About Us

Overview

Here are some good sources of information about Quakers, and meeting for worship:
quaker.org
quakerspeak.com

Why come to a Friends Meeting?

Meeting for worship can be a way to support each other as we seek answers to life’s questions. We gather, we reflect on our various ideas of the Infinite: our relationship to it, how affects our lives. Many Friends find that gathering together as a group is a fundamentally different experience than meditating as an individual. When a Friend is moved to speak, their message often seems relevant to the reflections of others in the group.

See Find Us for information about upcoming Meetings:

About Silent Worship

While all Quakers meet for worship to hear more clearly God’s “still small voice” (I Kings 19:12), Friends in the unprogrammed tradition base our worship entirely on expectant waiting. We take the Psalmist’s advice literally: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalms 46:10).

We meet in plain, unadorned rooms because we feel that, in such places, we will be less distracted from that small still voice. Our benches or chairs face each other because we all are equal before God.

There are no pulpits in our meeting rooms because we all minister to each other. We have no prearranged prayers, readings, sermons, hymns, or instrumental music because we wait for God’s leadings (guidance and direction) and power in our lives.

Occasionally, during meeting for worship, someone is moved to speak out of the silence. Although Friends value spoken messages which come from the heart and are prompted by the Spirit of God, we also value the silence and find that expectant worship may bring profound leadings. Friends have found that some leadings are for sharing immediately, some are for sharing on another occasion, and some are for our personal reflection. The meeting ends when one Friend, designated in advance, shakes hands with their neighbors. Then everyone shakes hands. No two meetings are ever the same.

Friends in the wider world

Over the centuries, Quakers have developed a reputation and history of social activism. That activism can be a significant part how Friends ‘live our values’.

Currently, some issues that Agate Passage Friends groups are following include:

• Climate Change
• Relations with indigenous people
• Equity in education in NK and Bainbridge schools
• Gaza and Ukraine conflicts
• Immigration issues