By George Owens

• There is a spiritual presence at work in the world, which Quakers call by many names including God, Spirit, Inward Teacher, Christ, Light, Mystery, Truth, the Divine, etc.
  • Each person is capable of direct and unmediated experience of God
  • There is that of God in every person and in all creation.
  • We listen for leadings from God and seek to be guided by them.

• Revelations of God’s truth are continuous and ongoing.

• We welcome truth from whatever source it may come:
  • From Quaker roots and origins: the lessons of the Bible; the life and teachings of Jesus; the witness of fellow Quakers.
  • From the teachings of other religions and wisdom traditions.
  • From the learnings and experiences of our lives.

• Our understanding and experience of God is nurtured and enlarged in community
  • We gather in worship by listening in silent community for God’s messages.
  • We make community decisions by seeking unity within the community as led by the Divine.
  • We test our discernment of individual leadings by inviting other Quakers to join us in seeking clearness.

• Our inward experience of God transforms us and leads us into outward expressions of faithful living, witness and action. Being patterns and examples of God’s presence in our lives is more important than espousing beliefs. We seek to walk cheerfully on the earth.

George Owen 2019-10-06 – comments and suggestions are welcome: gcowen01@yahoo.com

This is a modification and expansion of Arthur Larrabee’s presentation in QuakerSpeak on YouTube.