Contents

Introduction for non-Quakers
Introduction for Quakers
What does ‘doing theology’ involve?
Overview of this book
Experience first: how Quakers know things
No hireling priests, or, plugging in directly
A spiral of denials
I wouldn’t say that
Listening as an action
Telling our stories
New words for new light
Unity and diversity: all the words in one big list
Putting Jesus in his place(s)
Connecting to the big story: Quakers and Buddhism
Pronouns and beyond
The personal: the stories of words in our lives
Not God
In everyone
Saying Thou to we know not what
After reading this book

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.