I’ve been working on my website lately, trying to give it more content, and I realized I could use some input. For example, I am going to post a page of frequently asked questions about Quakerism, and while I know what some of them are, it would be fun to hear your FAQs (whether you are a Quaker or not). I also have a page of Resources for working against racism which I haven’t developed yet. I’d love to hear the books, movies, and websites most helpful to people doing racial healing work. Finally, I’m trying to figure out how to make my Serenity Prayer page show up in a Google search for the prayer, so I’d especially welcome feedback on the Serenity Prayer page or links to it (should it ever seem appropriate on your own blogs or sites).
Coming from a branch of Quakerism not known for its evangelism, the thought of intentionally trying to reach people is a bit…awkward, but I feel it is something I’m called to do. I’m still trying to figure out the way of doing it that feels in keeping with my values. Offering information that people might find useful seems like something that feels rightly ordered and is also valued by the search engines.
(P.S. Please post suggestions on the blog, unless you have a reason not to be public in them.)
Someone just wrote to tell me that her long detailed comment didn't post. If anyone else has had that problem, please let me know. I'm posting this as an experiment. There doesn't seem to be anything weird in my settings, but I wrote a comment on the previous post that I discovered today didn't post.
One question I get a lot is: "are you guys Christians, or what?"
"Do you do Christmas?"
"Is that, like, the Amish?"
Do all Quakers have to wear those funny hats? Do you eat a lot of oats?
I'm not a Quaker, so here are some questions for your FAQ:
What could I expect if I attended a meeting? Do you even have regularly scheduled services (like the more traditional denominations)?
If I became a Quaker, would I have to attend anti-war rallies? (I have relatives in the military)
Or more generally: If I became a Quaker, would I have to become an activist? Would I be considered a 'bad Quaker' if I didn't? [and I don't just mean peace activist here]
What is the Quaker belief on an after life? on heaven? on how one 'gets to heaven'? Who is Jesus and how do we relate to him?
by the way, I've been having trouble commenting on various blogspot blogs the past couple of days. I get an error msg the first time I try to post the comment, but it seems to always go through the second time (without changing any settings or anything!)
Thanks for the good questions. Now I just need to figure out how to answer them succinctly.
Now I really want some pancakes! We live in a rural town just north of Munich. It is truly beautiful – connecting with Nature is the best way to gain perspective on what's truly important. Thanks for the great post!