A Common Fear

“This is a common fear among Friends, and I am sure many of you share it with me… We do not want to hurt—and so we do not share our differences of thought, word or experience in the open, loving way which would help all of us to grow.”

— Betty Polster
Quoted in Are We Done Fighting? by Matthew Legge

Today’s Invitation

Think of a time when you avoided conflict at the expense of being true to yourself. Write a few lines about how you could have approached the situation differently, in a way that was loving to the other person and yourself.

Query of the Week

When conflict arises in your community, how do you respond?

If God is in every person, how does that inform your approach to conflict? When have you had a conflict that resulted in deeper trust and connection?

Author

Maeve Sutherland

Maeve Sutherland is a communications professional who never recovered from her wonderful childhood at a Quaker elementary school. She has spent her career helping nonprofits share their stories, from schools and universities, to museums, to radio stations. As a Thomas J. Watson Fellow, Maeve spent a year living in “Peaceable Kingdoms,” pacifist intentional communities around the world, where she learned that everyone has a role to play in shaping a better world. She worked as a freelance social media manager before joining Thee Quaker Project. After returning to Quakerism as a young adult, Maeve now attends Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting in Philadelphia.
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