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Quakers and the Connective Spirit
<<First Name>>,
This Sunday is World Quaker Day. Celebrate by joining us for worship, if you are able!
Quakers are a Spirit-centered people. I imagine that claim resonates with each of you in a different way. That's one of the wonderful facets of our tradition: our attempt to honor each individual's valid experience of the Divine.
Friends have often listened for the Spirit behind the words of Scripture, recognizing the limitations of any person or writer or historical/cultural context to capture the fullness of Truth. We are invited to be ever listening, ever learning, ever aware of the limitations of our perspective.
Friends have often emphasized the Spirit of God in each person. This has tended to open the eyes of many historical Quakers (not always initially applauded by their meetings) to the ways people are not treated like they are a sacred incarnation of this Spirit and thus deserving of respect, protection, and liberation.
Friends have often emphasized the diversity and inexpressible nature of God's Spirit, demonstrated in a spaciousness in doctrine and creeds. This has yielded a somewhat diverse range of theological expressions--which is certainly true of CFC at this moment, let alone all of Quakerdom. We recognize the limitations of words and doctrines, which can not only create unnecessary "lines in the sand" but can also stifle valid expressions of God's Truth, expressions which may not fit into existing, accepted language or simply may not align with the customs of whoever happens to be in power at that historical moment. Beliefs do matter, I think, but they matter because they can facilitate or hinder the growth of Love among us.
Friends have often emphasized the encounter we have with God's Spirit in community, where we open ourselves to others and give ourselves to others, "answering that of God in everyone" by participating in the lives of others in a receptive, responsive, affirming, and nurturing manner.
May we encounter the connective Spirit of God this Sunday, working among us to grow us, unite us, and empower us to make tangible the Love of God in the world.
-Matt
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