Thursday 26 October 2017

Look Beyond

You are not a Quaker because you are special.
It does not take any special ability or quality to live among Friends.
If your expressions of the Spirit are hard to understand,
That says more about you than it does the Spirit.
Everyone can understand the Light within,
Even if they cannot understand your description of it.
Everyone can learn to heed the prompting of the Divine,
Even if they cannot describe it in the terms you think proper.
The Quaker Way is not for all, but it is for all sorts.
No formal education or intellectual development prepares you,
To better apprehend what Love requires.
If your Meetings cannot show that power,
To the factory worker and street sweeper,
That is your failing, and not theirs.
But quiet your protestation.
Nor should you rush to guilt.
This is not to call you to tear down your house,
To build a new one that is without fault.
It is not to shame you
Or diminish you.
This is a call to wake up,
To look beyond your comfortable world,
Of people like you.
Written October 2017
If you enjoy this blog, or otherwise find it worthwhile, please consider contributing to my Patreon. More information about this, and the chance to comment, can be found in the post announcing the launch of my Patreon.