tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post3412847791197661522..comments2023-08-12T02:27:12.548-07:00Comments on Pennmanship: Musings on Radical HospitalityBrad Ogilvie/The William Penn House/The Mosaic Initiativehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17229228501877444698noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-82658584782787146092010-08-11T20:16:22.162-07:002010-08-11T20:16:22.162-07:00I would like to say this is an excellent blog that...I would like to say this is an excellent blog that I have ever come across. Very informative. Please write more so that we can get more details.Resume Writing Servicehttp://www.resume-service.biznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-22394945201952149372010-05-23T08:44:39.931-07:002010-05-23T08:44:39.931-07:00Thank you very much for this post. I live and wor...Thank you very much for this post. I live and work on a Catholic WOrker farm in a very conservative area, and I go regularly to the high school as a counter-recruiter. I am struggling to listen and respond more deeply, not falling wither into argument or into making nice. Sometimes I manage, often I don't. When it does work something important seems to happen to my neighbors and to me, as well as to the relationship between us. It is very good to hear someone else wrestling with this issue.Joanna Hoythttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13447960126998692419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-85370943804443745572010-05-20T08:12:04.988-07:002010-05-20T08:12:04.988-07:00LUKE 15
The lamb was lost. It was the shepherd wh...LUKE 15<br /><br />The lamb was lost. It was the shepherd who searched, found, retrieved, and celebrated the recovery of the lost lamb.<br /><br />The coin was lost. It was the woman who searched, found, retrieved, and celebrated the recovery of the lost coin.<br /><br />The son was lost. The son had rejected the father as though the father was dead. Even in rejection, the father was generous. The son lived a selfish and self-directed life without the father. Finally, the son had no options, no direction, no chance of rescue, no charity, no hope, no family, no life, complete separation from love and kindness and friendship and companionship, an abomination of an existence – this is death and hell. At such a time under such circumstances, what happens next is natural and unavoidable – the son goes home. The father has been waiting and watching. As hard as it is, that is all a parent can do, watch and wait until the child finishes the journey and turns toward home. When the father, who has been waiting and watching, catches that first distant glimpse of the returning son; the father rushes out to retrieve the lost son, to embrace the found son, to shower the returning son with generous hospitality, and to begin the celebration. The son never even got to finish that well-rehearsed speech of contrition and humility. All that matters is that son turned toward home. The son was never lost to the Father, the son was only lost to himself.<br /><br />The brother was not happy. (Question: Is the home-bound brother like the nine coins safely gathered in a known location or like the ninety-nine sheep left in the wilderness?) The brother wants to know why there is a celebration for the lost when there has never been a celebration for that which was never lost. The brother wants to know why there are not punitive consequences for destructive decisions and a selfish life. Why is there a father’s happiness for a bad son? The father affirms his love for the brother and acknowledges the accomplishments and stewardship of the brother. The father also rejects rejection. There has been enough separation. There will be no more separation – separation is finished. Now there will be acceptance and inclusion and a great party.<br /><br />Being a Christian is practicing generosity and hospitality; living non-violently without vengeance; living here and now as one family where all are invited, welcomed, and included without exception or qualification; living in constant relationship with God; and living here and now – not later and not someplace else – living here and now a life transformed by resurrection.dcsloannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-25814959198826568552010-05-18T06:38:14.078-07:002010-05-18T06:38:14.078-07:00Yes, Brad, I agree with you. The more we "lov...Yes, Brad, I agree with you. The more we "love our enemies" and listen, the more we learn.My experience is that most of us do want the same things. I remember reading in a Quaker newsletter about 15 years ago that certain Quakers felt forced to host Southern Baptists because of the hospitality testimony and were relieved that the Baptists"behaved." How much better if these guests had been seen not as the "other" but as a gift from God sent with a needed message.Dianehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12396312339372162866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-31951545043810391922010-05-18T06:19:06.568-07:002010-05-18T06:19:06.568-07:00Very interesting work you are doing at William Pen...Very interesting work you are doing at William Penn House. I am relatively new to Quakerism. I have been attending meeting in MD for just over a year now. It seems like every month I learn about some other neat Quaker organization doing some cool work. I would love to have been a fly on the wall in that discussion. I attended West Point for a year before transferring to UMD. I have many friends who graduated from West Point, the Naval Academy, and the Air Force Academy. These folks are some of the most incredibly competent and capable people I have ever known. These kinds of conversations are quite common at the academies. The midshipmen would most likely not be taken aback at all by more intense scrutiny and questioning. Believe me they are ready for a grilling on any topic at any time. This is the style of exchange practiced there. It is quite common to discuss ethical dilemmas, haze of combat, (im)morality of killing in the field, etc. There are more voices for relative "peace" in the military (especially at the academies) than you might believe. And there are folks that I have known that reverted to non-combat positions over such ongoing discussions during their time in the military. Those are folks you don't want leaving the military but to continue those conversations with others in hopes to persuade their brethren so to speak. Do the Quakers have a presence at the Naval Academy chapel group? I know it might seem like an odd question, but like I said I'm new.Jason Lairdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04104740908547185915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5664821601466952220.post-87907908772359593192010-05-18T02:28:49.850-07:002010-05-18T02:28:49.850-07:00Thank you Brad for this article. It chimes for me ...Thank you Brad for this article. It chimes for me with my experiences at the week-long Eurosatory Arms Fair in France, where I remember feeling very dissatisfied with the depth & quality of our engagement as pacifists with the arms dealers & manufacturers. When we were able to hold the quiet, questioning space, people shared their dilemmas at their work - one in particular noting that he'd only become an arms dealer when the tourist trade at his Montmatre cafe in Paris dwindled - but it was challenging to hold this space, to have the depth of knowledge on technical issues of those who worked in this field as professionals, and to be willing to be changed ourselves by the encounter. I remember thinking at the time that our preparation for such events needs to start long, long beforehand. Best wishes with your work, CatrinThresholdMumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18138871428967189369noreply@blogger.com