Untitled Document

Adapted from a brochure produced soon after September 11, 2001, and presented at several Meetings since, with modifications dictated by their needs. It is currently undergoing further modifications in preparation for presentation at a retreat for Centre Meeting to be held November 6, 2004 at the Goodstay Center.

In the aftermath of the events of September 11, 2001 and the military response of this country and its allies, Friends are called to re-examine our peace testimony. In a world which contains evil and hatred, we must discern how God is calling us to witness to the power of love?

One issue raised in the threshing sessions held at locations throughout the Yearly Meeting on September 30th, 2001 was how to respond to those driven by hatred and a desire for vengeance on a personal, individual basis. In responding to hatred we will never convince others unless we ourselves are convinced of the power of love. In engaging others it is important to listen, and then meet them where they are. It is equally important that we not speak from that we cannot ourselves own.

Different Friends will give different reasons for the peace testimony. Some, like early Friends, base it on the direct immediate guidance of the inward Light and, as did early Friends, may use the Bible to support their position (see the Declaration of 1660). Others base it on a concern for what violence will do to their own spiritual state. Still others take George Fox’s phrase “that of God in every person” and refuse to harm one who shares the divine spirit (F&P extract 217). Many Friends find it useful, in responding to those who advocate violence, to point out that violence invariably sows the seeds of more violence; “violence begets violence.”

Note: In what follows F&P refers to Faith and Practice of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, 1997.

Quakerism arose in a time of civil war. The king, Charles Stewart or Charles I, had been overthrown but had escaped captivity. He would be defeated again, and executed. Parliament would rule the country with Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector. There was still resistance, particularly in Ireland. Religious issues were central.

Before 1660 there was no peace testimony. In 1651 George Fox was in prison in Derby, England, jailed for blasphemy. He tells us in his Journal (Nickalls edition, page 65) that he was approached by Commonwealth Commissioners who were raising an army from those in the prison, and asked to be captain. He refused saying: "I told them I knew whence all wars arose, even from the lusts, according to James' doctrine; and that I lived in the virtue of that life and power that took away the occasion of all wars." (see F&P extract 215)

The doctrine of James to which he referred is found in the first three verses of the Epistle of James: "From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts." (KJV)

Fox found in the Bible a confirmation of his own inner experience, and he was speaking only for himself. This was not yet a corporate testimony. In fact, later in this decade and before the restoration of the Stewart kings, he was to go on and encourage Cromwell, to raise an army against the Catholics in Ireland. It would seem he accepted in others what he himself was unable to do. Calvinists preached human depravity; Fox preached the possibility of perfection, but not yet to the point that all were ready for it.

It wasn't until 1660 (1661 on our calendar) that in response to a specific political situation, twelve Friends wrote on behalf of the whole Religious Society of Friends to declare we would never take up outward weapons. The occasion for The Declaration of 1660 was that the king had been newly restored in the person of Charles II, son of the deposed Charles Stewart. There were those who wanted to depose him also, which they thought would bring about the second coming of Christ. The Declaration of 1660 was written to disassociate Quakers from these other sects that shared our eschatological rhetoric, and convince the king that Quakers were not a threat. Ever since then the denial of fighting with outward weapons has been the corporate position of the Religious Society of Friends. To quote from that declaration (F&P p.77): “… the spirit of Christ, which leads us into all truth, will never move us to fight and war against any man with outward weapons, neither for the Kingdom of Christ nor for the kingdoms of this world … Therefore, we cannot learn war any more.” This is the point at which we can begin to speak of a Quaker peace testimony. Yet this was not uniformly understood. Later that year Isaac Penington wrote Magistrates Protection of the Innocent to state that force was justified in what we today call police power.

After the Toleration Act in 1689 (for which Quakers, particularly Margaret Fell, lobbied) Friends largely withdrew from the political fray, keeping to themselves. We became a peculiar people and our testimonies served to make us distinct and separate. In 1693 William Penn wrote of a plan for a European Parliment, moving from refusing to fight to creating the conditions for peace. We refused to engage in war, or pay war taxes (though taxes "in the mix" were generally acceptable). Quakers moved to the American colonies and held a majority in several of them at one time or another. In 1681 William Penn was granted the colony of Pennsylvania, but this "Holy Experiment" was ended in 1756 when most of the Quakers in the Assembly resigned rather than impose a war tax. John Woolman was prominent among those raising this matter.

When the 13 colonies rebeled against British rule Friends were admonished to remain loyal to the crown rather than take up arms (influential Philadelphia Friends were merchants and the fact that British money was stronger may have been a factor). Many Friends joined the revolution. Nathanael (or Nathaniel) Greene became general and was known as "the fighting Quaker." "Free Friends," as they were known, were those who joined the Contenental Army and were concequently disowned by their Meetings. There were enough of them to have their own meeting house at 5th and Arch in Philadelphia. In the American Civil War many Friends fought on the Union side, seeing slavery as the more important issue. Again many were disowned. In the 20th century we were more forgiving and disownment wasn't automatic for those Friends who entered the military. It is estimated about half of eligable Friends entered the military during World War II and the Korean War.

Until the middle of the 20th century Friends, like the other historic peace churches the Brethren and Mennonites, saw their peace witness primarily in terms of refusing to participate in war. The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) was founded in 1917 to provide an opportunity for Friends to provide alternative (to military) service. I see the publication in 1955 of the tract “Speak Truth to Power” by that organization as symbolic of a change to an activist stance. This change was inspired in part by both the Ghandian Indian independence movement, and the threat of nuclear war, and gained momentum from association with the civil rights movement in the United States. The emphasis was not on renouncing violence for ourselves so much as on being peacemakers. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9). During the Vietnam War the AFSC provided medical and other humanitarian aid to both sides.

The Quaker peace testimony was pretty much a statement that we will not fight, or pay for war, for most of our history. It wasn't until the mid twentieth century that we began to work for peace, became peace activists. This change was in response to the nuclear arm race which threatened us all with annihilation, and drew on tactics developed by Gandhi in his work in South Africa and the Indian independence movement. It was further supported by the example of the non-violent American civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King, Jr..

Some Friends identify peace primarily as an inward spiritual state, others focus on personal relationships and community, and still others on public policy and matters of war. No one of these is the peace we seek. All are of a piece. We can not advocate peace unless we possess it ourselves. Likewise we will not possess it if we don’t witness to it in our community and the world.

All males in this country are required to register for the draft with Selective Service when they turn 18 years of age. At this time there is no draft, but it is important that young people, particularly, but not only males, be prepared for the possibility that Selective Service be reactivated and they be called up.

Some Conscientious Objectors (COs) consider it to be cooperation with war preparation to register at all. This is civil disobedience and as such is a weighty decision. Those who do not register are not eligible for government funding for education, or for civil service employment. Many states also impose penalties, and it may be that unrelated acts such as getting a drivers license will automatically register one.

It is not possible to register as a conscientious objector now. Registrants will be classified if and when Selective Service is reactivated, but by then it may be too late to make your case as the system will be on an emergency footing and processing will move fast. Any who are conscientiously opposed to war need to begin to document their position before Selective Service is reactivated.

It was John Woolman who, in a letter signed by 20 Friends in 1755, raised in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting the concern over the paying of taxes in which a substantial portion went for war and preparation for war. It was in the following year that many Friends resigned from that assembly over the issue of war taxes.

Today some Friends express their peace witness by refusing to pay taxes which go for war. One approach is to reduce one’s income to the point there is no federal tax liability. Another approach is to deliberately withhold the portion of one’s tax which would go to pay for war (FCNL estimates this percentage each year) and place it in an escrow account, or on occasion contribute it to causes deemed more appropriate (F&P extract 221). In either case of withholding a portion, the government will likely seize the amount owed plus interest and penalties; criminal prosecution is also possible.

The federal tax on your phone bill was instituted to pay for WW2 and continued to pay for the war in Vietnam. It is therefore a “war tax” and some Friends deduct it from their phone bill and include a note of explanation with their payment.

War tax resistance is civil disobedience and those who are considering this form of witness should seek assistance in the discernment (clearness) process with their meeting and consult professional advice. For help in this, contact Joan Broadfield at the Yearly Meeting office (joanb@pym.org).

Our Meetings and schools can become embodiments of Isaiah’s vision of the “peaceable kingdom” (Isaiah 11) which were depicted in the paintings of the 19th century Quaker painter Edward Hicks. In more contemporary terms they can become “zones of peace” as described by Elise Boulding.

There are many people disturbed by the current war hysteria who are seeking communities in which God’s peace is known and cherished.

The Applying the Peace Testimony Working Group has a project “Every Meeting a Peace Center.” Just as the tiny mustard seed (the seed being a favorite metaphor of God’s presence for early Friends) grows into a large bush, so too our meetings can grow into strong communities of faith as they witness to God’s presence among us and in the world.

One zone of peace, which gathers every Sunday for one hour at Independence Mall, is the Prayer Vigil for Peace in the World. Weekly reports are posted on the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting web site www.pym.org. Contact Jorge Arauz (215-423-7465) or John Gallery (215-242-1269) for information.