 MARCH/APRIL 2002 (XXXX 2) |
I was first introduced to the Society of Friends in 1995 by a co-worker in Annapolis, Maryland. He was a birthright Friend, who had joined an Episcopal Church after his first child was born. Our discussions revolved around comparing our spiritual outlooks, their similarities and differences. He lent me a copy of The Story of Quakerism by Elfrida Vipont. I was fascinated by Friends almost from the beginning because of their attention to an active living faith. But at that point, Quakers still remained an intellectual curiosity for me.
The Support and Outreach Standing Committee would like to know your stories of how you came to the Religious Society of Friends and what keeps you here. We offer this column as a means to tell your tales. If you are a convinced Friend, how were you introduced to Quakerism and at what point did you realize that you were one of us? If you were raised a Quaker, what were your experiences growing up and what encouraged you to stay with Friends? Through these stories we hope to learn what works and does not work in sharing the Religious Society with others.
Please write it all down in 300 words or less. Send your story to PYM News, 1515 Cherry Street, Philadelphia PA 19102 or by e-mail to Editor Allen Reeder at allenr@pym.org.
About the same time, my girlfriend (who has since become my wife), Stacy, was attending Temple University’s graduate school. One Sunday in the fall of 1995 she joined some friends from her undergraduate college who were going to attend Central Philadelphia Meeting as part of a course assignment to investigate various religious denominations. At the rise of meeting, Stacy’s friends were not that impressed, but as she walked away Stacy realized she needed to bring me there. The following weekend I came to visit her from Maryland. That Sunday, she dragged me to worship and we ended up staying for coffee hour. We stopped by the Meeting’s Welcome Table, where we were warmly greeted and made to feel genuinely appreciated for being there. (Thank you Joyce and Audrey.) I picked up a copy of the 1973 Faith and Practice, took it back to Stacy’s apartment, and read it from cover to cover that afternoon.
I remember feeling that Friends seemed to have something I was seeking. I was struck by the lack of the terms “heaven”, “hell”, and “sin.” Here appeared a faith that challenged my daily living. Rather than chastise me when I fell short, it accepted the misstep and encouraged me to keep going. Over the years of associating with Friends and being an attender at Central Philadelphia, I became aware of changes in my behavior, from using cloth napkins instead of paper ones to how I approach people with more respect and understanding.
The final step for me came in 1999, during the Kosovo military action. I listened to my rather conservative family members advocate positions of war and even the belief in mandatory military service for all citizens. I knew that I could not agree with them and had to finally accept the fact that I was a Friend. I submitted my letter for membership, and was accepted into the Society at meeting for business in October 1999.
Christopher Schanno
Central Philadelphia Meeting
Support and Outreach Standing Committee
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM