Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

of the Religious Society of Friends

Supports for Quaker Community in Times of Trouble

This page holds resources concerning care for community, crisis response planning, buddy systems, worship sharing, alternatives to calling the police, plus state-specific websites and some democracy organizations. We know that different communities have different needs and interests so have provided a range of alternatives.

Influx of Newcomers and Care for the Community

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting helps local Quaker communities cultivate meaning and purpose by being part of a larger network of Quakers. In times of civil unrest, the role of wider spiritual community becomes ever more critical. Local Quaker communities, including Friends Meetings, typically experience an influx of newcomers in search of support. Committees and groups within meetings that care for the worship and for the pastoral care of the community need to be prepared to:

Crisis Response Preparedness

We recommend developing an overall crisis response plan. Philadelphia Yearly Meeting uses this crisis response plan, which can be adapted to the needs of your local Quaker community.

Friends Counseling Service

Friends Counseling Service offers psychological support to members of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, their families and regular attenders and staff. Services include individual psychotherapy, couples counseling and family therapy. Therapists in the Counseling Service are mental health practitioners licensed and insured in the states where they work. All are active members of PYM.

Worship Sharing

Some meetings have already organized worship sharing within their meetings. People can volunteer to convene virtually in small groups for the purpose of responding to queries. This is a way of getting people community and basic support. This is not considered a replacement for more acute mental health intervention or group therapy. There are several ways to conduct worship sharing. Here are two methods that we like to use:

Buddy System

We highly recommend the implementation of a buddy system during periods of uncertainty, assigning all known people in the community the responsibility to check in on at least one other person to ensure they are okay.

Emergency Response Preparedness

Friends may be wondering how they can prepare for election-related crises as an emergency response and in other ways. Find below a list of resources by state and democracy-related organizations:

Emergency Response by State

Democracy-Related Organizations & Articles

Alternatives to Calling the Police

In the context of civil unrest, Friends may be wondering how to interact with the police. We have compiled a list of resources to help guide you in your discernment:

Providing Sanctuary 

Some meetings may be considering whether and when to provide sanctuary to individuals. We recommend reviewing this article from the American Friends Service Committee.