In the mix: Sarah White on spiritual integration
‘This culture is what holds us together.’
It seems to me that most British Quakers are spiritual bricoleurs – from ‘bricolage’, meaning ‘something constructed or created from a diverse range of things’ or ‘a do-it-yourself job’. Sometimes this may be a conscious choice, splicing together different traditions that the individual finds helpful. Other times it may be unconscious, a patchwork of past experiences, childhood training, and chance encounters. Most often, perhaps, it is a mix of the two. This prevalence of bricolage reflects, I believe, two characteristics of contemporary British Quakerism. First, the majority of Friends join the Society as adults, so many bring with them a history with other spiritual paths. Second, the Society has embraced plurality, including people who identify with diverse religious traditions, and those who disavow any form of supernatural belief.
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