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Thank you for the video on this, I'm still discerning if being Quaker is what I'm being called to and hearing your perspective and where Quaker thoughts on the testimonies it's very helpful

I miss the theological level a bit.

I too have been thinking about this lately. You may be interested in Just Peacemaking theory and Johan Galtung's Conflict Triangle theory.

I became interested in Quakerism while watching a Netflix film. My lifetime religion is Catholic. But I find myself questioning the faith of my childhood. This familiar doctrine disappoints me in today's world. I guess I am an old hippie at heart. Well anyway, you gave me food for thought. Hello from Illinois, USA.

22:25 you say this sarcastically. Just want you to know yes some of us really are clamouring for that. Can’t wait to hear a good summary

I love the appearance of your cat’s paw!

Oh my, best laughs here: the story about Wm Penn -- "it better be true"! LOL And yes, that was West Jersey. (now better known as South Jersey)

I went to my first meeting today. Got to meet some Friends and got a welcome pack with some literature I've been reading and it was great. I found the meeting quite profound and tranquil, and found an answer to a question in my own faith in the stillness after the first person's ministry - the question had been on the back of my mind for a long time. I was open about being a Pagan interested in the Quaker path and everyone was cool about it. I'll definitely be going back again.

Catholic Quietism had a strong influence on early Quakers, particularly the writings of Madame Guyon.

I am a Friend in a sect of one. Just me.

Saint Agustine's most painful and long lasting sin was his stealing an apple, and as a boy. Yours might be eating more than three biscuits on a Sunday in November, 2024. May God forgive you.

What's the Lancashire hate for?

I wonder if Quakers might one day use Friend as a title instead of Mr, Ms, etc.

One frustrating thing about UK GEs is that Quaker republicans are effectively barred from standing as MPs. This is because a republican Quaker can't make an affirmation of loyalty to the monarch. Same principle applies for Quakers who are in parties that are secessionist, such as SNP and PC. It's pretty ridiculous that MPs have to swear an oath to the king but not to their constituents. It, along with other aspects, somewhat undermines the credibility of describing the UK as a democratic state (which it has really only been since 1928).

It does surprise me a bit that there are Tory Quakers, especially since the Tory voting record and conservatism doesn't seem to fit very well with Quaker values. I wouldn't be surprised if the majority of British Quakers are social democrats and socialists.

As a Pagan considering becoming a Quaker I do lean more towards Universalist Quakerism. I also find myself agreeing with a lot of what Mark is saying here.

I'm not a fan of the idea that God made creation and humanity to worship him. It makes it sound like God really needs to go to therapy.

I wonder what the Quaker capital for each of the nations would be. For Northumbria it would be York, of course. What about Scotland, Wales, and the South?

Is the Bible not your number one recommendation?

I think this question has the unspoken premise that the perspectives of George Fox and the early Quakers is of special importance over those of later generations of Quakers. As I understand it, this is a premise that goes against the values of Quakerism.

Is republicanism common among Quakers today?

In my experience (in the Pagan community) if you want both online and in-person events, then it's best to alternate between online only and in-person only events. In mixed events you tend to end up with two groups awkwardly trying to communicate and coordinate with each other which can be distracting.

I'd say Quaker in the 21st Century is more an approach to or school of religion broadly rather than a denomination of a specific religion. Most Quakers are Christian but there are also Quakers of other religions or none. I personally am a Pagan interested in becoming a Quaker.

So...do you still have to wear a tie to work?

Friends Meeting in Washington DC, for example, is a member of both Friends General Conference and Friends Alliance.

Hi, Ollie - I'm a Quaker from Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Thanks for your interesting talk. I'm wondering if there is any formal Quaker working group in the UK that are thinking about AI and its impact? If so I'd love to get involved. I spent most of my career working in what I prefer to call "Machine Learning" - often billed as "AI" a term I dislike for the simple reason that "Intelligence" to me implies "Intentionality" and conscious decision making. When you get CoPilot or ChatGPT there is none of that - in effect it is just a massive number cruncher. Each word in the dictionary is represented (in GPT3) by an array of 12280 numbers, which, together with the preceding context words (e.g. the prompt you put in) are fed into a calculator that does billions of very simple calculations that you could find on an electronic calculator - and at the end assigns a probability to every word in the dictionary, and then picks the most likely next word (or randomly from the most likely). That single word is added to the context and it is repeated, one word at a time. The fact that it makes sense is that the machine has "learnt" the statistical patterns of the huge amounts of text that are used to train it. It does not "think" in our sense of the word, and I feel it's a mistake to anthropomorphise it by suggesting that it "thinks" (though we always tend to do that with computers in general). Also, it does not have "opinions". Its default mode is to be helpful and agreeable - and never disagrees. I'm a poet who submits poems to it to see if it "understands" what I've written. It is most flattering always saying things like "This emotionally resonant poem beautifully captures ..." etc. But you can change its response. I've asked it to do negative reviews. Then reviews in the style of a stroppy teenager, Richard Dawkins, Donald Trump, and Bridget Jones - all very plausible sounding, all with radically different answers! So I asked it what does AI think about Quakers - answer in the style of Donald Trump. Here's the first two paragraphs. Full of Trump clichés! It does not have opinions and it doesn't think - it just riffs the way you want it to: chatGPT wrote: Well, let me tell you, folks, Quakers-tremendous people, okay? Absolutely tremendous. They’ve got this thing, right, the whole peace thing-no wars, no fighting. Some people say, “Donald, wouldn’t it be great if everyone was like that?” And I say, sure, but let’s be honest, we’ve gotta win, right? Peace is great when you're winning. Now, Quakers, they’re very quiet-silent meetings! No talking! I don't know how they do it. I mean, have you seen me? I love talking, and quite frankly, people love hearing me talk. But the Quakers, they sit there, and they think. And thinking, folks, it’s very underrated. They think big thoughts-simple, but big. Kind of like me, honestly. Huge on simplicity, huge on brilliance.

This is a magnificent example of spiritual geekery, which is something I've always wanted to explore more thoroughly. Off the top of my head, I'd say Moana deals with themes that are relevant.

I enjoyed this Quaker-friendly guided meditation and I hope that there will be more in the future. 🎉

Quaker support their sisters not just there cis-ters

Enjoyed the video. Just a point about “not an animal” if you have more than one biscuit: There is some implicit body shaming there for people who have eating disorders. Other than that, it was interesting. Jinny

You might like @SamaneriJayasara She reads the mystics, including Christian mystics. There's some really great ambient sound/ music on some of them

Would you be interested in doing a bookshelf (or shelves) tour? I'm always on the hunt for book recs

your sunday is much calmer than mine xD

I feel even most liberal Quakers tend to be at the very least (spiritual)

If i can ask fir more, please, id like a version with just your words not background noises.

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What a fabulous discussion. What a hope for the future, following the US election. A human face of a Quaker who is doing something so invaluable. The experience Paris has had of Meetings in Ireland was very interesting. I am married to a Texan Quaker and have attended Meetings in both Austin and Las Vegas, both of which were unprogrammed. My own3 sons are all in their late 30s and attended a Quaker school here in Reading. They hold solidly onto the values of Quakerism, but Meeting holds no interest to any of them. As a Quethodist myself, I do miss the Christo-centred approach in our Meeting, but can get my fill in Methodism! Thank you for such a wonderful video. Jinny

“I mind the light. Dost thow?” - on the sundial at Friends Meeting of Washington, DC

Thank you for this different approach. There is an interesting transcription error at 14:27, which is also true but more zen like interpretation of what you actually said. Very serendipitous!

"If you want to find a hard, uncomfortable bench to do this, that's fine." ROTFL 😂🎉😅🎉

Very nice, thank you.

Not sure your audio has been up to the normal quality on the last couple videos

That was really lovely. Thank you!

EXCELLENT! Very refreshing. You might consider adding some Buddhist chanting and Tibetan singing bowls. My current situation does not allow me to attend the local Meetings for Worship, so I do the best I can at home. This effort is a big help. Keep it up!

OMGoodness, you are spoiling us with all the great videos lately! (Me = loving it! 🎉)

Wow you are really down on Lincolnshire 😂 Now I want to visit it and see just how dreadful it is 😊

Thank you Friend for another excellent video !

Wow, this is incredibly timely. I have been a neopagan witch for a little over ten years. I started attending Quaker Meeting this year because I wanted community for my son to grow in.

Oh no, he's talking about me xD

Love this. Just off to get a pointy hat. Tho I'm not sure the beautiful Pendle Hill warrants such anti-Lancashireism 😊