01 Feb 2024
Nelson Quaker Meeting House
We purchased our home a few months ago and on our street in one direction was a Buddhist Centre and in the other direction is a Quaker meeting house. I walked past both with my wife and on our daily walks with our German Shorthaired Pointer, Nietzsche. Looking into the Buddhist Centre from time to time, all I could see was a TV being watched - something of little interest to me. If I want theory, I can get that in books, online, etc. When we walked past the Quaker meeting house, we weren’t able to walk by early Sunday mornings, but we did see their values stated in both English and te reo Māori. The building looked exactly like a traditional colonial home in which Quakers might meet and I suggested to my wife that we attend some Sunday.
Society of Friends in Nelson
The issue is that I am not an early bird on weekends. Sleeping in on the weekends without feeling the slightest guilt at “time wasted” (what a terrible concept) is one of the blissful parts of life. Getting up and walking the two blocks to the Quaker meeting house took a few more weeks than I imagined, but we finally attended our first service last Sunday. It was my first Quaker meeting ever, but Tracy had attended a meeting while she was in university with the same unprogrammed meeting style. It was certainly an experience which gave me time to contemplate many things.
Nelson Quaker Values
I have been impressed with Quaker values - on paper - but what do they mean in the lived, day-to-day experience of Quakers? Their peace activism speaks to me, their lack of hierarchy (I come from a background of the priesthood of the believer), their unwillingness to swear oaths - many other things suggest a possible fit for me. As I saw their values of equality and peace, I wondered as a vegan how these values are able to ignore our relationships with other sentient beings? I don’t remember Quakers being noted as vegans, so I wondered what the story might be, while trying to be open-minded to their historical background and traditions.
Nelson Quaker Values in te reo Māori
Seeing their values in te reo Māori spoke to me. Having respect for Māori and being inclusive are signs of a group with which I might not mind interacting.
Considering Nelson Quaker Meetings
Will we go to further meetings? I am not against the idea. I shied away from Quakers at first, until I discovered that there are non-theist (atheist) Quakers. While I believe the divine light is in all sentient beings, I have no interest in personified deities. Being able to attend while maintaining my values is of upmost importance to me, so it looks like there might be a space for non-theists like me in Quaker meetings.
We will see what happens next!
Aroha nui,
Lee Sturgis
leesturgis.eth
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