“What Canst Thou Say?” — Where do we go from here?
[Testimony of Margaret Fell] “And then he went on, and opened the Scriptures, and said, ‘The Scriptures were the prophets’ words and Christ’s and the apostles’ words, and what as they spoke they enjoyed and possessed and had it from the Lord.’ and said, ‘Then what had any to do with the Scriptures, but as they came to the Sprit that gave them forth. You will say, Christ saith this, and the apostles say this; but what canst though say? Art thou a child of Light and hast walked in the Light, and what thou speakest is inwardly from God? …’ This opened me so that it cut me to the heart; and then I saw clearly we were all wrong. So I sat me down in my pew again, and cried bitterly. And I cried in the spirit to the Lord, “We are all thieves, we are all thieves, we have taken the Scriptures in words and know nothing of them in ourselves.’” —1652, Fox’s Journal
Introductions
Presentation
Exercise
Small sharing groups
Reflections & Closing
Reference Material
Written materials
- Clearness Committees for Personal Discernment, published in New England Yearly Meeting’s Living with Oneself and Others
- Discernment Corporate & Individual Perspectives, by Bruce Bishop, Northwest Yearly Meeting, published in Quaker Religious Thought
- Some Guidelines for Clearness, published by Friends General Conference, borrowed and adapted from Central Philadelphia (PA) Monthly Meeting of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting
- The Meeting for Worship in Which Business Is Conducted—Quaker Decision-Making Process as a Factor of Spiritual Discernment, by Paul Anderson, Northwest Yearly Meeting, published in Quaker Religious Thought