I was brought up as a Quaker.
Although Quakers now are seen as mildly harmless eccentrics, this wasn’t always the case.
Quakers were one of the groups that arose out of the turbulent upheaval of the English Civil War. This was a period when Royalty was overthrown, and for a time this country was a Republic. When the monarchy was restored Quakers – along with others whose beliefs were suspect – were kept out of positions of power. As they didn’t subscribe to Anglican beliefs, they couldn’t get a university education and the professions were closed to them. So the most intelligent and enterprising Quakers tended to go into the business.
For centuries Quakers kept themselves – and were kept – apart. They had their own schools. They would only marry other Quakers. Their plain modest clothing made them look different.
There’s a level on which being a Quaker can still put you at odds with ‘normal’ society. I am not sure quite whether we should belong now that David Cameron’s decided we’ve had enough of that nasty multiculturalism.
We strive to be truthful at all times, so we reject the idea of swearing oaths in court and ‘affirm’ instead. We try to avoid even minor forms of gambling – so buying Lottery tickets isn’t really on. Believing in equality, we don’t like using titles. (So if I got introduced to the Queen, I’d show her the politeness I would try and show anyone. But I’d not be bowing or saying ‘Ma’am.’)
Not all of us are teetotal, but most of us are very aware of the negative effects of alcohol. So there’s no such thing as a Quaker pub crawl. We party on fruit juice and herb tea. It’s a bit on the quiet side, but then you don’t get troubled by hangovers.
And we are pacifists. In the two World Wars, Quakers were conscientious objectors. We worked in Ambulance Units, to try and save life. We did not kill.
We are very conscious of the suffering that war causes, but we don’t wear poppies in the run up to Remembrance Sunday. While Quakers respect the good work done by charities working with retired service people, if we wear any decoration it’ll be a white poppy. The proceeds from the sale of white poppies go towards peace education work.
Because Quakers, while very practical, are also idealists. We believe in doing our utmost to find non-violent ways to resolve conflict.
This is perhaps the most challenging part of being a Quaker. On the other hand it’s also extremely sensible. Have there been times when the UK has got involved in trying to ‘solve’ problems by the use of military force, only to find that the problems just aren’t that easily solved? Yes, I think there have been…
So when someone else from a ‘different’ religious faith, decides that he or she isn’t going to conform with what the great majority are doing, my first inclination would be to say, ‘Yes, I know what that feels like. I know what it can cost….