Holy Week 2021

I didn't intentionally choose this week to begin my sabbatical. A collection of external factors coincided to make this the right time. I only realized this coincidence would be true a couple of days ago.

But it feels good. Around the world, this is a week of holidays for Christians. In some contexts, secular holidays - schools and businesses are closed. In other contexts, the procession from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, with special rituals of remembrance on each day in between.

• • •

Holy Monday was the overturning of the tables in the temple. A challenge to unjust economic systems. For me, this time of rest and creative activity feels like a direct challenge to the economic structures of our day. For me, this ten week period feels like a sabbath season. A time to make right the patterns of my life. 8 hours for work, 8 hours for rest, 8 hours for what we will.

What do I will? And perhaps, not what I will, but what God wills. Not God's agents on Earth, not the church, not the government, but the Holy Creator, Source of All Wisdom, Beauty, Goodness. Not Caesar.

My main plan for this week is to begin by writing every day. To go swimming several days. And to schedule all the appointments that I put off until now. A haircut, a mammogram, new glasses, and more. It may take my whole sabbatical season to get to them all.

I already scheduled two - a deep cleaning for our house and our car. These fall into the category of things I could do for myself. However other people will be more efficient and right now I would rather pay someone to do it well and get it over with and not be exhausted when it is done. It will free me to think about other things instead of fretting about the housework. This goes against all my home training, but for once, I think it will be a good tradeoff.

• • •

Later in the week, Maundy Thursday is a reminder about community and service to others. Will I find ways, during this sabbatical season that overlaps with the Covid19 pandemic, to break bread with others and wash their feet? As a serious extrovert, I need to talk to other people for my own mental health. And as a human being and a Christian, I need to be of service to other people. Also for my own mental health. But I also need to practice some discipline around "custody of the eyes". The main purpose of this break is to bring forth that which is in me - to give to the world that which only I can give. Not to spend the time reading what other people have already written.

But recognizing the enormous privilege of having ten weeks in a row of paid leave, without even a newborn baby to take care of, I want to find some way to be of practical service to the community around me in this time as well.

• • •

Holy Friday and Saturday are about dying to self and waiting in the deep unknown. Am I able to give over my own longing to know or do or be anything and sink down to that seed that God sows in the heart? And to let that seed grow in me and breathe in me and be in me without striving to make myself more? For that seed to increase, I must decrease. In my striving and my desire for control and for fame and fortune and, and, and... everything. Not my will, Lord, but thine.

• • •

Then next Sunday, I will be going away. To an undisclosed location. For a week of self-denial of other people and the freedom to just write. A rebirth in some ways, maybe more like extended labor. I don't think it tracks to a resurrection. I'm afraid it's going to feel more like an extended Holy Saturday.

But we'll see. What freedom comes in that emptiness? What new inspirati­on or motivation? What will I be able to produce under those conditions? I have no idea.

Seventeen years ago, I went away for a solo retreat for a weekend. At that point in my life, what I most needed was for no one to touch me for 48 hours. I literally had to wean the baby in order to go away. The writing was just a serendipitous byproduct. But my life has changed ever since. And that baby is 19 years old now.

One of the things people keep telling me is not to have too high of expectations for myself in this sabbatical season. To not feel like I have to fill it with any particular kind of productivity or to set too concrete of a goal. That has been helpful advice.

But I am trying to establish the conditions for creative output to be possible.

I am trying to leave margins of time and energy to do what feels right in the moment.

To seek God's guidance in each day, each moment. And then to follow that guidance wherever or however it may lead.

• • •

This is the way.

That would be enough.

Amen.

My Three Words for 2017

Slow. Teach. Ask.

Slow, because I want to slow down and pay attention. Not speak too quickly. Not act too quickly. Not judge too quickly. Not fix it too quickly. I want to take the time to be more graceful, more patient. Most of the things I regret (was embarrassed by) in the last year/my whole life are because I spoke without thinking, leapt without looking.

In La Paz, Bolivia several years ago, at that high altitude, I learned that I could get along fine as long as I walked like a dignified Señora, and not if I scurried around like a little girl. If I tried to run up the stairs, I would be out of breath by the first landing. But if I just walked slower, I would get where I was going smoothly and with energy to do whatever I need to do when I got there. I want to remember that lesson as I approach 50 and beyond, even at sea level.


Teach, because it makes me happy. I like explaining things. I like sharing what I have learned. I like inviting people to consider new ideas and facilitating discussions. I want to accept more invitations to speak and to write when they come to me. I will look for ways to do this as part of my job, because it makes a better balance in my life with all the management/accounting stuff, so that I can continue to enjoy my job. And I want teaching to be part of my life at my monthly meeting and in my children’s religious education. For me, this will include taking time to write more articles, maybe even more blogposts! Invitations to teach do come my way every so often, and I want to remember that they are not a distraction from my real work – this is part of the work that God has created me to do, whether I get paid for it or not.

So, to start, I will be leading a discussion at Green Street Monthly Meeting on January 29, 2017 at 9:15 am, about a passage from A Language for the Inner Landscape: Spiritual Wisdom from the Quaker Movement by Brian Drayton and William P. Taber, Jr., pages 92-93, from the chapter on “Community and the Inner Life of the Meeting.” The discussion will focus on “What is the real purpose of our worship together?” And then, I will be writing a lesson for the United Society of Friends Women International 2017-2018 program book, Blueprints, on the same theme. I am grateful to the Friends who extended the invitations to do both of these.


Ask, because I want to be less bossy, less of a know-it-all. To ask first, do you want me to tell you more about this? Or not? Do you want help? May I? How may I help you? How would you like to be involved? How would you like to hear from me? What do you think? To say less often, “You know what, you should _____________!”

This is a life lesson, that maybe I can change and maybe I can’t. This is rooted in being an eldest child, so it’s a long time in the making. I am weighing this desire against the fact that girls with leadership skills are too often called bossy. But I think that I could be more effective in my leadership and my teaching and my interpersonal relationships if I were more thoughtful in my communications. Which makes this connected to my first word, slow, because if I thought for a second before I speak, I would find better ways to teach, better ways to lead, better ways to parent adult children, and be a wife and sister, etc.


I pray for God’s guidance and people’s forbearance as I move in these directions. I am grateful to Chris Brogan for his inspiration to choose three words each year. If you want to read some of my three words from prior years, here are 2016, 2015, 2012, 2010, and here are my prior attempts at new years resolutions from 2009 and 2008. If you write your own, use the hashtag #my3words so that we can find each other.

Why don't you write more?

A couple of weeks ago, a Friend suggested that I should write a blogpost (100-1000 words usually) expanding on a tweet (140 characters) that I wrote. I said I'd like to write more, but this darn full-time job keeps getting in the way.

I am actually writing quite a bit these days, but it's all for work, not for play. But just for today, I thought I'd post links to some of the things I've written in the last few months.

First, I write a little introduction to the monthly newsletter for the Friends World Committee for Consultation in the Americas. And then usually I write some, but not most, of the other articles. Here you can read the latest one, titled "Let the Living Water Flow Through You!" If you'd like to read our archive of newsletters, including every bit of it that I wrote in the last year, you can go here: E-news Archives.

A few weeks ago, I wrote up a few reflections on the 6th World Conference of Friends for a report-back conference call. You can read my report, the notes from the other speakers, or listen to the call, all on this page of the FWCC website.

In the months before and after the Conference, I wrote a series of letters in English and Spanish to delegates, to yearly meeting clerks and to donors to the Travel Fund, but those are not archived online. In April I rewrote the description of our Visitation program for our website, but I see now that it needs to be updated again. I also write quarterly letters to the Representatives of Yearly Meetings who are members of the Friends World Committee. That is also due again in the next month or so.

I'm currently working on a longer explanation of the theme for our local gatherings in the coming year, "Let the Living Water Flow! Friends Serving God's Purposes." The short description on our website is a collaborative effort.

In August I've been invited to speak on a panel about leadership in the age of social media at the Earlham School of Religion Leadership conference. So I still need to write something for that.

And last, but not least, I write fund raising appeal letters. Here's the latest one, featuring the work of young adults and younger Friends in the Friends World Committee. If you'd like to make a donation to support that work, I'd be very grateful. 

What is a meeting?

Some time ago, I volunteered to write an answer to this question for a new website. It has to be accessible for people who know nothing about Quakers, and acceptable to the full range of Quakers in North America. This is my attempt. Any suggestions, edits, concerns?

For Quakers, a “meeting” has several layers of meaning.

At first glance, it is our gathering for worship. (In other denominations, the equivalent may be called the service or the mass.) Quaker worship can be programmed, with prepared sermons and music, or unprogrammed, relying on the immediate inspiration of the Holy Spirit for guidance and vocal ministry.

Secondly, a meeting is the group of people that gathers weekly (or more often) for worship and monthly to conduct business. A Monthly Meeting is the local decision-making body holding authority for memberships and marriages. In many places, this is equivalent to a Friends Church. Some Meetings have more than one worship group under their care.

A Yearly Meeting is a regional grouping of Monthly Meetings, is sometimes divided into Quarterly Meetings, and has varying amounts of power and authority over Monthly Meetings. This authority varies by Yearly Meeting and by the century.

A directory of worship groups, Monthly Meetings, Friends Churches, Quarterly and Yearly Meetings in the Americas can be found online at www.fwccamericas.org.

If necessary, use words

I am finally writing about a book that came out over a month ago that has three of my blogposts in it, along with a wealth of selections from 31 other bloggers. It’s called Writing Cheerfully on the Web: A Quaker Blog Reader, edited by my Friend Liz Opp, with help from my husband, Chris M. (full disclosure here) and a preface by Brent Bill.

There are sections on “Worship & Ministry,” “Reclaiming & Re-examining Our Traditions,” “Convergent Friends,” “A Friendly Look at Christianity, Jesus & the Bible,” “Openings & Personal Stories,” and more. Each has posts from Friends across the branches of Friends, across the United States, and across theological differences. The first was written in 2003, the most recent in 2009. Together they offer a snapshot of the Religious Society of Friends in the early 21st century, but it is not a comprehensive guide to Quakerism today. As Liz says in the introduction, “Ultimately the volume you hold in your hands is an indicator of how a particular cohort of Quakers have gone about the business of grappling with and exploring the Quaker faith tradition, including investing in it and embracing it as our own. These writings, and the conversations they inspire, reflect the extent to which we are ready to engage in a rigorous and vibrant Quakerism.”

I like the selections a lot. Then again, I read most of them when they first appeared online. As I read it, I realized I’ve met most of the authors in person over the years. Some of them before they were blogging and some only because of their blogs. Some of them, even besides my husband, have changed my life through their writing and their friendship. So I’m probably not the best judge of whether these selections will speak to the book’s intended audience of people who don’t read blogs, but I suspect they will.

It would make a great addition to a Meeting or Church library or a thoughtful gift for a Friend who says, “I’m interested in what you’re talking about, but I don’t want to spend (any/more) time online."

It's for sale at QuakerBooks.org.

More news

One past and one future:

The theme of the current issue of Quaker Life magazine is Friends and their Pastors. I'm proud to report that a review I wrote of Self Supporting Ministers: Lest We Forget by Billy M. Britt has been published in this issue. I have a longer post to come about the same topic, but just thought I'd encourage folks from all branches of Friends to read this issue of Quaker Life. It's really interesting to see a variety of perspectives on the role(s) of pastors among Friends.

Next week is Fair Pay Day, Tuesday, April 28, which symbolizes the day in 2009 when the average woman's wages will finally catch up with those paid to the average man in 2008. Which is kind of mind-blowing in itself.

The National Women's Law Center is organizing a synchroblog/twitterevent. If you want to join me in blogging about fair pay for women (and everyone), the sign-up form, is here: http://action.nwlc.org/blogforfairpay If you write about it on Twitter, the hashtag is #fairpay.

Blogging as ministry

This is a report on my presentation with Gregg Koskela at FWCC in Oregon last week and with Will Taber and Gil Skidmore at QUIP last year.

Last April, I was invited to speak on a panel at the Quakers Uniting in Publications annual meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina. Will, Gil and I accepted the invitation. (Others were invited but declined for various reasons, mostly distance.)

This year, I had been asked by the local arrangements committee for the FWCC Section of the Americas annual meeting in Canby, Oregon about possibilities for a convergent Friends interest group. I suggested several other people who are involved in FWCC, but none of us really felt called to that. Then it occurred to me that since the meeting was about half an hour from Newberg, that maybe Gregg and I could lead a discussion on Quaker blogging. Gregg said yes and the arrangements committee said great.

Both times, I think the sessions went well. We each talked a little about our own journeys into blogging, the way blogs made our friendships possible across barriers of geography and theology, and how blogs can be a ministry to writers and readers, and a net benefit to the Religious Society of Friends. Both times, I had the chance to meet new people and to connect in real life with other bloggers and people I’ve heard of but not met before.

Both times we did an exercise I call low-tech blog commenting. We chose short blog posts, printed them out in large type on paper and hung them on the wall next to large sheets of easel paper. The instructions are to go around the room, read the post, write down your reaction, your questions, agreement or disagreement, and then move on to the next one, and then as you move around, to come back and read what others have written and perhaps comment again. This exercise was Chris M.’s idea a few years ago for a workshop he and I led at SFMM. I’ve also done it with the teens at PYM’s Junior Yearly Meeting. It works well as an introduction to blog commenting, except for people with visual disabilities, so a couple of times I or another participant have read the posts and scribed for people who had difficulty with that.

So why do I think blogging is ministry?

For me, the first point is that my blog is an outlet for the essays that were composing themselves in my head. It has offered me a means to improve my writing and editing skills, and a chance to share my theological reflections with others. Unlike most forms of writing, blogs also come with the opportunity for frequent interaction, unlike writing a book, for example, when it may be years before anyone else reads it.

The second point is that Quaker blogs are a source of religious reading material. I still subscribe to a couple of Quaker magazines, but they only come once a month. Every day there are new blog posts on different aspects of spiritual life, and whenever I’m ready they’re there. As Martin Kelley has reminded people, blogs are available every day and at all hours, when you’re stuck at home with little kids or an illness or a physical disability, if you work irregular hours, or when you are too far away from a meeting to attend regularly.

One example for me are Gregg’s sermons. I am dedicated to unprogrammed worship in my spiritual life, but the scholarship and relevance of his carefully prepared messages have been a valued source of devotional reading for me. (An irony of this is that as Gregg has relied more and more on the direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit for the delivery of his messages, he has less and less written material to post. But I don’t hold that against him.)

A third point is that Quaker blogs are part of an ongoing conversation about what is happening in our spiritual lives, including events we go to, books we read, theological questions we wrestle with, and our everyday joys and concerns. They offer a chance to stay in touch with Friends in a substantive way, between conferences, meetings, without travel costs, and often with photos of mutual Friends.

I like to point out how Quaker blogs are different from other blogs, especially political ones. Too often, blog comment streams become very contentious and offensive. I haven’t found that on Quaker blogs. The comments have been honest and respectful, even when they are disagreeing or challenging the author. I think this is in part because each blog is written by a real person. For the most part, Quaker bloggers and commenters use their real names. The Religious Society of Friends is a small world, and the chances are high that you might one day meet the real people behind the blogs. It’s more like talking in some one’s living room, rather than shouting at a protest march.

We also talked about how people can get involved. Someone always mentions QuakerQuaker.org. It’s an easy-to-remember name of a site where you’ll find the latest and best in Quaker blogposts, as chosen by a short but diverse list of people who read widely. There are also archives by category on particular topics. Other features on QQ.org are always changing.

Other tools we recommend are a feed reader, like Bloglines or Google Reader. These are free services that can be a timesaver as well.They offer a way to keep track of as many blogs as you want, without having to go to each one to see if there’s something new each time you want to read them.

Some blogs have a way to subscribe via email, which works well for some people, even if others prefer not to have anything more in their email inbox. I think all the members of my anchor committee subscribe to my blog by email. They don’t read a lot of other blogs, but they want to know when I write something.

If you want to start your own blog, I recommend Blogger.com for a free service that makes it very easy to start a blog. If you can send email, you have the technical skills to use Blogger software. If you are more techy, there are other services that offer more features, but if that describes you, you don’t need me to tell you how to do it.

Quaker blogs have changed my life. As I wrote a couple of years ago, for a blog carnival in honor of Martin Kelley’s birthday, “Quaker blogs opened my eyes to a much wider world of Friends. I had been to Quaker meeting in a few places before that, but Quaker blogs opened windows through walls I didn’t even know I wanted to see through. Through Quaker blogs, I have found common ground, common ideas, common concerns with Friends across vast distances of geography and institutional theology.”

Thank you to all of you who have been part of this journey for ministering to me.

Eve: A Novel of the First Woman

Eve: A Novel of the First Woman by Elissa Elliot

Another book sent to me by The Ooze. The first outright fiction, I think, and the first book by a woman that they’ve sent.

When Julie Clawson suggested a synchroblog for International Women’s Day featuring women in the Bible, I thought, “Great! I’ll finally write a review of that book I’ve been reading.” It is the story of the first family, told through the eyes of Eve and three of her daughters.

I finally finished it yesterday. I haven’t been reading much fiction lately, at least not fiction written for grownups. And definitely not the kind that includes references to “swollen manhood.” I suppose you can’t really write about Eve without getting into the topic of sex, yet this book clearly is written for a religious audience and so probably it can’t get too explicit. Still, it was a little jarring for me, more than actually erotic.

The story of Eve and Adam and their children is also the story of a pretty dysfunctional family. This book delves into how that started and how it connects to untold generations of unhealthy families to come.

There are some very good passages about how the temptation of Eve might actually have happened, and how and why the offerings of Cain and Abel were made and received, and how it all affected everyone so badly.

Throughout the book, Elohim is an interesting character, known only through the memories and experiences of other people, never speaking for himself. The first family’s interaction with another culture is also interesting. The other religion is clearly portrayed as false, while Elohim is portrayed as elusive but real. Which is how I tend to experience God, but still. It’s pretty clear what the author’s opinion is, and there are some tangential threads that back up the understanding that all of this is leading to the need for a future Savior, without quite coming out and saying that. Which probably appeals to some people and not to others. You know who you are.

Definitely thought provoking. Also disturbing, imaginative, and gripping. I never stopped to imagine what really happened to Eve and Adam and their children in this “earthy-gritty fashion,” as the author says on her website. A worthy attempt, I’d say.

What I'm Reading Now (or Not) -Tenth Month 2008

I miss writing every day. A week or so ago, I had a couple of hours to myself while waiting to pick one of my kids at a birthday party. As soon as I found parking, I went into a local doughnut shop and wrote in my journal for an hour. (Okay, I had a doughnut and some decaf too.) Afterwards, I felt physically lighter. Despite the doughnut. I just felt better for writing. I hope that, as I adjust to the new job and the new commute pattern, I will find time and energy for writing more often again.

And reading. I haven’t had much time or energy for reading anything that wasn’t about child care policy in California, or else written at the level of a fifth or first grader. (I highly recommend the books Guests by Michael Dorris and Triumph on Everest: A Photobiography of Sir Edmund Hillary by Broughton Coburn. I’m not so fond of the Akiko on the Planet Smoo series, but my kids love them.)

However, I made a commitment a few months ago to review books for The Ooze. Ahem. I am a little behind.

I should just admit now that I’m probably not going to read The Becoming of G-d by Ian Mobsby any time soon. Not that it’s not a good book. I’m just not that interested in “What the Trinitarian nature of God has to do with Church and a deep Spirituality for the Twenty First Century.” But if I was going to read a book with a real life interpretation of the Trinity, I would start with this. I think I met Ian Mobsby, sort of, at a Re-Imagine event a year or two ago. He's the Priest Missioner to a group called Moot which he describes as an Anglican Emerging & Fresh Expression of Church.

I am still working my way s-l-o-w-l-y through The Emerging Church by Bruce Sanguin. I was put off by the cheesy author photo and the fancy chart in the middle when I first picked it up, but then for some unknown reason I looked at it again and realized that it’s like a “how to help your existing congregation be more emergent” book of instructions. And interesting. But I got into just at the point when I have no real time to help anything or anyone be more emergent/convergent/religious. And I’m not sure how realistic it is. Like I said, I haven’t had a chance to try any of it. But it sounds nice.

And then today I got another package. A book and a CD. Hey, that’s cool.

The CD is called Evensong Rising. Or maybe that’s the name of the band, or both; I’m not sure.

The album is put together like a worship service. You know, Processional, Adoration, Offertory, Doxology, Preparation, Sermon, etc. I googled Stanwich Church, which is referenced in the liner notes, and it’s the Congregational Church in Greenwich, CT. I think this is the band for their evening service.

The sticker on the shrinkwrap says “Featuring the hit single Satisfied Evensong Rising ignites the Ancient/Future Worship Movement” Who knew? It’s way better than most of what passes as Christian rock. Good production quality. And it’s not all the same tempo, or same genre even. The lyrics are a mix of old hymns and modern twists. Mostly indie rock type stuff. I liked the song “Unto Him” more than “Satisfied.” But then I’m a sucker for a good fiddle line.


But the book. The book is A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren. His book from 2001 about the pastor and the science teacher. I’m not sure why it needs a new set of reviews from The Ooze Select Bloggers, but I’m glad to have a chance to read it. Maybe it will work as subway reading, better than some of these other more academic texts I’ve been reading.

In the absence of time to write

I will simply quote from the most intriguing thing I've read lately - everything else has been swallowed up by the California budget crisis, and oh yeah, the rest of the country is falling apart too. I wonder if it would be better if the US had to come up with a balanced budget every year or not?

Anyway, did you know that Caroline Stephen was Virginia Woolf's aunt? I didn't. Apparently others did. But the connection goes deeper.

"When Woolf further records that 'my aunt's legacy unveiled the sky to me, and substituted for the large and imposing figure of a gentleman, which Milton recommended for my perpetual adoration, a view of the open sky' she hints at more than one level of what Caroline's legacy meant to her. Obviously, Caroline's money gave her financial security and independence from the domination of any larger-than-life 'gentleman' playing god.

"But Caroline also gave another sky-opening legacy to Virginia. She gave her a sense of freedom from the power of patriarchy and showed her an open, feminine space where the 'inner voice' is heeded rather than the priest's or the father's, and where a feminine silence held truth that was beyond any argument with words. The model of a woman taking control of her own life and writing her own books with a view toward the greater good helped to give Woolf the confidence that she later expressed when she said 'I feel that by writing I am doing what is far more necessary than anything else'."

A Quaker Influence on Modern
English Literature:

Caroline Stephen and her niece, Virginia Woolf

By Alison M. Lewis

From Types and Shadows: JOURNAL OF THE FELLOWSHIP OF QUAKERS IN THE ARTS, Issue #21, Spring 2001

I'm grateful today for online links and people who are still finding my blog for the first time.

Sacred Compass 9: The End

This is parts 9 and 10 - the end of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the questions, as I sent them to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answers, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: How did you know when you were done?

B: When I ran out of things to say. And I mean that seriously. Then it was time to go back and tighten and refine what was said so that it was clear and understandable. So the final book is about 15,000 words shorter than the final "draft."

R: What didn’t you put in the book that you wish you had?

B: Nothing at the minute, although things always come along that I say to myself, I wish I could have put that in. But the reality is, the book that is published is the book that needed to be written. I really believe that. What is in it, is what should be there. What's not, was not needed. Ideas that occur to me now about the topic will find life in the workshops I present, talks I give, and so forth. In the meantime, I'm pleased with Sacred Compass and offer with my blessings -- and hopefully, God's.

R: I decided to put these last two together, especially since they were both short. Thank you so much, Brent, for your gracious answers and insight into the complex process of writing a book about spiritual discernment.

I want to say that I have heard rumors that Brent Bill will be bringing a workshop to Ben Lomond Quaker Center in California sometime next year. So if you like Sacred Compass, or any of his other books, and you’d like to have a chance to talk to Brent in person, but you don’t live in Indiana, there’s hope.

You can read more interviews about Sacred Compass with J. Brent Bill on Wess, Shawna, Liz W. and Liz Opp’s blogs.

Sacred Compass 8: Part time writer, full time thinker

This is part 8 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: How do you manage to write a book like this while working full-time?

B: Well, it's not easy -- and it's not hard. I feel called to a ministry of writing and I love it, so I find time to do it. I write mostly in the evenings and on Saturdays. I am blessed with a largely 9-5 job and so I have the evenings and weekends to write. I also have a good amount of vacation time, so when I need to (such as when nearing a deadline), I can take a week off and write. I'm also blessed that my good wife Nancy sees my writing as important work and supports it. Still, if I did not feel called and compelled to this ministry, I could fill my "idle" hours with the work that needs done in the woods and prairie. Indeed, some of my best writing/thinking takes place on my John Deere -- plowing two fields at one time, so to speak.

R: Ooooh. Yeah. My dad says the same thing about sorting out his problems while driving a tractor. I have had some of my best insights while scrubbing the bathtub. I suppose any kind of repetitive physical activity will do – anything that occupies the superficial part of your brain, but leaves the deeper parts able to ruminate.

I am really glad to know that it is possible to write a great book without being a full-time writer. I’m sure there are lots of people who do this, but too often I think that if you really want to be a writer, you have to give up everything else. I want to find a way to integrate all the things that I do and am into my writing. Also see question # 2 for more on this topic.

Sacred Compass 7: Richard Foster wrote the Foreword

This is part 7 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: How did you get Richard Foster to write the Foreword?

B: I just asked him. It was almost that simple. I first met Richard back in 1978 or 79 in Elton Trueblood's study at Earlham College. He was doing an interview with Elton for Christianity Today and needed photographs. Elton knew I had been a photography major in college so I did the shoot for Richard and we became friends. He was in Indianapolis recently for a Renovare' conference and when he and I got together to visit I asked him if he'd consider doing the foreword. He graciously, without hesitation, consented. I was moved and grateful for his kindness. Especially after I read the foreword -- which is a wonderful piece of writing.

R: I figured it must be something like this. Do you ever wonder who you know now that’s going to be famous someday? What chance encounter is going to be important in the future?

Sacred Compass 6: God Says Yes to Me?

This is part 6 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: Where/when did you first encounter the Kaylin Haught poem?

B: I honestly don't remember. I keep a folder full of poems that catch my imagination. I admire folks who can put together poetry -- I'm not one of them. And so when I read or hear poems, I seek them out and store them away. Then, when I'm writing, I pull out my file and look for things that fit the topic I'm working on. Kaylin's poem was one that I have long enjoyed -- and this seemed the perfect book for it. I was delighted when she gave me permission to use it.

R: I first read this poem "God Says Yes to Me" on Kristin Noelle’s old blog. I even linked to it then, even though I seldom re-post what other people have written. But it’s just that good.

Sacred Compass 5: Who's story is this?

This is part 5 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: How did you discern the right balance between stories about yourself and insights that come from others?

B: I knew with this book I wanted to include more stories of other "real" people -- and not just poems, lyrics, etc from others. I tried to use the insights from others for what I call "wise voices." I try to present my stories (and myself) as a fellow pilgrim. I can use others as fellow pilgrims and as wise voices. I never feel very wise -- especially in spiritual matters. So I often look to others -- my friends and people I read or hear. So it seemed a good idea to try and find a balance. Did I achieve the right balance? I think so, but I leave that up to the reader. I certainly don't want people reading Sacred Compass (or any other of my books) and thinking, "Wow, does he have it all together." I hope I don't present myself as some sort of spiritual guru or know-it-all.

R: I came away thinking, “Wow, he did a great job of integrating his own voice with a lot of wisdom from a lot of different sources.” Which is different than having it all together. This is always a question with blogging – how much do people really want to read what I think vs. why would they come to my blog to read what other people say?

Sacred Compass 4: Humor Me

This is part 4 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.


R: How do you decide when a flippant remark is helpful and when it is distracting from the main story?

B: I will say that I'm not sure I consider anything in final copy as flippant - every piece of writing in it is intentional. It may appear flippant -- but I am completely serious about including such things. Part of it is to keep the more conversational tone I strive for and another part is because that's part of my personality. I don't consider flippant to be frivolous -- I consider it a way of easing the tension from too much seriousness. Spiritual discernment is important business -- but we don’t always need to take it in dead earnestness. Such earnestness robs it of the reality of our lives -- including the absurd or flippant. Does that make any sense? Finding a balance is important. My first draft, for example, of Holy Silence, was sent back because it was too serious -- my personality (which was one reason I was asked to write the book) wasn't evident. And "asides" are part of my conversational pattern and personality. So it seems important to include them and I always hope readers won't find them distracting -- while I'm well aware that some people will. It's the risk an author takes if he or she really wants to be self-revealing, I think. I think, after years of "writing safe", that it's worth the risk, even if some readers don't care for it. I do pray that I don't offend anybody --that would be of concern to me.

R: This is the question that did rub Brent the wrong way. I think it was the word “flippant.” Which is actually more my word for the kinds of things I tend to say when I’m nervous than a real description of anything in the book. I often have more wry humor in my first drafts, and then edit them out, because sarcasm and irony don’t really work well online. I was impressed with Brent’s way of handling this in his book. But I guess the real answer is editing. I’m hoping that in my forties, I will develop a keener sense of editing between my brain and my mouth.

Sacred Compass 3: How do you know you're meant to write a book?

This is part 3 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.

R: Why did you think or how did you know you were the right person to write this book?

B: Well, Robin, that's a question that I asked myself a number of times while considering doing this book and while writing it. Who am I who am far from a spiritual "expert" to write this book? But I had no choice. This was a book I felt called to write. It's that simple -- and that profound. I find that the books that help me the most are not written by the people who "have it all together" -- but rather by the people who are trying to "get it all together" and realizing that, short of eternity, they probably never will. Still they follow the Spirit and grow in grace. I hope I'm one of those people and so offer this book as words from a fellow pilgrim who, hopefully, has learned a thing or two along the way.

R: I really hoped Brent wouldn’t take this question badly. I didn’t mean to question his authority to write this book. I was more interested in how do you know which books you should write and which are just nice ideas, but maybe better for someone else? This is a good answer.

Sacred Compass 2: Writing Tools

This is part 2 of the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment.

I have listed the question, as I sent it to him, in italics with an R. Then I have given his answer, marked with a B, and then my reply marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention.


R: What (besides your sacred compass) are your most important tools for writing a book?

B: The most important tool is time, I think. Time to let the ideas season, to make sure the words are just right, the thoughts are clear. Book writing, for me, is much different than blogging in that way. Blogging, by the very nature of the internet, seems to me to be a much more immediate form -- more of an op-ed piece than an essay or dissertation. And while I think about what I'm going to blog and how to say it, it's a whole different form of writing that does not require the waiting time.

Another tool is listening. From the beginning of an idea I listen -- to myself and my thoughts, to what I think the Spirit's saying to and wants to say through me, and to others and their stories.

Another tool, of course, is my life experience -- from theological training in college and seminary, relationships I've had/have, positions I've held, my life as a writer (including that hundreds of books I've studied to see why/how they work) and so on.

On a practical level, the tools I use most often are a good writing space (which I define as quiet, clean, well lit), a computer, a fountain pen w/ blue or green ink for editing (which I do on hard copy, not the screen), the Bible, various Faith & Practice, and my file of poems.

R: This really resonated with me. The other thing I would have mentioned was snacks. I find that when I’m writing, I like to have something to munch on. But alas, they don’t go well with computer keyboards.

Sacred Compass Interview

This is the “interview” I conducted with J. Brent Bill, author of Sacred Compass: The Way of Spiritual Discernment. I am not confident of winning the contest, but I am impressed with Brent’s willingness to engage with the somewhat random questions that inquiring minds might send.

Because my life is so crazy this week that I don’t really have time to write anything else, I’m going to publish this interview in installments. One question per day. Great blog fodder for ten whole days. Subject to interruption if I have something more urgent to write about…

In each case, I have listed the question, as I sent it to him: these are in italics with an R. Then I have given his answers, marked with a B, and then my replies marked with an R but not in italics. Brent hasn’t seen this third part yet, but I hope to open up the conversation to you, my dear blog reader, to be part of this dialogue too. I can not promise that Brent Bill himself will answer your questions here – or even read them here – but I will try to continue the discussion if you’re interested in one of the topics.

As a final point to this introduction, I want to be clear that I’ve already read the whole book and I really liked it. I’ve already started recommending it to people in San Francisco. I commend it to your attention - ask for it at your local library or bookstore or order it from Quaker Books.

R: How/why did you decide to use a compass as your central metaphor?

B: The decision to use "compass" came about three weeks before the due date. Prior to that, the themes were of pilgrimage, discovery, and as way opens. But they needed something to hold them together. A reader I didn't know came up with the thought that a compass seemed to be the metaphor that could hold it together -- and they were right. As I began to think about it, a compass seems exactly right in this GPS age. A compass is never exact about how to get somewhere -- it mostly just points to true north. In the spiritual sense, to God. And a compass does not really help us avoid obstacles. When reading a compass, it doesn't say, "Watch out for that tree!" Instead, you have to walk around the tree, the swamp, the cliff, or whatever and then look at the compass to get back on track or pick up the trail. That idea really resonated with my experience of spiritual discernment and a life of pilgrimage.

R: One of my favorite insights, not original to me, about the spiritual path is that if you realize you’re off track, you can just decide to get back on the path and you’re there. I think that came from Hannah Whitall Smith. I really like the idea of having a spiritual compass to help you figure out which way to go from where you are.

Nothing could be finer than to be in Carolina in April

I’m headed off to Greensboro, North Carolina on Thursday for the annual meeting of Quakers Uniting in Publications (QUIP).

On Friday night, I’ll be part of a panel with Will T. and Gil Skidmore about Blogging as Ministry: The Quaker Way. I’m still developing what I might say, but here are some of the points that I thought of:

• Q blogs offer spiritual material to read between magazine issues
• Q blogs are a form of contemporary, narrative theology
• Q blogs offer connections across boundaries - windows through the institutional walls
• Q blogs feature respectful engagement
• Q blogs are part of a small universe - If I don't know the person, I probably know someone who knows him or her
• Q blogs have led to intervisitation
• Q blogs make Quakerism more visible
• Q blogs enable more folks to be heard by others
• The Quaker Quaker community knits us together

I invite your comments and suggestions. The real challenge is to be brief…

On Saturday, we’ll be heading to Guilford College, for a tour and a presentation by the editorial board of the new book-to-be by young Friends. (Including C. Wess Daniels!!)

Quakers Uniting in Publications (QUIP) warmly invites you to attend the Quaker Youth Book Project Panel.

Saturday, April 26th 7:30 pm
Bryan Jr. Auditorium on Guilford College campus
This event is free and open to the public

Come hear young adult Friends involved in the Quaker Youth Book Project, QUIP's second youth anthology project and follow up to Whispers of Faith, speak to their hopes for the project, their experiences of youth movement and community in Quakerism, and the role publishing can play in supporting and nurturing rising generations of Quaker writers and ministers. The project's editorial board hails from all branches of the Religious Society of Friends and all over the world - including Kenya, Bolivia, Canada, Great Britain and all over the United States - and bring a diversity of skills and experience related to writing, editing, publishing, visual art, and ecumenical and youth ministry.

For more information on the Quaker Youth Book Project see www.quakeryouth.org/quipbook

On Sunday, I am looking forward to meeting some Friends from North Carolina Yearly Meeting (Conservative) who are gathering in Greensboro over the weekend for their own Representative Body. I don’t know exactly how many or what times, but if you’re interested in joining us, leave me a comment or email me at the address in my profile.

On Monday, there will be a lunchtime discussion about Quakerism and the emerging church with Scott Wagoner and me and some other folks. Scott and his friend Tony are working out exactly where – let him or me know if you want more details!

Monday night, I am looking forward to meeting in person the fabulous foundress of Eco Everyday in Greensboro and a coordinator for the 2005 WGYF, Betsy Blake. I would like to thank Betsy in advance for her kind arrangement of hospitality for me, despite our only knowing each other by phone and by email. And Facebook. I would never have joined Facebook if Betsy hadn’t posted something there about an event that she and I were working on together. But I wanted to see what she had done, and the rest can be seen here.

On Tuesday, I am coming home. I will try to do some writing on the way. It is a full and blessed life I lead. Complicated sometimes, crazy-making maybe, but worth it.

Lord, please help me to remember: It’s not about me. I am not in charge. I am not alone.

Please hold all of those traveling and meeting this week in the Light.