From the book, Without Apology: A Friends meeting hosted an interfaith conference. During a break, the meeting’s Clerk fell to talking with a priest, a rabbi and an imam about the nature of God. Despite everyone’s good intentions, they soon began to argue: God was a trinity, contended the priest; oh no, the imam retorted, … Continue reading Much to Be Modest About, Friends . . .
Eleven years ago, I was nearing the end of my time as Director of Quaker House, the Friends peace project in Fayetteville NC, near Fort Bragg. Our newsletter for that summer devoted most of its front page to Afghanistan, and the seemingly “invisible/forever” war there. That war is no longer invisible, and at least the … Continue reading Deja Vu All Over Again: A Glimpse of Afghanistan in 2010
It was the headline that caught me: “Shocking and Ominous Talk,” it blared. Really? Such language was rare in the Selma Times Journal (STJ), but I found it there, on the editorial page of the New Year’s Day edition, for January 1, 1965. The Alabama headline shone up at me from a cloudy gray background, … Continue reading Back to my Future: Vietnam, Afghanistan, Wherever, Forever . . .
What did the billboard below have to do with Friday the 13th in August 2021? I’m aware that nobody has asked me that, but bear with me a bit. Let’s take a glance back, to fifteen years ago, 2011: then one Harold Camping was a radio preacher from Oakland, California, who had figured IT out. … Continue reading Nostalgia, Judgment Days & AI Hallucinations
Jim Corbett was a fascinating guy, but like all of us he had his faults. In his amazing first book, he way overdid the self-deprecation: ”Goatwalking is a book for saddlebag or backpack —to live with a while, casually. It is compact and multifaceted, but for unhurried reflection rather than study. It is woven from … Continue reading Let’s Go Goatwalking, Friends