An Update & Next Steps
Dear Friends,
I wanted to offer a little update since you haven’t heard from me in awhile. I am doing well and enjoying my sabbatical (read more about that below).
What I wanted to let you all know is I am moving towards publishing solely from my blog: gatheringinlight.com. You can visit and subscribe to via email just like any other service. I considered just importing all emails over there but I wanted you to have the choice to opt-in.
I will keep this Substack so you don’t need to unsubscribe. There are almost 500 of you here and I don’t want to lose contact with you. But I will be posting almost exclusively from my blog. I will use this account for major announcements and bigger updates.
If you want to keep following along, jump over to my site “gathering in light” and subscribe with your email.
Why move back to the blog?
The reasons why are simple: I want to control my own data, make sure you all aren’t being unnecessarily tracked and your information being misused, and more recently, and I like writing there more. It’s the site I’ve been running for more than 20 years. And when I write, I want to keep investing in what I’ve built there rather than giving money to someone else who I don’t know or trust. Having said that, Substack has some egregious moderation policies that make me not want to be here or support their project. Others have been leaving too.
The more internet services like this and others continue down their own monetization paths and terrible moderation policies, the more I want to have control of all of my data and writing again.
Anyways, take a look around gathering in light. If you’ve never been on their before, I think you’ll like it.
On that Topic: Are We Living in a Post-Social Media World?
Here’s a recent interview I did with the folks at the Thee Quaker Podcast on the Question: Are We Living in a Post-Social Media World?
Thee Quaker Podcast brings stories of spiritual courage to your ears each week.
Quakers have always wrestled with big questions in their search for spiritual truth. Thee Quaker Podcast is a continuation of that 400-year-old tradition — we’re digging deep to search for innovative stories that explore themes of faith, conviction, and doubt. Listen and subscribe at QuakerPodcast.com.
Sabbatical
I am currently on Sabbatical and have been busy building a writing studio in my back yard. Now that the studio is complete, I love using it for writing, reading, and creating. I am still moving in but I am very happy with the space.
I am working on a longer post on my website about the story behind the studioso stay tuned there if you’d like to see more making-of photos: https://www.gatheringinlight.com
Outside these larger forces at work in our world that are deeply troubling, things have been relatively good for me personally. The sabbatical started at the beginning of January and has be really good for me. I was definitely burned out from work and needed this time. So far, I have spent some time writing, journaling, traveling a little, and mostly focusing on renewal and doing things I’d usually say no to because of work (whether I was using that as an excuse or not is another story). So there’s been a lot more yes’ given to the kids and I’ve been working to be more more present at home.
A few posts highlights from gathering in light:
- Q&A: A Quaker Perspective about the Issues of Empire and the US – this is a collection of resources, talks, articles, and more that I have written and collected here about empire.
- Sharing: Hush – Songs for Christmas by Seth Patrick Martin – I know that the advent season is over but that doesn’t mean it’s never a good time to listen to Seth Martin’s beautiful music. Here is an album he released in December that I have been enjoying.
- We’re Building a Scenius – A message I gave for my last, before sabbatical, community meeting for worship.
For Faculty, Boards, and Trustees of Quaker Schools – Finally, another collection of writings and presentations of mine compiled for people working with and for schools founded by Quakers.
New Garden Friends Meeting in Greensboro is Searching for Its Next Pastor
- Read more about the job here: https://www.gatheringinlight.com/2024/02/12/new-garden-friends-meeting-pastoral-search/
Epilogue: Anthony De Mello
Some say that there are only two things in the world: God and fear; love and fear are the only two things. There’s only one evil in the world, fear. There’s only one good in the world, love. It’s sometimes called by other names. It’s sometimes called happiness or freedom or peace or joy or God or whatever. But the label doesn’t really matter. And there’s not a single evil in the world that you cannot trace to fear. Not one. -Anthony De Mello
Stay in touch. Stay safe. And thanks for continuing to support the work I’m doing!
C. Wess Daniels
Haw River Watershed, Greensboro