It's sometimes hard reading, dealing with homophobia, Intellectually indefensible young-earth Creationism, guest speakers like Sean Hannity and Karl Rove, following a 46 page code of conduct that regulates every aspect of their social lives, occasional racism, and a lot of stories that sure didn't come up in the Quaker meeting he grew up in.

As part of our class we want to give students an opportunity to hear your voice and thoughts too! Over the next six weeks, we'll post a new survey pertaining to the next class topic every week. The questions are intended to serve at least two purposes. First, they are information gathering questions so that we can get input from the wider Quaker world. Second, we hope that these questions serve as a set of queries of sort, prompting you, as readers, to consider some things that you might not have considered for a while as they might seem basic or simple.

I hope you'll consider the possibility that neither you nor the Quaker community is "bad" or "wrong" for not having already looked at this more, or not having created more age/race/social class diversity. I hope you'll also consider that our faith community has a lot to rejoice in, in terms of the stand that we have taken for equality and the ways that has influenced us.Would you be willing to invite people to participate in ways that will help our community's base of support* include people who are new or whose age, social class, or race is different from your own?

A blog from a U.S. Friend doing service work in Haiti. "A look at the power of sharing and the power of God, and how they can help folks in Haiti and the US to learn from each other. Do the cultures of Haiti and the USA each have some of the solutions to some of the social ills in the other country?"

When I picked it up in the bookstore, I was worried that it just be a trainwreck of cultural conflict, but flipping through it was clear the train stayed on the tracks. In fact, it's easily the best "outside looking in" book I've read on this wing of evangelical Christianity.

Perhaps we need to talk as a community about what that means - define expectations. Perhaps we need to evaluate where these practicalities are to be lived out - small groups versus larger congregation, etc. And perhaps we need to repent, to apologize, to take a posture of humility and hospitality. Or we can just let the slow fade continue, and our words can continue to lose their power; but this Mama Bear won’t live that way with her boys.

A core truth of Quaker theology and experience is the direct relationship of God with humanity. Whether as individual seekers or in the collective practice of worship, God can be experienced anywhere, at any time, and all people can be called on for the work of ministry. The experience of God is both sustaining and transformative, as the divine Seed in each person is met and searched and nourished directly by the Inward Light of God.