Lessons from a Cancer Journey
by Anthony Manousos

November 2009 Issue

When I left my position as editor of Friends Bulletin in July 2008, my wife Kathleen and I had wonderful plans. I had a scholarship to go to Pendle Hill so I could finish my book about Howard and Anna Brinton, and Kathleen was given a sabbatical leave from the Methodist Church so she could study spiritual direction. We sold our house with remarkable speed (and at a good price!) and made arrangements to spend the summer visiting Friends and family and camping. But God had other plans for us.
That same July we learned that Kathleen had lymphoma—a form of cancer that killed her mother twenty years ago when she was Kathleen’s age (56). This was devastating news, but the oncologists were hopeful. Cancer research has made great strides in the past couple of decades, and Kathleen’s oncologist was convinced that her cancer could be knocked out with chemo in six months.
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December 5, 2009

“Listen carefully. Imagine a sower going out to sow, scattering the seed widely. …” (Mark 4:3)

Dear Friends everywhere,

We greet you with joy to share God’s movements among us during a regional consultation of Friends gathered Dec. 5that North Seattle Friends Church, in Seattle, Washington. Together, we resoundingly affirm the authenticity of the leading described in the attached vision statement modeled after the program, “On Being a Spiritual Nurturer,” under the care of “A Ministry of Prayer and Learning devoted to the School of the Spirit.”We prayerfully considered many questions and new ideas, and discerned way forward in coming months. Now we wish to invite  all western Quakers into the circle of our prayer over this seedling of a program, and welcome  your participation in its growth and development.

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