Revision isn't just a case of looking at the current book and changing the odd word here and there, adding a section or two about new topics, and removing anything that seems outdated. It also won't be an exercise (as suggested in some media coverage) of going through and crossing out every reference to God!

The extracts in this chapter cover the many aspects of being a Meeting. Some describe our worship, our decision-making process, our thoughts on religious education, our care for one another in a society that has no paid pastors, and the fellowship that supports us. Others reveal our associations within the whole family of Friends. Together, the writings show how the inward journey of an individual relationship with God, leading to the outward journey of witness to the wider society, is nourished and strengthened by membership in the Meeting Community. 3.1 – 3.14 WorshipExamine quelles voies vers le bonheur offertes par la société sont pleinement satisfaisantes, et quelles voies sont potentiellement corruptrices et destructrices. Sois sélectif en choisissant tes moyens de divertissements et d’information. Résiste au désir d’acquérir des possessions ou des revenus par des investissements non-éthiques, de la spéculation ou des jeux de hasard. I am convinced it is a great art to know how to grow old gracefully, and I am determined to practice it…I always thought I should love to grow old, and I find it even more delightful than I thought. It is so delicious to be done with things, and to feel no need any longer to concern myself much about earthly affairs…I am tremendously content to let one activity after another go, and to await quietly and happily the opening of the door at the end of the passage way, that will let me in to my real abiding place. In the first part of this chapter several writers explain their understanding of the call to faithful living. In the second, a few examples from Testimonies and memoirs illustrate the thankfulness we feel for the grace of God shown in a faithful Friend’s life. Collections to be made for the poor, the relief of prisoners, and other necessary uses, the moneys to be carefully accounted for, and applied as made known by the overseers in each meeting. There is an undercurrent of concern for deepening the life of the Spirit…[W]e realized it must begin with the inner work of each individual. We must continually pay attention to the Light as it shows us things inside that do not conform to the Light. We must then ask God to transform those parts so we are better able to hear and obey God. As we commit ourselves to this individual process, we as a group will be enabled to hear and obey God. We cannot expect the yearly meeting to be a shining example of a faith community under the direct guidance of the Spirit unless a solid core of members are seriously engaged in living into the Truth, as we are challenged to do by our history and faith.

The revision should draw on the richness of theological thought in our yearly meeting, now and historically, seeing diversity as fundamental to our community, not as a flaw.Discipline Review Committee draft report on “Fostering Healthy Sexuality,” 2003 5.34 – 5.42 Marriage and Committed Relationships Quaker faith & practice as a book to describe our faith and our organisation. We formally call Quaker faith & practice our Book of Discipline.

The form in which the content of our Faith and Practice book is presented may enhance the possibility that these different purposes may somehow be satisfied. Whereas the Elders at Balby did not hesitate to state their advice in the form of directives, it is more typical today for a Book of Discipline to adopt an anthological presentation, following the practice begun in 1921 by London Yearly Meeting. This approach offers written records of the lives, insights and actions of Friends throughout our history, describing their personal experience of the Truth out of which arose the inspiration for their witness in the world. Such writings do not stipulate what we must believe or how we are obliged to behave. Are your meetings for church affairs held in a spirit of worship and in dependence on the guidance of God? Remember that we do not seek a majority decision nor even consensus. As we wait patiently for divine guidance our experience is that the right way will open and we shall be led into unity. Take time to learn about other people’s experiences of the Light. Remember the importance of the Bible, the writings of Friends and all writings which reveal the ways of God. As you learn from others, can you in turn give freely from what you have gained? While respecting the experiences and opinions of others, do not be afraid to say what you have found and what you value. Appreciate that doubt and questioning can also lead to spiritual growth and to a greater awareness of the Light that is in us all. To our dismay, we witness a change in our country’s moral compass, one that points away from a culture of peace toward a culture of war… The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) calls on our government and fellow citizens to turn away from a culture of war toward a culture of peace.Les Amis ont toujours compris le mariage en tant qu’engagement religieux plutôt que comme simple contrat civil; les deux partenaires s’unissent dans l’intention, avec l’aide divine, de chérir chacun l’autre pour la vie mentière. Rappelle-toi que le bonheur dépend d’un amour compréhensif et fidèle des deux côtés. En périodes de difficultés, rappelle-toi la valeur de la prière, de la persévérance et d’un sens d’humour. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that the writings collected in a Canadian Faith and Practice express different ways of understanding the Quaker faith and, in particular, different points along the Christian-Universalist continuum. The extracts should be read in the same way that we listen to vocal ministry, even when it does not match our own beliefs. Rather than rejecting a message outright, we can welcome it as a means of testing the strength and validity of our own convictions and as a way of enlarging our vision.

Death is but crossing the world, as Friends do the seas; they live in one another still. For they must needs be present, that love and live in that which is omnipresent. In this divine glass, they see face to face. The early statements of the Society’s corporate witness set the basic principles of the Peace Testimony and served to distinguish Quakers from those suspected of plotting to overthrow the established authorities. The book is a treasure-house of psychological and spiritual wisdom… At best, there is an honesty, a toughness and a tenderness that is powerfully impressive.’ Older Books of Discipline tended to make corporate statements of faith and establish explicit standards of appropriate Quaker behaviour. Witness, for example, the earliest document of Quaker Discipline, the “Letter from the Elders Gathered at Balby, 1656” (see Appendix A), of which only the short postscript is familiar to most Friends today. This epistle comprises a set of expectations that were considered to be necessary for the growing new movement. Do you try to set aside times of quiet for openness to the Holy Spirit? All of us need to find a way into silence which allows us to deepen our awareness of the divine and to find the inward source of our strength. Seek to know an inward stillness, even amid the activities of daily life. Do you encourage in yourself and in others a habit of dependence on God’s guidance for each day? Hold yourself and others in the Light, knowing that all are cherished by God.

The source of our strength

The Advices in the epistle were originally expressed at somewhat greater length than they are in the following version. Even in this abridged form, however, which appears in the Book of Discipline of New York Yearly Meeting, 1995, they retain the core of the Elders’ counsel. The Meeting Community is that place where each of us is supported in the life of the Spirit. More than a place or a group of people, it is a state of possibility and an experience of community that underlies our religious life together. Do you work gladly with other religious groups in the pursuit of common goals? While remaining faithful to Quaker insights, try to enter imaginatively into the life and witness of other communities of faith, creating together the bonds of friendship. In worship we enter with reverence into communion with God and respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Come to meeting for worship with heart and mind prepared. Yield yourself and all your outward concerns to God’s guidance so that you may find “the evil weakening in you and the good raised up.”