OLD CHATHAM QUAKERS
  • Home
  • What's Going On?
    • Calendar
    • Upcoming Events
  • Donate
  • More About Us
    • Location
    • Quaker Links
    • Renting the Meeting House
  • Meeting Life
    • Meeting Business
    • Meeting Directory
    • Miscellaneous Documents
    • Document Archive
    • Worship Sharing
    • The Role of Ministry and Counsel
    • Friends Burial Ground at Rayville
    • Photo Archive
  • Covid Policy
  • OCMM Visibility Strategy Survey
  • Blog
  • Sanctuary Documents
  • OPJ Documents
  • Solitary Housing Unit
  • Memorial Minutes

Into The Void

3/26/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
​"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.  And God said, “Let there be light” and there was light." Genesis 1:1


This passage begins with the void.  It is no coincidence that God creates from nothing.  

After a workshop this weekend at Powell House, the Quaker Retreat Center in Old Chatham, I came to realize just how filled up I am and how important it is to "make space for Spirit."

The void.  The silence. Mindful waiting.  Whatever you wish to call it serves a powerful purpose in our lives.  In a practical sense it is "pause button" on a very full life, but on a deeper level, it affords a creative opportunity like the one revealed in Genesis.  

There is work to be done.  It is God's work, but it can be hard to discern it in the cacophony of daily life. 

I thought the young woman, Emma Gonzoles, who spoke during The March For Our Lives found the silence to be powerful and galvanizing. It seemed to me that she might have pulled a page from the Quaker playbook.   

The six minutes and twenty seconds of silence gave the "pause" needed to let the devastation of gun violence sink in.  It also allowed a nation to see and feel the pain that Congress has caused by its legislative inaction on this issue.  

The void can be a frightening place; as is any unknown, but embrace it anyway.  It is on the edges, in the discomfort, that we grow. 

This moment of silence on Saturday has made me very hopeful. Hopeful to see young people grasping ahold of their destiny and also hopeful that in the silence we can find a new creative path.  

Joseph Olejak

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    ​This blog was set up to post content of interest to Old Chatham Quaker members and attenders. Posts related to one's own personal spiritual journey, reports based on interviews with others, and reflections on Quaker-related topics are welcome. Posts by individuals are personal expressions and do not necessarily reflect those of the Meeting as a whole.
    Guidelines for posting on website blog:
    Submit to member of Communications committee; committee has editorial oversight over all content posted on the Meeting website.

    Be respectful of the nature of vocal ministry given in Meeting for Worship or other settings and any private conversations about spiritual matters.

    Cite source of any image or other external content submitted.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

  • Home
  • What's Going On?
    • Calendar
    • Upcoming Events
  • Donate
  • More About Us
    • Location
    • Quaker Links
    • Renting the Meeting House
  • Meeting Life
    • Meeting Business
    • Meeting Directory
    • Miscellaneous Documents
    • Document Archive
    • Worship Sharing
    • The Role of Ministry and Counsel
    • Friends Burial Ground at Rayville
    • Photo Archive
  • Covid Policy
  • OCMM Visibility Strategy Survey
  • Blog
  • Sanctuary Documents
  • OPJ Documents
  • Solitary Housing Unit
  • Memorial Minutes