From A Friendly Letter, #28 Seventh Month (July), 1983
THE CRAZY QUILT OF CURRENT QUAKER THEOLOGY
Dear Friend,
This month has produced some sad news, in the deaths of two very distinguished
Friends. Herbert Nicholson, of Pasadena California, passed away early in Sixth Month.
He was, report family members, active almost to the last day,visiting other elderly
residents of nursing homes in a ministry he had carried on for many years. His work
on behalf of Japanese-American internees in World War Two was described in Issue #22,
where we named him Quaker of the Year for 1982. At the end of the month came news of
the passing of Olcutt Sanders, editor of Friends Journal, after a lengthy struggle with
cancer, We have written before of our admiration for his work at the magazine, as well
as his valiant spirit in the face of his illness. Both these Friends provide examples
of a "whole life preaching" as George Fox charged Friends to do so long ago.
They will
be missed, and remembered.
These two men also, coincidentally, exemplify the subject of this issue, which is
the variety of theological perspectives among unprogrammed Friends: Sanders was a Friends
General Conference stalwart, while Nicholson, though of Philadelphia origins, had been
evangelical in his outlook and part of a Conservative Meeting in Pasadena. It was at
Friends General Conference earlier this month, that one evening interest group featured
a panel representing three distinct religious outlooks current among unprogranimed Qua-
kers. When the panelists had finished, one of the first comments from the floor was
that three presentations were by no means enough to cover the range of active Quaker
views.
I was struck by that comment, and as the discussion went on began making a list of
the distinguishable theological perspectives I had come across. This list has contin-
ued to grow with later reflection, and now includes a bakerÆs dozen of distinct out-
looks, and it may have missed some at that. This issue, because of space limitations,
will focus on eight trends discernible among unprograrmned Friends; a future issue will
tackle the variety among programmed meetings and churches.
Since my intention here is description rather than debate, the approaches are
sketched with as much dispassion as I could muster, but with no pretense of objectivity.
One problem that has dogged me while compiling the list is the matter of finding a con-
ceptual framework in which to organize it. So far, the theological diversity among
Friends today defies efforts at classification--mine, anyway. Perhaps the best image
to surface so far is that of the title: a patchwork, with pieces of varying fabric and
design stitched together without an easily understandable pattern. Another image I
like is that of a bed of wildflowers, responding to the same sun and rain with dif-
fering leaf patterns and, of course, a wide range of fruit. But let me not wax too
poetic here; I will appreciate reader comment on this impressionistic survey.
Yours in the Light,
Chuck Fager
THE PATCHWORK OF QUAKER THEOLOGY
*Ethical Mysticism: The "Jonesists". We begin with this view because for most
of this century it represented the mainstream of unprogrammed Quakerism; it was as close
to
an orthodoxy as we got. Associated with Rufus Jones, its great exponent, it is now perhaps
best exemplified in the ongoing work of John Yungblut. It sees Quakerism as a variety of
mystical religion, but one in which the experience of union with God in silent worship
produces active work for good in the world. Its classic expression is Thomas Kelly's
"A Testament of Devotion." More recently, in Yungblut’s work, it has been
much
influenced by depth psychology, especially Jungian psychology, with its emphasis
on myths and symbols generated by the human subconscious as the major
vehicle of religious experience.
The centrality of Jonesist ethical mysticism to unprogrammed Quakerism is fur-
ther shown by the fact that the next two approaches represent reactions to it: one carry-
ing it, perhaps, to its logical conclusion, the other rejecting it as an erosion of truth.
*Universalist Quakerism: The "Lintonians." Named for a British Friend, John
Lin-
ton, who has been their principal spokesman and organizer, Universalist Quakers see the
future of the Society as flowing from the premise that there are aspects of Truth in many,
perhaps all, major religions. They call on Friends to affirm and seek out this Truth, and
would detach the Society from any exclusive identity with any one of theta, in particular
with Christianity. Lintonians assert that the seeds of their viewpoint can be found in the
work of the First Publishers of Truth, including Fox himself.
*The New Foundation: "Bensonites." By contrast, the New Foundation Movement
insists that a return to the Christianity of the early Friends, especially Fox, is neces-
sary for a vital Society. The movement is built on the work of Lewis Benson, probably the
major living student of FoxÆs writings, who has spent many years calling for the recrea-
tion of what he considers the authentic "Catholic Quakerism," in sharp
distinction both to
the Universalists and to Jonesist ethical mysticism. Bensonites are active proselytizers,
travelling and publishing widely, seeking converts from all branches of Friends.
Two Other Varieties of Christian Quakerism
*Conservative Quakerism: "Wilbunites." The three small Conservative Yearly
Meetings, in Iowa, Ohio and North Carolina, represent a much older strain of Christian
Qua-
kerism, one which predates Jonesism and its challengers by many decades and which, despite
dwindling numbers, continues to offer inspiration to other groups. While their sobriquet
is drawn from John Wilbur, whose resistance to the pastoral system and revivalism among
Orthodox Friends in the 19th century gave them their identity, they are also the inheri-
tors of Quietism, the era of John Woolman. Theirs is a Quakerism which emphasized plain
speech, dress, livelihoods and worship, all built on a firm Christian orthodoxy. Conser-
vative Quakerism has had a tough time adjusting to the changes of the 20th century; but at
its best, in the work of Friends like Wilmer Cooper at the Earlham School of Religion, and
William Taber at Pendle Hill, it has made major contributions to the Society at large.
* Ecumenical Christians: "Inclusivists." This is the strain in which I locate
myself, a constituency which takes the Christian roots of the early Friends very
seriously,
but does not see it as a warrant for the exclusion of other outlooks from among us. Thus
we tend to be strong on Bible study while liberal on most lifestyle issues; but we have a
hard time with such issues as just where the limits of our inclusiveness ought to be, and
the relation of our Quaker Christianity to other major religions.
Copyright © by Chuck Fager. All rights reserved.