By Ruah Swennerfelt, TAF Coordinating Committee member
For activists like those of us immersed in the work of Third Act, it’s easy to forget that many people who live in the US would prefer to go on with their daily lives, not thinking about the dangers of climate change and the fragility of our democracy. They’re afraid to go down that rabbit hole of alarm and potential despair, once they stare at the problems, eyes wide open.
At a recent discussion during a Third Act Faith Coordinating Committee meeting, we were examining this dilemma which, we believe, sometimes keeps people away from our monthly Third Act Faith general meetings that feature inspirational speakers and conversations about these issues with other people of faith. We were exploring how clergy and lay members of faith communities can balance the raw truth with threads of hope that can bind us together and empower us to act on behalf of all that lives.
If these truths and hopes are not heard from the pulpits (or, as in my faith tradition, from vocal ministry in Quaker Meetings) or discussed and shared regularly among congregants, how will we succeed in halting, or at least slowing down the threats to nature or our democracy?
I am a “convinced” Quaker, meaning I embraced this faith as an adult, having not been born a Quaker. I was “convinced” by the traditional Testimonies of Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, and Sustainability, which has now been added. These have guided my life, my choices, and my actions since 1975. And in 1991 when I read in a Quaker Earthcare Witness pamphlet that “there will be no peace without a planet,” it brought together my reverence for the natural world with my understanding of what it means to be a Quaker.
After the 2016 election I woke up each morning and jumped on my computer to learn what alarming things were happening in the halls of DC, until I realized how unhealthy that had become for my soul. I changed that habit to beginning my day with inspirational readings, or reading and learning about the natural world (which was also inspirational). After my morning cup of tea and the readings and reflections, I felt more grounded to absorb what was happening and to find ways to constructively act for change.
Buddhist author and teacher Joanna Macy has for years suggested that despair can lead us to empowerment and to activism. Jesus instructed us to be wise as serpents, gentle as doves. That wisdom comes from seeking truth about what challenges lie ahead of us, and the gentleness comes from acting with love. Let our actions be motivated by our hearts, our faith, and our belief that all of life is kin and deserves our protection.
In the 1980s I was involved in protesting our government’s violent involvement in Central American countries, particularly El Salvador. I participated in a sit-in at Vermont Senator Robert Stafford’s office, asking for a public hearing to help him understand how his votes were destroying people’s lives. Forty-four of us were arrested, but a jury found us innocent, understanding our use of the “necessity defense,” which allows one to break a lesser law to prevent a greater harm.
Shortly after that I co-founded Chrysalis, a small faith-based activist group. We focused on the GE plant in Burlington, Vermont, where gatling guns were manufactured. These guns fired 10,000 rounds per minute and were being used in El Salvador, destroying homes and cornfields, and causing much suffering. We were arrested a number of times during our 10-year campaign, sometimes resulting in jail time. Being a faith-based activist helped me sweep away the despair I felt for the suffering people and gave me hope that I could make a difference, however small.
We met the GE employees with love, and they grew to appreciate our presence. Some met with us to find ways to seek other employment. This was during a time when many people were boycotting GE, with its “We bring good things to life” slogan, because of the company’s involvement in weapons of war. GE eventually sold off that part of their business and went back to focusing on appliances. Can we take credit? Does it matter? If we follow our leadings, we are not focused on success but on spiritual fulfillment.
To continue to avoid despair, I have remained an activist and have several circles of community that help me stay grounded. They include my Quaker Meeting, where I serve on the Earthcare Committee; Sustainable Charlotte Vermont, a Transition Initiative; Vermont Interfaith Power and Light; Quaker Earthcare Witness; my neighbors who gather each Sunday evening for food and fun; and, since last year, the Third Act Faith Coordinating Committee. All these circles feel like loving arms surrounding me and keeping me grounded and committed to protecting our beautiful blue planet and all that lives on it, human and non-human.
I am most comfortable when my actions come from deep within, where I feel connected with all living things. And I was attracted to the Transition Movement, started in England in 1985, because of their emphasis on inner transition—not a religious belief but one that connects heart and soul in each initiative. The Transition Movement is described as “a movement of communities coming together to reimagine and rebuild our world.” Its focus is on climate change and resource depletion, but it’s involved in a wide range of social and economic issues. Our local initiative, Sustainable Charlotte Vermont, hosts repair cafés, builds affordable window inserts to help people keep warm and use less fuel, collects electronics annually (keeping dangerous items from the landfill), hosts educational events, and more. It is joyful, exciting, and fulfilling. We begin our meetings with a potluck, holding hands before the meal, and checking in with each other.
Living not far from Bill McKibben in Vermont, my husband and I were involved in the creation of 350.org. We participated in the first climate march in 2006, starting in Lincoln and walking for 5 days to Burlington. We got to know Bill then, and have appreciated all that he has to offer to the planet. So, when he started Third Act, I signed up to receive the newsletters. But my heart leapt when I learned that there was a Faith Working Group, and I signed up for those newsletters as well. Then last year, when a request went out for help with an online religious service, I volunteered and was soon asked to join the Coordinating Committee. This has been a perfect match: joining in interfaith work and meeting wonderful, committed, and brilliant people. As I reflect on the arc of my faith journey as an activist, this feels like coming home in the third act of my life.
I am delighted that another friend and fellow activist, George Lakey, will be the guest at TAF’s September 24th General Meeting. George has been an inspiration to me for many years. His many years as a social activist—from the civil rights movement through to his founding of the Earth Quaker Action Team—gave life to the phrase “walk your talk.” He takes risks, speaks and acts with love, and has the most engaging laugh I’ve ever heard. After some years of casually knowing one another through Quaker events, we developed a deep friendship which fills me with gratitude. I’ve read all his books, hosted him in our home, and promoted him to speak at various functions. George’s latest book is a memoir entitled Dancing with History, and soon I’ll be thrilled to view a documentary about his life.
I hope you will join me in September to meet George and join other Third Act Faith events in the future—to be inspired and find hope through faith-based activism.
About Ruah Swennerfelt
Ruah Swennerfelt is a mother, grandmother, and great grandmother as well as a wife and land nurturer. She serves as clerk of the New England Yearly Meeting (Quakers) Earthcare Ministry Committee and on the Middlebury Friends Meeting’s Earthcare Committee. She was general secretary of Quaker Earthcare Witness for 17 years before retiring. Ruah is the author of the book Rising to the Challenge: The Transition Movement and People of Faith. She is active in the Transition Movement, serving on the board of Sustainable Charlotte Vermont. She and her husband, Louis Cox, homestead the land where they live, cognizant that it is the unceded land of the Abenaki.