7 February 2014 £1.70 the DISCOVER THE CONTEMPORARYFriend QUAKER WAY the Friend INDEPENDENT QUAKER JOURNALISM SINCE 1843 CONTENTS VOL 172 NO 6 3 Thought for the Week: The idea of God G Gordon Steel 4-7 Meeting for Sufferings 8-9 Letters 10-11 Forgiveness on the River Kwai John Lampen 12-13 The curse of history Rosalind Mitchell 14 Experimenting boldly The award-winning Quaker poet Philip Gross read from his James McCarthy acclaimed new collection Later 15 Poem: L’Amor che move il at Friends House on Monday 3 February. sole e l’altre stelle (Dante) During the evening he talked, Tim Brown between reading poems, on some 16 q-eye: a look at the Quaker world of the themes that he had engaged with in the collection. 17 Friends & Meetings He reflected, thoughtfully and tenderly, on his relationship with his father and his response to the final period of his father’s life, his death and beyond. Cover image: Traintracks over the River Kwai. Photo: eric molina / flickr CC. See pages 10-11. 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First, as an eternal being or presence that permeates the universe – a being or presence that is beyond human comprehension and, yet, fundamentally real. Second, a Amore specific belief in which God has a role in human affairs and human lives, perhaps (but not necessarily) mediated through the person of Jesus Christ. To many Friends, the first of these is a view that they take for granted. It seems self- evident that the world had a creator and the feeling that he/it permeates the world is a widespread spiritual experience. But this God is remote and without influence in our lives: some of us feel that we can, without strong feelings, take this view or leave it. The second view of God is much warmer and more comforting: God is a being to whom we can relate and to whom we can pray. This is a God who is concerned for what happens in the world and in our lives. We may go along with the orthodox Christian view that Jesus was used by God as a unique link into human affairs. Inevitably, though, this leads us into well-known problems. Only by ignoring a great deal of evidence to the contrary can we believe that God influences natural processes (winds, waves, earthquakes…) to our benefit. The natural world is often cruel. And the belief that God acts through human beings throws up further problems: why us (an insignificant grain of sand within a vast universe)? Human lives can be glorious or tragic and many good men and women die young. As Epicurus is said to have put it: ‘…is God able but not willing? – Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?’ Only with a selected view of evidence, or rose-tinted spectacles, can some of us see the hand of a loving creator. It is because of these issues that other Friends prefer not to use the God model but still feel that they can sit comfortably within the Religious Society of Friends. They retain much of what can be recognised as characteristics of present-day Christianity: a sense of wonder at the world; thankfulness for being alive; a sense of inwardness and humility; a profound spiritual sense of love perceived in human relationships; a sense of compassion, particularly for the sufferings of other people but for all living things; a determination to play our part in working towards a better world. These Friends say that they experience the depth of a gathered Meeting. And they are aware of the tensions between how they describe their beliefs and more traditional Quaker ways of speaking and writing. The Religious Society of Friends in Britain urgently needs a greater sense of inclusiveness and understanding of these different and strongly held opinions. We live in a time of great change in all areas of life and tensions of this type are understandable and typical of forward movement in religious thought. G Gordon Steel Sutton Meeting the Friend, 7 February 2014 3 Meeting for Sufferings Revision of Quaker faith & practice FRIENDS agreed to begin the that the process of revision England felt that ‘we need to process of a revision of Quaker faith generally took a decade – so the move forward tenderly and in & practice at Meeting for Sufferings, final results of a revision would not love’. There is a need to recognise, which was held at Friends House appear until the 2020s. she explained, that for some on Saturday 1 February. He offered a number of scenarios individuals there were real In the past year there has been a for Meeting for Sufferings challenges at a personal level. wide-ranging consultation about a to consider, from beginning She said that implementing possible revision. It was launched immediately to deferring the sustainability, for example, posed in June 2013 and closed at the decision, and asked: Is it time to difficulties for some. end of November. A large number start to talk to Yearly Meeting? A ‘rolling revision process’, a of Meetings responded and the A Friend said that every week Friend argued, ‘might better meet Church Government Advisory there were people who wanted to our needs’ and be a worthwhile Group was asked to prepare a digest know more about Quakers. More approach. This idea, however, of responses to inform Meeting for and more Friends were not ‘birth- worried one Friend, who said: ‘The Sufferings’ further discernment. right’ Quakers but ‘convinced’ last thing we need is to be some Paul Parker, recording clerk Friends. He felt that ‘we should get kind of Wikipedia and lose what of Britain Yearly Meeting, spoke on with’ a revision. we have had for 350 years.’ to Friends about the subject. He The sense of Quakerism as A Friend praised Quaker faith & mentioned the wide variety of a dynamic faith was strongly practice as a ‘wonderful tapestry of understanding among Friends expressed. A Friend supported experience’ and inspired ‘leadings’. and said ‘we need to go tenderly the decision to go ahead with a ‘The process of choosing and carefully into the future’. revision and stressed the need to passages’, a Friend said, will He linked the response with the make creative use of new media. require ‘quite deep and difficult discussion of ‘What it means to be He said: ‘let’s go forward with a discernment’ and he urged Friends a Quaker today’ which, he said, smile, with joy and with a sense not to set a time limit to the was enlightening, stimulating and of adventure’. The process of process of revision. challenging. He also talked of the revision, Meeting for Sufferings Friends agreed to proceed with ‘creative tensions that exist among was reminded, was an educational a revision to be taken forward by u s’. exercise for many involved. the Church Government Advisory Paul Parker reminded Friends A Friend from the north of Group. Young people’s participation days MeetiNG for SUFFERINGS (MfS) heard a proposal able to take on a supportive role for the young people’, for an annual day for young people aged 14-18 to for example, by ‘helping with travel, accommodation happen alongside MfS – the aim being to engage with arrangements and meeting with them during the lunch ‘the experiences and concerns of young Quakers’. b r e a k’. Richard Summers, general secretary of Quaker Unease was expressed by one Friend. She said she Life, spoke about the success of the visit of thirty- would not be a representative now if she had been told eight young people to the October 2013 Meeting for of the need to accompany a young person to Friends Sufferings. He had met with them during their sessions House for such events. and found it an exciting and uplifting day. Another Friend was concerned that this requirement Quaker Life Central Committee (QLCC) endorsed a would put another demand on representatives and three-strand policy to support the inclusion of young make it more difficult for nominations committees people in the life of Britain Yearly Meeting ‘ensuring to find people willing to serve. A Friend was also our structures and processes properly enable children concerned about the Safeguarding issues and said: ‘I am and young people to be heard and take part as fully as CRB checked for my job but not for Quakers’.