Being Quaker: a guided four-week introductory journey for newcomers
Like other faith organisations, Quakers in Britain continue to see an increase in the number of new people joining our meetings.
In response, London Quakers have designed a four-week newcomers programme which has been so popular they've had to create a waiting list!
"We've now worked with more than 40 newcomers, most of whom are in their 20s and 30s," says Local Development Worker Josh Selfe. "And the great thing is that some of the participants on the first cohort are now actively helping to arrange and deliver the courses to other newcomers so we can reach everyone who has expressed interest."
The Being Quaker programme helps to ground participants in Quakerism, giving them an understanding of the basics. It provides everyone with the opportunity to meet other newcomers and build networks between local meetings. As well as providing participants with resources and information on where to take their learning next there's also an opportunity for questions and exploration relating to thoughts participants have had since engaging with Quakerism.
"The sessions are heavily discussion based, with some input welcomed from more experienced local Friends," explains Josh. "Generally, each session involves worship, an ice breaker, and two talks with this being left flexible so facilitators can adapt it to local needs. We've created the framework and most of the content with the expectation that facilitators will want to experiment with the structure."
Over the four weeks participants are invited to learn more about our understanding of worship, the difference between worship and meditation, what we mean by ministry, how do we test whether something is ministry or not, our structure and processes, and what happens when we can't agree – and so much more interesting and meaty stuff!
"This is not an exhaustive introduction to Quakerism which would be impossible in just four weeks," says Josh. "After the course we guide participants to Woodbrooke where they can find out more and explore our history, values and processes in more depth. We also encourage new Quakers to find out other opportunities for learning being offered by their Local Meeting and Area Meetings."
The feedback from participants has been overwhelmingly positive with many having become regular attendees.
Lucy from Tottenham LM told us, “when we met for our final session, we began by each sharing something we had learned so far. One Friend said, with relief, that she had learned that “not all Quakers are political activists." I echoed, “not all Quakers are pacifists," and a third Friend added, “not all Quakers are religious." One might question whether, with all of this inclusivity, Quakerism is devoid of content. But I do feel that I have gathered some essence of the Society of Friends. It is within that feeling I was left with after our first session: a harmonisation of peace with critical questioning, of individuality with community. There is much more for me to understand about Quakers, but I now understand enough to keep coming back."
If your community has newcomers and you'd like to offer the programme to them you can access the course here: Being Quaker (Word).
“It really is a great resource which Friends can literally lift off the shelf and deliver," said Oliver Waterhouse, the Quaker Life lead on Local and Area Meeting Governance. “Or if they prefer, they can use it as a framework for providing a warm welcome and an introduction to our spiritual practice, our history, values and future direction of the society."
Being Quaker is available for any community of Friends to use. If you would like help with facilitation, contact your Local Development Worker for ideas and support.