That of God in Everyone

“Be patterns, be examples in all countries, places, islands, nations wherever you come; that your carriage and life may preach among all sorts of people, and to them; then you will come to walk cheerfully over the world, answering that of God in everyone; whereby in them you may be a blessing, and make the witness of God in them to bless you.”

“‘That of God in every man’ is not a human means of knowing like reason, intelligence, feeling, intuition, natural conscience or moral law within. It is a means of knowing that can be described as seeking counsel of the Creator. The Creator imparts his wisdom to man. This is not human wisdom, but the voice and wisdom of the Creator. We cannot produce the equivalent of this voice and this wisdom from our human resources. It must be heard and received.”

“That which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness, because God has shown it to them.”

“We think seeing that of God in everyone is the core of Quakerism, but really it’s the core of the whole Christian message and task, to learn to love as God loves. Seeing or answering that of God in others isn’t a mindset. I can’t just decide that’s what I’m going to do, and by sheer force of willpower begin to love as God loves. Only with God’s help, grace, and guidance can I truly recognize that of God in another, to love not as a simple intellectual exercise, but with my very heart and soul.”

“Our human nature is unmistakably double. There is something in us that the Divine Spirit can make its appeal to, something that draws us upward and onward, something that makes our moral and spiritual life possible. I think that this divine spark in us…is the most significant thing about us.”

“As a nontheist Quaker, I’ve taken to phrasing this as “that of the light in everyone” for my own spiritual comfort. For me, this speaks to our interconnectedness and responsibility to steward our actions toward true equality and dignity for all [….] This also speaks to potential.”

“Jesus is recorded four times in the gospels as saying, ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ […] To read the Bible with Jesus then is to ask of every passage, ‘How does this show love of neighbour?’ If any passage seems to point to anything else, we can hold it in the Light until an interpretation emerges which points towards the rule of love.”

“When early Friends spoke of the Inward Light, they were referring to the Light near the beginning of the gospel of John (1:9): “The true Light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.” Although for them, this Light was identified with Christ, it conveyed much the same meaning that the expression “that of God in every one” has for many contemporary Friends.”

“We beseech Thee, through Him that hath loved us and given Himself for us, that Thou wouldst draw us all, whether now far from Thee or near unto Thee, by the powerful cords of Thy loving kindness, out of darkness into Thy marvellous light, that we may ever dwell in Thy light and in Thy love, and know the fullness of Thy power, Thy glory, and Thy majesty. Amen, and Amen.”

“Friends, beginning with George Fox, realize that something of God dwells within each and every human being, and that, therefore, He is reachable by us through direct contact, and we are within His reach, subject to His immediate influence. This is the well-known basis of Friends worship.”

“If one has been visited by a direct sense of inward presence, he is driven to tell everyone who will listen to him. Strange and unendurable irony – that Friends who speak so much about the Inward Light should so timidly hide their own light under a bushel! The time has come to preach the faith we have resolved to practice. If we have good news for our brothers, and I believe we do, let us shout it from the housetops!”

“Self-compassion is extending toward one’s self the same kindness that one would show toward a good friend in pain. Imagine the situation: Someone you care about confides over a cup of coffee the news of a job loss or failing health. As they describe their situation, you notice their head lowering, the suffering in their eyes. Most likely, you would listen with care and patience, rather than reacting with harsh judgments or impatience.”

“First, the Inward Light reveals our shortcomings (sins) and second, it guides us towards a better life. Many liberals don’t feel comfortable with the word “sin” so I’d like to suggest a definition that is both biblical and compatible with our modern Quaker ideas. “Sin” in the Bible is not primarily about morality; it is about ethics. Jesus didn’t condemn the adulterer; he lambasted religious hypocrites and those in power, especially the 1%. The prophets of the Hebrew Bible were more concerned with justice than with personal morality. Prophets condemned the rich, lifted the concerns of the poor, and called on God’s people to live lives of justice and truth [….]”

“There’s not an authority that I need to appeal to or try to seek from somebody else. [The light is] here and it’s there and it’s in all of us, together. Seeking my piece of that is incredible. But being in a community that is seeking that same thing: amazing.”

“Remember how St. Augustine tells us about his seeking God in many places and eventually finding him within himself. Do you suppose it is of little importance that a soul which is often distracted should come to understand this truth and to find that, in order to speak to its Eternal Father and to take its delight in Him, it has no need to go to Heaven or to speak in a loud voice? However quietly we speak, He is so near that He will hear us: we need no wings to go in search of Him but only to find a place where we can be alone and look upon Him present within us.”

“Although human life as we know it without God may appear hopelessly broken, God’s image remains within us—partially erased or covered over but still there. This means that, however skewed our vision of God, others, and ourselves becomes, something in us still recognizes God. The image of God that is in us is the part of ourselves that never stops desiring to move toward love.”

“I believe that appreciation is a holy thing – that when we look for what’s best in a person we happen to be with at the moment, we’re doing what God does all the time. So in loving and appreciating our neighbor, we’re participating in something sacred.”

“I see God as life, force, spirit, power, and presence. It’s an energy which we can connect to in others and in ourselves. So it’s beyond good and bad. For me the core of this energy and presence is love and wisdom, which hopefully leads to good actions, certainly good intentions.”

“While there is that of God in every person, there is not that of God in every idea. Practices that dehumanize people do not have a place in our Quaker community. They have no light.” 

“Christian peace is rooted in faith, nourished by hope, and perfected by love. It is a peace which is not achieved directly by man, but given by God to those who are disposed to receive it. […] When you realize that God has found a home in your spirit, which is the apex of your soul, you feel a security which the world can neither give nor take away.”

There must be love remaining. / I believe in love / In spite of things said / And deeds done or hate. / There must be love / In the space of things— / Worlds turning and fixed / Stars burning.

“Take time to learn about other people’s experiences of the Light. Remember the importance of the Bible, the writings of Friends and all writings which reveal the ways of God. As you learn from others, can you in turn give freely from what you have gained?”

“Our life is love, and peace, and tenderness; and bearing one with another, and forgiving one another, and not laying accusations one against another; but praying one for another, and helping one another up with a tender hand, if there has been any slip or fall.”

“Based on the Quaker tenet that there is that of God in each person springs forth our guidelines for living, our testimonies, which are equality, peace, integrity, simplicity, and community. If there is that of God in each of us, we are all equal and we should treat each other that way. If there is that of God in each of us, why would we harm another person? We need to conduct our lives in peace and nonviolence. If there is that of God in each of us, we should live simply and not squander our extras. We should share them with those who don’t have and not waste our money or our resources on things we don’t need.”

There’s that of odd in everyone / It goes with being God’s daughter or son / It’s there in saints, outliers, and outlaws / It’s in what’s perfect, it’s in what’s broken / Inarticulate or well spoken / It’s where your genius meets your tragic flaws

“If we love God and give ourselves to Him, we must give ourselves to the whole world. Otherwise we would divide off our personal experience of God from His Greatness and Infinite Presence and turn what ought to be dedication into private enjoyment. One of the holy miracles of love is that once it is really started on its path, it cannot stop: it spreads and spreads in ever-widening circles till it embraces the whole world in God. We begin by loving those nearest to us, end by loving those who seem farthest. And as our love expands, so our whole personality will grow, slowly but truly. Every fresh soul we touch in love is going to teach us something fresh about God.”

“I think we exist to discern and do the will of God, and that looks like a lot of different things. Historically, Friends have experienced God asking us to listen—asking us to preach—asking us to care for each other—asking us to bear witness in the world. Sometimes the purpose of the Quaker community is to join (or lead) the nonviolent protest, to stand face to face against injustice, to be arrested, to prevent harm or, at least, to shine a spotlight on that harm. And sometimes the purpose of the Quaker community is to make sure the parent who’s just had surgery doesn’t have to worry about dinner. Oftentimes, I think it’s both.”

“We began this month reading theologians’ interpretations of this quote and of the Scripture from which it is thought to be derived. Along the way we learned more about what early Friends meant by the Inner Light and that, in searching for the Light in others, we should remember to see the Light in ourselves. We read that although it is often difficult to love our neighbors, we have something new to learn about God in every interaction.”