QUAKERS try to live in “truth, peace, simplicity and equality”, according to their UK website.
All the more odd then that a trust set up by Quaker Joseph Rowntree should decide to fund Alistair Carmichael after he was found by a court to have lied during the memo-leak controversy.
“Be honest with yourself. What unpalatable truths might you be evading?” asks the Quakers’ Advices and Queries. “Are you honest and truthful in all you say and do? Do you maintain strict integrity in business transactions and in your dealings with individuals and organisations? Do you use money and information entrusted to you with discretion and responsibility?”
Otherwise known as the Religious Society of Friends, the movement originated in 17th-century England following the Civil War.
The founding father was George Fox, who was born in Leicestershire in 1624. By the time he died in 1691 the movement had 50,000 followers although he had not set out to start a new denomination. However, his frustration at the hypocrisy of people who said they believed one thing then did another was shared by many and Quakerism was born.
Stressing the equality of all people before God, the Quakers broke away from the established Church of England, rejecting its hierarchical, sexist structure.
They professed the priesthood of all believers and became known for their simple dress, pacifism, teetotalism, refusal to swear oaths and opposition to slavery, but despite the advocacy of a simple life, many found they were good at making money.
Some founded financial institutions and banks like Lloyds, Barclays and Friends Provident; others did well in manufacturing and retail, setting up shoe-retailing giant C & J Clark and chocolate makers Fry’s, Rowntree and Cadbury.
There are now 359,000 Quakers worldwide who are divided into evangelicals, liberals, traditionalists, non-theists, universalists and those who adhere to the holiness movement. In the UK the movement appears to be losing its appeal.
There were nearly 20,000 Quakers in the country in 1990 but this has dropped to around 13,000, with the number of those attending meetings averaging about 8,000.
They put great reliance on conscience as the basis for their morality, believe that God can be seen in everyone and that each human life has value. They also believe that people should follow their “inner light” rather than external rules; that there is good and evil within all humans and everyone can choose good over evil – if they really want to.
It is important for Quakers to integrate their beliefs with everyday life, which is why so many became famous for their work in social reform.
They do not believe in holy rituals, believing instead that the sacred should be a part of everyday life. Their “meetings for worship” are devoid of structure, liturgy, hierarchy or rules and take place in “meeting houses”, not churches. Meetings are mainly silent with people speaking only if they feel “moved by the spirit” to say something that must be shared.
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