Advance Resources for Workshop #27:
"FGC Theology: Past, Present, Future"
FGC Gathering 2001

Dear Friends,

Welcome to Workshop #27!

I look forward to working with you in this week-long workshop.
To give you a head start on our efforts, here is a list, with links, of
some advance readings now on the Web, which I think would be of value.

As you will see, many of these pieces are based on my study
and reflection on this general topic over almost twenty years. Others
are original historical documents, which seem to me to highlight key points
in the evolution of liberal Quaker thought. The selection is hardly comprehensive,
and my research in this area is continuing, and there may well be other
documents available by the time the Gathering begins.

None of this is "required reading," but all of it is intended to increase the
potential for learning and discussion in our work together. Many of these
documents, and some others, will also be available in hardcopy form at the beginning
of the workshop.

I will be on the road most of Sixth Month; I’ll answer e-mails as I
have time, but if you have questions about this material, and I hope you will,
I recommend you note them down and bring them with you, to share
with the whole group.

This entire subject is an exciting one for me, and I believe it is important
for the future of Friends. I look forward to our exploring and reflecting on it together.

See you soon!

Chuck Fager
E-mail: quest@quaker.org

        The Documents:

Overview:

    Beyond the Age of Amnesia: Charting the Course of Twentieth Century Liberal Quaker Theology

Roots and Origins:

    1852: Quaker "Spirits" Speak: Spiritualism and Progressive Quakerism
    1853: A Radical Quaker Manifesto: The "Exposition of Sentiments"
    1900: FGC- In The Beginning: Two Addresses to the Founding Conference

Into the Midcentury:

    FGC’s 1926 Uniform Discipline Rediscovered

Recent Views and Cases:

    1983: The Crazy Quilt of Liberal Quaker Theology
    1995: New York Friends, Jesus, and Sex: A Study By Herb Lape
    1996: Douglas Gwyn on "Quaker Bispirituality"
    1997: Quakers as a "Chosen People"
    2000: A Tribute to Bill Kreidler
    2001: A Consensus Statement on Theology by a Group of Friends

A Special Case--Handbasket Theology:

    2000: A Review of the report, "Among Friends"
    1998: A Specimen of Handbasket Theology by Sam Caldwell

   <<< Go to the Quaker Theological Resources Page

E-mail: quest@quaker.org