I’ve occasionally thought of Beppeblog’s Joe Guada as my blogging Quaker doppleganger. More than once he’s written the post I was about to write. And more than one important article of mine started as commentary to one of his insightful articles.
So I’m worried that he’s written the first of a multipart article asking Is it time to leave Quakerism. I’m worried not just that Quakerism would lose a bright Light, etc., etc, but because I know that now I’m going to have to publicly mull over the question that’s a constant background hum that I try not to think about.
Update: just to prove my point, my comment to Joe’s post was more interesting that my post pointing to his post. Here’s the comment I just left there:
There was one day in worship a few years ago right around the time when my wife Julie decided to leave Quakerism when I had this odd vision. I imagined us as boulders the front edge of a waterfall. Thousands of gallons of water swept over us every day, eroding and scarring our surface and undermining the fragile base we were on. When Boulder Julie finally dislodged and fell off the precipice of Quakerism, I realized that one of the rocks that had held me in place was now gone and now there was going to be even more water and pressure trying to push me off.
I say this because you’ve become one of my blogging rocks, someone who confirms that I’m not a total nutcase. If you went over the edge I’d have to reassess my situation and at least take a peek down myself. At the very least I’m going to have to blog about why I’ve stayed so long. I’m sure this is only part one to my commentary on these issues…
“Don’t mourn, boys. Organize!”
The Society of Friends is ripe for renewal and revival. Don’t walk away now.
Still is.
Thanks for your thoughts Martin. I have a post that I’ll put up soon in reply to your comments. But, this will occur after I stop having problems with Blogger (it seems to be having major problems right now) and after I post about the new Dr. Who series that is premiering on the BBC, March 26th. Priorities…
QuaCarol — I’d be interested in reading more about what helps you to see the Society’s ripeness for renewal and revival. Intriguing…
A crisis like this is something almost everyone goes through, and I’m not going to try to tell you how to feel about it, but consider this:
In the world we live in now, religion is in an awkward position. Faiths that originally preached peace and good will are being used as excuses to impose on peoples rights and start wars (not that this is anything new). Our Christian tradition has always been based on the emphasis of non-violence, kindness, and social justice. While I understand it is arrogant and most importantly incorrect to imply that these things are exclusive to us, we certainly aren’t part of the majority. If not us then who else will stand counter to the stream?
Hi Joe: tomorrow I leave for the FGC “youth ministries consultation” which I think should show where the institution that is FGC is at. There have been some same-old same-old proposals floated in advance but I’ve been assured that younger voices are expected to do most of the talking. Whether these voices are the right voices and whether they’ll be bold to talk and whether they care about revival, etc., waits to be seen. I’m sure I’ll have more to say come early next week.
Understood. Have a great consultation. I’ll be interested to read what your after thoughts are.
I see new seekers arriving who are trying to come to terms with September 11. They want more than to be handed a copy of “Friends for 350 Years” and to be told to stick around. Some of us are catching on to that, finally.
I see the 20- and 30-somethings arriving because they have read Woolman or Fox or Kelly and thus already know more than many oldtimers. (I say “many.” Not “all.”)
I see this community of bloggers, reaching out to each other and connecting, when meetings (and here I venture to say “all”) are focused on keeping their pamphlet racks filled, rather than posting URLs on their bulletin boards or creating a newcomer’s URL handout.
I see you(I’m still a nonblogger)trying to support each other in your searching and trying to provide for each other the depth and spiritual friendships that your meetings probably aren’t providing.
I see a real shift among many Friends who came into the Society in the 1960s and early 1970s, the Vietnam generation. Many rabid universalist Friends who couldn’t stand to hear Christ language have become more nearly Christ-centered and are now questioning the rigidity and fundamentalism of the universalist Friends. Some of these Friends are in leadership positions in yearly meetings now.
I see a real interest in and hunger for prophetic voices. I see a renewed interest in the Bible. In dressing plain as a testimony. In discerning spiritual gifts. These younger-than-the-aging-hippie Friends do not have the hair-trigger revulsion against leadership that the 60-somethings do.
Put simply, you don’t want to be Ranters anymore.
These are my reasons for hope.
QuaCarol, your fantastic comment needs to be lifted up more. I’ve made it a “guest piece” on the blog so others will be able to see it (I hope/assume that’s okay). Thanks for your encouragement, it means more than you know! I’ve also started putting together a page of “Quaker Ranter fan emails”:/quaker/testimonials.php since they give a hint as to the Friendships that are building. I think a lot of this is happening under the radar of institutional Quakerism and maybe these can help let them know what’s happening.
I really appreciate Carol’s comments here. This really could be a generational thing. It is time for Friends to re-wrestle their heritage from Ranters, who worship the false radiance of their own hallucinations rather than the true Light of Christ (to quote John Wilbur & William Penn, though Wilbur didn’t mention hallicination. He’s more succint, he called it the Devil) Jesus did not come to bring peace to the world, but a sword. He will set fathers against sons and mothers against daughters. So what are we exactly waiting for?
Oh please dont leave…where would you go? You can be a Quaker in your soul, in your soul, you can be a Quaker where you go, where you go…but it would certainly suck for us who read your blog. I’m with the writer that said change is coming. I am a bit apocalyptic by nature, but I think everything is going to be shaken, and the true will emerge. Look at the exciting things happening in the world..the revolution in Ukraine, the Lebonese-Syrian pull out…rock and roll hoochie coo. Change is coming for us fat complacent well off people. Maybe not so good things, as is fitting for our position in the world, but as Bushie said, ‘bring em on’. We were born for times such as these. And God will have a people.