In ‘The Lord Of The Rings’, Frodo says to Gandalf:
“I wish it need not have happened in my time.”
And Gandalf wisely replies:
“So do I … and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
For those of us who have woken up to the climate crisis unfolding around us, and have found ourselves staring into this terrible darkness, unable to avert our gaze like terrified rabbits in headlights, we now know that we are facing an immense existential challenge, a challenge that risks drowning us in despair, frustrated fury, grief, guilt, shame, confusion, fear and more.
James Nayler, that early Quaker who knew suffering and struggle so intensely, and who discovered a Spirit that was conceived in sorrow, while alone and forsaken, advises:
Art thou in the darkness?
Mind it not, for if thou dost
it will feed thee more.
But stand still, and act not,
and wait in patience
till light arises out of darkness
and leads thee.
We now find ourselves surrounded by this global dying, this collective darkness, this “Kali Yuga”, that, like Frodo, none of us would have chosen. But, like Frodo, we too have a decision as to what we do with these times we have been given.
As James Nayler and the early Quakers knew so well, the most important thing for flourishing amidst darkness is to “re-source” yourself, to stand still and wait in patience, to sink down to the deepest seed within, to come to know that mysterious inner Light that arises out of darkness, that leads…
This May, I will be hosting an online course with Kim Harrison called ‘Old Roots, New Routes’ a brave and tender learning space, where we will explore what spiritual “re-sources” we can muster to prevent us drowning in the darkness of fear and despair that the climate crisis can provoke. We will explore how we can make the most of these times we have been given, “re-sourcing” ourselves with early Quakers, Zen masters and Christian mystics along with modern “re-sources”, like post-activism, entangled activism and more.
The course will be a collaborative learning space, where there will be no “teachers” or “pupils”, where we will all bring our questions and experiences and give and receive together. If you feel you could value from being part of such an experimental brave and tender space, “re-sourcing” ourselves and one another in the midst of this unfolding climate catastrophe, it would be wonderful to have you walk this journey with us.
