'What is Quakerism?' can be a difficult question to answer, especially when Quakers today struggle to find a shared religious language. In this book, Mark Russ answers this question from a personal perspective, telling his story of trying to make sense of Jesus within the Quaker community. Through this theological wrestling emerges a 'Quaker Shaped Christianity' that is contemporary, open and rooted in tradition. In reflecting on how to approach the Bible, the challenges of Universalism, and the key events of the Jesus story, this book offers a creative, inspiring and readable theology for everyone who has wondered how Christianity and Quakerism fit together.

Quaker Quicks - Hearing the Light begins with the foundations of Quaker theology, which is based in the Quaker method of unprogrammed, silent worship. This act of gathering as a community to wait and listen to God is at the heart of Quakerism and essential to understanding Quaker theology, which is embedded in the practice as well as explained by it. Rhiannon Grant shows how Central Quaker theological claims, such as that everyone has that of God within them, that God offers support and guidance to all who choose to listen, and that Quakers as a community are led by God to treat everyone equally, resist war, and live simply, can be understood through a consideration of this distinctive worship practice. Rhiannon Grant also explores what it means to say that this form of theology is liberal - although many Quakers are politically liberal, they have also been called "conservative radicals" (Kenneth Boulding), and the liberalism involved is not mainly political but an attitude towards diversity of thought, opinion, and especially religious belief. While united by the practice of unprogrammed worship, Quakers have no written creed and no specific beliefs are required of members. Instead, there is a prevailing attitude of continued searching, an acceptance that new evidence may appear, and a willingness to learn from others, including members of other faith communities. At a time of great religious and political division, this radical approach to faith and learning that Grant sheds light upon, has never been more prescient.

'...takes us on a clear and cogent deep dive into her Quaker experience, with thoughtful descriptions of Quaker ways of working and being in the world. An engaging read.' Gretchen Castle, Dean of Earlham School of Religion and former General Secretary of the Friends World Committee for Consultation Kate McNally grew up in a mainstream Christian faith, where she could not find the connection to the divine that we all seek. She turned to psychology and science and to the pursuit of success. That all worked for a while, providing a measure of comfort but not fulfillment, feeding the ego but not the spirit. Then, at a low point and broken by the drive for success, Kate began a spiritual journey that brought her to the Quakers, where she found a spiritual community and a stripped-down, simple way of following the basic commandment: Love one another. In Quaker Quicks - A Simple Faith in a Complicated World, Kate explores the faith of Jesus rather than the faith about Jesus and shares with us the connections to God, self, and others that have brought her to the spiritual community we all long for. Take this journey with her and explore the idea of perfection and how imperfections make us uniquely ourselves, perfectly suited to the work we are called to do.

Telling the truth about God without excluding anyone is a challenge to the Quaker community. Drawing on the author’s academic research into Quaker uses of religious language and her teaching to Quaker and academic groups, Rhiannon Grant aims to make accessible some key theological and philosophical insights. She explains that Quakers might sound vague but are actually making clear and creative theological claims. Theology isn't just for wordy people or intellectuals, it's for everyone. And that's important because our religious language is related to, not separate from, our religious experience. It also becomes clear that denying other people's claims often leads to making your own and that even apparently negative positions can also be making positive statements. How do Quakers tell the truth about God? This book explores this key theological process through fourteen short chapters. As Quakers, we say that we know some things, but not very much, about God, and that we are in a constant process of trying to improve our ways of saying what we do know.

This book invites all people of faith to consider how our personal and communal faith practices in growing deeper spirituality should bring us to a fresh engagement with the needs of this world. This includes being active in promoting those values which align with our understanding of the gospel and standing against injustice, oppression, and evil inflicted on any of God's children. Such activism, rooted in deep spirituality, may include being what Quaker civil rights activist Bayard Rustin called “angelic troublemakers.”

Are Quakers mystics? What does that mean? How does it translate into how we are and what we do in the world? 'Jennifer Kavanagh has written a lovely book which I found to be to be compelling reading. In a very practical way she explains the meaning of mysticism for Quakers and how an experience, which some might regard as being esoteric, can be truly meaningful for many today.' Terry Waite Practical Mystics is Jennifer Kavanagh's first addition to the burgeoning series Quaker Quicks, which examines every aspect of what it means to be a Quaker, from John Hunt Publishing imprint Christian Alternative.

If money troubles your soul, try this down-to-earth Quaker perspective on economies large and small. The economy, as we usually encounter it, has nothing to do with values or faith. After all, the “invisible hand” caters to no religious belief. It is all a matter of science, we are assured: economists have mastered the mathematical formulas for growth and prosperity. Our role as individuals is simply to work, consume and save, each adding our bit to the sum totals of economic activity that will keep the system humming along; the experts will take care of everything else. This breezy values-free story, however, is unlikely to be a comfortable fit for anyone who takes seriously the challenge of bringing our faith into the world. Knotty issues around economics crop up at every turn, especially if we are willing to ask the big questions: What is the economy for? How much is enough? What needs to be equal? How is well-being best measured? Who should decide? In Money and Soul this search for answers, through a Quaker lens, gives a taste of the power of applying faith values to our economic story.