Canby Jones wrote: "Committed to Jesus not only as Lord, but also as Prince of Peace and peacemaking as his warriors, we eschew anything to do with war and the things that make for war. He commands us to love our enemies to return good for evil and to pray for those who despitefully use us. I see his command to love our enemies as binding on all Christians. No exceptions! Do you?" Posted by Alice M Yaxley

Have you ever wondered how local meetings of Quakers first got set up? Martin goes through the text of the letter from the Elders at Balby [text can be found online http://www.qhpress.org/texts/balby.html] Posted by Alice M Yaxley

"In what way is Jesus and his way actually revolutionary? Is Jesus’ call to “seek the Kingdom” actually a call to nonviolent resistance, to solidarity with the poor, to liberation for the oppressed? What structures within our society (organizational structures, thought structures, etc.) get in the way of that happening? And what way can we realistically embody the Kingdom alternative?" 'You say you want a revolution? Creating liberated spaces in the empire' event with the Mustrad…

"I think that you will be led into all truth if you continue to follow the path that you are on – that of opening yourself to God's Spirit and trusting God to guide you in all things, even things that run contrary to your own desires." Posted by Alice M Yaxley

[The traveling Friends minster] sees musical notes on them as the flames light up and then consume the sheets. "So much for worldly vanity," he says with grim satisfaction. "Your new life will be much more fruitful -- er, what did thee say thy name was, Friend?" Posted by Martin Kelley

I fear that, in our own way, we Quakers have also done a grave disservice to the word “friend.” Jesus did not say “Friends” with a capital. He said lower-case “friends.” It’s fair to assume he meant it exactly that way. It wasn’t just a manner of speaking. He considered the disciples to be his friends, and he wanted them to see him in the same way. Posted by Martin Kelley

"I have stories to tell. About Friends from another part of the world, their lives and about how we interact. I want to write of how we’re all part of one big family, united by our use of the name ‘Friends’. About how we in the minority are connected to people in the majority world through our religion and about how we need to build bridges." Posted by Alice M Yaxley

Meetings are not about just meant to be totally in silence – although of course, many times a meeting can go by with no ministry. Nor, are they about friends preaching merrily. Ministry is a necessity – a feeling as if one is being pulled up by the roots of the hair to speak. For me, another sign that I have been called to minster by the Light is that I feel a great sense of calmness when I have done. Posted by Martin Kelley

Being a Quaker, I know, that is, I experience (not always but enough to 'know'), the light I have within me. It can be hard to let on, even to myself, how much I care, because then I must bear some of the pain and I might even feel compelled to do something about it! So, what IS the use of prayer? No use at all if it does not come from the heart. No use at all if you are not willing to let the praying change you. Posted by Martin Kelley

"If these things didn't matter to us so much there wouldn't be the jerk companies selling jobs to foreign countries and stroking us. This is one of the reasons I want to go plain, God wants us to live for God, in simplicity and humility. Not grandeour and hip hop fashion!! It's going to be hard but I'm going to do it, I'm going to go plain GOD because he told me to, no worries as to where my clothes come from." Posted by Alice M Yaxley

Even in the times when I don’t seem able to see and be glad in these things, on some level I continue to remember God--to remember that there is life and light and meaning that can’t be destroyed by human carelessness or malice, either my own or other people’s; and also that that light, life and meaning can be brought more fully into the human world by people who attend to it. Knowing this, I can’t despair. Posted by Martin Kelley

As history shows, if the community isn’t rooted in discipleship, the study of Scripture and the apprenticing of leaders it can move from a participatory practice to a passive one, from an “open” worship to a silent one. I briefly explained how the pastoral system got its start (partly due to a concern for some of the issues in the above chapter, but more as a result of revivalism) and how while there are rifts there are a lot of people trying to heal the wounds between parties. One way to heal those…

"...Quaker life is much *less* of a spiritual free-for-all than life lived under the rule of a dogmatic institution, because the Spirit is not a set or finite list of requirements. Scary thought. But that, folks, is what we sign up to. We claim freedom in order to go deeper into the Spirit than we would otherwise go." Posted by Alice M Yaxley

"“What do you mean, there’s no priest?” my mother said, baffled, as I explained how the Meeting for Worship would proceed at my wedding." Amy Baker guest post on Chris M.'s blog. Posted by Alice M Yaxley

Most troubling of all is my sense that I have wandered away from my calling, that Voice that beckons, chides, and challenges me toward my mission. Posted by LizOpp

I am new to the YM and I haven't been involved very much in the Quaker-world for nearly 10 years. I hope it is natural to doubt oneself. I know experientially that I must follow where I am led. I know that I must stay connected to God. I know that I have those I worship with for support and guidance. After all we are a community and no Quaker is an island. Posted by Robin M

'Whether Jesus’s death on the cross was a substitutionary blood sacrifice to appease a wrathful god, or whether it was a ransom of captive hostages, or whether it was a moral example, or whether it was any of the other competing theories, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is the Quaker view that something very significant happened there for all people....' Posted by Johan Maurer