Quaker Testimonies

The experience of Friends was that the Light led them into an understanding of the Christian

life and the way it was to be lived. We express the principles they discovered in terms such as Truth, Equality, Simplicity, and Peace. However, these are not abstract qualities, but vital principles of life. Early Friends expressed them in the ways of action which they called the testimonies and for which they were prepared to suffer ...

(Introduction to section 19.33 in Quaker Faith & Practice)

"Our testimonies are alive and developing, and sometimes we disagree. They spring from insights which we hold in common as Friends, though we often live them out in the world as individuals." (Quaker Peace and Social Witness Testimonies Committee)

"Our understanding of testimony is that it expresses our deepest sense of how God would have us be and act." (Testimonies Committee Terms of Reference 2001)

The Peace testimony is perhaps the most widely known today. Much more can be found on our "Quakers & Peace" page here.
For more about: Truth & Integrity see here; Simplicity see here; Equality see here; Sustainability & the Environment see here.

For personal "testimonies", that is, personal views and experiences from Quakers, see here.

Truth & Integrity

From the earliest days Quakers were known for speaking truth as they experienced it inwardly in their meetings for worship. They didn't make a distinction between belief and action. Truth was almost more of a verb than a noun; it was something which you 'did' as you experienced it. As they responded to a vibrant inner reality and obeyed the promptings of the Divine Light within, then action and speech became a natural reflection of that experience. And in acting in this way they came to discern more of its nature, and were led further into expressing it outwardly. So a testimony to truth developed which, in particular, led Quakers to be known for their honesty, straightforwardness, and integrity.

from Engaging with the Quaker testimonies: a Toolkit (published 2007), available from Quaker Books, Friends House

'Truth' is a complex concept; sometimes the word is used for God, sometimes for the conviction that arises from worship, sometimes for the way of life.

Introduction to QF&P 19.34

Back to top of page

Simplicity

The testimony to simplicity was originally called plainness and it was about returning to the truth. It questioned and rejected false values and practices. In 1688 George Fox warned friends, 'Keep your testimony against the world's vain fashions'. The 'world's vain fashions' at that time were patterns of speech, dress and behaviour which were designed to keep people in their social place. For Quakers to keep this testimony meant refusing to use the deferential 'you' when speaking to those of high status, using instead the plain 'thou' to all people. It meant avoiding costly clothes and furnishings and avoiding courtly manners, because these things reinforced unequal social divisions and denied our true equality. The witness to simplicity was therefore radically linked to the other testimonies to equality, truth and peace...

Simplicity like all the testimonies is essentially a spiritual discipline. We simplify our lives in order to come closer to the Truth. We reject those things which are unnecessary and superficial, because we know they are what John Woolman called 'cumber' - things which clog up our life and divert us from what really matters. So the testimony is both a moving away from the things of the world and a moving towards the things of God.

from Engaging with the Quaker testimonies: a Toolkit (published 2007), available from Quaker Books, Friends House

The heart of Quaker ethics is summed up in the word 'simplicity'. Simplicity is forgetfulness of self and remembrance of our humble status as waiting servants of God. Outwardly, simplicity is shunning superfluities of dress, speech, behaviour, and possessions, which tend to obscure our vision of reality. Inwardly, simplicity is spiritual detachment from the things of this world as part of the effort to fulfil the first commandment: to love God with all of the heart and mind and strength.

The testimony of outward simplicity began as a protest against the extravagance and snobbery which marked English society in the 1600s. In whatever forms this protest is maintained today, it must still be seen as a testimony against involvement with things which tend to dilute our energies and scatter our thoughts, reducing us to lives of triviality and mediocrity.

Simplicity does not mean drabness or narrowness but is essentially positive, being the capacity for selectivity in one who holds attention on the goal. Thus simplicity is an appreciation of all that is helpful towards living as children of the Living God.

QF&P 20.27

Back to top of page

Equality

Our testimony to equality stems from our experience of a divine love for all at the heart of the universe. This love is oblivious to wealth, status and power. It was this conviction that led early Friends to refuse to doff their hats to social 'superiors'; even today Friends tend not to use titles and many do not accept honours either. But, it is this original, underlying religious understanding that we need to hold on to. There is, indeed, that of God in everyone, and so we need to build all our relationships, personal and political, near and far, and all our actions in the world, on the basis of this experience.
If we know and remember this, we will come to accept and value the diversity of all people. In early centuries Friends took what was considered to be a progressive approach to women, to children, to prisoners, to those with psychiatric illnesses and eventually to slaves. More recently we have been challenged to understand how we and society marginalise people affected by unemployment, homelessness, homophobia, racism, and disability. This continues to be a very significant and binding part of our common spiritual experience.

from Engaging with the Quaker testimonies: a Toolkit (published 2007), available from Quaker Books

We commit ourselves to learning again the spiritual value of each other. We find ourselves utterly at odds with the priorities in our society which deny the full human potential of millions of people in this country. That denial diminishes us all.

Public Statement agreed in session at London Yearly Meeting 1987

Back to top of page

Sustainability & the Environment

There is a body of Quaker testimony, which for convenience we sometimes divide into simplicity, peace, truth, etc. We see our concern for the environment/sustainability/the planet as an integral part of that body of testimony. The concern has always been there but is now, with changing circumstances, coming into sharper focus. It is an offshoot from somewhere deeper, and points back to deep issues, and we need to articulate this dimension along the expression of care for the planet. We wish to affirm the preciousness of the planet. It is the only place where we can live out our discipleship and we need to love and to value it.

It seems to us that a testimony should spring from a place of love rather than fear, have a corporate dimension, be about witness as well as coming from the divine, and, like an act of worship, lead us back to the divine. But the ultimate test of testimony is whether Friends live it.

We have not yet found the right word or phrase to describe this testimony (indeed we wonder if the English language has such a word) but it is in the area of overlap of care, respect, love, symbiosis, honouring, valuing, hospitality, stewardship, nurture, humility, adaptation and accommodation, peaceable living, interconnectedness, awe, wonder, relationship, harmony, consecration, sacramental or holy living.

From Quaker Peace & Social Witness Testimonies Committee, minute 2006/07 of 26 February 2006, to Quaker Peace & Social Witness Central Committee.

We do not own the world, and its riches are not ours to dispose of at will. Show a loving consideration for all creatures, and seek to maintain the beauty and variety of the world. Work to ensure that our increasing power over nature is used responsibly, with reverence for life. Rejoice in the splendour of God's continuing creation.

Advices & Queries 42

For more information about Environmental Campaign Resources for Quakers and access to other parts of the UK Quaker website see here.

For more about Quaker Green Action see here.

For more about the Living Witness Project (Quakers working for sustainability) see here.

Back to top of page