This abridged version of “Roots and Flowers of Quaker Nontheism” was compiled for the convenience of students of Quaker nontheism. An ellipses ( . . . ) or brackets ([ ]) indicate where material has been omitted. The original is a chapter in Quaker and Naturalist Too (Morning Walk Press of Iowa City, IA, in […]
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Publications on Quaker Nontheism
This first appeared in Quaker and Naturalist Too (Iowa City, IA: Morning Walk Press, 2014, pp. 135-145). The list is divided between earlier publications (1962-1995), and later publications (1996-2013). Unfortunately some publications have been missed and the list is not being kept up to date. Please send copies of material to be included, or their […]
Getting Beyond the Words: Nontheist Friends Network at Britain Yearly Meeting Gathering Canterbury 2011
Report by Miriam Yagud We expected a lot of interest at this Yearly Meeting, in exploring issues raised by nontheist Friends And there was. The nontheist Friends conference at Woodbrooke last February has stimulated a rich and energetic discussion about nontheism and theological diversity among Friends. Some of this has been reflected in the pages of “The […]
New Nontheist Friends Network in Britain
A meeting in February of 40 nontheist Friends at Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, England, decided to organise with a view to becoming a recognised special interest group of Britain Yearly Meeting. A steering group of six Friends was appointed to take the work forward. The steering group resolved to call the new organisation the Nontheist […]
What Next for Quaker Nontheism?
Minute and Epistle of the gathering of nontheist Friends at Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, Britain, Feb 18-20 2011 “There are nontheist Friends… Friends who might be called agnostics, atheists, sceptics, but would nevertheless describe themselves as reverent seekers.” So began the report of the first formal workshop for nontheist Friends, held in New York State […]
Minute from FGC workshop, 2009
MINUTE of the workshop on “Quaker Identity and the Heart of our Faith” at the FGC Gathering, Blacksburg VA, July 2009 28 Friends (26 from USA and one each from Britain and Canada) have participated in this workshop. We have met together on six successive mornings from June 28 to July 3 2009 to tackle […]
Nontheism Among Friends at Powell House, January 2-4, 2009
One person attended because of the laughter from the nontheism workshop at the Friends General Conference Gathering. Another came because a fellow Meeting member who attended in 2007 was so impressed. A third signed up because he questioned whether Quakers could be nontheist. A teenager brought her dad. Zach Alexander (Cambridge MM, NEYM) and I, […]
Nontheism among Friends at Powell House – report
“If you think Richard Dawkins is too easy on religion, go down to that end of the room,” I said, indicating the steps up to the bookstore. “And if you…” “Careful…” someone said. And I was. There were several believers-in-God present – the exact number depending on your definition – and I didn’t want to […]
Report on the Nontheist Friends interest group at New England Yearly Meeting
There was a moment at one point where the “interested theist” Friend expressed some misgivings about his certainty of God’s existence, but then said that he was in his nineties, and without much time to engage in speculation — and he won’t have to wait long to find out firsthand anyway. He ended by saying, […]
Reflections on a Decade of Nontheism Workshops
In 1996, Bowen Alpern, Glenn Mallison and I designed and presented a workshop called “Nontheism Among Friends” at the Friends General Conference Gathering. Since then, various people have led the workshop and offshoots from it. I have led seven so far. This year, I was particularly aware of some ways the culture of the Religious […]