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"At Lopez Island Meeting," John Helding reports, "we’ve learned that singing or worship sharing is powerful and welcoming worship. As such, we devote a real portion of our serious worship time to these practices and incorporate them into our regular meeting for worship schedule."

How Can I Keep from Singing?The marvelous mystery of worship-fluid meetings.www.friendsjournal.org

“The surprising thing about my journey in the Quaker faith,” Rashid Darden told QuakerSpeak in 2023, “is that despite it being a predominantly White faith community, I’m still able to show up as my entire self and not be penalized for it or punished for it—and, in fact, to be celebrated.”

"Recovering silence is not a self-improvement project or an opportunity to listen to our own inmost thoughts in a closed circuit. It is, at this moment, a theological emergency." An Episcopalian spiritual director explores a faith and practice that Friends will easily recognize.

The Discipline of Silence in a World That Cannot Stop Talking - The Living ChurchSilence is a form of resistance to idolatry. The attention economy is built on the capture and monetization of human consciousness.livingchurch.org

Jesus never set out to feed 5,000 people at one event. You can see it in the beginning of the story: He was trying to get AWAY from everybody. But as thousands converged on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he couldn't help but be moved by their faith. So he came back. quaker.org/2026/07/27/j...

Ann Morgan, a Friend from Lancaster, England, dove into the history of five 18th-century Quaker families from her meeting, meticulously documenting the extent to which they were involved in the enslavement industry despite their yearly meeting passing a minute against it as early as 1727.

REVIEWED: In Brief: The 18th Century Enslaving Industry: Lancaster Quakers involvementDespite continuous calls for abolition, Lancaster Meeting never confronted any of their members who were clearly participating in the enslavement industry.www.friendsjournal.org

"When I was five years old, I learned what to do if I ever caught on fire: Stop. Drop. Roll. It was a simple safety lesson. But even then, I sensed that the hardest part wouldn’t be dropping or rolling: it would be stopping. Some part of me knew that if I ever caught fire, I’d want to run."

When Fire ComesExplore how Quaker worship and surrendering to the Spirit can help us navigate personal loss, uncertainty, and crisis with faith, resilience, and renewed purpose.www.friendsjournal.org

Betsy Raasch-Gilman is clear on this: She and other Friends were not "protesting" against the activities of ICE agents in Minneapolis last winter. "We were defending ourselves from an occupying army," she says, "and in this case the army that was occupying us was our own federal government."

ICE Tried to Silence Them — These Quaker Women Fought Back - QuakerSpeakBetsy Raasch-Gilman is absolutely clear on this: She and other Friends in Minneapolis were not “protesting” against the activities of…quakerspeak.com

From our archives: For centuries, to accommodate people of other faiths from nearby farms and villages looking for religious services, Rhode Island's Smithfield Meeting was led by a pastor. But by 2020, Kathleen Costello Malin reported, the meeting could no longer afford even a part-time pastor.

Pastoring without a PastorA New England meeting adapts to worship and care without a pastor.www.friendsjournal.org

"Welcoming the stranger is a broadly shared and indelible ethic," according to the amicus brief filed in Trump v. Barbara. "The Citizenship Clause represents the apotheosis of this value by extending the same citizenship rights possessed by one’s own children to the children of the stranger."

Quakers Defend Birthright Citizenship; FCNL, FGC Join Faith Groups in Amicus BriefOn June 30, 2026, the Supreme Court affirmed that children born in the U.S. to undocumented parents are “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S.www.friendsjournal.org

As we strip away the trappings of Empire, and break through the mental and spiritual fog of this world, the more capable we become of perceiving what early Friends called “the Inward Light" and its invitation to abandon sin and embrace God's call to love one another. quaker.org/2026/07/20/y...

Employing Quaker forthrightness, Linda Rabben confesses what many of us will not: she has had trouble staying awake in unprogrammed meetings for worship. To stay awake, she crafts haiku in her head, many of which have been collected in her new book, Seasons with Friends.

REVIEWED: Seasons with FriendsDiscover Seasons with Friends, a collection of Quaker-inspired haiku that finds spiritual insight, social concern, and moments of reflection in everyday life.www.friendsjournal.org

"Jan had so much wisdom, experience, and encouragement to share," Debbie Humphries recalls. "[She] taught me the discipline of writing reports regularly to the committee supporting my ministry." Debbie looks back over 25 years of such reports, and considers where God may have been leading her.

The Gift of QueriesA mentor’s encouragement.www.friendsjournal.org

“What has the gospel to do with the oppressed of the land and their struggle for liberation?” Everything. God doesn’t promise that heaven awaits us after a lifetime of suffering *if we’ve behaved ourselves*. God assures us the blessed community will come to THIS world. quaker.org/2026/07/13/w...

Margaret Cotton's The Radiance of Grace is a compelling and deeply researched historical novel that focuses on the struggles and tribulations of three women in Puritan Massachusetts—the Quaker martyr Mary Dyer and her spiritual mentors, Anne Hutchinson and Katherine Scott.

REVIEWED:The Radiance of GraceDiscover Mary Dyer, Anne Hutchinson, and Katherine Scott and their courageous fight for religious freedom in colonial New England in this book review.www.friendsjournal.org

Quakers often look for ways to teach young Friends and integrate them into the existing structure of a meeting. Sometimes, though, young Quakers following leadings to initiate ministries encounter resistance from adults who question whether they have enough commitment, knowledge, or life experience.

Wise at Every AgeExplore how Quaker meetings can nurture children’s and youth’s spiritual gifts by supporting their leadings, fostering belonging, and encouraging meaningful ministry.www.friendsjournal.org

"Let spools of featherlight wisdom swaddle me still. Let there be brave instruments— quiet songs, chirping always flitting. In the knowing, I’ll thread your awareness through the pinhole eye of how I connect to you." —from "When I Unravel" by Clara Fuehler

Michael Shaikh's The Last Sweet Bite, though, is more than a culinary history—it's also the memoir of a brave man who has borne witness to the human cost of war.

REVIEWED: The Last Sweet Bite: Stories and Recipes of Culinary Heritage Lost and FoundExplore Michael Shaikh's The Last Sweet Bite, which reveals how food preserves cultural identity and resilience in communities affected by war, displacement, and persecution.www.friendsjournal.org

How many of our meetings are well-informed about the faith and practice of Quaker ministry? How many of our members and attenders are listening for the Spirit’s call to service? How many would come to their meeting with a leading if they had one? How would their meeting respond if they did?

Nurturing Spiritual Gifts and ConcernsDiscover how Quaker meetings can strengthen ministry by recognizing leadings, supporting discernment, and cultivating a culture of faithful eldership.www.friendsjournal.org

From our archives: "Throughout our history, there have been Friends who try to enforce cultural norms or maintain systems of power under the guise of eldering," Mary Linda McKinney wrote in 2024. "[But] true eldering is about loving, seeing, naming, and inviting."

Growing into Our Perfect SelvesUnderstand the significance of relationships in eldering within Quakerism. See how compassionate accountability helps to shape personal and communal growth.www.friendsjournal.org

"Because children do cartwheels in the sand Because pelicans fly in a row Because the sun glistens on the waves Because laughter eases the pain Because friendship enriches and deepens us Because surfers stand up Because seagulls cry Because love consumes us and rejuvenates us..."

BecauseLynn Huntley asked the Universe to give her comfort; why should she feel happiness and gratitude? Here’s the answer she received.www.friendsjournal.org