About Friends

Quakers and the Religious Society of Friends

Quakers and the Religious Society of Friends in general

Quakers are Members of the Religious Society of Friends. Friends or Quakers--either name will do as they have the same meaning. In Honolulu Friends Meeting we worship in silence, unprogrammed, without choirs or sermons, listening for God's message to our hearts.

Quakers do not have creed or dogma. They have principles based on the Testimonies: Simplicity, Peace, Integrity and Truth, Community, and Equality. Quakers don't claim to have all the answers but ask lots of questions. Modern Quakers dress in all sorts of ways, do not have special diets, and are known to be ecologically conscious.

Quakers got their start in the 1650s in England, under the leadership of George Fox. The early followers were called Seekers of the Truth, Friends of Truth or Children of the Light because they believed that the "Christ within" or "Inner Light" is in every person. They believed, in essence, a return to New Testament Christianity that living in the Spirit was sacred in itself, so there was no need for creeds, dogma or external sacraments.