
SEEDS e-Newsletter

Remembering
Sunbrick field, in Cumbria, where Margaret Fell and a host of 17th century Friends are buried.UNLIKE SOME FAMILIES, mine never had the tradition of visiting cemeteries to put flowers on graves. My father was not one to discuss the afterlife — or any faith issues. My...

Forgiveness: Stories to Tell
Like a birth announcement, there are stories to tell of how “Forgiveness: Freed to Love,” Chris Hall’s new Pendle Hill Pamphlet, came to be.

A Daily Dose of Wonder
THIS WEEK I WATCHED AN EPISODE of “The Nature of Things” called the “Intelligence of Trees.” It was a fascinating account of how academic studies are finding that trees—through their root systems—are communicating with one another. They are sending out messages of...

The State of Society
MANY QUAKER MEETINGS write annual "state of" reports. How we do it differs a lot. My own yearly meeting asks each local meeting to write a "state of the meeting" report, and then these reports are read by a yearly meeting committee and conglomerated into a "state of...

Intentionality of Joy
"These things I have spoken to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full" —John 15:11 EARLY IN THIS SEASON OF ADVENT, my daughter brought home a new addition to our Christmas decorations. It was a cheerful wooden plank that proclaimed: JOY to the...

The joy of reciprocity
The track leading to Colthouse Meeting VISITING AMONG FRIENDS RECENTLY felt like oxygen to me, after COVID lock-downs and the forced cancelation of earlier travel plans. With Sophie’s hospitality of lunch and driving guidance (see below), and the welcomes we received...

Bridges to Faithful Action
Life-giving intentions serve as a kind of bridge between our lived reality and our values or ideals. Like a bridge, we’re on one side of a crossing; we can see the far side. Intentions offer solid support for steps forward.

Centered in Spirit
Part 1 of 2 reflections on intentions for a committed spiritual life: A life centered in the Divine is like a planet in secure orbit, always oriented around the Spirit. Core intentions toward a life-centered in God will redirect us toward inner attentiveness, openness, trust, and letting go.

“You’re Not from These Shores, Are Ye?”
USUALLY, WHEN I’M ASKED A VARIATION of the “Where are you from?” question, I get annoyed, because the questioner, maybe unwittingly, is claiming his/her territory, and I am perceived as ‘other’ — an outsider. When I was asked that question in Michigan, I would reply...

Resurrections
UNDERGIRDING ALL THE PERSPECTIVES AND THEOLOGIES about the death and resurrection of Jesus rests an existential truth. The essence of Godness is Life. God creator, sustainer, healer, transformer, redeemer. Everything of God’s nature is working toward Life. Robust, joy...