Friends General Conference

Together we nurture the spiritual vitality of Friends

You are here

Home › The Spiritual Deepening Library

Living into Wholeness

image credit: Creative Commons Zero
Overview: 

Many of us know that the Beloved Community is “not yet,” because we see the trauma of white supremacy and colonialism playing itself out across the globe. But can we co-create and Live Into Wholeness together?

Want to go even deeper?  Check out these resources about engaging in anti-racism work in your meeting:

Join the Spiritual Deepening mailing list to receive announcements about program updates.

For Facilitators: 

Successful facilitation creates opportunities for everyone to share and moves the group toward deep connection. Use these resources to learn more about leading a group through meetings for spiritual deepening.

Find course guides, videos, and other resources to plan your group's journey, create an inclusive space, and manage your time together.

Access resources for facilitators here.

Library Navigation


Topics:


Enjoying the Spiritual Deepening Library?
Support the Library by making a donation

Donate

Living into Wholeness Exercises

e.g. for an hour and a half, enter "90"

Grounding

Living into Wholeness for Children

Children are delighted by the diversity in our world. Share these books with children to help expand their understanding of community. 

Introduction

In radical-progressive faith communities, the “Kingdom of God” is often translated as the “Beloved Community,” a concept popularized by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This vision of the Beloved Community included not only the redemption of the oppressed but also of the oppressor. Some feel the term, Beloved Community, has been co-opted by majority white faith communities that have not fully embraced the radical notion of agape love, or God's love.  So, we've chosen to express this idea as Living into Wholeness.

Scripture

Ground your work in scripture. Quaker faith and practice can be compared and combined with a wide variety of other traditions: such as Buddhism, or ethical humanism. But we will find our deepest and fullest reasonaces with the biblical Christian traditions that nurtured early Friends and with the Jewish traditions that nurtured Jesus.

Friendly Voices

Learn from Friends near and far through video and podcasts. From informational histories to instructional guides, to deep ministry, we can use these media to learn more and build community.

Videos and Podcasts

Learn from Friends near and far through video and podcasts. From informational histories, to instructional guides, to deep ministry, we can use these media to learn more and build community.

Practicing

Experiential Activities

Activities like yoga, labyrinths, and mandalas are designed to help focus and calm the mind and body. Explore what happens in your mind and your body when you try simple yoga poses or use a finger labyrinth.

30 minutes | All Ages | Newcomer Friendly
Noticing Living Wholeness as Beloved Community

Make noticing wholeness a spiritual practice. 

45 minutes | All Ages | Newcomer Friendly
Spiritual Practice: Our Life is Love

For this spiritual practice, you are invited to engage with the writing of an early Quaker using the process of lectio divina.  

30 minutes | High School and Up | Newcomer Friendly
Living into Action

Agape means understanding, redeeming good will for all men. It is an overflowing love which is purely spontaneous, unmotivated, groundless, and creative. - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

60 minutes | High School and Up | Newcomer Friendly

Credits

Beth Popelka, Rachel Ernst Stahlhut (OVYM), Melinda Wenner Bradley (PhYM), Hye Sung Gehring, Oskar Castro (PhYM), Carolyn LeJuste (LEYM), Betsy Meyer (NEYM) and Sea Gabriel (NPYM) - Content Collaborators

Anne Collins (SCYM), Sally Farneth (PhYM), Susan Hopkins (PacYM), and Erika Mittag (SCYM) -- Materials for Children