I’m going to talk briefly, first, about my concept of worship, second, the process of translating or refining the words I use and third, about tolerating differing uses of these words and the beliefs they reflect. First off, a definition from Webster, Worship: 1. to honor or reverence as a divine being or supernatural power; … Read more
the word ‘worship’ by itself is simply a standard quaker word for that period of time on sunday mornings & committee meetings in which we settle down in our heads & hearts & bodies, getting quiet, maybe opening our selves to revelations from inside & outside of us. but like all common quaker terms, ‘worship’ & all … Read more
I was curious about what ChatGPT would write about nontheist Quakers, so I asked, “Tell me about nontheist (AKA atheist) Quakers.”
While preparation for Nontheist Center activities at the online Gathering was a bit challenging, as were some technical glitches during the week, overall it was fairly successful. We ranged from 5 – 17 participants in each of the afternoon sessions, and the content was well received, at least from the responses we were given.
Contents: Introduction Review #1: Patrick Nugent’s homework assignments Introduction: For a general introduction, see the document on this website with reviews from the 1960s. There is also a list of publications on Quaker nontheism on this website. It does not include letters, editorials, book reviews or internet blog postings (an exception was made for two … Read more
Contents: Introduction Review #1: Claire Walker and the Questing Quakers Review #2: Larry Miller’s review of Honest to God Review #3: Toward a Quaker view of theology Review #4: Dan Seeger and nontheist conscientious objection Review #5: Carol Murphy Review #6: Bradford Smith Review #7: Joseph Havens Review #8: Scott Crom Introduction: Learning about the … Read more
Minute and Epistle of the gathering of nontheist Friends at Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, Britain, Feb 18-20 2011 “There are nontheist Friends… Friends who might be called agnostics, atheists, sceptics, but would nevertheless describe themselves as reverent seekers.” So began the report of the first formal workshop for nontheist Friends, held in New York State … Read more
Doctrinally open membership is becoming more accepted by Friends. What is this method of arriving at membership decisions? How does it affect other areas of Quaker life and what does this imply for the future of the Religious Society of Friends? The Method Consider a typical Friends meeting. Members gather in silent worship. They cooperate … Read more
To seek to live in the light is essentially a value, a principle of living, rather than a belief. We need no theology, nor even a particular conception of “the light” as a distinct quality, in order to seek to live by it. Perhaps it would help me to clarify my point, if I described my own quirky, incomplete, and mostly psychological sense of where “the light” comes from
MINUTE of the workshop on “Quaker Identity and the Heart of our Faith” at the FGC Gathering, Blacksburg VA, July 2009 28 Friends (26 from USA and one each from Britain and Canada) have participated in this workshop. We have met together on six successive mornings from June 28 to July 3 2009 to tackle … Read more