Quaker Spirituality: Selected Writings (review)

Book Reviews53 Norwegian Friends in Iowa were more successful in maintaining their meetings, but did so with divergent outcomes. While the Mapleside has remained Conservative without interruption, Stavanger declined in the early twentieth century and began to grow again only after 1952 when the thirteen remaining families established the independent Stavanger Friends Church. The brevity of these books leaves many questions unanswered, but in the case of Kenneth Carroll's volume, one can certainly consult his extensive work on Maryland Friends. This essay serves its audience well by summarizing the history of Third Haven in a clear, straightforward manner. Wilmer Tjossem provides us with something else, a prospectus for future research. One hopes that he or another scholar will follow up on questions raised by this tantalizing study. How did ethnicity interact with religion among these nineteenth century immigrants? How was their experience similar to and different from that of seventeenth century Quaker settlers? In what ways did the challenges of earning a living in the New World affect the Norwegians' devotion to Quakerism? We know a great deal about the men and women Friends who came to Pennsylvania in the seventeenth century, and Tjossem's work promises that we can learn much more about the interrelationship of nationality, religion, and economic condition by examining several groups at different points in time. Swarthmore CollegeJean R. Soderlund Quaker Spirituality: Selected Writings. Edited and introduced by Douglas V. Steere. Ramsey, N.J.: Paulist Press, 1984. Cloth, $12.95, paper, $9.95. Once more the Religious Society of Friends has been recognized. In a seminal series of original writings, Friends have been asked to share the Society's insights into truth. Douglas Steere, one of history's finest Quaker scholars, with prefatorial help from Elizabeth Gray Vining, offers his interpretation of Quakerism. As editor, Steere selected excerpts primarily from the most familiar Quaker writings; however, the relatively obscure voice of the late English Friend, Caroline Stephen, is also included here. More familiar are selections from George Fox's Journal and various epistles, Isaac Penington's letters, John Woolman's Journal, and various Rufus M. Jones and Thomas R. Kelly writings. The only glaring shortcoming, that all the featured authors are deceased, is partially offset by Steere's fifty page introduction. Far exceeding our greatest expectations, the introduction is actually an essay on the history of the Religious Society of Friends and as such, it is, in my mind, superior to any Quaker history on the market. Those who prefer longer, more in-depth offerings, may be quick to disagree, but relatively few in this generation are either willing or possess the necessary time to plod through thick histories. In his inimitable anecdotal style, Steere's introduction draws both strength and insight from the witness of other seekers. At times his accounts of past Quaker experiences initially strike the reader as quaint, or perhaps even affected. But when, from a deeper place, we remember Steere is a prophet who calls us from spiritual lethargy, into which many contemporary meetings have fallen, and when we can accept his vision of the Universally Possible, we lose our uneasiness. True we have known few "saints" like those whose faith is described. But if we have traveled among Friends we have all known some who do not pale in comparison. If Steere has his way, one day we shall all know more. It is doubtful that anyone can shed significant new light on the witnesses of Fox and Woolman, but the selections included in Quaker Spirituality give us the gift of time for we are spared the necessity of combing through material that is often dense. But even if the reader has memorized every excerpt in the book, Steere's brief sectional forewards are all insightful. 54Quaker History It would be insensitive not to issue a caveat. These writings are all from mystical , Christ-centered, unprogrammed meeting Friends. It is therefore not representative of contemporary Quaker thought. Steere admits as much, and does so without apology. What we have in Quaker Spirituality is "classic Quakerism," the original vision. In closing, I offer in turn brief insights from the Friends included in Quaker Spirituality. Steere: "The mysterious thing of...