History

The Religious Society of Friends are better known to many as Quakers.  The religion was founded in the UK in 1652 by George Fox, who climbed Pendle Hill in 1652 and had a great revelation while viewing Lancashire from its summit.  Fox believed that Christianity had strayed from its roots, and he wanted to bring people back to its original and pure form. 

He was imprisoned many time for his views, as were many of his followers, who were considered revolutionaries.  At the time, the advocacy of a society that did not discriminate due to class, race, gender, or wealth was believed to be dangerous by the establishment.

Nowadays, there are about 200,000 Quakers throughout the world, and around 17,000 in the UK.

Pendle Hill is still regarded as an important place of pilgrimage for Quakers worldwide.

Beliefs

Quakers believe that there is something of God in everyone and that each person has a unique worth.  As a result, Quakers value everyone equally, and do not believe in harming or threatening any human being - they are pacifists, and are dedicated to non-violence.

Most Quaker morality is based on individual conscience.  They believe strongly in inner faith and a direct relationship with God and therefore conduct their personal beliefes accordingly.

Quakers eschew priests, rituals, and other religious trappings, regarding them as an obstruction between mankind and God.

Quakers believe that God is a part of everyday life, and should not only be addressed in times and places of regulated worship.

Quakers believe that redemption is to be experienced during ones physical life, not after death.

Many Quakers are actively involved in working for better human rights, social justice, and peace, and historically Quakers have been involved in such movements as prison reform and the abolition of slavery.

Quakers only regard the Bible as an inspriational book and do not consider it to be the word of God.

Religious tolerance is an important feature of the Quaker religion, as is gender equality.

Quakers do not gamble, but there is no prohibition on alcohol.

Quakers do not have set rules about sexual activity in itself, believing that attention should be focussed on human relationships.  They are therefore tolerant of same-sex relationships and unmarried couples, where the union is positive and not destructive.

Quakers have strong views on the environment and believe that human beings are stewards of the Earth.

Locally

There is a Quaker Meeting House in Brierfield, and the North West Quaker website can be found here: http://www.north-west-quakers.org.uk

Links

The UK Quaker website can be found at http://www.quaker.org.uk