So far in our interview series, we’ve spoken with an atheist, aCatholic, an Orthodox Jew, a humanitarian, a Mormon, aMennonite, an evolutionary creationist, a Calvinist, and a gay Christian.
Today I’m pleased to introduce you to Robert Fischer, a conservative Quaker. I’ve been fascinated with Quakerism ever since I visited the West Knoxville Society of Friends a few weeks ago, and am eager to learn more.
Robert is a master’s student at Duke Divinity School and a member at Durham Friends Meeting. He grew up in the Presbyterian Church (USA) in Minnesota and had an established career in software development consulting when he felt called to ministry. While on the ordination path with the PC(USA), Robert's theological considerations led him to leave the PC(USA). Robert moved to North Carolina to pursue school at Duke, and while searching for a new church and faith tradition, Robert found Durham Friends Meeting and the Conservative Quaker tradition.
Robert is on the board of Quaker House of Fayetteville, a group that works with conscientious objectors in the military. He also works with Urban Ministries of Durham, a ministry of compassion with the homeless and impoverished, and the Metta Center, a nonprofit organization promoting Gandhian nonviolence. He recently taught an online course for New England Yearly Meeting on the Biblical prophets and prophecy in the Bible, and will be giving a presentation on Game Theory and Peace at the Peace and Justice Studies Association annual conference in October. He blogs at Robertcfischer.com
You know the drill! If you have a question for Robert about Quakerism, leave it in the comment section. At the end of the day, I’ll pick the top seven or eight questions and send them to Robert. Be sure to take advantage of the “like” feature so that we can get a sense of what questions are of most interest to readers.
Remember that the point of our interview series is not to debate or challenge, but to ask the sort of questions that will help us understand one another better.
Ask away!
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