Previously seated in my kitchen, I was brought to my feet, feeling handcuffs snap tightly…

While attributed to Alexander Graham Bell, Bob Marley and others, this phrase can be found in the Spanish Novella, The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities,. The story was published anonymously, due to its heretical content Written originally in 1554, it was later…

The last half of this quotation is one of many additions that follow the first half. These few words hold some common themes in this book and much spiritual writing. It speaks of the call to be present in the moment. It speaks of the centrality of gratitude. And the phrase ties these two concepts together with…

Here's an excerpt from an essay titled "That They All May Be One," which can be found on my website Abiding Quaker . Please visit my site and read the essay. The excerpt follows: The Quaker movement began with the discovery…

A common image that eulogists share at funerals is that once we die we sit in a comfy chair and smile as we look down at our loved ones as they go about their lives. This notion is not biblical but is, instead, a certain extrapolation of the Greek idea that we have an enduring soul or spirit. I…

I delivered the following message at Richmond First Friends on May 28, 2017. ​This post originally appeared on the Quaker Libertarians blog. ​ John 18: 15-18, 25-27 15 Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Since…

This was first recorded in 1440 in the poem Partenope of Blois, Ye “wote wele of all thing must be an end.” Note that the word good is omitted. It is similar to “All things must pass”, “this too shall pass” and “here today, gone tomorrow” all of which imply that the transient nature of life applies to both…

While many comics and commentators have used this phrase, the website QuoteInvestigator, cites a 1957 Cosmopolitan interview with talk show host Steve Allen as the first recorded use of the phrase. Martin Dockery, a brilliant storyteller who works the fringe theatre circuit, uses this phrase…

In this reflection ESR MDiv student Anne M. Hutchinson shares about her recent visit to Switzerland:  It’s hard to conceive of Switzerland without thinking of chalets, cheese, chocolate, cleanliness, and clocks. There are indeed chalets with their wide roofs and elaborate exterior wood carvings. However, La Chaux-de-Fonds, the town in which I stayed, is famous for its Art Nouveau architecture…