Quaker information and religious beliefs

125th Anniversary of Penn's first arrival in the colony he had wished to name "New Wales." [King Charles II insisted on its being named after Admiral Penn, the father of our founder.]

For details, including events at Arch Street Meeting House, see: ushistory.org/penn/

For more on Arch Street Meeting House tours, see pym.org/pm/archst_tours.php

See William Penn: An Interesting Man to Know

What are "Quakers"? Quakers are members of the Religious Society of Friends, a faith that emerged as a new Christian denomination in England during a period of religious turmoil in the mid-1600's, and is practiced today, in a variety of forms, around the world. To members of this religion, the words "Quaker"and "Friend" mean the same thing.

Quakers are: an active, involved faith-based community living in the modern world. We are a diverse people consisting of several distinct branches. We continue our traditional testimonies of pacifism, social equality, integrity, and simplicity, which we interpret and express in a variety of ways. Today, many Friends include stewardship of our planet as one of our testimonies.

Quakers are not: Amish, Anabaptists, Shakers or Puritans--we come from a separate tradition than these other groups. We mostly don't dress like the man on the box of oats anymore, and today we hardly ever call people "thee."

The Quaker Information Center works on behalf of eight member organizations and seven associate members to answer questions from Friends and non-Friends alike, directing inquirers to information and resources from and about the Society of Friends. We are located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and all of our members are U.S. Quaker organizations, but to the best of our ability, we provide information about Quakers worldwide.

Invitation to sign up for "Flashes of Light"

If you would like to receive an occasional, informal e-newsletter from me with highlights of events, new resources and breaking news from our member organizations, as well as occasional other developments in the Quaker world, go to our signup page. (Read the most recent issue of Flashes of Light.)

Chel Avery, QIC Director

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Make a tax-deductible contribution to the QIC.

Page last updated 5/2/07

Quaker Information Center • Chel Avery, Director • 1501 Cherry Street • Philadelphia, PA 19102
215-241-7024 • info@quakerinfo.org

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