Queries:

• How might we appreciate and deepen diversity in our lives?
• Quakers “yearn for diversity”, but what do we mean by diversity? What are we looking for?
• How might our Meeting become more diverse? And in what ways are we already diverse?

Seeking Quakers is at the new accessible rental space at North Broadway United Methodist Church at 48 E. N. Broadway Street, Columbus.

For Seeking Quakers events, please use the main lot and front door.

Masking is encouraged for those in person.

Zoom Information:

On line: Join Zoom Meeting: Zoom Link  Meeting ID: 883 2721 5869

Event Details:

Format: On-line and in person

Date: March 6, 2024

Time: 7-8:30pm Eastern

Ages: all ages

RSVP? No.

Registration: None

Accessibility: We use Zoom’s automated captioning. Any other questions, please email Brittany at outreachinreach@gmail.com

Resources:

Diversity and Unity in the Religious Society of Friends
Friends Journal, September 1, 2009. Lynn Fitz-Hugh
https://www.friendsjournal.org/2009095/
One of the trickiest tasks before the Religious Society of Friends today is embracing our
diversity without losing our center, that which defines us as a faith …. We find ourselves in the
very strange position of needing to be able to say to all in our midst: ‘You are welcome here,
the Truth you find is welcome, and your expression of it is welcome, but we will not change our
practice of Quakerism unless our whole group is led in discernment to change it.’

Inclusion and diversity: reflecting on our journey so far
Friends Quarterly, March 10, 2022. Edwina Peart
https://www.quaker.org.uk/blog/inclusion-and-diversity-reflecting-on-our-journey-so-far
Justice is love in action
Our vision of a peaceful and sustainable society can only ever be a reality if it is based on justice
and equality. And this means unlearning some of the things we have been taught – knowledge
that supports and justifies our unequal society as it was historically formed and as it currently
exists. It requires learning new things that clash with what we thought we knew – things that
challenge our very idea of ourselves. This is difficult but necessary work.
If we can’t acknowledge our complicity in systems that have caused and continue to perpetuate
societal harm, any action we take will be inadequate to the task of repair. It won’t result in real,
lasting change. The depth of discernment and action we engage in indicates where we want to
be.
It’s vital that we unify the equality agenda. We must build a narrative that speaks to equality
and justice in its widest sense – a narrative that doesn’t segment various manifestations of
discrimination and injustice into discrete categories, because this tends to rank and prioritize
inequalities. They are all linked.

They are all part of a system of classifying the world, of organizing and producing difference, of
creating hierarchy, of establishing and perpetuating a system of meaning (Hall, 2017). This is a
lazy, unloving and distancing way; an unjust and untruthful way. Quakers have long challenged
and refused this path. Inequalities are inherently interconnected – so too must be our
response.

We Are Not John Woolman
Friends Journal, January 1, 2019. Gabbreell James
https://www.friendsjournal.org/john-woolman-colin-kaepernick/
See the whole issue: Racially Diverse Society of Friends
What would the United States look like if we had a current-day Woolman, Lay, and Mott? Are
we willing to step up our game to find out?

Quakers and Sex: A Call to Embrace Sexual Diversity
QuakerSpeak
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLaAqSO_UbE
Quakers are uniquely qualified to transform how we deal with sex and sexuality in our culture
and make it healthy and wholesome. I think that we’re uniquely qualified to do this because we
believe in differences among individuals. We believe in individual leadings and, at the same
time, we believe in accountability to the faith community.

Quaker Basics: Spiritual Diversity Among Friends
Friends Meeting at Cambridge. May 27, 2021.
Live one hour on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/fmcquaker/videos/528388064829035