I was privileged to have the opportunity to travel with Marty Grundy under the care of the Traveling Ministries Program to visit monthly meetings and worship groups in the Atlantic Provinces of Canada. The call to join Marty on this visit came just after I had spent a month at Pendle Hill, preparing myself for whatever God wanted me to do. In reflecting on the experience, I feel that I was faithful in responding to the call, but I cannot say for certain what it all means.[See Marty Grundy's account of this trip]

Perhaps if I write down some of the details the larger picture will become clearer. On April 12th I flew from Salt Lake City to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where I was met by Charlie Kennedy and his daughter, Chloe, who drove me to the North shore and their home near Scotsburn. I had some good conversations with Charlie, his wife, Paige, and Chloe. Charlie was especially interested in the Alaskans Listening to Alaskans about Subsistence project that our meeting has undertaken, as he is involved as an observer for a First Nations tribe. There were many opportunities for "kitchen table" ministry. Marty arrived the next day, and on the 14th we all went to Caribou Island where we had meeting for worship with the Antigonish Worship Group. Following worship and potluck we had a time for questions/discussion. Folks attending included members of the Halifax meeting, a Catholic nun, and a first-time attender, and the questions reflected that range of experience with Quakerism. In answering their questions, Marty managed to convey many of the key points of her message. I was asked to say something about the Listening Project.

The next visit was in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. Bruce Dienes did a superb job of coordinating the travel arrangements for the entire visit and making a schedule of events for our time in Wolfville. The visit included individual meetings with folks, some of whom are unable to get out on their own, a couple of sessions with the monthly meeting group, and a public session where Marty talked about the Quaker Peace Testimony. Before each session Marty shared her thoughts about what she was being led to say, and I listened and made a few suggestions. During the sessions I upheld her in prayer as she spoke to the group. After the public session, one young woman asked me about my role. She couldn't figure out why I was so quiet when I had been a full participant in our individual meeting with her. When I explained that my role was to uphold Marty, she understood and put it into the context of early Friends traveling together. In general the Wolfville Meeting seemed well prepared for our visit and made good use of our time with them. There is some resistance to "God language" but Marty laid out the ground rules that each person should speak in their own language and others translate as needed, and that seemed to work.

The final portion of the trip for me was St. John's, Newfoundland. This was a challenge in that the worship group is essentially a subgroup of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, and in fact both groups are led by the same person. We met once for potluck, worship, and discussion with mostly UUs, once for the UU service, and once for worship with those who identify more with Quakers. In the UU service after she had spoken, Marty asked if we could have a worship sharing rather than a discussion. She asked folks to think about their own experience of the Divine in their lives. Not everyone spoke, but those who did were speaking from their hearts, and it was a clear demonstration of how the Spirit can work amongst us. I shared a story of how God had spoken to me through another person, and afterward a woman said that she had experienced something similar, although she wouldn't put the "God" label on it. I also had a kitchen table opportunity with my host that was perhaps useful.

It was easy to do this work with Marty. I felt that we were both listening--to God, to each other, and to the folks we were visiting, and God gave Marty the words to say what needed to be said on each occasion. The parable of the sower comes to mind in thinking about the traveling ministries: one casts the seed, some of which will fall on the path, some on rocky soil, and some on good soil. This image is in contrast to the gardener, who carefully prepares the soil, places the seeds, and tends the new seedlings as they sprout up. I know from my own experience with having Marty visit our meeting many years ago that she does sow seeds and some do spring forth. It was a joy for me now to be in the role of the visitor and to support Marty in her ministry.

This trip affirmed for me the value of the Traveling Ministries Program, especially in reaching out to small groups that have not yet fully identified with Quakerism. We encountered folks who are quite independent in their spirituality. Marty's message to such folks (it worked in Alaska, too) is that they have what they need amongst them if they are willing to listen. This message defuses the fear of hierarchy and organized religion that pervades many outlying groups and puts the focus where it should be: on their corporate relation to the Divine. Marty's question, "What does it mean to be gathered as a People?" is one that puts the responsibility on the group to discern its right relationship, or Gospel Order.

For me personally, the trip was an opportunity to put to use some of what I had been working on during my stay at Pendle Hill. I used my journal as a resource and often found something that was relevant. For example, at one point Marty was looking for a particular quotation and I found that I had typed it out on my laptop as part of my own work. This felt to me an affirmation that I was being prepared for my role.

More on these travels:
Marty Grundy's account of this trip
Photos of this trip

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