To be honest, I bought
the wrong Ormond on Amazon. It was cheaper than the books at the bookstore, and I
did not realize that it was the wrong book until I was halfway through and I
realized that the book was never changing its setting from Ireland to America.
(I also was talking to Megan about it and she had no clue what I was talking
about because she read the correct book). I have only read the first
couple of chapters so I am not able to discuss the theme of Ormond as I had
hoped. (I am so bummed because I wrote a Kick-a** post about theme for the
other book about how obedience to the man outways the need for independence,
but nope that did not happen.)
My best friend calls me a pineapple because even though I am brunette, I have way too many blonde moments. This is me being a pineapple. I feel so stupid and disheartened that I did that, I am not the person who does not do her out of class work. I may procrastinate a bit due to getting overwhelmed by everything, but I don't just not do the work. Anyways this post will be about the history of the Quakers and their belief system from the very beginning of the book because I just started it and probably will not be done with it until next week.
The Religious Society of Friends arose in seventeenth-century
England, at a time of religious and political turmoil. There was great
dissatisfaction with the established Church of England, with its legal monopoly
of public worship, oppressive tithes, and corruption. Dissenting groups,
including Roman Catholics, Presbyterians, Puritans,etc. vied for the spiritual
and political loyalties of the populace, and in the case of the first two, for
control of the government. During this time of civil war, Oliver Cromwell, the
leader of the puritanical revolutionaries called “roundheads,” held the title
of Protector, and was the head of the government.
As a young man, George Fox, a leather worker, walked throughout
England seeking someone who could guide him to authentic religious experience.
He was exposed to many of the theological ideas and practices of the time, but
found no satisfaction until a day in 1651 when he had a profound religious
experience.
Thereafter, Fox became the leader of a loosely-knit group of
traveling evangelists, some of whom were already convinced of the same truths
Fox was preaching, and some of whom were convinced by him or others. The
founding of Quakerism is generally given as 1652. Fox climbed a large rock
ridge in northwest England, called Pendle Hill, and looking westward toward the
sea, had a vision of a great people to be gathered. Soon thereafter, he
preached to a large gathering at Firbank Fell, starting a wave of conversions.
About half of the early Quaker leaders came from this event. Quakers wanted to
live in peace but were not tolerated in places of Europe and were thought of as
heretics and were thus forced to leave for the new World where they could lived
the rest of their days in peace and harmony.
The main Beliefs of the Quakers (though not all of them believe
all of these) are:
Baptism - Most Quakers
believe that how a person lives their life is a sacrament, and that formal
observances are not necessary. Quakers hold that baptism is an
inward, not outward, act.
The Bible - Quakers' beliefs
stress individual revelation, but the Bible is truth. All personal light must
be held up to the Bible for confirmation. The Holy Spirit, who inspired
the Bible, does not contradict Himself.
Communion - Spiritual
communion with God, experienced during silent meditation.
Tenet - Quakers do not
have a written tenet. Instead, they hold to personal testimonies
professing peace, integrity, humility, and community.
Equality - From
its beginning, the Religious Society of Friends taught equality of all
persons, including women. Some conservative meetings are divided over the issue
of homosexuality.
Heaven, Hell - Quakers believe
that God's kingdom is now, and consider heaven and hell issues for individual
interpretation. Liberal Quakers hold that the question of
the afterlife is a matter of speculation.
Jesus Christ - While Quakers beliefs
say that God is revealed in Jesus Christ, most Friends are more concerned
with emulating Jesus' life and obeying his commands than with the theology of
salvation.
Sin - Unlike
other Christian denominations, Quakers believe that humans are inherently
good. Sin exists, but even the fallen are children of God, Who works to kindle
the Light within them.
Trinity - Friends believe
in God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit, although belief
in the roles each Person plays vary widely among Quakers.
Sacraments - Quakers do not
practice a ritual baptism but believe that life, when lived in the example of
Jesus Christ, is a sacrament. Similarly, to the Quaker, silent meditation,
seeking revelation directly from God, is their form of communion.Quakers often
sit in a circle or square, so people can see and be aware of each other, but no
single person is raised in status above the others. Early Quakers called their
buildings steeple-houses or meeting houses, not churches.Some Friends describe
their faith as an "Alternative Christianity," which relies heavily on
personal communion and
revelation from God
rather than adherence to a
creed and doctrinal
beliefs.
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