Listening as Love

Listening as Love

“To be truly listened to […] is often experienced as being loved, being loved more profoundly than most of us ever experience being loved. We all hunger for unconditional love, in spite of the fact that human love is necessarily conditional. All our lives, we are accustomed to being accepted on the condition of living up to certain standards, reciprocating certain behaviors, saying the right things. To be heard by someone who approaches letting go of expectation – even for a little while – gives us a taste of God’s forgiving love in which we’ve all been held from eternity.”

God in the Ordinary

God in the Ordinary

“Be aware of the spirit of God at work in the ordinary activities and experience of your daily life. Spiritual learning continues throughout life, and often in unexpected ways. There is inspiration to be found all around us, in the natural world, in the sciences and arts, in our work and friendships, in our sorrows as well as in our joys. Are you open to new light, from whatever source it may come? Do you approach new ideas with discernment?”

In Response to Pain

In Response to Pain

“The great and small tragedies in your life and world sometimes just ask you to stand before them with silence and humility. You do not always have an answer, but you can learn to be present — listening deeply, with a heart that trembles in response to pain.”

The Reason We Can Fly

The Reason We Can Fly

I felt like the little donkey when / his burden is finally lifted. Things! / Burn them, burn them! Make a beautiful / fire! More room in your heart for love, / for the trees! For the birds who own / nothing—the reason they can fly.

Eyes and Ears of Love

Eyes and Ears of Love

“If love were the central practice of a new generation of organizers and spiritual leaders, it would have a massive impact on what was considered organizing. If the goal was to increase the love, rather than winning or dominating a constant opponent, I think we could actually imagine liberation from constant oppression. We could suddenly be seeing everything we do, everyone we meet, not through the tactical eyes of war, but through the eyes of love. We would see that there’s no such thing as a blank canvas, an empty land or a new idea — but everywhere there is complex, ancient, fertile ground full of potential.”

Quakers and Listening (with guest editor RSWR)

Quakers and Listening (with guest editor RSWR)

This week’s messages are guest edited by Right Sharing of World Resources (RSWR), a Quaker organization that works for equity and a life of dignity for all. RSWR programs promote partnerships with women in India, Guatemala, Kenya, and Sierra Leone and encourage those with diverse resources to embrace our shared responsibility for one another’s well being.

Traveling Together in One River of Life

Traveling Together in One River of Life

“Deep within us, amid our differentiations as individuals and nations and species, is the desire for oneness. This holy longing is found not only in the human soul but in the soul of the universe, at the heart of everything that has being. We are not an exception to the universe. We are an expression of the universe. Our longings are a unique manifestation of the universe’s longings. In listening to the depths of life, within our lives and within every life, we will hear the longings of the One that are deeper than the fears that divide us…”

The Legacy of Quakers

The Legacy of Quakers

“As an artist, I find that art helps both inspire and captivate one’s attention. I thoroughly enjoyed sharing a piece of my art in each of the messages this week. Some may be familiar as they have appeared in publications such as Friends Journal and Quaker Life. Others have been used to promote AFSC events, while still others have never been shared. I hope they have helped you focus your attention on our Friends and their words.” 

Stand Still in the Light

Stand Still in the Light

“The first step of peace is to stand still in the light (which discovers things contrary to it) for power and strength to stand against that nature which the light discovers: here grace grows, here is God alone glorified and exalted.”

Protecting Refugees

Protecting Refugees

“There is no question that faith communities will continue to provide sanctuary whenever refugees need protection from government officials, that many of these communities consider sanctuary to be an essential part of what it means for the church to be the church…”

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