Book excerpt: Isaac Penington was a leading Quaker when the movement first emerged during the confusion and crisis of the English Civil War. Inspiring people to move toward a new vision of peace, equality, generosity and integrity, Penington saw the potential in everyone to help create such a new world. Like other Quaker leaders, he discovered that silently waiting on the divine helps us better understand ourselves and others so that we are more able to respond to life's challenges with openness, confidence and courage. In Exploring Isaac Penington: Seventeenth-Century Quaker Mystic, Teacher and Activist, author Ruth Tod not only draws upon Penington’s letters and pamphlets to build a bridge between his time and ours, she also uses examples and interpretations of his writings to explore the beliefs and habits that shape our lives. Tod’s fresh look at Penington's own insights reminds us just how much we can learn from those early Quaker leaders.