Quaker teachings
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Permalink Reply by Les Derbyshire on
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I think I just detected the ball landing in my court!
We had some open events for Quaker Week and there was quite a lot of interest. I think people are interested in things spiritual, just disenchanted with 'organised religion'.
I'll try to put something together to give you an intro to Quakers but in the meantime do feel free to throw questions in my direction. Also, I may well not be the only one around here with 'the knowledge' so do chip in. -
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During the first half of the 17th century the feelings of disatisfaction with the established church grew to the point that several groups of ‘dissenters’ broke away and went their own way. One of these, formed in 1652, was what has come to be known as Quakers today. The name started out as a term of derision and abuse in the early years but is now happily accepted as a part of the official name of The Society of Friends. This group was led by a man called George Fox and soon spread the length and breadth of England. Today, although small in number compared with many other religious groups, Quakers have spread to many parts of the world. The early Quakers made themselves very unpopular with the clergy of the church since they had no hesitation in denouncing the hypocracy that they saw. In retaliation for this the Quakers were regularly persecuted, their meetings violently broken up and many of their number thrown into jail.
Today, one of the first things you might notice about a Quaker meeting is that we have no priest or minister. We believe that we need no intermediary between god and man. Secondly you would find that, in England at least and in some other countries, we meet in silence. We normally sit ‘in the round’ and no-one has a position of authority or status, we are all equal. In the course of a meeting, usually an hour, if anyone feels they have something to say they simply stand in their place and speak for just a minute or so then sit down. Everyone’s contribution is accepted for its own value and will not be disputed or discussed. If someone else stands to speak after a suitable interval has passed their contribution may in some way touch on what has gone before or may be quite different. The feeling of a Quaker meeting really has to be experienced to understand it but I would say that the silence is not empty, it is one of gathered purpose, a receptive space.
The Quaker movement grew from Christianity and still has its roots there. Probably most Quakers today would consider their beliefs to be Christian to a greater or lesser degree. The heart of our spiritual life is based on the philosophy that has evolved during our 350 year history into what are now called the Quaker Testimonies. Examples of these are peace, equality, integrity, simplicity of living and they shape the way we try to live our lives. I have said that we have our roots in Christianity but I think most Quakers would also say that we have ‘grown up’ spiritually and accept that the Christian story does not have a monopoly on truth. We respect the wisdom and sincerely held beliefs of other religious groups and faith communities and value insights from the writings of other traditions. Within the Quaker ‘family’ there are those who hold other beliefs, religious or humanistic, and their presence serves to enrich our community not to dilute it.
I should mention the phrase we use, ‘to hold someone in the light’. This is interpreted in various ways by Quakers depending on the way in which they see the world and the beliefs they hold. I can only really tell you what it means for me. If I say that I will hold you in the light, perhaps because you are experiencing some stressful or difficult situation, then I would open my mind to an awareness of you and what is troubling you and ‘see’ you surrounded by a soft golden light. For me this light has its source in the energy of the universe with all its capacity to heal and restore and bring harmony rather than in any deity or being. For me it has the great advantage of not involving words, which can so often be inadequate or irrelevant. For others it may be different. I would choose to do this in quiet moments at any time of any day in the middle of the usual activities of life as well as in the silence of a Quaker meeting. Life is a whole thing, not a series of compartments into which things are placed according to whether they are ‘work’ or ‘relaxation’ or ‘religious’.
This is of course only a ‘taste’ of what we are about but I hope you find it interesting and maybe even helpful. If you like, we can talk some more about what makes us who we are – both you and I. -
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Permalink Reply by s <3 on
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Thank you Les, what you have written has told me so much about The Society of Friends.
I think I understand what you are saying about the silence in the meetings.
Are the meeting mixed?
I agree man has his own direct link to God, there is not need for anyone to make the connection for you. Most religions make you believe you need a middle man!
I've never been religious, my father told me my Grandmother used to say her prayers for 2 hours every night, she was raised in a Catholic Nunnery in France. My Grandfather on my mothers side was a Druid, but I did not know that until a couple of years ago. His wife was Jewish. I put down C of E on all the official documents as I was Christened that way, and both my children were, all of us because of tradition, not because of any strong belief system..... but it must have been there somewhere to believe it was a necessary thing to do.
What do Quakers do about getting married?
Christenings?
When you die?
Lots of questions, I hope you don't mind. -
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It's rather good that you ask about Quakers and getting married since this year, just recently in fact, we anounced that we support single-sex marriage.
A Quaker wedding is a lovely thing. We meet in much the same way as we always do and there is a certain amount of silence but within that the couple make their vows to one another. There isn't a set form of words for that. In addition, in the same way that anyone can speak in a Quaker meeting, so anyone can make a contribution to the marriage ceremony. Usually this means that friends and family just stand and say nice things about the couple and wish them their blessing. It's all very relaxed and informal. We have a registrar who does the legal bit of signing he register and that's it.
You've got me on Christenings, I don't think we go in for them! I'll have to check that one out!
I've not been to a Quaker funeral but I know that the form of the service is again very relaxed and informal and similar to the marriage in some ways. There's sometimes a cremation at the same place as anyone else but many Meeting Houses have their own burial ground. We do at ours, it's a beautiful, peaceful garden.
To take this on just a little further maybe I can add that we don't have a dogmatic approach to belief. We are not expected to 'sign up' to a set of beliefs or doctrines and in any one Meeting you will find a very wide variety of beliefs, philosophies and opinions. This includes the way in which people think of 'god' - that is if they believe in the person of god at all. We respect the sincerely held feelings of all, whether we agree with them or not. We also value wisdom and insight from many, varied sources, whether it be from a faith or science or the seriously thought-through opinions of thinking people. -
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Thank you for the insight.
Glad that Quakers embrace all marriages, that's very important.
Do the weddings take place in the meeting hall, or at someones home, or another venue? -
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Quicky reply for now!
Weddings, like pretty well all our meetings, take place in the Meeting House. As you've noticed yourself, it's a rather special place. And yes, I agree, we should honour all truly committed relationships. -
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That's nice, if you wanted do they hold marriages at Woodbrooke? Not that I'm thinking of requesting one........ lol
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I know this will come as a bitter disappointment Sue but I feel it only fair to remind you, I'm already married.
(tee-hee!) -
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:o)
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Be that as it may, I think Woodbrooke probably would do a wedding. A muslim friend held a service to commemorate his recently deceased father there. They hire the various function rooms for a variety of events so I think a wedding would be the same.
It would be a fabulous setting, especially in the summer!
Maybe in the next life-time? -
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