On Community

I have said from the beginning that Cloud Quakers welcomes all people but in particular all different kinds of Quakers. Of course I have no idea how diverse the world of Quakers is, but still I make a point of saying that and then trying to live up to it. I think Quakers are among a number of different kinds of religion that people try in order to fulfill their need to connect to a divine being, and have a community of people who seek in the same way they do.

Tonight's meeting had ten or so people, most regular. We are all just looking for community, and I think, amongst most of us, we have one. It's a lively mix of different kinds of Quakers and people who enjoy a little silence in their busy weeks. Maybe "enjoy" is the wrong word. There is some discussion about whether "worship" is really possible on zoom - whether, in turning your mute on and off, your camera on and off, you can experience the divine.

I say you can. I say that there is no environment made, where we cannot practice spirituality, or experience the divine. We cannot say that this "online environment" doesn't count, or is somehow outside of life experiences as we know them. You may have trouble with the zoom environment - with centering, with experiencing something together - and I'm sure they said that about the phone at first too. But eventually it becomes integrated into life as we know it.

I have a family zoom on Sundays. I also have one of my original home meetings which now meets on zoom on Sunday mornings. And there is yet another - the old community of esl/techies, worldwide tech players known as the webheads - but they meet early, and I'm retired. Four zooms is way too much for one day. I've come to focus on the two that are most important - family and Cloud Quakers. I love my community.

In a sense, I think we are all still seekers. We are up there on zoom because we are looking for that connection, and if you affirm it once in a while: Yes, I am looking for that connection - then, just by doing that, you are closer to it.