Eye - 26 January 2024
From Never too old to A Quakerish predisposition
Friends flocking despite floods
Harvey Gillman, of Rye Meeting, admired the determination of Hastings Meeting after the recent deluge.
He writes: ‘I attended Hastings Meeting yesterday [7 January]. The Meeting house has been flooded twice recently. Newspapers were scattered over the floor to dry it.
‘I had heard once in a sermon that a preacher should have the Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other. Here the headlines of the world clamoured from the floor, and Quaker faith & practice bore witness from the table.
‘I admire the persistence of Hastings Friends!’
Eye hopes the Meeting is soon dry and newspaper-free!
Never too old
A Bristol-based Friend appeared on the BBC News website on 15 January, sharing how being in his eighties hasn’t stopped him from undertaking a PhD.
The article, which can be read in full at https://bit.ly/3O2vtjU, opens: ‘An 85-year-old man has said you are never “too old” to study if you just accept it can take time.
‘Roger Sturge, from Bristol, is researching the work of Quakers in Nazi Germany as part of a master’s (MA) degree at the Quaker Studies Research Centre in Birmingham.’
The story goes on to describe how Roger joined the course after his wife passed away in 2021. It also explores his personal connection with his area of study, as his father, Paul Sturge, had responsibility for British Friends working in Germany after being appointed general secretary of the Friends Service Council in 1935.
Ben Pink Dandelion, who is honorary professor of Quaker Studies at the University of Birmingham where Roger Sturge is studying remotely, was quoted: ‘Roger does indeed show that you are never too old to take on a research degree. He has drive and dedication and above all a passion for his topic. That’s the main factor for success, and Roger is able to combine that with great clarity of thought and organisation.’
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