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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Sacrament of Silence, December 28, 2006
This review is from: Holy Silence: The Gift Of Quaker Spirituality (Paperback)
INTRODUCTION:
If you were every wondering what makes Quakers stand out from the rest of the Christian traditions, it is their simplicity, their emphasis on a worship comprised of 'holy silence' and their pacifist stand. They are also known as the "the Society of Friends." Reading this book I could only be tempted to visit the closest Quaker meeting place in my Santa Cruz.
AUTHOR:
In the tradition of Richard Foster (another great Quaker author - "Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth") - J. Brent Bill expands our horizon about Christian spirituality. Bill focuses on one primary aspect of Quaker life - silence.
CONTENT:
In this book I was introduced to the "holy hush" theology and practice of Quaker spirituality. The Friends have their origin in 17th century England, have no liturgy, no creed, no observance of a Christian calendar, no professional clergy, and above all no sacrament (maybe silence is the exception). The simplicity of the Quakers is centered in "silence" - both in their corporate worship and in their personal spiritual life. "Holy Silence" six chapters discusses how to find silence amid the noise of daily life, ways to practice silence both individually and communally, and how to listen to God with one's whole heart and mind.
CONCLUSION:
I have never read anything like this before. For someone who values moments of solitude, of escape from noise (external and internal), and deep personal peace, I had a lot to learn from fellow Christian J. Brent Bill. In our post-modern fast-paced society and our chatty & noisy personal lives, "holy silence" can be something very elusive to attain ... but a valuable treasure, nevertheless..
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Silence is Golden, May 3, 2005
This review is from: Holy Silence: The Gift Of Quaker Spirituality (Paperback)
Some books on spiritual disciplines are fuzzy. Some lift the discipline up as a way to solve all problems, that if one can just get the technique right, life will be sunny and warm. This book is not one of those. This sturdy volume looks wisely at the living tradition of silence among the Friends. It neither promises too much or too little. The author knows his tradition, the deep value of listening to God, for God, and also the pitfalls of humans participating in such a discipline. Clearly, the author believes in the value of silence, believes that it has its own intrinsic worth. He is also wise enough to know that our attempts at listening are full of grace yet tinged with challenges. The author supplements observations about the tradition of the discipline with anecdotes from his own experience. The anecdotes are always interesting, helpful, and add just the right measure of whimsy and grace. Well-written, this book is conversational in style and almost perfect in form. In what setting would this book make most sense? It would work well for personal enrichment and even better for small group study, particularly the kind that could take place within the context of a faith community. This book tells about silence. More importantly, it invites us to participate in this rich discipline.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
popular quaker theology, January 17, 2007
This review is from: Holy Silence: The Gift Of Quaker Spirituality (Paperback)
"I have often repented of speech," wrote the fourth-century desert father Arsenios, "but never of silence." In this simple and popularly written book, J. Brent Bill introduces readers to the "holy hush" theology and practice of Quaker spirituality. Quakers number only about 200,000 people in the United States, but their influence extends far beyond that tiny remnant. With no creed, no liturgy, no sacred place defined by architecture, no observance of holy days, no sacraments, and no professional clergy, Quaker simplicity revolves around silence, both in personal spirituality and in corporate worship. Silence is what Bill calls the Quaker "sacrament," that place where a believer meets the real presence of Christ. Given the ambient noise in so much of our culture, silence is a gift most believers would do well to cultivate, and Quakers can help show us the way. Throughout his six chapters Bill shares his own personal successes and failures (banging nails on Good Friday, his divorce, visiting a Catholic church, etc.), and intersperses the texts with "Quietude Queries" that serve as guided self-examinations to help readers hear the voice of God. At the end of the book a glossary provides simple definitions for common Quaker terms, while a section called "Words on Silence" gives fifteen annotated suggestions for further reading (but where was Richard Foster?!). Readers will need to consult other books for more technical treatments of Quaker history, theology, and ethics (cf. pacifism), but I will say this--reading Bill's book tempted me to visit the Quaker meeting place not far from my house.
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