Page Religious Society of Friends - Tokyo Monthly Meeting
We are a small group that meets, in silence, to seek God, every Sunday at 10:30 am at the Tokyo Meeting House.
We invite other seekers of Truth to join us in our search.
The Quakers, or more formally the Religious Society of Friends, are a religious group that functions without dogma, sacraments, or a paid clergy. The Religious Society of Friends was founded on the insights of George Fox who sought to return the Church of his day, mid 17th Century England, to the spirit of early Christianity. George Fox believed that everyone had a spark of the Divine, or ‘that of God’ within them.
This insight has set Quakers (or Friends) on a dual spiritual journey.
One aspect of this journey is internal: a prayerful contemplation of our portion of the Light within - so we may use it to collectively discern the will of God. Traditional Quakers worship in silence although, in parts of North America and Africa, Quaker worship has evolved to include pastors and churches. The silence may be broken by brief vocal ministry. This ministry springs from an individual's deepening experience of their relationship with God.
The other journey is external: to recognize, foster, and protect the Divine nature of our fellow human beings. For Quakers this includes a strong sense of social activism. We are pacifists, and believe implicitly in equality, integrity, social justice, and simplicity.
Acting on these beliefs Fox and early Quakers came into direct conflict with the established Church. Theologically they challenged the episcopal church's reasons for existence. If everyone had ‘that of God within’, then they did not require intermediaries between them and God. They could personally experience a relationship with God. They believed that prophetic discernment of the will of God did not end with the writing of the Bible, and that they would remain open to ongoing or continuing revelation. Further, if everyone had ‘that of God within,' then everyone had access to the salvation promised by Jesus, whether they had heard about it or not. While Quakers in the beginning were Christian in their faith, today not all Quakers are Christian. Many join us to seek God using the insights of other religious traditions.
The belief that all people were equal in the eyes of God, led early Quakers to confront the social structure of their day. They refused to doff their hats to anyone, use titles, or take oaths; actions that are continued today. As a result of this unconventional behaviour Quakers in the mid 17th Century were often assaulted or jailed. In later times the belief in spiritual equality led Quakers to early involvement in the movements to abolish slavery, the death penalty, and war. It also led to the equality of women and men in the functioning of the Religious Society of Friends.
Today, personal integrity is still considered absolutely important in dealing with others, because they too have the inner Light. In a sense, all of life becomes a sacrament, and all human interaction should be worship.
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