Acting in Faith

Connecting Friends to the work of AFSC  Subscribe

A blog published by the

American Friends Service Committee (logo)

Creative Maladjustment: a Prayer in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.
(April 4, 2012)

Martin Luther King, Jr. in India

Martin Luther King, Jr. in India

Martin Luther King, Jr. in India

by Lucy Duncan

Note: I offered the below prayer at a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event in Philadelphia sponsored by the Occupy Philly Labor Working Group. The event emphasized labor rights and remembering King's focus on economic justice and on moving from a thing-oriented society to a people-oriented society that is capable of conquering "the triplets of consumerism, militarism, and racism." I publish it today on the occasion of the 44th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. King and in honor of Trayvon Martin. 

What kind of prayer is asked of us in...

More

The Quality of Light
(March 21, 2012)

Mountain Kites from Windows and Mirrors

Mountain Kites from Windows and Mirrors

“The quality of light by which we scrutinize our lives has direct bearing upon the product which we live, and upon the changes which we hope to bring about through those lives.” – Audre Lorde

Since August when I started  working for AFSC, I’ve been struck by how much I’ve been noticing light. When I leave at the end of the day to walk to the train, the light shining on City Hall and on the other tall buildings in Philadelphia has been deep blue and translucent most days. The way the moon often slices the sky next to William Penn’s hat has made its...

More

Quakers and African Americans approach the New Jerusalem
(March 9, 2012)

Bayard Rustin and Walter Nagele

Bayard Rustin and Walter Nagele

Bayard Rustin and Walter Nagele

Note: This week marks the 100th birthday of Bayard Rustin.  During the AFSC Corporation meeting, we celebrated Rustin's life by watching the movie Brother Outsider and engaging in conversation with Hal Weaver and Walter Nagele, Rustin's surviving partner. The occasion marked the restoration of Bayard Rustin's name to the seminal work Speak Truth to Power and the publication of a new book of...

More

AFSC's Work: Of Friends, not By Friends or For Friends
(March 5, 2012)

Corporation Members take part in a workshop on the Occupy/Unoccupy Movement

Corporation Members take part in a workshop on the Occupy/Unoccupy Movement

Corporation Members take part in a workshop on the Occupy/Unoccupy Movement

Note: This guest post in part responds to an earlier discussion on this blog, "What makes a Quaker organization Quaker?" - Lucy

by Doug Bennett

How is AFSC a Quaker organization? This was one thread among several at an excellent meeting of the AFSC Corporation this past weekend. 

That topic has surfaced and submerged often in recent decades, but the current discussion seems much more constructive.  The appointment of Lucy...

More

Revolutionary nonviolence? David Solnit on people power and creativity
(February 22, 2012)

David Solnit with Occupy San Francisoc shuts down the main branch of the Bank of America

David Solnit with Occupy San Francisco

David Solnit with Occupy San Francisco shutting down the main branch of Bank of America

by Lucy Duncan

How can active nonviolence bring about the change we seek? What are models of successful uses of nonviolence? What about strategy, how does that inform our organizing? How do we love our enemy while recognizing that opposition is real? What role does creativity play in effective nonviolent campaigns? What about property destruction? How do we practically apply what we have learned about nonviolence? What about forgiveness? How do we move forward so that we are mindful about the means we choose to engender the ends? What's next for the Occupy/Unoccupy movement...

More