Books
To Be Broken and Tender
by Margery Post Abbott
In To Be Broken and Tender, Friend and Quaker historian Margery Abbott weaves together a brave and beautiful personal narrative with Quaker history and theological reflection in response to questions and struggles about belief, language, social issues and other deeply-felt concerns that unsettle and divide our Meetings and the wider Religious Society of Friends. A study guide assists readers in their own discernment around challenging issues such as care for the environment, our personal relationships to God and Christianity, and the role Friends have in making the world right.
See the author’s upcoming workshops and speaking engagements.
260 Pp.; includes study guide. $20 (FREE shipping on orders of five or more!)
Enlivened by The Mystery: Quakers and God
edited by Kathy Hyzy
This is the first book in the Giving Form to Faith series, which explores the ways in which Quakers express their faith, their Quakerness, in the world.
“How have you experienced God or the Divine?”
With this query, Western Friend invited Quakers across the West to share their stories through art, poetry, fiction and essays. The contributions of over fifty Friends are gathered in this testament to the breadth of spiritual experience in the Religious Society of Friends.
Contributors include: Marge Abbott, Heidi Blocher, Eleanor Dart, Iris Graville, Robert Griswold, Susan Merrill, Markley Morris, Rob Pierson, Trudy Reagan, Eric Sabelman, Biliana Stremska, Lynn Waddington, Nancy Wood, and many others.
“A collection of fine essays, poetry, and fiction which describe Western Quakers’ experiences with the Divine. The resulting anthology is a rich devotional text which offers many textures, tastes and glimmers of God.” -Lucy Duncan, Friends General Conference Associate Director for Programs and Bookstore Co-Manager
140 Pp. — $15 (FREE shipping on orders of five or more!)
Western Quaker Reader: Writings by and About Independent Quakers in the Western US, 1929-1999
edited by Anthony Manousos
This collection provides vivid, first-person testimonies by Friends involved in the “reinvention” of Quakerism in the Western USA from the 1930’s to the present. This is the first historical work about Western Quakerism written from the viewpoint of Independent Friends, and the only one that describes the development of Intermountain and North Pacific Yearly Meetings—some of the most vital, lively Yearly Meetings in the USA today.
$10
Compassionate Listening and other writings by Gene Knudsen Hoffman
edited by Anthony Manousos
Gene Knudsen Hoffman dedicated much of her life to seeking out the deep, psychological causes of violence and to helping bring about healing and reconciliation through a process she calls “Compassionate Listening.” Her work inspired Leah Green to begin The Compassionate Listening Project, whose workshops have taught hundreds of people how to listen with their hearts and well as minds. This collection of writings sheds light on Hoffman’s life and inspiration. $10.
EarthLight: Spiritual Wisdom for an Ecological Age
edited by Cindy Spring and Anthony Manousos
During its fifteen years of publication, EarthLight magazine celebrated the living Earth and our thirteen billion year story of the universe. Founded and inspired by Quakers, EarthLight featured articles by many of the world’s seminal figures in secular and religious thought about the place and participation of humankind in creation. This anthology embodies what we feel is the best of EarthLight and of Quaker writers on spirituality and ecology during the past twenty years, a period that some see as the beginning of a new era, and “Ecological Age.” Contributors include Joanna Macy, Gary Snyder, William Stafford, Terry Tempest Williams, Maya Angelou, Thomas Berry, Thich Nhat Hanh, Starhawk, Jim Corbett, and many others. This is an excellent book for study groups.
$10. Free shipping on orders of five or more! Email editor (at) westernfriend (dot) org to receive an additional 20% discount on orders of eight or more.