CXHHJ«Jf <!' 'mE !Dml: Whatto do aboot and for the Balivi.an ()laker farmers wtx>,like others of their desperately poor c:nmtxy, can makethe IIWJStIIOleYby growing coca plants for export as cocaine? Ibf are they different fran cburchgoiJvJAmericantobacco grcMerS? ,,:A Friendly Letter Issue Number Ninety-Seven ISSN #0739-5418 Fifth Month, 1989 Dear Frierd, It's here! 7!le lA8IJ OD:fitioo, the book of OCIDmistsystem, stalinism and SO forth. AMto be stories aM poemsselected by a joint American-Russian sure, the ~ is never mentialed. Andyet, as is editorial board, organized by the ()laker U.S. -U. S.S.R. often the cue in repressive societies, elements of cazai.ttee, and to be p.ablisbed in both c:nmtries, is the truth seep oot, and oot by accident. '!bey ecOO oot frcm l<Iq)f. (()Jr Friendly Bookshelf bas ordered through the hauntiIVJstoty "Girl of MyDreams," by Bulat Okudzhava, in which a yooIVJman anxioosly a batch, and yoo can seai for cqrl.es with the cnJPCIl inside for $19.95 plus $2.05 sbippiDJ.) awaits the return of his Jl¥)tber fran a ten-year senteoce in the Gulag. '!bey also sOOwup in calliIVJ the book "a series of literary snap- ''Hypn9is,'' by Am:>ldKasbtanov, as a doctor strug- shots, the Board states that they were "inspired by a gles with the teq)tatial to join in the pervasive rorruptial of the higher eche1cns in 00pes of visien of 'spiritual linkage I between Americansand Soviets. By 'spiritual linkage' we mean the inner securi.IVJa slot in medical scOOolfor his studioos b1t insufficiently-camected daughter. AMAnatoly life and the ooonectedness we all share. II Bowwell this pi.cneeriDg effort bas succeeded is for the Shavkuta's glance at the Soviet black market in ''WOO readiIVJp,tblic to judge; lIlYown~inien is that they Needs a Crystal Toilet Bowl?"is self-explanatory. have madea fine start en what ooght to be a 1arJ and excitiDJ joomey of Dl1tualself-discovery. l«>, as William Styral says in his foreword, '''lbere is plenty that is seamy in these stories, '!be list of Americancootribltors to the bookis Soviet and American,II b1t if there is any "expose" an impressive ale: Fran Pulitzer Prize winners sucb here, it is that "the rituals of Soviet and American as Alice Walker and the ()laker poet HenryTaylor, to people seemchiefly to involve the frustrating bJsi- stars like Garrisal Keillor and Joyce carol oates. ness of .ddl iIVJthrough•••• II !tlst of the Russians are, of coorse, less well-knaNn to Americans, b1t they iDclude familiar names like Yet there are also JD:IIleIltswhen II""] iIVJis Yevtusbellko,Kuznetsov, and VozDesensky. transcended, and ordinary people in the grip of an extracrdinary spirit can lUl10ckand begin to qleD '!be SOviet editor, Daniil Granin, calls the book doors that have been locked shut for decades. 7!le "an act of participaticm. Anattempt. Afirst, still HumaD OD:fitioo in its SIall b1t historic way sbJws awkwardcootaet •••aCOCJlPuied,perhaps by a tiIVJe of that aIOlQFrierds we still have tOOse1100can thus rise above the ordinary. '!be book still seems to me jealoosy and cautioos hesitatien. II A tentative venture in trust. AM "Trust," Granin declares, a stunni.IYJachievement, well worth the attentien of "requires openness. '!be prcblem of trust bas turned anyooe interested in creative ()laker witness, good oot to be the key prcblem today. Everycoeis afraid stories, liftiIVJ the curse of the Cold War, or all to be the first to plt downhis gun. All yoo can see of the above. through the telescope is an enemy,an adversary. It's bard to makeoot a h\JllaDbeing throogh it. APlay, a book, or a film can serve here. II '!be bookhas already received advancecritic- ism fraa ale of myreaders, wOOdoobted that any of the Soviet stories 1IOO1ddare expose the evils of the Copyright (c) 1989 by C. Fager. Subscriptions $13.95/yr.; Canada $16; Elsewhere $20 2 'Ibe plenary talk al the last were ally a baMful of unprogramed beleagueredRamallahFriems sdnlls evening of the Foorth Friel¥is Mini- Quakerspresent, and because a1Dost 00 the OCCUpiedWest Bank. 11ley sters Calference last Dalth wasdif- all participants werereligioos pro- are still closed by Israeli army ferent. Previoos speakers had of- fessicmls. Still, Wagner'sraoark order, as they have been all this fered up large doses of roosing ev- did seem to capture at least SQDe- scb:x>lyear except for a few weekE angelical reforaism. But this final thing aboot the a~ of the Havinglost at least half their stu- night, Imise Wilsoo of Virginia gathering. 'J'I«) things that hap- dents, and JOOStof the tui tioo in- Beach Meeting in Virgina gave a pened, and ooe that didn't, will ccmewhich supports them, and with shining expcmti.cmof (;.W.etist1)Ja- illustrate this: the fundraising efforts of Friends ker mysticism. As she finished, the United Meetingand other groops ~ 4OO-plwspastors, oormaily a talky, Of the two things that hap- parently rea.chi.nJ their practical popoorn groop, .fell into an un- pened, the plenary talk by !mise limit, FlIt and scb:x>lstaff are Inf characteristically deep, if brief, Wilsal, a wanan,wasooe; a lIOI'lts1q> ~ the tmthinkable: that the period of gathered silence. After a alolt lx:unsexuality was the other. scb:x>ls, in their present form at coople of short messagesand a soft- least, maybe docmed. ly-chanted hymn, an older minister Whatdidn' t ~ was that namedWil.1i.aIIwagnerrose. after these first two, the sky '!he cnmch point is oot far didn't fall. SCIDereaders mayre- off: BySixth bth the sdnlls IllUSt llagner spoke feelingly of memberhow the last Frier¥is Mini- tell their teachers whether they having been active in the ram of sters Cooference, in 1985, was al- will be able to offer employment Quaker eclIDeDical sessials which JOOStaborted by fierce cootroversy <XIltracts for the next sdnll year; began with the St. Imis Cooference over a lQIliIDspeaker and the pos- to do that the scOOolsmust be able of 1970, in which evangelical sible mentiooof B:mJsexua1ity. (See to see where the umey to finance FrieDds invited participati.cm by »U44 for details.) But Inf the the <XIltractswill ccmefran; and at liberal Friel¥is for the first time UllDE!DtiooableH-1tordbas beccmeat this point, it is very doobtful that in nearly fcrty years. Hebad gale least mentiooable, and the nearly it will be there. away frca that and other related all-male ~ pastorate is begin- Eetings very troobled by the dis- ning to acknowledgethat the roles A OOSECE BrrIIR HmICINE cord and teDsi.al be foom aDalg of waDel}in ministry can go beyood Friends, am he bad a:.e to cbJbt time of unpaid spoosal helpoeet and Closing the schools wooldbe whether (),1akeriSIlbad IIlK:bof a fu- First DaYScOOolmainstay. very bitter pill to sWallowfor al ture. He bad atteDded this ccn- coocerned, the stt¥ients, staff, and ferE!llO! saDeWhat reluctantly, be the sd¥:lols' supporters overseas; admitted, lqrl.ng ally to fiM saDe bit the prospect is loaning larger fellc.hip with old acquaintaDces 'lbese changesare real, maybe every day. It is particularly gall- ratlK than any real inspiratial. even historic; yet they are also ing for it to happen 00 the eve of IOOVingat glacial speed-the lIOI'k- the sd¥:lols' centennial, whatsb:A11d sOOpwas <XIlductedby a ministry have been an occasioo for interna- that regards B:mJsexua1ityas a sin ti<Da1celebratioo and thanksgiving. Instead, Vagnerreflected, by that can and sboo1d be cured by that final even:iDQbe had foondhim- grace and coonseling; and the leader 'Ibe scb:x>ls were closed ooce self CCIlvincedthat SClDethingnew raoarked in perfect inoocence that before, during WorldWarene, when was happening. '''lbere is a peace she was glad to be a Friend because British and Turkish armies fooght that is settling over Quakerism,"be Friends den't fight over this is- over the WestBank,and they managed declared. 'Ibis was important, be sue•••• For that matter, by bringing to survive. TOOayRI! still holds said, oot ally for em-" benefit, bit in a Idlpastoral Friend as their ooe legal title to the property, which for a larger pJIJlOSeas well: be had femaleplenary speaker, the planners slntld protect it fran seizure by beard his wife, a rm-FriE9i, ex- were rather blatantly overlooking Israeli authorities or settlers; press it to another guest at the ntlDeroospastoral~trained waoenin maybethey could be simply boarded botel where the CCIlfermcewasheld: their ranks wOOare seeking-but too up tmtil the WestBanksituation is the ~, she allCMlBd,"are the rarely fi.Idi.D;;-1oorevisibility and saDeWhatsorted out, and then re- cxmscieoceof this natial." respoosibili ty in pastoral roles. opened. But that possibility is But perhaps this is too harsh. ally a dim light at the end of what Vas be right? Is there a '1beredid seemto be a general sense coold be a very long tunnel. peace settl.iD] over the Society of of camaraderie aID:DJthe partici- Friends in the tmted States? '!be pants, and the JOOStserioos problems Discussial of the West Ban' Foorth Friends Ministers Coofereoce, aDalg Frier¥is that people talked me schools' plight was informal. Ano which gathered at the Sberatal Den- alolt were tlwsands of miles away. ther problematic trend that was 00 ver Tech Center al 4/21-24 was oot, the table was a cootroversial new of coorse, a representative cross- Perhaps the nnst timely of approach to evangelism, using sectial of the Society, since there these was the grim prospects for the telemarketing. A California Friend 3 namedtbra Wban, wOOfcnerly sold '!be telemarketing cau;mgns them clearly "succeed". insuranoe and other products over . hadn't alwar-sWorked,they told me, the telePme, deve1qled this ~ aM they were expeosive, even with But manyother churches dati t proactl to "selling" an evangelical volunteers doing the cal~.