A message delivered at West Richmond Friends Meeting for on July 21, 2024 He said to them, “It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries […]
faith
I Am Not A Ghost: The Memories Our Bodies Carry
A message delivered at Earlham College Meeting for Worship on August 20, 2023 While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them andsaid to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified andthought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are youfrightened, and why do doubts arise […]
(Review) Quaker Quicks: Telling the Truth About God
In Quaker Quicks: Telling the Truth About God, Rhiannon Grant presents a case that Quakers must talk more clearly and openly about God and theology, and encourages us to see the ways that we already do. The book gives a clear view of what (liberal) Quakers often do and don’t say about God, as well […]
With whom are you crucified today?
If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. Luke 9:23-24 There are a variety of calls to be “crucified with […]
Un-Deserving
For we each of us deserve everything, every luxury that was ever piled in the tombs of the dead kings, and we each of us deserve nothing, not a mouthful of bread in hunger. Have we not eaten while another starved? Will you punish us for that? Will you reward us for the virtue of […]
Does a clear conscience matter?
My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 1 Corinthians 4:4 One of the things I’ve always struggled with was whether I was unwittingly awful, sinful, or condemned. It made sense in my Calvinist upbringing. There really was no way to know if I was […]
A Listening Heart
So give your servant a discerning heart… 1 Kings 3:9 One of the things I’ve found most moving in Quaker worship is the focus on listening. I sit, whether in Meeting for Worship or on my own, and listen for wisdom, comfort, challenges, or whatever may come. It’s not always an easy task. It takes […]
Statement of Faith
Below is a statement I wrote to share with other members of my Meeting, as we worked on structure and curriculum for religious education. I hope to use it as a reference and beginning point as I develop these and other ideas over time. There is an inherent value in everyone and everything, which can […]