Issue 06-01-2023
Featured story
Beyond a joke? Mary de Pleave’s Thought for the week
‘Laughter is the closest thing to the grace of God’, Karl Barth, Swiss theologian. We are inherently happy, us humans, but strange things happen during our formation. What’s funny isn’t necessarily always kind. We have ‘black’ humour, slapstick, cruel humour, mocking laughter, and so on. It seems that...
Top stories
Honouring our differences: Elaine Green of QCCIR
‘Inasmuch as the spirit of true religion remains the same under every name, it lives in every form, and is confined to none, being one in itself, unchangeable and powerful in its energy, sanctifying the soul, and whereby the heart is made pure in the sight of God.’ – Samuel Fothergill,...
Pacifist under protest: Hirad Babakhani on Iran
Just like any other Iranian I have been glued to my phone since Mahsa Amini died on 16 September. She was arrested for allegedly not wearing the hijab in accordance with government standards; eyewitnesses say she died as the result of police brutality. I thought I could share this with Friends,...
The word on the street: Simon Webb investigates the ‘precariat’
Sometimes, new words are ugly. Sometimes they are ugly in themselves, sometimes they are ugly because they name something that is itself ugly. One new word, ‘precariat’, is quite attractive in itself – a blend of ‘precarious’ and ‘proletariat’, two English words with French origins – but the fact that we need...
Resisting anti-protest measures
Friends lobbied hard against new ‘draconian’ laws which introduced unprecedented limits on the right to protest. Nevertheless Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) was ‘devastated’ when the House of Lords voted through the final measures of the controversial Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Bill, despite their vociferous advocacy. The vote on 26...
Eye - 6 January 2023
A little laugh ‘Much Quaker humour raises a gentle smile rather than a belly laugh,’ reflects Beth Allen, from Bromley Meeting. She shared a tale from the book More Laughter in Quaker Grey, first published in the 1950s: ‘In a small country town, the Quakers were holding their Business Meeting. ...
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War in Ukraine
As Friends in Britain awoke on 24 February to hear the terrible news that Russia had launched an attack on Ukraine, Quakers in Kyiv told the world over social media: ‘We’ll be grateful for your prayers.’
Cost-of-living crisis
The year began with Quaker Social Action (QSA) urging people to ‘make their hearts warmer’ but by the end of 2022, our homes were colder, our food more expensive, and many people struggling to pay for food and heating.
Loss and damage fund
The year ended with positive news when the COP27 climate summit agreed a historic loss and damage deal.
National truth award
Following a deepening concern over ethics in public office, the newly-formed Quaker Truth and Integrity Group (QTIG) launched a national Quaker Truth Award.
Reparations for slavery
Quakers acted on their commitment to anti-racism this year with a historic decision to make reparations for the transatlantic slave trade. The agreement, made at Yearly Meeting in May, followed an earlier announcement to rename the William Penn room at Friends House after abolitionist Benjamin Lay. The new name was...
Built for the road ahead: Sue Nicholls on Rookhow
During the recent Quaker Life Representative Council workshops on ‘faith-based action arising from strong spiritual community’, I was able to share the story of how Rookhow in South Lakeland has become a centre for outreach, and a resource for vulnerable groups.
The word on the street: Simon Webb investigates the ‘precariat’
Sometimes, new words are ugly. Sometimes they are ugly in themselves, sometimes they are ugly because they name something that is itself ugly. One new word, ‘precariat’, is quite attractive in itself – a blend of ‘precarious’ and ‘proletariat’, two English words with French origins – but the fact that we need...
Children of the Stone City, by Beverley Naidoo
Two young siblings use music to resist the authorities, who mistreat and oppress them. Little sister Leila plays Beethoven’s Ode to Joy on her flute, to let her brother know his family is in the overcrowded military court. There, handcuffed and shackled, he’s being led off to solitary...
Reconsidering Reparations, by Olúfẹmi O Táíwò
Olúfémi Táíwò is an academic philosopher who works in the intersection of climate justice and colonialism. This book has helped me better understand some of the issues.
Early Christian Anchorite
To escape this world’s contagion, I will go Forth to the wilderness and build me there A shelter; or a cave find in the hills. Thus will I loose myself from Satan’s ills.
Letters - 06 January 2023
Granny on a gantry On 9 November 2022 I climbed up a gantry on the M25. I’m seventy-five, a grandmother and a Quaker. I have no climbing experience. I was part of the Just Stop Oil (JSO) Climate Action. JSO has one simple demand: that the government stop all new gas...