| We call ourselves Friends, and our group the Religious Society of Friends. We have several meetings in the Portland area, where Friends worship in expectant waiting out of the silence. These “unprogrammed” meetings include Multnomah Monthly Meeting and Bridge City Monthly Meeting as well as Worship Groups, formally "under the care" of the Monthly Meeting. In addition, there are several Friends’ churches in the Portland area which have pastors, worship in a form closer to traditional Protestant services and are more clearly Christian in their faith.
Quakers today are diverse in their religious belief. Unprogrammed Friends most often affirm the belief that there is that of God within everyone as central to their faith. All Friends affirm the Inward Light that will guide us if we listen to it and some name this as the Light of Christ. A central founding of Quakerism is the opening experienced by George Fox, as a 23-year-old in 1647, when after years of intense searching he knew with certainty that “there is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to my condition, and when I heard it my heart did leap for joy.” Friends’ beliefs and practices grow out of encounter with the Light and its growth within our hearts rather than from dogma. While Quakerism comes out of the Christian tradition, and the majority of Friends worldwide consider themselves Christian, many Friends in the unprogrammed meetings have a Universalist point of view. In unprogrammed meetings for worship, which last about an hour, Friends meditate in expectant silence. In the stillness we may pray, give thanks, seek God’s guidance, or contemplate. We may consider the events in our lives, the events in the world around us, a book we have read, or something else. If worshipers feel the Spirit leads them to do so, they may speak, sharing their hopes or insights. Vocal ministry may be poetic or it may be halting, but it is the substance of what is said that is important. Vocal ministry may comfort, it may be pointed, it may be prophetic, and it may be disturbing. After a worshiper has spoken, we contemplate what has been said. The stillness of our corporate worship enables us to listen to others and to know better our fears, doubts, failings, our common humanity and divinity, humor, strength, and God. This knowledge is chiefly what has freed Friends to do the things we have done and it is the primary source of whatever integrity we have. Like most organizations, we have business decisions to make, but our decisions are not made by a small group of people in a back room. All members and attenders may participate in our business meetings. When we are considering what we will do, we seek unity, or the sense of the meeting, rather than calling a vote. Seeking unity means that we seek to understand what the Spirit is leading us to do at this particular time and in these circumstances. We believe that the Inward Light will lead us to the right decision. To ensure we follow that light, periods of quiet worship occur during these meetings. We decide some matters quickly. Others may take months or years for us to come to unity. No matter how long it takes us to reach a decision, we find that our decisions seem to have a power of their own, and are seldom reversed. Our individual meetings are called Monthly Meetings because we have a business meeting once a month. This has, upon occasion, led to some confusion among people not familiar with Friends who think that this means we meet for worship once a month. This is not the case. It is only the business meeting that occurs once a month. Meetings for worship generally occur every week. Friends practice of listening to the Light ideally shapes every aspect of the way we live and interact with one another. Often we refer to the actions which flow out of attention to the work of the Spirit in every heart as the Testimonies. From our founding in 1652, Friends have often been identified by their willingness to take literally such teachings of Jesus as “love your enemies” and “do not swear at all.” A modern articulation of some of the underlying principles of Friends testimonies speaks of Truth, Peace, Equality, Community and Simplicity. The Peace testimony goes far beyond the simple idea that war is wrong. It is a commitment to try to solve all problems without violence and threats. Whenever a problem is 'solved' through the use of force, those against whom violence was used are left dissatisfied and the seeds of future violence are sown. Nonviolent solutions are lasting and bring harmony. We seek not only to bring about an end to violence once it has started, but also an end to the causes of violence. Many people associate Quakers with draft resisters, but do not realize that we believe we must work as hard for peace in times of peace as in times of war. The testimony of Simplicity is a commitment not to live beyond our needs. This doesn't mean that we live spartan and monastic lives. Friends go to movies, have VCRs, and enjoy a good meal. We recognize that more than food, shelter, and clothing are needed to make a person happy. But we feel that living a life of excess and conspicuous consumption gets in the way of the true joys of life. Simplicity also applies to our speech and behavior. It means saying what we mean, being honest and fair, and acting in moderation. Friends do not believe in taking oaths because doing so sets up a double standard of truth. We feel that one should always tell the truth, in or out of a courtroom. Elise Boulding has also wonderfully articulated how we can learn the basics of peace beginning in our family life by recognizing that the inevitable conflicts which occur can be times of growth when we can learn practical applications of non-violence to solve everyday problems. Early Friends also learned quickly that a living testimony of non-violence can require great strength and integrity as when they were often beaten by townspeople or arrested by soldiers simply for worshiping outside the established church. The testimony of Simplicity is a commitment not to live beyond our needs. This doesn't mean that we live spartan and monastic lives. Friends go to movies, have VCRs, and enjoy a good meal. We recognize that more than food, shelter, and clothing are needed to make a person happy. But we feel that living a life of excess and conspicuous consumption gets in the way of the true joys of life and can prevent us listening to the Spirit and opening our hearts to divine leadings. Some of us also are very conscious of those who lack access to all that we have and open our hearts to the suffering that they experience. Truth applies to our speech and behavior. It means saying what we mean as well as being honest and fair. Friends do not believe in taking oaths because doing so sets up a double standard of truth. We feel that one should always tell the truth, in or out of a courtroom. Friends also have testimonies on Community, Equality. and Unity. Community means just that: providing a framework to care for those in need and a basis from which we can test, find support for, and exercise leadings of the Spirit. Unity means acting with unity in reaching and carrying out our decisions. Equality is the idea that all people are equal in God's eyes – we all have the capacity to respond to divine leadings as well as times when we stumble. Our awareness of this capacity in all people has led to a conscious effort to eliminate all words and behavior that arise from distinctions such as class, race, sex, or social status. For over 300 years, Quakers have held that we are all able to know and share the Light, and throughout those years women and men have shared in the leadership of Quakerism and the work of ministry to one another and the world. Principles without action mean nothing. Accordingly, Friends have a number of ways of acting on their beliefs. We have a national lobbying group in Washington called the Friends Committee on National Legislation which lobbies for causes supported by Friends. We have a service organization called The American Friends Service Committee, which undertakes self-help projects and social justice projects both in the United States and abroad. These two organizations employ Quaker process to seek unity in setting policy and goals. In addition, our meetings have committees which undertake smaller projects within that meeting's means. These committees go by the imposing titles like The Peace and Social Order Committee. Do not let the name scare you. Anyone is welcome to join the meetings of the committee, and new ideas are always welcome. If you are curious about us, visit a Friends' Meeting sometime. Before coming to Meeting, we find it helpful to avoid the radio, television, newspapers, and squabbles. There is no need to dress up. We wear to meeting the clothes we work and play in. We will welcome you and gladly answer any questions that you may have. |
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