Our society has a compulsion to take action and always remain in control. At times it can almost amount to a conditioned response triggered by what is perceived as a crisis or “things going wrong”.
But is it possible to pause and listen before rushing to action? Can we ask what a particular system – a society, economy or environment – is trying to tell us? Can we dialogue with aspects of the world around us?
There are many examples where a new and creative action emerged after a moment’s “creative suspension”.
This part of the Blog can be used for a discussion of Creative Suspension and in particular for posting your examples.
MARCH 17TH, 2009
By F. DAVID PEAT
I have been suggesting that gentle actions often emerge out of a period, no matter how brief, of “creative suspension”; a state in which the mind become open to other possibilities and feels free to travel along different roads.
From talking to artists and writers it is clear that something similar is related to bursts of creativity.
I would like to hear from people visiting this blog of how they exercise “creativity suspension” in their own lives – at work, recreation, with the family, or when approaching a difficult new problem.
FEBRUARY 20TH, 2009
By F. DAVID PEAT
Jason Evans, a Quaker from Brighton, noted the concept of Creative Suspension in the book Gentle Action: Bringing Creative Change to a Turbulent World and was struck by its similarity to the “moment of silence” that occurs during a Quaker business meeting.
Here is his explanation:
“For Quakers, the whole of life is sacramental and the silent worship in our meetings is intended to extend into everyday life. What this means is that business meetings, our meetings for church affairs, are held in the same prayerful stillness that we have experienced in our worship. Indeed the full name for our business meetings is “meetings for worship for business”. In practice this leads to a finding of unity beyond consensus, what we call the “sense of the meeting” which is much more than the majority rule found in other spheres of life. Because it is rooted in silence and stillness, the “moment of silence” is familiar to the process from the outset and if conflict does arise it is common practice for a Friend to ask for a moment of silence to consider the views of those whose are not our own. In our book of discipline, (really discipleship), we are encouraged to consider that we may be mistaken and that new insights may come from unexpected sources.”
FEBRUARY 7TH, 2009
By F. DAVID PEAT
Welcome to the Gentle Action Blog. We’d like to use this space to encourage debate, comment and contributions around the notions of Gentle Action and Creative Suspension.
We’d also welcome your views on the role of trust and ethical behaviour at all levels of society. How do you see trust operating in the context of your workplace and local community? What levels of trust are operating around you and what do you feel to be the limits of trust.
