We travel East each year to see my husband’s family in Pennsylvania, where we spend two weeks in the verdant, fertile, sticky forests and fields of the eastern states – eating fresh blackberries on the trail by the stream, fresh corn from the roadside stands, peaches that drip juice down your chin. It is glorious.
Notes from a conversation among Friends on October 26, 2017, considering the practice and importance of studying Quaker history, both for individual Friends and for the Religious Society of Friends
Recording of portions of a conversation among Friends on October 26, 2017, considering the practice and importance of studying Quaker history, both for individual Friends and for the Religious Soci
Henry Ford, the father of mass production, is famously known for declaring, “History is bunk.” Thus, he relegated “History” to “the trash heap of history.” (The word “bunk” comes from the Dutch word for “rubbish,” bunkum.) Histories exist to make sense of people’s lives, to reveal the meanings of humanity.
On October 26 I took part in an interesting phone workshop on Quaker history sponsored by the Western Friend. It was the first online workshop I have ever taken part in, and I want to commend Mary Klein for organizing it and for providing excellent background readings and good questions to ponder. It worked extremely well. I was able to hear and see everyone clearly.
A collection of talks that provide context and strategic analyses for Friends who still seek The Beloved Community in U.S.A. 2017.
And what is history but
Stones by boys on fathers’
Ponds, beyond the lily pads
Where sit the frogs of conscious
Evolution . . .
So wars evolve of themselves!
While fathers get lost in their
Competition, vengeance and
Fictional futures of old
Realities . . .
Father God, for your sake, Please!
Awaken Sophia’s Heart’sWhen Quakerism originated in the 17th century, English pronouns in all groups, with one major exception, had already achieved the forms we use today:
Dear Editor: I would like to comment on the book review of The Essential Elias Hicks (May/June 2016). The reviewer has misunderstood the title as indicating that Elias Hicks was himself essential. Rather, the title indicates that the book demonstrates the essence of what Hicks believed and preached. It’s the essence of Hicks, not the opinion that Hicks was essential.
