens and responsibilities, and to express not only my own earnest prayer, but, I believe, the prayer of many thousands whose hearts thou hast gladdened by thy praiseworthy and successful efforts "to burst the bands of wickedness, and let the oppressed go free," that the Almighty Ruler of the universe may strengthen thee to accomplish all the blessed purposes which in the unerring council of His will and wisdom, I do assuredly believe He did design to make thee instrumental in accomplishing when He appointed thee thy present post of vast responsibility, as the Chief Magistrate of this great nation.

Many are the trials incident to such positions, and I verily believe thy conflicts and anxieties have not been few. May the Lord ‘hear thee in this day of trouble, the name of the God of Jacob defend thee, send thee help from his sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion.’ The Lord fulfil thy petitions that are put up in the name of the Prince of Peace, of the increase of whose government and peace there shall never be an end.

I can hardly refrain from expressing my cordial approval of thy late excellent proclamation appointing a day of thanksgiving for the sparing and preserving mercies, which in the tender loving-kindness of our God and Saviour have been so bountifully showered upon us; for though, as a religious people, we do not set apart especial seasons for returning thanks, either for spiritual or temporal blessings, yet, as I humbly trust, our hearts are ﬁlled with gratitude to our Almighty Father that His delivering arm of love and power has been so manifestly round about us; and I rejoice in the decided recognition of an all-wise and superintending Providence, which is so marked a feature in the aforesaid document, as well as the immediate influence and guidance of the Holy Spirit, which perhaps never in any previous state paper has been so fully
recognized before.

Especially did my inmost heart respond to thy desire "that the angry feeling which has so long sustained this needless and cruel war may be subdued, and the hearts of the insurgents changed, and the whole nation be led through paths of repentance and submission to the divine will, back to the perfect enjoyment of union and fraternal peace." May the Lord in his inﬁnite compassion hasten the day.

I will not occupy thy time unduly, but, in a feeling of true Christian sympathy and Gospel love, commend thee and thy wife and your two dear children to the preserving care of the unslumbering Shepherd, who, in his matchless mercy, gave his life for the sheep, who is alone able to keep us from falling, and finally, when done with the unsatisfying things of mutability, to give us an everlasting inheritance among all them that are sanctiﬁed through the Eternal Spirit of God.

Respectfully and sincerely, thy assured friend,
ELIZA P. GURNEY.

During the next year President Lincoln sent to Eliza P. Gurney the following acknowledgment of her visit and letter:

Executive Mansion,
Washington, September 4, 1864.
To ELIZA P. GURNEY.
My Esteemed Friend: I have not forgotten–probably never shall forget–the very impressive occasion when yourself and friends visited me on a Sabbath afternoon two years ago. Nor has your kind letter, written nearly a year later, even been forgotten. In all it has been your purpose to strengthen my reliance upon God. I am much indebted to the good Christian people of the country for their constant prayers and consolations, and to no one of them more than to yourself.

The purposes of the Almighty are perfect and must prevail, though we erring mortals may fail to accurately perceive them in advance. We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long before this, but God knows best and has ruled otherwise. We shall yet acknowledge His wisdom and our own error therein, and meanwhile we must work earnestly in the best light He gives us, trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends He ordains. Surely He intends some great good to follow this mighty convulsion, which no mortal could make and no mortal could stay.

Your people, the Friends, have had and are having a very great trial. On principle and faith, opposed to both war and oppression, they can only practically oppose oppression by war. In this dilemma some have chosen one horn of the dilemma, and some the other. For those appealing to me
on conscientious grounds I have done, and shall do, what I could and can, in my own conscience under my oath to the law. That you believe this I doubt not, and believing it, I shall still receive for our country and myself your earnest prayers to our Father in Heaven.
Your sincere friend,
A. LINCOLN.

Ulysses S. Grant on Settling Differences

2011-11-04T19:31:00.000-07:00

For the past few months I have been working on reprinting the book "Southern Heroes", about Friends in the southern U.S. who refused to fight in the American Civil War. When I finish, it will be available via lulu.com as was the Journal of Joseph Hoag I worked on a few years ago. I have encountered many interesting stories in this book, and interesting quotes. I find this one particularly good, given the source:

Though I have been trained as a soldier and have participated in many battles, there never was a time when, in my opinion, some way could not have been found of preventing the drawing of the sword. I look forward to an epoch when a court recognized by all nations will settle international differences, instead of keeping large standing armies, as is done in Europe.

Ulysses S. Grant

Unity of the Spirit

2011-03-27T16:36:00.001-07:00

As I sat in meeting this morning, I found myself reflecting on unity, and what it does and does not mean to be in unity. Where Friends once spoke about finding unity during business meeting as meaning that all had the same sense of where the Spirit was leading them, it seems like many Friends use the term "consensus" and refer to it as finding something that everyone can agree on. I do not think consensus and unity are the same, because to me unity allows for the possibility that while I do not agree with something, I may have a sense that the Spirit is indeed leading us in that direction, and that my disagreement might come from my personal feelings interfering with my discernment.

I was thinking on unity on a larger level, however, not just in terms of the business meeting. There is often a homogeneity among Friends that springs from a desire to be with like-minded people. It is certainly easy to see why someone who disagrees with the norms of American culture might seek some shelter from it by huddling together with like-minded folks. I believe that we send subtle, and often not-so-subtle, signals to those that are not like-minded that they do not belong, whether it be through "Republicans for Voldemort" bumper stickers, or various odd-looks at large SUVs or particular forms of dress, or folks making disparaging comments about various other groups during meeting. This like-mindedness takes on the appearance of being "what is it to be Quaker".

When early Christians and early Friends spoke of "unity of the Spirit", I believe it was someone quite different from like-mindedness. Instead, it was a shared experience of God, of a love and power so strong and so bright that worldly concerns became pale before it. It is an experience in which like-mindedness does not matter, because the experience of love is so strong that it is impossible to hate the person you disagree with. It occurs not because of like-mindedness, but in spite of it.

This evening, as I was reading through some selections from Isaac Penington, I came across this discussion of spiritual unity, which spoke to the things that have been on my mind:

Some Questions and Answers Concerning Spiritual Unity

Q. 1. What is spiritual unity ?

A. The meeting of the same spiritual nature in divers [i.e. one another], in one and the same spiritual centre or streams of life. When the spirits or souls of creatures are begotten by one power into one life, and meet in heart there; so far as they thus meet, there is true unity among them.

Q. 2. Wherein doth this unity consist ?

A. In the life, in the nature, in the Spirit wherein they are all begotten, and of which they are formed, and where their meeting is. It consists not in any outward or inward thing of an inferior nature; but only keeps within the limits and bounds of the same nature. The doing the same thing, the thinking the same thing, the speaking the same thing, this doth not unite here in this state, in this nature; but only the doing, or thinking, or speaking of it in the same life. Yea, though the doings, or thoughts, or words be divers; yet if they proceed from the same principle and nature, there is a true unity felt therein, where the life alone is judge.

Q. 3. How is the unity preserved?

A. Only by abiding in the life; only by keeping to the power, and in the principle, from whence the unity sprang, and in which it stands. Here is a knitting of natures, and a fellowship in the same spiritual centre. Here the divers and different motions of several members in the body (thus coming from the life and spirit of the body) are known to and owned by the same life, where it is fresh and sensible. It is not keeping up an outward knowledge or belief concerning things, that unites, nor keeping up an outward conformity in actions, etc. for these may be held and done by another part in man, and in another nature; but it is by keeping and acting in that which did at first unite. In this there is neither matter nor room for division; and he that is within these limits, cannot but be found in the oneness.

Q. 4. How is the unity interrupted?

A. By the interposition of any thing of a different nature or spirit from the life. When any thing of the earthly or sensual part comes between the soul and the life, this interrupts the soul's unity with the life itself; and it also interrupts its unity with the life in others, and the unity of the life in others with it. Any thing of the man's spirit, of the man's wisdom, of the man's will, not bowed down and brought into subjection, and so not coming forth in and under the authority and guidance of life, in this is somewhat of the nature of division: yea, the very knowledge of truth, and holding of it forth by the man's wisdom, and in his will, out of the movings and power of the life, brings a damp upon the life, and interrupts the unity; for the life in others cannot unite with this in spirit, though it may own the words to be true.

Q. 5. How may unity be recovered, if at any time decaying?

A. In the Lord alone is the recovery of Israel, from any degree of loss in any kind, at any time; who alone can teach to retire into, and to be found in that, wherein the unity is and stands, and into which division cannot enter. This is the way of restoring unity to Israel, upon the sense of any want thereof; even every one, through the Lord's help, retiring in his own particular, and furthering the retirings of others to the principle of life, that every one there may feel the washing from what hath in any measure corrupted, and the new-begetting into the power of life. From this, the true and lasting unity will spring amain, to the gladding of all hearts that know the sweetness of it, and who cannot but naturally and most earnestly desire it. Oh! mark therefore, the way is not by striving to beget into one and the same apprehension concerning things, nor by endeavouring to bring into one and the same practices; but by alluring and drawing into that wherein the unity consists, and which brings it forth in the vessels, which are seasoned therewith and ordered thereby. And from this, let all wait for the daily new and living knowledge, and for the ordering of their conversations and practices in that light, and drawings thereof, and in that simplicity and integrity of heart, which the Spirit of life at present holdeth forth and worketh in them; and the life will be felt, and the name of the Lord praised in all the tents of Jacob, and through all the inhabitants of his Israel; and there will be but one heart, and one soul, and one spirit, and one mind, and one way and power of life; and what is already wrought in every heart, the Lord will be acknowledged in, and his name praised ; and the Lord's season contentedly waited, for his filling up of what is wanting any where. So, the living God, the God of Israel, the God of everlasting tender bowels and compassions to Israel, fill the vessels of his heritage with his life, and cause the peace and love of his holy nature and Spirit to descend upon their dwellings, and to spring up powerfully in them towards his living truth, and towards one another.

And let all strive to excel in tenderness, and in long-suffering, and to be kept out of hard and evil thoughts one of another, and from harsh interpretations concerning any thing relating to one another. Oh! this is unworthy to be found in an Israelite towards an Egyptian; but exceeding shameful and inexcusable to be found in one brother towards another. How many weaknesses doth the Lord pass by in us? How ready is he to interpret every thing well concerning his disciples, that may bear a good interpretation! "The spirit," saith he, "is willing; but the flesh is weak." When they had been all scattered from him upon his death, he did not afterwards upbraid them; but sweetly gathered them again. O dear friends! have we received the same life of sweetness? Let us bring forth the same sweet fruits, being ready to excuse, and to receive what may tend towards the excuse of another in any doubtful case; and where there is any evil manifest, wait, oh! wait, to overcome it with good. Oh! let us not spend the strength of our spirits in crying out of one another because of evil; but watch and wait, where the mercy and the healing virtue will please to arise. O Lord, my God, when thou hast shown the wants of Israel in any kind sufficiently (whether in the particular, or in the general) bring forth the supply thereof from thy fulness, so ordering it in thine eternal wisdom, that all may be ashamed and abased before thee, and thy name praised in and over all!---Works, vol. ii. p. 457.

Being Carried By God

2011-03-07T16:32:00.000-08:00

On February 26, I lost Ceal, my beloved wife of 18 years, to cancer. It was barely a month between the time we found out she had cancer to her final day. Through that time, she was the same cheerful, loving person I have known for the past 25 years.

I know this is a time when people can feel angry, especially at God, for taking such a beautiful person from us. While I don't pretend to know how God does things, I think I tend to believe what I have heard Lloyd Lee Wilson say, which is that God is the ultimate opportunist. That is, we don't have to blame God for bad things, or assume that God wants awful things to happen in order to accomplish a grand plan, but we can look for God working in any situation, no matter how difficult.

Through the times in the hospital and at home, Ceal and I felt the presence of God with us very strongly. Despite some awful times, Ceal kept her sweet demeanor. She seemed so at peace, especially at the end, and never seemed to show any fear of what was ahead. I remember thinking back to that "Footprints" poem where a person is looking back over their life and seeing it as footprints in the sand, and during the tough times there is only one set of footprints, and when the person asks Jesus why he wasn't there during those times, he says "That is when I carried you". We experienced what it felt like to be carried, and I know I need a lot more carrying before I can walk again on my own.

How I Ended Up Leading a Semi-Programmed Worship

2010-09-23T16:36:00.000-07:00

Atlanta Friends Meeting started a mid-week worship late last year, and as part of it, every month or so, we have a semi-programmed worship. When it was brought to the Ministry and Worship committee, I had some objections. I felt that we had some difficulties with unprogrammed worship, and I doubted that a semi-programmed worship would get the intentionality to the Spirit that it requires. And to be honest, I had some prejudices against it, as being inferior to unprogrammed worship.

While I didn't particularly approve of the semi-programmed worship, I didn't feel strongly enough to stand in the way. I decided instead just not to go. That didn't last, however. Ceal volunteered to do a reading for the first one, and since I was leaving for School of the Spirit the next day, I didn't want to be apart from her that evening, so I went. I didn't enjoy it. As I look back on it, I think my negative attitude towards it really colored my perception and got in the way. I brought this difficulty to my Koinoneia Group at School of the Spirit, and they helped me try looking at things a little more broadly.

Over the summer, I led the bible study at North Carolina Yearly Meeting - Conservative, and it was really wonderful. It felt very Spirit-led, in a deeper way than I have experienced in leading workshops.

I also found myself reading the bible much more often. I spent a lot of time reading Paul - over and over. I found many challenges - passages confronting ideas I held, and also finding the Spirit rising within me, and often filling me with a feeling of the need to preach the gospel (to bring the "power of God" to people).

I began to wrestle with my opinion of semi-programmed worship, in light of my experience with leading the bible study, and began to question my feelings that a semi-programmed worship was less Spirit-led. I eventually came to the point where I volunteered to actually lead one of the semi-programmed worships. I came to think of it as more of a talk followed by open worship. I still maintain the importance of unprogrammed worship, and our listening to God speak to and through us. But I am also seeing gifts I have in speaking and teaching that can be manifested outside of an unprogrammed worship.

At my fifth School of the Spirit residency, I managed to get some time to talk with Frank Massey, who is now a pastor for Jamestown Friends Meeting. I wanted to understand how he and his meeting work to follow the leadings of the Spirit. We had some discussion about preparation for speaking, and also some discussion about my thoughts on evangelism. Frank also recommended, wisely, that I not do an "altar call". (No, I wasn't considering it). When I asked about writing out the whole sermon ahead of time, Frank told me that because he has a lot to do when he gets to the meetinghouse, he typically needs to have it written down, although he still listens to what God wants him to do or say.

When it came to planning, I wanted to be open. I asked Ceal to help in the discernment of any music or readings. Nothing arose for us music-wise, but Ceal felt that the 23rd Psalm from the New Jerusalem Bible would be good. We opened with some period of silence, then Ceal read the psalm, then more silence, then I spoke, then we had about 30 minutes of open worship. No one spoke in the open worship and it felt very deep. I will continue to discern whether I am led to do another one.

Here is the text as I had it written out, I did add some bits as I spoke, but not much:

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt 11:28-30 (NRSV)

We often think of Jesus as a teacher, and we focus on his wise sayings and parables. But there are other times when he speaks for God, and tells us about our relationship with God, and I believe this is one of those passages.

Come to me, all you that are weary and carrying heavy burdens
I have read different interpretations about what burdens Jesus might have been referring to here. Some people think that it refers to the burden of the Law and the weight of keeping all the rules and commandments. Others think that it referred to the rule of the Roman government. That would also fit with the image of the yoke, which was often associated with governments.

There is a timelessness to this passage, though. It speaks to people in every age, because we are always carrying burdens.

So, what are our burdens today? What wearies us?

I find our modern culture to be a great source of weariness. Our senses are constantly bombarded by sights and sounds, by ideas, stories, tragedies, bickering. Even in those times when we can keep ourselves afloat in this stream of senses, we find burdens in the state of our world - with the great disparity between rich and poor, the way our planet is abused, the way others suffer while we live comfortably.

Of course we have everyday burdens, too, that are a part of living in a human community. Emotional burdens, physical burdens, obligations.

I will give you rest
God, speaking through Jesus here, is offering us rest from those burdens. One of the things that is most important to me about the Quaker life is that we are all about experiencing God every day, in practical ways. So, if we say "God will give you rest", it is something real that we can experience.

One afternoon this past summer, I found myself feeling worn down. I started to do what I usually do when I feel that way, which is to flop down on the couch, turn on the TV, and turn off my brain. But it occurred to me that day that I should try "resting in the Lord". Instead of turning on the TV, or surfing the Internet, I just sat quietly. I realized later that that this was a way of trusting God that I had not been willing to do before.

We can also find rest by entrusting our worries and burdens to God. For me, this feels almost like a physical process. It is as if I can feel myself releasing things that I am holding on to, and instead grasping towards God. One of the things we encounter in our silent waiting upon God is a welling up of love and peace, and it is something that can make our burdens feel lighter. It is as if, as the Spirit rises within us, our burdens begin to float. They don't necessarily float away, but we find they become lighter.

The burden of concern for our world, and the people in it, seems to be particularly heavy for Friends. I wonder, though, if we believe that God wants to heal the world, and will guide us in what needs to be done, can we not find some relief from these burdens by trusting in that guidance?

Take my yoke
Most of us being city folk, we don't have much experience these days with yokes, or farm animals. The yoke is something that is fitted around the necks of a pair of animals to allow them to share a load. Jesus is talking about sharing the load with us -- that God doesn't want us to work alone. I believe that being yoked with God means that we are constantly operating under the guidance of that Spirit within us.

Yokes are typically fitted, so that they don't chafe or injure the animal, and make it easier for the animal to do its work. I believe that for us, our yoke fits when we do the things that the Spirit is calling us to do. When we wear another's yoke, it may not fit us as well, it may chafe, it may wear us down. Paul writes about the Body of Christ, and how each member has a specific purpose. Not everyone can be the eye, or the ear. Everyone has a specific purpose, and none is more important than any other. I think this is another way of saying that each of us has a yoke fitted especially for us.

Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart
Part of taking on this yoke is to learn gentleness and humility. To work with our yoke, we must be sensitive to where God wants us to go, and not insist on our own way. We must also do our work in a gentle way, not trampling and pushing in a particular direction.

My yoke is easy and my burden light
It can be difficult living the life we are called to live in our present day. Many of us have had experiences of work that we felt was necessary, but felt extra burdensome. For me, one of those experiences was in doing prison visitation. In the last few months, I have realized that it was a burden I could no longer carry, that the yoke was not fitted properly. There are other things, though, that may require much work, but feel so natural that we might not notice how much work it is. Working with the teens for the past seven years has not seemed so burdensome. Yes, it can be tiring, but not wearying.

When we are properly yoked, God lays on us burdens that we can handle. And God, being yoked together with us, helps us carry that load.

Come to me
This passage started with the words "Come to me". When I was a teenager, our youth choir sang a song taken from this passage. The song started and ended with "Come to me".

This passage starts with us coming to God, to learn how to listen, and to become yoked to God with a yoke that is specially fitted for us. We come to God to do the work, and when the work is done, we come to God to rest.

No complications. Just a simple "Come to me".

Onward Christian Soldiers

2010-09-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned before, I led the bible study at the NCYM-C annual sessions this year, on the topic of the spiritual armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20).

When I first brought this topic to my care committee, one member had some reservations. This person felt that the somewhat romanticized image of a soldier was no longer useful for comparison in an age of drones, smart bombs, and what Roger Waters calls "the bravery of being out of range". While I had it in my notes to invite Friends to consider whether the images Paul presents are still applicable, I never felt a time during the bible study where we should discuss it.

On my drive back from School of the Spirit, down I-85 from Durham to Atlanta, I noticed a billboard for the U.S. Marine Corps, featuring a picture of a soldier and the message "Dedicated to a Life of Honor." It came to me that I thought that it was an apt description of the Christian life, at least if by "honor" we mean "integrity". As I continued my drive, I saw two other variations on this billboard. One read "Devoted to a Life of Courage", and "Committed to Something Greater Than Themselves". These two reinforced the image I was getting of the Christian Soldier. Perhaps it isn't the hardware that makes the image work in our time, but rather the image of total devotion to that Spirit within us, calling us to a life of integrity, and to a life that confronts evil (spiritual forces, not flesh and blood) in ways that require great courage.

Politics and War

2010-08-27T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is a subject I have written about before, but I recently had some more openings about the subject while listening again to Lloyd Lee Wilson's Pendle Hill talk on the subject "Who Do You Say I Am?"

In his talk, LLW says something about how the Kingdom of God is not the same as earthly governments, and that it is not realized by "giving the Democrats a filibuster-proof majority in the senate." In the questions that followed, LLW talked about "how easy it is for the Christian vision to be co-opted by political power", and he went on to caution Friends about not letting themselves get co-opted. As I heard this discussion, things arose for me about politics, especially the attitudes found in partisan politics and the attitudes in war.

There's a movie called "Joyeux Noel", about the German, French, and British troops celebrating Christmas together during the first world war. At the beginning of the movie, they show school teachers in each country telling the children almost identical stories how evil the other side is, how they don't have the same value for human life. In times of war, we often hear such demonizing of the other side, often times using extreme examples to characterize the general population. The same thing happens quite frequently in political battles. People have in mind certain characteristics when they hear "right" and "left", and there often seems to be very little middle ground, much less compromise. People like Glenn Beck or Sarah Palin or Al Franken become the caricatures by which others are judged.

When Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, I heard Friends refer to those who questioned the decision as "not getting it". During the health care debate, I heard talk about how the people who opposed the health care bill were just looking out for themselves and didn't care about other people, with little regard to the possibility that the disagreement was about the role of government. It seemed to be framed more as "we are in the right, they are in the wrong", which is also the core of any proposed justification for war.

I am often disappointed at the level of wheeling and dealing that takes place to get legislation passed, and the seeming lack of concern for that on the part of the victors. It seems like we are willing to put up with a lot of behavior that would be otherwise unacceptable as long as it results in the passage of some important piece of legislation. Similarly, in war we often find the people willing to suspend their previously-held standards in order to carry out the war. The PATRIOT act seems a good example of this. Look at the difference in Friends' attitudes with regard to disagreements in business meeting as compared to political issues. Is there a similar lowering of principles?

In his talk, Lloyd Lee said something to the effect of "Who am I to judge how you may be led by God?" I am not writing this with the intent of saying that anyone who engages in politics is wrong, but I think it is very important to be aware of what political battles do to us. The similarity between partisan politics and war with respect to attitudes and behaviors suggests to me that if nothing else, we can find the seeds of war within these political battles.

The final thing I would ask Friends to consider is what it means to experience the Unity of the Spirit. When we sit and commune with God, as we experience the Holy Spirit, do we not find that worldly concerns drop away? When we experience the perfect love that casts out fear, do we not reach a place in which we can commune with one another where our differences and disagreements fade into the background? Are our meetings unified by the experience of this Spirit - is that what we all come for? If so, then why are our meetings so politically homogenous?

The Quaker Label

2010-08-13T14:05:00.000-07:00

Johan Maurer wrote last month about Who Owns the Quaker Brand addressing some of the disagreements that come up with what we mean when we say "Quaker". Rather than looking at those differences, I think it is interesting to look at what we are trying to say about ourselves when we call ourselves Quaker.

In some of these struggles about what it means to be a Quaker, there are people who get quite upset when they feel like others are telling them they aren't a real Quaker. I think some of this could be based on a fear of losing a community that one has found precious, either through not belonging to the community, or by the community changing and becoming something that doesn't fit. Perhaps this fear is more easily realized in a community that avoids defining itself, so that there is less security in what the community is actually about.

The thing about the name "Quaker" I really want to look at, however, is the extent to which the name is important to us, and why. What if you were no longer allowed to call yourself Quaker, while still maintaining the same level of membership in your faith community? What would you feel you had lost? Is it important, for example, to be associated by name with other Quakers of the past and present? Would you feel like you had lost your connection to the Divine? Would you feel like you had lost some kind of moral authority?

These are questions I often ask myself. My feeling is that if I am holding on too tight to the word "Quaker", it becomes almost an idol for me, a substitute for the direct inward experience of Christ. It also seem to me that the less tightly I hold onto that word, the less I worry about whether other people use it differently. That doesn't mean that I give up my concern for my community and whether or not it is being faithful, but that I am less worried about how other communities use it.

There is a passage in Revelation in which the Spirit says "And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it." This verse points me away from worldly words and names, and towards God. Whether anyone else knows that name doesn't matter, what matters is that I am faithful.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 8

2010-08-12T04:05:00.000-07:00

This is the continuation of part 7 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Conclusion

Although there are numerous aspects to Fox’s message, most of them having a parallel in the scriptures, it is important to remember that they all flow from one thing -- the light of Christ in the heart. If Friends dwell in this light, they find themselves purified, taught, brought into a peaceful unity, and both empowered and encouraged to bring that light, the gospel, to others. Without this indwelling presence, there is no spiritual basis for the rest. As Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:20, Christ is the chief cornerstone.

I have also made a printable version available.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 7

2010-08-11T04:02:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of part 6 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Empowers to Fight the Lamb’s War

Fox often refers to victory because he believes that part of the life in the Spirit means engaging in a spiritual war against Satan. This battle is often referred to as the Lamb’s War, as described in Revelation 17:14, "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful." Fox writes that "the lamb must have the victory", which seems to allude to this verse. Another favorite verse that refers to the Lamb’s War is Revelation 12:17, "And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ." While he occasionally mentions the dragon, Fox usually quotes the latter part of this verse, emphasizing that Friends should keep the testimony of Jesus.

Epistle 55 is titled "Concerning the spiritual warfare" and illustrates what this spiritual war entails. For example, Fox writes "Arm yourselves like men of war, that ye may know, what to stand against. Spare not, pity not that which is for the sword (of the spirit,) plague, famine, and set up truth, and confound the deceit, which stains the earth and cumbers the ground." Setting up, or establishing truth, and confounding or trampling deceit is a major theme of Fox’s epistles, and is the way this spiritual war is fought. There are different aspects to this deceit. On one hand, it is simply the way Satan blinds you to the light of Christ in your own heart. It can also be the various false doctrines, practices, and organizations in the world that Fox and other early Friends were often critical of. In epistle 55, Fox also encourages Friends to "go on in the work of the Lord, that ye may trample on all deceit within and without," thus emphasizing that the spiritual warfare is not just fought by outward ministry, but by the inward work of waiting in the Light.

The sword of the spirit mentioned in epistle 55 is the word of God, according to Ephesians 6:17. Now, traditional Christianity refers to the bible as the "word of God". For example, the original King James Bible contains a message from the translators to the reader that says that the bible "containeth the word of God, nay, is the word of God." For these Christians, then, the sword of the spirit is the bible. To this day, many Christian children in sunday school participate in "sword drills" in which they must look up verses in the bible as fast as they can. Friends, however, maintained that Christ is the word of God. In responding to an opponent who claimed that the scriptures are the word of God, Fox says that "the scriptures of truth are God’s words, which Christ, the word, fulfils. They are not the word of God, which thou has blasphemously affirmed, but Christ is the word of God." Thus, for Fox, it is Christ who is the sword of the spirit by which the spiritual war is fought -- the spirit of Christ in one’s heart that leads one to speak and act in various ways, is a sword against evil and deceit.

This usage of the "word of God" as the "sword of the spirit" is another variation of Christ as the seed who bruises the head of the serpent. In fact, the purifying and transforming action of the seed within the individual is at the center of the Lamb’s War. It is in turning people towards the light of Christ within themselves that evil is defeated. Fox often speaks of his mission the same way Paul does in Acts 26:18, in which he was "to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me." In epistle 216, Fox ties together the themes of turning people to the light, purification, and the defeat of evil: "Yet work ye and labour in the power of the Lord God ... to the renewing of people’s minds in the light and power of God, and knowledge of Christ Jesus, turning them from the enmity and the darkness, (the power of satan,) to the light, and to God, that they may be renewed into his image and likeness; that the image of the devil, and his likeness, may be defaced."

In addition to the "sword of the spirit", Fox also seems to like the metaphor of the word as a hammer or as a fire, as found in Jeremiah 23:29, "Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?" In epistle 23 he writes that the word "saves the soul, and hammers down, and throws down, and burns up that which wars against it."

Fox is careful to distinguish spiritual warfare from worldly warfare, often referring negatively to carnal weapons as found in 2 Corinthians 10:4, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds." For example, in epistle 205, he writes that "in the spirit ye will worship God, and have fellowship and spiritual weapons, and come to be spiritual men, and not as the carnal world that rule and wrestle with carnal weapons, and with flesh and blood." In addition to 2 Corinthians 10:4, this one sentence also brings in John 4:24 (that God is worshipped "in spirit and in truth"), and also Ephesians 6:12, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

Fox often emphasizes the importance of ministry and that it proceeds from the light and not from human reason. He also emphasizes not the words, but the spirit that gives them forth. This flows, to a large extent, from the understanding that the gospel is not simply a message, but is the power of God. This idea comes from Paul, who writes in Romans 1:16, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek." In epistle 372, Fox equates the gospel with Christ, and emphasizes over and over that the gospel itself is power: "Now the gospel being preached to, or in, every creature under heaven; which gospel is the power of God to salvation, to every one that believes; so all that receive this gospel, the power of God unto salvation, in their hearts, receive Christ, (the power of God,) and his government and order in the power. And Christ reigns in their hearts in his power; and such come into the gospel order."[5, p. 207] Fox’s subtle insertion of "or in" to his quotation of Colossians 1:23 (“the gospel ... which was preached to every creature”) is very telling, in that it emphasizes the internal work of Christ on the heart, and not simply a message that one must accept.

Not surprisingly, Fox also makes use of Ephesians 6:13-17, which identifies the equipment for spiritual warfare:

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

In addition to the sword of the spirit, Fox mentions both the shield of faith and the helmet of salvation numerous times. In epistle 206, Fox makes the interesting connection between salvation and Christ through the helmet metaphor, saying "Christ Jesus being your helmet and your head." In epistle 314 he suggests that "your heads [are] preserved by the helmet of salvation, and your hearts fenced with the breast-plate of righteousness." In epistle 377, Fox provides a variation on the spiritual armor theme that has a wonderfully gentle feel: "And therefore mind the Lord in all your sufferings, and keep all low, and in the humility of heart, and there you will feel that he that inhabits eternity, dwells with an humble heart, and he will be your shield and buckler, and defender in time of trouble."[5, p. 215]

In carrying on the Lamb’s War, Fox frequently urges Friends to be "valiant for the truth upon the earth." This is a variation on Jeremiah 9:3, "And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me." Because this verse describes those that are not valiant, the implication of “be valiant” is not just to be brave, but to be truthful and to know God.

This paper concludes in part 8.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 6

2010-08-10T04:58:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of part 5 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Brings Into Unity

Fox emphasizes the importance of the spiritual community. While he often refers to the body in order to emphasize the headship of Christ, he also makes references to the body in terms of unity, as described in 1 Corinthians 12:13, "For by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one spirit." Fox seems to use this verse more often in his later epistles, perhaps reflecting the difficulties in dealing with the growth of Quakerism and maintaining more and more meetings.

Part of Friends’ witness to peace was in maintaining a peaceful community amongst themselves. Fox usually describes this as being in "the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace", taking the phrase from Ephesians 4:3. In epistle 180 he tells Friends to keep in the power of the Lord, "that to the Lord ye may be a blessing in your generation, and a peculiar people in tenderness, and full of that faith which overcomes the world and all things in it; through which ye may come all up into the unity of the spirit which is the bond of peace." Fox tends to use the phrase in relation to meetings, as he does in epistle 18, urging Friends to "meet together every where, and keep the unity of the spirit, which is the bond of peace."

Fox also refers to the "unity of the faith" in various forms, quoting Ephesians 4:13 "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." He often couples this phrase with "in which ye have the victory", alluding to 1 John 5:4 "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith." In other words, it is our faith that is the victory.

This paper continues in part 7.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 5

2010-08-09T04:52:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of part 4 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

The Ultimate Ruler, Who Must Be Obeyed

It isn’t enough to say that Christ is known inwardly, he must also be obeyed. Fox refers to Christ using various terms denoting leadership. For example, he refers to Christ as the head, referring to Colossians 1:18, which says that "[Christ] is the head of the body, the church." Fox emphasizes not just that Christ is the head of the church, but that the church is defined as a community that recognizes Christ as its head. In epistle 230, he writes "there is no true church but where Christ exercised his offices in an amongst them." By offices, Fox is referring to the various roles Christ takes on as the head of the church -- prophet, shepherd, counsellor, commander, bishop, priest.[5, p. 54] In one of his doctrinal epistles, addressed to “all Kings, Princes, and Governors in the whole world”, Fox gives some examples of how Christ is known in various offices:

His office, as he is a counsellor; do you hear his voice from heaven, concerning your heavenly state: his office, as he is a leader to lead you out of sin and evil, and to rule in your hearts by faith, as a commander: his office, as he is a shepherd, are you his sheep? and do ye hear his voice?

Fox also draws numerous titles and images from Isaiah 9:6-7, which is familiar to fans of Handel’s "Messiah":

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

The title "Prince of Peace" occurs quite frequently in Fox’s epistles, often accompanied with the title "Prince of Life." The kingdom and government of Christ also get mention from Fox. He often refers to the kingdom as the "everlasting kingdom", touching on Daniel 9:4, which says "How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation." Not surprisingly, Fox also refers to the "kingdom of God" that occurs throughout the New Testament.

As usual, Fox’s emphasis is not on giving Christ these titles, but in acting accordingly. For example, in epistle 49 Fox emphasizes that "the kingdom of God ye may all come to see, waiting in the light, taking heed to it, which calls to repentance, which informs your minds towards the kingdom of God, where there is no end, but love, joy, and peace for evermore." The kingdom, in this case, is realized through obedience to the light.

Fox often encourages this obedience through the phrase "walk in the light", which refers to 1 John 1:7: "But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."

The well-known Fox phrase "walk worthy of your calling" may come from Ephesians 4:1, "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called", although it could also refer to 1 Thessalonians 2:12 "That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory."

Fox also warns against disobedience in various ways. He often warns Friends not to "grieve the spirit" or to "take heed of grieving the spirit", referring to Ephesians 4:30 "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." One Fox’s favorite terms for disobeying or ignoring the spirit is "quenching the spirit", which comes from 1 Thessalonians 5:19 "Quench not the spirit." Instead, Fox exhorted Friends to walk "as becometh the gospel" echoing Paul in Philippians 1:27 "Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ." In Fox’s time, the word "conversation" didn’t just mean talking, it referred to one’s whole manner of being, the way one carried one’s self.

This paper continues in part 6.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 4

2010-08-08T04:46:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of part 3 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Destroys Sin, Purifies Us

While the universality of the light, and the inward, spiritual knowledge of God are important aspects of Fox’s message, it is the transformation of the soul brought about by Christ that is the real core of his message. When Fox quotes Genesis 3:15, referring to the seed of the woman that bruises the serpent’s head, he is referring to Christ bruising the head of Satan by driving out deceit and sin from the heart. For example, in epistle 4, Fox writes that as the seed bruises the serpent’s head, it will "discover all deceit, and rend all veils and coverings, that the pure may come to life, which deceit hath trampled upon." That is, the seed discovers and drives out Satan (the cause of evil and deceit) from your heart, so that you may come to know the pureness of the Spirit.

Fox often describes this transformation as being "restored into the image of God", referring to Genesis 1:27 in which humans were created in the image of God. Fox also describes this process as becoming "a new man, renewed in the image of God", which echoes Colossians 3:10 ("renewed in knowledge after him that created him"), Ephesians 4:24 (the new man is "created in righteousness and holiness"), and 2 Corinthians 5:17 ("he is a new creature: old things are passed away").

One of the ways that Fox expresses this transformation is in the idea of doing everything for God’s glory. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:31, "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." Fox frequently uses the phrase "to the glory of God" in reference to transformation, and often in the form of being "ordered" (i.e. transformed, put into right order) to God’s glory. Most of the time, Fox speaks of this ordering as a result of waiting in the light, although occasionally he uses it in terms of being mindful of God. For example, in epistle 200 he expands on the idea of doing things to God’s glory by saying you should "have God’s praise and glory in your eye in all your speakings and doings, then ye will be preserved to his glory."

Fox makes frequent references to Titus 2:11-12, which says "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world." This one verse contains elements of these first three parts of Fox’s message -- that the grace of God (Christ) has appeared to all people, that he teaches us directly, and that he brings us to live what Fox refers to in his journal as a "holy and sinless life." This transformation or purification is the salvation that this verse in Titus refers to. In contrast to the mainstream Christian view where salvation means being saved from the penalty for your sins (i.e. hell), this kind of salvation is being saved from sinning, in which one lives a truly holy life. Fox makes this clear in epistle 158 where he writes "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, to teach, season, and establish you, which brings your salvation."

This paper continues in part 5.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 3

2010-08-07T04:39:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of part 2 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Known Inwardly and Spiritually

The inward knowing of Christ, the light, the seed, is such an integral part of Fox’s epistles that it is rare to encounter one that does not recommend that Friends walk, dwell, keep in the light. The prophet Jeremiah writes about a new covenant in which God says "I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts," (Jeremiah 31:33) and Paul also writes about it in Romans 2:15 ("which shew the work of the law written in their hearts"). For Fox, this new covenant describes his experience of inward revelation and direct experience of Christ, and he frequently makes reference to the new covenant in terms the inward experience of God. He also writes of the covenant as a covenant of light, which echoes Isaiah 42:6, "I will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles."

Like Jesus and Paul, Fox frequently emphasizes the inward work of the Spirit by contrasting it with the teachings and opinions of people. One of Paul’s statements that Fox uses is from Romans 2:29, "he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God." In other words, it isn’t the external things that make one a Jew, but what is in one’s heart. Fox makes heavy use of not only the idea of the circumcision of the heart, but also in admonishing Friends not to seek human praise -- it is God that Friends should seek to please. In fact, most of the places where Fox uses the phrase "of men" he is contrasting worldly matters with spiritual ones.
Fox’s use of the phrase "led by the spirit", echoes Paul’s writing in Romans 8:14 that "as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." Of course, the idea of being led by the spirit is central to Fox’s writing and is expressed in a wide variety of ways.

Fox also makes numerous references to the "carnal mind" or just plain "carnal", which refers to being concerned about worldly things as opposed to spiritual ones. This concept appears in Romans 8:6, which says "to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace." A typical example of this would be sentence in epistle 58: "The teachers without exalt the carnal mind, but the teacher within destroyeth it." He contrasts human teachers (often "without" means outward or external) with the inward teacher, Christ.

Fox frequently uses the term "letter" in referring to ministers and teaching that is not from the Spirit, and this likely comes from 2 Corinthians 3:6, which says "Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit; for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life." It has been a doctrine of Friends from the beginning that the Spirit is the primary authority and that the scriptures are secondary, and Fox’s references to "the letter" tend to take on a dualistic flavor, implying that those who teach "the letter" have no knowledge of the Spirit.

This paper continues in part 4.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 2

2010-08-06T04:30:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation to part 1 of my School of the Spirit research paper.

Christ, the Light and Seed, Enlightens All

George Fox uses a wide variety of terms to refer to Christ, sometimes with simple titles like "the light" or "the seed", sometimes with more formal titles such as "the Lord Jesus Christ", and still other times with descriptions such as "that which is pure" or "that which shows and discovers." Fox uses the title "the light" frequently, as does the Gospel of John (e.g. "I am the light of the world", John 8:121). Particularly, Fox makes many references to John 1:9, "That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." [All scripture quotations in this paper are from the King James Version]

The idea that the light of Christ is available in every person was of central importance to Fox’s message, but it is not the whole message. In Fox’s teachings, the light of Christ is present in every person so that if they turn towards it, they might experience a transformation and be brought closer to God. For example, in epistle 366, Fox writes that the light enlightens every person so that "every one may believe in the light, and may become a child of the light, and have eternal life, and be saved." The phrase "be saved", as we shall see shortly, refers to the inward transformation that takes place. The universal presence of this light means that every person has this potential.

Fox also makes many references to Christ as "the seed", which typically refers to either of two promises. First, in Genesis 3:15, God tells the serpent that "[the seed of the woman] shall bruise thy head." Typically, the references to this verse are in the context of destroying sin, and will be discussed in more detail shortly. The other common reference to "the seed" originates in Genesis 22:18, in which God tells Abraham "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice." The Apostle Paul refers to this promise to Abraham several times, especially in chapter 3 of the epistle to the Galatians. In Galatians 3:16, Paul says that Christ is Abraham’s seed to which the promises had been made (with a similar statement in Romans 4:13). Fox echoes this idea frequently by referring to Christ as the seed "that is heir to the promise". In calling Christ the seed of Abraham, Fox is not just making a theological statement describing some aspect of God that needs to be believed. These references are frequently accompanied with exhortations to know the seed, or feel it, or dwell in it, implying that the important thing is in doing, not just believing.

This paper continues in part 3.

George Fox's Message Via His Scripture Quotations - Part 1

2010-08-05T16:24:00.000-07:00

This was my School of the Spirit research paper. I'm finally getting around to posting it, after investigating another avenue of publication. I didn't think the full title would fit in the blog, since it is: "The Message of that Eminent and Faithful Friend and Minister of Christ Jesus, George Fox, As Revealed by the Quotations of Scripture in his Epistles Unto Friends."

Introduction

George Fox has always been famous for his knowledge of the bible. His writings are infused with scripture references, frequently containing only snippets of verses, and usually without providing the chapter and verse that he is quoting. Fortunately, Esther Mu ̈rer has endeavored to track down Fox’s scripture references, as well as those of other early Friends, and has made them available on the Quaker Bible Index (http://esr.earlham.edu/qbi/).

In 2007, I used the Quaker Bible Index to compile a list of the bible verses that George Fox quoted most often. I was particularly looking for devotional or inspirational verses. After some online discussions with Kirk Wattles, I realized that my list included quotes used to defend Quaker doctrines and teaching. I compiled a new list using only those verses appearing in Fox’s epistles, reasoning that the epistles were more pastoral in nature and I wanted the verses that Fox would quote when writing to other Friends.

From this set of verses, and looking at the way Fox used them, I pieced together a description of Fox’s message that, while possibly incomplete, shows the major parts of that message and their scriptural foundation. Essentially, this message is:

Christ, the light or the seed, enlightens every one in the world, and is known inwardly and spiritually, not by the teachings of humans. He destroys sin, purifying those who obey him, and restoring them into the image of God in which they know peace and love. Those who obey Christ as the ultimate ruler become members of the body of Christ, and are brought into unity with him and with each other, and are called to fight a spiritual war against evil, for which they are empowered by the Holy Spirit.

This paper continues in part 2.

My Fifth Trip To NCYM-C

2010-07-19T16:48:00.000-07:00

I got back last night from my fifth visit to the annual sessions of North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative) - the 313th annual gathering of that body. In one respect, you could say it was the same old thing - the same old deeply gathered, intentional, loving community that I continue to experience every time I visit. There were some differences, too.

We met on the campus of Guilford College, but stayed in a different dorm and met in different meeting rooms than in the past. This was the first time for me that these sessions weren't clerked by Sid Kitchens and Deborah Shaw. Richard Miller is now the clerk, and David Perry the recording clerk. I thought they both did a beautiful job, and I appreciated the way Richard conducted the sessions.

There were quite a few visitors. In fact, when the registrar announced the numbers during the last business session, we learned that visitors accounted for a little more than 20% of those in attendance. On one hand, this says that a lot of people are hungry for what NCYM-C has to offer, but on the other hand it suggests that many within the yearly meeting don't realize what a treasure they have.

One of the activities I really enjoy is "Morning Communion" which, while it does not involve the drinking of wine/juice or the eating of bread/wafers, does include the imbibing of coffee. It is just an informal gathering for conversation that occurs before breakfast. I woke up at 5:30 every morning so I would have time to shower and dress before morning communion - and it was well worth it every morning. Lloyd Lee and Susan Wilson, Janis and Charlie Ansell, and David Eley (of Keystone Fellowship, OYM) were there every morning, as were Ken Randall and Pat Bradbury of Britain Yearly Meeting. Ken and Pat were first-time visitors last year, and were obviously as taken with the yearly meeting as Ceal and I were four years ago.

The theme this year was "Spirituality and the Arts", and explored Friends' history with the arts from the rejection by early Friends' through the gradual softening of that stance, to discussions of what aspects of the arts do we hold dear, and what things might we still reject. On seventh day evening was an arts fair in which Friends displayed various creations. The young Friends (including all three of my grandkids) put on a shadow puppet show on Quaker testimonies which was a big hit. Oliver, a young Friend from Durham, also did his own shadow puppet show "Afghanistan: Land of Shadows" that was fantastic.

I had wonderful chats with Chuck Fager and Bill Geary (of Mullica Hill Friends Mtg). At lunch on first day I sat with Patricia Loring and had a fabulous chat about various topics. Ceal was incredibly patient with me for delaying our departure as long as I did. I could have stayed talking to Patricia all day.

I was invited to lead the bible study this year, and I chose the theme of spiritual warfare, using the title "Being Valiant for the Truth Upon the Earth", and exploring Ephesians 6:10-20 (which includes the spiritual armor of God). Earlier in the year, I had commented on Facebook that I thought "Christian Militia" was an oxymoron. Susan Jeffers replied that perhaps the abandonment of the language of spiritual warfare by the historic peace churches has left a void that is being filled by those who think of it as physical warfare. This is not an easy thing to discuss, even for those steeped in the bible, but it was a very enriching time. While I did a lot of preparation ahead of time, I knew that I could rely on Friends from the meeting to enrich the sessions far beyond what I could do, and my trust was well-placed. Friends shared deep insights, and touching stories, and for me the burden was light. I deeply appreciated being held in prayer by my wife and two members of my School of the Spirit k-group (while the others in the k-group held me from afar, as did my care committee).

The bible study was mentioned in the summary of exercises at the end of the sessions, and after they were read, Patty Levering asked if "and beloved friend of this yearly meeting" could be added after "Mark Wutka of Atlanta Friends Meeting (SAYMA)". I had tears in my eyes upon hearing that, and found that afterwards that I was so choked up I couldn't even get out a "thank you" to Patty. To Friends of North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative), I love you too! Here come the tears again..

My Spiritual Journey, Epilogue

2010-06-22T17:19:00.000-07:00

This post covers the gap between when I presented my spiritual journey in 2008 up to the present day. You can also read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

It feels like a lot has happened to me since I presented my spiritual journey to Atlanta Friends Meeting. There was one thing that was very significant to me that I left out of my spiritual journey, which happened in sixth month of 2008. When I attended the fourth month Representative Body meeting of North Carolina Yearly Meeting Conservative, I happened to talk with Lloyd Lee Wilson and I indicated some interest in traveling in the ministry - I can't remember exactly what I said, though. Lloyd Lee said that he thought I should come to this gathering of ministers that Charlie Ansell (then of Virginia Beach meeting) was organizing, that would be held in Woodland, NC in sixth month. Way opened for us to go, and it was a blessed time. The folks there were Lloyd Lee Wilson, Charlie Ansell, Deborah Fisch, Connie McPeak Green, Marty Grundy, David Eley, and me. Susan Wilson and Janice Ansell were also with us for a little while, but they were also taking care of the hospitality. We didn't have an agenda, we just sat in worship and waited for the Lord to lead us.

When I first saw who would be there, I felt quite intimidated, and it kinda felt like getting a chance to be the bat boy for the '27 Yankees. These Friends were all very kind to me and made me feel like I belonged there. It meant a tremendous amount to me. Towards the end of the meeting, we were reflecting on our experience there, and someone said that it was great that they weren't trying to "one-up" each other, and someone else said it was also great that they weren't trying to out-humble each other. I am very grateful to Lloyd Lee for arranging for me to be there, and to Charlie for following his leading.

Probably the biggest thing that has happened to me since I presented my journey is that I am now in the School of the Spirit "On Being a Spiritual Nurturer" program. It has been an incredible experience so far. In our first residency, Lloyd Lee Wilson came and spoke to us, as did his traveling companion Charlie Ansell. Charlie spoke about his role as an elder, and he had a lot of great things to say even though I don't think he knew ahead of time that he would be speaking. As Lloyd Lee spoke about his plain dress, it awakened something in me. It started with the beard, which he gave a name to - a tauferbard (believer's beard). There was something about naming it that was important to me. As a result, I decided to try growing one. Lloyd Lee, in talking about discernment, said "Don't stand there on the dock waiting to see if you're led to get on the boat to America. Get on the boat and see if you're led to get off." I took that to heart with my beard, first growing the beard out, then seeing if I still felt led to shave off the mustache (Ceal was skeptical but she actually likes the beard, as long as I let her trim it occasionally).

There were three reasons why this change in my appearance appealed to me. First, a tauferbard is a symbol of Christian pacifism. Second, I thought it would make me stand out a little more. It's not that I want to stand out in order to say to the world "hey, look at me", but rather to say to myself "hey, the world's looking at you, watch what you do." I thought it would help me be more aware of what I was doing and how it appeared to people. Third, I wanted to invite conversation.

Since then, I have been moving more in the direction of plain dress. In a way, it is like I have come full circle from my first day at meeting when I wore a white oxford shirt and black dockers. I am back to that, although I also have some gray oxford shirts. I have also started wearing suspenders. I think the look has helped me feel more separate than just the beard by itself. I can't bring myself to take the collars off the shirts, although if I could easily but the collarless ones I probably would. At first I was just dressing that way for work, but would still wear t-shirts and such on the weekends, but now I wear the same thing every day, and I feel really comfortable with it.

I did have some difficulties at School of the Spirit, that I think I attribute to not being comfortable with myself and expecting myself to change in certain ways. Certainly I have changed since I started, but I thought maybe I would become a more chatty person, that during breaks I would be standing around talking about various things with my classmates. But, that's just not me. I'm happy to talk with people, but unless there is something specific I want to talk about with someone, I don't generally go seeking conversation. I think there are probably times at meals when I don't say a thing, I just listen to what everyone else is saying. That bothered me for a while, but I have come to embrace it as part of who I am. I have also had a tendency to hold my call to ministry at arm's length, even though I get lots of encouragement from various sources. That is something I have been willing to embrace more firmly, and I feel it deepening.

At some point I plan to post my School of the Spirit research paper here. It has one of those old style long titles "The Message of the Eminent and Faithful Friend and Minister of Christ Jesus, George Fox, As Revealed by the Quotations of Scripture in his Epistles Unto Friends." I am in the middle of teaching the material during the Adult Ed classes at Atlanta Friends meeting, and also gave it as a workshop at SAYMA. I thought I'd have a chance to incorporate feedback before posting it here.

As I was typing this, I thought about the number of times the name Lloyd Lee Wilson has occurred in my spiritual journey, and how many of those encounters have resulted in significant events for me - my first visit to NCYM-C, the gathering of ministers in Woodland, my move towards plain dress. There are other things that I didn't mention in my spiritual journey, like his asking me to share some of my work with the meeting of Ministers, Elders and Overseers at NCYM-C, or asking me to find a good bible verse to kick off the discussion at the morning communion. When I sent him the PDF of the Joseph John Dymond letters, he responded with some words of encouragement. I don't think he reads blogs too often, so I'm going to have to mention this to him next month and thank him.

My Spiritual Journey, Part 3

2010-06-22T16:49:00.000-07:00

This is the final part of my spiritual journey as presented to Atlanta Friends Meeting in 2008. You can also read part 1 and part 2.

So, the next year blogging started to get real popular and I started reading various Quaker blogs. This was around 2005, and I actually started my own blog, that I've slowed down on a bit, but it's called "The Ear of the Soul", that phrase comes from a quote from Meister Eckhart, a famous Christian mystic.. No! John of the Cross, another famous Christian mystic, or Juan de la Cruz he would be in Spanish. And it was very interesting. I can look at some of the things I said when I started and how I changed, and a lot of the people in the blogosphere had an effect on that. Having discussions with people, one of the nice things about blogging is actually people getting out and talking about their faith that we probably don't do here as much, and actually the blogging is a good way to do it, because everybody's on their own schedule. If you're busy this week, you come back to it next week. And plus, you've got a record of it, you can go back and read what somebody was saying two years ago.

And sometime, it was in 2006, I don't remember when the Gwinnett Worship Group started, but early on when it started, they only had a couple people going, didn't have any women attending, which can I guess be uncomfortable if a woman comes in and it's all guys. So, we started visiting occasionally, and the meeting started to grow. It was going pretty well, and Lloyd Lee Wilson, my plain Friend, came to visit, basically a traveling in the ministry kind of thing. He just came and sat in worship, and then would occasionally talk about things. And he talked about the yearly meeting, and the purpose of the yearly meeting, and he talked about how the worship at the end of the yearly meeting was sort of his liturgical.. the liturgical highpoint of his year, and he spoke very glowingly of his yearly meeting. So Ceal and I said "we really need to go there".

So, we went. They meet in July.. the second fourth day of seventh month is when they start. They're very big on numbering the days, the months. And I really felt at home there in a way that was different from our meeting, because.. let me explain one thing. For those of you who aren't familiar with conservative Friends, the word conservative doesn't have to do with political affiliation, and in fact North Carolina Yearly Meeting Conservative passed a torture minute the year before SAYMA did. It has to do with them feeling they are conserving the old Quaker traditions, so they are also unprogrammed like we are. They are more explicitly Christian than we are, they're very open in talking about that, but I think a lot more of their strength is not that, it's that they are much more.. they talk much more about how the Spirit works in us, and in the meeting, and maybe have a little more, they're a little more openly dedicated to that. One of the things I like, I'm the recording clerk for the Retreat Committee, and I'm starting to put "If consistent with Divine will" at the end, whenever they say "We purpose to meet on such-and-such a day.. if consistent with Divine will", you know, it's that acknowledgement that "yeah, this is where I want to go, but at some point I may be led to do something different." It's something they keep in mind a lot. But it's also that I felt that I could speak the language that I was most comfortable with and not have to worry so much about upsetting people. And, you know, I.. there's different ways to have a yearly meeting. The thing that I learned from the yearly meeting conservative is that it can be quite a benefit to have a shared faith tradition that people can speak to each other with. People can quote the bible and it means something to a lot of people and you understand where they're going, where when you have more of a mix that's a lot more difficult. But, don't necessarily get.. some people feel less comfortable with that. Having a meeting like this, and a yearly meeting like ours, is just a different way of approaching it, it has different strengths and weaknesses.

Also, while I was there, the Saturday night program was reading the book of Mark as sort of a dramatic presentation. There were 12 or 13 people, several people had different parts to read, and I volunteered. I said "Hey, I'll participate." And I think I had Peter, but the thing that I always laughed about was that there are several places in the book of Mark where evil spirits speak. They gave the guy from the liberal meeting all the evil spirits. Also, we had a little discussion about where the person reading God would sit. They wanted God way up at the top, and I said "I can understand that, God sitting up high, but on the other hand, if God can't get front row center, who can?" Lloyd Lee laughed and said "Thee has a future as a theologian."

So, Ceal and I like to visit meetings when we travel. If you're not familiar with it, quakerfinder.org is really great. If you're going somewhere just type it in. We've been to meetings in Dallas. Dover, New Hampshire was one of my favorites. The day we went there there was an old guy named Silas who.. he's written a book on meeting houses of New England. He's since died, but he had been very ill and been away from meeting for months and this was his first day back, and they were all just lined up to say "Hi" to him. It was wonderful, and he sat with us and talked a lot to us. But, as we visited, I noticed I was speaking a lot in meetings, but not here. And that always bothered me, and I wondered "why am I not speaking here?" Cause I never felt like I had a message, you know, it's not like I was "Oh, I can't say anything here." And I had a lot of discussions with Ceal about that.

While were visiting the North Carolina Yearly Meeting in 2007, there was an announcement about this consultation on Gospel Ministry that FGC Traveling Ministries was having, and I felt like I needed to be there. But to go, your meeting had to recommend you. And I thought "Why is my meeting going to recommend me? I never speak there." And I can't. I can't make myself speak. That's not the way ministry works. I can't fake it. I mean, I could fake it, I don't want to fake it. And so I remember sitting in meeting one day wrestling with this, and I'm pretty sure it was July 29, 2007. I went back and looked it up, because that was the day of the women's retreat and Ceal was there. And I was just wrestling with that and it seemed like a lot of things were falling away, and I don't even precisely know what. But then a message came to me, and I felt "I am going to stand and speak, and I'm not going to worry about what anybody may think." Like most of the things I say in meeting, I can't tell you what I said. I don't remember. But, it just felt like something.. you know, a block was removed, because since then I haven't had any problem. And the other difficulty I had with that was, I feel like it is important for a meeting to be able to look and identify gifts and call gifts out, and I didn't feel so comfortable with saying "hey! I want to go to this Traveling Ministries thing. Could somebody consider that?" But, I exchanged several e-mails with Mary Ann and said "Look, this is my situation. I hate to even say anything but if anybody is considering, could you consider me?" She ended up talking to SAYMA Ministry & Nurture and between SAYMA Ministry & Nurture and Atlanta, Atlanta set up a clearness committee for me which was really great, and they ended up recommending me to go. And it was great. The thing I mentioned about people having a shared tradition, there was a point during that consultation where somebody was talking about how difficult it was dealing with his own meeting, that his own meeting didn't give him any support. He felt really bad about this. Somebody else stood up and said "I feel led to read a verse from the bible." And it started out "Jesus went back to his hometown…" and all of a sudden you could feel everybody "Oh! I know where this is going!" and then we could all feel that we all felt that, and we laughed. It's like you don't even have to continue, cause it was the thing about "a prophet is not without honor except in his own hometown." And I got to meet some.. one of the people I really wanted to meet was Brian Drayton, who wrote "On Living With a Concern for Gospel Ministry", and I ended up in his small group. And I had a really good time. I met a lot of people, but the thing.. I'm not sure that the conference itself was the most important thing as far as where I am today. I think the process I went through sitting in meeting and actually just being changed like that was part of it. The clearness committee helped me a lot, and as a result I have an anchor committee or care committee that Bill is.. Bill [Holland, Atlanta Friends] and Daphne [Clement, AFM] and Hannah MacDermott are all on. And that's the kind of committee you want, with those people on it. But they help me a lot, help me stay grounded and a lot of the meeting is like a clearness committee, and they're really good at helping me see things. So that was one of the best benefits.

And since then I've been spending a lot of time in early Quaker writings. I've done a lot with Fox's epistles. I was in the process of trying to make a version of Fox's epistles where all the bible references were in bold and all the actual scripture references were out on the right. Fox, when he used the bible, he didn't say "as it says in blah blah blah", he just used words and phrases from all over the bible, so it's very interesting to actually go and look up the context. And I ended up doing a workshop on that at SAYMA this year, which was very well attended. There were 46 people and SAYMA has about 200 adults attending. There were 5 young Friends, too, so it went really well. And I'm involved in a lot of things. I'm very involved with SAYF, we do prison visitation once a month, I'm on the retreat committee, I'm involved with SAYMA, I'm on the SAYMA nominating committee.. be careful.. but, it feels like there's something more I'm supposed to do and I don't know what it is yet, but I feel an urge to prepare myself. I spend a lot of time reading the bible. I'm kind of a geek. I got into Nascar in the mid-90's and to give you an example of what a geek I am, Ceal caught me reading a book on thermodynamics cause I was reading about engines, and she said "You know, a typical Nascar fan does not read books on thermodynamics." I've never heard any announcers on a Nascar race.. So.. being a geek, I started learning Greek, and part of my thought behind that was "I want to see what the bible really says", and you know over time, I've come to see that it mostly says what it says in English. Part of the thing with, you know, if you really want to understand it in Greek, you have to understand the culture, the thought, you have to put your whole mind back to two thousand years ago, because we've had a lot go on. In things I've read, the Enlightenment really affects our thought process. The idea that religion and politics are separate, that's not something that was in Jesus' time. So, I actually trust English translations more, and I'm more willing to wrestle with "they say what they say."

Also, early on I would just read the synoptic gospels, that's what I was comfortable with, occasionally ventured into John, and other than the love chapter, wouldn't touch Paul. What I've found over time is that if I am willing to let go of fear, or my desire to have it say what I want it to say, and just accept it for what it is, I learn a lot more. And, I can now.. I love reading Paul, especially because I feel a lot.. there's a lot of reading Paul..I can.. you know, from a Quaker standpoint I can see where he is. My favorite verse in the bible is Galatians 5:22-23, "The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, patience, peace, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control." If I.. those to me are a touchstone, that if we are not feeling those things, we're not in touch with the Spirit.

The last thing I wanted to talk about was my understanding of Quakerism, and I want to do it in terms of the phrase "that of God in every person", and the reason is because from my standpoint, there are some contrasts with how we often use that phrase. And I think it will illustrate where I am. First of all, just saying "we believe there is that of God in every person", that's definitely original Quaker theology, you know, that was.. George Fox was all about that. But, to just say that doesn't, to me, go far enough. Because we're an experiential faith, and saying "we believe X" doesn't really speak to the experience itself. And, along the same lines, we say "we try to see that of God" in other people, and to me that is a noble idea, and a lot of times it's a good fallback. If I can't do anything else I'll try to do that, but I think what we miss when we say that as describing what Quakerism is, is that it doesn't talk about "that of God" in our own hearts. Because that is ultimately what transforms us. And it transforms us in a way that we love all of creation like God does. And it's really not just other people, that's all of creation. And I don't think everybody gets that with the looking. And then, also, "that of God" in every person means that everybody has the potential for that same transformation. And that, when Fox talked about answering that of God in other people, it was the idea that by what we say and what we do, we can awaken people to that of God in themselves, so that they also can be transformed. And looking back on my life, that's the one thing I know I can speak to, is that I have been, and I am still being transformed.

This ends the presentation I gave to Atlanta Friends Meeting, but there's a follow-up.

My Spiritual Journey, Part 2

2010-06-21T15:58:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of my spiritual journey as told to the Atlanta Friends Meeting in November of 2008. Part 1 was here.

So, now the fun starts. In February of 2001, I got a call from my grandfather. We had been there for Christmas, I spent every Christmas with my grandparents except one, in 1975 when we went to visit my uncle, and I had gotten a Christmas present, it was like a CD of Scrabble stuff, I was a competitive Scrabble player at the time. And it had gotten lost and it didn't make it back with us, and he had found it and he said "I can mail it to you, unless you want to come down here and get it." And I said something to Ceal about that, and we both had this feeling like we needed to go. Ceal said my grandfather wasn't usually the one to ask, it was usually my grandmother "when are you coming? when are you coming?" In fact, she still does that, and I tried to head it off recently. I was on the phone, and I had just gotten back from visiting her the day before, so I said "Grandma, it was great seeing you yesterday" and so she goes "when am I gonna see you again?". You know, she's right on top of it. But, Ceal and I, we had this strong feeling that we needed to go, and at the time I was a contractor. My entire career, I really don't have a lot to say about it, I've been a computer programmer, that's all.. from the age of 16, that's all the jobs I've ever had. But, I was a contractor, I had a little more leeway to take off, so we went down to Florida, and we spent several wonderful days there, and my grandfather told us stories I had never heard before, about his father getting stuck on Rockaway beach in New York, and everybody recognized him and it was like "Hey! It's Billy Brown! Let's go help him!" and they all.. people just gathered together and helped get his car out of a ditch. And he dug out his grandfather's birth certificate from Scotland, just stuff I hadn't seen before. So, we got back on a Sunday, and he died on Monday. And, I would have had difficulty acknowledging it, but I felt that God was behind us visiting.

And so, while we were still recovering from that, Ceal's dad died April 1st. So, we were in.. we were having a tough time in 2001. So, when September rolled around, we had already been struggling quite a bit, and when 9/11 happened, I felt that, you know, a military response was what we needed. I was still, I actually didn't vote for George W. Bush, but I voted Libertarian that year. And we had a group of friends that we'd know since Ceal and I knew each other, and we used to be on a bulletin board system, if you remember those - you dialed into a PC and you chat.. you don't chat live, you know, somebody leaves a message, so we'd get on, we'd read everybody's messages and we'd write one, you know, "to so-and so.. to so-and-so.." and it was a neat group. Well, by that time it had migrated onto the Internet into a mailing list, and we had a lot of discussion about 9/11 and the United States response, and a friend of mine posted this letter from the Dalai Lama, about being peaceful and all, and I had a very strong negative reaction to it, almost ridiculing it. And I remember thinking "what's.. how has this helped him? China's still in his country, he can't even live in his own country". But, the funny thing about it is that the letter stuck with me, and within a couple of weeks, I started kinda thinking maybe that's not that far off.

And so I started reading about Buddhism, and one of the early books I read was a book called "The Heart of Buddhism" by Thich Nhat Hanh, and I remember at one point reading it, saying "you know, this is how I always thought Christians were supposed to behave". And from Buddhism I also ended up reading a lot about Hinduism, and you know I liked a lot of the ideas in there, and I remember reading this thing about all these mystical experiences of yogis, like glowing, and just kind of fantastic stuff, and this voice in my heart said "if you can believe all this, how come you can't believe in God?" And so, there was sort of a release, you know. I wasn't as resistant to that idea. And around this time I also started reading, I read a lot, okay.. if I just listed all the books I read that would chew up the whole hour, but I read "The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living" by Eknath Easwaran, it's a big.. it's a three volume set, it's not just reading the Bhagavad Gita, it's a little piece of it and then a lot of how you apply it to your life. But, a lot of that was meditation. He has this program of "these are the things you should do" and meditation is one of them. And, part of his meditation to start with is actually memorizing a passage and slowly reciting it. So I memorized a couple of passages from the Bhagavad Gita, and I also.. I would meditate to the love chapter in 1 Corinthians, and the prayer of St. Francis. You know, I didn't notice.. Ceal was actually the one that pointed it out, that I had changed after a while. After several months of doing this, I didn't.. I was calmer.. when I was programming, I didn't bang the desk as often if something didn't work, even though I was using Windows.

Although I had an appreciation for Hinduism and Buddhism, I didn't really feel that they were for me. I never went to visit a Buddhist meditation center, a Hindu temple, and I also found my way to a book called "Meeting Jesus Again For the First Time" -- Marcus Borg. I like Marcus Borg. And, you heard me mention that I started in a pentecostal church, when Marcus Borg talks about the varieties of worship styles, he often uses pentecostals as one end, and Quakers as the other end, so I kind of feel like I've covered the whole spectrum. And so that started me actually trying to re-embrace Christianity from a point which I was comfortable with it, which of course changes over time.

So, in fall of 2002, I took this test online called the Belief-o-matic, and it asks you all these questions about what you believe, and for some of those it asks you to rank how important is this, cause for some people the bodily resurrection of Jesus - you have to believe that, and for other people.. there's just different varieties. And so, when I took the test it popped up "Liberal Quaker", number one. And I'm thinking "Quaker?!" I didn't know anything about Quakers.. nothing. So I started reading about it, and I said "Wow! This sounds exactly like me!" So, I screwed up my courage, and in November of 2002 - six years ago, I came to meeting. I don't remember the exact date, but I can tell you it was a date that you had an FGC book sale, so I did not get out of here empty-handed. The other thing, you know, I had read enough about Quakers to know that plain dress was part of the Quaker history, but I didn't know how much of the Quaker history it was now, so I decided to play it safe and I wore black pants and a white button down shirt, which to me is modern plain. I actually joked with Ceal about maybe I should wear that today, but to me that's dressing up, and this is what I'm comfortable in.

And, I am fairly introverted. I don't seek out conversation all that well, so I would come to meeting and then I would leave. And, finally I got Ceal to come to meeting. We were.. at the time we were gymnastics judges, and Ceal especially during that winter she was working a lot more than me, so she really wanted her Sundays to rest when she had them off, so it took a couple of months for her to come. And I finally got her to come to meeting, and to be honest I was lucky to get her to come back. It was right before the Iraq war, and it was like a political rally. It was a popcorn meeting, and the funny thing was, I sent a message on the Quaker-L mailing list saying "Hey, I just took my wife to this meeting and it was a popcorn meeting.." I described the whole thing and I said "Is this normal?" And someone else wrote back and said "You know, the same kind of thing just happened at my meeting. It's not always that way, but people are.. this is a tough time." That was Julia.. Julia Ewen [of Atlanta Friend Meeting].

So, I got Ceal to come back, and the funny thing was, you know, I had been coming a few more months than her. She went to the Gathered Meeting Retreat. I had to miss it because I was judging a state gymnastics meet, which was kind of a big thing, although it doesn't mean anything to me now. But, anyway, she got to meet all these people, and the next thing you know she's introducing me to all these other people in the meeting, which I wouldn't have done on my own. So this was 2003. We went to SAYMA that year. My first SAYMA. And, we got there at the time registration was supposed to start - imagine that - people are supposed to be on time? The registrar wasn't even there, it wasn't set up. There was.. there were two people there, however. Lloyd Lee Wilson and his traveling companion. Lloyd Lee is from North Carolina Yearly Meeting - Conservative and he was the keynote speaker that year. And Lloyd Lee and his traveling compassion were both plain Friends, you know, the straw hat, the suspenders and everything. So these are the first two people I saw at SAYMA, and I thought "Wow! This is going to be way different than I expected!"

So, in 2004, we went to our first FGC Gathering, and that was in Amherst, Massachusetts. And we took Richard Lee's workshop on "Meeting for Healing and Laughter". It was not our first choice. And you know, I really wasn't all that excited about it. The laughter part, yes, I like to laugh. So, the first couple days are a lot of lecture, talked about Quaker history, especially the healing.. there are a lot of incidents of healing, especially with George Fox in the early Quaker writings, that we probably don't talk about much. There's actually a book called "George Fox's Book of Miracles" that was never reprinted, and all we have now is.. Henry Cadbury found an index of what all the incidents in there were, and for the ones he could find in other places he put them together, so if it was something that was mentioned in the journal he could say "this is what this would have talked about", so it's not a book you can really read very easily, but it is quite interesting. And, I was sort of "ehh.. okay", I was somewhat skeptical. So that Wednesday we had our first meeting for healing, and if you haven't ever been to one, you know how we hold people in Light at the end of meeting, it's like an intense version of that. We would have somebody sit in the middle, and we would all hold that person in the Light for a pretty good period of time, five or ten minutes. And, Ceal was the last person that day. She was in the middle, and I just.. I felt myself going very deep, and my hands started to tingle. I didn't know what to do, I just sat there. And, I also kinda remember that it felt like there was a ring of .. I felt I could almost touch it with my hands. And at the end of the meeting, somebody had this little chime, and they rang it, and instead of snapping out, it felt like I was going over the top of a rollercoaster and plunging down, and I just went deeper. So everybody, they had gotten up and they were all shaking hands and talking, and I was just sitting there, because I was actually kinda freaked out by it. I had come in very skeptical and I was confronted with stuff I really didn't understand. And I went to every meeting for healing they had at FGC after that, because they would have them in the afternoon, and I experienced the same kind of thing, although later on in reading, it's important if you have physical sensations not to rely on them, because you don't always have them. But the one thing I have to say is that was the biggest turning point in my life, because I felt like at that point I could feel God. Not necessarily the tingling hands, I just could feel God. And since then, there are lots of times when I don't feel that, but now instead of saying "Well, maybe God's not really there", it's "I'm not listening hard enough, or maybe I'm doing things that are getting in between that". So I felt like it gave me a gift of faith.

Part 3 continues here.

My Spiritual Journey, Part 1

2010-06-20T17:59:00.000-07:00

Martin Fowler mentioned the BeliefNet Belief-O-Matic today on Facebook and he was surprised to learn that I found Quakers via the Belief-O-Matic. This made me think back again about my spiritual journey. The Atlanta Friends Meeting has been inviting members to share their spiritual journeys on the first first-day of the month during the Adult Ed class before meeting for worship. I shared mine in November of 2008. I recorded it at the time, and decided to make it available. At the time, I didn't know how to switch off the voice activation feature, when means it cuts off the beginning of some syllables, which makes some of them sound a little odd.

I have also transcribed it, and will post it in multiple parts since it is a little long. I hope it might inspire others to do the same. We have found it to be an enriching experience at Atlanta Friends Meeting.

Mark Wutka's Spiritual Journey

So, I'm Mark Wutka, and I'll just start from the beginning. I was born in 1965, May 11th, in Lake Forest, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and within a year of that my parents divorced, and since then I have not seen my father. We moved to live with my grandparents around the time I was a year old, and my uncle (my mom's younger brother) was still at home. This was in Jackson Heights, New York. And although in what I have to say I don't mention my family a lot, my family provided the foundation that underlies my spiritual journey. You know, you might think that not seeing my father that I might be lacking for something, but living with my grandparents for several years, and with my uncle there, I have probably more of a family than a lot of people have, and my mom.. I have a better parent in my mom than a lot of people have with two. Though a lot of what I have is because of them, and it's not necessarily any one thing I can point my finger to, it's just the way they always have been.

So, when we lived in New York, I left there when I was six, we attended Free Gospel Assembly of God church, which is pentecostal, so there were people speaking in tongues. I remember one particular, I'm sure this couldn't have been the first time, but there's this one where I can just see her and hear her in my head. I have no idea what she said, but I just remember it exactly. Of course, I learned a lot about the bible. I could recite about 2/3 of the books of the… list them.. of the Old Testament, by the time I was five. One of the sunday school teachers had made this set of books of the bible out of these little cereal boxes, and so I learned them. It's also kind of funny that the pastor of the church was this older guy, haircut like mine [I had a flat top when I recorded this], gray hair. I remember that that was always what I thought God looked like. And also, I didn't find this out until after I had become a Quaker, my mom remembered that around that time a lot of her friends were concerned because I played with their children and I would never hit back when they hit me. They kept telling my mom "he's got to learn to hit back!"

We moved to Raleigh in 1971 and we attended a Methodist church there, St. Mark's United Methodist, and the only thing I can really remember from there is learning a lot of bible stories. And the funny thing is when you're a kid you form mental images, and it's kind of fun to go back and especially read maybe 1 & 2 Samuel, some of those Old Testament bible stories, and suddenly those images will still come to me. Like the letting the guys down on the rope and that sort of thing.

And around 1973 my grandparents moved to Pinellas Park, Florida, and I would go spend the summers there for several years, and they still stayed in a pentecostal church. They were at Glad Tidings Assembly of God, and we went to church.. now, when it was open, we were there, so sunday morning, sunday evening, wednesday evening, and it was kind of interesting. I can't remember a lot of people speaking in tongues, but I can tell you one of the things we did in sunday school, I think Mary Ann [Downey, a Friend from Atlanta Friends meeting] has mentioned this before, is they used to do a thing called "sword drills". A lot of churches.. there's a thing in Ephesians that talks about the armor of God and it talks about the "sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God", and as Quakers, for us the "Word of God" is Christ, or speaking what the Spirit is leading us to say, and not the book, but for the pentecostal church, the sword was the book. So the sword drills would be that they would call out a bible verse and you had to go find it as fast as you could. It was always a competition between me and the preacher's kid. And they also.. they had something called being "slain in the Spirit", which is sort of, you put your hand on somebody and they just fall backwards. And I was never really comfortable with that, it happened to somebody right in front of me, and she was just laid out on the ground in front of me, and I just kept looking at her. It felt kinda weird. But, the people there were kind and sweet people that lived their faith, and even though there may have been things I might have been uncomfortable with, the people were good people and I can't really say I have bad memories of that.

Now, the other thing is, they were very big into the rapture. During the 70's that was a big thing, "The Late Great Planet Earth" came out, so it was always "oh, the Earth's gonna.. Jesus is coming back tomorrow, you better be ready." I saw movies about this, and it was just drilled into me. And a funny thing is that even into my teens.. one of the passages that the idea of the rapture came from talks about the blast of trumpets.. I would hear a train horn and wonder "Hey! Is it the rapture?"

Also, right around the time we moved to Atlanta in '74 we visited an Episcopal church, and the funny thing about that is, growing up in a protestant church, when you have communion, you get this little, little bitty cup of grape juice. We went to the Episcopal church, they were doing communion and they were passing this huge cup around, and I thought "Oh boy!" I took a huge gulp, and it was wine. And I think that may have contributed to the fact that I have really never liked alcohol.

So, when we moved to Atlanta, we attended Wieuca Road Baptist Church, a very large church, it's kind of a rich section of town, it's across the street from Phipps Plaza [fancy mall, has Saks 5th Avenue, Lord & Taylor, etc.]. I was baptized and joined the church in '75. Basically that was the earliest you could join. At the age of 10 you were qualified to make this life decision and be baptized. Looking back, I obviously.. I was not. And, in '77 I joined the youth choir, and it was a good community of teens. However, it was nothing like the open and loving place that the SAYF [Southern Appalachian Young Friends] program is. I certainly wish I had had something like that. And, the thing that sticks with me most about the choir was actually a lot of the songs we sang. There was one called "Peace Like a River" that's not the "Peace Like a River" you're familiar with. But, I just remember singing that one Sunday night and feeling this overwhelming sensation of peace, that was very rare. And, of course, it wasn't something we often talked about in the church. And some of the other favorites of mine, "Come to Me All Who Labor", and it's that whole verse, "I can do all things through Christ" another favorite verse, and incidentally if anybody watched the Georgia-Florida game yesterday, the Florida quarterback [Tim Tebow], on those little black things he had under his eyes had Philippians 4:13, which was that verse. And another one I liked, "And this is love, that a man lay down his life for his friend".

Another thing about me, I was always a big "Star Trek" fan, and the reason I bring this up, is 'cause as I was talking to Ceal [my wife] last night about.. trying to help me fill in any holes here, I remember that this one episode called "The Empath", that was about this woman, who, if somebody was hurt, she could touch them, and whatever was wrong with them would transfer from them to her, and then she would heal. So you'd see this person with like this scar, and she'd touch them and the scar would disappear from them, and then it would appear on her, and then you'd see it fade away. And I always wanted to be able to do that.

So, late into my teens, I started to doubt my faith. This was, this would have been early 80's, Reagan was in office, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson were on TV, and I'm not sure.. it's kinda hard to read back into.. look at the events around and read that into what I was going through, but I'm reasonably sure that a lot of my problem was that the image of Christianity that was portrayed in the media was not something that I could accept. I had a lot of difficulty that I had to believe everything in the bible as it was there, and the funny thing is, I didn't talk to my mom about this, and I could talk to my mom about almost anything, and she probably could have helped me out, although in some sense I think I had to go through this. One of the things last weekend, some folks I was talking with, they talked about going away and coming back to have an adult relationship with God, with Jesus, that it is a different relationship than what you grown up with as a child. And I had tried talking to my youth minister, and he was really no help. He just said some generic things like "well, this happens sometimes", or "you just gotta believe", and it just didn't help me. George Fox would probably have phrases for that, "empty husk" or whatever.

So by the time I was 20, I stopped going to church. I picked up Bertrand Russel's book "Why I am not a Christian" and read it, and I found that it did not really speak to my condition. It really didn't speak to why I wasn't a Christian, why I didn't consider myself that. And I spent the next 15 years with basically no spiritual life. I was always interest in Taoism, I read Lao Tzu and Chang Tzu, and even on our honeymoon in Hawaii we visited this old Taoist temple on Maui, but I never really embraced it as a faith tradition. I liked the images, the ideas, but it just wasn't for me. And I was also somewhat influenced in the mid-90's by the revival of conservative politics. I listened to Rush Limbaugh and that sort of thing. I actually continued.. I have mostly had a losing streak in presidential elections. I voted for one winner, and that was Clinton in '92. But, part of that was, I eventually got to the point where I didn't like who I was. I didn't understand why, I just.. I felt like my attitude towards people was harsh, at least.. I wasn't always that way outwardly, but my internal attitude, and I guess a lot of the times at work it would be that way. I didn't like who I was, but I didn't know what to do about it.

Also during this period, in '92, Ceal and I were married. And, it was funny, we were talking about this, I considered myself agnostic, and I guess Ceal did too, but we both felt it was important to be married by a minister. This came to Ceal when we watched our wedding video over the weekend of our anniversary, and I'm not sure what to make of that, other than, you know, there was still something there that I just wouldn't admit to.

Part 2 continues here.

Some Thought on Joseph John Dymond's Thoughts on Gospel Ministry

2010-06-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

I wasn't sure whether to comment on the individual letters I posted, or save them up for a single post. Since there hasn't really been any discussion on the individual letters, I decided to condense my comments into a single post. When I first started transcribing these letters I was also in the process of reading Ashley Wilcox's paper A Valiant Sixteen, in which she interviewed young Friends traveling in the ministry. I noticed some common themes, such as the need for financial support, and the desire for meetings where experienced ministers and those young in the ministry (whether young or old in age) can meet together. I hope Ashley's work will help us identify ways in which we can better support those in the ministry.

I am writing this from the annual gathering of SAYMA (Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting & Association), and in our evening sessions, we have talked much about discernment, but more so about community and our interaction with each other. There is often a reticence among liberal Friends to be more involved in each other's lives. I can understand the fear of living under a microscope, but when that fear is taken to an extreme, instead of living under a microscope, it feels like living in a cave. A Friend spoke of how no one in her meeting ever approached her about joining the meeting. Another spoke of some of his religious struggles and how no one in the meeting really knew about them because no one asked. These things all came to mind as I was looking over JJD's letter on elders. How can we encourage any form of elder, whether it is a recorded position or not, if we are afraid to talk deeply to one another? In your monthly meeting, if someone is spoken to about their ministry, how often is it a complaint? Is it rare to have one's gifts named, or to be encouraged to develop them?

In my time with Friends from North Carolina Yearly Meeting Conservative, I have experienced eldering in a variety of ways, some so subtle that I didn't even notice until someone else pointed them out to me. They have encouraged me, invited me to participate in various ways, even sent me books. This year I was invited to lead the bible study. There are some in my monthly meeting that have also done things like this. What I think is important in JJD's writing on elders is not the issue of a lifetime appointment vs. a three-year one, but the importance that real Spirit-led eldering has in the naming and nurturing of spiritual gifts. I can't speak for everyone, but I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who lacks self-confidence and occasionally needs someone to affirm that I am doing the right thing.

There are times when I find JJD talking about things that have occurred to me, but which I wrestle with. The idea of a Quaker bible commentary is one of these. Since we have traditionally interpreted certain verses a little differently than mainstream Christianity, it would be nice to have a commentary that pointed these differences out. On the other hand, I worry that by codifying it in such a way, it would become the letter that kills the spirit, perhaps allowing us to just go look up the "right interpretation" without the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

There was one particular section of letter 10 that I found particular jarring:

But where are our eminent preachers? To say nothing of the Spurgeons and the Moodys, where are the ministers amongst us so well-known and esteemed that their names placarded on the walls would draw together a public audience of a thousand persons?

When I read this, I immediately thought of Joseph Hoag's journal in which he sensed that the people in the meeting had come to hear him, rather than coming to hear what God might have to say, and he was given nothing to say. JJD also talks about people thinking that a minister can just preach or pray at will, rather than having to wait for Divine inspiration. I'm not sure this fits well with the idea of having a preacher's name posted outside that would draw a thousand people.

2010-06-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

Here are all 14 of Joseph John Dymond's Letters on Gospel Ministry, plus the letter from the editor of "The Friend" in response to them.

Letter 1
Letter 2
Letter 3
Letter 4
Letter 5
Letter 6
Letter 7
Letter 8
Letter 9
Letter 10
Letter 11
Letter 12
Letter 13
Letter from the Editor of The Friend

There is a PDF version of all of these letters here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 14

2010-06-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

This letter from the editor is the final part of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 13 was here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry

Joseph John Dymond has done good service in giving a series of letters on the ministry of the Gospel as exercised in the Society of Friends, and now that the thirteenth and last letter is published, we may be allowed to express the assurance that they will have stimulated thought in many minds on important matters that undoubtedly claim attention. It would be too much to expect that all that has been said will be everywhere approved. To some, perhaps, one of the most instructive and interesting portions has been the simple and touching narrative of his own call to the ministry. Very many will welcome such a faithful and heartfelt expression of a minister’s own experience; and while it would be very unwise to expect our own experience or that of other men to run on exactly similar lines, it is often by the interchange of experience that we arrive at a clear perception of the ways of the Spirit of the Lord. It would doubtless be helpful to hundreds of Gospel ministers of other denominations thus to compare notes respecting the guidance of the Holy Spirit, as well as a great encouragement to many in younger life who are realising Divine calls.

Some conviction of our own failure must have come home to many of us as we read that one of the chief requisites for fruitful Gospel ministry is clearness of thought. In listening to ministry we may often have been painfully conscious that the speaker himself did not thoroughly grasp the truth he was seeking to impart to others, and that the result was a want of clear expression. Sometimes the latter part of a sermon seems to undo the good which the opening remarks effected. It is well that the conviction should come right home to ourselves that we may have left our hearers in a fog. If we have a message it certainly implies that we have something definite to say. J. J. Dymond has said but little as to what a man is to preach. This reticence may have been very wise, yet he has plainly told us that “The simple preaching of the Cross of Christ, even from homely lips, continues to bring food to the hungry soul, healing to the wounded, liberty to the captive, joy to the mourner, and rest to the weary and heavy laden.”

But though the theological view of the subject has to a large extent remained undiscussed, we have had very suggestive thoughts on the practical side of preaching. Two or three of these it may be well more fully to consider, such as, that government is essential to liberty, that an impossible mutuality collapses, and that worship is a real act, and not merely passive. A considerable portion of the argument in the first three letters brings us to the summing up that “wholesome government is essential to real liberty.” A very limited amount of consideration will convince us that this conclusion is impregnable. The causes that make it necessary to reassert this primary truth are, however, serious, and we know very well by the experience of many meetings in our own Society, especially those occurring at the times of our Quarterly and Yearly Meetings, that the superabundant exercise of liberty to preach often leaves little space for the exercise of other important elements in healthy congregational worship. It is thus quite possible for the liberty of a whole congregation to be sacrificed at the shrine of supposed individual duty. J. J. Dymond shows that in the honest endeavour to avoid one error we may have been falling headlong into an opposite extreme. “Under the plea of avoiding the creation of a clerical caste, the democratic proclivities of the present age are thus manifesting themselves in our Church affairs.” We trust that this urgent plea for the maintenance of wholesome government will be heard. The Society of Friends, that has been the pioneer in many other great movements, is face to face with problems of Church government that have scarcely begun to stir the leaves in the topmost branches of some other Churches. The liberty for every member to take part in the ministry of the Gospel in meetings for worship is an advance step towards “the Church of the future,” but it involves the necessity for a corresponding and effectual defence of the liberty of a congregation from unhallowed or mistaken zeal.

This leads to a second thought brought forward in these letters – that an impossible mutuality collapses, although it is quite right to aim at mutuality. The graphic picture given of what is described as an “experiment” is so well told that it covers more ground that a didactic argument, and reaches to a problem that must be faced if our Church is to make much progress. The experiment referred to appears to have consisted of a meeting for Biblical instruction, and not a regular meeting for worship. One of the noblest thoughts of our day is this same doctrine of mutuality and co-operation rightly understood. But one of the foundation principles of the co-operative system is not that all members have the same office, but that each member has his own special function to fulfil for the welfare and edification of the whole body. We must again learn to maintain the balance of truth. One extreme begets another, and in the honest and right endeavour to escape from the “One Man System,” we may, by carrying one line of truth too far, land ourselves in an “impossible mutuality.” As J. J. Dymond concludes, “We wrong our labourers and we rob ourselves as a Church, if we lay them under unscriptural restrictions which mar their influence, crush out their zeal, and close their lines of service.”

A third point emphasised is that worship is not merely passive. This difficulty is no peculiarity of Quakerism, although among us it may assume a peculiarly mystic quietism. There is a tendency to lassitude and slothfulness of spirit in mankind everywhere, and if we can get a theological plea for doing nothing, we are apt to clothe our indolence with a self-pleasing excuse. It is quite true that God can work without me – it is true that I am to wait till I am moved of the Spirit, – it is true that others can do the work better than I can, but these truths are not to make my religious life effeminate or to make my worship merely passive. I receive that I may give. I learn that I may teach. I am blessed that I may praise and glorify God. I am saved to serve, or as J. J. Dymond puts it, “We serve God in serving men in His name.”

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 13

2010-06-11T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 12 was here.

Letter XIII.

“Set not self to work” (Book of Discipline, chap. iv. sec. 8, 1742.)

“We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor. iv. 5).

Before bringing this series of letters to a conclusion, there are a few points still untouched to which I feel it will be right for me to direct attention, if my brethren are still further willing to “suffer the word of exhortation.”

The importance of right guidance before commencing a public ministerial address has already been dwelt upon. It is of scarcely less importance to be watchful for Divine direction as to the point at which it should be brought to a conclusion. Many an excellent sermon has been spoiled by additions to it after the real message it contained had been delivered. The zeal of the preacher, and that state of spiritual and mental stimulation which is inseparable from a sustained extemporaneous discourse, carry him onward. He is anxious to emphasise some particular point. It may be that he fears lest the burden of his “concern” may not have been clearly apprehended. And so he begins to recapitulate. The course is a perilous one; and is very likely to obscure rather than to elucidate; to lead into discursive additions without the “life” which marked the original utterance. The late Richard Cobden, after one of his great speeches in the House of Commons, said, “I never perorate. When I have finished what I have to say, I sit down.” The example is an excellent one for us Friend preachers. If the Holy Spirit be directing us, our words, once spoken, are sufficient for His purpose, and we may leave the application to Him.

Apologies for speaking are mostly out of place. The Gospel of Jesus Christ needs no apology, for it is “the power of God unto salvation.” And no one need apologise for speaking it if the Lord Himself condescends to call for the service. If He does not do so, it is better to be silent. The worst apology one can make is to say that one speaks for the relief of one’s own mind. No one has a right to “relieve his mind” in a meeting for worship at the expense of the rest of the congregation. If a man believes it to be his duty to speak, let him be faithful. And if he is under the impression that his action needs explanation, he will probably do no harm by saying that he speaks from a sense of duty; but on the whole it is better simply to deliver one’s message, and let it carry its own evidence of origin.

Too often we hear from those who speak in our meetings protestations of their own unfitness, lamentations concerning their own weakness or shortcomings. This is one way of “setting self to work.” The preacher’s duty is to direct his hearers to the Mighty One, from whom alone spiritual strength is derived, and not to his own infirmities. If poverty of spirit is the preacher’s own portion, as it often is even when he is seeking to make others rich, he will honour his Master best by wearing the sackcloth underneath, out of sight. It will help us to bear our weakness and poverty with serenity if we learn to regard their presence as an established fact, an axiom of our inner being, to be taken for granted without special allusion. “Yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me,” is the soul’s true attitude in this matter.

Personal confessions or allusions have a right place in religious discourses, but should be used with discretion. Here again the terse, pungent, practical, counsel which stands at the head of this letter has its application. “Set not self to work.” A personal experience of the Lord’s goodness, and of the converting power of His grace is a most important part of the qualification for witness-bearing. “We are witnesses of these things.” “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you.” These are examples of apostolic authority for the ministers of Christ; and I doubt not that there are experiences appointed, or at least permitted, to the servants of Christ, for the very purpose of instructing and qualifying them in their service of administering counsel and comfort to others. The watchful mind, ever waiting upon God for direction, will know how to use these in their proper places, without unduly bringing merely personal affairs into notice. One has sometimes heard in meetings for worship public professions of conversion, uttered under very humble and solemn feeling, as testimonies to the mercy and lovingkindness of our God and Saviour. These are doubtless acts of obedience and consecration, and are helpful both to those who make them and to those who hear. But there is danger in too often repeating such confessions. They are apt to lose their freshness and virtue by frequent repetition in meeting after meeting.

One thing to be greatly desired in our meetings is that those who address us should speak so as to be generally audible. The primary object of speaking is that we may be heard; and it is a grave question whether it can be right for a person to attempt to address a congregation in which it is physically impossible for the speaker to be heard. I have known of at least one Friend who, when called to the ministry, very laudably took lessons in elocution, and thereby greatly added to his usefulness. This would not be the place to discuss questions of oratory; but I may venture to remark that it is not necessary to raise the voice to an unnatural pitch in order to be well heard; distinct pronunciation of every syllable is the chief point. The speaker should address himself to the most distant person in the room, and speak to him in as natural a tone as possible. Raising the voice to a loud pitch at the beginning of a sentence, and dropping it so as to be almost inaudible at the end, is a very common, but a very unwise, and to the listeners very disappointing, practice. We have most of us known dear friends who could be audible enough and lively enough in common life; but who, when speaking in public on the highest of all themes, would drop into what was little better than an inarticulate murmur. Surely we ought to devote to the service of God the very best of the facilities with which He has endowed us!

In very many of our meetings there are Friends who occasionally speak to us quite briefly, and whose communications in testimony or in prayer are very generally acceptable and helpful, though perhaps they may not be classed as Gospel Ministry in its more technical sense. We shall all desire that faithfulness in these smaller gifts may lead on to larger trusts. Those amongst us who have become largely gifted have had their small beginnings; but whether the talents committed to us be few or many, watchfulness and self-consecration in the employment of them are equally the duty of all. It may seem to some perhaps that in this and foregoing letters the writer has had in view somewhat exclusively the larger callings, but his hope is that in what has been said some useful hints may be found applicable to all. It is in the desire for the full development of the power and influence of the Society of Friends in evangelical work that they have been written, and that they are now committed to the disposal of Him from whom all truth proceeds.

Throughout the letters the writer has spoken of ministers in the masculine gender, for the sake of perspicuity, and for the avoidance of the awkward double use of pronouns; but he has never failed in his own thoughts to include ministers of the other sex. Some of the most highly valued and warmly cherished religious lessons of his life are associated with the ministrations of sisters in Christ. He does not forget that the first human herald of the risen Saviour was a woman; and he will not cease to believe that one of the honours conferred upon the Society of Friends has been the place they have held, centuries in advance of most other religious bodies, in asserting and maintaining woman’s position as man’s equal helpmeet in Christian standing and labour. It has often been a subject of much regret with him to note that whilst this truth is coming into fuller recognition outside the Society, and whilst the number of men giving themselves up for Gospel labour within our own body has increased, the list of our women ministers has been a diminishing one. The sterner work of the reprover for sin, and the “speaking with the enemy in the gate,” in the arena of doctrinal controversy, may more properly belong to man, but there are instruments in the hands of woman which none but she can wield.

Finally, dear brethren, let us all continually remember that Christian ministry is the service of Christ; that Christian testimony is witnessing for Christ, and of Christ; that our constant aim must be to bring men to Christ, and to seek to build up the believer upon Christ, Wherever upon the broad circumference of religious truth a discourse may begin; through whatever labyrinth of human error, sin or sorrow, it may have to pass, there should ever run through it a golden thread leading into the centre, which is Christ. “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

The witness anointed by the Holy Ghost will proclaim, not men, not theological opinions, not ritual, not sacraments, not churches, but Jesus Christ and Him crucified; “for it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell.” This is the ministry for which the world is waiting. This is the ministry which the Lord is waiting to bless.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, August, 1892.

Part 14 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 12

2010-06-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 11 was here.

Letter XII.

“Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it” (Col. iv. 17).

“Take thy part in suffering hardship, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Tim. ii. 3).

Next to the needful spiritual qualification, one of the chief requisites for fruitful Gospel ministry is clearness of thought. The man who does not himself clearly understand his subject is not very likely to convey a definite impression concerning it to others. With some, distinctness of perception is a natural endowment; with others this faculty is deficient; but it is capable of being cultivated by all. Searching the Scriptures, in dependence on the help of the Holy Spirit, with such secondary aids as may be available is the principal means of promoting it in connection with the preacher’s work. If any thought is presented in the course of a religious address , which we do not clearly understand ourselves, let it be sought out in the Bible, and carefully studied there afterwards; or, still better, if before we go to meeting a Scripture passage arises in the mind, the place and application of which we do not fully recollect, let it be examined beforehand. It does not follow that it will be used on that particular occasion; but the study itself will be helpful to us; and, if not now, probably at some other time, the knowledge we have gathered may be turned to account. Incorrect quotations and applications of Scripture ought to be strenuously guarded against.

That leads me to speak of the subject of the preparation of sermons beforehand. I am not prepared to say that this could under no circumstances be right, though I am heartily in sympathy with those who feel that it would be wrong for them to resort to the practice. A suggestive text, or a particular theme may often present itself to the mind before a meeting begins, and may be examined in the light of Holy Scripture as already suggested; but I have always felt it right, when that has been the case with me, to enter upon the usual silent waiting upon God when the meeting begins, with a thoroughly open mind; and have often found that the prior impression has disappeared, and another subject has taken its place. There is more freshness and life in that which is thoroughly spontaneous than in what has occupied our thoughts for a long time in advance. How often I have wished, when listening to sermons in other places of worship than our own, that the preacher would throw away his notes, and commit himself to the fresh and vivid impulses of the Divine Spirit!

Surely the true preparation of the evangelist is like that of the keen and polished tool, lying on the workbench close to the Master’s hand, ready for Him to take up and use according to His wisdom. The difference between the prepared and unprepared is just that between the sharp well-kept tool, always in its place, and broken-edged rusty one, away in some corner, which has first of all to be sought for, to the loss of valuable time, and with which when found even the Master’s hand can do but indifferent work because of its imperfection.

It is not unusual I believe for ministers to feel very anxious before going to a meeting, in which they are likely to be responsible for vocal service; and especially is this apt to be the case if the meeting be one appointed at the minister’s request. This anxiety is not unnatural; and it is often aggravated by an oppressive sense of poverty of soul, and of our own unfitness. It may have a useful place in our preparation for service, if its chief effect is to drive us to a still closer dependence upon God. But how often we find, in the result, that our anxious thoughts have been needless. The blessed Master has not failed to remember the hour for which the meeting was summoned, and the very moment when it was proper for us to take part in it; and He has been with us in time! When we praise Him afterwards, we feel ashamed for all our anxious futile forethoughts.

Should we not learn from such experiences the habit of lying close to Him, and trusting Him for the fulfilment of all the good pleasures of His will? The joy of the Lord is His people’s strength; but joy and anxiety are not companionable. If therefore we would be strong, we must ourselves practise that which we so often recommend to others, namely,–“In nothing to be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, to let our requests be made known unto God” (Phil. iv. 6).

Just as there are unnecessary anxieties before a meeting, so there are apt to be needless questionings and discouragements afterwards. Satan is ever on the watch; and if he cannot succeed in leading us into self-congratulation – getting us to “deck ourselves with the Lord’s jewels” – he will try the other expedient of casting us down. Our performance has not satisfied ourselves. We have omitted something that would have rendered our argument clearer or more effective. Some Scripture quotation has been misplaced. Our sentences have been badly put together. Our manner has been faulty. We have made ourselves a spectacle, but have failed to do justice to our theme. Such are amongst the tempter’s suggestions. Some of them may be true; and it is wise to take note of such, for our future help in doing better. “The work of the Lord is ever a humbling work,” is a sentence once addressed to ministers in one of our Yearly Meeting’s Epistles. It furnishes an excellent practical test for personal use in the retrospect of service. But there is a wide difference between humbling and discouragement. God never discourages, though He may see meet, for our own good, to keep us lowly.

The exaltation of the instrument is one of the gravest dangers of the popular preacher, and if indulged in must sooner or later be fatal to his work. If kind friends praise our performances, as they sometimes do, let us not accept it for ourselves, but in out gracious Leader, to whom alone praise is due.

I remember reading years ago of a Friend minister, who made it a practice, after preaching, to go home and pass his sermon through a searching critical review. I cannot agree with him. The safest and happiest method is simply to lay our offering at the dear Master’s feet, asking Him to bless that which was from Himself, and to forgive and overrule for good that which came from the infirmity of the human instrument, and there to leave the matter.

So also with regard to outside criticism. An address publicly uttered becomes public property, and is fairly open to public comment. A man who speaks from a pulpit, or from a minister’s gallery, cannot be replied to on the spot as he could be in an ordinary public assembly. He has therefore the less right to complain if his statements or opinions are commented on in other ways. Within certain limits criticisms are useful; but in the case of a free disinterested service like our, they should be made considerately, gently, lovingly. On our part they should be treated in a similar spirit – prayed over, and referred to the judgment of there Great Teacher, “in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” – whilst we sit humbly at His feet that we may learn of Him.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, August, 1892.

Part 13 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 11

2010-06-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 10 was here.

Letter XI.

“The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the Spirit” (John iii. 8).

This notable saying of the Great Teacher is, I think, nowhere more strikingly fulfilled that in the experience of the minister of the Word who habitually seeks for direct Divine guidance in his work. The question that is continually pressing for solution, not only at the commencement but throughout our service is, whether the voice we hear is indeed the voice of the Spirit or one of the “many other voices that are in the world.” And it is this that makes our ministry so emphatically a “work of faith” from beginning to end.

It must, I think, be a matter of great interest to some to learn in what way the first call to service usually presents itself. Such things are amongst the heart’s most sacred memories: deep experiences hidden from all but ourselves and our gracious God. It is only in the hope that the recital may find a welcome, perhaps, in the heart of some dear younger brother, and be helpful to him, that I am willing to tell the simple story of my own first call.

It is not to be supposed that all are dealt with alike. Differences of disposition and of surroundings will have led to diversities of treatment, though it is the “same Spirit” that is at work. Some may have had early impressions that in after years they would be led into the service of the Gospel, and the time of waiting may have been long. To others the Master’s intimation has come suddenly, and the preparation for it almost simultaneously.

In my own case there had been much preparatory work – and indeed, there was great need of it – but I knew not at the time what it meant, or whither it was tending. So that when one First-day morning, in a pretty large meeting, there was presented vividly to my thoughts a passage of Scripture, with a great pressure on me to rise and repeat it, there came with it a shock of almost overwhelming surprise. I pleaded excuses – my unfitness, my slowness of speech, the offence I should give to some to whom I believed the words would sound like a personal warning. The meeting held long, but at last broke up; and then I came out agitated with grief and remorse. I had refused to render this little service to Him who had died for me! I had been unfaithful, both to Him and to those to whom the message might have been timely!

The secret story of succeeding months can be only briefly told. It was a time at first of lonely sorrow; then of seeking forgiveness; after that of slow growth into a willingness to submit if the call should be repeated. As weeks passed on, this was changed into an earnest desire, an eager prayer, that another opportunity might be given.

There was a long time of waiting in poverty of soul; and when at last another visitation, similar in manner to the first, came to me at a morning meeting, courage and faith again failed, and I kept silence! The interval between the morning and evening meetings was spent in prayer; and when the evening congregation gathered, the Lord helped me to rise and deliver my short message. A subsequent brief address from a minister present confirmed it, and I went home glad of heart, praising the blessed Master with the words, “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me.” I had learnt a lesson in those days of hunger and sorrow, never to be forgotten. The call was repeated week after week, and has never since been willingly turned away from; though sometimes circumstances beyond my control have kept me silent, when a message has been given me to deliver.

As obedience was rendered, the gift increased. Instead of merely repeating word for word as from memory what had been given me, I was entrusted with a simple text or a single thought, and had to rise with it, not knowing what was to follow. Sentence by sentence opened as I stood; words came as they were wanted; my natural slowness of speech gave place to a fair amount of readiness of utterance; and I learned the indescribable joy of standing up at the dear Master’s bidding, close beside Him, taking the words as He gave them, and speaking them in His name.

As the willing servant of a human master, grown accustomed to his work and to his master’s ways, needs not from day to day to be urged and minutely directed to his duties, but learns to obey a simple word or a look, so the servant of Christ, in whatever department of labour he may be engaged for Him, learns to be quick in perceiving the Master’s will, and to go forward with ready alacrity under His direction.

With the preacher, in whose department there is especial need for renewed anointing for every act of service, in addition to the general commission, the question already alluded to will arise again and again. The voice that speaks to us may be for our own instruction merely, and not for the congregation; the thought that presents itself may spring from the workings of our own minds, or be the mere reflection of some passage in our recent reading; or it may be prompted by some occurrence that has come to our knowledge. How are we to distinguish the Master’s voice amidst these? Prayer must be the faithful servant’s resource – prayer for present, momentary guidance – absolute self-surrender to the doing of God’s will. The test may sometimes be applied: “Is this word that stirs my heart a word that honours Christ?” “Does it point to Him?” If it does, let it be spoken. If it does not, if it points away from Him, it never can be right to utter it in His name.

There are special dangers besetting those who love the work, and are gifted with a ready utterance: the desire that something should be said; a feeling of restlessness if periods of silence are prolonged; a zealous desire that some particular truth should be enlarged upon, or some error combated. A passage in our “Book of Discipline,” chapter iv., comes into view in this connection:– “A clear apprehension of Scripture doctrine, or a heart enlarged in love to others, are not of themselves sufficient or this work; ... and except there be a sense of the renewed putting forth and quickening influence of the Holy Spirit, we believe it to be utterly unsafe to move in this office.”

For many years the writer has found it to be a safe rule never to attempt to address a meeting for worship unless able to answer in the affirmative two questions, viz.: (1) Am I willing to speak on this subject if it be the Lord’s will? and (2) Am I equally willing to remain silent if His will be so? If the attitude of mind is clearly reached that can answer “Yes” to both these questions, then with the prayer “Lord, help me,” the servant commits himself to the guidance that may be given. The feeling of his own incompetency to work out the theme is almost invariably present, but is not only not allowed to stand in the way of obedience, but has come to be regarded in the light of an encouragement to proceed.

The writer has always regarded public prayer as a particularly solemn act, not to be entered upon without a clear sense of Divine influence. When it is remembered that the speaker in such an exercise is addressing the Almighty Searcher of Hearts in the name of others as well as himself, and that it is impossible for him to know what is passing in the minds of others, the need of Divine guidance is manifest.

At the same time, it must not be forgotten that vocal prayer is an important part of worship, and that silent prayer does not honour God in the same way and to the same degree that spoken prayer does. We serve God in serving men in His name; and we have the highest encouragement to vocal utterance in prayer in the example of our blessed Lord Himself when He said in prayer (John xii. 42), “Because of the multitude which standeth around I said it, that they may believe that Thou didst send Me.”
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, August, 1892.

Part 12 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 10

2010-06-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 9 was here.

Letter X.

“Seek, that ye may abound unto the edifying of the Church” (1 Cor. xiv. 12).

“Desire earnestly the greater gifts” (1 Cor. xii. 31).

“Give diligence to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, handling aright the word of truth” (2 Tim. ii. 15).

In entering upon subjects which have been reserved for my second category – namely, those measures for the improvement of our ministerial service which are capable of being employed by ministers themselves – I must again disclaim any thought of addressing my fellow-labourers, as one who has himself attained, or who has any title to speak as one having authority.

Receiving only the plain education which was available at ordinary Friends’ school sixty years ago; leaving school at the age of fifteen, and entering immediately upon a business career in a country banking house, called to the ministry at thirty-five years of age, when I had become responsible for the official management of a growing life assurance institution; I have had little leisure for study, and much engrossment with the cares of a business life, which made large demands on the mental and intellectual faculties. My history may, therefore, probably be looked upon as affording a fair average example of the life of a middle-class Friend, whose best thoughts and aims, apart from business and family responsibilities, have been turned, under a sense of religious duty, away from political and municipal engagements, to the service of the Church in the ministry of the Gospel. In the course of such a life, much must have been learned from the hindrances to higher service, arising from causes both within and without; much also of the daily needs of such a position; and it would be deeply ungrateful not to add, much of the joy and privilege of serving so loving, so condescending, and so wise a Divine Master.

These considerations, and an earnest desire to see the Society of Friends occupying more fully that place amongst the Evangelical Churches to which I believe it is called, constitute my only justification for the course I am now taking.

It will not be denied that Friends have been to a very large extent successful in the enterprizes they have undertaken. They have admittedly borne a foremost part in efforts for the relief of suffering, and the moral elevation of mankind. In the field of commerce and manufacture, members of the Society have made for themselves world-wide reputations for the supply of genuine articles for domestic use. In the management of municipal affairs they have taken prominent places, to the advantage of their fellow-citizens. The number of Friends occupying seats in Parliament is much greater in proportion to the size of their denomination than in the case of any other Nonconformist body. In the legal and medical professions Friends have attained considerable eminence. They have given to the present generation some prominent statesmen; and one of the greatest orators of the nineteenth century was a Friend. Would it not be natural to expect that the same qualities that have produced these results would, if employed in the direct advocacy of Christian truth, have borne corresponding fruit? But where are our eminent preachers? To say nothing of the Spurgeons and the Moodys, where are the ministers amongst us so well-known and esteemed that their names placarded on the walls would draw together a public audience of a thousand persons? And why not? Is not the simple spiritual faith which we hold the very essence of the Gospel message which C. H. Spurgeon and D. L. Moody, and others like them, have delivered? Have we not held for centuries the very substance and marrow of that truth which is now the staple teaching of the apostles of the “higher Christian life,” and of “Scriptural holiness”? And yet what account can we render of this great stewardship?

Is it possible that our Heavenly Father who has bestowed upon us so many good natural gifts, has omitted to call for the dedication of some of them to His service? Or has the call been heard and not obeyed? Is it our Church system that has made us good tradesmen, good citizens, clever professional men, earnest philanthropists, but indifferent gospellers?

No doubt our system has laid some restraints upon us, as preceding letters have shown; but even the most perfect system without willing and competent labourers would be worthless. God is above all systems; and earnest men put forth and qualified by Him will cause even straightened systems to expand.

Fox and Penn, Burrough and their fellow-labourers, in spite of existing systems, and of cruel persecutions to boot, gathered in the course of a few years out of a population not more than one sixth of the number now occupying the British Isles, a body of adherents four times as numerous as the members of the Society of Friends in the present day. We have the same message to deliver as they had. The demand for it now is at least as great as it was then. It comes from the followers of other Churches, hungering after something more satisfying than a religion of ritual and ordinance; from multitudes weary and heavy laden for want of being directed to Him who alone gives rest to souls; from thousands, stumbled at the inconsistencies of empty profession, or entangled in the snares of a shallow scepticism. It is the cry of souls in the agony of spiritual famine, the tortures of the bond of iniquity, the rage and despair of ruined hopes. Were every adult member of our little body a diligent preacher of the word, we could hardly overtake the work that is lying undone – waiting for our attention.

Whatever shortcomings may be chargeable to the Church collectively in this matter, we may be sure that the chief responsibility lies with individual members. It is only personal devotion that will do the work now, as it did in the early days. Whatever improved arrangements may be provided in the shape of educational privileges, for instance, would be useless unless we had men and women willing to avail themselves of them. And that portion of a minister’s training which consists of improving his general knowledge of men and things, of the choice of his ordinary reading, and the regulation of his pursuits, with a view to the promotion of his efficiency in ministerial work, must obviously rest with himself.

If we have been content to regulate service for God to the place of something merely casual and incidental, to make it subordinate to the pursuit of our worldly interests or personal enjoyments, is it any wonder if our ministry is dwarfed, and its fruit scanty and imperfect?

May these thoughts lead us into searching of heart, with sincere and humble prayer to be taught what is the will of God for us as individuals.

And if it should be that any dear brother or sister reads these lines conscious of a neglected call to Gospel labour, or of a gentle intimation of duty in that direction, which has been turned aside by the substitution of some subsidiary work, even in the cause of philanthropy or national morality, may I entreat them to ponder anew the inspired words which stand at the head of this letter; to yield themselves faithfully to Him who gave Himself for them; and to follow simply where He leads. Though such a course may involve humiliation and self-denial, or even the sacrifice of some cherished plans, there are joys and privileges attending it far beyond what the natural mind can perceive, or words describe – pleasures that shall endure at God’s right hand for evermore.

And if there be amongst us brethren in the service who have not heretofore taken such a view of their calling as is indicated by those stirring Apostolic exhortations, may they be stimulated to press onward, to give the Lord their very best, to place themselves at His feet for a renewed anointing, to labour for souls, in the light of a coming eternity.
Ilkley, August 1892
Joseph John Dymond

Note.– Lest I should be at all misunderstood, I wish to say that, whilst keeping closely to my theme, which is that of Gospel ministry, I am by no means forgetful of the invaluable work of so many dear Friends in First-day Schools, and in the mission meetings connected with them. I regard that work as of very great importance, and as having in fact been the means of saving the Society from impending disintegration. Whilst touching one stratum of the population, however, it leaves other portions, to whom we have a special message, pretty much untouched. Is it not possible too that it may have even absorbed some of that energy and skill which might properly have been devoted to the other branch of the Lord’s great work?
J. J. D.

Part 11 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 9

2010-06-07T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 8 was here.

Letter IX.

“In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.”

The general survey of which has been taken in the present series of letters of the conditions affecting the exercise of Gospel Ministry amongst us will have made it evident that there is much earnest and important work awaiting the attention of such a body as has been already proposed. And the character of that work is such as to confirm the belief that it will be best accomplished by persons who are themselves ministers of experience, assisted probably by a few Friends selected for the purpose from amongst the appointed elders.

A precedent for such an appointment, with the functions of taking counsel respecting the needs of different meetings as to ministry, watching over and fostering the coming forth and growth of newly-called ministers, and assisting one another in acquiring the knowledge so valuable in the preacher’s work in these days, is found in the original constitution of the “Morning Meeting” in London. Though the duties of that body now chiefly consist of the exercise of care over ministers coming from abroad to visit the Metropolis and its vicinity, and of judging of the “concerns” of our own ministers to travel in the service of the Gospel in foreign parts, it formerly filled a wider sphere, taking a close and practical oversight of the entire service of the ministry in and around London, and forming a council of reference to which were submitted all books and other documents written by Friends before publication.

As regards the mode in which the proposed Preachers’ Meetings should be originated, I may say that it appears to me to be desirable that in the first instance they should arise out of the action of Monthly and Quarterly Meetings on Ministry and Oversight, in districts where it is felt that there is an open field for them.

“Any subjects which belong to the teaching and shepherding of the flock” are committed to those meetings by their constitution (Church Government, chap. 1 sec. 8) and where appointed, the members of the Preachers’ Meetings would in effect be committees of the meetings appointing them.

It seems almost needful to remark at this point that any useful action in the direction indicated necessarily presuppose the continuance in some form or other of the Society’s long-established practice of “recording” ministers – that is of placing on record its approval of their ministry. Without this all attempts to place the service of the Gospel on a better footing will be vain.

I regret very much to know of cases in which dear friends with an undoubted call to the work, and who “have given proof of their ministry,” have refused to submit themselves to the judgment of their Monthly Meetings in this matter, and have thus not only suffered disadvantage themselves, but have hindered the action of the Church as affecting others. It is not for me to impugn their motives, though I deeply deplore their action as being inconsistent with the Gospel order and with the true interests of the cause they have at heart. I cannot but think that in some cases the objection arises from some misapprehension as to the meaning and effect of the process.

In a former letter satisfaction was expressed with the change made in 1876 with regard to the appointment of elders, when the selection, instead of being a lifelong one, was in future to be made for three years only. I am, and have long been of the judgment that it would be a desirable change if the act of recording approval of a minister were also open to revision periodically – say once in seven years. The same Divine Will that selects the instrument for service can lay it aside again. “Once a minister, always a minister,” is a principle nowhere taught in the New Testament that I am aware of. Under our present system a Friend may be conscious that his period of service is over – that the anointing no longer descends upon him – and it would be a relief to him to be discharged from the implied responsibility of bearing the title.

I am afraid it must also be added that there have been cases in which a Friend, who may formerly have preached with power and unction, has from some cause lost the heavenly afflatus, but continues to preach from long-formed habit only, and consequently not to edification.

It is true that it is in the power of the Church to take action in such cases; but this is very rarely done – perhaps never except in connection with some moral delinquency. How much more easy would it be to deal with such matters if a periodical revision of the list of ministers were the rule. These times of revision would also have the effect of bringing definitely before the Monthly Meetings the question whether there were any not yet on the approved list whose names might properly be added to it.

If I may here be allowed a personal allusion, I would say that more than once in my own history I have been on the point of resigning my position as recorded minister; not from any doubt as to my original call, nor on account of any apprehended disunity with my service but because I felt it to be so desirable that the Friends of my Monthly Meeting should have a definite opportunity of reconsidering their judgment after a few years’ observation.

If their approval had been re-affirmed, it would have afforded me encouragement (at times greatly needed) to persevere in the work. If otherwise, it would have enabled me to lay down with a clear conscience a responsibility which often seemed too great to bear. In any case it would have furnished an occasion for the bestowal of counsel, or the offering of useful suggestions which, in the absence of such an arrangement, have never reached me.

No allusion has hitherto been made in these letters to one subject of very grave importance, which is also a painful one, but must not on that account pass unnoticed. I suppose that hardly any Christian Society has ever existed for a long time without some experience of the trials attending the divergence on the part of some of the ministers from its recognized doctrines. The Society of Friends, throughout its entire history, seems to have been rather specially liable to troubles of this kind. The practice of our little Church has been to exercise great forbearance in such cases, and not to take action until compelled to do so. Even when disciplinary action is felt by a considerable number of the Friends composing a Monthly Meeting to be necessary, it may be found that some others are averse to it; and so, for the same of preserving a superficial, though unsubstantial, unity, nothing is done, and the holy cause of truth is allowed to suffer.

In order to probe this matter to the bottom, it would be needful to go into such questions as the existence and desirability of creeds, and to dive into other dark and troubled waters.

This would be foreign to my present purpose; and I must therefore confine myself to saying that I am unable to understand the attitude of mind which would deem it honourable or upright to retain the title and position of a minister in any religious denomination, whist teaching in its name opinions which are known to be out of harmony upon fundamental points with the professed doctrines of that denomination.

This periodical revision of ministers would, I think, be of some service to us in this connection. I would suggest that in all cases Monthly Meetings should have the assistance of committees of their Quarterly Meetings in making the revision.

Before concluding my remarks on that branch of the subject which has reference to remedial measures capable of being applied by the Society in the form of regulations, I must allude again to the mode of conducting the meetings for worship at Devonshire House, London, during the sittings of the Yearly Meeting. One of the rules of the Society is that the elders present shall meet at the close of each such meeting, for conference on the subject of the meeting just held, and in order to prepare a brief report upon it. In some recent years it has been the practice for two or three elders to occupy seats near the head of these meetings for worship, with the view of taking such action as they may think needful during the proceedings for the preservation of order. As this very mild display of authority has failed, after sufficiently prolonged trial, to attain what was aimed at, it seems needful that the arrangement should be revised, and, if possible, strengthened.

The principle upon which action is taken is the very correct one, that the Church is responsible, through its officers, for the maintenance of decorum in its public services. It will be the general desire that in doing what is found needful, the smallest amount of restraint consistent with efficiency should be laid upon the free exercise of spiritual gifts.

The proposition I have to make is, first, that the elders, together with the recorded ministers who intend to be present at the meetings for worship, shall meet before the hour for worship, that they shall together see to the suitable allocation of minister to two meeting-houses (with due regard, of course, to any indications of duty that may be felt), and shall nominate two or three of their number to be responsible for the orderly holding of each of the meetings; and second, that it shall be a strict regulation applicable to those particular meetings, that every person desiring to address the congregation or to offer vocal prayer, shall come to one of the raised benches at the head of the room in order to do so. It can hardly be doubted that great facility for the rapid and impulsive utterances which are often so trying is given by the practice of simply rising in one’s seat, unobserved except by the few immediately around; and I believe that the necessity of walking to the head of the room before beginning to speak would not only insure at least a few moments’ pause between one communication and another, but would afford a desirable test of the reality and urgency of the call to take part. It would also service as notice, sometimes useful, to those responsible for the meeting, that the Friend was desiring to speak.

Similar regulations, with any needful modifications, should be adopted in the larger gatherings at Westminster, and in the suburbs, during the Yearly Meeting weeks.

I must add that it appears to me to be only reasonable and consistent with simple courtesy, that when one or more Friends in the ministry, under religious concern, have obtained the appointment of special meetings for the public, or for particular classes of persons (such as young Friends,&c.), they should not be hindered in their service, even in the otherwise silent portions of the meeting, but other (unauthorised) individuals taking part; but should be allowed to conduct the meeting from beginning to end, both as to vocal engagements and as to silent intervals in the manner which they may feel directed to as being the right one.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, August, 1892

Part 10 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 8

2010-06-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 7 was here.

Letter VIII.

“Pure worship under the Gospel stands neither in forms, nor the formal disuse of forms; it may be without words as well as with them, but it must be in spirit and in truth.” – Christian Practice, chap. 1, sec. 14.

“Keep all your meetings in the power of God.” – G. Fox.

Intimately connected with the exercise of the Christian ministry is the mode of holding meetings for public worship.

I have no change to propose in the arrangements for holding these meetings. If they are to be occasions for the unhindered prostration of the individual soul before God, and at the same time for the free exercise, on the part of all the members of the congregation, of spiritual gifts in preaching, prayer, and praise, it appears to me that their only possible basis is a reverent silence.

This is a matter upon which but few directions have been recorded in the Holy Scripture; much having been left to the wisdom of the Church itself under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

It may, however, be permitted me to remark that worship ought not to be regarded as a mere passive attitude of the mind, but as a real act, in which the will takes part. Our silent worship must not be an empty waiting for something to be said or done, but a watching unto prayer, an exercise of the soul in which we both watch and pray.

A praying congregation makes the way for a fruitful ministry. A frivolous or listless state of mind amongst those assembled makes the preacher’s path almost as difficult as it is in a meeting where the minds of those present are in a self-satisfied, “Gospel-hardened,” condition. Not less trying to the minister of acute spiritual perceptions is the state of things when the expectation of some in the congregation is upon him, rather than upon God. I have often wished that our congregations knew, more clearly than they sometimes appear to do, how greatly it is in their power either to assist in the service of the ministry, or to hinder it. It is perhaps in those meetings which contain a considerable number of newly admitted members that this view needs more particularly to be emphasised. Too many of our new converts appear to suppose that it is in the power of a minister to preach or to pray whenever he likes; and even to expect of him that as a matter of course he will have an address or a prayer ready at every meeting; just as they have been accustomed to find things in the places of worship of other denominations.

Not only our “attenders,” and newly-admitted members, but many of our younger Friends, and even some who are older, need educating upon these points.

The Apostle Paul has left on record a few instructions applicable to the vocal services in meetings for Divine worship, to which it is well that we should give heed. Thus, to Timothy (1 Tim. ii. 1) “I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, be made for all men.” To the Corinthians, “When ye come together each one hath a psalm, hath a teaching, hath a revelation, hath a tongue, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying. And let the prophets speak by two or three, and let the others discern” (or discriminate, marg.) 1 Cor. xiv. 26-29.

Strikingly in harmony with this Apostolic counsel, I have many times observed that those meetings have been the most profitable, and the most obviously blessed with the Divine presence, in which, after a short period of solemn silence, prayer has been the first vocal exercise, and has been followed by not more than two or three addresses from different Friends. Far be it for me to advocate a fixed plan, or anything resembling a liturgy; far also from desiring the utterance of prayer in a “formal or customary manner,” but I do think that this Apostolic pattern is one which we may well seek for ability from on High to carry out, both in the acts it calls for, and in the restraints it implies.

One of the things most wanting in our congregational worship is, the utterance of united praise. How often has a conspicuously “good” meeting ended in a feeling of flatness and incompleteness, because, though the hearts of many are secretly desiring to return thanks for God for His goodness to us, no expression is given to it. Joyful thanksgiving is wonderfully infectious; and an offering in humble heartfelt praise, at the conclusion of such a meeting as I have been describing, has often a powerful effect in fixing and confirming on the minds of those present the lessons and impressions received in the course of the preceding worship.

The natural and most appropriate mode of expressing praise and glad thanksgiving is in song. The power thus to express ourselves, and the desire to do so, are amongst God’s gifts to us, to be used for His glory. But this is an exercise which, in this country and in modern times, we have excluded from our meetings for worship. Our early Friends did not do so. Their views and practice are described by Barclay in his Apology (Prop. xii. sec. 26) thus:– “As to the singing of Psalms, ... the case is just the same as in the two former of preaching and prayer. We confess this to be a part of God’s worship, and very sweet and refreshing when it proceeds from a true sense of God’s love in the heart, and arises from the Divine influence of the Spirit; which leads souls to breathe forth either a sweet harmony, or words suitable to the present condition; whether they be words formerly used by the saints, and recorded in Scripture, such as the Psalms of David, or other words.”

I would by no means desire to see singing become a prominent feature in our public worship; but should there not be liberty to give utterance to melodious praise on precisely the same putting forth, and with the like preparation of heart, as in the case of public Gospel testimony or supplication?

I deplore exceedingly the extent to which highly organized musical performances are introduced so largely into the “services” in many churches and chapels, and often advertised beforehand, so as really to warrant the reflection that places of worship are becoming to a large extent places of amusement. Against this we, with our spiritual views of what true worship is, surely have a testimony to bear. But I cannot think that entire abstention from the legitimate use of a thing is the noblest or more effective form of protest against its abuse. There are dangers and difficulties no doubt; but is it not possible that by confronting these in reliance upon the help of our Divine Master, and showing to other Churches a more excellent way, we may render better service to the cause of truth than by our present negative course?

To some minds at any rate the singing of hymns, in our homes or elsewhere, is a distinct “means of grace.” I have myself been present at meetings which, I could feel no doubt, ought to have been closed by the united singing of a hymn of praise, but were not. And on the other hand, the uplifting of even a single voice in a meeting in a holy song of thanksgiving has, in my experience, proved most refreshing and helpful.

All I plead for is, that there should be no absolute prohibition of singing in worship; but that if any loving disciple should feel constrained to raise the consecrated voice in song, as so many now do with appropriateness and acceptance in the recitation of hymns, it should not be discouraged. It would be open to others to remain silent or to join in singing the hymn, as their best feelings might dictate; and thus we should gain what we now so much lack – opportunities for united devotional praise.
Ilkley, July, 1892
Joseph John Dymond

Part 9 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 7

2010-06-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 6 was here.

Letter VII.

“We are living in the midst of an intellectual and social revolution. Neither the Churches nor the ministry can remain what they were. Instead of a cultivated class, we are creating a cultivated people – a people educated by the best literature, the latest science, and an ever-expanding social life.” – Dr. John Clifford

Following naturally upon the subjects touched upon in my last letter, comes that of the opportunities existing amongst us for carrying forward education in Biblical and theological literature beyond the point usually reached in our boarding schools. It has long been a favourite thought with Friends in this country that, seeing we do not know who amongst the pupils in our schools may in after life be called into the service of the Gospel, it is desirable to give them all as thorough a grounding as possible in Bible truth. It is probable that, with all the efforts of teachers, in the limited time that can be devoted to one branch of study, when so many are claiming attention, not much can be accomplished during the years of school life beyond a general acquaintance with the facts of the Bible history, the history of the Bible itself, and the committal to memory of selected scripture passages.

And it may well be doubted whether, even if time admitted of it, the attention of the young student during the school age could profitably be directed to those theological question and phases of belief which he is sure to encounter in after years.

With the exception of the Flounders Institute for training teachers, I am not aware of any institution among Friends in this country at which instruction in the higher branches of these departments of learning can be obtained. It follows, therefore, that young Friends desiring such instruction must seek it at one or other of the public colleges and universities.

Our brethren in North America have long had their well-known Bible schools in connection with many of their meetings for worship. These had their origin in a deficiency of Scripture knowledge recognised about sixty years ago as producing some sorrowful results; and they doubtless afford opportunities for the valuable exercise of spiritual gifts in Bible teaching, and for the diffusion of sound Scriptural knowledge amongst both young and old.

Besides these schools or Bible classes, our friends in some of the States of the American Union – quick to perceive existing needs, and to devise remedies – have opened in their colleges what are known as “Biblical Institutes,” of which the one at Earlham, Indiana, may be taken as an example. This is under the direction of a “Professor of Biblical Exegesis and of Church History,” and is declared to be “for ministers, Bible-school teachers, missionaries, and other Christian workers.” The courses of study include Greek, Latin, and English literature, and Old and New Testament history; and extend to English composition, elocution, Christian evidences, psychology, higher catechism of theology, homiletics and pastoral theology, and so forth; including probably some reference to what is termed the “Higher Criticism” of the present day.

Another effort of American Friends in promoting the extension of education amongst those called to the ministry consists, I believe, of the provision of courses of reading for their ministers at their homes; the books being selected by a committee, and perhaps supplied to the readers on easy terms as to expense.

In a country where a large proportion of the Friends are engaged in agriculture, and live in small communities, remote from the opportunities of culture existing in large towns, it is probable that this arrangement has considerable value. In some of our cities the existing Friends’ Institutes possess well-selected libraries of general literature which afford materials for self-education; but the collections of books stores at many of our country meeting-houses are of little interest except to the antiquarian. These might be rendered much more serviceable by the addition of a few well chosen volumes, on the level of modern education and intelligence.

None of us can be too well acquainted either with the Bible itself, or with the facts relating to its history; and none can be too well furnished with that which makes “ready to give answer to every man that asketh you a reason concerning the hope that is in you”; and whatever tends to the advancement both of our ministers and others, in sound practical knowledge of that kind would be of inestimable value to us as a community.

As regards the so-called “Higher Criticism” which appears to be devoting itself to the examination from a purely intellectual standpoint of the Bible records and other Christian evidences, and to the attempt to weaken if not destroy the grounds of religious belief, I confess to the conviction that it will suffice if only a few amongst us are concerned to follow these currents of thought through the mazes of speculation into which they flow; especially if they can bring us word, as some good men have done and are doing, that the foundation stands unshaken, that many of the bold assertions of the critics are mere assumptions of their own, and that they have succeeded in little more than giving new evidence of the old truth that “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto Him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually judged.”

The waves of human thought may ruffle the surface for a season, but far down in the mighty ocean of God’s love there is eternal calm. The soul that dwells but upon the outer face of things may indeed be “tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine”; but he that has his dwelling in those fathomless ocean deeps is beyond the influence of boiling surges or of stormy winds. After all, we may not forget that into the service of God “not many wise after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called”; and excellent as are learning and eloquence when truly sanctified for the work, it is but too possible that the ear and the taste may be satisfied while the heart is hungry still.

The simple preaching of the Cross of Christ, even from homely lips, continues (as many of us can testify from grateful experience) to bring food to the hungry soul, healing the wounded, liberty to the captive, joy to the mourner, and rest to the weary and heavy laden.

Upon this subject of education, then, I have no striking new development to propose. In our circumstances as a body, and in this land, I believe it is to be more a matter for personal effort than for systematic provision; and as such I shall have to recur to it hereafter. Meantime it will be well for us to begin by more fully utilizing the material we already possess. Those who are able and willing to teach should be encouraged and stimulated in the employment of their gifts. If possible, increased attention should be devoted at our schools to Biblical and other religious instruction. Those who give evidence of having received a call to the public ministry of the word should be assisted in their private studies if needful, and in such courses of reading as may the better fit them for effective work.

For the present at any rate it appears to me that the pursuit of those higher branches of learning for which we have no denominational provision may be carried on in the public institutions of the country.

Before closing this letter I would express the desire I have often felt for some work of the nature of a Scripture Commentary, written from the simple spiritual standpoint of the Society of Friends. It is but right to acknowledge instances of candour in some existing Commentaries, even when the admissions made are opposed to the writer’s own sectional views; but none of these works (so far as my observation has gone) are free from bias in favour of sacramentarian ideas, or thoroughly candid on points affecting Church government.

The only existing work on the New Testament that I am acquainted with from the pen of a Friend, is the late Dr. Ash’s notes, in three small volumes; but these are too concise to be thoroughly useful. The late J. Tindall Harris’ essays on the writings of the Apostle John are a valuable fragmentary contribution; and one turns with interest at times to “The Book of Praises,” in which the late W. H. Alexander has recorded his comments upon the Psalms. But is there no living Friend who will give us a New Testament Exposition upon a thoroughly Quaker basis?
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, July, 1892

Part 8 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 6

2010-06-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 5 was here.

Letter VI.

“The things which thou hast heard from mw among my many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also” (2 Tim ii. 2).

It was thus that the Apostle Paul, having counselled his “Son Timothy” to “stir up the gift of God” he had himself received, enjoined him upon the duty of providing for the continuity, the efficiency, and the purity of Christian teaching in the early Church. There is nothing of a corresponding kind to be found in the arrangements of the Society of Friends. The founders of the Society had a clear perception of the important truth that a college education did not make the student a minister of Christ, and their successors have assumed, perhaps a little too readily, that they were warranted in leaving to the Great Teacher Himself, not only the selection of His servants, but also every detail of the needful work of preparing and furnishing them for the service.

In acting on this assumption it may be feared that we have failed to give force to two important considerations. These are, first, the liability of fallible human nature wrongly to apprehend what may be even right impressions, and, second, the truth that God usually works by instrumental means for the accomplishment of His purposes.

How earnestly some of us have scanned the published biographies of ministers who have gone before us in search of such insight as we might there obtain into the way in which they have been led. How deeply interesting to us have been words dropped by living men and women who were treading the same path of service as ourselves – perhaps a little in advance of us – if therein we could find some hints for our own guidance or comfort! Is it any wonder that, led as blind men in paths that were strange to us; and constantly, and even painfully reminded of the greatness of the calling, side by side with the weakness of the instrument, we should have often felt how valuable and helpful would have been the knowledge that others who had trodden the path before us had found it a path of safety and of blessing, though perhaps not unmixed with trial also?

There were dangers from false teachers and false brethren in the days of Paul and Timothy. Wherever the good seed of the Kingdom is sown, there the devil also sows his tares. Wherever a good work is on the wheel, there Satan strives to produce its counterfeit. How greatly are the means of disseminating both truth and its opposite increased in these last days! And how greatly increased, therefore is the need that today the very things which Timothy heard among many witnesses should be committed to other faithful men who should be able to teach others also. I cannot but fear that we have been taking too much for granted in this matter; and that the Church has herself to blame if the system of letting the succession and instruction of ministers pretty severely alone is producing some bitter fruit.

I can well recollect some of the profit and blessing that attended the action of an honored minister, now deceased, who would at time gather together such of the Friends present at Yorkshire Quarterly Meeting as were in the practice of speaking more or less frequently in meetings for worship, and out of the treasures of his own experience, addressing them upon the theme of a minister’s calling and work. These were very much cases in illustration of our present point; but their extreme rarity in our modern history makes of them little more than the “exception that proves the rule.” Would that there were more such opportunities, and more such Timothies to take advantage of them!

A few years ago a desire was expressed by some of the ministers of a Yorkshire Monthly Meeting, in which there are probably at least one hundred persons not acknowledged as ministers, who occasionally take part in the vocal service of meetings for worship, to hold some similar conferences amongst them.

The consent of the Meeting on Ministry and Oversight having been obtained, a few such conferences were held in different localities. The invitations to them were by a printed note or card sent to individuals, and in some instances a social element was introduced into the arrangements. It is difficult to gauge the effects of such efforts; but it must be manifest that much of their usefulness or interest would depend upon the qualification of those who were made responsible for them; and even under the best possible conditions, it would be too much to expect that a solitary engagement of this kind, compressed into a couple of hours, could accomplish all that was desirable. The endeavour on these occasions was to convey information and instruction as to the nature of the true call to the Christian ministry; to bring before those present the excellent counsel to ministers to be found in the Book of Discipline; and to assure them of the interest felt by the Church in their service.

But the ground is far wider than can be covered by limited and isolated efforts like these. They may possibly serve as an index to a department of internal work in which our Church has great need to bestir herself; and in which there is a call for the willing services of some who are qualified to speak, not only of such themes as have just been referred to, but to lead those less instructed than themselves in the study of Holy Scripture, in the right use of whatever light modern inquiry and research may have thrown upon the sacred writings; and in discriminating between things to be received, and those which must in faithfulness be avoided amongst the multitudinous utterances of modern thought and speculation.

About thirty-five years ago there occurred a considerably awakening amongst Friends in various parts of the country to the need that existed for more religious instruction. This had reference not specifically to ministers but to the members generally, and more particularly to young persons above the school age. The services of qualified individuals came into request as lecturers on subjects relating to the history and doctrines of the Society. More public use began to be made of the Bible; and in many of our evening meetings on First-days the appointed reading of portions of Holy Scripture began to find a place. Besides this, in some towns periodical meetings of the congregation were set on foot for the avowed purpose of Scriptural instruction. Some of the results of this movement are still to be witnessed amongst us in many places, but others have disappeared.

Having been familiar with the history of one experiment of the kind last alluded to in a meeting with about 250 names on its list of members and attenders, I think there may be a service in describing it, because it affords an illustration of a line of tendency existing amongst us which may account for other failures that we have to regret.

In the place to which I refer there resided two Friends not far advanced in life who had been led quite independently of each other, to the careful private study of Holy Scripture; and had found it, as so many others have done, a pursuit full of the deepest interest and profit. They greatly desired that others might have the opportunity of sharing this interest with them. Leave was obtained from the Preparative Meeting for the holding of a meeting for Scriptural instruction once a fortnight, open to all comers; but with this strict injunction – that the meetings were to be held, and to be spoken of as being only for “mutual instruction.” Any such arrangement as that of one or two persons attempting to conduct or lead the meeting was to be scrupulously avoided, as savouring of that arch-heresy the “One Man System.”

Of course everybody who reflects upon the subject will be well aware that it is no more possible to teach Christian truth upon the “strictly mutual” principle than it is to teach geography or arithmetic upon the same plan. Imagine a company of twenty two-year-old children met together to teach one another the alphabet upon the mutual principle! But this was the condition upon which alone leave was granted; and so the attempt proceeded. It was very soon found that most of the Friends who attended the meeting were content to listen, whilst those who had been making it their pleasant duty to study the chapter beforehand brought out its leading points, showed their connection with other Scriptures, and sought to apply the lessons they taught. So long as there were at least two Friends competent to do this, things went fairly well. By taking it in turns to speak they could keep up at least some semblance of mutuality. But after a short time one of these Friends removed to another town. The other struggled on for a time vainly endeavouring to force into practice the theory of mutuality. Time after time he laboured to draw others out, even to the extent of asking a question, but all in vain. Again and again he suppressed himself to try the effect of simple silence. It was hopeless. The choice lay between the so-called “One Man System” and nothing. And so the enterprise collapsed, and what might have been a fruitful service to the Church was lost – put to death by an absurd insistance upon an impossible mutuality!

I hope I may be excused for having dwelt in some detail upon this example. If we are to have instruction we must have instructors. We wrong our labourers, and we rob ourselves as a Church, if we lay them under unscriptural restrictions which mar their influence, crush out their zeal and close lines of service.

“God hath set some in the Church, first apostles, secondly prophets, thirdly teachers, then miracles, &c. Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?” (1 Cor. xii. 28,29.)

If that be God’s appointment, surely the truest wisdom in Church organization must be that which recognises it and gives it room to work. The apostle must be free to exercise the functions of his apostleship, including the authority and influence which belong to it. The prophet must attend to his prophesying; and, if he happen to be the only one usually present in the congregation, without being daunted by the fear of possible allusions to the “one man system.” The teacher must be free to instruct without being expected to conform to an impracticable mutuality. The simple truth is that, in our zeal against human domination, we have plunged into a quagmire in which too many of us are held back from the full measure of our service and influence by an unholy fear of one another. I have even known a Friend deterred from directing a stranger to a seat in meeting by the fear of being thought too forward by his fellow members! That assuredly is the reductio ad absurdum! but the evil leaven is widespread, and affects nearly all our doings like a blight. This state of things appears to me to be wholly inconsistent with that singleness of aim, that manly simplicity, which ought to characterise the discharge of every religious duty.

But whilst this pointing out, as I have felt bound to do, one of the sources our weakness, I should be guilty of personal ingratitude if I were to omit to acknowledge the presence amongst us of individuals who have lived, and do now live, above all such littleness – apostolic men whose talents, whose learning, and whose influence have all been laid at the dear Master’s feet; and whose delight it is to employ them in His service for the good of others; noble-minded women whose houses are open, an whose personal efforts are constantly devoted to the promotion of all that tends to holiness and truth. They are the very salt of the Society.

May their efforts be increasingly blessed, and their numbers greatly multiplied!
Ilkley, July, 1892
Joseph John Dymond

Part 7 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 5

2010-06-03T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 4 was here.

Letter V.

In a former letter it was hinted, that in our practice we may have imposed on ourselves some limitations as regards the ministry not called for by the teaching of Holy Scripture. I must now express my conviction, that the non-payment of the pecuniary expenses of ministers (except in travelling) has been carried to an extreme not warranted by Scripture, and has been a serious hindrance to the work of the Gospel. I know that there are men amongst us who have been conscious of a call to devote the whole of their time and energies to the work of the Lord, and who have been deterred from obeying the call, because, not having pecuniary means of their own, they knew that the consequence, so far as the Society of Friends was concerned, would be practical starvation to their families. They have had to choose between two lines of service to which, in the ordering of Divine Providence, they had been called; the one that of their dependent families, the other that of the Church.

The Society of Friends having its modern practice refused to recognize the Divine ordinance that “they that preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel” (1 Cor ix. 1) these men have been turned away from a path that would probably have been one of blessing to themselves and to us; and have had to limit their attention to the higher service to those portions of their lives which could be snatched from the daily toil.

It is needless and misleading to argue that men living on the verge of the twentieth century can successfully carry on business, whilst devoting to other objects perhaps half their energies, or long intervals of time. The men of the seventeenth century seem indeed to have been able to do something of this kind with their farms and merchandise, but the world has changed since then, and the conditions of our modern business life do no admit of such intermittent attention. The attempt has been made to find remunerative occupations of that kind for Friends in the ministry and has failed.

It is a glorious thing indeed to be able to proclaim the Gospel of Christ without money and without price; but does it necessarily follow that none but the actual preachers as individuals may share the privilege and the inevitable cost? If we are, as we profess to be, one body in Christ, may not the hand minister to the lips? Is not the Gospel free, if the Church as a body, as an instrument, bears its charges?

After all, is there not a touch of irony in the system which exhorts the preacher to faithfulness in the exercise of His spiritual gift; tells him not to let business hinder him (vide Queries to M. and O., Nos. 2 and 3); receives the benefit of his self-denying labours; and then, when these land him in a financial dilemma, refuses to help him out of it? The spiritual loss which has accrued to the Society, through its restrictions and limitations in this connection, can never be measured.

This subject of the maintenance of ministers is not free from difficulties. Few subjects of importance are. But I believe it to be quite capable of solution in harmony with Scripture teaching and Apostolic example. The well-known passage in Matt. x. 8, “Freely ye have received, freely give,” is often quoted as though it were conclusive of the whole subject; but like many other texts of Scripture it receives light from being examined in connection with its context, and with reference to the occasion on which it was originally employed. If we read from the beginning of the fifth verse of the chapter, we find that the occasion was one on which our Lord was sending forth the twelve disciples on a special mission to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” “As ye go,” He said, “preach, saying, ‘the kingdom of Heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils (a special bestowal of miraculous gifts); freely ye received, freely give. Get you no gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses; no wallet for your journey, neither two coats, nor shoes, not staff; for the labourer is worthy of his food.” (R.V.) The disciples were to go forth upon their errand in simple reliance upon the guiding and providing hand of God himself; trusting Him for food, lodging and clothing; expecting that all these things would be provided for them through the instrumentality of “worthy,” or pious persons amongst whom they laboured. Their “preaching” was to be of a very simple kind, substantially limited to the message, “the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” As an attestation of the Divine authority of this message, and in evidence of the benificent character of the coming Kingdom, they were empowered to perform the prescribed miracles.

If these miracles were to convey correct impressions of the disinterested love and power of the Gospel, it was necessary that they should be exercised gratuitously. It is easy to imagine that amongst the multitudes who would press around the disciples, eager to receive the healing touch, or anxious to induce them to visit sick friends who could not themselves come, there might be some who would offer money as an inducement, and without their Master’s explicit command the disciples might through it needless to refuse such presents.

On the other hand it is difficult to associate exposure to the temptation of receiving fees with the utterance of the very simple warning, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” But whatever application our Lord’s command may have to Gospel preaching under the present conditions of human society, it is at least reasonable to conclude that the primary and immediate reason for its use had reference to the employment of miraculous powers. There appears to be no other passage in any of the four Gospels capable of being so interpreted as to forbid a preacher to receive material support.

There are many passages in the Book of Acts, and in the Apostolic Epistles bearing upon the principles which the Apostles taught and practiced, with reference to the receipt of pecuniary aid. It would occupy too much space to quote and examine all of them here; but they would be found referred to in a little essay from my pen, on the “Maintenance of Ministers” published about six years ago. For our present purpose it may be sufficient to turn to one of these passages – probably the most comprehensive of them all – to be found in the ninth chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians.

The Apostle Paul is here defending his position and practice against some hostile comments. He emphatically claims it as a matter of Divine appointment that they who preach the Gospel should (if need be) live of the Gospel. He claims this right also for the believing wife of the minister (and by implication also for those dependent upon him); and yet with holy joy he delights in the privilege he had allowed himself of making the Gospel of Christ without charge by means of his own labour.

We may read the passage (from the Revised Version) thus, for the sake of brevity omitting, here and there, a few words, not essential to our purpose:–

My defence to them that examine me in this: Have we no right to eat and drink? Have we no right to lead about a wife that is a believer, even as the rest of the Apostles? Or I only and Barnabas, have we not a right to forbear working? Do I speak these things after the manner of men? or saith not the law also the same? For it is written in the Law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox while he treadeth out the corn. Is it for the oxen that God careth, or saith He it altogether for our sake? Yea, for our sake it is written. If we sowed unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things? Nevertheless we did not use this right, but we bear all things that we may cause no hindrance to the Gospel of Christ. Know ye not that they which minister about sacred things, eat of the things of the temple, and they which wait upon the altar, have their portion with the altar? Even so did the Lord ordain that they which proclaim the Gospel should live of the Gospel. But I have used none of these things, and I write not these things that it may be so done in my case, for it were good for me rather to die, that that any man should make my glorying void. For if I do this of mine own will, I have a reward. What then is my reward? That when I preach the Gospel, I may make the Gospel without Charge, so as not to use to the full my right in the Gospel. For though I was free from all men, I brought myself under bondage to all, that I might gain the more.

The lessons to be gathered from this and all the other New Testament teachings upon this subject may be summarised as follows:–

That it should be our desire and aim, for the Gospel’s sake, to make its proclamation free.
That if a person called of God to preach the Gospel, finds the discharge of that duty incompatible with his making by his own labour a due provision for his outward wants, he is not only permitted to receive a maintenance, but is entitled to expect that this will be provided for him.
That it is the duty of the Church to see that under such circumstances adequate maintenance is supplied.
That contributions for this purpose should be voluntary, not enforced.
To make a trade of preaching, or to adopt it as a profession for the sake of pecuniary reward, is repugnant to their spirit.
The sufficient maintenance, and no more, is all that the minister is warranted in accepting.

These conclusions are in harmony with the views of the early Friends, as set forth by Barclay in his Apology (Proposition x. Section 33), where he says:–

The ministers we plead for are such as having freely received, freely give; who covet no man’s silver, gold, or garments; who seek no man’s goods; but seek them and the salvation of their souls; whose hands supply their own necessities, working honestly for bread for themselves and their families. And if at any time they be called of God, so as the work of the Lord hinder them from the use of their trades, take what is freely given them by such to whom they have communicated spirituals, and, having food and raiment, are therewith content. Such were the holy prophets and apostles.*

Ilkley, July, 1892
Joseph John Dymond

* I shall be glad to furnish a copy of the essay referred to, to any Friend who may express a wish to receive one; or copies may be obtained from the Orphans’ Printing Press, Leominster.

Part 6 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 4

2010-06-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 3 was here.

Letter IV.

“The office of Elder amongst us is of great importance, and when rightly filled, of great value.” – Christian Discipline.

It appears by the records quoted in the Book of Discipline (Church Government, chapter iii), that the first appointment of elders took place in the year 1727, a period in our history when there was evidently great need for the better regulation of ministry. The appointment of these Church officers has been continued down to our own day, but with a valuable modification introduced in 1876. Before that time the office of elder was retained for life except in certain cases of removal. In 1876 it was decided that thenceforth the appointments, like those to the office of overseer, should undergo revision every third year.

The writer’s experience on the subject of elders points to the following conclusions, viz. :–

That the functions of Eldership are of very great value, when exercised by properly qualified persons.
That the qualification is a spiritual gift, not a natural attainment; and
That the possession of the gift is comparatively rare.
Elders who lack the proper qualification may do more harm than good.

Grateful for the kindness occasionally shown him by Friends in that station, he has very often had to deplore the entire inability of many of them to understand the real position of a minister, or the exercised of mind through which he often has to pass. Hardly any, except those who have themselves passed through them, are competent to sympathise with the trials and dangers, from within and from without, which beset the path of the young minister. With the best intentions on the part of elders, the very fact of the existence of such officers combined with that of their almost absolute silence towards him on subjects connected with his service, has been the cause of some of the writer’s sorest discouragements. Had no such office existed in the Society, of course no help would have been expected from it. But to know that there were elders, and yet never hear a word from them, either good or bad, was to be doubly oppressed with the sense of a lonely responsibility.

At a week-day meeting, for instance, the preacher has been deeply exercised and humbled before God in the course of Gospel testimony or earnest prayer. Shortly afterward the congregation comes forth with that hushed demeanour which betokens serious impressions. An elder who has been present is encountered almost on the doorstep, and his only words to the minister are these, “Is there aught fresh at the office this morning?” The contrast between the heavenly aroma within the walls and the earthly hubbub without was sharp enough in itself, but to have it hastened and intensified by the one to whom the Church directed him to look for sympathy and support, was to receive discouraging evidence of the inability of even one of the kindest and personal friends to feel the throbbing pulses of the preacher’s heart.

Such and similar incidents, not solitary, but often repeated, tend to teach one that he has little or nothing to expect from the eldership, and to deepen the desire expressed at the conclusion of my last letter for the reinstitution of meetings for counsel chiefly confined to preachers themselves. Many other Friends in the ministry have assured me, that they have derived more help in the course of their lives from the counsels of brother ministers, than from Friends in the station of elder.

There seems to be, in the fact of being selected for the latter office, a remarkable tendency to close a man’s lips. On one occasion in the recollection of the writer, a Friend who, as a private individual had often had a kind word for a young minister, and whose brotherly hints had been greatly valued, actually remarked when chosen for the eldership, “I must take care what I say to thee now they have made me an Elder, for my words will have an official meaning!” This was not a mere pleasantry, but was really put in practice, and so the seal of the Church upon him spoiled a good elder. I am far from wishing eldership to be abolished; but I do long that more of the dear Friends in that station would set before themselves a higher and broader ideal; would regard their office less exclusively as one of censorship, and more as one of privileged co-operation in the work of the Gospel, and would remember that even the gifted minister does not become a mere spiritual automaton, but still has a human side to his nature; a human nature that reached out towards other human natures for countenance, for sympathy, and for help. Why should an elder be afraid to say sometimes to a preacher, “I think the Lord has been with thee in thy exercise today”? Is that venerable bogie, the fear of “exalting the creature” to be allowed to scare us apart for ever? What a rightly exercised minister longs to know, after he has been doing his best to deliver the message that seemed to him to be called for, is not whether he has pleased the ears of his audience, but whether he has reached their hearts; whether (in the words of the “Advices”) “the baptising power of the Spirit of Truth” has accompanied his words. How much more likely is it that an occasional needed word of counsel about the length of tone of a sermon, or about something that may have seemed lacking or redundant in it, would be well received if it came from one who was accustomed, when he could, to say an encouraging word.

I have said that I conceive the true qualification of an elder to be a spiritual gift. Christ has “received gifts for men.” He will bestow them in response to believing prayer.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, June, 1892

Part 5 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 3

2010-06-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 2 was here.

Letter III.

“If we are to hold our place as a Christian Church in these days of intelligence and education, we must have a better regulated, more intelligent and judicious, as well as sanctified, ministry.” – From a private letter.

The above sentence briefly expresses a deliberate conviction, which has been forced upon the mind of the present writer by his observation, during a series of years, of the vocal service prevailing in meetings for worship, both in London and elsewhere. He is, of course, aware that the mode in which such meetings are often conducted at the time of the Yearly Meeting has long been a subject of concern to the Meeting on Ministry and Oversight; and that attempts have been made in many years past, by the issue of minutes of advice and by the appointment of committees, to regulate them. The discouraging fact is that the abuse of liberty still exists, and proves, by its existence, the inadequacy of our system to secure that order which is one of the first requisites of efficiency and decorum. Moreover, it must in candour be added that many of those who thus give evidence of want of discretion and self-restraint are themselves members of Meetings on Ministry and Oversight. Some allowance should doubtless be made for a certain amount of excitement almost inseparable from the gathering of large numbers from distant and, perhaps, isolated places, for a great religious festival; but the mode in which the excitement shows itself is probably a true index of tendencies existing all over the land.

Our theory concerning the ministry of the Gospel is unquestionably beautiful, true, and Scriptural. It is possible that in the endeavour to reduce it to practice we have imposed on ourselves some limitations which the authority of Holy Scripture does not necessarily require; but leaving that point open for possible future considerations, it may be here remarked that in the application of all theories having reference to human affairs, whether religious, political, or social, we find abundant cause to take account of the “earthen vessel.” All true theories work admirably in the hands of perfect instruments. It is because the instruments are so rarely perfect that our moral and social ideals so often fail in practice to be realized.

Very early in the history of our Society the tendency of our liberty of speech to lead to confusion was manifested. It was probably, to some extent, held in check by the personal influence of the first generation of leaders. At a later time disciplinary regulations were attempted, and Elders were appointed to keep watch on the ministry and exercise some amount of control over it. Measures of this kind proved so effectual, that in the latter half of the last century and the early years of the present one there were very few preachers to be found amongst the men of the Society; what service of this character remained was left chiefly to the women. The principle which asserted the possibility of worship without words became perverted almost into the worship of silence itself. The society dwindled in numbers, and the energies of its best members found their field of exercise in the promotion of moral reforms and in works of philanthropy, in place of the direct advocacy of evangelical religion.

My own earliest impressions of a Friends’ meeting are associated with the ministry of a venerable ancestor, one of whose favourite texts was a passage in the Song of Solomon ii. 7, “I charge you ... by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, til he please”; which he was accustomed to apply as a warning against breaking the silence of a meeting, except under a terrible sense of impending woe in case of disobedience. Another survival from the age of quietism must have been witnessd by many still living besides myself, when a deeply-concerned Friend was allowed to declare to the Yearly Meeting his conviction that “the only thing the ministry amongst us required was universal repression.” He “was happy to say that in the meeting to which he belonged they had had no ministry for above fifty years.”

But, happily, for the continued existence of our body, a great change has come over it in recent years. The establishment of First-day Schools, and the entry upon the work of home and foreign missions, have been attended by a fresh breaking forth of aggressive zeal in the propagation of the Gospel; and since the admission of many new members, drawn to us chiefly from the attenders of Adult and other First-day Schools, a large increase has taken place in the number of those who speak in our meetings for worship. Some of those, it may be, are as yet only imperfectly aware of our views as to the right call and qualification needed for Christian ministry. A guiding wisdom is needful in dealing with this new reaction; and the Church, with the assistance of Aquilas and Priscillas, must brace herself for the effort.

The remedies capable of being applied to the needs felt to exist amongst us at the present day may be divided into two categories, viz: –

1st. Those which may be adopted by the Church herself, in the way of arrangements and regulations.
2nd. Those which lie at the doors of the individual speakers themselves.

Taking up these in order in which they are stated, one is led to allude, with a fresh feeling of regret, to the change made in the year 1876, when the before-existing Meetings of Ministers and Elders received large additions, both to their constitution and their functions, and became “Meetings on Ministry and Oversight.” This regret was keenly felt at the time by the present writer, as one who had derived great help from the attendance of the meetings composed as they were before. They were occasions in which experienced ministers, with great tenderness , and under the sense of a blessed unity in the love and service of Christ, often gave wise and helpful counsel to their younger brethren. Offerings in the ministry from those whose names were not yet recorded on the list of approved ministers were passed under review, in a confidential and loving spirit; and when occasion seemed to call for it, individuals were deputed to procure interviews with some of these Friends, and to convey to them messages of counsel or encouragement as the case might require. With the wide enlargement of these meetings, and the provision of a number of printed directions for conducting them, all this was changed. The introduction of a large body of additional members, some of them young in religious experience, was found to be a hindrance to the confidential consideration of such delicate matters as those affecting the service of individual ministers; the drawing of heart to heart on the part of those interested in a common field of labour of the most solemn kind was rendered impossible; and, as a matter of fact, year after year passed by with hardly any allusion to the subject of ministry. This at any rate has been one effect of the change in the large Monthly Meeting to which the writer belongs.

The attendance of these meetings has now greatly fallen off, the usual number present being less than one-third of the membership; and a very common reason assigned for the non-attendance is that “there is nothing in them worth going for.” In that Monthly Meeting it was quite a usual thing, twenty or twenty-five years ago, to add two, three, or even four, names to the list of recorded ministers in the course of a year. Now, though the number of persons who more or less frequently take vocal part in meetings for worship has greatly increased, years pass by in which none are so recorded. This may be in part attributable to a disinclination, which it may be feared is increasing, to carry out the Society’s regulations with regard to the recording of ministers. Under the plea of avoiding the creation of a clerical caste, the democratic proclivities of the present age are thus manifesting themselves in our Church affairs, in apparent forgetfulness of the truth that wholesome government is essential to real liberty, and that a state of things in which everybody does only that which is right in his own eyes is not a state of freedom but of anarchy.

I may not pass from this portion of my subject without some allusions to the institution of Eldership; but that must be reserved for another letter. In the meantime, let me remark that if something like the restoration of the “Preacher’s Meetings,” which existed in the very early days of the Society, could be brought about, it would be to me a joyful realization of the desire of many years. I would add to the ministers themselves meeting on such occasions a few selected Friends, not preachers, who should be chosen not on the ground of age, or wealth, or social position, but on that of possessing spiritual qualifications for sympathising with and assisting ministers in their work. It is needless here to describe in detail what should be the duties of such meetings. They would be largely on the lines already alluded to, as in the writer’s experience, exercised formerly by the Meetings of Ministers and Elders, and would afford opportunity for united prayer, for considering the needs of the flock, and for taking counsel together in order to the furtherance and efficiency of the work of the Gospel amongst us.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, June, 1892

Part 4 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 2

2010-05-31T06:31:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of Joseph John Dymond's letters to "The Friend" of London in 1892. Part 1 was here.

Letter II.

“We rejoice that, without any provision for collegiate training, a living Gospel ministry is in the Lord’s goodness preserved amongst us. May it become more and more a ministry searching and awakening, exercised with a right understanding seasoned with grace, and made effectual to the winning of souls under the quickening, illuminating, and baptising power of the Holy Spirit. It is our prayer that it may ever spring direct from the fountain, and be kept pure in the simplicity which is Christ; and clear in its testimony to Him” (Yearly Meeting Epistle, 1892).

Such, in the cautious and stately language which is characteristic of these documents, is the message that comes down to us ministers from the recent annual assembly of our Church. It is in the spirit of that utterance that I desire to approach the solution of the inquiry suggested in my former letter – namely, whether preaching of the Word amongst us is fulfilling the end for which it has been called into being; and in doing so it may be permitted to me, as a private individual, to use somewhat greater plainness of speech. But at the outset I must disclaim any right or intention to judge against my brethren. My nature shrinks even now from the task I have undertaken, and I am conscious of no qualification for it, except the fact that the endeavor to discharge faithfully for more than thirty years the office of a Christian minister, concurrently with the claims of a busy professional career, has made me acquainted with many of the dangers, the perplexities, temptations, and errors to which such a calling is specially liable. If by allusion to some of the infirmities and failures by which my own course has been marked, I can be instrumental in helping any dear younger brother, called to the work as I was to my own amazement so long ago, it will be to me a joyful evening service, rendered to a cause that lies nearer than any other to my heart.

Most intimately associated as is the “testimony of Jesus” with our holiest aspirations and our supreme hopes, and great as is the responsibility resting upon us in the exercise of a calling fraught with possibilities of eternal moment for others, I cannot but feel it is upon tender if not upon holy ground that I am treading. But I have always found that where the Master leads it is safe for the disciple to follow; and if this be the service He appoints to one who is now debarred from taking much further active part in a public duty which has been the joy of a lifetime, I am more that content.

The very existence, then, of the paragraph above quoted from our Yearly Meeting’s Epistle is an answer to our question. That annual letter, as is well known, is intended to embody the leading exercise of the Meeting in considering the state of the Society. The exhortations it contains are understood to point to something needing a remedy.

If you ask any intelligent Friends from any of our 326 settled meetings whether the ministry they hear from week to week fully satisfies their spiritual needs, I venture to say that the great majority will answer in the negative. Many will have to tell you that they have no resident ministry at all. Others will reply that they have plenty of speaking, but very little true ministry of the Word. Some will have a mournful story to tell of weekly harangues in a stereotyped cadence or monotone, which have emptied the meeting-house of nearly all the thoughtful young people belonging to the congregation, driven elsewhere for the spiritual food and instruction they had looked for in vain from those of their own communion. There are others again that have ministers whom they love and honour, but who seem to have lost the power of discerning the point at which the anointing oil has ceased to flow, and who weary their hearers and dissipate the good impression of a real message, by long repetitions and inappropriate additions of their own

Verdicts like these from the lips of others are confirmed by one’s own observations. That there do exist man bright and blessed examples of an opposite kind, there is no disposition to deny. Let us be thankful for them, and accept them as a stimulus to strive after a like experience. But could anyone not habituated to such scenes have been present, for example, at some of the gatherings for public worship held in London last month, and have brought away the impression that what he had witnessed and listened to there had been truly to the ordering of the Lord? He would perhaps have heard an impressive Gospel address of twenty minutes or half-an-hour’s duration, full of helpful thoughts, carried home with solemnity to the hearts and consciences of the hearers, upon which it would have been delightful and profitable to dwell for a few minutes at least; but before the preacher’s last word had well ceased to sound, a piercing voice from another part of the room startles everybody, and puts an effectual stop to all meditation upon the former theme. And so on to the end of the meeting, speakers succeeding one another in eager succession, and with little coherence or sequence of ideas. Even a solemn concluding thanksgiving and prayer fails to bring the scene to a close; but well-meaning persons, apparently wholly wanting in the blessed faculty of self-restraint, continue to “relieve their minds” of some text or verse, or some sentiment that has occurred to them, until at last the Elders at the head of the meeting hastily avail themselves of a momentary silence to shake hands and break up the meeting. Is this in the beautiful Divine ordering? or is it the liberty of prophesying run out into anarchy? “God is not the Author of confusion, but of peace.”

If may be that the visitor has come into one of the meetings for worship to which the public have been specially invited. Certain approved ministers who have made themselves responsible to the appointed committee for the holding of the meeting are seated at the head. Before the congregation has fully settled down, a dear friend below, in a rapid, agitated voice, inaudible in the greater part of the large room, delivers himself of a string of Scripture passages, which have probably contained his own spiritual food during the day, and produces no result except surprise in the minds of the witnesses. After that the real worship begins; an earnest prayer for blessing, followed by a brief but solemn pause. Then one of the ministers whose names have been advertised rises and delivers his message. He has opened the way for someone else to follow in harmonious further development of his theme. But if there be one present conscious of a call to do so, he is too considerate to join in the hurry to “take the floor,” and another interposes – out of the true harmony – and so the service is marred. The congregation has been listening for a full hour and a half to a succession of addresses; the shades of evening are falling in the dim recesses of that half-filled room; but there is another speaker whose heart is astir within him, and who cannot stay it. A few sentences express a not inappropriate message, and then the dear man, surely under the guidance of his own impulses rather than under that of the highest authority, proceeds to deliver himself in a monotonous cadence, which makes the tendency to fall asleep almost irresistible, of a series of reflections upon the Yearly Meeting proceedings and so forth. This, in which the “Public” can feel no interest whatever, continues for half an hour. The service, which was marred before is now simply ruined; and the congregation, with a sigh of disappointment, and yet of relief, rises in the twilight and departs.

These are no fancy sketches. They are amongst the examples we present to the citizens of London in illustration of our theory on the subject of Gospel ministry. Is it likely that they will be moved by our teaching if these are its fruits?

The duty of the physician is first of all to diagnose the disease, and after that to seek for and apply the remedy. When this exceedingly unwelcome preliminary duty has been accomplished in the present case, it will be needful to inquire into the circumstances which have conduced to it, and the means of cure.
Joseph John Dymond
Ilkley, June, 1892

Part 3 of this series is here.

Thoughts on Gospel Ministry, Part 1

2010-05-30T05:35:00.001-07:00

Ever since I read of it in John Rowntree's works, I have been looking for Joseph John Dymond's series of letters to "The Friend" entitled "Thoughts on Gospel Ministry". This is a series of letters written by JJD in the summer of 1892, and appears to be in response to the epistle of the London Yearly Meeting's Ministry & Oversight committee. I went looking for the letters at Guilford two years ago and came up empty - they had the London "The Friend", but not the complete 1892 set (this was after several hours of fruitless searching in which I discovered that there is also a Philadelphia "The Friend" which did NOT publish any letters by JJD in 1892). A few weeks ago, Gwen Erickson at Guilford told me that they have gotten the London "The Friend" on microfilm, so on my way to my School of the Spirit residency, I stopped off in Greensboro and made copies of the letters. I have transcribed them all, and am in the process of cleaning up typos and formatting. When I am done, I will post the PDF. In the meantime, I will post the letters here as I get them completed. Here is the first:

Letter I.

One of the most important and valuable functions of the Society of Friends is to bear witness openly to the world to the great principle of the freedom of the Christian ministry. By this expression the writer means, not merely the narrow advocacy of a ministry which costs nothing to anybody except to the minister himself who exercises it, but the broader assertion of the right of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself to call and qualify whom He will to testify of Him; and of the called disciple to yield to and exercise his gifts and calling, without any of those artificial distinctions between clergy and laity which have crept, in the course of ages, into the arrangements of the visible Christian Church.

It reads like a mere truism to say that this testimony to be effective must be a practical one. It will be in vain that we advocate a principle, unless we can shew that in our practice it fulfils the end for which it is intended. No religious organization could long exist without a personal ministry. It is a Divinely enunciated principle that “faith cometh by hearing.” “How shall (men) believe on Him of whom they have not heard, and how shall they hear without a preacher?” (Rom x. 14-17). Since the great Pentecost of Acts ii., the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been the instrument employed for the gathering and maintenance of the Christian Church. It is so still.

One of the strongest evidences of the Divine origin, and therefore of the truth of Christianity, lies in its adaptation to the spiritual needs of mankind in all ages, and under all degrees and conditions of civilization. The world is marching on. Every successive generation is the inheritor of the wisdom and knowledge possessed by the generations that have preceded it. To thoughtful Christians of every age the question will present itself, whether the prevailing arrangements as regards to the service of the Gospel are such as are adapted to the present condition, and needs. The way of salvation never varies. The “Old, old story” of the love of God to man, manifested in the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ, knows no change, and needs no adorning; but men’s thoughts about it from time to time ebb and flow. In order that God’s message to man may reach him and be effectual, it must find him just where he is. The preacher, charged with the precious message from God, must seek his hearers at their own standpoint, and place himself in a position to understand their difficulties in order to be able to shew them how thoroughly God’s method meets their case.

In an age like the present, when everything is being called into question, from the highest to the lowest, and when, in place of that true conviction of a former day, that the highest attainment of human wisdom was to submit itself to the revelation of Himself made by the Infinite God, many of our leading thinkers have landed themselves in the dismal dogma that it is impossible for man to know anything about God, there is surely a crying need for a clear outspoken testimony by living witnesses who have themselves been plucked “out of the horrible pit and the miry clay,” and in whose hearts is found the “new song,” to the power of Christ to put away sin, to dispel darkness, to confer new life and to bestow “the peace of God that passeth all understanding.”

It may be laid down I think as a truth, that the ministry which is to accomplish this end must be, first of all, one that is full of the Holy Ghost and of faith; one that is instructed unto the Kingdom of God; that bringeth forth out of the treasury things new and old; that knows how to bring forth fruit in its proper season; that can offer milk to babes, and strong meat to those who are of full age; and avoid the error which the Saviour rebuked when He said, “Neither cast ye your pearls before swine.”

It can hardly be otherwise than a pertinent inquiry for us, as members of the Society of Friends at the present day, whether the ministry now exercised amongst us fulfils such conditions as these.

I am glad to find that the Yearly Meeting on Ministry and Oversight gave some attention to it at its recent gathering, resulting, no doubt, in the valuable paragraphs contained in the annual epistle.

As one who was not privileged to be present there, but who, now almost in the sunset period of life, and debarred from much personal service, feels an undiminished interest in this important subject, I propose, if the editor of THE FRIEND permits me the use of his columns for that purpose, to pursue it a little further in some future letters.

Joseph John Dymond.
Ilkley, June, 1892

Part 2 of this series is here.

Exhort One Another Daily

2010-05-17T17:25:00.000-07:00

I was reading one of George Fox's epistles (#22) last night and I came across this lovely sentence:

Dear Friends, watch over one another in love, and stir up that which is pure in one another, and exhort one another daily.

What is it that keeps us from doing this? Are we shy? Are we culturally conditioned to keep such matters to ourselves? I want a spiritual community where this kind of thing is welcomed!

A Quote From Isaac Penington

2010-04-28T04:57:00.000-07:00

I read this the other night in Selections from the Works of Isaac Penington:

The main thing in religion is to receive a principle of life from God, whereby the mind may be changed, and the heart made able to understand the mysteries of his kingdom, and to see and walk in the way of life; and this is the travail of the souls of the righteous, that they may abide, grow up, and walk with the Lord in this principle; and that others also, who breathe after him, may be gathered into, and feel the virtue of the same principle.

I parallels writings of George Fox, such as this one from epistle 33:

Therefore, ye believers in the light, wait in the wisdom, that with it and in it ye may be ordered to the glory of God, that among you nothing may reign, but light, and life, and wisdom, and power, the dread and fear of the Lord be among you, and truth and righteousness reign; which will answer the light of Christ in every man.

Penington has a soft, poetic way of expressing the life in the Spirit, while Fox tends to be more direct. I find both to be helpful.

A little bit of physics

2010-03-07T11:03:00.000-08:00

You may have learned about kinetic and potential energy in high school. Basically, potential energy is energy waiting to be released - sort of the possibility of something happening, while kinetic energy is the energy of motion. The classic example I remember is that of a book sitting on a table. While it is just sitting there, it possesses potential energy. When the book is knocked off the table, the potential energy is converted into kinetic energy by its falling, as well as into other kinds of energy.

I thought about these kinds of energy this morning in meeting when someone talked about "looking for 'that of God' in others". I wonder if what people are looking for is more "kinetic that-of-God" - some sign of God's activity in a person, some spark of goodness to latch on to. I think we should worry more about the "potential that-of-God", the ability within every one of us to commune with God, to be transformed into the image of Christ, and to do what God asks of us.

Where we might unleash a book's kinetic energy by knocking it off a table, we can help to unleash a person's kinetic that-of-God by answering that of God within them, not by just looking for it. When our speech and actions are Spirit-led, when we aren't guided our ego, our fears, our desire to control things, we can reach the potential that-of-God in another person so that they might come to be guided by that same Spirit.

As I look around my living room, it is mostly still (the cats must be napping). Yet, there is potential energy everywhere. As we look at the world, and have trouble seeing the good amidst the greed, hatred, and suffering, we should remember the potential that-of-God in everyone, and that we are called to answer it.

Great Expectations

2010-01-19T16:48:00.000-08:00

I had to get some lab tests this morning and as I was leaving the nurse commented that she liked it that I am "a man of few words". Sadly, it is more a function of my being introverted than it is of being wise. As I left, I was thinking about the bible verse that says "let your words be few" (Eccl. 5:2), but I couldn't remember where was, so when I got to my computer I googled, and came across and article with the title"Let Your Words Be Few". Before I finished reading, I glanced down to the bottom to read about the author, who is an Evangelical Christian and a candidate for a PhD in Theology. I didn't realize it at first, but I subconsciously shifted my expectation of what I would read. I was expecting a disagreement, that I would find something that just rubbed me the wrong way. But I didn't, and I really liked his reference to James' writing about the tongue and the mayhem it causes, and Jesus' words about good people drawing from the good things in their hearts.

What really struck me, though, was my own poor expectation. Why, in reading just a few words about this person, was I willing to ascribe various attitudes to him. Why could I not just hear a fellow Christian relate his journey in Christ without expecting something disagreeable? Very often, we find what we expect to find. If we expect to find something agreeable, we latch onto those agreeable things and gloss over the disagreeable ones. Likewise, if we expect the worst, we latch onto the bad things and overlook the good.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things and endures all things. If I am not listening to others with belief and hope, I am not listening with love.

Friendly Bible Study in Woodland, NC

2009-10-26T15:53:00.000-07:00

I spent the weekend in Woodland, NC for the tenth month Representative Body meeting of North Carolina Yearly Meeting Conservative. On first day morning, we had a Friendly bible study before meeting for worship. Rich Square Friends have a simple form of bible study in which someone reads some verses aloud and then they wait for reflections to arise. This is different from the Friends' tradition of bible reading in which Friends sit together and read the bible, sharing with the group as they feel led, but not inviting reflection on the text.

Rich Square Friends use the Revised Common Lectionary as the source of the week's verses. I have often thought that it would be good for Friends to at least be familiar with the lectionary readings so that they had some sense of what other folks may have read that weekend in their church. This may give opportunities for discussion and open new avenues for ministry. I see it as a way of preparing the ground.

At times I felt almost giddy during the bible study because it felt so special to have this communal sharing of bible study, and at many different levels. Some Friends were very familiar with the bible, others were not. Some had insights into the particular historical and cultural context of the readings, while others offered real life experiences that reflected on the text. It was beautiful that Friends felt open to discuss their difficulties with various verses, and there was an indescribable way in which these difficulties felt like they belonged to all of us. It felt like the unity of the body of Christ that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 12:24-26:

But God has combined the various parts of the body, giving special honour to the humbler parts, so that there might be no division in the body, but that all its parts might feel the same concern for one another. If one part suffers, all suffer together; if one flourishes, all rejoice together.

Every time I have done this form of bible study with Rich Square Friends it has been a deep, and wonderful experience.

Some Thoughts on the Nobel Peace Prize

2009-10-12T16:04:00.000-07:00

I saw some e-mails recently on a mailing list that were proclaiming great joy over Barack Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize. The general tone of the messages felt to me like anyone who didn't agree with the choice didn't understand, or didn't pay attention, or didn't read the committee's statement. In fact, even after I posted a message expressing my trouble with this attitude, another Friend posted a message suggesting that anyone who questions the prize isn't paying attention.

It is not my intention to argue one way or another, but to suggest that when we are unwilling to accept that people may actual have a rational basis to disagree with us, we are sowing seeds of war. Paul wrote that "We are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places." I think we should take this as a reminder that we are not fighting other people - that we should be careful not to personalize things, nor should we lump people into groups such that they lose their identity. When faced with a disagreement, we should sink down to the Seed and seek guidance from God. Perhaps some things are not worth arguing over, or perhaps there are lessons we need to learn. Perhaps we are even wrong.

I have also seen some Friends mention the AFSC / FSC Nobel Peace Prize in 1947, as if it makes us experts in the awarding of the prize. As I settled into worship yesterday, I felt led to read from First John, and I encountered this verse:

For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are of this world.

I took this as a reminder that we shouldn't be looking to other people for validation of what we do, but we should be attentive to God for validation. Sooner or later, the life of the Kingdom of Heaven threatens worldly comfort zones, and people (including us) may become defensive. Instead of being concerned with worldly prizes, we should be saying something similar to Paul when he said "I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us."

Love Freely Received, Love Freely Given

2009-09-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

I am back from my first residency at the School of the Spirit "On Being a Spiritual Nurturer" program. It was a wonderful experience, that seemed very daunting for the first day or so. My Koinonia group walked the labyrinth the day we first met together, and unlike previous experiences with a labyrinth, I found it very comfortable and it really allowed me to slow down and listen. I ended up spending about an hour every morning walking the labyrinth at a very slow pace.

Every so often on the labyrinth there were little stones with messages on them, one of which was "Love Freely Received, Love Freely Given". While I had seen this stone a number of times, something was opened in me on first day morning.

Usually when I see that phrase, I skip right to the "Love Freely Given" part, and I suspect many or most of us do. I think we want to picture ourselves in the place of giving. When we read about Jesus washing the feet of the disciples, do we tend to see ourselves in Jesus' place, or in the disciples place?

It seems hard to put ourselves in a position to receive love freely, without any obligation. Is it even possibly to truly give love freely without the love being freely received? If I do something out of love for someone else who then feels an obligation to me, then the love wasn't really free for that person, even though I expect nothing in return (assuming I am truly giving love that way). I need to learn to accept love that is freely given, without any worry about what I need to do for that person, or whether I am deserving of it, or whether it somehow means I am a helpless person.

The act of receiving love freely is also an act of giving love freely - I am allowing someone else to express their love towards me with total openness. Likewise, truly giving love freely is also an act of freely receiving the other person's gift of acceptance of that love.

Since this past first day, some lyrics from the B. B. King song "I Like to Live the Love" have been going through my head:

Every man or woman
Enjoys going home
To a peaceful situation
To give love
And receive love
Without any complications

My prayer for us as a religious body is that we learn to give love and receive love without any complications.

Idolatry

2009-09-13T16:11:00.000-07:00

I have been reading Incidents Illustrating the Doctrines and History of the Society of Friends and in the section on worldliness I found this story:

When John Churchman and John Browning were travelling in Talbot County, Md., an elderly man asked them if they saw some posts standing, pointing to them, and added, the first meeting George Fox had on this side of Chesapeake Bay was held in a tobacco-house there, which was then new, the posts that were standing were made of walnut; at which J. B. rode to them, and sat on his horse very still and quiet; then returning again with more speed than he went, J. C. asking him what he saw among those old posts, he answered:

I would not have missed of what I saw for five pounds; for I saw the root and grounds of idolatry. Before I went, I thought perhaps I might have felt some secret virtue in the place where George Fox had stood and preached, whom I believe to be a good man; but whilst I stood there, I was secretly informed, that if George Fox was a good man, he was in heaven, and not there, and virtue is not to be communicated by dead things, whether posts, earth, or curious pictures, but by the power of God, who is the Fountain of living virtue.

I think there are a lot of things in addition to posts, earth, or curious pictures that we substitute for the power of God. Sometimes we substitute ideas, or particular practices, or a desire to be identified with a particular group of people. Lately I have found myself letting go of particular ideas when they are taken on their own, but holding onto them in relation to experiencing God. Perhaps they are like the old posts. They once stood and held up a building in which Friends met, but by themselves, they are just pieces of wood.

I have found myself wondering how much of Meeting for Worship has become an idol. Do we come to meeting because of the silence, or because of our encounter with God? Are we silent because we are giving control to God, or because "that is what we do in meeting"? Is it most important that a message is Spirit-led, or that it is not too long, doesn't use icky words, and comes from a speaker who doesn't speak every week?

Perhaps there are ways in which the testimonies have become idols, or even Quakerism itself. I think it is helpful for us to look at why things are important to us, and whether there is Life in those things.

Conversation from the Heartland

2009-09-04T14:32:00.000-07:00

I will be starting the School of the Spirit "On Being a Spiritual Nurturer" program in less than two weeks. Before each residency we have a number of readings. My wife Ceal was in the previous class, so I am familiar with a number of these readings, and one in particular I was very happy to read again - Conversations from the Heartland from the 10/2006 Friends Journal.

Kat Griffith tells the story of her living room conversations with some other home-schooling moms, most of which would be considered members of the "Religious Right". In these conversations, Kat learned much about them, and about herself.

I find this article particularly appropriate right now with all the rancor about health care. Someone in California recently had part of his finger bitten off by a demonstrator. About once a week I go out for Indian food with some co-workers and over the past month we have spent much of the time discussing health care. We have an interesting mix of liberal, conservative, and libertarian viewpoints, and the conversation is remarkably civil - maybe a little animated, but we tend to talk about the issues and not so much about each others' attitudes. I occasionally try to inject a religious aspect into it, and that has been interesting. I have had difficulty making the leap from "whatever you have done for the least of these my brothers and sisters, you have done it for me" to making it the government's job. It is not that I mind paying taxes to help others, but that I can't reconcile forcing others to do the same.

In her article, Kat Griffith found that while she had initially made assumptions about people on the "Religious Right", she found they had varying opinions on particular issues. How welcoming are we of different opinions?

Earnestly Desiring Gifts

2009-09-01T16:14:00.001-07:00

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul talks about various spiritual gifts - prophecy, wisdom, knowledge, healing, etc., and at the end, he says "you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts." I have always read that passage in the context of an individual, that is, each of you should desire these gifts. But, what about the community as a whole? Do we earnestly desire that those among us will be given the gift of prophecy (that is, do we want God to speak through others to us), or that others will be gifted with discernment, or the ability to heal?

Christ as Savior

2009-08-10T18:01:00.000-07:00

There has been some discussion lately about Jon Watt's video of "Friends Speaks My Mind", especially around the lines:

I'm not a Christian,
But I'm a Quaker,
I've got Christ's Inner Light
But he's not my savior

I was a little uneasy when I first heard this song, and a little more concerned when a couple of young Friends missed the distinction and thought it was saying "I'm not a Christian, I'm a Quaker". Even so, I enjoyed Jon's concert very much (he came to perform for the Southern Appalachian Young Friends in Asheville), and enjoyed meeting him.

As I mentioned in a comment on Jon's blog, my reaction to questions like "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior?" is often to ask what the person means by that question. One could very well ask about the meaning when someone who declares "I've got Christ's Inner Light but he's not my savior".

Since Jon's song also contains the phrase "but don't blame Elias Hicks for all our problems", I thought it would be interesting to see if Elias Hicks wrote about Christ as Savior. I found a good description on page 304 of Elias Hicks' Journal. I think it illustrates the way the idea of a savior was internalized, and fits well with George Fox's description of how the Light helps you to resist temptation. Hicks wrote:

First day, the 6th of 7th month. Soon after I took my seat in our meeting to-day, my mind was opened into a view of the great need man stands in of a Saviour, and that nothing can give him so full and lively a sense thereof, as a true sight and sense of his own real condition; by which he is not only brought to see the real want of a Saviour, but is also shown thereby, what kind of a Saviour he needs. For it must not only be one, who is continually present, but who is possessed of a prescience sufficient to see, at all times, all man's enemies, and every temptation that may or can await him; and have power sufficient to defend him from all, and at all times. Therefore, such a Saviour as man wants, cannot be one without him, but must be one that is always present, just in the very place man's enemies assault him, which is within, in the very temple of the heart: as no other Saviour but such an one, who takes his residence in the very centre of the soul of man, can possibly produce salvation to him: hence, for man to look for a Saviour or salvation any where else, than in the very centre of his own soul, is a fatal mistake, and must consequently land him in disappointment and errour.

I realize that the above paragraph does not mention Christ, but elsewhere in Hick's journal (p. 330) he does make it clear that he considers Christ in this role. That's not what I wanted to emphasize, though. As I have written before, Friends experienced a transformation from the Light, in which their sins were shown to them, and the desire to do those things was driven out. I believe that is what Hicks is saying here - the Light is saving you from your sin by removing the desire to sin.

I acknowledge that there are other meanings ascribed to "Savior", in terms of atonement and such, but, it seems to me like the transformative meaning is very powerful, and something that can be readily experienced. Shouldn't this be something we desire instead of deny?

Fighting My Enemies

2009-08-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

I have been listening to the bible during my drive home from work, starting from Genesis. I remember discussing the bible with a Friend from my meeting and he told me he really didn't get anything out of it, especially not the Hebrew bible (i.e. the "Old Testament"). His characterization of it was based on the many battles and accounts of whole towns and villages being destroyed. I have to admit that I find those passages very difficult as well, even though I don't think of them as God telling us we should do the same.

The Bhagavad Gita takes place in the middle of a battlefield where the opposing armies (I think they were all from the same family) are about to do battle. There are some interpreters (including Gandhi) who take the whole war as an allegory - that it is about the battle that takes place in the soul. I had that same feeling of an allegory when listening to a passage from 2 Samuel 22.

The passage is a song of David praising God for giving him victory over his enemies. There was a section that reminded me very much of some of the experiences of strengthening I read in the journals of early Friends:

God is my strong fortress,
and he makes my way perfect.
He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
enabling me to stand on mountain heights.
He trains my hands for battle;
he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow.
You have given me your shield of victory;
your help has made me great.
You have made a wide path for my feet
to keep them from slipping. (2 Samuel 22:33-37 NLTse)

This passage struck me as one of giving me inward strength, and I felt that spring of joy and hope that I feel whenever I read George Fox's account of recovering from a beating where he says "the power of the Lord sprang through me, and the eternal refreshings revived me; so that I stood up again in the strengthening power of the eternal God and stretching out my arms amongst them, I said, with a loud voice, 'Strike again; here are my arms, my head, and my cheeks.'"

With that echoing in my mind, the passage continued into David's thanks for being able to defeat his enemies. Normally, this would have been one of those difficult passages that I would be glad to get through, but today, it spoke to me in the context of those things I do wrong, especially those that I know I shouldn't do - those being the enemies:

I chased my enemies and destroyed them;
I did not stop until they were conquered.
I consumed them;
I struck them down so they did not get up;
they fell beneath my feet.
You have armed me with strength for the battle;
you have subdued my enemies under my feet.
You placed my foot on their necks.
I have destroyed all who hated me.
They looked for help, but no one came to their rescue.
They even cried to the LORD, but he refused to answer.
I ground them as fine as the dust of the earth;
I trampled them in the gutter like dirt. (2 Samuel 22:38-43 NLTse)

I was surprise to find this such an inspiring passage, because today it spoke to me of the hope of the transforming power of the Holy Spirit - ever so gradually working on my soul, changing the way I live. Those aspects of myself that are jealous, conceited, angry, uncaring, lazy - those things can be trampled in the gutter like dirt.

Mary and Martha Revisited

2009-07-16T15:42:00.000-07:00

I blogged about the story of Mary and Martha almost 4 years ago, and at the time, I wrote about Mary and Martha representing the balance between inward and outward activity. I had a somewhat different view of that story during the recent NCYM-C bible study. If you are unfamiliar with the story, it is in Luke 10:38-42 and goes like this:

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”

But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” (NLTse)

The theme of the bible study was "The Bible as a Compass", since the overall theme of the yearly meeting was "Which Way Now?" and Brent Bill (author of "The Sacred Compass") was the plenary speaker on 6th-day evening. In the bible study, we looked at various passages in the bible according to 5 different categories. The first two categories were something like "Ideals, Goals, Highest Aspirations" and "Distractions, Detours, and Dead-Ends". I brought up the story of Mary and Martha as straddling those two categories - Mary was fulfilling her highest aspirations by sitting at the feet of Jesus and being taught, while Martha was distracted.

When I said "Martha was distracted", one very dear Friend turned to me and pleaded Martha's case saying "she was busy". If one looks at the story as balancing inward vs. outward action then my simple characterization of Martha as "distracted" would be rather unfair. But I think instead that Martha serves as a warning to not let our busyness get in the way of our listening to the teaching of the Inward Christ. That isn't to say that action is a bad thing, but that it should come as a result of the leadings of the Spirit - and that we shouldn't mistake "doing something" for "doing what we are meant to do".

My Fourth Trip to NCYM-C

2009-07-11T14:06:00.000-07:00

This was the fourth time attending the annual gathering of the North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative). I originally wrote "visiting" in the previous sentence, but we certainly don't feel like visitors, we are always treated like family members. As I mentioned previously, we had to come home early, so we missed a number of exciting happenings, such as the consideration of Davidson Friend Meeting for membership, the choosing of a new clerk, Brent Bill's plenary address, and the closing worship.

Before we left home, I had remarked that while I was initially so overjoyed at the freedom of being around other Quakers who embrace their Christianity so openly, I am finding that what really makes the difference for me is the intentionality of this group. I noticed this particularly in the ministry offered during the many worship opportunities.

Friends, as a religious group, seem to be more active than a lot of groups. I know that Friends at NCYM-C are involved in many causes - Earth care, peacemaking, social concerns. The intentionality comes into play in that these causes don't tend to dominate worship. It isn't just that these Friends understand that the actions come as a result of the leadings of the Holy Spirit, but that they understand that worship is the place where we corporately deepen our relationship to God so that we are able to respond faithfully to whatever it is we are called to do. Much of the ministry is centered around our faithfulness to God, around hearing what we are being asked to do, and very little to do with what someone heard on NPR yesterday, or about particular bills coming up in Congress. Yes, people have those concerns, but they are willing to lay them aside until the time comes to take them up again. You get the sense that the reason these people are here together is not because they have found people who share common concerns and ideals. They are here to commune with God together, not as individuals, but as one body united in and through God.

Coming home early was extremely difficult, it is as if I can feel the yearly meeting going on, and I have an overwhelming longing to be there. I hope it will pass when the meeting concludes tomorrow. I do still feel a peaceful calm that is very sweet. I also came home with a great quote, courtesy of Jeff Ginsberg (via her husband Eric) "Are you listening, or are you just waiting to speak?"

Home Early From NCYM-C

2009-07-11T05:43:00.000-07:00

Ceal and I had to come back early from North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative). We brought two of our granddaughters with us this year - Christina and Samantha. Last weekend, three of Samantha's friends were in a car wreck. One of them, Patrick, was in a coma. Initially the doctors seemed pretty optimistic about his recovery, but thursday night Samantha got word that Patrick's brain wasn't functioning and that they were going to take him off life support. She felt she needed to be back here, so we left after lunch on friday. Within a few minutes of getting home, Samantha was already heading up the street to check on one of the others who was in the wreck and was taking it very hard.

I wrote last year about the tender nurturing we received at NCYM-C when we learned of the death of one of the teens from the SAYF program. That same nurturing enveloped Samantha and Christina this year within minutes. Many people in the cafeteria saw Samantha crying in my arms and came to help, getting them some food to go, and then coming back with us to the dorm. Mary Miller sat and talked with them while I went to find Ceal. She also checked on them from time to time. There were many others providing support in various ways.

I know this is insignificant compared to the pain Patrick's family and friends are going through, but it was heartbreaking to wake up this morning and not be at NCYM-C. I want to cry.

Bible Translations

2009-06-29T13:41:00.000-07:00

There is an interesting tradeoff in bible translation that cropped up again for me today. Some bible translations tend toward being more literal - trying to translate word for word what the original text says. Others adopt a more dynamic approach, trying to convey the meaning of the text while not always being word-for-word (it might be described as thought-for-thought). I used to prefer the more literal translations, but one of the problems there is that the closer you get to the original text, the more you need to know about the original culture, and it is very easy to miss the significance of passages. Another problem, of course, is that the word order and grammar of Hebrew and Greek is quite different from English, so the closer you get to a word-for-word translation, the more stilted the English sounds.

Lately, I have been enjoying the New Living Translation (NLT), because it tries to use English as it is spoken today. Many translations end up with a style of English that is rarely spoken, although it is still grammatically correct. For some people, it feels more like "biblish" - a separate language that is spoken by those in-the-know. I don't believe the original texts felt this way to the hearers, and the King James bible probably still sounded pretty natural to early Friends. I have felt lately that for some people, hearing the bible in a more natural sounding form of English may help lower some of the barriers that might otherwise come up in the presence of such a different usage of English. I also think there is a temptation to think that speaking differently is an indication that the words are inspired. I know some people may feel a special connection when they hear a traditional rendering of a passage - my mom is this way about the traditional King James readings at Christmas time, but, I believe that it isn't the grammatical form of the words that is the important thing - it is that they are spoken from the Spirit. This works both ways - the biblish-sounding words can still reach people for whom they sound alien if they are spoken from the Spirit. But, people still have the choice of whether to listen or not - I think it helps to navigate around some of the barriers people may put up.

While the literal approach has the problem of not conveying enough context, the dynamic approach has the problem of conveying too much. That is, if there are multiple ways to read a text, a translation might not convey the various options. I ran into this today with the NLT in its translation of 2 Peter 1:19, which reads:

Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts.

The NET bible translates it this way:

Moreover, we possess the prophetic word as an altogether reliable thing. You do well if you pay attention to this as you would to a light shining in a murky place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

The King James Version reads:

We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Notice that the NLT has taken the "prophetic word" or "word of prophecy" and turned it into "the message proclaimed by the prophets". I think this is probably the typical protestant interpretation of this passage, but for Friends, possessing the prophetic word is not having the scriptures available, but being able to speak the prophetic word directly by the Spirit. I believe the NLT version of this verse does not allow for that interpretation, while other translations do, and I believe the Greek text allows it as well.

In his journal, George Fox relates an encounter with a priest in Nottingham that illustrates how Fox interpreted this particular passage:

When I came there all the people looked like fallow ground, and the priest, like a great lump of earth, stood in his pulpit above: he took for his text these words of Peter, "We have also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto ye do well that he take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts." He told the people this was the scriptures, by which they were to try all doctrines, religions, and opinions. Now the Lord's power was so mighty upon me, and so strong in me, that I could not hold; but was made to cry out, "Oh! no, it is not the scriptures;" and told them what it was, namely, the holy spirit, by which the holy men of God gave forth the scriptures, whereby opinions, religions, and judgments were to be tried; for it led into all truth, and so gave the knowledge of all truth.

As Friends, I think we need to be especially aware that our understanding of the bible often differs from the traditional protestant view, and that despite the best efforts of the translators, various bible translations do tend to carry along the doctrinal views of the translators. While we must still rely on the Holy Spirit for illumination of the text, I think it helps if the text does reflect the original inspired message.

What's wrong with evangelism?

2009-06-19T15:32:00.000-07:00

You don't have to read much of the writings of early Friends to see that evangelism was an integral part of their life. Since "evangelism" is an overloaded term, let me explain what I am talking about. The word "evangelism" derives from the Greek word εὐαγγέλιον (EUANGELLION) which means "Good News". The word "gospel" means the same thing, coming from the Old English form of "good story/message". For Friends, the gospel was not simply a message because they understood by experience Paul's description of the gospel as "the power of God unto salvation". Preaching the gospel was Spirit-led, Spirit-filled preaching that awakened people to the Light of Christ within them - to turn them from darkness to light (a phrase from Paul that George Fox often quoted).

I would guess that many modern Friends are very uncomfortable with the idea of evangelism, and perhaps for a number of different reasons. If this does make you uncomfortable, why? Maybe you could ask yourself that and sit with it before reading further.

These are some of the potential objections that come to my mind:

Religion is a personal thing, I don't want to push it on anyone

Friends don't proselytize

I don't want to be like those other religious groups

It is disrespectful of other religions

I'm afraid/embarassed

I would like to hear of others. The reason I am bringing this up is to contrast it with our attitude towards the political process. By using the political process to do the things we think need doing, we are essentially imposing our will upon those who don't have enough votes. While one's religion is a matter of choice, and with Friends it has always been a matter of the individual making the choice to turn towards the Light, in the political arena, the minority doesn't really have a choice. The voice of the majority is backed by the law enforcement of the United States government (or whatever country you may be in). While I was at SAYMA last week, I heard Friends talking about our "window of opportunity" to get things done before the congressional elections start next year. I heard discussions about the effective ways to contact various government representatives, and about lobbying at the state level in addition to the national level. Why can't we also have discussions about opportunities to spread the Good News? Why don't we hear more statements like "many were convinced", as George Fox wrote numerous times in his journal?

Ceal and I had a long discussion about this one evening, and she asked me what someone could have said to me when I was 20 that would have reached me. I have to admit that I don't know. But, I also understand that it isn't the words themselves that are the important thing, but that they are spoken from the Spirit. Early Friends often spoke of their being a power behind their words, and I believe that power could have reached me, too.

No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket.

For the beauty of the earth

2009-06-15T17:49:00.000-07:00

We were at the SAYMA (Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting & Association) annual gathering this past weekend. On first day morning, I was walking up the road to get our van from the parking lot. I wasn't aware of how busy my mind was, just thinking of what we needed to do that day. Suddenly, as I walked past one of the most beautiful views on the campus, I became aware of the quiet beauty of the mountains and the rich, lively green of the trees, bushes, and grass. I felt a stillness come over me that was such a contrast to what I had just been feeling.

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 7

2009-06-15T16:17:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of a previous post.

Friends experienced feelings of peace and a sense of divine love through the Light. John Gratton wrote that “The sense of his love, and the experience which I have of his goodness, tenders my poor heart, and bows my spirit before him; and I hope you partake with me, and will also feel with me beyond words or writings.” This divine aspect of love was also felt between one another. Elizabeth Chester wrote of her husband Edward:

He would often say, he felt more of the love of God than he could express, and he much desired stillness and retirement, saying, he knew the worth of a quiet habitation. I felt him in that love of God, which surpasses the love of all things here below, in which we were joined together by the Lord

Isaac Penington wrote than when some Quakers ﬁrst reached that of God within him, it stirred up love towards those Friends:

As I remember, at the very ﬁrst, they reached to the life of God in me, which life answered their voice, and caused a great love in me to spring to them ... And this was the eﬀect of almost every discourse with them; they still reached my heart, and I felt them in the secrets of my soul; which caused the love in me always to continue, yea, sometimes to increase towards them

Stephen Grellet wrote of divine love enabling him to speak to others:

I proceeded in it in much lowness of spirit, keeping close to my heavenly guide. He so condescended to me, that on coming into a family, a feeling of Divine love clothing me, I was enable to communicate my concern for them, so as, in many instances, to reach the witness for Truth in their hearts. Many of these opportunities were favoured seasons, and proved visitations of love and mercy to the people. Most of them received us, and our books, with tears of gratitude.

Friends found that dwelling in the Light gave them a peace that was contrary to the spirit of war. George Fox often said that it took away the occasion of all war, as he does here:

for dwelling in the word, it takes away the occasion of wars, and gathers our hearts together to God, and unto one another, and brings to the beginning, before wars were

Friends also felt a peace in doing what they were led to do. John Woolman wrote:

As I was favored to keep to the root, and endeavor to discharge what I believed was required of me, I found inward peace therein, from time to time, and thankfulness of heart to the Lord, who was graciously pleased to be a guide to me.

Friends experienced a sense of peace and love from the Light unlike anything they knew of. John Gratton wrote:

And Oh the peace that ﬂowed in my heart! as Christ promised, not as the world giveth, who cry peace, peace, when there is no peace at all experienced. But, praises to the God of my life, his peace hath he given to me and many thousands in this day; that peace the world does not know, neither can they take it away from us, glory to the Highest for ever. Oh! the love and life that ﬂows here, and springs from the Fountain of living waters, in whom all our fresh springs are. Feel it reader, in thyself, hast thou not seen it gush out of thy rocky heart?

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 6

2009-06-15T16:08:00.000-07:00

This is a contination of a previous post.

One of the most fascinating experiences of Friends has been that of leadings – especially those that seem unexpected or out of place. George Fox relates a story in which he was led to take oﬀ his shoes in the middle of winter and proclaim against the city of Lichﬁeld until he felt clear and was able to leave:

As soon as they were gone I stept away, and went by my eye over hedge and ditch till I came within a mile of Lichﬁeld; where, in a great ﬁeld, shepherds were keeping their sheep. Then I was commanded by the Lord to pull oﬀ my shoes. I stood still for it was winter; and the word of the Lord was like a ﬁre in me. So I put oﬀ my shoes, and left them with the shepherds; and the poor shepherds trembled, and were astonished. Then I walked on about a mile, and as soon as I was got within the city, the word of the Lord came to me again, saying, “Cry, wo to the bloody city of Lichﬁeld!” So I went up and down the streets, crying with a loud voice, “wo to the bloody city of Lichﬁeld!” It being market day, I went into the market place, and to and fro in the several parts of it, and made stands, crying as before, “wo to the bloody city of Lichﬁeld!” And no one laid hands on me. As I went thus crying through the streets, there seemed to me to be a channel of blood running down the streets, and the market place appeared like a pool of blood. When I had declared what was upon me, and felt myself clear, I went out of the town in peace;

Stephen Grellet relates a well-known story of a man who felt led to worship alone in an abandoned meeting house:

The following interesting circumstance was there related to me by John Carter, a near relative of the Friend who had been an instrument in raising up that meeting from a decayed state, and on that account had called it Spring meeting. A number of years ago, it had become much reduced, through the unfaithfulness of some of its members, and the death of others. A young man of the name of Carter became religiously inclined, so as to feel disposed to open the meeting house, and to repair there, though alone, on meeting days. He had continued to do so for some time, when one day, a great exercise came upon him, to stand up and audibly to proclaim what he then felt to be on his mind, of the love of God, through Jesus Christ, towards poor sinful man. It was a great trial of his faith, for nothing but empty benches were before him. He yielded, however, to the apprehended duty, when, shortly after having again taken his seat, several young men came into the house, in a serious manner, and sat down in silence by him. Some of them evincing brokenness of heart. After the meeting closed, he found that these young men, his former associates, wondering what could induce him thus to come alone to that house, had come softly to look through the cracks of the door at what he was doing, when they were so reached by what he loudly declared, that they came in. Some of them continued to meet with him, and became valuable Friends. The meeting increased by degrees to the size it now is.

While Friends were often led by immediate insights, at other times they felt a concern pressing upon them as a weight, which seemed to grow heavier. This was often referred to as being under the “weight of a concern”. If Friends ignored this concern, or willfully disobeyed it, the weight would continue to increase until they could bear it no longer. David Hall writes of one such incident of unfaithfulness in his journal:

For on the 22nd of the same ninth month, a great weight seized me, to go through the town of Skipton, and call the inhabitants thereof to repentance, which concern and burthen grew heavier and heavier towards the middle part of that day, so that I could rest in no place; however, keeping it to myself, I went to meeting, it being our week-day meeting, where I was in great distress, having not given up to the concern. After meeting I returned home, and remained under the same anxiety of soul. Next morning came, and the same concern fell again weightily upon me, growing heavier and heavier, as before, insomuch, that I went out of the school into a place apart to crave the Lord’s assistance in the discharge of my duty. The weight growing intolerable, I privately laid the matter before my father, who, at the hearing thereof, broke out into tears, and calling my mother into the parlour, acquainted her therewith, whereupon she fell upon her knees in humiliation before the Lord, to implore his aid; and at her rising up she encouraged me, saying, – Be not cast down. We all three wept.

Friends often found that they had insights into another’s spiritual condition. As George Fox described it: “The Lord hath given me a spirit of discerning, by which I many times saw the states and conditions of people, and could try their spirits.” He relates many of these kinds of experiences in his journal, such as this one:

There came also at another time a woman, and stood at a distance from me. I cast mine eye upon her, and said, “Thou hast been a harlot,” for I perfectly saw the condition and life of the woman. She answered, many could tell her of her outward sins, but none could tell her of her inward. Then I told her, her heart was not right before the Lord; and that from the inward came the outward. This woman was afterwards convinced of God’s truth, and became a Friend.

Stephen Grellet relates the story of Comfort Hoag, who, in the midst of sailing for Europe, had a revelation that they would be returning to America:

About forty years ago, Comfort Collins, then a Hoag, having surrendered herself and her all to the Divine will, under a sense of duty to go to England on religious service, with the unity of her friends, embarked for Europe, accompanied by Sarah Barney. After they had been out at sea about a week, as they were sitting together in the cabin, in solemn silence before the Lord, Comfort said to Sarah, “The Lord has accepted my free-will oﬀering to his Divine will to go to Europe, and now he releases me from this service; and, as a proof of it, he will bring us back again to the American shores.” Sarah Barney told me that the communication was attended with so much solemnity, that she could not doubt that it was of the Lord. Without exchanging a word with one another, they continued a considerable time in silence, when they heard the captain of the ship speaking with his trumpet to another ship, stating that he was under the necessity of returning to port, as his vessel had sprung a leak, which the Friends knew not before. Thus were these women brought back, and from that time they felt themselves entirely released from the service of travelling in Europe.

William Edmundson received a revelation that he was going to be robbed:

About this time a singular exercise fell upon William Edmundson, as he was attending a fair on business at Antrim; by which he was instructed in the beneﬁt of faithfully attending to the secret intimations of the divine Monitor, saying, “this is the way, walk in it,” even when he might not see immediately the intention of the Almighty in thus leading him by a way that he knew not. Returning with his brother late from the fair, they proposed to lodge at Glenavy, six miles on their way homeward; but before they arrived there, William was introduced into a great exercise of mind, accompanied with an intimation, the source of which he believed to be the divine Spirit, that his shop was in danger of being robbed that night, but that he was to go back towards Clough; and being much perplexed under the apprehension of danger to his property on the one hand if he went not home, and on the other hand not knowing wherefore he should be required to go back to Clough, he cried earnestly to the Lord, to be preserved from following a delusive spirit, and that he might be directed what course to pursue. On which he received a clear intimation, that the same power which required him to go back, would preserve his property from harm. Lodging at Glenavy, he slept but little; but in the morning, not daring to disobey so clear a command, he let his brother proceed homewards, while he went himself to Clough. On reaching his home, he found that on the night when the foregoing exercise came upon him, the shop-window was broken down by robbers, and fell with such violence on the counter as to awaken his family, and the thieves being frightened ran away. “So,” says he, “I was conﬁrmed that it was the word of the Lord, that said, ‘that which drew me back should preserve my shop;’ and I was greatly strengthened to obey the Lord in what he required; for I was much afraid, lest at any time my understanding should be betrayed by a wrong spirit; not fearing the loss of goods, nor suﬀerings for the truth, its testimony being more to me than all other things.”

Continued in Part 7.

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 5

2009-06-15T15:22:00.001-07:00

This is a continuation of a previous post.

While unity is the foundation of Quaker business meetings, it is hard to understand the idea without experiencing it. Friends wrote of “being of one mind” or being united. George Fox and others would say that their hearts had been knitted together, echoing a theme found several times in the bible. William Hunt wrote of a moving experience that evokes both tendering and unity in a way that suggests that hearts are broken in order to be united:

“sat under a cloud of thick darkness, in which he felt the mystery of iniquity work in a wonderful manner; after which the Lord, in everlasting kindness to his pained children, was pleased to raise the seed of Zion and exalt her horn in the midst of her enemies, so that we had many comfortable meetings, and our hearts were much broken and sweetly united."

Isaac Penington spoke of being knit together, and the experience of the meeting being of “one mind”:

Unity in the spiritual body, which is gathered into and knit together in the pure life, is a most natural and comely thing. Yea, it is exceeding lovely, to ﬁnd all that are of the Lord of one heart, of one mind, of one judgment, in one way of practice and order in all things,

John Burnyeat wrote of the power in meeting and how it united every one:

Thus growing into this experience of the goodness of the Lord, and of the sweetness, glory, and excellency of his power in our assemblies, we grew in strength and zeal for our meetings more and more, and valued the beneﬁt thereof more than any worldly gain; yea, it was unto some more than our appointed food. Thus continuing, we grew more and more into an understanding of divine things and heavenly mysteries, through the openings of the power which was daily amongst us, which wrought sweetly in our hearts, which united us more and more unto God, and knit us together in the perfect bond of love, of fellowship and membership.

Appearing before a New Jersey court in 1830, Samuel Bettle testiﬁed about the Quaker way of business and the unity experienced by Friends:

Our mode of deciding questions is peculiar. It is intimately connected with our religious principles and doctrines; when an individual or a religious assembly is gathered into a reverent, inward, waiting state of mind, that we are sensible at times of the presence of the invisible and omnipresent One – qualifying the heart for secret communion and approach unto God. Hence, the Society believe, and it is one of their peculiar and distinguishing doctrines that there may be secret approach to and worship of God, without any ceremonial outward act or service; and in our meetings for business, we also hold that it is needful to experience the same power to qualify us for right discernment and to restrain our own spirit and will; and we do believe that when our meetings have been thus in degree inﬂuenced, there have been wisdom and judgment better than our own; consistent with the prophetic declaration respecting the blessed Head of the Church, that “He should be a Spirit of judgment to those who sit in judgment.” With these views, and a corresponding practice, our Society has been favored to come to its decisions and conclusions at its various meetings, with a remarkable degree of harmony and unity. These conclusions, thus prevailing in a meeting, or, in other words, this sense of the meeting, is often attained to with very little expression; and the member acting in the capacity of clerk records this sense, feeling or conclusion of the meeting. And it has never been come to by a vote, or the opinion of the majority; no question is ever taken by a reference to numbers, or votes, or a ma jority, or anything like that. It is obtained upon religious principles, which we understand very well, but which it is diﬃcult to explain. We have got along in this way for near two centuries very well.

Continued in Part 6.

Sowing in Tears

2009-06-12T03:58:00.000-07:00

They who plant in tears
will harvest with shouts of joy.
They weep as they go to plant their seed,
but they sing as they return with the harvest. (Psalm 126:5-6 NLTse)

Ceal and I were sitting in prayer this morning here at SAYMA, and I suddenly had an insight about this verse. I had always thought of it as saying "you may be suffering now, but God will make it better". This morning, I understood it in the context of the humbling and tendering of the Holy Spirit, as I just recently posted about. In allowing ourselves to be brought low, and tendered, even to the point of tears, we find at the end of it, great joy in the deeper connection with God and with one another.

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 4

2009-06-05T16:47:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of a previous post.

Friends frequently wrote of being humbled by the Spirit, or that their hearts were made tender. While being humbled can be part of one’s individual transformation, it was also something that was experienced as a community. Friends frequently wrote of being humbled, tendered, or brought low, sometimes accompanied by tears.

John Churchman shared a typical description of being humbled:

That humbling time had at Flushing was of singular service to me, being thereby made willingly subject to the divine openings of truth, the motion of the eternal Spirit and pure word of life, in speaking to the several states of those who were present in the meetings, and life came into dominion, and the power thereof overshadowed at times, to my humble admiration;

John Woolman wrote often of being humbled, tendered, or brought low, and in this instance, he gives a hint of the struggles he went through:

At length, through the merciful continuance of heavenly visitations, I was made to bow down in spirit before the Lord. One evening I had spent some time in reading a pious author, and walking out alone I humbly prayed to the Lord for his help, that I might be delivered from all those vanities which so ensnared me. Thus being brought low, he helped me, and as I learned to bear the cross I felt refreshment to come from his presence, but not keeping in that strength which gave victory I lost ground again, the sense of which greatly aﬀected me.

William Savery writes of humbling in relation to the convincement of a young man:

30th. Had a meeting at George Dillwyn’s lodgings: about thirty attended, among whom were two candidates for the priest’s oﬃce; it was a humbling time, and one of these young men was much broken, and all his former fabric destroyed; he seemed like a man in amazement, that he should have found the truth in so simple a way and so unlocked for, and we endeavoured to strengthen his exercised mind.

Tears often accompanied this humbling and tendering. In his journal, Samuel Bownas wrote of observing these tears as a child:

Many Friends were in prison at Appleby for attending that meeting, whom my dear mother went to visit, taking me along with her, and we had a meeting with the prisoners, several Friends from other places being likewise there by appointment. I observed, though very young, how tender and broken they were; and I was very inquisitive of my mother, why they cried so much, and thee too, said I, why did thee? She told me that I could not understand the reason of it then, but when I grew up more to man’s estate I might.

William Sewel wrote of another account of tears, and also of the trembling and shaking, and that although some did experience trembling and shaking, Friends did not think of it as something everyone should do:

Now because in those early times, among the many adherents of this persuasion, there were some that having been people of a rude and dissolute life, came so to be pricked to the heart, that they grew true penitents, with real sorrow for their former transgressions; it happened that they at meetings did not only burst out into tears, but also were aﬀected with such a singular commotion of the mind, that some shakings of their bodies were perceived; some people naturally being more aﬀected with the passions of the mind, than others: for even anger doth transport some men so violently, that it makes them tremble; whereas others will quake with fear: and what wonder then, if some being struck with the terrors of God did tremble? But this being seen by envious men, they took occasion from thence to tell, that these professors of the light performed their worship with shaking; yet they themselves never asserted that trembling of the body was an essential part of their religion, but have occasionally said the contrary; though they did not deny themselves to be such as trembled before God; and they also did not stick to say, that all people ought to do so, however thereby not enjoining a bodily shaking.

Thomas Shilltoe writes of many being moved to tears at the close of yearly meeting:

after which the Yearly Meeting was adjourned to Short-creek meeting-house, in which not a few of our company on this solemn occasion were bathed in tears; some of the youth amongst others.

Continued in Part 5.

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 3

2009-05-31T09:22:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of a previous post.

Friends experienced a power and strength through the Light. Some of this power wasin form of transformation – the power to overcome sin. Some of this power and strengthening was in the form of healing. Many other times, it was in the form of being given the courage and ability to stand in witness to the Inward Light. In his journal, George Fox relates an amazing story of strengthening and healing:

When they had haled me to the common moss side, a multitude following, the constables, and other oﬃcers gave me some blows over my back with their willow rods, and thrust me among the rude multitude; who having furnished themselves with staves, hedge-stakes, holm or holly bushes, fell upon me, and beat me on my head, arms, and shoulders, till they had deprived me of sense; so that I fell down upon the wet common. When I recovered again. I saw myself lying in a watery common, and the people standing about me, I lay still a little while, and the power of the Lord sprang through me, and the eternal refreshings revived me; so that I stood up again in the strengthening power of the eternal God and stretching out my arms amongst them, I said, with a loud voice, “Strike again; here are my arms, my head, and my cheeks.” There was in the company a mason, a professor, but a rude fellow, who with his walking rule-staﬀ gave me a blow with all his might just over the back of my hand, as it was stretched out; with which blow my hand was so bruised, and my arm so benumbed, that I could not draw it to me again; so that some of the people cried, “He hath spoiled his hand for ever having the use of it any more.” But I looked at it in the love of God, (for I was in the love of God to them all that had persecuted me,) and after awhile the Lord’s power sprang through me again, and through my hand and arm, so that in a moment I recovered strength in my
hand and arm in the sight of them all.

The ministry of early Friends was often described in terms of power, not necessarily in terms of one being a powerful speaker, but that there was a power that accompanied the words that answered the witness of God in others. Richard Hubberthorn wrote to Margaret Fell that:

The Lord is gathering in many in this city daily; there are many meetings full and large, where there is any to declare the Truth
amongst them; and they that are great in the earth, the power of Truth shines through them, and is drawing them in daily. The priests confess that there is such a power amongst us, that none who come to us can escape; and they exhort people not to come to us.

George Fox relates several incidents in which the Lord’s power was so great that the very room seemed to tremble. In this incident, he also shows the feeling of deadness when someone else prayed outside of that power:

After this I went again to Mansﬁeld, where was a great meeting of professors and people: and I was moved to pray; and the Lord’s power was so great, that the house seemed to be shaken. When I had done, some of the professors said, “It was now as in the days of the apostles, when the house was shaken where they were.” After I had prayed, one of the professors would pray; which brought deadness and a veil over them. Others of the professors were grieved at him, and told him, “it was a temptation upon him.” Then he came to me, and desired that I would pray again; but I could not pray in man’s will.

Isaac Penington wrote that ministers “must abide in the power, keep in the power, feel the motion, virtue, and assistance of the power, in all their work and service.” He also wrote that there was strength in remembering one’s experiences of the Light:

Keep thine eye and heart upon the preciousness of what thou feltest. O remember, how fresh, how warm, how living it was; how it reached, how it overcame, how it melted! The remembrance of this, cleaved to in the mind, will be a strength against the temptations and subtle devices of the enemy.

When Friends wrote of the power of the Lord being “over all”, it often referred to the Inward Light having power over those gathered against Friends. William Edmundson, whose conversion we saw earlier, relates this story of rescue:

The bishop seeing this, was amazed, and bid two of his waiting men take me into the buttery*, and make me eat and drink. They took me by the arms down the stairs, and bid me go into the buttery to eat and drink. I told them I would not eat or drink there; but they urged me, saying, I heard their lord command them to make me eat and drink. I asked them if they were Christians at that house. They said yes; then, said I, let your yea be yea; and your nay be nay, for that is Christ’s command. I said, I will not eat or drink here, and you take no notice of it, being accustomed to break your yea and nay. They stood silent and let me go, for the Lord’s power astonished and was over them all.

* buttery - A storeroom for liquors

Continued in Part 4

Friends and Politics

2009-05-25T07:36:00.000-07:00

I have written before about my difficulties with some Friends' attitudes towards the political process and how aligning with political parties fosters a spirit that is not loving towards all. I occasionally encounter a similar sentiment when reading early Friends' writings. For example, this passage from Isaac Penington speaks to me:

This spirit must be kept out from among you; this aspiring spirit, this lofty ruling spirit, which loves to be great, which loves to have dominion, which would exalt itself, because of the gift it has received, and would bring others into subjection; this spirit must be subdued amongst Christ's disciples, or it will ruin all. The Lord gives grace and knowledge for another end than for men to take upon them to be great, and rule over others because of it. And he that, because of this, thinks himself fit to rule over men's consciences, and to make them bow to what he knows or takes to be truth, he loseth his own life hereby; and so far as he prevails upon others, he doth but destroy their life too.

I think that in a democracy, this idea of ruling over people's consciences and making them bow to what one knows or takes to be the truth extends to the voters. One group tries to get enough votes so that others will bow to their will. You can certainly see a warlike spirit amongst political parties, especially when agreement with another party's issue is considered treason.

London Yearly Meeting had this advice in relation to civil government:

Advised to walk wisely and circumspectly towards all men, in the peaceable spirit of Christ Jesus, giving no offence or occasions to those in outward government, nor way to any controversies, heats, and distractions of this world, about the kingdoms of it; but to pray for the good of all, and submit all to that divine power and wisdom, which rules over the kingdoms of men. 1689

The journal entry that resonated the most me was by Elias Hicks:

They were both instructive edifying seasons; wherein I had full opportunity to relieve my mind, being, through gracious assistance, led in the clear openings of the divine light, to set forth the great danger of mixing in with the spirit of the world, which leads to strife and contention, and the promotion of parties and party animosities in civil governments: all of which have a direct tendency to engender war and bloodshed, and are therefore inconsistent for us, as a people, to touch or take part with, or to suffer our minds to be agitated thereby; as it always has led, and always will lead those, who are leavened therewith, out of the meek spirit of the gospel, which breathes "peace on earth, and good will to all men."

I love the phrase "meek spirit of the gospel". It evokes the humble spirit that I often sense when reading John Woolman's Journal, and I find myself turning to that journal when I feel like my ego is riding roughshod over everyone and everything. Woolman had a way of expressing his leadings without demonizing others. I think this fits well with the experience of humbling and tendering that I hope to post about soon.

Epistle 10 in Modern English

2009-05-21T05:30:00.000-07:00

In a comment on a previous post, Ali Reid wondered if there was a Modern English version of George Fox's Epistle #10, and whether it would have the same power. I thought I might give it a try. I realize that adding capital letters in certain places is more of an alteration, but I think it emphasizes the references to God and the Divine Seed:

To Friends, to stand still in trouble, and see the strength of the Lord.

Friends,
The tempter comes in the form of anything you are addicted to. And when he can trouble you, he has the advantage, and you are lost.
    After you see yourselves, stand still in That Which is Pure
            and mercy will come.
    After you see your thoughts and temptations, don't think, just submit,
            and power will come.
    Stand still in That Which Shows and Discovers
            and strength will immediately come.
    Stand still in the Light, and submit to it
            and the tempter will be hushed and gone
            and content will come.

When temptations and troubles appear, sink down in That Which is Pure, and your troubles will be hushed and fly away. After you have seen yourselves, your strength is in standing still. Whatever addictions you see in yourselves – temptations, corruption, uncleanness, you think you will never overcome them. Your earthly reason tells you that you will lose everything. Don't listen to it! Stand still in the Light that shows you your addictions, and you will receive strength from the Lord, and help beyond all your expectations.

Then you will grow up in peace, and no trouble will move you. David fretted when he looked out, but when he was still no trouble could move him. When your thoughts are out and abroad, that's when troubles move you. But keep your minds on that Spirit that existed before the letter and you'll learn to read the scriptures the right way. If you do anything by your own will, you tempt God, so stand still in that Power that Brings Peace.
    George Fox

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 2

2009-05-20T17:08:00.000-07:00

This is a continuation of a previous post.

Healing may have played a bigger role among early Friends than we know. There was once a text by George Fox called the Book of Miracles, of which we now have only an outline, and details pieced together by Henry Cadbury. In this book, Fox recorded over 150 incidents of people being healed, although much of what we have of this book looks like this:

And there was a man ... tailor ... bed-ridden ... And Daniel Baker
who went ... crutches ... never wore them afterward.

From the small amount of information available in the outline, Henry Cadbury was able to ﬁnd other sources containing the same information. For example, the following account came from a Fox manuscript referred to as the Trickett manuscript:

His mother had a dead palsy [and had little use of one side and she often did fall down and then could not help herself, and had been so many years. And George Fox came to see her, and at night she fell down, and he was moved to take her by the hand, and it immediately left her, and she arose and could] go about her business.

There are other accounts of George Fox healing people:

George Fox says, in 1653 he was at a meeting where Richard Myer was, who had been long lame of one of his arms. “I was moved of the Lord to say unto him amongst all the people, ‘Stand up upon thy legs,’ for he was sitting down; and he stood up, and stretched out his arm that had been lame a long time and said, ‘Be it known unto you, all people, that this day am I healed!’ He soon after came to Swarthmore meeting, and then declared how the Lord had healed him.”

In 1675 as he was travelling north to Swarthmore from London, at Cassel “A woman brought her daughter for me to see how well she was; putting me in mind, that when I was there before, she had brought her to me much troubled with the king’s evil [scrofula], and had then desired me to pray for her. Which I did, and she mended upon it. Praised be the Lord”

Other Friends participated in these healings as well. Fox relates an encounter with Nathaniel Batts in which he acknowledges that Friends had healed a woman:

He asked me about a woman in Cumberland, who, he said, he was told, had been healed by our prayers and laying on of hands, after she had been long sick, and given over by the physicians: he desired to know the certainty of it. I told him, we did not glory in such things, but many such things had been done by the power of Christ.

If you are interested in healing, Richard Lee is giving a workshop on it at the FGC Gathering again this year, and hopefully there will be a daily Meeting for Healing in the afternoon. These meetings for healing at the FGC Gathering are very intense and deep, I highly recommend them. If I was going to the Gathering this year, the meetings for healing would be the thing I would look forward to the most.

Continued in Part 3

Early Friends' Experiences of the Light, Part 1

2009-05-13T18:09:00.000-07:00

I am doing a workshop at SAYMA this year entitled "Experiences of the Light Among Early Friends". I thought it might be useful to just look at experiences rather than discussing doctrine, and to compare those experiences to what we experience today. I have attempted to categorize these experiences for the purpose of discussion, but there is much overlap between them. The topics I intend to cover are:

Repentance and Transformation

Healing

Strengthening and Power

Humbling and Tendering

Unity

Guidance and Insight

I am writing up the the material into a handout, which I will post here as I am able to, starting with the section on Repentance and Transformation:

There are numerous accounts among early Friends of dramatic conversion (convincement) experiences, where they suddenly came to repent. The Greek word in the New Testament commonly translated as repentance is metanoia, which more literally means “to change one’s mind”, and for many Friends, repentance wasn’t a sudden regret for one’s past deeds, but an inward recognition and acceptance of the Spirit within them - a change of their mind and their understanding. There followed a transformation, sometimes fast, sometimes gradual, in which the person found themselves inwardly puriﬁed and they gave up their old ways. This often involved repentance in the traditional meaning, as the Inward Light revealed one’s sins. There are several important things to note about the way early Friends experienced repentance and transformation:

The repentance often came about as a result of the preaching of Friends, and sometimes out of other forms of witness. It was not as much what was said, but that it was spoken from the Spirit and answered that of God in the hearer.

Transformation came about by the working of the Inward Light on one’s soul.

Friends believed it was possible to lead a sinless life as a result of this transformation.

The emphasis wasn’t on feeling guilt for one’s sins, but on living a sinless life.

The convincement of William Edmundson is a good example of this repentance and transformation:

He soon sold oﬀ his stock of goods; and going over to England to purchase a fresh supply, he heard of George Fox and James Nayler being in the north; and feeling a great desire to meet with them, he went to a place where James Nayler was, and had an opportunity of hearing him discourse of the things of God’s kingdom, and the work of regeneration. And though James’s words were not many, yet they were so powerful, and so fully reached and answered the testimony of the divine witness in his own mind, that his heart was opened to receive the word preached, and to confess that it was indeed the truth. He was now brought into great exercise of spirit; his former ways were “hedged up;” and many things to which he had been accustomed were shown to him in the Light of Christ, to be incompatible with the purity and entire obedience to which he was called. He ﬂinched not however from the hand of the Lord, for his sins were set clearly before him, and he felt that he must be purged from them through judgment. And returning shortly to Ireland, the Lord’s hand was mercifully laid upon him, while at sea, producing great wrestlings and conﬂicts of spirit; under a strong temptation to land his goods clandestinely and avoid paying the duty; but this he was enabled to withstand. He landed at Carrickfergus; and rode twelve miles to his own home. His brother meeting him at the door, oﬀered the usual salutation, probably bowing and using the empty complimentary phrases so ready in the mouths of men of the world. The Lord’s power that instant so seized upon William, that he could not join in what he now saw to be vanity; and he was broken into many tears. His wife and brother were amazed at the change, but made no opposition.

It wasn’t the content of the words that reached William, but their power, and that they answered the divine witness (i.e. “that of God”) within him. After that, he experienced the Light showing him his sins, and over time it changed him.

George Fox described this process in one of his epistles. Note how often he reminds us not to try to do anything when we see our sins, but to wait in the Light:

To Friends, to stand still in trouble, and see the strength of the Lord.

Friends,Whatever ye are addicted to, the tempter will come in that thing; and when he can trouble you, then he gets advantage over you, and then ye are gone. Stand still in that which is pure, after ye see yourselves; and then mercy comes in. After thou seest thy thoughts, and the temptations, do not think, but submit; and then power comes. Stand still in that which shows and discovers; and there doth strength immediately come. And stand still in the light, and submit to it, and the other will be hushed and gone; and then content comes. And when temptations and troubles appear, sink down in that which is pure, and all will be hushed, and ﬂy away. Your strength is to stand still, after ye see yourselves; whatsoever ye see yourselves addicted to, temptations, corruption, uncleanness, etc. then ye think ye shall never overcome. And earthly reason will tell you, what ye shall lose; hearken not to that, but stand still in the light that shows them to you, and then strength comes from the Lord, and help contrary to your expectation. Then ye grow up in peace, and no trouble shall move you. David fretted himself, when he looked out; but when he was still, no trouble could move him. When your thoughts are out, abroad, then troubles move you. But come to stay your minds upon that spirit which was before the letter; here ye learn to read the scriptures aright. If ye do any thing in your own wills, then ye tempt God; but stand still in that power which brings peace. G. F.

Repentance and transformation was not always such a sudden thing, however. John Woolman describes his transformation as more of a gradual process, spanning much of the ﬁrst chapter of his journal.

This series of posts continues.

Some Quotes from Isaac Penington

2009-02-22T17:01:00.000-08:00

I have been reading Isaac Penington lately while doing research for a workshop I am giving at SAYMA this year. I am reading "Selections from the Works of Isaac Penington" (printable at lulu.com), but there is also a great little Pendle Hill Pamphlet (#29) called "The Inward Journey of Isaac Penington" that is well worth reading.

In a chapter on Christ and Government, Penington cautions against a "lofty ruling spirit, which loves to be great, which loves to have dominion, which would exalt itself, because of the gift it has received, and would bring others into subjection". I really love this phrasing:

For it is not so much speaking true things that doth good, as speaking them from the pure, and conveying them to the pure: for the life runs along from the vessel of life in one, into the vessel of life in another; and the words (though ever so true) cannot convey life to another, but as the living vessel opens in the one, and is opened in the other.

I take this as saying that it isn't the words themselves that are important, but speaking them from the Spirit.

Later in the same chapter, he talks about not believing particular truths just because others see them, or doing various practices just because you see others do them:

Therefore the main thing in religion is to keep the conscience pure to the Lord, to know the guide, to follow the guide, to receive from him the light whereby I am to walk; and not to take things for truths because others see them to be truths; but to wait till the Spirit make them manifest to me; nor to run into worships, duties, performances, or practices, because others are led thither; but to wait till the Spirit lead me thither.

He also cautions against judging others in their spiritual practices:

Even in the apostles' days, Christians were too apt to strive after a wrong unity and uniformity in outward practices and observations, and to judge one another unrighteously in these things. And mark; it is not the different practice from one another that breaks the peace and unity, but the judging of one another because of different practices. He that keeps not a day may unite in the same Spirit, in the same life, in the same love with him that keeps a day; and he who keeps a day, may unite in heart and soul with the same Spirit and life in him who keeps not a day; but he that judgeth the other because of either of these, errs from the Spirit, from the love, from the life, and so breaks the bond of unity.
...
And here is the true unity in the Spirit, in the inward life, and not in an outward uniformity.

While we may think of that "outward uniformity" as referring to programmed worship or outward sacraments, I believe it applies just as well to our unprogrammed worship. Sitting in silence can be just as much an "outward uniformity" if all we are doing as a group is sitting in silence. It is the communal seeking and experience of the Spirit that is the heart of unprogrammed worship. The silence is merely our assent to be guided by God.

Quakers, Voting and the Seeds of War

2008-11-06T13:30:00.000-08:00

I know many people are very excited about the election results, but I have had something weighing on me for the past few weeks that I think I am finally able to express.

Elections seem to me to be another form of battle, perhaps more civilized than trying to kill each other, but there is still the underlying feeling that it is a battle. What does that mean to us as Friends?

In our business meetings, we don't vote. I'm not suggesting that I think that a Quaker business meeting will work in conducting the national affairs of 300 million people, but I think that our emphasis on not voting does reflect an understanding of what voting really is - the majority forcing its will on the minority. That isn't the main reason why we don't vote, of course. Friends have always understood that when we are rightly led by the Spirit, we are brought into unity with the will of God and have a shared understanding of what to do that is beyond even the idea of consensus.

We need to be particularly aware of how we are affected by political battles. We hear Friends speak of how we are opposed to the wars that "those people" are so eager to fight. For some Friends, "those people" are Republicans, or Evangelicals, or Baptists. When we look at others as "those people" we are sowing seeds of war. You can't have a battle until you first have a way to identify friend from foe. How many people in your meeting have bumper stickers like "F the President" or "Republicans for Voldemort" or "W(orst) President"? Those are seeds of war.

Over the past two days I have read various messages about how we should all come together now and support the president. These have almost always been from those whose candidate won, and I found myself thinking the same thing at first. Then I remembered how I felt after the last election, and that I could not just put the result aside and put on a happy "I support the president" face. I also must acknowledge that while the electoral college was roughly a 2-1 margin, the popular vote was about 53% to 46%. So 46% of Americans are going through the same struggle that I did 4 years ago.

The other part of this is my fundamental belief that the Spirit of Christ in every person can change hearts for the better. A hard-fought political victory doesn't usually change the loser's heart, and more often hardens it for the next fight. We need to keep that in mind while campaigning for change in the world. Sure the poor, the homeless, the imprisoned, the powerless need someone to speak up for them, but when we speak, we should be answering the witness of God in the hearts of others that their voices might join ours.

"That of God" and the Peace Testimony

2008-10-21T16:32:00.001-07:00

I must confess that I often roll my eyes when I hear "there is that of God in every person" used as an explanation for the various testimonies. I have written before about how I think "that of God" is misused, turning it into an outward philosophical outlook instead of an inward transformation. It is interesting, however, that Joseph Hoag gave a defense of the Peace Testimony using essentially the idea of "that of God" in others:

I shall state, that myself and wife are true Christians, and our children are in the minority - and thou knowest it is natural for children to believe what their parents teach them - and therefore we are all true Christians as far as our several capacities enable us to be; and now the question lies here; which is most like the precepts and example of our King - the author of the Christian religion - to lay down our lives, and all go to heaven together; or kill that wicked Indian, and send him to hell; for he must be in as wicked a state as he can be, to kill a family that would not hurt him. General, it is a serious thing to send wicked folks to hell; they have no chance to come back and mend their ways; and thou dost not know, but that if that wicked Indian was spared he might feel remorse enough to make him repent, so as to find forgiveness, and go to heaven. I really believe, I should feel much better to see him come there than to send him to hell;

I find that this speaks powerfully to me, and has come to mind frequently, especially when related to death penalty issues. While it speaks of how we treat others, it still maintains the inward workings of "that of God", and also speaks of our own personal transformation, since he is basically saying "I have been transformed by Christ already, I would die before denying another person that opportunity."

The Journal of Joseph Hoag

2008-07-22T16:07:00.000-07:00

I have just completed my first experiment with lulu.com's print-on-demand service. Using the LATEX typesetting system, I reformatted and indexed The Journal of Joseph Hoag and made it available as a paperback. The cost is $12.37 before shipping, and that is just the manufacturing cost, I don't make any money off of it. I just thought it would be nice to have the journal back in print. The text comes from the 1861 edition published by Knapp & Peck.

My third visit to North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative)

2008-07-17T09:31:00.001-07:00

I asked for time to speak about my visit to NCYM-C at the upcoming business meeting at Atlanta Friends this first day, and between now and then we will be taking a van-load of teens from AFM to Lilli Manis' memorial service in Chapel Hill. Since I wanted to be able to give the clerk some form of a written report, I thought I'd try to do that here first.

The 311th annual gathering of the North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative) was held on the campus of Guilford College from the 9th to the 13th of seventh month, 2008. We drove up with two other Friends from SAYMA - Austin Wattles from Atlanta, and Kristi Estes from Memphis (there were a total of 6 SAYMA Friends there this year). This was my first time staying at Guilford, although I have visited the library there several times. The dorm felt more like someone's house with old wooden doors and floors, and a nice porch with a swing. One of the things that impressed me most about the food, other than the good salad bar and vegan options, was that they didn't overcook the vegetables! I had snap peas that still had some snap, and asparagus that was crisp.

The session opened with worship, then after dinner was the meeting of Ministry and Oversight. The clerk, Charlie Ansell, asked me to share briefly about some of the things I have been doing - my workshop at SAYMA on George Fox's use of the bible (which I realize I haven't blogged about) and my work on making a print-on-demand version of Joseph Hoag's Journal, which is almost ready. I had given early copies to Lloyd Lee Wilson and Craig Fox, and that prompted Lloyd Lee to ask me to share about my work with the M&O meeting. After that, many people also shared what they had been doing, and it was beautiful hearing how the Spirit has been moving in the lives of Friends.

Lloyd Lee also invited us to the 6am "morning communion" and asked me to bring a bible passage to get the discussion started. I should explain more about how this came about. Last year, I posted a list of bible verses most frequently quoted by George Fox. Kirk Wattles (who is Austin's son) pointed out that many of the verses in that list were ones used to defend Quakerism against attacks from outside, so they weren't necessarily the ones most important to Quakers. Shortly before we left for NCYM-C, I made a new list that was drawn only from Fox's epistles, figuring that since the epistles are mostly pastoral in nature, it might be more interesting. When I mentioned this to Lloyd Lee, he suggested that maybe I could find something good in that list to get us started. After the M&O meeting, I went back to my room really excited about everything going on, and I identified several good verses, finally opting for Numbers 11:26-29.

But two men remained in the camp; one's name was Eldad, and the other's name was Medad. And the spirit rested on them. (Now they were among those in the registration, but had not gone to the tabernacle.) So they prophesied in the camp. And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp!" Joshua son of Nun, the servant of Moses, one of his choice young men, said, "My lord Moses, stop them!" Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for me? I wish that all the LORD's people were prophets, that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!"

It was the thing about the Lord putting his Spirit on all the people that really grabbed me. With that, the morning communion got off and running, and it was one of my favorite parts of the day. I didn't mind having to wake up at 5:30.

The business sessions were well attended, and felt very worshipful. Someone raised the question of whether the meeting had something to say about the perceived drum-beating with respect to Iran. An ad-hoc committee was formed, and came back with a proposed minute in the final session. Although the final minute was a bit wordy, it was approved with just a few changes. I was particularly impressed by the unity of the meeting, it really felt like one body.

Carl McGruder was the plenary speaker for 6th day, and he was an amazing, dynamic speaker. He spoke on our caring for creation, not so much from a "how-to" perspective, but rather from one of being faithful, as well as hopeful. Carl showed how the peculiar way we are called to live as followers of Christ extends into how we interact with the planet. Elaine Emily, Carl's traveling companion, remarked later about how she tries to hold a gathering in the light to get it settled before Carl speaks and how it can be difficult, but that this group of people just centered down almost immediately.

Elder John Blackfeather Jeffries and his daughter Vivette Jeffries (fire carrier of the Occaneechi band of the Saponi) spoke on seventh day. The original idea was to get us started telling our own stories, but a lot of it was them telling their stories, as well as talking about their relationship with all creation - which is not so much a relationship as it is a recognition of being an inseparable part of creation. John spoke about his tribe finally being officially recognized by the U.S. Government - "Isn't that something, the white man is telling me I can be an Indian". Vivette spoke about growing up black, not knowing that she was an Indian. Now as a "fire carrier", she carries the story of her tribe.

I also enjoyed meeting David Martin, who I understand started the morning communion about 20 years ago. He has had health problems the last few years and wasn't able to attend many sessions. He didn't speak much, but when he did, he really made it count with a perfect blend of deep insight and humor. He told a story about some sailors who saw a signal fire just in time to keep their boat from smashing against the rocks. They were so grateful that they stayed in the area and kept the signal fire lit all the time to help warn other sailors. Eventually, they built a museum that showed the history of the signal fire and the various phases it went through. The sailors got so busy with the museum, they forgot to light the fire. And that's what we have been doing to the Religious Society of Friends.

My memory is a little hazy, but I think it was Liz Oppenheimer who remarked that it was interesting how often we heard the word "corporate" during the yearly meeting, and it really showed in the way the yearly meeting acted as a unified body. There's an old query "Are love and unity maintained among you?" For this yearly meeting, I think the answer would be a simple "yes".

Heartache in the Midst of Joy

2008-07-14T06:31:00.000-07:00

Ceal and I got back from the 311th annual gathering of the North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative) last night. I will post more about it in the next few days.

On saturday evening, we got a call from Samantha, our granddaughter, informing us that Lilli Manis who had just graduated from high school and from the SAYF (Southern Appalachian Young Friends) program was killed by a drunk driver that morning. Her boyfriend Philip Jurov, also from SAYF, was seriously injured but as of saturday night was listed in fair condition.

Lilli was a beautiful person, and very smart. She was going to study Asian Studies at Earlham this fall, where Philip also planned to study Computer Science (Lilli seemed to be quite the computerphile as well, I had several very geeky discussions with them both during retreats).

Here is a picture of Lilli and Philip:

After we learned of the accident, Susan and Lloyd Lee Wilson came and sat with us in worship for a while, and Cheryl Sutton of Iowa YM-C joined us. The next morning at the "morning communion" Friends were again very comforting. I don't really have words for my appreciation of the deep, loving care we were shown.

There is so much prayer needed, for Philip, for friends and families, for our SAYF community, for the 19 year-old who caused the wreck and for his friends and family.

The Legend of Bagger Vance

2008-06-01T13:41:00.000-07:00

I don't watch many movies these days, which is why I am only now getting around to seeing "The Legend of Bagger Vance". I probably never would have seen it, except that when Craig Fox and I were discussing the Bhagavad Gita, he mentioned that Bagger Vance was loosely based on it.

I don't know if I would have picked up on the BG connection, although naming the Arjuna character "Junuh" might have tipped me off. I am not the kind of person to pick up all the fine similarities, so my coarse view of how BG comes out through Bagger Vance is this:

Junuh is a golfer who "lost his swing" and now needs to find it again. Vance (the Krisha character) tells him that everyone has their own swing that has always been with them, but they have forgotten it. I am pretty sure that the swing is supposed to be a metaphor for dharma.

It was his participation in World War I that caused Junuh to lose his swing, which I think refers to the opening of the Gita where Arjuna is in between two armies each made up of his extended family, and he does not want to fight - Krisha says that he is abandoning his dharma.

There's some stuff about focusing on the field and ignoring everything else that may refer to the path of yoga.

Towards the end, Junuh penalizes himself a stroke because he accidentally moved the ball while removing a twig. No one saw it, so he could have pretended it didn't happen. It is at this point that Vance leaves, having nothing more to teach Junuh. I think this is supposed to refer to a detachment from the results - that it is "playing the game" or "living out one's dharma" that is the important thing, not winning the game - in fact, there are several mentions of the game not being something you win.

I think my view of spiritual gifts and service to God has been influenced by the Gita. My understanding of spiritual gifts is that we all have different ones, and our purpose is to use them in service to God. Just as each person has their own dharma (vocation, maybe?), each person may have different gifts. We should not strive to mimic other's gifts, but use what we have been given. As George Fox wrote "And therefore all mind your gift, mind your measure; mind your calling and your work. Some speak to the conscience; some plough and break the clods; some weed out, and some sow; some wait, that fowls devour not the seed". I think we sometimes have a tendency to mistake our calling as something everyone should be doing (although there is also the problem of writing of something important, like business meeting, as being "someone else's calling").

The detachment from the results is also very important. When we do something in order to get a reward, or recognition, we run the risk of feeling ourselves a failure if we don't get what we are expecting. It also means that we may ignore some small act in search of something with a bigger rewards. For example, if one acts faithfully in speaking out against war, the fact that the war continues does not mean that the speaking out was a failure. When one is moved to engage someone one-on-one about war and instead stands on a corner with a sign because it visible to more people, that could be considered being unfaithful to one's calling. Inviting someone to meeting isn't necessarily a failure just because the person doesn't come. That is a difficult thing to remember in our society.

She Ain't Heavy, She's My Sister

2008-05-04T14:40:00.000-07:00

I read this story earlier this week, and it has been on my mind ever since. Sara Tucholsky, a senior at Western Oregon college, hit the first home run of her life in a softball game against Central Washington. Unfortunately, after she missed first base and turned back, her knee buckled and she fell to the ground. If her teammates were to touch her, she would not be able to continue around the bases, and her knee wasn't letting her do that anyway. That's when Mallory Hoffman, the first basewoman for the opposing team said to the umpires "Excuse me, would it be OK if we carried her around and she touched each bag?" And that's what they did..

I have a great feeling of joy, and of rightness, when I see something like this, and I believe it is the Holy Spirit within me saying "That's what you should be doing! That's what 'love your neighbor' and 'love your enemy' is all about!" It is yet another reminder that there is no team, no company, no sect, no club, no uniform, no country, that is more important than our membership in the Kingdom of God. There is nothing that should come between our love for God and for each other.

Getting in Deep

2008-03-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

I was thinking this morning about our attitudes to the Light of Christ within us and our willingness to trust in it, and I imagined a swimming pool in which the water represents God.

Some people like the pool area, maybe like the people who swim there, but aren't willing to jump in. They just sit in the chairs around the pool, and talk about the nature of the water.

Others, like me, get in the pool, but stay in the shallower areas where they are still standing on their own feet.

Where I wish to be, though, is the deep end, where I am no longer standing on my feet, but bouyed completely by the love of God.

Quiz time - Who said this?

2008-03-11T12:47:00.000-07:00

I came across an interesting quote I'd like to share:

Well, Christianity and being a true believer--you know, I think there's the Body of Christ. This comes from all the Christian groups around the world, outside the Christian groups. I think everybody that loves Christ, or knows Christ, whether they're conscious of it or not, they're members of the Body of Christ. And I don't think that we're going to see a great sweeping revival, that will turn the whole world to Christ at any time. I think James answered that, the Apostle James in the first council in Jerusalem, when he said that God's purpose for this age is to call out a people for His name. And that's what God is doing today, He's calling people out of the world for His name, whether they come from the Muslim world, or the Buddhist world, or the Christian world or the non-believing world, they are members of the Body of Christ because they've been called by God. They may not even know the name of Jesus but they know in their hearts that they need something that they don't have, and they turn to the only light that they have, and I think that they are saved, and that they're going to be with us in heaven.

Do you have a guess who might have said it? (Hint: It wasn't a Quaker) I'll put the answer in a comment.

You're in charge of the house

2008-03-03T09:38:00.000-08:00

I have seen numerous movies and TV shows where the parents say to their teenage son or daughter "you're in charge of the house while we're gone", setting up the inevitable plot in which the teen makes a wreck of the house and tries to get it all cleaned up before the parents get home. Obviously being "in charge" of the house is not a license to wreck it or have one's way with it.

What called this to mind was the notion that we as human beings have a special God-given dominion over the Earth and the creatures living upon it, and that we can do with it what we like. When I remember that "the Earth is the Lord's", it reminds me that like the partying teen, we are still responsible for taking good, responsible care of our house.

J.S. Rowntree on Gospel Ministry

2008-01-12T07:13:00.000-08:00

I was reading a book about Lewis Benson recently, and in a chapter written by Joseph Pickvance, he mentioned two chapters from John Rowntree's works that Lewis had recommended to him These two chapters had to do with the work of gospel ministry in the Society of Friends. It was written around 1908 and contains some great insights about how things were then, as well as in George Fox's time.

One of the interesting things to me was that early in Friends' history, ministers would meet together each week and plan what meetings they would attend on the following First-day. This was to ensure that the work of the ministry was spread out amongst the various meetings.

One thing I often hear about is how, from the beginning, men & women had essentially an equal role in ministry, yet I find signs in Rowntree's writings that it wasn't quite as rosy as I had pictured. In looking at some of the schedules for what ministers would visit where, it is mostly men - Rowntree includes a replica of one such schedule that shows only one woman on the list. Another chart showing the decline of ministers (based on how many have died) does show that about 3/5 were men, which isn't that bad a ratio. One of the most disappointing items with respect to women that Rowntree presents came from the minutes of the Second Day Morning Meeting on 1st Month 10, 1700:

This meeting finding that it is a hurt to Truth for women Friends to take up too much time as some do in our public meetings, when several public and serviceable men Friends are present, and are by them prevented in their services. It's therefore advised that the women Friends should be tenderly cautioned against taking up so much time in our mixed public meetings. Benjamin Bealing to give a copy of this minute to Sarah Plumley and Margt. Munro, for them to communicate to other women Friends, and that it may be prevented for the future.

You can read Rowntree's works on Google Books, or if you just want the two chapters Lewis Benson mentioned, I have reformatted them with LaTEX and created a PDF, which is here. You are welcome to use the PDF in any way you like. If you want the LaTEX source, just ask.

Oh, don't be frightened by the first paragraph of the chapter on "Gospel Ministry In The Society", the rest of the chapter is not nearly that obtuse.

Evangelism vs. Proselytizing

2007-12-21T07:48:00.000-08:00

I have had a number of threads occupying my thoughts lately, and this morning a new contrast between proselytizing and evangelizing seems to have brought them together. I hope that I can present them without making a huge knot.

In a previous post, I quoted the oft-stated "Quakers don't proselytize", and made the point that Liberal Quakers do proselytize, but it is not about their faith but instead about issues like peace, equality, economic justice, etc. The traditional peace testimony is that we live in the "virtue of that life and power that takes away the occasion of all wars", yet it seems that our efforts in peacemaking don't involve trying to bring people into the virtue of that same life and power, but rather trying to achieve an external peace, rather than an internal one.

When I read Fox's epistles, there is a constant emphasis on dwelling in the light (keep in it, stay in it, dwell in it, walk in it). Isaac Penington conveys the same message with "Give over thine own willing, give over thine own running, give over thine own desiring to know or be anything, and sink down to the seed which God sows in thy heart". My understanding of the importance of everything deriving from the Light within has been ever-deepening.

In the post where I talked about "Quakers don't proselytize", I suggested that it wasn't the proselytizing that was wrong, but WHAT we were proselytizing. Again, it goes back to trying to achieve the results in others without the spirit that provides those results in us. I have come to understand that I was wrong, and that the statement "Quakers don't proselytize" is true - or at least should be true if we are acting rightly.

I have known conservative Friends who push Christ on people - that the Light is Christ, and you must believe that in order to be a Quaker. This is another form of proselytizing, one that is much more common in the greater Christian community. There is a passage in Matthew where Jesus asks the disciples "who do you say that I am?" and Peter replies "You are the Christ, the Son of God", and Jesus replies "You are blessed, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven!" Similarly, Paul writes that "none can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit". To me, that means that one's emphasis shouldn't be on trying to get someone to make theological statements about the nature of that inward Light, but to help them turn towards that Light, and let it reveal its nature to them.

So what I am getting at with proselytizing, is that it is by definition "the attempt to convert a person to another opinion or religion". But if we hold firm to our understanding of the working of the Light of Christ, it is not us that does the converting, it is the interaction between that Light and the other person.

Another thing that has been growing on me, especially since the FGC Consultation on Gospel Ministry is the importance of evangelism - and for me, I feel that I am slowly coming under the weight of a concern in this respect. Let me just clarify a couple of words here. First, evangelism means "spreading the good news" (it derives from the Greek word euangellion, eu- for good, and angellion for message). Gospel is an old English word that also means "good news", so "Gospel Ministry" is also "Evangelical Ministry", and is "Spreading the good news".

So what is the good news? This is a point of difference between Quakers and modern Christians, because for many Christians, the good news is "Christ died for our sins". For Quakers, however, the good news can be summed up by George Fox's statement that "Christ has come to teach his people himself". Lloyd Lee Wilson also offered a good version at the recent consultation, which I can't do justice to, but was essentially that "the Kingdom of God is at hand, that it is immediately accessible". Even 2000 years later, this is still news to a lot of people.

Now, if I am to be consistent with a call to heed the Light and do only what we are led, I can't really say "we need to go evangelize". Maybe that's what some are called to do, maybe others aren't. I can say, however, that we need to be open to it. When we find ourselves proselytizing - when we have that earnestness to make someone think as we do, we need to ask if it really from the spirit or from our own egos. When we shy away from talking about our faith, we should ask ourselves whether that is also our ego trying to shield itself, or whether it is the spirit telling us that the time isn't right. We need to listen to know when the time is right. I think that is much harder to do if you aren't open to the possibility of being called to evangelize. In our openness towards evangelism, though, we also need to keep in mind George Fox's words "you will say Christ saith this, and the apostles say this, but what canst thou say? Art thou a child of Light and hast thou walked in the Light,and what thou speakest is it inwardly from God?"

Few words, deep ministry

2007-11-26T09:32:00.001-08:00

Yesterday in meeting for worship, two Friends spoke with such simplicity, yet it touched me deeply, and it just felt like there was no need for other words.

It was simply:
Praise the Lord!

Amen! ... Praise his name

Holy Obedience - More reflections on the FGC Consultation on Gospel Ministry

2007-11-21T12:26:00.000-08:00

I had mentioned to a number of people before the FGC Consultation on Gospel Ministry that I was looking forward to spending a weekend with a bunch of people who don't mind the term "holy obedience". I chuckled to myself when it popped up in the welcome letter we were sent just a week before the consultation, and again in the first session. I also hear it echoed in Liz & Callid's reflections on the consultation.

We had a discussion about the recognition of gifts and callings and how modern Friends seem reluctant to acknowledge that some may be called to gospel ministry as an ongoing concern, as if that somehow elevates one person above another. As I was reflecting on the practice of recording ministers, it made me think of the people who make the coffee, greet people at the door, teach First day school. We record these names in various ways, and it is an acknowledgment of the responsibility of the individual to carry out this task, and of the meeting to make sure they have what they need. It does not elevate the person above someone else.

The recording of ministers isn't really much different, except that the "task" is much more long-term and involves a commitment of one's life to preparation. Although the messages themselves aren't prepared ahead of time, the messenger is. It also involves a commitment to living one's life as an example of "holy obedience". The meeting must also commit to giving a minister support, such as an anchoring committee.

One thing I noticed at the consultation was how familiar most participants were with the bible. When we were discussing how some Friends get little or no support from their home meeting, another Friend rose and started reading a passage from the bible (Mark 6), which started "He departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples...". A good part of the room made sounds of recognition, and then we laughed about it, realizing that the Friend probably could stop reading, because we had all realized that it was the passage about "a prophet is not without honor, except in his native place".

"Holy obedience" has also been a source of frustration for me within the circle of Friends I am called to be amongst. For example, many months ago a blogging Friend said something to the effect of "I'm not going to take off my clothes and preach naked in the street" (apparently some early Friends did just that), and it was in the context of following the guidance of the Holy Spirit. I don't really want to preach naked either, but I hold out the hope that if I was called to do that I would. Another Friend was very emphatic recently that "we are not sheep!", which seems to be the opposite of holy obedience, and a sentiment I have heard expressed in various ways.

One of the reasons to be in a religious community is the recognition that we all fall short of the mark, and we often need other people for support. When we are all shooting for different marks, how can we be of assistance to each other? During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says "Is there anyone among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?" For me, sometimes the "bread" I am asking for is help with "holy obedience", and instead I am given a stone.

So I don't end this on such a down note, I would like to say that both my monthly meeting (Atlanta Friends Meeting) and my yearly meeting (Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting & Association) have been very supportive of me. Atlanta approved a traveling minute for my trip to the consultation, and has also set up a support committee. SAYMA recommended me to the Traveling Ministries Program when they asked for names of people to invite to the consultation, and also paid for my travel. God continues to bless me in so many ways.

FGC Consultation on Gospel Ministry

2007-11-20T06:51:00.000-08:00

You may have seen Liz Opp's reflections on the FGC Consultation on Gospel Ministry. I was there as well, and have been trying to get my thoughts to crystallize. It has been difficult for me in that not long after I returned, we were rushing to get Ceal ready for her next School of the Spirit retreat, and then I had a SAYF (Southern Appalachian Young Friends) retreat in Chapel Hill over the weekend.

As iron sharpens iron, so a person sharpens his friend. Proverbs 27:17 (NET)

The idea of the consultation was to put those with emerging gifts of gospel ministry together with seasoned ministers like Lloyd Lee Wilson, Brian Drayton, Jan Hoffman, Deborah Shaw, and so forth. In the past, there had been more opportunity for interaction between those young in the ministry and those more grown, and I think FGC is looking for ways to recapture that opportunity. I can say that I definitely felt the sharpening that Proverbs speaks of, and from just about everyone there.

Faith and faithfulness kept coming back to me at this consultation. Faith was something I struggled with, really starting in my late teens. My understanding of "faith" was that I had to believe certain facts like "Jesus died for my sins", and it didn't seem to make much sense. Faith for me is much more of a trust issue now - that I trust God to guide me, and help me. It is living my life under the assumption that "that of God" within me is something I can sense, and listen to, and that if I do so, I will be doing the right thing. And that is where faithfulness comes in - that I do try to sense, and listen, and do. There was much faith and faithfulness at the consultation, some of which was shown in words, but much more in actions.

I also found in the consultation a great feeling of hope for the Religious Society of Friends. I heard one seasoned minister speak of his hopefulness for the next generation of ministers within his yearly meeting. Liz spoke of turning the soil versus planting the seed, and for me, the hope in this is that there will be others to come along and plant the seed, or water the soil, or tend to the branches. To be among so many Friends with a concern for tending to the spiritual health of the Religious Society of Friends helped me feel less alone in those times where I am among Friends who consider us to be more like an "Ethical Society of Friends".

Underlying everything was a deep love and a reminder that whatever we do, however we serve, we must do it out of love. This was on my mind since before the consultation, since I have seen the hurt that comes from acting out of something other than love for others. My traveling minute to the consultation quoted John Woolman with love was the first motion, and then a concern arose. I need that reminder constantly to let love be the first motion, then as concerns do arise, I can have faith that God will show me what to do (if I am to do anything) and the hope that one day love will be the first motion for everyone.

And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NET)