Death of Friend Dr. John Anderson

When I first arrived at Taunton Quaker Meeting, John and his wife Andy invited myself and my new husband John to their home for refreshments and conversation.

John asked me about my career and about my beliefs.  I was and am a Universalist.  I attended the first meeting of Universalism at Woodbrooke.  John and I were friendly with Jean Hardy. I also worked and belonged to Green Spirit.

The problem was that John didn't like my belief system.  It was perhaps more common in London where we lived previously than in Somerset.  He told me his beliefs briefly.  I answered in Quaker Speak, something I now regret, I said,

" I thank you for sharing this with me, I fully respect and accept your beliefs Friend, but I am sorry they are not mine."

I am still grateful that he did ask me about myself and my beliefs, he was the only Quaker from Taunton Meeting to do so. I have been told by some that my ministry was "Quirky".

I also respected him, whatever he may have thought.  Many people in Taunton told me what a sympathetic doctor he was.  I also respected that Andy was a quite different person to her husband. So it should be in my opinion. As two trees.

I admire his death, he told me he had signed a form to not resuscitate. I admired them both.

However, I shall not be at his funeral.  Instead I will keep a vigil outside.

I hope that soon I will be understood.

I now attend Taunton Unitarian Meeting and have resigned my Membership of Quakers.

What makes us strong- the snowdrop meditation

I came across a new law on the breakfast television programme on BBC.  https://www.itv.com/news/2018-08-06/brothers-whose-mum-and-sister-died-in-domestic-abuse-attack

I am very glad this law has come into effect, emotional abuse often conceals a violent man or woman.

Emotional abuse does not always happen during domestic marriages and partnerships. Men or women that try to control the other person in the relationship can often flip into violence.

I always thought that a religious environment such as a Meeting House or somewhere like Temple Methodist Church in Taunton would be a safe environment for women who go there on their own.  However I was a victim of emotional abuse from a fellow Quaker who was male and twice my height and weight.

At Wellington Meeting I witnessed an emotional abusive attack by two women during the Local Business Meeting when a report was communicated from Trustees.

On both occasions it was decided that the fault lay with the victim for inviting the attack. How does such bullying arise? Often I feel it happens when a group of individuals conspire to dislike an outsider or someone who has a different viewpoint and the object is to control or change that person from the human right to hold another view.

What makes us strong when we endure this kind of behaviour? As a trained and qualified Quaker Healer I was asked to prepare ministry on this subject.

I offer the following  meditation:  the snowdrop meditation by Zoe Ainsworth-Grigg

Relax 

Make sure you are feeling warm and comfortable.

 It is a cold day outside.

You are sitting by a warm fire, snuggled up in warm clothes, everything is quiet and peaceful.

Outside the snow is falling in a deserted garden.  The white of the snow begins to illuminate the room and you move to the window to look outside.

Everything is blanketed by the snow until you see:

The white of a perfect snowdrop sheltered under another plant.

You wonder how it can survive in such harsh conditions and as you look you are absorbed by its fragility and resilience.

 And now you acknowledge your own fragility and resilience.

The perfect small flower and the white of the snow envelops you in a beautiful white light , this Light gradually surrounds you – bringing you deep peace, absorb this healing and peace for yourself.

Now bring to mind anyone who needs healing and peace at this time, let the Light spread  .. in the knowledge that healing is being acknowledged and received where it is needed.

(Allow time for this to happen) keep concentrating on the white Light and the image of the snowdrop.

And now become aware of yourself still feeling warm and secure, go back to where you were sitting by the warm fire and very gradually, come back to the present and open your eyes.

Zoe's biography 

Universalism

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e88dSX6P9Kk

Interview wth UU minister in USA

Swervice in Oxford UK

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lchmd73orpM

email from MP for Taunton - Rabecca Pow

Thank you for your email dated 27 October regarding fracking.

 

The right protections are in place to ensure that fracking can go ahead safely without risk to our most beautiful and important natural sites. People should have confidence in these protections and in this vital industry which could create over 65,000 jobs, be worth billions of pounds to our economy and could generate greater energy security. For these reasons, the Government is providing further reassurance for our most valued areas.

 

I fully appreciate people’s concerns about fracking, but let me reassure you that Britain has a strong regulatory regime for exploratory activities that will be updated as the industry develops. With these protections in place, I think it is right that we explore and make use of shale gas and oil.

 

Regulations will protect some of the country’s most beautiful areas, including National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Fracking cannot take place at depths of less than 1,200 metres in these areas. The Government is also committed to banning fracking from wells drilled at the surface of these areas and of Sites of Special Scientific Interest, in order to safeguard these beautiful landscapes.

 

In addition to the regulations and the surface restrictions, consent cannot be granted for fracking until the environmental impact of a development has been taken into account. Operators are also required to monitor the levels of methane in groundwater.

 

I am pleased that the Government understands that it is critical for the industry to have the confidence of the public if it is to flourish in the long term.

 

Unfortunately, due to other parliamentary commitments, I am unable to attend the Westminster Hall Debate on this topic but I can assure you that I will be closely following its progress.

 

I do hope this goes some way to addressing your concerns in this respect.

 

Kind regards,
Rebecca

My reply is this 

Commerce or Conscience? https://youtu.be/ca1zILXit8g

 

Rebecca Pow MP

Tao

Although I have been a Quaker and attended regularly meetings for twenty-five years and when as a teenager , I studied the scriptures and attended an Anglian church, I have always been uncomfortable with Christianity as my religious base.

About Ten years ago, I studied Buddhism and meditated with Buddhist monks, I learnt a lot about meditation but still did not find a fit with my own beliefs.

I began to voice my own definition of what I thought of as God. Which was an essence in the Universe or a creative force in the universe which was also within all living organisms including man/womankind.

I also studied as a Quaker healer and had very real experiences of channeling the Spirit. I have given and received healing. I also hold Jesus and his tteachings in very high regard.

Last week I was introduced to Zen calligraphy and for the following few days  I practiced making marks of Chinese letters using this method.

On Sunday I picked up a book from Wellington Quaker Meeting library on Tao.

Imagine my surprise when I found that my definition of God was formulated by the Chinese in the 6th century BC and they called it Tao.

I feel that I have made an important step in my spiritual journey. I have a sense that I am not extraordinarily different and that there are other people that  have had this philosophy for many hundreds of years. But I feel that also one should respect one's own culture and not try to chase moonbeams in other people's culture.

If anyone practices Taoism or Tao meditation I would love you to comment. I am now on a new turning in my path and would like to make the right steps.

Art Exhibition

Since I last wrote I have had a setback with health in that I am now diagnosed with Polymyalgia instead of fibromyalgia which has meant a change in medication.  During that time I have undertaken to support Taunton Live 2016.

I did not realise how much work would be involved and I am very grateful to Chris Dart for helping me hang the exhibtion and also to Taunton Quaker Meeting for adopting me as an artist.

For those who would like to view an overview of the exhibition here is a link

Taunton Live 2016 - Creative Corner


The exhibition centred around my research into the origin of nursery rhymes and networking with other artists in the town and talking to visitors it was very successful.

History - Taster of Chris Lawson's talk on " Quakers and Chocolate."

As part of the celebrations and outreach for Taunton's new Quaker Meeting House a series of talks are planned over the next five months.

This is an example.  It is the first in the series.  While it is a short introduction, further information may be obtainsed from Minehead Quaker Meeting in Somerset.

https://youtu.be/FQlLRXHld9s

Click the blue link.