Pierre Lacout, 1969
Quaker meeting for worship is at the heart of the lives of Quakers. It gives strength, insight and inspiration.
Our meetings are communal. No one is in charge. Anyone can come to a Quaker meeting and be part of the worship. No one will ever tell you what to believe.
When we worship, we are aiming to experience inner stillness through a deep silence in which we may discover meaning, purpose and understanding. Early Quakers believed that through silence they might have a direct relationship with God, and many Quakers today feel the same way. In the stillness they become able to see their lives more clearly.
Another aid to our worship is the spoken word. Someone may feel moved to obey a deep inner prompting and will stand up and speak quietly, spontaneously and without fuss. Others may also feel prompted to speak but, even though this may be connected in some way it is not a conversation and not a debate.
Some Quaker meetings are entirely silent. No two are ever the same.
Quaker meetings can comfort, help and change people. At their best, they have a compelling power that brings people back week after week, year after year.