We are currently hosing our third series of explorations of Quaker texts. These are informal exchanges of ideas about a text chosen from Quaker faith & practice by a Kingston and Wandsworth Quaker. We met on Zoom for about ah hour, and usually have somewhere between 15 and 20 participants.
The dates of the sessions are on our calendar, and the Zoom link is live on the day.
We previously hosted sessions in the Winter and in the Spring, and we've captured a summary of these informal conversations here.
On 14th October we looked at 21.19, written by Dorothy Nimmo in 1979. The text is rather long, so might be summarised as: 'I rejected the strict, abstemious Quaker world I was brought up in, to chase success, pleasure and self-fulfilment. Like the Prodigal Son, I spent my inheritance but ended up empty and depleted. Returning at last to Meeting, I was welcomed lovingly and unconditionally.'
Dorothy Nimmo was born into a prominent, strict Quaker family; her mother was the well-known Quaker writer Elfrida Vipont Foulds. Nimmo rebelled against what she felt was a stifling and rigidly pious upbringing. She chose a fiercely independent path: becoming an actress, marrying, raising four children, divorcing her husband, and writing raw, uncompromisingly honest poetry.
The central theme of the passage is return and forgiveness. We explored Nimmo's return to the Quaker community later in life, drawing strong parallels to the biblical parable of the Prodigal Son and George Herbert's poem Love Bade Me Welcome. Meeting welcomed her unconditionally, offering total acceptance based on her needs rather than demanding contrition. This sparked a debate: some wondered if this welcome represented God welcoming her back alongside the meeting, while others suggested the welcoming voice might have been entirely in her head.
We discussed the difference between lived faith and intellectual reasoning. One friend shared their personal journey of studying theology and philosophy in a quest for truth, only to find that their spiritual understanding did not come from intellectually resolving every doubt beforehand. Instead, it came from embedding themselves in a community and regularly participating in meeting for worship.
We also reflected on what makes a healthy Quaker environment. Some value the gentle, polite, and harmonious nature of meeting, others suggested that true harmony requires different "notes" and diverse perspectives. We touched on "Quaker squashing"—the habit of suppressing disagreement—and highlighted the vital need to learn how to manage conflict openly, carefully balancing truth with kindness.
As ever, our conversation revealed some fascinating insights and themes to which we will undoubtedly return.
On 29 September we met online to talk about QFP 2.09: All true worship is inspired by God… Worship links us to God and implies faith in a God who is in some sense personal… adoration and thanksgiving should always be present ... Worship in Christian experience is our response to the God of Love. Robert Davis (1933)
George Gorman spoke of 'the amazing fact' of Quaker worship, but what are the various ways we can experience and understand worship? One response is that it is an appreciation of life, and that it binds us together as a community with shared values which we regard as sacred.
We often say that Quakerism has Christian roots but is open to new light, appreciating that we can learn from other faiths, and that we may all be worshipping the same God. Many Quakers are happy to describe themselves as Christians; some are wary of certain expressions of Christianity; others might be described as 'cultural Christians' whose sense of morality has been shaped by Christianity whether they realise it or not.
In worship we hope for the stillness which is at the heart of silence, and at best, the sense of transcendence or connection in a gathered meeting. Silent ministry draws us together and is profoundly benevolent. Spoken ministry is of its nature unpredictable, and can be anything from a memorable insight to an anecdote which wanders off course. Does it matter if spoken ministry goes astray? Maybe not.
And then there is the experiment which is untimed worship, from an extraordinary few hours of entirely silent worship, to fifteen minutes during which people leave early and the meeting fails to cohere. Each meeting for worship, whether timed or untimed, is different, and daring.