As Way Opens
What is the Church and what is its mission in our time?
I am taking a final class at Earlham School of Religion for my master’s in divinity that is a comprehensive summary of our experience and study of God, church, theology and other spiritual considerations that we explored in seminary. We are looking at this question from a personal, biblical, historical, denominational, theological and ethical perspective. This is such a significant question and one that requires we examine our beliefs, our history and our future.
We have been reading Diana Butler Bass's book, A People's History of Christianity, The Other Side of the Story where she examines Christianity from Jesus and the early community, through medieval, reformation, modern and postmodern Christianity. It is fascinating to see how the Church has adapted, adjusted, challenged, re-envisioned and sought a new vision for a more inclusive community over its history. Often, we long for the passion and energy of the early Christians that were preaching and teaching about the way of Jesus, the basis for our Christian life. These early Christians were all about community as they met in homes, shared meals and took care of each other. The church was not a building or a committee structure or a program. The church was living in community, studying, sharing, praying and living into the teachings of Jesus. Sometimes the church has strayed from this path but there were always voices calling the Church back to its core.
In her book, Butler quotes psychiatrist Dr Gordon Livingston who says, "nostalgia is the enemy of hope. It tricks people into believing their best days are gone. A more realistic view of history envisions the past as a theater of experience, some good and some bad, and opens up the possibility of growth and change. Our best days are ahead, not behind. Hope for the future." In looking at our church history there is not a period that was superior to another. Each period built on the prior period and I am hopeful for how the Church will impact our future.
What is your answer to this question? How do you live into your answer?
Beth
Quaker-Affiliated Organizations
With Joy, The Quaker Religious Education Collaborative welcomes you to their new website: quakerrecollaborative.org. They are a grassroots, cross-branch, international community of practice, collaborating to serve the needs of Quaker religious educators, parents and caregivers, Friends school teachers, and youth workers everywhere. Come into their new online house and tour their new Faith at Home page, the revised Resource Library, Quaker RE events page, and more. The entire website is accessible in English, Spanish and Kiswahili.
Announcements, Reports, & Opportunities
SUPER BOWL TAILGATE: CANCELLED ~ Friends, please note the Super Bowl tailgate that was planned for Sunday, February 7 is being cancelled due to a forecast of frigidly cold weather that day. We look forward to scheduling another event once the weather warms up a bit. Keep an eye out until then!
What is Love to you? Friends, we’re asking you to send in photos that we can use in our upcoming Valentine’s Day service. Please take a picture of yourself and/or your family holding up a paper with your answer to “Love is…” Then send the photo into the office at office@indyfriends.org. Or, if you’re on an Apple product, you can send an iMessage text to office@indyfriends.org. We can’t wait to see you and your answers!
Better-Than-Good Reads from Quaker Library
Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness
By Robert K. Greenleaf
Quaker Robert Greenleaf developed his theory of Servant Leadership while an executive at AT&T. He lectured at MIT, Harvard, Dartmouth, and University of Virginia. A collection of lectures and essays, chapter headings focus on Servant Leadership for Institutions, Trustees, in Business, Education, Foundations, Churches. He writes about Servant-Leaders, Servant Responsibility in a Bureaucratic Society, America and World Leadership and An Inward Journey.
Greenleaf was born in 1904, died in 1990. He read widely and deeply the literature of his time: Robert Frost, Hermann Hesse, Herman Melville for example. He was familiar with the Bible and with George Fox’s writings. The ideas he espouses are in no way dated. I am so tempted to include many quotes here, or to make pencil marks in the book, but no! You must discover for yourself what wisdom he shares.
You can call or email the office (317-255-2485, office@indyfriends.org) to request delivery or to arrange to pick up a book from our library. Pick up on Wednesday when the office is staffed or most Thursdays between 3 and 5 when Linda is in the RSWR Stamping for Dollars room. ~Linda L
Birdwatch with Brad on February 20 ~ Brad J is going to lead us on a birdwatching tour of our Meditational Woods and Meetinghouse grounds on Saturday, February 20 at 9 a.m.* We will meet in the courtyard. Dress for the weather and bring binoculars if possible. Be prepared to walk on fallen leaves, dirt and grass. Birdwatchers will be out for about an hour. Connections Programmed Meeting arranged this activity.
Many of you may follow Brad’s bird column in Friend to Friend. He creates the pictures of each bird and has learned much about our feathered friends during his many years of following them as a hobby. He will answer questions and help us explore the fascinating and sometimes hidden world beyond our building. He can identify birds as well as their calls and songs. Come join the fun and be a birdwatcher with Brad!
*Watch Facebook for any changes in schedule due to weather.
Reopening Task Force Report ~ The Reopening Task Force’s most recent statement is available here. Currently, the Meeting-house is open to small groups, with requirements for face coverings and social distancing protocol. Participants assume responsibility for risk of COVID-19 exposure. To check on availability of small groups, including Zoom options, contact the office at office@indyfriends.org, 317-255-2485.
Oak Leaf: Meeting for Reading would like you to join us from virtually anywhere in the world as we discuss Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson ~ The Pulitzer Prize–winning, bestselling author of The Warmth of Other Suns examines the unspoken caste system that has shaped America and shows how our lives today are still defined by a hierarchy of human divisions. “As we go about our daily lives, caste is the wordless usher in a darkened theater, flashlight cast down in the aisles, guiding us to our assigned seats for a performance. The hierarchy of caste is not about feelings or morality. It is about power—which groups have it and which do not.” In this brilliant book, Isabel Wilkerson gives us a masterful portrait of an unseen phenomenon in America as she explores, through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, how America today and throughout its history has been shaped by a hidden caste system, a rigid hierarchy of human rankings.
We will gather via Zoom starting at 7 pm EST on Tuesday, February 23, 2021 led by Cindy K.
Queries for the Week
(From virtual worship)
· How has the darkness of this time affected me and my relationships?
· Where am I struggling to allow the darkness to teach me?
· This week, how might I begin to turn my darkness into opportunities?
(From self-led guide)
· What area(s) of my life need refreshed?
· Do I believe and trust that God is helping me get through this time?
· What am I learning about endurance and my spiritual and physical condition?