We have been blessed by two accounts of the April 2nd prayer vigil for peace.
From John Gallery, Chestnut Hill Meeting:
April 2, Buddha's birthday.
God works in wonderous ways. Today I watched a hired car pull up in front of us. A man and his daughter got out, the chauffeur stayed at the wheel. They walked right by, barely glancing at us, headed for the Liberty Bell. A few moments later the chauffeur, a black man, got out and came right up to talk to me. "Why aren't you smiling," he said. "If you are about Peace you have to be smiling." I almost laughed. Yes, it was true, I had on my serious sober face. But the reason I almost laughed was that I had given a message in meeting that morning that said, basically, if we know God is present in our lives then we should be full of joy and we should show that joy bursting forth from us just as the flowers of spring burst forth in bright color. Yet, only a few hours later I was serious and somber again, and here was God, in the disguise of a chauffeur, reminding me to heed my own words!
Fred, the chauffeur, went on to ask why there weren't more people present (we were later joined by three others, but Fred would have felt even that was not enough). When he discovered we were Quakers he said he'd lived in Philadelphia 25 years and didn't know a single Quaker. Why was that? Even in this exchange it seemed that it was God in disguise asking me these things. I had no good answers, still don't. But God doesn't ask questions to get answers; God asks them to get action. Other people came and went. Two young boys walked the line in front of us reading each and every sign carefully. Even when their mother came and pushed them back in the other direction, they read the signs, smiled and laughed with one another as she had to drag them away. What were they thinking? One man took our literature and looked at Marcelle calmly and said, "What war? Are we at war?" Yes, it is true, the comfort and prosperity of the United States allows us to feel at ease. But if there is no war, if we are indeed at peace I wanted to ask him, why are we spending $330 billion a year on military expenditures; why are we still bombing Iraq; why ...
Or was he also God in disguise, reminding me that there are many who still needed to be reminded that the world is not at peace?
From Rich Ailes, Middletown Meeting, Concord Quarter:
The ministry in my Meeting this morning was this: that we do not need to strive to be perfect; God uses us as we are. I should be praying and asking what it is that I can do for God; not what it is that God can do to make me better.
I had emailed several Friends in the Meeting that I intended to participate in this week¹s prayer vigil at Independence Mall and asked if anyone cared to join. No one could join me so I decided to go down alone. However the imperfect part of me took over after Meeting for Worship and I decided to do some gardening work when I got home. God¹s work faded quickly into the background. About 3:45 something clicked inside as I was digging and I realized I¹d wanted to be at the Mall and had made the commitment to myself to be there. I quickly put away my garden implements and hurried into Philadelphia.
I arrived 20 minutes late but felt immediately at ease when I saw the vigil. Three Friends and the man wearing a net were standing in front of the Liberty Bell quietly facing Market Street holding simple signs. There were extra signs against the wall. After some welcome smiles of recognition I picked up a sign that read "Seek Peace" and settled into this special form of worship.
Immediately I was aware of the stares of those passing by. A deep sigh arose inside me as I struggled with being the center of attention, realizing that I knew the reactions going on inside the onlookers whose attention was caught by our presence. The feelings inside me were strangely a mixture of anxiety and reverence. I soon settled down, sensing that I was doing God¹s work and feeling easy with it.
Many passed us by and took notice of our signs. There were gruff looking young men whom I pegged as "aggressive" but they came back and took some of our literature. There were children who very carefully read our signs, then quickly drew their parents into a conversation about what we were doing there. There were gawks from those in passing busses and taxi cabs; they only saw us for an instant but they were able to understand our simple messages. There were looks of appreciation but also looks of unsettledness as people hurried by, not wanting to be drawn into what we were suggesting.
I would say a few hundred people passed by and I marveled at the impact we made on each one of them. Whether they smiled or turned up their brow at us, our simple signs and our non-threatening silence made them think about peace and their responsibility for it in our world.
For me it was a blessing being there. It was one of the few times which I felt I was witnessing for my faith, appearing in public not as a political person trying to push someone to accept my point of view, but rather as a Quaker adhering to a testimony of peace and simplicity, leading others to God¹s truth through example.
After the 5 PM bells sounded, our small group came together for a few moments of silent worship. I introduced myself to the others who received me warmly. Marcelle asked me if I was inspired to write something for the vigil report. My imperfect self begged off, not feeling I had the time to do this. But when I came home I decided to give it a try and it wasn¹t that bad.
I hope to lend my imperfect self to God¹s work again in the future.
On April 9th, we will celebrate ONE FULL YEAR of holding the weekly prayer vigils for peace in the world.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE
Independence Mall Vigil for PeacePlease join us at our weekly prayer vigils for peace in the world, held in front of the Liberty Bell on Market St. between 5th and 6th, every Sunday from 4 to 5 PM. For more information, contact cityquake@aol.com.
In our reports, participants share their experiences of the prayer vigils and explore beliefs related to their participation. Reports reflect the experience of each author and do not necessarily represent the beliefs or practice of all vigil participants. We welcome your responses, which are forwarded to the individual authors (when possible). We sometimes include part of a response in a future report, unless you ask us not to.
It is meaningful to us that you share in the vigils by reading these reports and in other ways, such as joining us in prayer.
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM