Glimpses of the Sacred
Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting
Pastor Bob Henry
September 3, 2023
Good morning, Friends, and welcome to Light Reflections. This morning’s scripture is a little different. It is from the Apocrypha or the Deutero-Canoncical Books. These are the scriptures that land between the Old and New Testaments. The reading I have chosen is from Sirach 15:14-17.
It was he who created humankind in the beginning,
and he left them in the power of their own free choice.
If you choose, you can keep the commandments,
and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice.
He has placed before you fire and water;
stretch out your hand for whichever you choose.
Before each person are life and death,
and whichever one chooses will be given.
I have had several conversations over the last few years about First Friends and what makes it so unique. One of the things that I always express is that we have a theologically diverse gathering of people. Even though we have a spectrum of beliefs, we somehow find a way to come together.
Some of the reasons this is possible is because of the variety of opportunities we offer from Bible Studies to Book Groups, from Programmed to Unprogrammed Worship, from opportunities to serve others to opportunities for self-examination, from events for the young and old alike.
Actually, I have come to realize that First Friends is like no other church or meeting I have known. It is one of the truest examples of the Kingdom of God talked about in scripture that I have ministered among – and I mean that with my whole heart. Sure, we have our issues, our challenges, our quirks and quarks, but overall, First Friends is the closest I have ever been to what I have dreamed of for what is called “The Church.” Some days I am in awe of what all we do, who all we are, and the beauty that is First Friends.
A while back, a friend of mine from a more Evangelical background asked me about First Friends and I found myself having a hard time describing it to him. He had some specific markers I needed to hit, but he was baffled by the fact that we had a spectrum of beliefs and theologies within our gathering. His mindset was more like I described last week in my message - a “cookie cutter Christianity” where all people were striving for the same goals, beliefs, and actions.
I told him the closest we would come to similar beliefs would be our dedication to our testimonies or S.P.I.C.E.S., which intrigued him. Yet, I explained that how we interpret them is unique to each Friend and even each Meeting. Those SPICES (Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Stewardship) are also on a spectrum of understanding among Friends.
His Evangelical mindset reared its head at this point and said, “Well, I can see there could be differences in those, please tell me that you all have the same view of Jesus, right?”
Well…I knew he was not going to like my answer, but I shared with him that there were a variety of views of Jesus among our Meeting – just like there were a variety of views of Jesus in the Bible, or in history, or throughout other faiths. I knew I was headed into dangerous waters, but I also knew that this is one of the things I love about First Friends.
He could not wrap his mind around the fact that we had this much theological diversity. That some were not big on Jesus and that others felt Jesus was everything – and somehow that was “allowed” at First Friends. “Allowed” I said, “No you mean encouraged.”
I also have had other people who have come to talk to me from a much different perspective. They tell me how they have found themselves being drawn to Quakerism, but consider themselves Atheists or Agnostics. It is something about the philosophy of Quakerism that has drawn them to be part of our community.
As one who is not afraid to or unwilling to delve into difficult conversations, I want to talk about this in more detail this morning. I want to step outside our religiosity, our faith structures, and our traditions and examine Quakerism from a philosophical bent.
A fellow Quaker Kim Baker wrote a blog post that I read recently that had me pondering how I might explain Quakerism outside of the traditional methods we often utilize. She starts out by telling the following story,
My parents are firmly atheists and also very open to religious ideas. Both of them were raised Quaker and went to meeting every Sunday of their childhood. They met at a Quaker university and married in a Quaker ceremony in which they exchanged their own vows. They didn’t stick with it though. When they started their new lives away from their families, they moved from the East Coast to the West Coast and stopped going to meetings. By that time, my dad was an atheist and remains so to this day. He turned 80 this year. My mother is a bit more undecided, but religion is not a big part of her life either.
Then listen carefully to what Kim goes on to say,
“While they no longer believe in God in a traditional way, and they didn’t raise me in the religion, the philosophies have stuck and been passed on to me. Even though I don’t identify myself as religious, I still adhere to the basic philosophies of Quakerism.”
What she is describing is both a unique aspect of Quakerism and also an aspect of what many would label spiritual formation. As Quakers we would say the seeds are planted and remain when they transcend our lives and speak to our universal condition.
Unlike other faiths, their creeds or dogmas lead to them getting stuck on certain beliefs for this very reason. They run into roadblocks or discouragement when their understanding of their faith cannot be questioned or transcend their understanding.
I always think of when my wife, Sue spoke out of the silence and told the story of when in high school she worked at the grocery store and a fellow employee saw her reading her bible and questioned her. He asked her to explain what she believed without using the Bible to explain it – leaving her with few words and pondering an entirely different approach.
Kim goes on in her blog to point out some of the Quaker Philosophies that have spoken deeply to her condition and then to translate them to a more universal audience. I think these have really helped give me new ways of looking at Quakerism, how it transcends organized religion, and how it has shaped my evolving understanding of just what I believe and the impact it can have on ALL people – not just those who are seeking a religion to follow.
Let’s start with the first Quaker Philosophy:
God is inside each and every human being, so every person is equal and you should never kill or harm another person; doing so is harming God.
Kim says regarding this philosophy:
“When I really think about this, the idea of God becomes decentralized and I connect with that idea. Far from being the God in the paintings, you know the one with the gray beard who lives in Heaven, God is the sacred part of each of us, a part that recognizes the sacred in others and respects, everyone. For me, that means I have a responsibility to do as little harm as I possibly can. I am a teacher, so when I teach, I need to honor the learners because I am, in fact, one of them. I find this philosophy beautiful; it stops me from acting only in my own self-interest. We are not separate, we are part of a greater whole, when I harm someone else, I am actually harming myself. So, whether you believe in God or not, you can believe in the sacredness that connects us all and makes us into a community.
I will be honest, growing up a Lutheran and then becoming an Anglican, I spent a lot of time hearing we are made in the image of God – the Imago Dei. Or maybe you were taught as I was that if you believe correctly, Jesus will sit on the throne of your heart. Clearly, there was something about the Divine being within us that was important to understand and for me its meaning has continued to develop (or spiritually form) over time.
But it wasn’t until I was among Friends, and I heard “there is that of God in everyone” that I started to grasp this sacredness which Kim speaks of. Over time and a lot of questioning, searching, and study, I have learned that it does not matter if we call this sacredness in us, God, the Divine, the Light, the Seed, or Jesus, but rather these are just labels we use to describe it.
What really matters in the present moment is whether we acknowledge the sacred part in each of us. That we realize as I said last week that we need each other. That we have, as Kim said, a responsibility to honor, not harm, and respect our neighbors, so ultimately, we can connect with them and create a stronger community. Sadly, most of my religious upbringing was focused on just the opposite - on me getting it right while pointing the finger at and judging my neighbor. Instead, what Kim points out is an equality that eliminates this judging and finger pointing.
Let’s move on:
The next Quaker Philosophy she points out is: Your morality should be based on your inner conscience.
Kim says, “Because God is not separate from me but rather a part of me, I am perfectly capable of figuring out what is right and what is wrong and acting accordingly. I love this because it prevents me from outsourcing my morality. So many times we are asked to do things that we don’t agree with morally, but because we are taught that a higher being is telling us how to behave, we go along with it and even sometimes defend it.
This philosophy sometimes gets Quakers into trouble because they follow their conscience instead of the law. For example, they were really active in the Underground Railroad and helped slaves escape because slavery goes totally against the tenant that God is within all of us, and because of that, all of us are equal. Quakers continue to be active advocates for equality, defending immigrants regardless of the current political climate.
I don’t need to believe in God, to believe in following my conscience. I take responsibility for my actions because ultimately I am the one who is performing them. The government or some other powerful group can tell me what to do, but I am not simply a tool for that organization to use, I follow my own guidelines in life. Those guidelines are not written in stone, they change as I learn new things and my understanding of the world changes.
I have come to realize that God, religion, politics, even education systems, and yes organized religion can easily become a cop out or a way for us to sidestep taking responsibility or using the minds the Divine has given us to make good and honest decisions. We have been given a conscience for a reason.
Taking the time to center down, to listen to what our heart is saying, has often been sidestepped for someone else’s thinking. As Quakers we talk about listening and waiting on the Spirit. I have heard many people debate whether that Spirit is Divine or our spirit – in which I often reply – It is both.
And when we are confused at what our conscience is telling us, we go to trusted Friends, to clearness committees, to people we can trust who may have the wisdom to unpack the mysteries.
Folks, many of our contemporary dilemmas are not spelled out in the Bible or even addressed in our Faith and Practice, but have we thrown out reason, taking time to contemplate, to listen and wait on the Spirit to speak to our condition.
When I was an Anglican Priest, I had a Bishop who would say to me, “Have you come to a decision? (about a specific situation).” I would answer no, and he would say then continue to wait until you sense clarity. I would ask, “How long?” And the bishop would simply reply, “As long as you need.” I realized that I was not waiting on God to give me the answer, as much as I was waiting to be made comfortable with my decision.
Probably the topic I waited for clarity on the longest was on Same Sex Marriage. Everyone wanted to tell me what God thought, what the church thought, what the Bible thought…but over time, it was science, my friendships, my own family that helped bring clarity. Sue and I walked with a friend who came out to us, who began dating a partner of the same sex, and finally were married. As we travelled with them, we experienced the vitriol, the pain, and the shaming that took place from people who said God hated them, that the church did not want them, that they were somehow less than human…and it became very clear this was not what I believed. I then made a decision to not be part of this, but to see that of God in ALL people.
Finally, one last Quaker philosophy: You don’t need a priest or religious rituals to have a connection with God.
Kim says, Sometimes I love rituals and ceremonies. I recently got to see the Semana Santa processions in Granada, Spain, and found them beautiful in their way. For me, however, they are not a religious experience, they are fascinating, but I don’t connect with them. The things that make me feel connected to a greater whole are much more random and unpredictable.
Once, while sitting in a hidden grotto near a river bank, the cottonwood fluff mimicking snow, the sun illuminating the grass, water, and rocks, I felt that I was a part of everything around me. I was inextricably connected with the trees, the water, the insects, and the air.
Another time, while leading a discussion on plot arcs in my literature class, everyone became singularly focused. Ideas flowed, one connecting to another, as 26 brains worked together to understand the world more fully.
In these moments, I know that I am not alone.
As I said before, I grew up in churches with lots of religious ritual and tradition. As an artist I have to admit I love religious art and sacred places.
Yet as I have done on many occasions, I have made a spiritual map of my life to plot out where I have sensed what Celtic Spirituality calls the “Thin Places” where the Divine is more present in our lives. On my spiritual map there have definitely been places in nature like the National Parks with my family or the Oregon Coast with my doctoral cohort, and there have been religious rituals like being ordained a priest or recorded as a Quaker minister, or moments like teaching a group of 23 black women in Chicago about the Bible and having them break out in singing Amazing Grace or giving my first sermon in 8th grade on Christmas Eve.
Today, I find painting, going on a road trip with my wife (or family), reading a good book, working in my garden, or having a cup of coffee with one of you – just as much a “thin place” as one of those more grand experiences.
If you follow me on Facebook, I have spent the summer posting “Blooms of the Day” of the many varieties of plants in our gardens. Watering the flowers, pulling the weeds, and seeking out the beauty of the garden each morning, has become a sacred moment of my day – almost devotional in nature. Our backyard has become a sanctuary of sorts. There I find myself connecting on a deeper level. It grounds me and centers me to be ready for my day. I have realized at this stage of my life, it is one of the most sacred things I do. No pastor, no bible, no church involved. But as Kim said, “In these moments, I know that I am not alone.
So, that is where we will end this week. Please know that this is just a teaser to get you thinking and there is a lot more to discuss around these issues. And no, I am not saying, there is no need for God or that Quakerism is just a philosophy.
Instead, I hope you are hearing another way to see or even speak of Quakerism that may be helpful for more people. And as we change our perspectives and see from different angles, just maybe we will see glimpses of the sacred (or whatever you may call it) in new places, in those around us, in the sunset on a glorious evening, or in the blooms in the garden of our lives.
I thank Kim Baker for her vulnerability in writing about this and for sharing it for us to wrestle with.
Now, as we enter waiting worship, I ask you to ponder the following queries:
1. What is it that draws me to Quakerism?
2. What Quaker philosophies transcend my religious experiences and speak to a more universal condition?
3. How am I acknowledging that of God or the sacred in others?
4. What are the “Thin Places” that I notice in my spiritual journey?