Letters - 14 June 2013
From Yearly Meeting to Swarthmoor Hall
Yearly Meeting
I feel Jan Arriens is getting to the heart of the matter (7 June). Yes, the main sessions I attended were well-clerked. There was deep, gathered silence and some thoughtful ministry. But I agree that too much time was given to routine business, too little to deeper reflection and, in any case, there was no focus, this time, on a central issue needing discernment.
Of course, the sheer size of Yearly Meeting creates particular problems as well as unique opportunities. Outside the main sessions, our time and space are too crowded for quiet and reflection, even for a proper meal and leisurely conversation. I was very thankful to be able to retreat to the Quiet Room now and again.
But, to my mind, the Yearly Meeting problems Jan Arriens has highlighted are only those of any of our Meetings for Worship for Business writ large. We are too often bogged down in routine business and too rarely approach important decisions in a truly worshipful way: the letter appears to triumph over the spirit.
I hope we can try to do things differently – indeed, perhaps the process is already beginning: I was very pleased to read of Northumbria Area Meeting’s imaginative new approaches in the January issue of Quaker Voices.
Judith Smith
Does the Truth exist? (7 June)
The values of our materialistic culture seep into Quakers as much as into everyone else. It seems to me that truth is not something you have. It is a quality of human life, not a quantity. The same applies to our other precious capacities like depth, love, being awake and discernment. The potential exists. It is up to each of us to create the conditions for each to grow in us.
Richard Thompson
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