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Friends United Meeting |
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January/February 1999
Is God Finished with Quakers?
By Bruce Bishop
We sometimes experience a tension in our yearly meeting over whether or not God is finished with Quakerism: Is our distinctiveness as a denomination a barrier to people we are trying to reach? Isn't the message of Christ-centered Quakerism universally accepted in the Church now? Can't we quit worrying so much about trying to be different and become more like the other churches to which people seem drawn? It's an appropriate question, I think. We don't want to continue doing certain things simply for the sake of history. We want to be motivated by a sense of calling, to know we have a purpose for who we are.
Personally, I do not believe that God is finished with Quakers. And I'm not one of those people who is concerned that denominations unnaturally split the Body of Christ. They are only a negative if dissension and pride keeps them apart. But if they are separate because they emphasize different aspects of the Truth and contribute different perspectives to the whole, then they are truly functioning as the Body. After all: "If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be?"
So I believe that God has a role for Christ-centered Quakers in the 21st Century. Unfortunately, we don't seem to have a good grasp of what that might be. Therefore we are in danger of being responsible for omissions in the overall ministry and personality of the Church. If we don't carry out our role, God may have to raise up and bless another group to make what should be our contribution.
The "peripheral issues" that often feel like unnecessary baggage should flow from a couple of central values. Without this center, the lukewarm expression of Quaker distinctiveness may indeed cause people to avoid our denomination.
It seems to me, that the core of our strengths and potential contributions is our emphasis on listening to the Spirit of Christ and acting in obedience without limitation. We believe that God can speak to us directly, and that together we should be able to hear God's direction for our meetings. Here in the northwest, anyway, we struggle to express those beliefs with vitality rather than out of duty to historic structure. Clearness Committees and Open Worship are being explored and experimented with in fresh ways in some places, but overall, the stunning lack of vitality in corporate listening causes more questions than good experiences can answer.
Another strength Quakerism offers global Christianity, is the significance of Christ being present and within reach of each life. This experience moves Quakerism into a Christ-centered mystical realm that much of modern Christianity does not embody. It should move us into an everyday experience of Christ, until "in him we live and move and have our being."
Evelyn Underhill wrote about Quakerism in 1936, that "here the mystical and inspirational element in Christianity, which had faded out of the public life of the Churchthough always maintained in the secret experience of contemplative soulsis powerfully reasserted. In the records of the early Friends we seem to see a true prophetic disclosure of the Spirit, evoking a response marked by reverence, love, certitude, and above all unlimited trust; and in the corporate experience of those who waited together in confident expectation upon the Inner Light, we recognize again the spiritual realism of the New Testament." (Worship, p. 234)
I'm sure there are other strengths that are important for Quakerism to contribute to the Church. The problem is that we are not experiencing the vitality of these elements, and so they continue to go unshared...and we continue to wonder whether we have a purpose for continued existence. Much of our "distinctiveness" that appears superfluous and outdated, originally flowed from these core values. When we argue about the sacramental elements or see consensus as an impediment, when we consider silence in worship to be unwelcome to visitors, we are discussing the wrong issues. The real issues are not the outward expressions, but the inner experience of Christ. Lip service to these core values does indeed render their physical expressions as quaint or exclusive. Conversely, we would be attractive if we intentionally sought to allow our polity, worship, and relationships to flow from the voice of Christ moving within us individually and corporately.
Our tradition has impacted Christianity in the past, and I believe we have substance to offer which would speak to deep spiritual needs within the U.S. today. It is my hope that we can create forums to discuss these issues and take time to hear Christ's call for why God is not finished with Quakers just yet.
Bruce Bishop is youth superintendent for Northwest Yearly Meeting.
Copyright (c) 1999 Friends United Meeting
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