r/Quakers
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u/GreenFrog76
2 years ago
Differences between silent worship and meditation?
I recently started attending a small Quaker worship group. Prior to that I have some experience with Buddhist meditation. I've been trying to understand what the similarities and differences may be between the two. Any ideas?
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havedanson
Quaker2 years ago
I think in silent worship for me, there's an expectation that at some point Christ might speak to me and I'm waiting for that to happen. In meditation, I generally just try to clear my mind and focus on emptiness.
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ericmuhr
2 years ago
Danny Coleman shows how the two can inform each other in his recent book, Presence and Process - http://www.barclaypressbookstore.com/cart.php?m=search_results&headerSearch=Y&search=presence+and+process
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hallelooya
post-quaker2 years ago
With Quaker worship, we are actively waiting. We clear a space within ourselves believing that as we do this, God will fill up that space. We till the soil for God's word to take root. Through the stillness of mind, we grab hold of the "kingdom within."
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brightdark
Quaker2 years ago
I'm certainly no expert but during worship I try to completely clear my mind/ open myself to God and when that happens I feel I'm fully open to God's guidance. I think meditation is focusing on a specific thought. I really try not to do that during worship. If there is something in my mind I can't shake I feel like really stifles me. I'm not 100% sure though as I don't meditate.
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GreenFrog76
2 years ago
Thank you for the helpful feedback here!
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SamBC_UK
Quaker (Liberal)2 years ago
They're definitely different, despite outward similarities, but they have points in common as well. It can be hard to explain... I'm working on a blog post on the question.
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cholecystokinin13
2 years ago
As a Quaker and long term zen practitioner I can say what my experience is. In zen sitting we may just let the mind empty, witness the thoughts that come and go, or contemplate a koan (a story or saying as a learning tool). When I sit in Quaker worship I personally stay witness to the place, the people, the ministry others share, the clouds out the window. If others speak of Jesus or God I leave myself open to experiencing that as the expression of the same thing I experience in zen.
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rhgv
2 years ago
As a Quaker attender of more than 10 years and a zen practitioner for 45, I can only say what my experience is. While zen has it's various lineages of teachers with their particular curriculum of learning, Quakers from the beginning seem not to have adhered to any particular way of worshipping. Particularly in un-programmed meetings like mine, everyone seems to have a different way. Most try to remain open to inspiration from God, unnamed spirit, or whatever they find holy. The quaking that the name comes from derives from some Friends finding the urgings of spirit to speak forth to shake them. Zen in my tradition usually starts with just practicing letting go of thoughts, to counting breaths, to considering stories or sayings that are puzzles that lead to understanding, and back to just sitting still. I fall into the universalist group of Quakers who don't consider ourselves Christians per se but are moved by Jesus as a teacher and mystical symbol of universal truth. I sit with that sense during silent worship at the meetings.
