Letters - 28 June 2013
From truth to remembering
‘What is truth?’
Harvey Gillman (21 June) doesn’t want to define himself by any ‘ist’. Nor should any of us. Narrowing ourselves down to a single reductionist definition is not what it’s about. I’m happy to describe myself as a nontheist (and for that matter a socialist, a humanist, a pacifist), not as a matter of cut-and-dried ‘definition’ but because these handy labels clarify where I stand amidst the vast confusion of ideas and ideals which humanity is heir to.
Harvey says ‘a walker is defined by the walk, a direction, not by having a position’. But we must surely acknowledge that we do have ‘positions’. I have a theological position, a political position, a position on nonviolence and much else! So, I’m sure, does Harvey. I name these positions, not as a matter of definition, and still less as a way of asserting absolute truth claims, but for the sake of clear communication and personal integrity.
Of course, naming positions exposes difference. That’s surely only a problem if we perceive difference itself as a problem. I delight in our differences, our varieties of expression, our diversity – including our diverse understanding of ‘truth’, with or without a capital T. Our liberalism (ouch! another ism), our rejection of dogma and creeds, is our Quaker glory. But we hide that glorious light under a bushel if we are shy about expressing our diverse understandings and naming them with integrity and for clarity’s sake.
David Boulton
A time to celebrate, a time to remember
Kelvin Beer-Jones (21 June) beautifully expresses the joy and sense of rightness that many of us feel about the passage of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill in the Houses of Parliament. On Sunday 25 August, to coincide with the Manchester Pride festival, Manchester and Warrington Quakers will be celebrating fifty years of Quaker concern for same sex equality with a celebration event entitled ‘A Time to Celebrate, A Time to Remember’. The speakers will be Michael Hutchinson, Rosie Bailey and Chris Skidmore. All Friends are invited to join us on that day, to share their memories and thankfulness. Details of how to register will be published shortly. Enquiries to marionmc@gn.apc.org.
Marion McNaughton
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