Quaker Way

I just joined.

"It is my conviction that the root of all evil is the want of a living faith in a living God. It is a first-class human tragedy that peoples of the earth that claim to believe in the message of Jesus whom the describe as the Prince of Peace show little of that belief in actual practice." Mohandas Gandhi, 1936 I agree with the spirit of your post, Dave. It is the reduction of Jesus the teacher to Jesus the idol to be worshipped. This has turned Christianity into a cult following instead of a living faith based upon his teaching. Jesus as God is a human construction just like the Bible. If those who claim to be Christians followed the teachings of Jesus the teacher and mystic and leave out everything else, Christian hypocracy would be turned into Christian faith..

Good Morning, Gunny... Thank you for posting! We have a few things in common. I'm ex-Navy and Vietnam combat veteran as well as being in recovery myself. Spent a lot of 24 hours in church basements! Whatever it takes to keep me sober just for today. Faith is a journey that unfolds before us over the course of a lifetime. I have deepend my faith as a Quaker by committing myself to understanding God through nonviolence as taught by Gandhi. There's a saying in The Rooms, "Let it begin with me." My Faith and Practice is certainly not mainstream, but my Faith is personal and not borrowed from established religions. I firmly believe that Faith begins Within and does not come from outside. Certainly we read, certainly we share ideas, and certainly we follow our own Leadings. Our Faith Within develops along with an Inner Life that is the Light of God within all of us. As we nurture our own Faith, as we journey the Path to God and our One True Home, we will know the windings, ups, and downs, storms, and clear skies along the Way. Be well along your Path and feel free to share your thoughts as you Journey! Peace to You

I would stongly suggest 'Mohandas Gandhi Essential Writings'. Gandhi explains the spiritual connection between God and non-violence. In addition, he writes about his own development of a deep inner life and his career as an activist in the social struggles for human rights. The book is about $12.00 from Amazon and is short enough for group readings.

Good Morning... I have found that my Faith is to be lived because, without doing so, I would simply be a hypocrite. My own Journey must include the practice of deep exploration of my motives and an understanding of the source of what I claim to be my convictions. For example, my dedication to peace and non-violence would be just a nice idea if I didn't understand that peace and non-violence are the Way of God. I therefore do not vote for politicians that support war and violence, reject any form of violence and war as entertainment, and support mass peaceful demonstrations and boycotts against the military, taxes used for war and violence instead of food, shelter, and medical care for those most in need. Cluttering my life up with wants, ambitions, opinions on things that just don't matter, and any persuit of more than what I need in my life just to live is a distraction from my persuit of living my Faith. Such things lead to what Quakers call an 'cumbered' life. I have also begun the habit of not explaining myself unless asked and view this post with an eye to my own motivation. This is a process that is a life-long unfolding for me, not an event. I would be content to live in a small cabin or in a one room apartment, but I don't think my wife would go for that.

Trees are part of my human conscience. No two are alike and their forms grow up from the ground filled with the Sprit of True Nature. I have hiked through forests and have camped surrounded by them. I have been protected from storms by them and have heard them making sounds in the night wind. There is something about trees...something that they know, something much deeper than we can guess at with all of our science and pretensive intelectualizing. Enya released a CD some years back called 'The Memory of Trees'...perhaps she suspects this too.

From Spirit born, to Spirit return.

When I was preparing myself for leaving the United Methodist Church and joining The Religious Society of Friends, I did extensive reading into Quaker history, faith, and practice. It really is true that organized denominations all have branches and the Quakers are no exception. The conservative branch of the Quakers incorporates structured services with clergy and, in my opinion, are more Baptist than Quaker. There is also an amount of homophobia associated with conservative Quakers and, again in my opinion, has nothing to do with the basic Quaker principle that the Light of God is within each and every one of us. That being said, I am a member of what is known as the 'liberal' branch of The Religious Society of Friends, the Friends General Conference, that continues the practice of silent worship and unqualified inclusion. As traditional Quakers, Friends embrace all people, oppose all war and violence, and follow the Quaker Testimonies of Peace, Integrity, Equality, Community and Simplicity. We have no clergy, no authoritative hierarchy, no dogmas, and no creeds. Feeling at home, I became a member over two years ago.

Hello, Annalisa... One of the forces driving people away from church membership and the Christian faith in general is just what you said: holy rollers or, as I call them, 'Christian Extremists'. One denomination that doesn't see it's mission as one of converting the world 'from sin and the beliefs of Satan to the clear light of True Faith in our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus' is the United Methodist Church. They're kinda low key. I was a Methodist for years and one of several lay speakers in our church authorized to give sermons and conduct the service in the case the pastor was out sick or away on church business. I was also married in a Methodist church. Needless to say, it was hard for me to give up my membership but finally did after a year or so grappling with the issue of gay men or women prohibited from being ordained as ministers of the Church. I felt this was outside of the my belief that Jesus' mission was inclusive with no exceptions, asterisks, or fine print. My pastor asked me to reconsider so that members who felt the way that I did could argue for change from within, but I had to make a change. After attending Quaker meetings for sometime, I became a member of The Religious Society of Friends, a Christian based faith. If you are interested in the Methodist Church, it would be worthwhile looking into. The services are structured, but simple and kinda 'old fashioned' with a real 'down to earth' feel. I liked them myself and I have always had great pastors, too.

Good Morning, ParSal... Thank you for your post. I believe that we, each and everyone of us, are on our own individual, personal Spiritual Journeys and that Wisdom is revealed to us as we go along. It is right and natural that we question, investigate, and struggle with ideas of the Unknown. Faith is not an event, but a process...one that entails our entire lives, both inner and outer. As we deepen through this process, we come to certain Leadings, a Quaker term for an intuitive drawing toward an understanding or the pursuit of glimpses into a deeper meaning. Follow those Leadings. I myself have often reflected on the idea of an Afterlife, but not in the usual sense of the word as in our ideas of 'Heaven'. Perhaps God is a spiritual destination, a Place that we are released into. Perhaps God is a state of Being that we become. Perhaps God is just the first of other Spiritual homes that we arrive at after our Spirit is released, an idea akin to those of the ancient Gnostics. It is not so much something that we need to identify and attempt to know in the concrete in this life, but something that we will experience on a Spiritual plane when our material life ends. By knowing that we, all of us living this very moment, are Children of God, each holding the Light of God Within, we can continue upon our Journey assured that our future Spiritual Selves will continue as part of that Journey. And as with any journey, we don't know what what lies around the corner. And we don't have to...It will be revealed to us in time. Be comforted by knowing that the Spirit of God is Within and that your own Journey will continue as it has all along.

"And now you are no more your own but Mine; and I cannot be hid not separated from you: as you have had me your God in all your tribulations and sufferings wherever I did bear you and your griefs and all your afflictions in the yearning bowels of my tenderness; which yet I will break, I will break, I will break more infinitely open to you, which shall melt and dissolve you, and make you stream to me, as I am in flaming streams of love and life towards you; I will reach you in your Holes; Bolts nor bars of brass or iron, nor walls like mountains shall shut me from you; but in your Denns and Dungeons I will come in among you and walk in the midst of you and you shall know that I am the comforter of your Hearts and the Rejoycer and Gladdener of your spirits in all the times of your needs..." Edward Burrough, Quaker, 1673 Spoken to Friends while dying in Newgate Prison, London

While at my Worship Meeting last Sunday, a Friend rose and spoke of beliefs and the spectrum of beliefs. This theme of understanding diversity brings many of us into a place where we struggle with human condition of wanting to be correct, wanting to be 'right', even if it means that someone else is 'wrong'. When People of Faith come to such a place in thought, it is helpful for us to look at ourselves and our motivations in relationship to our also being Children of God. What does God see? Children of God bickering like little children over something that isn't of any real importance. 'My religion is true and correct', says Billy. 'No! Only WE know the one true God!' shouts Mary. Old religion is of human origin and construction, stories and legends, moral fables and sayings of wisdom. They are a map but not the destination. When The Truth of God Within is clearly understood, the old religion and its creeds, hymns, sermons, morality speeches, political lobbying, and support for that which is not born of God's Love become irrelevant. The Truth is that we are of God and with God. We have, each and every one of us, the Light of God within us. We no longer need third-party managers of beliefs to broker God's Love, Mercy, Grace, and Forgiveness. God can be felt, seen, touched, and spoken with simply by looking inside ourselves and listening and feeling...not by arguing, lecturing, fighting, and shouting like schoolchildren in a playground. God is here and now...what Jesus meant by the Kingdom of God is at Hand. Here and now...with us and within us...forever and for all time.

Here's a good website to look thought: http://www.quakerinfo.com/index.shtml And my favorite Quaker bookstore: http://www.quakerbooks.org/ There are a few different streams amongst Quakers that have histories based upon disagreements that resulted in splits. The two main groups are the Friends United Meeting and the Friends Geneneral Conference. The FUM have mostly 'programmed' meetings consisting of hymns, music, sermons, etc. and resemble Protestant services. The FGC consists of mostly 'unprogrammed' meetings of silent worship. Of course, affiliation with one or the other doesn't neccessarily indicate the type of worship...My Meeting is affiliated with both organizations and follows the silent worship tradition. So, go figure.

My decision to sit with the Quakers was a hard one and it took a good year or so of introspection. I was a member of the United Methodist Church, but had social differences that I felt were in conflict with my own understandings. My pastor was very supportive and knew that I was searching for a place to Spiritually anchor myself. I finally decided the Quaker Faith & Practice mirrors my own most closely, and that's important for me. The silent worship of the Meetings that I attend is the safest and sanist part of my week. I get to clear my head and be with God, meditate, or just look out of the window at the trees outlined against the sky simply being at peace with myself. There are no distractions, no noises...just a group of Believers who come together every Sunday in order to sit and Believe together for awhile. I often leave Meeting feeling very peaceful, as if I have been reassured. I need that.

The challenge to us as People of Faith is not to focus on differences, but to recognize similarities. Faith is not a subject in and of itself to be studied lest we lose sight of the very reason for our Faith. The Light of God Within is the same regardless of what you call yourself or what books you read. We can disagree over words and exchange quotes endlessly, but in the end it must be the Light of God Within that is our motivation in all things and not human constructions, interpretations, words, books, or any other form of second-hand experience with The One. God is within us, all of us, here and now. We need no books, no quotes, no third-party guides or interpretations from experts, no priests, bishops, ministers, hymns, or other such human symbols or representatives to speak to God for us and in our behalf. God is as close to each and every one of us as our own heartbeats and all we have to do is close our eyes, clear away the noise and clutter of our world, and reach out to The Source. God can be experienced by you, by me, by us. It is from that contact, the same contact that Jesus had with God Within, that is truely transformative and can change our lives. This simple Truth needs nothing more than itself.