We will be meeting from 10am to noon on the first three Saturdays (January 6, 13, and 20) for an introduction to Quakerism.

In the first session, we will be exploring the origins, history, and current diversity of the Religious Society of Friends with particular attention to the role of the doctrine of the Inward Light.

The second session will look at Quaker ways to nurture our inner lives. This will include individual and corporate practices.

The third session will consider what it means for a monthly meeting to be a covenant community, the role of gospel order, discernment, and the meeting for business.

There are no reading assignments, but handouts will be provided ahead of each session. For those who want to have a deeper understanding of Quakerism, there will be suggested readings from three books that are available from the FGC bookstore:

• Michael Birkel, Silence and Witness: The Quaker Tradition. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2004
• Thomas Hamm, The Quakers in America. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003
• Lloyd Lee Wilson, Essays on the Quaker Vision of Gospel Order. Wallingford, PA: Pendle Hill Publications, 1993

This short course is open to everyone. It would be helpful if you would let me know ahead of time so I can prepare enough handouts.