r/Quakers

Hello. I'm a practicing Roman Catholic currently going through a crisis of faith, not in my belief of God, but I'm experiencing some disillusionment with the church.

I wasn't always Catholic either, my mother was raised Catholic and I eventually found my way to it through the Occult oddly enough (it's a long story). Anyway, I first learned about the Quakers when I was doing some genealogy research a few years back and found that a large branch of my family were Rhode Island Quakers banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, I became very interested in their beliefs and admired their practices and history.

Fast-forward to today, I recently started working for the church in the parish office, I'm grateful for the opportunity and it's rewarding, but after interacting with so many parishioners, I never realized just how divided Catholics really are, it's very toxic, I've heard and witnessed some concerning things that have made me start to rethink my relationship to the church.

I have since found deep comfort in learning more about the Quaker way, it feels spiritually liberating but I have a hard time thinking about the possibility of leaving the church and the implications it would have on my conscience, and the possibility that I could be walking away from the truth and thus be considered an apostate.

This news has just caught me completely at a loss. I'm so disturbed but at a loss to articulate my thoughts and feelings.

The LDS Church (Mormons) were in the news last week when one of their leaders spoke out during their general conference to criticize the expansion of online sports betting and prediction markets. He noted that one can even bet on the timing of the Second Coming: “Where do you go to collect on that bet?”

Well, Quakers have had testimonies against gambling for a long time, and they remain in most of our faith and practice documents. So for example the 5th ed. of Britain Yearly Meeting's Quaker Faith & Practice includes among other quotations an excerpt from Baltimore Yearly Meeting's 1988 F&P:

>We are faced at every hand with enticements to risk money in anticipation of disproportionate gain through gambling. Some governments employ gambling as a means of raising revenue, even presenting it as a civic virtue. The Religious Society of Friends continues to bear testimony against betting, gambling, lotteries, speculation, or any other endeavour to receive material gain without equivalent exchange, believing that we owe an honest return for what we receive.

In the UK, Quaker Action on Alcohol and Drugs (QAAD) has taken public stands on gambling legislation before Parliament at least a couple of times since 2005. Here in North America (I'm in the U.S.), I don't see anything similar in recent years coming from the FCNL or the Canadian Friends Service Committee. (The November 2019 issue of Friends Journal did have "Gambling" as its theme, with contributors offering various perspectives on the topic.) I suspect, though this is just a guess, that one reason might be the perceived conflict between such action and the strong desire to support Native American and First Nation sovereignty and reparations, including implicitly their reliance on crucial income from tribal gaming operations. And we wouldn't avoid that conflict just by going after big-business prediction markets: CNN just reported on how Kalshi is partnering with several tribes to launch dedicated prediction market apps that will provide them with revenue. Yikes.

So while I feel a personal leading to support legislation to control and/or rein in prediction markets and online sports betting, I'm unsure whether Friends should take a corporate stand. (Though headlines along the lines of "Quakers Join Forces With Mormons" would be attention-grabbing!) Interested to hear what other Friends think!

Hi, I’m new to learning about the Friends community. I’m a 31yo female, married and living with a disability. I was raised conservative evangelical by a very abusive mother. Once I got away from her, I have been deconstructing and reexamining my beliefs. I believe in God, I believe Jesus is divine and my Savior. I believe the demonic is also real. This is all from personal encounters and experiences with Him and other spiritual experiences, not just from upbringing. I’ve rejected the polarization and corruption of most organized religion. I don’t agree with how rigid and judgmental most evangelical Christians are. All I want to do is follow Jesus’s direct teachings in the New Covenant and live as close to His instructions as I can. I love living a simple, quiet life with my family and my cats and I believe all people are made in the image of God and deserve respect. I believe we should take care of others, be pacifist, protect the earth, and avoid unnecessary drama and strife. The Quaker teachings really spoke to me, and I want to learn more if I’m going to become a part of it.

I don’t want to be called “conservative” as a Friend because I believe in Jesus though. Conservative has a very negative connotation these days and I don’t want people to believe I share the harmful side of those views, because I very much don’t. I’m working hard to distance myself from my upbringing and go back to what I truly believed before being brainwashed. I know that there are Quakers of other religions and non theistic Quakers, and it’s no one’s job to tell anyone else how to believe, which is great. But does anyone know how I can express being very strongly for Christ in my own walk, without using the terms evangelical or conservative? Would it just be Christian Friend or Christian Quaker? I hope I can be welcomed in, I’m also looking for meetings to join as an attender so I can begin the process of becoming a Friend. Is there anything I should do first? I feel very called to this and I want to make sure I’m being respectful as I’m new to all of this. Thank you!

-a very hopeful future Friend

Last weekend I happened to be at Swarthmoor Hall. Friends worshipped in the "great hall" of the house. There's a historical note on a display for visitors explaining that in the early days of the church it was illegal in and of itself to meet for worship in the manner of Friends and many Friends had been arrested in that room.

The question arose: if attending worship in the manner of Friends were illegal now, would you still go?

I don't see it any other way. I feel like programmed worship would be like going to Church not knowing what is in your prayers.

I have been touched by the spirit, and I hope those who seek solace will be.

What makes Quakers different from any other Protestants if there is programmed worship ? Or is that the point ?