Faith and practice

Stephen Petter offers a personal opinion on the need for clarity and leadership

by Stephen Petter 28th February 2014

Letters to the Friend about acceptance of atheism, nontheism and God indicate that, despite discussion over several years, we are no closer to a resolution of this dispute. The debate has not been helped by the lack of definition of terms, particularly ‘nontheism’. Are nontheistic Friends merely unhappy with the word ‘God’ while accepting divine guidance? Or, do they firmly disbelieve in any ‘God’ (as normally understood), in which case might they not, more helpfully, describe themselves as atheists?