Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

of the Religious Society of Friends

Quaker History

The PYM Library: An Opportunity for Community and Stewardship

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The Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Library, formally known as the Henry J. Cadbury Library, has been an important part of our community since the 1970s, offering valuable resources for Friends and the wider community. It houses a collection of materials, including books by Quaker authors, resources addressing modern and historical issues, and items for spiritual growth and discernment. The library has served PYM as a hub for individuals and monthly meetings seeking to deepen their faith, strengthen their community, and engage in social witness.

[Read more…] about The PYM Library: An Opportunity for Community and Stewardship

Fellowships at Haverford College Quaker & Special Collections 2025-2026

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Applications for short-term Fellowships in Quaker & Special Collections at Haverford College are NOW OPEN! Fellowships must be used between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026. Submission deadline is February 16, 2025. You can find more information on our website, which also includes our application form.

Fellows can utilize the vast array of original primary materials in Quaker & Special Collections around Quakerism, mental health, US history, and much more.

Please contact Sarah Horowitz at shorowitz@haverford.edu with any questions.

Image is of the diaries of Anna Spencer.

Fox Forward: 400 Years and Beyond

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July 2024 marks the 400th birthday of Quakerism co-founder George Fox. For more than a year, Friends around the world have been pondering and planning how to celebrate the life and legacy of this 17th century spiritual leader. Fox was a gifted speaker who drew on his Christian faith to challenge societal injustice in his time, but he is not a “famous Friend” without aspects of his life and ministry that we are called to consider in the light of today. Almost four centuries after his public ministry shaped the beginnings of the Religious Society of Friends, across the globe Quakerism continues to evolve and contribute to our wider society. Shared here are available resources for summer celebrations and year-round learning about the legacy of George Fox at 400.

[Read more…] about Fox Forward: 400 Years and Beyond

PYM’s Joey Leroux to Lead Tour of Philly’s Quaker Business Influencers

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Join Joey Leroux, PYM’s new Director of Grantmaking & Data and co-founder of Beyond the Bell Tours, on Saturday, June 1, for Phriends Influencing Philly, a first-of-its-kind interesting and informative walk (with some surprises in store!) exploring Quaker business impacters in Philadelphia. Beyond the Bell Tours designs inclusive historical tours of Philadelphia highlighting people and communities typically left out of mainstream tourism. Joey holds a degree in Economics from Haverford College, where he was introduced to Quaker history in a course with Emma Lapsansky. He looks forward to sharing the hidden history of Philadelphia with you.

The group will start at Arch Street Meeting House for a light breakfast, departing for the tour at 9:30am featuring: Philadelphia’s Forgotten Founder, Hannah Callowhill Penn; Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, the first medical school in the world to offer medical degrees to women founded by Quakers in 1850; Anna T Jeanes, Quaker philanthropist still impacting Friends today; Strawbridge & Clothier, a Quaker business dedicated to service to customers, community, and employees; Dr. Caspar Wistar, physician and anatomist; the Legend of the Penn Treaty Elm; and more!

Accessibility: There are restrooms and benches along the route if needed. Wheelchairs and strollers are welcome. The tour aims to take the pace of a casual stroll and will last approximately an hour and a half. The walk will traverse concrete and brick sidewalks and cobblestone streets. There are no steps to climb once departed from ASMH, and curb cuts on and off sidewalks will be followed.

What to bring: This is a rain or shine event. Please come wearing weather-appropriate clothing, comfortable shoes, and water to stay hydrated.

The tour will conclude with fellowship, food, and continued fun at National Mechanics. The deadline to register is May 28 and there is a limited number of spots available.

Phriends Influencing Philly Details
Saturday, June 1, 2024
Coffee, tea, and a light breakfast, 9:00 am
Tour departs ASMH, at 9:30 am
Tour concludes with fellowship, food, and continued fun at National Mechanics at 11:00 am
Distance covered: The tour is approximately 1.5 miles long
Parking is available at Arch Street Meeting House

Cost: $50
(Includes breakfast and tour. Food at National Mechanics is not included.)

Young Adult Friends Cost: $35
(Use code “YAF” when registering)

Register here by May 28 to secure your spot!

Questions? Contact Merri Brown at mbrown@pym.org or 215 241 7115

Funding Opportunities from the Friends Historical Association

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The Friends Historical Association is pleased to offer funding to support contributions to the field of Quaker history.

There are three grant opportunities: project support, publication subventions, and research funds.

All opportunities run on the same cycle, and applications are due May 15, 2024.

Details about each opportunity and application instruction are provided at https://www.quakerhistory.org/grants

Image: Library Assistant Linet Mmbone readies the space for the Africa Quaker Archives. Quaker Religious Education Collaborative (QREC) received a grant from FHA in 2020.

Spring Continuing Sessions REWIND

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Continuing Sessions Rewind 

Last weekend, Friends from across the four states of our PYM footprint came together for Spring Continuing Sessions. We learned, listened and felt the joyous presence of Spirit in community while we explored the 2024 Sessions theme, “Called to Healing.” Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business was held on Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon, and minutes from business sessions will be on the website in coming days. Because the Annual Sessions schedule is shorter this summer (July 6-7), our times for business at Continuing Sessions weekends are being extended.   [Read more…] about Spring Continuing Sessions REWIND

Feature Film about Friend Rustin Bayard Opens November 3rd

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A movie focused on the life and work of Friend Bayard Rustin is being released in the coming days, joining the 2002 documentary Brother Outsider and offering a new way for the wider public to learn about the peace, labor, and civil rights organizer and activist. [Read more…] about Feature Film about Friend Rustin Bayard Opens November 3rd

Darby Friends Meetinghouse Named as Underground Railroad Site by National Park Service

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Church Creek, MD – The National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom accepted the Darby Friends Meetinghouse and School site, in Darby, Pennsylvania., as one of 23 new listings, from the 46th round of applications, representing sites and programs in 14 states across the U.S. and Canada. These new listings, alongside more than 750 sites, facilities, and programs already in the Network, provide insight into the diverse experiences of freedom seekers who bravely escaped slavery and allies who assisted them. [Read more…] about Darby Friends Meetinghouse Named as Underground Railroad Site by National Park Service

Margaret Fell: “Mother of Quakerism”

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A question that we might ask today, “How can we make our meeting a community in which each person is accepted and nurtured and strangers are welcome?,” is one that would also have resonated with Margaret Fell Fox. Known as “The Mother of Quakerism,” Margaret Askew was born in 1614 in the Lake District of northern England. She married and became Margaret Fell at the age of 17 and was the mother of eight surviving children with Judge Thomas Fell. When she died in 1702 at the age of 88, Margaret Fell Fox had outlived her second husband, George Fox, by eleven years. The Quaker movement in 17th century England survived early persecution and grew as a religious movement in part because of Margaret’s social privilege, organizing skills, care for community, and deep faith. [Read more…] about Margaret Fell: “Mother of Quakerism”

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