What is it about?
Some distinct ways of talking about God, especially giving a list of apparent synonyms, help modern British Quakers to hold their community together despite theological disagreements. They celebrate diversity of belief but also need to agree enough to continue their communal practice of silent worship, and lists of words for God let them maintain both these positions.
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Why is it important?
Seeing how one community handles disagreement about belief might help us to understand other communities better. The strategies used by Quakers can also be tried by others - and the ways in which they work or don't may also be applicable to other settings.
Perspectives
I hope you find this book helpful. For me, it was a halfway stage between my PhD thesis - which contained a lot about Wittgenstein, cut out of this version - and a wholly popular book ('Telling the Truth about God', due for publication March 2019). I hope that people looking for a detailed introduction find it useful.
Rhiannon Grant
University of Birmingham
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: British Quakers and Religious Language, Brill Research Perspectives in Quaker Studies, May 2018, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/2542498x-12340007.
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