Faith D’Urbano on Febuary 4 submitted a letter to the Lancaster Newspaper’s editor addressing Senators Fetterman and McCormick regarding an imminent vote on funding the Department of Homeland Security. While hoping for the letter to be published, she shared it with Lancaster Friends Peace and Social Concerns Committee and Downingtown Friends Peace and Social Concerns members.
[Read more…] about A Friend from Caln Quarter and her Recent Letter to a Lancaster Newspaper
constitutional rights
The Drinkers & Prisoners of Congress at Arch Street Meeting House
Norman E. Donoghue, II, will discuss his book, Prisoners of Congress: Philadelphia’s Quakers in Exile, 1777-1778, and Philadelphia Quaker, Henry Drinker, during the American Revolution on March 19, 2026, at ASMH.
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5:30 PM – Refreshments
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6:30 PM – Keynote Speaker: Norman E. Donoghue, II, Prisoners of Congress: Philadelphia’s Quakers in Exile, 1777-1778
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7:30 PM – Book Signing: Author Norman E. Donoghue, II will be available for questions and book signings.
In 1777, Congress labeled Quakers who would not take up arms in support of the War of Independence as “the most Dangerous Enemies America knows” and ordered Pennsylvania and Delaware to apprehend them. In response, Keystone State officials sent twenty men—seventeen of whom were Quakers—into exile, banishing them to Virginia, where they were held for a year.
Prisoners of Congress reconstructs this moment in American history through the experiences of four families: the Drinkers, the Fishers, the Pembertons, and the Gilpins. Identifying them as the new nation’s first political prisoners, Norman E. Donoghue II relates how the Quakers, once the preeminent power in Pennsylvania and an integral constituency of the colonies and early republic, came to be reviled by patriots who saw refusal to fight the English as borderline sedition.
Surprising, vital, and vividly told, this narrative of political and literal warfare waged by the United States against a pacifist religious group during the Revolutionary War era sheds new light on an essential aspect of American history. It will appeal to anyone interested in learning more about the nation’s founding.
Minute of Support for PYM from the Missoula Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
At our Meeting for Business on April 13, 2025, we recorded the following minute of support:
The Missoula Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends is united in our support for the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends et al v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security et al.
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Minute of Support for PYM from Wilmington Monthly Meeting
Wilmington Monthly Meeting, Delaware, minutes its unity with Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, Baltimore, New England and New York Yearly Meetings, Adelphi and Richmond Monthly Meetings, and other affiliated groups in filing the lawsuit against the federal Department of Homeland Security on January 23, 2025. The suit seeks to deny the ability of federal immigration agents to enter our places of worship in order to take enforcement actions against any part of our community. [Read more…] about Minute of Support for PYM from Wilmington Monthly Meeting
Quaker Walk 2025
Quakers from Brooklyn and Queens are partnering with faith, interfaith, and other groups to organize a 265 mile solidarity walk from Flushing, Queens to Washington, DC. In a time where our democracy and first amendment freedoms are under attack, the goal is to invite faith communities and concerned neighbors across the country to stand in unity with all individuals who are being unfairly and unconstitutionally targeted by this administration as well as send a message about our shared humanity. The three week walk will be punctuated by events and demonstrations building energy and momentum towards the arrival in Washington D.C. as well as motivating communities to stand up for our basic freedoms. When the walkers arrive in D.C., they will deliver a historical petition called the Flushing Remonstrance and a series of demands to members of congress.
Minute of Support from Richland Monthly Meeting
Minute of Support Recorded on February 9, 2025
Richland Monthly Meeting would like to add its support for the lawsuit that Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends, along with other yearly meetings and individual meetings, has filed against the Department of Homeland Security regarding the possible placement of agents of enforcement in houses of worship. Our Meeting agrees that this kind of activity disrupts worship, instills fear, and is unconstitutional. It is heartening to know that Friends are willing to stand up for their beliefs, as this lawsuit indicates.
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Minute of Support from Middletown Monthly Meeting (Lima, PA)
Review of the PYM & other Quaker organizations suit against Department of Homeland Security
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Message from St. John’s Worship Group, Newfoundland and Labrador
Dear Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, Baltimore Yearly Meeting, New England Yearly Meeting, Adelphi Friends Meeting & Richmond Friends Meeting,
We are from St. John’s Quaker Friends Worship Group, a meeting in Newfoundland & Labrador that was formed in the late 1970’s. Some of our members are from the United States, many of us have family and other ties there, and our convener, Liz Ohle, is a member of Mount Toby Monthly Meeting, which is part of New England Yearly Meeting.
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Minute from North Shore Friends Monthly Meeting
North Shore Friends Monthly Meeting commends NEYM for their prompt action in partnering with Friends in Philadelphia and Baltimore Yearly Meetings in a lawsuit challenging new policy changes which would allow immigration enforcement in houses of worship.
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A Greeting from Northern Monthly Meeting
Dear Friends,
I am writing to you in my role as clerk of Northern Monthly Meeting, based in Auckland New Zealand.
