“Integrity is one of the virtues for which Quakers in the past have been praised. It is a quality worth having, but it is doubtful if it can be reached by self-conscious effort or by adherence to a principle… Integrity is a condition in which a person’s response to a total situation can be trusted: the opposite of a condition in which he would be moved by opportunist or self-seeking impulses breaking up his unity as a whole being.”
“Grant, in characteristic Christian fashion, offered the agent an apple, but he declined because he was “on duty.” The agent turned out to be a Baptist which led to much discussion on the duties of a Christian. When Grant was The judge, however, did not accept this viewpoint. He was quite willing to tolerate failure to rise and plain clothes, but not the failure to observe hat honor. turned over to the U.S. Marshal, the agent finally accepted an apple because he was no longer “on duty.” At the sentencing he spoke up to mention Grant’s letter of nonregistration to the draft board to show the judge that Grant did not evade detection for violating the Selective Service law, but publicly refused to register for reasons of conscience.”
“Integrity calls for obedience, or if you prefer, faithfulness to conscience illuminated by the Light Within… It is truth which may well have objective validity, as I believe it does, but if it is not truth which is internalized in each of us, and for which we take ownership, then it is not truth which is valid and binding for us…”
“Liam took a knee as his Cub Scout troupe led the Durham City Council in the pledge of allegiance.”
“God is reality, that which is; nonviolence, that which holds back from hurt; love, that which goes out to others; pure wisdom, that which is free of outward schemes. He is that power which the apostle John called Truth – that name so profound and yet so incomplete, which embraces all the others, which suggests the eternal inward fact and order and aim of all life. To mean the words the Power of Truth is to mean the very source and strength of all that exists.”
“Everywhere you go, if you see injustice, you take it on. [Decades ago, as a child,] I went to the local public school. At that time, teachers were allowed to hit students, and I thought that was just wrong. So I was in first or second grade. I’m a Quaker; I believe in nonviolence. There’s no way it should be acceptable for a teacher to hit their students. And so I refused to go to school. My parents said, ‘That’s totally legitimate.'”
“Fifteen-year-old Retford boy, James Parnell, became a Quaker and in 1653 travelled to visit George Fox in prison in Carlisle. He preached in eastern England, was accused of causing a riot, imprisoned in Colchester, and died there after eight months of cruel treatment. Over 450 Quakers died in prison during the early years of the movement.”
“‘When we were brought into the court,’ says Fox, ‘we stood a pretty while with our hats on, and all was quiet, and I was moved to say, “Peace be amongst you!” “Why do you not put your hats off?” said the judge to us. We said nothing. “Put off your hats,” said the judge again. Still we said nothing. Then said the judge, “The court commands you to put off your hats.”‘”
“I began to ask other Friends about their own Integrity witness. What do they do when faced with oaths and oath-like situations? How do they respond?
Interestingly, George Fox and yearly meetings notwithstanding, most Friends I talked to admitted fudging a little when the chips are down. One Friend, when sworn in as part of a jury pool, simply didn’t raise his hand. Another didn’t stand. Some Friends have substituted the word ‘affirm’ for ‘swear’ when repeating after the judge. Others have figuratively held their noses and signed papers that were essentially oaths. Few of us, however, have chosen to make a public witness.”
“Theologically, a scruple is defined as ‘a vain fear of sin where there is no reason or reasonable ground for suspecting sin,’ and I would add, a vain fear of compromise, a vain fear of failure, a vain fear of the judgment of others where there is no good reason to be concerned.”
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