Quakers, social justice and revolution

FWCC Sustainability Project

Posted on January 16, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

The Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) is an organization to facilitate connections among Quakers worldwide.

This morning I received the following message from Susanna Mattingly, the Sustainability Communications Officer for FWCC. She references the information on the Quakers and Climate Change Worldwide website, where we have shared some information about Iowa Yearly Meeting (Conservatives)’s environmental work. I intend to reply to this soon, as part of the yearly meeting’s Peace and Social Concerns work.

Greetings from London! My name is Susanna Mattingly and I have recently joined the FWCC World Office in London in the newly created role of Sustainability Communications Officer to promote sustainability action in the global Quaker community, over the next 2 years.

I am getting in touch following your post about the actions of Iowa Yearly Meeting (Conservative) on the Quakers and Climate Change Worldwide website.
I am working to help yearly meetings around the world take further action on the Sustainability Minute approved at the World Plenary Meeting in Peru in 2016, which as you may know, asks yearly meetings to initiate at least two concrete actions on sustainability, involving Young Friends in key roles.
As I start out on this project, I am keen to understand more about what yearly meetings need in relation to sustainability and climate change. This is something I have asked all yearly meetings around the world to consider. I would welcome your reflections on your yearly meeting’s experiences in recent years.

We want to create an empowering movement that will inspire Friends around the world to get involved, so a large focus of my work is sharing positive stories that celebrate Quaker responses to climate change. I hoped you might be interested in working with me to potentially produce a case study about the environmental initiatives of Friends in Iowa, in particular the Ethical Transportation Minute? Examples of other case studies from Friends around the world can be found on our website here.

The kind of questions it would be interesting to discuss with you include:

• How does climate change affect your life and your community in Iowa?
• Examples of environmental action taking place within your yearly meeting or your local meeting or church
• What changes would you most like to see in this area? What would you like to see happen?
• Do you have any inspiring stories to share of Friends taking climate action?

If you would be interested in working with me on this, I would be happy to set up a Skype call when we might discuss it in more detail, but I’m also happy to communicate by email – whatever is most convenient for you. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and please let me know if you have any questions.

In friendship,
Susanna

Living Sustainably and Sustaining Life on Earth
The Light of Christ has inspired Quakers throughout the generations. As we gather together in Pisac, Peru in 2016, we feel this light stronger than ever in our calling to care for the Earth on which we live. It is calling us from all traditions: programmed, unprogrammed, liberal, and evangelical. It calls us to preserve this Earth for our children, our grandchildren and all future generations to come, working as though life were to continue for 10,000 years to come. Be ready for action with your robes hitched up and your lamps alight. (Luke 12:35, Revised English Bible)
Our faith as Quakers is inseparable from our care for the health of our planet Earth. We see that our misuse of the Earth’s resources creates inequality, destroys community, affects health and well-being, leads to war and erodes our integrity. We are all responsible for stewardship of our natural world. We love this world as God’s gift to us all. Our hearts are crying for our beloved mother Earth, who is sick and in need of our care.
We are at a historical turning point. Internationally, the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals oblige governments to take action. Faith groups and other civil society are playing a major role. As Quakers, we are part of this movement. The FWCC World Conference approved the Kabarak Call for Peace and Ecojustice in April 2012, while the FWCC World Office was a signatory to the Quaker statement on climate change in 2014 and divested from fossil fuels in June 2015.
We recognise that the environmental crisis is a symptom of a wider crisis in our political and economic systems. Our loving and well informed environmental actions as Friends, consistent with our spiritual values, must therefore work to transform these systems.
Many of us all over the Quaker world are taking practical actions as individuals and communities. At this Plenary, a consultation of more than sixty Friends from all over the world worked to build on these leadings with further practical action. The Annex attached to these minutes shows examples of what Friends are doing already or propose to do.
We must redouble our efforts right now. We must move beyond our individual and collective comfort zones and involve the worldwide Quaker community and others of like mind. Just as Jesus showed us, real change requires us to challenge ourselves to be effective instruments of change. We can do more.
On recommendation of this Consultation, and after some discussion, we adopt the following minute:
In this effort for sustainability, and mindful of the urgency of this work, this Plenary asks the FWCC World Office and Central Executive Committee to:
1. Invest FWCC World funds ethically.
2. Share Quaker experiences with other faith groups to inspire them to action, especially through the World Council of Churches.
3. Seek ways of connecting Friends worldwide that are sustainable.
4. Facilitate dissemination of training materials on sustainability issues for Quaker leaders, pastors and teachers.
This FWCC Plenary Meeting also asks all Yearly Meetings to:
1. Initiate at least two concrete actions on sustainability within the next 12 months. These may build on existing projects of individuals or monthly meetings or they may be new initiatives. We ask that they encourage Young Friends to play key roles. We ask that meetings minute the progress and results, so as to share them with FWCC and Quaker meetings.
2. Support individuals and groups in their meetings who feel called to take action on sustainability.
3. Support the work done by Quaker organisations such as the Quaker United Nations Office and the Quaker Council for European Affairs to ensure that international agreements and their implementation support sustainability.
This FWCC Plenary Meeting asks individual Friends and groups (such as Monthly Meetings, Worship Groups and ad hoc groups within Meetings) to Share inspiring experiences of living sustainably on the new “sustainability webpage” of the Quakers in the World website: http://www.quakersintheworld.org/ This webpage can be used as a source of ideas, inspiration and action.
Annex to the Minute: Possibilities for practical sustainability action
from the Pisac consultation
Individuals can:
1. Dedicate personal time to nature.
2. Reduce consumption and use your consumer buying power to create change.
3. Cut down on meat consumption, be aware of energy costs in production and transport of all foods and methane from ruminant animals, support sustainable agriculture.
4. Travel – cycle, walk, use public transport or alternatives to private cars, keep air travel to a minimum.
5. Grow your own food and plant trees.
6. Be politically active in promoting sustainability concerns.
7. Share environmental concerns through books, publications, conversations, electronic media
8. Reduce energy use.
9. Use less water and harvest water.
10. Make time for spiritual connection with God.
Monthly Meetings, Worship Groups and small groups within Meetings can:
1. Live in a community, share housing, participate in a transition town movement.
2. Educate yourself and others.
3. Share transport and equipment.
4. Develop urban agriculture, community gardens, community supported agriculture, tree planting.
5. Love nature and encourage others to do so: we protect the things we love; get children out in nature; take care of nature around your meeting house (e.g., picking up trash/litter).
6. Invest ethically and divest from fossil fuels.
7. Ensure meeting houses are carbon neutral.
8. Build alliances, seek visibility, approach legislators.
9. Share sustainability skills.
Yearly Meetings can:
1. Support the sustainability actions of Monthly Meetings.
2. Build solidarity with local people.
3. Support Quakers in politics and international work.
4. Form support networks and alliances to make more impact – we can only do so much on our own.
5. Invest ethically, including on sustainability issues.
6. Practice what we preach.
7. Discern and move concerns to action.
8. Set targets for increased sustainability.
9. Connect and share with other YMs, direct or via FWCC Sections and World Office
We recognise that different actions are relevant to different Quaker meetings in different parts of the world.

Jeff Kisling Indianapolis North Meadow Friends

Bear Creek meeting

Don Laughlin

Posted in climate change, Ethical Transportation, Quaker Meetings, renewable energy, Uncategorized | Tagged FWCC | Leave a comment

What I Have Learned About Racism

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

This gallery contains 16 photos.

Originally posted on Quakers, social justice and revolution:
I am speaking from my personal experience. I do not claim to be an expert on this issue, but I have been blessed with a number of experiences related to this recently. …

More Galleries | Leave a comment

MLK Day and Race Today

Posted on January 15, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

On this Martin Luther King, Jr, Day, I’m happy I can share part of the eloquent post Mat Davis just wrote about the successful resolution to issues he has been struggling with recently. I was fortunate to meet Mat at the Kheprw Institute. Mat has been on the board of an Indianapolis food coop and wasn’t treated well by the board when he raised some legitimate issues about the store’s policies, and how well the neighborhood the store is in was being served. Indianapolis has a huge problem with food deserts, adding to the importance of this issue.

As I have said since October, I don’t think anyone individually is racist or bigoted whatsoever, BUT that doesn’t mean that this institution hasn’t been practicing racism and classism for a long time now. The discrimination I experienced and how it was handled is a very clear example of that pattern.

Our resolution is a testament to how co-ops can be used as a business model that can make equity and access a priority even when leadership makes a major mistake. In a co-op, community always has the power to address and properly confront issues that hold them back from serving their mission.

Moving forward, responsiveness builds trust and should be the outcome of accountability. Despite their behavior and mistakes, we as members and community showed (and will continue to show) where the leadership needs to improve and how we as a board and staff can better serve the real mission of the co-op. Here are 10 immediate, concrete changes that have come out of this issue of discrimination:
1. Reinstatement of a discriminated board member
2. All hostile board and staff are no longer at the store
3. Better and responsive communication between board and members
4. $150 Membership fee can now be paid in income based installments over longer time frame (Ex. $25 once a year for up to 5 years)
5. 10% discount for ALL members going forward on everything in the store (expect alcohol) along with that discount being extended to SNAP recipients, even if they’re not members
6. Donated and transferred memberships for low-income residents on the Near Eastside
7. WIC access will be provided soon after initial stabilization is secured
8. Open board elections next month will start early 2 weeks early to encourage candidates (and all members) who are committed to food access to build off of the momentum of these changes
9. Various community engagement and food access initiatives including community meal, classes and workshops
10. Strategic plan about how we plan to increase food access on the Near East Side and turn the store around

I grew up in Martindale-Brightwood and the Near East Side and lived here most of my life. I’ve done a lot to help improve my neighborhood but I think we would see something incredibly transformative for my hood and city if we were to turn this store around! I think it would send a clear message to everyone, everywhere about Indianapolis if we successfully support the store and increase food access in the one of the worst food deserts in the country.

I want to be clear about some reflection on race that are being discussed around this conflict:
It’s ok for professionals of color to be and stand up for themselves in this city;
It’s ok for white people with privilege, resources, leverage, and networks to trust the participation, input, and leadership of black people and other people of color, especially if we’re preaching diversity and inclusion;
It’s also ok to care about people in our neighborhood who are working class or live in poverty;
It’s also ok for white people to make a mistake in regards to race or class and let people support them in finding a solution.
If you’re someone who didn’t agree with my side of the story, my approach or some of the truths exposed because of how it was handled BUT you truly do want to increase food access for the Near East Side and across the city, then hopefully you can see that despite our disagreements, I have done this in good faith and hope that we can actually serve the mission the co-op set out to accomplish. I’ve been community organizing for 12 years and I know the difficulty of trying to help increase awareness on an institutional/systemic issues to create change and having decision makers or gatekeepers constantly confuse it for an interpersonal dynamic or character flaw, sometimes purposefully. It’s so important that organizers or activists (or those aspiring) to help people in institutions understand that organizing isn’t divisive or “too political” because it prioritizes social change and real impact for people who need it the most. I hope a year from now we can look back on this process and find an even deeper appreciation for this resolution when the store is steady and the community is engaged! All of this effort was done out of love by HUNDREDS of people who wanted to see some real change in our neighborhood, the local food community and the whole city in general. I am grateful and now it’s time to work!
In Cooperation,
Mat Davis

#LoveWins #WhitePrivilegeLost #EastsidePride #FoodJustice #BestMLKDayEver #CoopsWork #MatsBack #TimeToWork

And I’d like to mention the book I’m reading in case you are interested: “And Still I Rise: Black American Since MLK”, by Henry L. Gates and Kevin M. Burke explores the last half century of the African American Experience, including many photos.

Still I Rise

Mat Davis

Mat Davis at KI

Posted in Black Lives, Kheprw Institute, race, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

King, Ali, the Kheprw Institute Taught Me

Posted on January 14, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

Yesterday I discussed some reflections as Martin Luther King Day approaches. I can’t help but be saddened as I remember the moral integrity and leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr, Muhammad Ali, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and all those who fought for racial justice, and the paradox of having a President and his party who do not believe in racial equality. To realize how little progress we have made in the years since to undo the structural racism in our county.

I don’t think I realized how much the words and actions of those in the civil rights movement taught me about racial justice. Seeing these people as heroes and mentors to me as I struggled with oppression related to the war machine, and how they put their beliefs, which were also my beliefs, into action made it impossible for me to believe people who believe themselves to be white, as Ta-Nehisi Coates expresses it in Between the World and Me, to be in any way superior to people of color. I love that expression because it makes you consider what it really means to be white. I also love the advertisements for the DNA ancestry kits showing people’s ethnic mix, and that no one is purely “white”, so what does that even mean? Maybe a way to address race is to use DNA to show the ethnicity of every person.

Having spent my life working in neonatal intensive care, and then in pediatric medical research, the worry of parents, and grief at death are universal. I was blessed to work with colleagues of many ethnicities, all of whom I deeply respect, and none of whom showed any bias in the care they extended to their patients and those patient’s families. Working in a narrow area of research, infant lung development and disease, meant being part of a small international community, where we were not only colleagues but friends. Some of my closest friends live in Argentina, Chile, and Brazil, because those physicians spent at least a year in our lab at Riley Hospital for Children, learning how to do research. So I spent every working day with each of them as they spent at least a year with us.

As I’ve written about extensively, these past four or five years I’ve been blessed to have been able to work with the people at the Kheprw Institute (KI) in Indianapolis. One of the many things I appreciate was the way they gently insisted on getting to know me at our first meeting. It was thanks to that, that I was encouraged to share with them what Quakerism meant to me, which provided a spiritual connection among us from the beginning. I wasn’t used to talking about Quakerism, and now realize there are occasions, such as that one, where it is essential to do so. It was also significant that the Quaker meeting I attended in Indianapolis, North Meadow Circle of Friends, chose to become involved with KI by means of the AFSC program, Quaker Social Change Ministry.

In a similar way, I was also very fortunate to become part of the environmental justice community, including the NAACP Environmental Justice members. And, most recently, with those who worked to oppose the Dakota Access Pipeline in Indianapolis, which gave me an opportunity to begin to learn about Native Americans.

I am glad I have been able to continue to find such people and communities to work with now that I am back in Iowa. It was a joy to be connected to the Prairie Awakening ceremony that Bear Creek Friends have supported for many years. And share photos with the Meskwaki community.

Being connected with these many, diverse communities, is how I have learned about racial justice, and how much we have in common. And how much work we have yet to do to undo the structural racism in our country.

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Neonatal ICU, Riley

Indiana U.S. Congressman Andre Carson

Leah

Rasul, Diop and Imhotep

Imhotep and JT

#NoDAPL

#noDAPL

Brandi Herron and Joshua Taflinger and others

Taken during photography during summer camp at the Kheprw Institute

Posted in #NDAPL, Black Lives, Indigenous, Kheprw Institute, Quaker Meetings, Quaker Social Change Ministry, race, Uncategorized | Tagged Meskwaki, North Meadow Friends, Prairie Awakening, Riley Hospital for Children | Leave a comment

Letter from Birmingham Jail

Posted on January 13, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

As Martin Luther King day approaches, I wanted to re-read the letter he wrote from Birmingham Jail. The civil rights struggles of the 1960’s had a large impact on me. I was a student at Scattergood Friends School at the time, and deep into trying to understand my place in our society. The example of Quaker men refusing to participate in the military helped me realize I needed to look very closely at my decisions related to war, conscription, conscientious objection and draft resistance. I was being forced to make a choice because of the law requiring young men to register with the Selective Service System on their 18th birthday.

I read everything I could find about this, and spent a lot of time praying. It was very clear that this choice would profoundly affect the direction of the rest of my life. Those who weren’t alive during this time probably can’t grasp what a violent and chaotic time it was in our country. Almost 3 million American men, nearly 10% of our generation, served in Vietnam. Television, a relatively new appliance in most American homes, daily showed black and white pictures and video from Vietnam.

College campuses were in an uproar. A series of national Moratorium Days Against the Vietnam war occurred in 1969, which Scattergood students and staff participated in. May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen opened fire on unarmed students protesting the war at Kent State University, killing four and wounding nine others.

At the same time the civil rights struggle was going on. There were obvious parallels between the antiwar and the civil rights movements. Muhammad Ali refused to register for the Selective Service System in 1967. Part of what he said was ““Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go ten thousand miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights?”

Martin Luther King also saw the parallels. “To me the relationship of this ministry to the making of peace is so obvious that I sometimes marvel at those who ask me why I am speaking against the war.” He was criticized by many in the civil rights movement for doing so. “Let me say finally that I oppose the War in Vietnam because I love America. I speak out against this war not in anger but with anxiety and sorrow in my heart and above all with a passionate desire to see our beloved country stand as the moral example of the world.”

Martin Luther King Memorial

The Letter from Birmingham Jail was written during this time, in 1963. King was in solitary confinement, arrested for not having a permit for a peaceful anti-segregation march. Segregation laws were part of the Jim Crow system. The letter was partly written to respond to criticism by some in the civil rights movement about his tactics of using nonviolence and civil disobedience.

These memories have returned often in recent years as I have had occasions to travel south, through the cities of Birmingham, Montgomery and Atlanta. And while visiting the Martin Luther King, Jr, memorial while in Washington, DC.

You can find copies of the letter multiple places online. While searching for that, I came across the audio of King reading the speech, which I find very powerful.

Martin Luther King, Jr memorial

Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial, Washington, DC

Martin Luther King Memorial

Posted in civil disobedience, peace, revolution, Uncategorized | Tagged civil disobedience, civil rights, Martin Luther King, Vietnam War | Leave a comment

Censure the President

Posted on January 12, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

This President, throughout his business career, during his presidential campaign and during his administration, has on numerous occasions made disparaging remarks about women, people and countries of color, political opponents and the press. He has attempted to deny entry into the country on the basis of religion. He has repeatedly attacked the freedom of the press. He has taunted foreign leaders, escalating military tensions.

All of this is contrary to our country’s ideals of equality, welcoming the oppressed, and freedom of religion and the press.

His remarks yesterday were blatantly racist, saying he wants to send Haitians back to their country, and would welcome people from countries like Norway, i.e. white people. These remarks are also troubling because of what they reveal about how he feels and what he wants his administration to do about immigrants already in our country.

These escalating attacks on our country’s principles and democratic ideals are not acceptable. It is time for Congress to formally censure the President.

“In the United States, governmental censure is done when a body’s members wish to publicly reprimand the President of the United States, a member of Congress, a judge or a cabinet member. It is a formal statement of disapproval.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Censure_in_the_United_States

It’s Time We Censure Trump for ‘Conduct Unbecoming’ a President by Jonathan Alter, The Daily Beast, 1/12/2018 “Article 133 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. All senior U.S. military personnel—including women— are subject to a court martial for “conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.” Such conduct includes dishonest, indecent, cruel and dishonorable acts. Article 133 charges require no proof of law-breaking. They can be brought for merely “indecorous” behavior, which means acting like an asinine ignoramus.”

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” Presidential Oath of Office

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it…” Declaration of Independence

Martin Luther King Day is this Monday, January 15. Two quotes from him follow:
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

Martin Luther King, Jr memorial

U.S. Capitol

White House

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged censure, politics | Leave a comment

Simple Life?

Posted on January 11, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

I’ve mentioned that some time ago I created a Facebook group called Quakers Welcome Spiritual Seekers, hoping to have a Quaker presence on social media. My thought was that people looking for something to address their interest in spiritual matters, and not finding that in churches, might be interested in Quakers. And social media is where people often look for information these days.

Recently a new member asked the following question:

I was wondering how many Quakers today actually practice trying to live a more simple life? We have all we could possibly want, the gadgets, clothes and the cars etc.. but how many actually practice the original sort of Quakerism?

That person included the following quotation, “we were meant to live simply enjoying the experiences of life, the people of life, and the journey of life–not the things of life.” Joshua Becker

Following is my response:

Welcome … and thanks for the question. Of course no one speaks for all Quakers. That said, simplicity and materialism are an area where I personally feel many Quakers are failing. There are a number of Quakers who work very hard to live simply in many ways, but too many others have become comfortable. Environmental damage has been one of my main concerns. About 40 years ago I made the decision to refuse to have a personal automobile, but have been singularly unsuccessful in convincing anyone else to do the same. My meeting is in rural Iowa, and most members live in rural areas, so there are obvious challenges related to transportation.
My meeting does share this concern. Some have solar panels. We did this past year approve the Minute on ethical transportation you can read about at the link below. One thing we are encouraging Friends to do is make more use of bicycles, even in rural areas. https://kislingjeff.wordpress.com/2017/07/31/ethical-transportation-2/

I realize that saying ‘simplicity and materialism are an area where I personally feel many Quakers are failing’ could get me in trouble. It is my impression that Conservative Friends do a much better job of living simply than many, but I was including other Friends as well in that observation, thinking the seekers on that Facebook page may have experience with, or might soon connect with other Friends near them. (And of course people looking at the Facebook page may live anywhere in the world).

Although Friends often hear me talk about my concerns related to personal automobiles, energy conservation continues to be one of the most effective ways we can personally reduce our environmental impact.

Along those lines, I was blessed to hear some admittedly elderly Friends share stories about life when they were growing up, after meeting for worship in Indianola last night.

We didn’t have electricity or running water. (I might add we had a party line telephone, no television, and an outhouse for the bathroom)
We broke a lot of glasses that we had taken upstairs during the night (as the water turned to ice)
There was no heat upstairs
We wrapped the kids in a cocoon of multiple blankets with only their arms outside
We heated stones on the stove, and put them in the beds before we got into them
We used bottles of warm water for the same purpose
The first thing we did in the morning was open, and sit on the door of the stove to warm up
Sometimes we had to be picked up by someone in a horse and buggy when the school bus was stuck on the muddy roads
(There was also mention of mud-ball fights)

One Friend remarked “that is why we are so healthy today.”

Bear Creek meetinghouse

Standing family 1900

George and Deborah Standing

Posted in Ethical Transportation, social media, spiritual seekers, Uncategorized | Tagged simplicity | Leave a comment

Letter to Senator Grassley

Posted on January 10, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

I have refrained from saying much about politics since the new administration began for a number of reasons.

Even before the Obama administration it had become increasingly clear that Federal politics had moved away from legislation and governance based on policies to serve the people, to a partisan culture of winning for the party. This was openly said during the recent Alabama U.S. Senate race, when many said they would support an awful candidate before they would vote for a member of the other party. Thus the result was much closer than it should have been.

The current Republican majorities in the House and Senate have passed legislation without the input, or a single vote from the Democrats. They have used any means to avoid debate or the ability to compromise, and improve, legislation that is overwhelmingly unpopular with the majority of Americans. And have intentionally inflated the Federal budget so they can justify the coming efforts to cut social safety nets. At the same time they have approved additional billions of dollars to the already bloated military budget.

The amazing fiscal dishonesty is on full display, when, during the Obama administration, Republicans refused money for social programs unless cuts were made in other social programs. Now that the Republicans are in power, there is no such fiscal restraint/constraint.

The widespread implementation of gerrymandering and voter suppression laws make it more difficult to challenge incumbents. Fortunately, there is a wave of new candidates and increased voter participation.

Although the Democratic party most often reflects my values, this criticism of the Republican party is not because of differences related to policy, but because of the corruption of the processes to create and implement policy based legislation.

Finally, we are learning more and more about Russian interference in our elections. Here once again we are seeing party over people, as Republicans try to divert attention from the Russian investigations. So we are faced with the prospect of continued Russian interference in future elections.

There are multiple instances of the President obstructing justice related to these matters.

The reason I felt I had to write to Senator Grassley was because of his attempts to withhold the damaging information we now know is in the testimony by Fusion GPS about Russian interference in the last election. And we know that the Senator knew this when he tried to suppress it. I am very grateful to Senator Feinstein for her courageous decision to release the transcripts.

Additionally, it is a grave injustice to suggest criminal charges against Chris Steele, who did a professional job of investigation, and of alerting the Federal Bureau of Investigation when he began to think he was witnessing a crime in progress. Suggesting criminal charges against him is simply persecution.

Congress was reluctant to impeach Richard Nixon, and that only happened when the people spoke out and insisted. We seem to be approaching a similar situation today, and we need to speak out, again. That is why I wrote the following letter to Senator Grassley and the Des Moines Register.

Dear Senator Grassley,
I am very disappointed by your refusal to release the testimony by Fusion GPS. And especially upset by the false characterizations you made about the testimony.
But most especially by your referral of Chris Steele to the Justice Department for possible criminal charges when it is now clear he did us a great service.
The least you could do is withdraw that request.
I am very glad Senator Feinstein released the transcript.

White House

U.S. Supreme Court

Jefferson Memorial

Lincoln Memorial

Abraham Lincoln

Thomas Jefferson

Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial

National Archives

U.S. Capitol

White House

U.S. Capitol

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged corruption, government | Leave a comment

North Korea and the Olympics

Posted on January 9, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

Today’s announcement that North Korea will participate in this year’s Winter Olympic Games, held in PyeongChang, South Korea is welcome news. This represents an improvement in relations between North Korea and the rest of the world. Many were concerned about the world’s athletes participating so close to what had seemed to be a hostile North Korea.

Tensions between the United States and North Korea have unfortunately heightened as a result of the current administration’s undiplomatic actions.

Bear Creek Friends meeting has been working to see if another visit from a North Korean delegation could happen, in hopes of using farm diplomacy to reduce tensions. Nikita Khrushchev’s acceptance of an invitation from the Des Moines Register to visit Iowa reduced tensions between Russia and the United States in the 1950’s.

In 2001 a North Korean agricultural delegation visited the farm of Ellis and Win Standing, and had a pot luck dinner at the Bear Creek Meetinghouse. Bear Creek Friends are hoping a return visit might be possible. The Des Moines Register published the following open letter:

bearcreekkorea2

Jon Krieg from the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) in Des Moines put us in touch with Dan Jasper, Asia Public Education and Advocacy Coordinator for AFSC. AFSC currently has an agricultural program in North Korea affecting over 70,000 farmers. Dan is helping us explore the possibilities of another North Korean visit to Iowa. AFSC has a number of resources related to North Korea.

The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) also has a number of good articles about North Korea. Friends are encouraged to take advantage of the resources offered there.

The success of the Olympic ideal, again, to promote world peace, is a surprising but welcome path to reduce tensions between North Korea and the rest of the world. I hope our government will build on this opportunity.

North Korea visit to Bear Creek 2001

Bear Creek members

Bear Creek meeting

Posted in peace, Uncategorized | Tagged AFSC, Bear Creek, FCNL, North Korea | Leave a comment

Our Lives as Example

Posted on January 8, 2018 by Jeff Kisling

As I continue to mourn the recent death of my mentor, Sherry Hutchison, and hear stories of how her life influenced, and continues to influence others, I think about how we can better live our own lives.

Teaching is not done by talking alone. It is done by how you live your life. My life is my teaching. My life is my message. Hanh, Thich Nhat. At Home in the World: Stories and Essential Teachings from a Monk’s Life (p. 5). Parallax Press. Kindle Edition.

I am reminded of the words of Rabbi Michael Lerner at the memorial for Muhammad Ali. “The way to honor the memory of Muhammad Ali is to be Muhammad Ali today in our own lives.”

Quakers believe we should focus on our own lives, living as faithfully to what the Spirit of God is saying to us as we can. We don’t believe in trying to “convert” people to Quakerism, but hope other spiritual seekers will want to join with us based upon how we live our lives. In this way building the Beloved community Martin Luther King, Jr, often spoke about.

Part of living faithfully often leads to speaking out, though. Bringing attention to injustice and speaking for those who are oppressed. Speaking truth to power. Not conforming to the status quo.

ALL THAT WE ARE IS STORY.
From the moment we are born to the time we continue on our spirit journey, we are involved in the creation of the story of our time here. It is what we arrive with. It is all we leave behind. We are not the things we accumulate. We are not the things we deem important. We are story. All of us. What comes to matter then is the creation of the best possible story we can while we’re here; you, me, us, together. When we can do that and we take the time to share those stories with each other, we get bigger inside, we see each other, we recognize our kinship — we change the world one story at a time.
Richard Wagamese (October 14, 1955-March 10, 2017)