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The Classics of Western Spirituality
Quaker Spirituality: Selected Writings
"...an important ecumenical series." Methodist Recorder Quaker Selected Writings edited and introduced by Douglas V. Steere preface by Elizabeth Gray Vining "…as I was thus humbled and disciplined under the cross, my understanding became more strengthened to distinguish the language of the pure Spirit which inwardly moves upon the heart…" John Woolman (1720-1772) Simplicity in forms of worship, opposition to violence, concern for social injustice, and, above all, a faith in the personal and corporate guidance of the Holy Spirit are characteristics of the spirituality of the people called Quakers. From their beginnings in the seventeenth-century England until today, the Quakers have attempted to radically live out their belief in the presence of God's spirit within their hearts. In this book, Douglas V. Steere, the distinguished T. Wistar Brown Professor Emeritus from Haverford College, has assembled a comprehensive collection of Quaker writings. Included are selections from the journals of George Fox and John Woolman, Thomas Kelly's Testament of Devotion, and the works of Caroline Stephen and Rufus Jones. †
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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July 10, 2021
This selection of writings by some of the Quaker pioneers followed my recent reading of A Testament of Devotion by Thomas R. Kelly.
I was a bit mystified by the excerpts from the infamous journal of George Fox that began this book. The focus of these excerpts were the missionary travels of Fox and his frequent encounters with political and church leaders and the almost constant persecution and frequent imprisonment that Fox endured under their reign. I only caught a glimpse of what it was about the Quaker movement that seemed to rile such aggressive opposition.
A section that really stood out for me was perhaps coincidentally the only one in this book written by a woman - Caroline Stephen. What captured my attention was her testament of how her long search for a meaningful encounter with God was uniquely satisfied on that very first occasion she attended a Quaker gathering.
When lo, on one never-to-be-forgotten Sunday morning, I found myself one of a small company of silent worshipers, who were content to sit down together without words, that each one might feel after and draw near to the divine Presence, unhindered at least, if not helped, by any human utterance.
What is it about this statement that captures my attention so remarkably? The closest I have come to experiencing a corporate silent encounter with the divine presence was during my early intensive retreats in the SoulStream community, together as a large group, silent and waiting to hear the voice. What music this silence was to the ears of my heart! I have not experienced corporate gathering before or anything since that so awakened and enlivened my spirit.
In years leading up to this early encounter with corporate silence, and in years following as I have continued to be exposed to a variety of contemporary worship services, mainly online, I have found that so much of what happens in traditional corporate worship - contemporary music and singing and endless words, with a seeming intentional avoidance of any space for silence - has all been so exhausting for me.
Recently, we have encountered Word of Life Church with their pastor Brian Zahnd. It was refreshing to be exposed to a teacher with an enlightened understanding of the kingdom of God and the theology to match it. Brian has been a true breath of fresh air. We have also enjoyed their worship. Although contemporary, there has been a simplicity in presentation and a more enlightened selection of songs that match the progressive theology of Brian’s teaching.
And yet . . .
I have noticed in recent months a growing fatigue with this online experience. Worship that was once refreshing has become repetitious and overstimulating. Teaching that remains enlightened has become increasingly exhausting with its excessive verbosity.
Does the problem lie with me? Does my Enneagram One demand for perfection doom me to an endless search for a corporate worship experience that I will never discover on this earth?
I was beginning to think so . . . until I was recently confronted with the Quaker option and begin to read and learn that there is a strong Quaker presence on Vancouver Island, including a small gathering in Nanaimo where we are considering moving to during this next year.
Stephen speaks further to the joy of her discovery:
My whole soul was filled with the unutterable peace of the undisturbed opportunity for communion with God, with the sense that at last I had found a place where I might . . . join with others in simply seeking his presence. To sit down in silence could at the very least pledge me to nothing; it might open to me (as it did that morning) the very gate of heaven. And since that day, now more than 17 years ago, Friends’ meetings have indeed been to me the greatest of outward helps to a fuller and fuller entrance into the spirit from which they have sprung; the place of the most soul-subduing, faith-restoring, strengthening, and peaceful communion, in feeding upon the bread of life, that I have ever known.
Stephen continues:
Here we are confronted with the real “peculiarity” of Quakerism - its relation to mysticism. There is no doubt that George Fox himself and the other fathers of the society were of a strongly mystical turn of mind . . . But they were assuredly mystics in what I take to the be the more accurate sense of the word - people, that is, with a vivid consciousness of the inwardness of the light of truth.
I understand that this glowing account of one person’s experience in Quakerism is highly individual. And yet somehow it sparks a flame in me that gives me hope that I have yet to discover a place of worship that might feed my soul to such depths. Could it be awaiting me in a small gathering of unknown, unremarkable, ordinary, humble people who have banded together to follow an ancient mystical tradition?
I was a bit mystified by the excerpts from the infamous journal of George Fox that began this book. The focus of these excerpts were the missionary travels of Fox and his frequent encounters with political and church leaders and the almost constant persecution and frequent imprisonment that Fox endured under their reign. I only caught a glimpse of what it was about the Quaker movement that seemed to rile such aggressive opposition.
A section that really stood out for me was perhaps coincidentally the only one in this book written by a woman - Caroline Stephen. What captured my attention was her testament of how her long search for a meaningful encounter with God was uniquely satisfied on that very first occasion she attended a Quaker gathering.
When lo, on one never-to-be-forgotten Sunday morning, I found myself one of a small company of silent worshipers, who were content to sit down together without words, that each one might feel after and draw near to the divine Presence, unhindered at least, if not helped, by any human utterance.
What is it about this statement that captures my attention so remarkably? The closest I have come to experiencing a corporate silent encounter with the divine presence was during my early intensive retreats in the SoulStream community, together as a large group, silent and waiting to hear the voice. What music this silence was to the ears of my heart! I have not experienced corporate gathering before or anything since that so awakened and enlivened my spirit.
In years leading up to this early encounter with corporate silence, and in years following as I have continued to be exposed to a variety of contemporary worship services, mainly online, I have found that so much of what happens in traditional corporate worship - contemporary music and singing and endless words, with a seeming intentional avoidance of any space for silence - has all been so exhausting for me.
Recently, we have encountered Word of Life Church with their pastor Brian Zahnd. It was refreshing to be exposed to a teacher with an enlightened understanding of the kingdom of God and the theology to match it. Brian has been a true breath of fresh air. We have also enjoyed their worship. Although contemporary, there has been a simplicity in presentation and a more enlightened selection of songs that match the progressive theology of Brian’s teaching.
And yet . . .
I have noticed in recent months a growing fatigue with this online experience. Worship that was once refreshing has become repetitious and overstimulating. Teaching that remains enlightened has become increasingly exhausting with its excessive verbosity.
Does the problem lie with me? Does my Enneagram One demand for perfection doom me to an endless search for a corporate worship experience that I will never discover on this earth?
I was beginning to think so . . . until I was recently confronted with the Quaker option and begin to read and learn that there is a strong Quaker presence on Vancouver Island, including a small gathering in Nanaimo where we are considering moving to during this next year.
Stephen speaks further to the joy of her discovery:
My whole soul was filled with the unutterable peace of the undisturbed opportunity for communion with God, with the sense that at last I had found a place where I might . . . join with others in simply seeking his presence. To sit down in silence could at the very least pledge me to nothing; it might open to me (as it did that morning) the very gate of heaven. And since that day, now more than 17 years ago, Friends’ meetings have indeed been to me the greatest of outward helps to a fuller and fuller entrance into the spirit from which they have sprung; the place of the most soul-subduing, faith-restoring, strengthening, and peaceful communion, in feeding upon the bread of life, that I have ever known.
Stephen continues:
Here we are confronted with the real “peculiarity” of Quakerism - its relation to mysticism. There is no doubt that George Fox himself and the other fathers of the society were of a strongly mystical turn of mind . . . But they were assuredly mystics in what I take to the be the more accurate sense of the word - people, that is, with a vivid consciousness of the inwardness of the light of truth.
I understand that this glowing account of one person’s experience in Quakerism is highly individual. And yet somehow it sparks a flame in me that gives me hope that I have yet to discover a place of worship that might feed my soul to such depths. Could it be awaiting me in a small gathering of unknown, unremarkable, ordinary, humble people who have banded together to follow an ancient mystical tradition?
September 24, 2014
This is an invaluable primary resource, especially for those of us who are of a somewhat less scholarly bent. A specialist might want to read the unabridged works of the authors excerpted here, though the excerpts provided are lengthy and supplied plenty of grist for my particular mill. Through the words of leaders of the Quakers, this book offers deep insight into the spirituality and worldview of this religious sect.
It was fascinating to me to read the original writings of early Friends (full disclosure: I read only the George Fox and John Woolman portions of the book) and learn the trials they went through and how they interacted with the politics and mores of their respective days. I read this book for research, as I am working on a series of stories set in England in the year 1800, and the community I focus on has a good number of Quaker residents. For my purposes, this book was perfect, as it gave me insight into the preoccupations and the vocabulary of the Friends, which I can use in my stories.
It was fascinating to me to read the original writings of early Friends (full disclosure: I read only the George Fox and John Woolman portions of the book) and learn the trials they went through and how they interacted with the politics and mores of their respective days. I read this book for research, as I am working on a series of stories set in England in the year 1800, and the community I focus on has a good number of Quaker residents. For my purposes, this book was perfect, as it gave me insight into the preoccupations and the vocabulary of the Friends, which I can use in my stories.
November 8, 2022
(A more formal review below, but my informal thoughts are: Fox was honestly a rascal! But despite this, his entries a little dry. Same for Woolman, who has much more compelling writing than the entries they included. The stuff from Stephens, Jones, and Kelly are phenomenal though, and Fox has some famous one-liners peppered throughout.)
Quaker Spirituality, edited by Emilie Griffin and Douglass Steere, is a compilation of selected writings from a host of formative Quakers reflecting on their experiences and insights related to spirituality and worship. Excerpts from George Fox, John Woolman, Caroline Stephen, Rufus Jones, and Thomas Kelly all present stirring articulations of Quaker faith and practice as it has developed since Fox’s entries beginning in 1635 up until those from Kelly written in the 1930s. Read together, they function as a means of welcoming contemporary readers curious about the Society of Friends into the foundations of Quakerism which have persisted in relevance still today. Although a myriad of themes arise across the entries, the immediacy of God stands out as one of the most central and distinctive notions and merits further consideration.
In her reflection on Quakerism in The Silent Cry: Mysticism and Resistance, Dorothee Soelle praises Friends as a case study emblematic of her own hopes to democratize mysticism. Jones echoes this sentiment when he writes: “I am convinced by my own life and by wide observation of children that mystical experience is much more common than is usually supposed.” While this is in reference to his own autobiographical exposure to Quaker spirituality as a child, it is a recognition that transcends his own account and applies equally to all of the featured writers in the collection, each of whom attest to experiences of immediacy in their encounters with God. In Stephen’s description of the Quaker strongholds, she notes that “the one corner-stone of belief upon which the Society of Friends is built is the conviction that God does indeed communicate with each one of the spirits he has made…and that in order clearly to hear the divine voice thus speaking to us we need to be still; to be alone with him in the secret place of his presence; that all flesh should keep silence before him” . There is a sense of discovery that suffuses the collected writings. Kelly, reminiscing on his own early engagement with Quakerism, offers yet another stirring description: “It is an amazing discovery, at first, to find that a creative Power and Life is at work in the world. God is no longer the object of a belief; he is a Reality, who has continued, within us, his real Presence in the world.” Each Friend shares from an intimate place of divine encounter, noting varied responses of awe, surprise, gratitude, enlivenment, and joy that an immediate awareness of God is possible.
This is, of course, in keeping with Fox’s own cataclysmic epiphanies which led to the establishment of the Society of Friends. Fox’s writing are essentially a travelogue depicting his far-reaching, fervorous pursuits to sway hearers to share in his sense that “God was come to teach his people by his spirit and to bring them off all their old ways, religions, churches, and worship, for all their religions, and worship, and ways were but talking of other men’s words, for they were out of the life and spirit that they were in that gave them forth.” Echoing (and softening) Fox’s more vehement rhetoric, the later writers continue to contrast Quaker spirituality with more dogmatic, rote religiosity. Kelly regards Quakerism as a re-emergence of the faith that shaped burgeoning Christianity, writing that “The Quaker discovery, not of a doctrine, not of a belief, but of a Life, a life filled with God, a life listening, obedient, triumphant, holy––in the same way the Quaker discovery was only a rediscovery of the life and power and fellowship and joy and radiance which moved the early Church.”
What is perhaps most striking from Fox’s account is the frequent imprisonments he endures on account of his efforts, which he seems to profess as a badge of honor, demonstrating the lengths he was willing to go to maintain integrity to his message and mission. His writings attest to a man who was willing to constantly sacrifice his social standing and liberty in order to remain faithful to whatever instructions God had given him. A skeptic might ask if Fox had a strategic interest in positioning himself as a galvanizing martyr suffering for his cause against religious and civil authorities that could then be cast as egregiously unfair. Yet it is equally possible to understand his testimony as a means of bearing witness to the certainty of his convictions that God was indeed instructing him, leaving Fox with no real option but heed such leadings.
That tension between the ordinary and the extraordinary can be found across the entries featured in Quaker Spirituality. At one level, each writer celebrates the promise that God is accessible not just to those of past eras or the holiest few of our own, but to each of us as we are. But this is necessarily coupled with a sense of severe devotion and commitment, either to experiencing that for one’s self or compelling others to do so, if not both. While Fox’s and Woolman’s biographies reflect the more sacrificial implications of such immediacy, all of them point to a seriousness with which they approach the spiritual life. A quote from Fox demonstrates this well: “Your teacher is within you; look not forth; it will teach you lying in bed, going abroad, to shun all occasion of sin and evil” . The first eight words, still often repeated by Quakers today, reflects the empowering immediacy that Friends endorse, while the remainder of his statement (notably often forgotten in contemporary discourse) speaks to the steep demands that are ultimately placed upon those learning from the inward teacher. In a slight reimagining of a more modern popular adage, one could say that with great access comes great responsibility.
Quaker Spirituality, edited by Emilie Griffin and Douglass Steere, is a compilation of selected writings from a host of formative Quakers reflecting on their experiences and insights related to spirituality and worship. Excerpts from George Fox, John Woolman, Caroline Stephen, Rufus Jones, and Thomas Kelly all present stirring articulations of Quaker faith and practice as it has developed since Fox’s entries beginning in 1635 up until those from Kelly written in the 1930s. Read together, they function as a means of welcoming contemporary readers curious about the Society of Friends into the foundations of Quakerism which have persisted in relevance still today. Although a myriad of themes arise across the entries, the immediacy of God stands out as one of the most central and distinctive notions and merits further consideration.
In her reflection on Quakerism in The Silent Cry: Mysticism and Resistance, Dorothee Soelle praises Friends as a case study emblematic of her own hopes to democratize mysticism. Jones echoes this sentiment when he writes: “I am convinced by my own life and by wide observation of children that mystical experience is much more common than is usually supposed.” While this is in reference to his own autobiographical exposure to Quaker spirituality as a child, it is a recognition that transcends his own account and applies equally to all of the featured writers in the collection, each of whom attest to experiences of immediacy in their encounters with God. In Stephen’s description of the Quaker strongholds, she notes that “the one corner-stone of belief upon which the Society of Friends is built is the conviction that God does indeed communicate with each one of the spirits he has made…and that in order clearly to hear the divine voice thus speaking to us we need to be still; to be alone with him in the secret place of his presence; that all flesh should keep silence before him” . There is a sense of discovery that suffuses the collected writings. Kelly, reminiscing on his own early engagement with Quakerism, offers yet another stirring description: “It is an amazing discovery, at first, to find that a creative Power and Life is at work in the world. God is no longer the object of a belief; he is a Reality, who has continued, within us, his real Presence in the world.” Each Friend shares from an intimate place of divine encounter, noting varied responses of awe, surprise, gratitude, enlivenment, and joy that an immediate awareness of God is possible.
This is, of course, in keeping with Fox’s own cataclysmic epiphanies which led to the establishment of the Society of Friends. Fox’s writing are essentially a travelogue depicting his far-reaching, fervorous pursuits to sway hearers to share in his sense that “God was come to teach his people by his spirit and to bring them off all their old ways, religions, churches, and worship, for all their religions, and worship, and ways were but talking of other men’s words, for they were out of the life and spirit that they were in that gave them forth.” Echoing (and softening) Fox’s more vehement rhetoric, the later writers continue to contrast Quaker spirituality with more dogmatic, rote religiosity. Kelly regards Quakerism as a re-emergence of the faith that shaped burgeoning Christianity, writing that “The Quaker discovery, not of a doctrine, not of a belief, but of a Life, a life filled with God, a life listening, obedient, triumphant, holy––in the same way the Quaker discovery was only a rediscovery of the life and power and fellowship and joy and radiance which moved the early Church.”
What is perhaps most striking from Fox’s account is the frequent imprisonments he endures on account of his efforts, which he seems to profess as a badge of honor, demonstrating the lengths he was willing to go to maintain integrity to his message and mission. His writings attest to a man who was willing to constantly sacrifice his social standing and liberty in order to remain faithful to whatever instructions God had given him. A skeptic might ask if Fox had a strategic interest in positioning himself as a galvanizing martyr suffering for his cause against religious and civil authorities that could then be cast as egregiously unfair. Yet it is equally possible to understand his testimony as a means of bearing witness to the certainty of his convictions that God was indeed instructing him, leaving Fox with no real option but heed such leadings.
That tension between the ordinary and the extraordinary can be found across the entries featured in Quaker Spirituality. At one level, each writer celebrates the promise that God is accessible not just to those of past eras or the holiest few of our own, but to each of us as we are. But this is necessarily coupled with a sense of severe devotion and commitment, either to experiencing that for one’s self or compelling others to do so, if not both. While Fox’s and Woolman’s biographies reflect the more sacrificial implications of such immediacy, all of them point to a seriousness with which they approach the spiritual life. A quote from Fox demonstrates this well: “Your teacher is within you; look not forth; it will teach you lying in bed, going abroad, to shun all occasion of sin and evil” . The first eight words, still often repeated by Quakers today, reflects the empowering immediacy that Friends endorse, while the remainder of his statement (notably often forgotten in contemporary discourse) speaks to the steep demands that are ultimately placed upon those learning from the inward teacher. In a slight reimagining of a more modern popular adage, one could say that with great access comes great responsibility.
March 19, 2009
...a little dry at times, but Steere has assembled a great collection of Quaker writings. Included are selections from the journals of George Fox and John Woolman, Thomas Kelly's Testament of Devotion, and the works of Caroline Stephen and Rufus Jones. Steere provides an insightful introduction to this work, in which he covers the historical development of Quakerism through the charisma and vision of George Fox, and beyond. In the process, Steere lays out some of the important themes which arise in the selected writings, such as the difficulties of the discerning process of divine will and human will—of divine guidance. He understands this is so little understood outside of the Society of Friends, and spends some time elucidating it. This is an important theme as it relates to the divine leadings which have culminated in, for example, John Woolman’s organizing efforts as an early abolitionist.
September 18, 2011
Good primary sources. I would like to see a little more commentary.
June 7, 2024
This one is a good basic introduction to some primary sources of Quaker thought. It's a compilation piece that traces an evolution of thought through several layers of history. After a lengthy introduction by the editor, the largest portion is given to writings by George Fox - Quakerism's founder. I was helped tremendously by reading a biography of Fox before reading this book. It gave me a better idea of the chronology and the events behind these texts. I'm not sure how much more confused I would've been had I not done this in advance, but I certainly would've been less deep and more vague about what was going on.
In either case, the beginning with Fox definitely brings out the protest element of Quakerism's beginnings. It's easy to think of Quakers as peaceful and tolerant (and for good reasons), but there were strong elements of rebellion against institutional church at the inception.
The remaining writers continue following the lineage through the successive centuries. John Woolman's entries were particularly interesting; he details the evolving Quaker opposition to slavery on a personal level. It was fascinating how his non-confrontational instincts clashed with his inner convictions; people typically did not respond to him with hostility even though he was addressing divisive topics because he was so humble in his necessity to speak out - being driven by inner leadings that God put inside him.
Caroline Stephens entries are important as being representative of Quakerism's historic inclusion of women as ministers. She traces the evolution of Quaker beliefs and practices into her stage of its history.
Rufus M. Jones had most autobiographical content of the selected contributors. He gave a compelling testimony of his Quaker family upbringing and its spiritual impact on him - and how it carried through his lifetime.
Thomas R. Kelly's writings give a fitting conclusion to this volume. It's a more meditative collection of sermonic-types of insights - all pointing towards the task of cultivating the inner light, and being attuned to it. It's an appropriate ending because this was the common thread throughout the book.
This was a good book to read. Quakerism is a very small part of the larger Christian family, but it serves well to remind the rest of us of the centrality of experiencing the Holy Spirit. Much as we can get drawn down and reduced either by rigid textualism or institutional routines or administrative ecclesiastical bureaucracy - it's all too easy to lose sight of experiential side. There's a need to regularly tune into God's presence inside of us. The church, after all, belongs to Jesus - and He is present when we gather and pray together.
In either case, the beginning with Fox definitely brings out the protest element of Quakerism's beginnings. It's easy to think of Quakers as peaceful and tolerant (and for good reasons), but there were strong elements of rebellion against institutional church at the inception.
The remaining writers continue following the lineage through the successive centuries. John Woolman's entries were particularly interesting; he details the evolving Quaker opposition to slavery on a personal level. It was fascinating how his non-confrontational instincts clashed with his inner convictions; people typically did not respond to him with hostility even though he was addressing divisive topics because he was so humble in his necessity to speak out - being driven by inner leadings that God put inside him.
Caroline Stephens entries are important as being representative of Quakerism's historic inclusion of women as ministers. She traces the evolution of Quaker beliefs and practices into her stage of its history.
Rufus M. Jones had most autobiographical content of the selected contributors. He gave a compelling testimony of his Quaker family upbringing and its spiritual impact on him - and how it carried through his lifetime.
Thomas R. Kelly's writings give a fitting conclusion to this volume. It's a more meditative collection of sermonic-types of insights - all pointing towards the task of cultivating the inner light, and being attuned to it. It's an appropriate ending because this was the common thread throughout the book.
This was a good book to read. Quakerism is a very small part of the larger Christian family, but it serves well to remind the rest of us of the centrality of experiencing the Holy Spirit. Much as we can get drawn down and reduced either by rigid textualism or institutional routines or administrative ecclesiastical bureaucracy - it's all too easy to lose sight of experiential side. There's a need to regularly tune into God's presence inside of us. The church, after all, belongs to Jesus - and He is present when we gather and pray together.
July 20, 2024
AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF QUAKER WRITINGS FROM 17th-20th CENTURIES
The Quaker movement began in the 17th century with George Fox (1624-1691); Fox wrote, "this is both our principle and practice, and hath been from the beginning, so that if we suffer, as suspected to take up arms or make war against any, it is without any ground from us... whereas men come against us with clubs, staves, drawn swords, pistols cocked, and do beat, cut and abuse us, yet we never resisted them, but to them our hair, backs, and cheeks have been ready. It is not an honour to manhood nor to nobility to run upon harmless people who lift not up a hand against them, with arms and weapons." (Pg. 107)
American Quaker John Woolman (1720-1772) wrote that he believed "true religion consisted in an inward life, wherein the heart doth love and reverence God the Creator and learn to exercise true justice and goodness, not only towards all men but also towards the brute creatures." (Pg. 165) He also believed slavery "to be a practice inconsistent with the Christian religion." (Pg. 169)
Caroline Stephen (1834-1909) of England states that the justification of Quakerism lies in "its energetic assertion that the kingdom of heaven is within us; that we are not made dependent upon any outward organization for our spiritual welfare... other Protestant sects ... transfer the idea of infallibility from the Church to the Bible. Nothing, I believe, can really teach us the nature and meaning of inspiration but personal experience of it." (Pg. 247) She adds that a true mystic is conscious of having an inward life, "into which as into a secret chamber, he can retreat at will." (Pg. 248) Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941) asserts that "Life is meant to be lived from a Center, a divine Center." (Pg. 304)
This is a wonderful collection, and makes a marvelous introduction to Quakerism and its spirituality.
The Quaker movement began in the 17th century with George Fox (1624-1691); Fox wrote, "this is both our principle and practice, and hath been from the beginning, so that if we suffer, as suspected to take up arms or make war against any, it is without any ground from us... whereas men come against us with clubs, staves, drawn swords, pistols cocked, and do beat, cut and abuse us, yet we never resisted them, but to them our hair, backs, and cheeks have been ready. It is not an honour to manhood nor to nobility to run upon harmless people who lift not up a hand against them, with arms and weapons." (Pg. 107)
American Quaker John Woolman (1720-1772) wrote that he believed "true religion consisted in an inward life, wherein the heart doth love and reverence God the Creator and learn to exercise true justice and goodness, not only towards all men but also towards the brute creatures." (Pg. 165) He also believed slavery "to be a practice inconsistent with the Christian religion." (Pg. 169)
Caroline Stephen (1834-1909) of England states that the justification of Quakerism lies in "its energetic assertion that the kingdom of heaven is within us; that we are not made dependent upon any outward organization for our spiritual welfare... other Protestant sects ... transfer the idea of infallibility from the Church to the Bible. Nothing, I believe, can really teach us the nature and meaning of inspiration but personal experience of it." (Pg. 247) She adds that a true mystic is conscious of having an inward life, "into which as into a secret chamber, he can retreat at will." (Pg. 248) Thomas R. Kelly (1893-1941) asserts that "Life is meant to be lived from a Center, a divine Center." (Pg. 304)
This is a wonderful collection, and makes a marvelous introduction to Quakerism and its spirituality.
August 21, 2018
I have recently attended a Quaker Meeting and been very impressed at the experience of corporate silence. I was pleased to read this anthology of Quaker material. I was particularly impressed by the passages from Caroline Stephens, Virginia Woolf’s aunt.
I found the passages from George Fox’s Journal, the key Quaker text, bitty. Brief paragraphs were quoted without any sense of their context. I did not learn how the Religious Society of Friends seems to have come into existence after Fox’s initial saving experience.
There were no selections from with William Penn nor Robert Barclay, both I understand seminal books.
I am however very glad to have read this, particularly Fox, Stephens and the abridgement of John Woolman’s Journal.
I found the passages from George Fox’s Journal, the key Quaker text, bitty. Brief paragraphs were quoted without any sense of their context. I did not learn how the Religious Society of Friends seems to have come into existence after Fox’s initial saving experience.
There were no selections from with William Penn nor Robert Barclay, both I understand seminal books.
I am however very glad to have read this, particularly Fox, Stephens and the abridgement of John Woolman’s Journal.
January 3, 2019
This was an excellent and moving collection of writings. I would recommend it for those who would like a brief overview of Quaker writings. It doesn't really introduce the faith, since it's made up of selected primary sources rather than a systematic description of Quaker beliefs or practices. However, it does provide a good starting point for those more interested in Quaker literature or history.
April 30, 2020
This was actually incredibly good, in that it did a great job of showcasing the words and writings of early Quakers, and I found it very inspiring and challenging in a good way.
I do wish there are been a bit more context, both historical and spiritual, about how these words and works inspired certain practices and what the lives of these men (and one women) looked like.
I do wish there are been a bit more context, both historical and spiritual, about how these words and works inspired certain practices and what the lives of these men (and one women) looked like.
January 27, 2021
Good overview of the history and beliefs of the faith.
February 20, 2023
Really boring and inconsequential for most of it, but the last section by Thomas R. Kelly was deeply beautiful. Just read Thomas R. Kelly!!
December 19, 2025
invaluably insightful, impressively digestible
October 29, 2014
The book definitely achieved its goal of "finding new readers for these dynamic spiritual voices," as I did find myself taking notes on books and authors to look up to read their full accounts at a later date. The excerpts give you a good enough idea of what might peak your interest, but in some parts the segmentation makes it very difficult to follow the line of events or get a full idea of the author's thought process. With that said, I did find in their writings something of the cry that I believe is being renewed in the church for a return to simple, authentic faith and abiding with the Father and an exodus from the institutional, professional Christendom that is much of the Western church today.
A few of the the authors gave great quotes to summarize Quakerism which I hope might give some of you trying to decide if you should read this book (or any other) from the Quakers an idea on what they're about.
"The perennial justification of Quakerism lies in its energetic assertion that the kingdom of heaven is within us; that we are not made dependent upon any outward organization for our spiritual welfare. Its perennial difficulty lies in its inveterate disposition of human beings to look to each other for spiritual help, in the feebleness of their perception of that divine voice which speaks to each one in a language no other ear can hear, and in the apathy which is content to go through life without the attempt at any true individual communion with God." - Caroline Stephen
"Quakers appeared in history at just such a time as this, when the experience of deep religion had grown thin. Preachers lacked personal relationship with God. The Society of Friends arose to bring back vital apostolic power. The purpose was not to form another sect and to justify it by a peculiar tenet. Friends came to dig down to the wellsprings of spiritual immediacy, holding that religion means that which you know, feel experience within yourself. Our task isn't to nurse the dying embers of a dying sect, but to be missionaries to Christendom; to live in a real Christian fellowship, not within a definite organization." - Thomas Kelly
"The early Quakers were founding no sect; they were reforming Christendom that had slumped into externals and had lost its true sense of the immediate presence and the creative, triumphant power of the living God within us all. They had a message for all, for they had discovered that 'the Lord himself had come to lead His people.'" - Thomas Kelly
A few of the the authors gave great quotes to summarize Quakerism which I hope might give some of you trying to decide if you should read this book (or any other) from the Quakers an idea on what they're about.
"The perennial justification of Quakerism lies in its energetic assertion that the kingdom of heaven is within us; that we are not made dependent upon any outward organization for our spiritual welfare. Its perennial difficulty lies in its inveterate disposition of human beings to look to each other for spiritual help, in the feebleness of their perception of that divine voice which speaks to each one in a language no other ear can hear, and in the apathy which is content to go through life without the attempt at any true individual communion with God." - Caroline Stephen
"Quakers appeared in history at just such a time as this, when the experience of deep religion had grown thin. Preachers lacked personal relationship with God. The Society of Friends arose to bring back vital apostolic power. The purpose was not to form another sect and to justify it by a peculiar tenet. Friends came to dig down to the wellsprings of spiritual immediacy, holding that religion means that which you know, feel experience within yourself. Our task isn't to nurse the dying embers of a dying sect, but to be missionaries to Christendom; to live in a real Christian fellowship, not within a definite organization." - Thomas Kelly
"The early Quakers were founding no sect; they were reforming Christendom that had slumped into externals and had lost its true sense of the immediate presence and the creative, triumphant power of the living God within us all. They had a message for all, for they had discovered that 'the Lord himself had come to lead His people.'" - Thomas Kelly
December 31, 2016
This collection of Quaker writings was invaluable in my investigation into Quaker belief and practice and my becoming a Friend of the Friends.
June 22, 2012
How different our country would be today if the Quakers had more influence on the character of our culture than the Puritans!
I especially enjoyed the letters of Isaac Penington and the writings of Caroline Stephen. And the singularity of purpose of John Woolman to end slavery even prior to the American Revolution (and how he tried to not exercise in any commerce or other activity that was beneficial to or benefited by slavery).
I especially enjoyed the letters of Isaac Penington and the writings of Caroline Stephen. And the singularity of purpose of John Woolman to end slavery even prior to the American Revolution (and how he tried to not exercise in any commerce or other activity that was beneficial to or benefited by slavery).
February 28, 2013
I think this is a really good introduction to Quaker thought and history, but I personally thought it would have been better introduction to go deeper in a few key figures instead of spanning everyone.
However, I am really grateful for the book to introduce me to the thoughts of Thomas R. Kelly and Caroline Emelia Stephen. Teastament of Devotion by Thomas R. Kelly and Quaker Strongholds by Caroline Emelia Stephen are so deep and rich with spiritual wisdom that arises from experience.
However, I am really grateful for the book to introduce me to the thoughts of Thomas R. Kelly and Caroline Emelia Stephen. Teastament of Devotion by Thomas R. Kelly and Quaker Strongholds by Caroline Emelia Stephen are so deep and rich with spiritual wisdom that arises from experience.
February 2, 2008
Very good introduction to the Quaker faith. It was nice to learn more about them. The book's introduction is great. The selected writings give a nice overview of their history. I particularly enjoyed Caroline Stephen's writings. I may need to find more about her.
May 15, 2012
A decent selection of some prominent quaker writers, though it seemed much too short. if some of the selections were expanded the meaning and depth would have come through better--I know this is true of the couple authors I had read the full works, and so only assume the same of the others.
April 6, 2015
A mix of absolutely beautiful writing about sitting in silence and listening for God and then some not-so-interesting details of the spread of early Quaker communities. Some of the history was interesting - I didn't realize how horribly they were persecuted by the British government.
September 19, 2015
A great overview of Quaker Contemplative and Social Justice Witnesses! Care was taken to the selection of writers in this anthology, which represent the tradition well.
-Amos Smith (author of Healing The Divide: Recovering Christianity's Mystic Roots)
-Amos Smith (author of Healing The Divide: Recovering Christianity's Mystic Roots)
May 16, 2008
Good introduction to major quaker thought--George Fox, Isaac Penington, John Woolman, Caroline Stephen, Rufus Jones, Thomas Kelly. Strong introduction to the collection as well, by Douglas Steere
March 24, 2010
Contains selections from Quaker diaries and letters, as well as a history of the Quaker movement. I liked the fact that the writings were infused with simplicity and the love of God.
October 23, 2012
What a wonderful read, regardless of faith practiced by the reader. It is a nice insight into the healing practices of Quaker worship, and such a nice view of how their silence brings peace.
June 10, 2013
I love this book! I carry it to Quaker Meeting for Worship every week and have often stood and read aloud from it. This book is a GREAT place to start for learning about Quakers.
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